Page 46 of Spymaster

“So far,” the young man stated.

“I can see that. Are you being paid to monitor your Instagram account or the hospital’s closed-circuit cameras?”

Lucas hung his head. He had already failed the police entrance exam once. All he wanted to do was to become a cop. Now he had been caught shirking his professional responsibilities by an officer from the same department he wanted to join.

He was convinced he had blown any chance of being hired until Officer Johansson said, “Never mind. I need a favor.”

“Certainly. What is it?”

Pulling a portable drive from his uniform pocket, the tall man handed it to the young security guard and said, “I need all your footage from the last hour.”

“Why?” the guard asked, as he accepted the drive, found a cable, and attached it to his system. “Are you looking for someone?”

Obviously I’m looking for someone, thought Officer Johansson.Goodness, this kid was a moron. How he’d even been hired by the hospital was beyond him.

“I don’t have a lot of time,” Johansson said, ignoring his question.

“How is it out on the street tonight?” asked the guard as he tapped several keys on his keyboard and isolated the footage the policeman had requested.

“Can I trust you to keep this between us?” the officer replied, as the footage began to download.

“Yes, sir. Absolutely.”

“We’re hunting a jewel thief.”

“Ajewel thief? In Visby?” the eager security guard asked, as the download neared completion. “Did you think he came here? To the hospital?”

“What do you think?”

The young man paused for a moment, thinking, and then replied, “Of course! That’s why you’re here.”

“You’re going to make an excellent police officer one day, Lucas. You have a real nose for it. How much longer on the download?”

“Done!” the guard exclaimed, unplugging the device and handing it back to Officer Johansson.

“When’s the next exam?” the cop asked.

“Two months.”

“Are you ready?”

The guard grimaced.

“Keep studying,” advised Johansson.

“I will sir.”

“Good.”

When the officer got to the door, he turned and addressed the young man one last time. “A patient’s car was broken into in the parking lot tonight. Her bracelet was stolen. If you see or hear anything about our jewel thief, let us know.”

And with that, Johansson left the security office and exited the hospital. He’d have to wait until his shift was over and he could establish a secure connection, but he had no doubt that his handler and Moscow were going to appreciate having video footage of the American.

CHAPTER 28

KALININGRAD

Oleg Tretyakov poured himself a glass of wine as he processed the recent spate of intelligence reports he had received. The first had been the most troubling. The cell on Gotland had been under surveillance. But as far as they knew, by only one person—an older man in his sixties.