Page 29 of The Atlas Maneuver

“I’m here, Cotton,” she finally said.

“Everything okay?”

“Not really. Your friend Koger is a bit high-strung.”

“To say the least, but he’s no fool. Something is definitely happening here.”

“Did Austin say anything?” Koger asked.

“She told me she created bitcoin.”

What?

“She actually did,” Koger said.

Even more surprising.

“I have to have her back, alive, intact,” Koger said. “That woman has information no one else on this planet has. I need it. More than you can imagine.”

There was that desperation again.

She had to say, “Then aren’t you glad Captain America is on the job.”

“Okay, I deserve that one,” Koger said.

“Cotton, is this our problem?” she asked.

They’d made a pact that when one wanted to involve them in something, the other would keep a clear head. Since this was Cotton’s party that she’d been invited to, that duty fell to her. So she added, “Koger has a lot more resources at his disposal to solve this than we do.”

“Ordinarily,” Cotton said, “I’d agree with you. But this is not ordinary.”

She was puzzled. “Care to explain that?”

“I will. Just not now.”

She heard what had not been said.

Cut me some slack. Okay?

“Help me out there,” Koger said. “I need her found and fast. I’m countin’ on you. We’ll handle things here. And I don’t care what rules you break, I got your back. Understand?”

“I got it.”

“Be careful,” she had to add.

“Always. Same to you.”

The call ended.

She glanced over at Koger and asked, “Where arewegoing?”

“To see a man who knows an awful lot about stolen gold.”

CHAPTER 18

CATHERINE STABBED THE BUTTON FOR THE THIRD FLOOR AND STOODalone in the elevator car. Her analytical mind raced. She detested chaos. Her world was one of order. Facts. Figures. Balance sheets. A precise sequence of things. One thing after the other leading to a reasonably predicted result. But what had just happened was the precise definition of a disaster.

The elevator arrived and she stepped from the car, telling herself to slow down. Be calm. Show nothing. On the way across the floor she passed a couple of subordinates, one she stopped and chatted with for a moment. When finished, she walked into the office for the bank’s director of information and technology and greeted the administrative assistant, saying that she was expected.