Page 89 of The Secret of Secrets (Robert Langdon #6)
Ambassador Nagel was carefully navigating the hairpin turn on Chotkova when her personal cell phone chirped on the charger beside her. For a moment, she imagined the unfamiliar sound must be some kind of alert to inform her the phone was no longer completely dead.
But the phone kept chirping. Nagel glanced down, startled to see an incoming call—her first ever on this phone, whose ringtone was apparently set to “cricket.”
Nobody knows this line even exists…
Nonetheless, her caller ID showed a familiar name— Sergeant Scott Kerble —the lead officer on her Marine security guard detail. Nagel trusted Kerble with her life, but she was surprised that he had this number. Seeing no option but to answer, she took the call.
“Scott?”
“Madam Ambassador!” the guard exclaimed, sounding relieved. “I apologize for using your private line. I tried all your other numbers, but—”
“It’s fine—I just wasn’t aware anyone knew about this phone. Is there a problem?”
“Your residence informs me,” the Marine said, “that you’re coming to the embassy for some medication. What’s your ETA?”
Nagel slumped over the wheel. Dammit. “Actually, Scott, it’s not a convenient time. Is something wrong?” She could see the entrance to Mánes?v Bridge fast approaching ahead of them.
“I’m waiting for you at the embassy, ma’am, with an item that I believe you need—”
“Wait, I thought you were with Dana overseeing the recovery of Mr. Harris!”
“I was, ma’am, but I left Dana in charge so I could return to the embassy and give you…” Kerble hesitated, sounding uncharacteristically hesitant. “Ma’am, when I entered the flat, there was a sealed envelope lying on Mr. Harris’s body.”
Nagel was caught off guard. “I’m sorry? An envelope?”
“Yes, ma’am. By all appearances, it was left there by the person who killed Mr. Harris.”
For God’s sake. “What’s inside?”
“I haven’t opened it. I decided to remove it discreetly and bring it to you at once.” Kerble paused again, lowering his voice. “The envelope is addressed specifically…to you. ”
“Me?!” Nagel let the phone drop in her lap, grabbed the wheel with two hands, and spun it left, veering off the road only moments before she would have entered the bridge. The SUV lurched to a stop on the shoulder of Klárov just beyond the Winged Lion Memorial.
Nagel picked up the phone again. “Scott, give me a second here.”
Langdon and Katherine looked understandably alarmed, and Nagel signaled to them that she needed a moment. She killed the engine, exited the vehicle, and walked toward the riverbank with the phone pressed to her ear.
“Tell me,” Nagel snapped, more angrily than intended, “why the hell would Michael Harris’s killer leave an envelope addressed to me?!”
“I don’t know, but it was clearly meant to be found and delivered. The envelope is marked ‘Private and Personal.’?”
A gust of wind coming off the Vltava sent a chill to Nagel’s core as she struggled to understand the worsening situation.
“Ma’am?” Kerble pressed. “I am fully aware you left the residence unaccompanied. In light of this letter, I’m going to have to ask you to come in immediately.”
Nagel was half tempted to tell the Marine to open the letter and tell her what it said, but she knew he would decline.
Rightly so. She was on a cell phone, and God only knew the contents of the letter.
She could hear the concern in Sergeant Kerble’s voice and had no doubt that if she didn’t come in immediately, he would be forced to direct the entire Marine security detail to try to locate her.
Nagel glanced back at the SUV. Langdon and Katherine had both climbed out and were watching her with concern. Kerble’s voice was in her ear again.
“Ma’am?” the Marine pressed. “I can hear you’re outside. Did you slip out to do some errands?”
Sergeant Kerble’s question about “errands” was an indication that—as the kids liked to say—“shit just got serious.” The reference was a rehearsed distress call in case she was in trouble. All she had to do was say, “Yes, I’m out doing errands,” and all hell would break loose.
“Scott,” she said. “You know I don’t do errands. Bring the letter to my office. I’ll be there in ten minutes.”
“Thank you, ma’am.” The Marine sounded relieved.
Nagel hung up and headed back toward the SUV. Letenská Street was nearby, an eight-minute walk to the embassy. She obviously couldn’t take Langdon and Katherine anywhere near there.
“What just happened?” Langdon asked as she arrived.
“When it rains, it pours,” Nagel said, telling them about the envelope. “I have no idea what it says, but if I’m not back in the embassy in ten minutes, my entire security detail will be scouring Prague—and they don’t play games.” She handed Langdon her car keys. “You’ll be safer without me.”
“Any news on Sasha?”
“No, he would have mentioned it. I’ll ask my tech officer to run a facial recognition sweep of city surveillance.”
“And the phone?” Katherine said, motioning to the old Samsung in her hand. “For photos?”
Nagel sighed. “Clearly, it’s compromised. I don’t know if it’s trackable, but you shouldn’t risk it. It occurs to me anyway that if you take photos, the CIA will simply claim they’re AI fakes. You’ll be much better off finding documents and hard evidence if you can.”
“Okay,” Langdon said. “There’s one other problem.
I promised Jonas Faukman I’d phone him after getting away from your residence.
If he doesn’t hear from me, he’ll be contacting Prague authorities shortly.
I was waiting to call him until your phone was charged, but now that we know it’s compromised… ”
“What’s your editor’s direct number?” Nagel asked, reaching into the SUV for a pen and scrap of paper. “I’ll call him from the embassy’s secure line. Or I can email a—”
“He won’t believe you,” Langdon said. “He knows you’re CIA. He’ll want to hear from me directly.”
Damn, she thought. He’s right.
“Actually…” Langdon’s brow furrowed as he schemed a moment.
“Give me that.” He took the pen and paper and began writing.
“Here’s Faukman’s email address.” The professor paused, closing his eyes for a long moment, as if composing a message in his mind.
“Okay, send him this. ” Langdon quickly wrote out a strange-looking message and handed it to her.
Nagel eyed the nonsensical text. “What is this?”
“Just send it,” Langdon replied. “He’ll understand.”