Digital Fortress

David Becker climbed the last of the steep stairs and staggered breathless into a tiny stone cubicle. There were high walls all around him and narrow slits in the perimeter. No exit.

Fate had done Becker no favors this morning. As he'd dashed from the cathedral into the open courtyard, his jacket had caught on the door. The fabric had stopped him mid stride and swung him hard left before tearing. Becker was suddenly stumbling off balance into the blinding sun. When he'd looked up, he was heading straight for a staircase. He'd jumped over the rope and dashed up. By the time he realized where it led, it was too late.

Now he stood in the confined cell and caught his breath. His side burned. Narrow slats of morning sun streamed through the openings in the wall. He looked out. The man in the wire-rim glasses was far below, his back to Becker, staring out at the plaza. Becker shifted his body in front of the crack for a better view. Cross the plaza, he willed him.

***

The shadow of the Giralda lay across the square like a giant felled sequoia. Hulohot stared the length of it. At the far end, three slits of light cut through the tower's viewing apertures and fell in crisp rectangles on the cobblestone below. One of those rectangles had just been blotted out by the shadow of a man. Without so much as a glance toward the top of the tower, Hulohot spun and dashed toward the Giralda stairs.

Chapter 99

Fontaine pounded his fist into his hand. He paced the conference room and stared out at the spinning Crypto lights. "Abort! Goddamn it! Abort!"

Midge appeared in the doorway waving a fresh readout. "Director! Strathmore can't abort!"

"What!" Brinkerhoff and Fontaine gasped in unison.

"He tried, sir!" Midge held up the report. "Four times already! TRANSLTR's locked in some sort of endless loop."

Fontaine spun and stared back out the window. "Jesus Christ!"

The conference room phone rang sharply. The director threw up his arms. "It's got to be Strathmore! About goddamn time!"

Brinkerhoff scooped up the phone. "Director's office."

Fontaine held out his hand for the receiver.

Brinkerhoff looked uneasy and turned to Midge. "It's Jabba. He wants you."

The director swung his gaze over to Midge, who was already crossing the room. She activated the speaker phone. "Go ahead, Jabba."

Jabba's metallic voice boomed into the room. "Midge, I'm in the main databank. We're showing some strange stuff down here. I was wondering if-"

"Dammit, Jabba!" Midge came unglued. "That's what I've been trying to tell you!"

"It could be nothing," Jabba hedged, "but-"

"Stop saying that! It's not nothing! Whatever's going on down there, take it seriously, very seriously. My data isn't fried-never has been, never will." She started to hang up and then added, "Oh, and Jabba? Just so there aren't any surprises… Strathmore bypassed Gauntlet."

Chapter 100

Hulohot took the Giralda stairs three at a time. The only light in the spiral passage was from small open-air windows every 180 degrees. He's trapped! David Becker will die! Hulohot circled upward, gun drawn. He kept to the outside wall in case Becker decided to attack from above. The iron candle poles on each landing would make good weapons if Becker decided to use one. But by staying wide, Hulohot would be able to spot him in time. Hulohot's gun had a range significantly longer than a five-foot candle pole.

Hulohot moved quickly but carefully. The stairs were steep; tourists had died here. This was not America-no safety signs, no handrails, no insurance disclaimers. This was Spain. If you were stupid enough to fall, it was your own damn fault, regardless of who built the stairs.

Hulohot paused at one of the shoulder-high openings and glanced out. He was on the north face and, from the looks of things, about halfway up.

The opening to the viewing platform was visible around the corner. The staircase to the top was empty. David Becker had not challenged him. Hulohot realized maybe Becker had not seen him enter the tower. That meant the element of surprise was on Hulohot's side as well-not that he'd need it. Hulohot held all the cards. Even the layout of the tower was in his favor; the staircase met the viewing platform in the southwest corner-Hulohot would have a clear line of fire to every point of the cell with no possibility that Becker could get behind him. And to top things off, Hulohot would be moving out of the dark into the light. A killing box, he mused.

Hulohot measured the distance to the doorway. Seven steps. He practiced the kill in his mind. If he stayed right as he approached the opening, he would be able to see the leftmost corner of the platform before he reached it. If Becker was there, Hulohot would fire. If not, he would shift inside and enter moving east, facing the right corner, the only place remaining that Becker could be. He smiled.

SUBJECT: DAVID BECKER-TERMINATED

The time had come. He checked his weapon.