Skill Set Read Online Free Page B

drifting back out to the window.
    There were two people in the large office across the street who were standing close to the wall-sized plate glass. The men seemed to be having a heated discussion. One was jabbing a finger accusingly at the other's chest, while he shouted. They were drawing the attention of the co-workers and then, suddenly it turned violent. One man pushed the other and then a fist flew through the air and connected with a jaw.
    Rose ’s foot slid down from the desk and he sat up a little straighter in his chair, intrigued by the fracas. However, a loud ’ beep ’ from the computer brought him back to the job at hand.
    The search had found nothing Foxhound and the CIA didn’t already know. The hack had come from within the Oval Office, using one of the computers in the building. Determining he was not going to find out anything this way, he shut the computer down and pushed his chair back from the desk. As he stood up, he clicked the intercom on his desk.
    “ Yes? ” a female voice answered.
    “ Hey, Jennifer, ” Isaac said. “I need you to get me an appointment for a meeting with the defense secretary.”
    “When?” she asked.
    “Soon as possible. . .” He, glanced over his shoulder just in time to watch a thick sheaf of papers hit the opposite window. “And it has to be with her, in person,” he added. “ I don ’t want to be fobbed off with one of her aides.”
    Jennifer ’s chuckle was distorted over the intercom. “ Trust me, ” she assured him. “Have I ever let you down?”Smiling, Isaac released the button and walked over to a large cabinet in the corner of the room. It was actually a wardrobe and he pulled a suit from its hanger , draping it over his arm.
     

* * *
    Isaac had to show his ID three times, was frisked twice and then was signed into four different sections of the defense secretary ’s office. She finally greeted him and despite the rigorous checks just completed, she also asks to see his ID.
    Rose shrugged, and reached into the inside pocket of his jacket and showed her his card and badge.
    She looked at it with amusement. “Never thought I’d see one of these,” she admitted. “Thought you guys were something of an urban legend,” she smiled. “Follow me,” she added, the light banter gone as she spoke in a much more business-like tone.
    She led him down a corridor, stopping at a pair of open double doors. Halting, she nodded ever so slightly, inviting him to enter.
    Rose fiddled with the knot of his tie. “ Thank you, ” he said, as he glanced around the large room. It had a domed ceiling, a sitting area with two large couches and fireplace. Over by the window was a huge desk, on which sat a closed laptop, a stack of papers and a bonsai tree. “Japanese white pine?” he asked.
    “ Mm hmm, ” she mumbled, closing both of the doors behind her. “ Yes, good eye. . . You ’ve grown bonsai?” Her heels clicked on the hardwood floor as she walked toward her desk.
    Isaac mentally catalogued her as in her mid-forties, but still looking good. She obviously worked out and a professional application of make-up coupled with dyed blonde hair allowed her to look easily as if she were a woman a good five to eight years younger.
    “ No, ” Isaac responded. “No, it’s just one of those factoids I’ve come across before,” he said, his tone respectful and non-committal.
    “I see,” she replied with a nod. “ Well, ” she sighed, her tone changing back to matter-of-fact. “ I ’m guessing you're here because of our hack?” “ Yes, ” he watched her eyes as he spoke. “I realize the CIA has probably already spoken to you, but I wonder if I could ask a few questions?”
    “If you think it’ ll help, ” she said good-naturedly. “ Shoot. ” Leaning back on the front edge of her desk, she crossed one ankle over the other.
    sighedIsaac remained standing. “Is it usual for that kind of correspondence to be sent unencoded?”
    “ Ah , no, no, ”