"Will it really take three hours to know the outcome?"
"Yes, ma'am. Perhaps you should rest," recommended Mardukas.
Tessa shrugged. "That would be nice, but I'd probably have nightmares, anyway."
At any rate, the missile was on its way. If the attack succeeded, it probably would take the enemy five years to recoup. Arduous recon from the intelligence division indicated that Khabarovsk had the only Whispered research facility in the country.
"Lieutenant Commander, if we can destroy the laboratory, will we recall our guards?" asked Tessa, sinking into her chair.
"Yes, ma'am. However…"
"Yes? What is it?"
"Nothing. I'm probably just being paranoid," said Kalinin, looking somewhat troubled.
"The whole laboratory is in a state of ruin!" shouted the colonel into the phone. "A missile attack, of all things! All our data is gone. We've lost every single piece of information on the Whispered."
Gauron's unsympathetic voice leaked through the phone. "I'm sorry to hear that."
"Resuming our research is impossible, so we no longer will need the girl."
"I see. That's a pity."
"Yes, you must cancel the abduction; there's no way we could pay you." The image of Gauron killing a man in cold blood flashed through the colonel's mind.
"I understand," Gauron said calmly—a little too calmly.
"Do you really?" probed the colonel.
"Of course."
"You seem awfully calm, considering your source of income is gone."
"I have many jobs," stated Gauron. "I'll go back to another employer, maybe even bring him a souvenir."
"Souvenir?"
Something clacked against the receiver.
"Do you know what that was, colonel? That was a DVD I found. Sounds like a good one, huh? It has all kinds of fascinating figures on it."
"The research data? How did you—"
"Trade secret, comrade. Be sure to write me a letter from whatever labor camp the KGB dumps you in. Goodbye, Colonel."
The colonel looked to the door. Before he could say anything, three armed soldiers burst through.
"Colonel Smirnoff?" asked a young lieutenant. "Your side job intrigued the party headquarters. You are accused of dispersing national assets to your personal accounts, resulting in a substantial loss for the nation."
"Wait, that's not—"
"Save your explanation for Lubyanka. This way, please."
The colonel hung his head as the soldiers led him away.
Deservedly, Sousuke took a day off, spending all day resting in the apartment.
That Sunday, when Kaname left her home at noon, Kurz tailed her, Mao piloted the AS, and Sousuke monitored Kaname's apartment.
Throughout the entire day, not a single suspicious person appeared. At one point, a middle-aged woman with a child rang the buzzer to Kaname's apartment, but she proved harmless.
Shortly after eight p.m., Kaname returned home safely.
"Twenty-hundred hours, six minutes. Angel is home. Nothing unusual," said Sousuke into his microphone.
Right about then, Kurz burst through the doer of the apartment, glowing with good cheer.
"Heeeeeeeere's Kurzie! Ha ha. What's the deal, Sergeant Moody?"
When Kurz spoke, Sousuke could smell the beer on his breath. Sousuke kept his eyes glued to the surveillance monitor.
"Honestly, Kurz. Drinking during a mission?"
Kurz laughed meekly. "What can you do? I was going to have just one, but Kyouko kept insisting."
"Kaname's friend Kyouko?"
"Yeah. When I saw Kaname, Kyouko, Yuka, and Shiori, I told them I was lost. 'Thank you so much! You saved me! Japanese girls are so nice!' Cute too. Ha ha!"
What Kurz lacked in stealth, he more than made up for with confidence.
"For God's sake, smack some sense into that idiot," crackled Mao's voice through the wireless receiver. She was back in the trailer with the AS.
"It isn't my fault they're so cute!" protested Kurz. "Besides, it was nice to see some girls other than a certain bitchy someone who will remain nameless."
"Kurz, this is classified guard duty. You don't want to become too attached," reminded Sousuke.
"Are you mental, bro? Getting up close and personal makes it that much easier to keep tabs on them. Obviously."
"If you become attached, it can cloud your judgment. In order to maintain a rational power of observation—"
"Yeah, in theory!" interrupted Kurz. "In times of great danger, you have to use your head, feel it out a little bit."
"But…"
"Am I wrong?"
Sousuke stared dumbly at Kurz, unable to say 'yes' or 'no.' He wasn't even sure what point he was trying to refute anymore.
