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Austin told hiive him the chance to think He put his seat back, closed his eyes, and tried to iine the events Trout had described in their phone conversation By the tie that they were about to land, Austin was erecting a irders into thin air

Trout aiting for them as the Citation taxied to a stop He'd bathed and shaved and had borrowed a ca cleaned The uniform was made for the s ar him a spidery aspect

"Thanks for co their hands

"We wouldn't haveyou in that uniforrin

"Suit's being laundered," Trout replied with some discomfort

"You look quite fetching in cauished Rambo, wouldn't you say, Joe?"

Zavala shook his head slowly "Dunno I think al type Jean Claude Van Damme, maybe"

"I'lad you rushed down here at NUMA expense to evaluate my sartorial splendor"

"No problem at all It's the least we could do for a pal"

Trout's face grew soly faces Thanks for co so quickly Gamay needs backup in the worst way"

"She'll get ot a plan"

Zavala glanced over at the Special Forces boxes being unloaded from the plane "Uhoh," he said

The greatest asset for a sniper is not aim, Guzman mused, but patience He sat on a blanket in the bushes on theshore of the Potomac River; his cold eyes fixed on the Victorian boathouse exactly opposite He had been there for hours, lapsing into a detached yet alert zonore the nu insects He had watched the sun go doare of the beauty of the river but not connecting with the changing reflections and shadows in any emotional way

He knew Austin was not coht flicked on in the living room of the darkened house He lifted the Austrian Steyr SSG 69 sniper's rifle froht on the picture of a boat hanging on the wall A squeeze of the trigger would send a bullet winging across the river at 2,821 feet per second He ue, then lowered the rifle, picked up a cell phone, and dialed a number at NUMA headquarters

The answering e said Mr Austin would be away froave NUMAs office hours and asked Guze he wanted to give Mr Austin He punched another nu in a car parked outside Zavala's house in Arlington