Disclaimer I do not own Spooks
The Truth in the Lies?
Beth stared at the navy dress she was intending to wear to the Ball. She hated it but it was the only thing she owned that was remotely suitable. She knew Ruth was having the same dilemma. While Erin was determined to go shopping it seemed the other women of Section D were more preoccupied with the threat the Confederation posed than with prepairing for the Ball. She smiled slightly as she felt Dimitri wrap his arms around her from behind.
"I like that dress."
"Sailor Boy, you are a terrible liar." She smiled as he rested his forehead against her shoulder. "I hate it but it's the only one that can hide my gun well enough."
"I suppose I have it easier." He kissed her.
"Yes, you do. As does Lucas, Adam, Harry, Tariq, Zaf. You men only have to wear a dinner suit and a dickie bow. " She folded her arms. "As usual you have half the hassle we do."
"I know. Female spooks are so hard done by. "He smiled as he kissed her. "But."
"But nothing." She stepped away. "I think the man you arrested with Adam and Zaf killed Terry."
"He has no prints on record. Ruth has been looking for hours. If there was something you know she would find it."
"I know." He stepped back as she turned. "If he was an assasin for the Redbacks or the Confederation I think he wouldn't have any history of arrests. I mean that would make him a liability in his line of work."
"The murder did stink of a professional hit."
"Gunshot wound to the back of the head. Execution style." Beth blinked as she thought of her mild mannered former colleague. There was no way she was going to cry in front of Dimitri again.
"Hey." Dimitri pulled her into his arms as she rested her head on his chest. "Hey." For the first time since they had found his body she let herself cry for her friend.
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Ruth stared at the report on her desk. She had ordered all the files she could get her hands on that may just give her a clue to the identity of the man in the cells below. She had hated the case from the moment the threat had been identified. Now as she read of the various atrocities that had been attributed to the Confederation while they operated in the USA she hated them even more. She felt sick as she read the FBI report on the bombing of a nightclub and Homeland Security's report on the attempted assasination of a senetor that didn't agree with their ideals.
"No." She whispered as Malcolm wandered over to her. "Not now."
"Ruth?" He stared at her as she turned the A4 paper over in her hand. "What is it?"
"I'm not sure." She mumbled as she kept her eyes on the piece of paper in front of her.
"Ruth?"
"Where's Ros?"
"She took Alec with her to interview the man in the cells. Left about five minutes ago." Malcolm sat next to her.
"Ok."
"Ruth?"
"Like I said. I'm not sure but I think I know who he is. I also think I know what he's done before." Ruth looked up as she handed him a black and white photograph taken from a CCTV camera in New York.
"Oh my word."
"I have to speak to Harry." Ruth pushed her chair away from the desk as she dug in her bag for her mobile. "He has to know before he gets to the Palace."
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Harry walked along the polished marble floor as he headed towards the ballroom. He knew the Royal Family weren't in the building but that did nothing to lessen the sense of pomp and circumstance that the building held. He couldn't help but wonder at the austere grangeur of the place, whatever the current opinion on Monarchy was the history of the palace practically permeated the walls. He nodded at a young man running through the corridors as he idylly wondered if the security screening at the palace was as stringent as it was for MI 5. He just hoped it was. The President of the USA was already on UK soil and for some unknown reason that fact made him nervous. He did not like dealing with the Americans. It still brought back memories of Shining Dawn and Christine Dale coercing betrayal not only from Tom Quinn but later Andrew Lawrence. He rested his hand on the door handle as a voice from inside could be heard. He rolled his eyes, knowing that the Home Secretary had arrived before him.
"Ah, Harry."
"Home Secretary." Harry closed the door.
"I trust you have met Diane Crawley? Head of Security at the Palace."
"No Home Secretary, but I have heard about you." He shook the grey haired woman's hand. For a moment he understood what Ruth had meant when she had called Towers slimey. He got the same impression from the thin woman in front of him.
"Diane, this is Harry Pearce. He'll be running MI5's input into tonight's event."
"Ah, I see. And how is it that you are qualified for this job Mr Pearce?" Harry smiled slightly. The woman literally had no idea who he was, which led him to think she had no background in intelligence.
"I have run MI5's counter terrorist section for the best part of a decade. Before that I was the Section Chief for ten years after moving from the military to MI6. Would you like to see my CV? Unfortuately you'd need security clearance from the Director General and possibly the Home Secretary."
"Oh. Well, if you feel your little team can handle a security detail such as this." Her clipped tones grated on Harry. He had taken a healthy dislike to the woman the moment he had walked into the room. For once he was pleased Ros had stayed back at Thames House. He knew she would have torn the woman to shreds verbally without even trying.
"I think my little team will manage." He smiled as Towers raised an eyebrow. It was going to be an eventful night.
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"Right." Zaf picked up his canvas jacket as he spoke. "I'm off."
"Where?" Zoe looked up as Erin walked towards her. Zoe had no idea what Malcolm had said to her but the brunette had been much more relaxed and likable since she had agreed to meet him.
"Just to see an asset." Zaf smiled. "Don't worry, I'll be fine."
"It's my job to worry." Zoe smiled back as he rolled his eyes and gently kissed her on the forehead.
"Nah, it isn't good for the baby."
"You've been reading those baby magazines again." Adam chipped in as he walked towards them. Erin pulled a face. She didn't do domestic. The last thing she wanted was to talk about engagements and pregnancies.
"Might have." Zaf shrugged as he picked up his mobile phone and wallet. "I wont be long."
"We wont be long." Adam corrected as he jogged after him.
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"Right then." Alec watched as Ros marched along the corridor next to him. Stan was leading them towards the interview room where the man they had arrested in the early hours was currently waiting for her.
"Question?"
"How are we playing this?" Alec paused as Ros turned to him. Her expression totally unreadable.
"We interview him." Ros stared. "Find out who he is and what the hell they are planning for this Ball."
"Yeah."
"Have you not checked your job description recently? Oh sorry, I forgot you are just used to chasing down spies that have gone a bit wonky."
"I'm not IA anymore." Alec countered. Ros smirked slightly. There were few people that would stand up to her when she was in this mood. The fact that Alec did made her respect him a little more.
"You wouldn't be anything without Harry." She watched as he looked away.
"So, good cop/bad cop?"
"I'm a traditional girl, Alec." Ros smiled.
"Not what Lucas said."
"What have I told you about believing what you hear?" She smiled as Stan turned to them.
"He's in there my love." Stan opened the door as Ros smiled slightly before stepping into the room.
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Lucas stared out of the window of the small black ford fiesta as he watched the young blonde woman walk into the cafe opposite. He knew that she was probably the missing link they were looking for. He picked up the nokia on the passenger seat as it sprang into life.
"Ruth?"
"Seems that Buckingham Palace don't have great mobile reception." She huffed.
"What is it?"
"Lucas, listen. The man in the cells is part of the Confederation. Has a daughter aged about 25-30 with long blonde hair. She's in the survellance photos we have from the police in New York."
"How did we get them?" Lucas knew the police were notoriously hard to get information from, especially police from overeas. Ruth smiled as she tapped a few keys on the keyboard in front of her.
"Anyway."
"Oh I see." Lucas couldn't help but admire Ruth's ability to 'have a look' around just about any security system or database in the western world.
"She's the weak link. If you can get her to talk then there is a fair chance we can find out what her father had planned."
"How do we know the girl in the photo is his daughter?" Lucas remembered the picture she had emailed to him earlier.
"Well, the age gap." She paused knowing that was not a good enough reason. "And the fact that she was holding another man's hand in the photograph."
"And we have no idea what her name is?"
"Lucas, since when has that stopped you? We need an ID on that man in the cells and I am drawing a blank."
"Ok." Lucas opened the car door as he spoke. "Ok."
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Erin frowned as she read the schematic report Tariq and Calum had put together. Both had been working on a 3D computerised map of the palace, with the potential places where security breaches may be noticed. Zoe handed her a coffee.
"You ok?"
"Zoe, has the section ever dealt with anything like this before?"
"A few years back. Tom Quinn was Section Chief in those days." Zoe smiled "It was a bit of a nightmare. We are doing much better now."
"How? We have a man in the cells that is currently refusing to give his name. No ID on database and a woman that Lucas is trying to turn into an asset that may or may not be the daughter of the man in the cells. We have no idea where the man pretending to be Strohm is and the body count is rising. Added to the fact that we all have to be in black tie."
"Apart from me." Zoe sighed.
"In less than five hours." Erin rested her head on one hand as she spoke.
"Not unusual for us." Zoe watched as Erin raised an eyebrow. "Look, I'll be outside in the survellance van and the whole team are going to be inside the Ballroom. We have covered every angle."
"I hope so." Erin sighed. "I know I'm supposed to be the prize bitch around here but I want this section to survive. I really do. I have been trying to get a transfer here since before Ros was brought over."
"Then just work hard and tell the truth about us." Zoe sighed. She knew Ros and Harry distrusted her but as far as she could see Erin was going to be around for a while.
"Actually." Malcolm walked across to the two women. "We may have a location for Mr Boscard. And for once I think the Redbacks was just a red herring, designed to throw us all off the scent."
"If it is." Ruth span around in her chair. "It worked. Look."
Malcolm handed Zoe and Erin a copy of the printout he had been staring at with Ruth for the last ten minutes.
"Oh. God." Zoe sighed.
"Get hold of Harry. I'll get Ros out of the interview room. Malcolm, get hold of Adam and Zaf, get Beth and Dimitri back too. Where the Hell is Lucas?" Erin stood up as she felt her pulse quicken. "How long before the President and the First Lady get to Buckingham Palace?"
"Six hours." Tariq looked up as he picked up his phone and dialled Adam. "Why?"
"If this is right, the American delegation was never the target."
"What?" Calum was lost.
"Who is the target then? We know the Confederation have been giving the US a hard time for the last couple of years." Zoe looked to Ruth. The analyst had turned paler than Zoe could ever remember.
"We are."
"What?" Zoe rested a hand on her abdomen as she began to panic slightly.
"Think about it." Ruth explained. "We have had no real leads through this op. Just a series of dead ends. First Strohm isn't Strolm, then the real one turns up dead. Ros' asset is murdered after she was blown up. None of the American security services have been attacked. Someone knows we are on to them."
"Someone who wants to discredit D and get revenge." Zoe watched as Malcolm closed his eyes. "Oh my God. Adam and Zaf!"
"Jo killed his brother." Malcolm almost whispered. "After what he did to her. After he did that. The only way they could escape was to kill him. She saved Adam's life."
"Boscard junior." Erin closed her eyes. She had no idea who Jo was but the case files explained enough of the horror the team had been through. Ruth's eyes filled with tears as the anger whelled up inside her.
"I'm lost." Calum looked at the assembled desk spooks.
"Just find Adam and Zaf. They are the target. If I am right. It's them." Ruth grabbed her bag and headed towards the pods.
"And where are you going?" Tariq asked.
"To get Harry. I've checked and double checked the information. I think they know what we are doing before we do it. They have been one step ahead for too long." Ruth bit her lip as she waited for the pod doors to open. Tariq nodded as Adam answered the phone. He knew Ruth and Malcolm were right. The Ball was just a cover to discredit and destroy his team. He hadn't been so afraid since Nightingale had almost wiped out his team. He had a terrible feeling history was about to repeat itself.
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a/n Next chapter soon. Thanks for all the reviews. Can Zaf face his demons? Is Ruth walking right into a trap and can Ros get the information she needs to save the team? Will Lucas' soon to be new asset actually be able to help?