CHAPTER 46

Billy took a moment to reflect on how to reply to Lee, to try and answer his friend's very legitimate and yet still unanswerable question. Before he could find the right words, a knocking at the door interrupted him.

"Come!" he bellowed to the would-be visitor.

He recognized Jan, one of the night administrative staff.

"I'm sorry sir, but you had asked for these updates as soon as we had anything."

"Yes, yes. Go ahead," he told her.

She handed several folders to Billy.

"The purple folder is the list Ana compiled of all agents still out, and currently believed to be unaffected," she indicated.

"What about unaccountable agents?"

"Kris has the current list in the red folder. If there are any changes, her team has been posted to update you."

"Good," Billy nodded his head. "Good. That same list has been forwarded to Colonel McJohn?"

Jan nodded her head.

"And there's a team working on the trackdowns?"

"TJ has staff already on it, including some of the trainee agents. Stephy took another group of the trainees to assist in sifting through the information provided to Mr. Stetson. If there's a way to track this stuff and how it came in to the country, they'll find it."

"Excellent," Billy said, smiling a little for the first time in what seemed like an eternity.

Billy picked up the one folder and began to skim through it, while asking his next question. "Whose working the agent contact lists?"

"I believe Lynda and Rita are on those still," Jan replied before turning and looking over at Lee. "I believe they're about half-way through yours."

"Thanks," he told her, his voice sounding oddly detached and leaving Jan to wonder just exactly what she had walked into.

She didn't get the chance to dwell upon it though.

An excited voice on the other side of the door called out to them.

"Excuse me, I hate to interrupt, but I think we have some good news," an excited Patti said as she waved a sheet of paper in her hand.

"Well, share with us," Billy told her with a bemused chuckle as he watched the young woman's genuine excitement seemingly light up the entire gloomy room.

"I've got information," she said with a wide smile. "Helpful information."