Legacy Of Korr Read Free Page B

the first to know.”
    Jackie opened the file and flipped through the pages. This was a job for an army special forces team skilled enough to retrieve the high-profile targets. But if the Agency wanted to handle it, and if the PM was on board, she wouldn’t object. As long as Mathew followed through on his promise and included her in the decision-making.
    “One more thing,” the PM said. “I want one person to handle this. Someone who’d stay on top of things and coordinate with our allies.”
    “I have many talented people. I’m sure—”
    “No,” the PM said, interrupting Mathew, “I want Noah William to handle this.”
    Mathew frowned. “Noah is retired.”
    “Given the circumstances, we can get him on board, just this one time.”
    “Okay, I’ll contact him today.”
    Jackie knew he hated the idea. He pressed his thin lips, and his jaw trembled for a moment. Noah was good. He was the best possible choice, but he and Mathew didn’t end up on good terms. The PM himself asked for Noah, and Mathew wouldn’t object—at least not outright.
    “I don’t have to remind you both,” the PM said, “this assignment is our top priority and everything related to it is privileged information.”
    Jackie and Mathew nodded. She had to push the shield project, and Mathew had a flight to catch and a tough conversation to have.
    *****
    Clouds covered the sky of Melbourne. Rain poured on the wide, crowded streets, the high rises, the pedestrians, and the trams alike. Tourists roaming the CBD rushed into the shops or hugged the walls to take cover from the rain. Still, families lined up with their kids to look at the Christmas decorations.
    Noah pressed the pedestrian crossing button a few times and waited on the sidewalk. The crossing signal was red. Noah looked to the left and to the right before he darted to the other side toward one of the popular cafes in the heart of the city. The only way to make this meeting less dreadful was the best coffee Melbourne had to offer.
    He folded the umbrella and shook it before he entered the small shop and headed to the counter.
    “Medium cappuccino, please.”
    “Where are you sitting, sir?” The young cashier asked.
    He pointed to the table where Matt, ASIO Director General, sat down, sipping a cup of coffee. His suit dripping wet. “Over there. The table with the wet, old man.” Noah paid and strolled to the table until he reached Matt. “You look a hundred.”
    Matt took a sip of his coffee. “You try running the agency and see how you look in five years.”
    Noah took a seat and placed his umbrella between the chair and the wall. The smell of Matt’s coffee bombarded his nostrils. “Did they force you to take a pay cut?”
    Matt put down his cup. “What?”
    “You’re walking around in the rain without an umbrella?”
    Matt smiled thinly. “I didn’t think it would. It was sunny and bright when I landed.”
    “Visitors always complain the weather is shifty. Never bothered me.”
    Matt shrugged and took another sip of his coffee. “I need your help.”
    “You need another suit.”
    “I know we didn’t end on good terms, but I need you to lead an assignment. There isn’t anyone else who can shoulder it.”
    Didn’t end on good terms? That’s an understatement. He’d tried his hardest, and they tossed him out the door the second things went wrong.
    “I’m done with the Agency.”
    “Well, I thought you might say that,” Matt said and reached into a leather bag next to him and grabbed a file. “You’ll do more good in this assignment than you’ve done in your fifteen-year career.”
    Noah glanced at the file in Matt’s hand, stood up, and picked up his umbrella. “I wish you’d called. I would’ve saved you a trip and a nice suit.”
    Mathew pushed the thin file across the table. “Just take a look, will you?”
    Noah picked up the file. He hesitated for a while before he opened it and went through it. Alien landing twelve hours ago in Perth. Noah