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is that
their machine has limitations. For instance, it can steer a storm or it can
strengthen one, but doing both strains the machine’s capabilities. Hurricane Katrina
is an example of that."
    Dev
frowned. "Katrina was an Itor storm?"
    "Absolutely.
And I’m sure New Orleans was the target. Thing is, she should have weakened
more than she did. I think Itor tried to keep up the intensity, and doing so
caused a problem with steerage. The storm slid east instead of striking New
Orleans head-on. The irony is that Itor’s mistake actually caused more damage
overall than a direct strike would have done. The way it turned out, the city
still took massive damage because of the levy failures, and everything to the
east was devastated in a way that might not have happened if Itor had gotten
its way."
    "Bastards,"
Remy growled. Louisiana was his home state, and the bayous, food and people
held a special place in his heart. After the time she’d spent with him there,
the state was in her heart as well.
    "So
what’s the bottom line?" Dev leaned forward, and finally Haley allowed
herself to meet his sharp gaze.
    She
could barely contain an astonished gasp. The man had always been striking, but
there was a new spark about him, a glint in his seeing brown eyes. She wanted
to tell him how great he looked after his sabbatical, but her relationship with
him had always been extremely professional, much more so than he required.
    She
cleared her throat. "Basically, I believe that in order for the Itor
machine to achieve maximum effectiveness, its operators have to wait for the
perfect atmospheric and oceanic environments. That’s what the synoptic code was
about. Normally, synoptic code communicates existing weather conditions, but
this code was more of a plan of optimum conditions. And unfortunately for us,
the optimum conditions for a strike are taking shape." She moved to the
map she’d unrolled. "Right now there’s a minimal hurricane in the
Atlantic, moving toward Florida."
    "So
you think they’re going to strike, what, Miami?"
    "No.
I believe the plan is to make us think they’re going to hit
Florida." Dev tapped his fingers on the table as though annoyed, so she
hurried on. "Late-season hurricanes are often East Coast strikes. The
storms can move fast. Terrifyingly fast. If all the conditions fall into the
perfect alignment suggested by Itor’s code, Itor is going to aim a hurricane at
Florida, and while everyone is watching the south and resources are diverted,
at the last minute Itor will slide the storm up the East Coast. They’ll
strengthen it here"—she pointed to a spot on the map—"and here, and
here."
    She
took a deep breath. "This sucker will move so quickly that no one will
have time to get out of the way. We’re talking a matter of hours."
    "Jesus,"
Dev muttered.
    "Where
are they going to bring it in?" Remy asked, but his tight expression told
her he already knew the answer.
    "New
York City."
    Dev
pegged her with a hard look. "Is that possible? That a hurricane could hit
New York?"
    "Powerful
storms are rare, but they happen. And New York is due. The last bad one struck
in 1938, a category three that killed six hundred and changed the landscape
around Long Island. The geological impact is still being felt today. In 1893, a
minimal hurricane wiped an entire island off the map." She pointed to
Manhattan. "The area is far more built up and populated now. Imagine what
will happen if Itor brings in a category five, or even what could amount to a
category six hurricane. It’ll flood the city, the subways. Wind will funnel and
strengthen between the high-rise buildings. Tens of thousands will die. Maybe
more. It’ll take years to recover. This will be the most devastating occurrence
in the modern history of North America. Wyatt needs to destroy that machine.
Fast. If he doesn’t do it before the hurricane crosses this point"—she
pinned a tack to a spot on the map—"it won’t matter if the machine is
destroyed or