“What was that, Chief?” she asked.
“Oh, nothing. I just find it ironic that Jared’s post office box is the same number as the unit you are assigned to, Sammie.”
“I noticed that too. Do you think it means something?”
“I don’t have a clue,” he answered as he pushed the key in and turned, pulling the door open. Inside several envelopes lay piled along with a few folded-up maps and a single key taped to the top of the metal box. The key was inscribed in German—the words for Deutsche Bank.
“A key? What do you suppose that’s to?” Samantha asked. The puzzled look on her face was as apparent as she thought it was since Raleigh answered quickly.
“Well the key says Deutsche Bank, so I am going to assume it is to a safety deposit box at one of those banks. Let’s get out of here. We can look over the rest of the stuff back at the hotel then decide what to do from there. Sound good to you?”
Gathering the pile of papers and envelopes, they headed to the truck then the hotel. It was getting close to fourteen hundred hours so they needed to review the information quickly before the general left for the day; otherwise, they would have to wait until the following day to get to see him.
***
Raleigh spread the papers out on the dining table of the hotel room. Sitting down, he opened one of the envelopes and pulled out copies of financial documents from various banking intuitions. The biggest holder of funds was Deutsche Bank in Frankfurt, Germany.
“Well, that’s interesting!”
“What’s that?” Samantha asked as she sat in the chair next to Raleigh.
“It’s financial statements from banks all over the world—Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, the Cayman Islands, Luxembourg, and Barbados. As long as I’ve known Jared, he’s never been to these countries. So these have to belong to Al-Balshera or at least his organization.”
Raleigh handed Samantha a few of the documents, and she started to skim through them. “Raleigh, just this statement alone accounts for millions of dollars,” Samantha said as she continued to thumb through the other documents that lay spread out on the table before them.
Raleigh leaned back in his chair and scratched his head with both hands. “I am thirsty!” he said as he stood up and grabbed his key card. “You want anything from the machine, Sammie?”
“Yes, please, you know what I like,” she said with a wink.
“Darlin’, you gotta wait on that,” he said with a smile. “For now I’ll grab you a Diet Pepsi.”
Pouting, Samantha turned back to the papers before her. “All right, if I gotta wait, I’ll take a Diet Pepsi, babe.”
Raleigh winked at her then proceeded out the door to the vending machine. Grabbing two sodas and a bag of chili Cheetos, he headed back to their room. As he rounded the corner, the hairs on the back of his neck started to tingle, a sure sign to him that he was being watched. He checked around, looked behind him, and saw nothing, only a long hallway and a hotel maid he had passed earlier when they arrived. Weird, it’s almost seventeen hundred hours. Wouldn’t think they would still be cleaning rooms.
Raleigh continued down the hallway, passing the woman, and scanned the cart for anything that seemed out of place. He noticed what appeared to be a blood-soaked towel stuffed into a clear bag that hung on the cart, meant for garbage from the rooms. Not stopping, he continued toward his room until he was standing at the door fumbling for his key card; the sound of the wheels on the cart caught his attention, and he watched as the maid pushed the cart toward the elevator and out of his view.
Finally finding his key card, he opened the door and tossed Samantha her soda. “Weirdest thing just happened. I passed a maid in the hallway; the trash bag on the cart had what looked like a blood-soaked towel.”
“Why is that weird? We are in a hotel, Raleigh.”
“It’s weird because it’s after seventeen hundred hours and housekeeping is usually gone by now,” he said as he walked over to the window and shut the curtains. “Why don’t we call room service and eat in tonight? Would that be all right with you, babe?”
“Sounds great to me. I am always up for spending time alone with you.” As she spoke, she gave him a wink.
“I hear you, darlin’. Why don’t you go ahead and order dinner?” he said as he started to pace throughout the room, checking the peephole in the door then walking back to the window to peek through the curtain.
“Is everything all right, Raleigh?” A look of concern washed over her face. Raleigh stopped pacing and walked over to sit next to Samantha, who was curled up on the couch next to the phone.
“Everything is fine as frog hair, Sammie, I promise. It’s just something about that maid has me on edge. I’m sure it’s nothing, just some paranoia.”
“Are you sure, Raleigh?” Samantha grilled him.
“I’m sure, darlin’. I’m just wound tighter than a three-day clock. Been a crazy day and one I’m not likely to want to repeat. I just need to stay here close to you and cuddle till supper gets here. I’m so hungry I could eat the north end of a south bound mule.”
Raleigh pecked her on the cheek then in one quick motion slipped his hand under her shirt and gave her left breast a light teasing squeeze. At the same time, he fumbled for his Glock that sat in his computer bag on the floor next to the couch where Samantha was. His movements finally caught Sam’s attention, and she quickly pulled away.
“I thought it was all nothing, Raleigh. If it’s all fine, then why are you grabbing your Glock?” she questioned as she straightened herself on the couch next to him.
Raleigh paused for a moment, knowing full well that he couldn’t lie to her. She would know if he was; she had a way of being able to read him like a well-worn book. “It’s just a precaution, Sammie, really. I promise. It’s just a gnawing in my gut that something is off with that maid,” he said as he cleared the pistol and pulled out the magazine to load it.
“Should I grab mine?” she asked as she got up from the couch and grabbed her laptop bag and pulled out her pistol. Raleigh watched as she cleared the weapon and removed the magazine with the grace and elegance of a fine southern lady.
“Sammie, that’s one of the million reasons I fell in love with you.”
“Oh yeah, and what’s that?” she asked.
“Because you come prepared to kick ass and you always have my back. My kinda woman,” he said as he picked her up and tossed her onto the king-sized bed, leaning over and pressing his lips to hers. As their kiss deepened there was a knock at the door.
“Damn, cockblocked again,” he said as he stood up and peeked through the peephole in the door, his pistol at the ready. Samantha was already standing on the other side of the wall that divided the room, her weapon also ready. “It’s supper,” he said as relief washed over him. He opened the door, and the waiter pushed the cart inside, only pausing to hold his hand out for a tip. Stuffing his hand into his pocket, Raleigh gave the man a ten-dollar bill, thanked him, then quickly pushed him out the door.
Pushing the cart closer to the table that sat in the room, Raleigh lifted the plate covers to reveal burgers and fries. Raleigh’s face showed a distinct pout of disappointment that Samantha was beginning to read pretty well.
“Well, aren’t you the romantic one?” he said, laughing.
“Well, of course I bought my favorite,” she said with a grin.
“Your favorite, huh? Well, I suppose I can let it slide this time, but next time you get spanked,” he replied as he slapped his hands together. “Next time, I bend you over my knee and spank that nice round ass of yours.” Raleigh pulled the chair out from the table, and she sat down as he bent to kiss her neck.
“And how do you know I wouldn’t like for you to spank me?” she teased as he sat down across from her. His cock twitched as the words slipped from her mouth.
“Oh, Sammie, you are a little vixen, aren’t you? I really like this side of you.” Taking a bite of his burger, he winked at her.
“Baby, you�
�re gonna find out a lot about me that you’re gonna enjoy, I promise you that,” she teased.
Patting his lap, he called her over. “I hear ya, darlin’. I think I can handle what you got to give. Why don’t you come sit down over here and let’s see what comes up?” He waited for a response, but she just looked at him and grinned, her eyes lit up like fireflies, as she munched on a mouthful of fries.
“I do love the way you think, Raleigh Fitzgerald.” Samantha got up from her chair and moved toward Raleigh. Standing over him, she sat on his lap, straddling his waist. Leaning forward, she covered his lips with hers. Her arms wrapped around his neck, their kiss becoming more wanton as Raleigh’s hands moved up her ribs just under her shirt. He cupped her breasts in his hands and gently squeezed them as moans escaped her lips. He pulled her shirt up over her head, tossing it to the floor.
He took each nipple into his mouth, one at a time as Samantha’s moans became louder. Her hips moved against Raleigh’s cock as it strained to break free from its confinement inside his uniform pants.
He kissed her neck then whispered into her ear, “Wanna move this over to that big bed right over there?”
“Oh yes, please,” she answered as Raleigh reached his hands under her ass and started to carry her to the bed. As he stood up, cracks of machine gun fire filled the air, and the window to the room busted as glass and debris flew around the room. The sound of a helicopter whistled as bullets flew from every position. Raleigh and Sam hit the floor and low crawled to a safe position behind a wall that separated the living room and bedroom.
Bullets seemed to be flying from everywhere, pieces of sheetrock flew in the air, dust and wind filled the room, and the noise was almost deafening. Raleigh pulled his pistol from his waistband and leaned around the corner to get a glimpse of who was shooting, but all he could see was lights from the chopper, glass, dust, and debris. He fired but had no luck hitting anything.
Bullets kept flying, then as quickly as it had started, it was over. The sounds of the chopper faded as the helicopter flew off into the distance.
Chapter 10
“Are you okay, Sammie?” Raleigh looked at Samantha as they got up from behind the wall. Sam hurriedly grabbed her shirt and slipped it over her head before the police arrived.
“Yeah, I’m good, just shook up a bit, but I’m okay,” she replied, the sounds of sirens getting louder as the police moved closer to the hotel.
“Pull yourself together. The police will be here any minute. They know me around here so before you ask, they won’t say anything. We are safe for now, but I think we need to tell command sooner rather than later. At least if I tell General Andrews before he finds out from someone else, he’ll just counsel us and make sure we are not in the same unit. We’ll talk about it later. Right now, I wanna make sure you are okay. You’re bleeding.”
“I am?” she replied, then finally felt the sting of pain on her right arm. “Ouch! That hurts!”
“Looks like a flesh wound.” Grabbing the bed sheet, he tore a piece off and wrapped it around Samantha’s arm. “I will kiss it and make it better later, darlin’.” Raleigh leaned in to kiss Samantha right as the police screamed, “Freeze! Drop your weapons!”
As the officers approached, one of them paused and stood a few feet away when he said, “Fitz, is that you, brother?”
Raleigh stood and stared back at the officer. A look of recognition and a smile swept over his face. “Roberts? Holy shit, brother. Where ya been keepin’ yourself? Big time cop now, I see.” The men exchanged handshakes and Roberts ordered the other officers to holster their weapons.
“Guys, this is Fitz! You know, the crazy motherfucker that decided one night he’d parachute naked into downtown Fayetteville on a dare. Y’all remember me tellin’ that story? This is the man, the legend.”
“Rob, man, that was years ago. So, hey, can we get a paramedic to come look at this?” He motioned to Samantha’s arm, still bleeding even after Raleigh had wrapped it.
“Yeah, I will have one of the guys call one up.” Roberts called one of the officers over then turned to Raleigh. “Okay, you wanna tell me what happened here?” Roberts asked.
“Isn’t it a little obvious?” Raleigh replied. “The room got tore the fuck up.”
“Did you see who did it?”
“Nope, couldn’t see a fuckin’ thing. The lights on the chopper shined right in our faces. All I know is one minute we were eating, and the next we were low crawlin’ on the floor of the hotel room, glass flying everywhere. I gotta guess who it could be.”
Raleigh explained to Roberts the whole string of events—the murders of Jared and Semeana, the stolen equipment, the sting operations in New Orleans, and the death of the terrorist organization’s leader, Saheed Al Bashera. He told Roberts how Jared had joined the terrorists, how Al-Balshera’s death had catapulted his younger brother Jahan to the leadership role, and that the letter Jared left when he died led Raleigh to suspect Jahan.
Roberts paused for a moment to collect his thoughts, and Raleigh could tell by the look on his old friend’s face that the whole thing came as a surprise to him. “So…wait…Tommy is dead? And a traitor?”
“Yup. I know it’s hard to believe, but it’s the truth.” Raleigh’s voice seemed to crack as he told his friend of the betrayal and that he still had to fly home to Alabama to tell Jared’s father of the death of his only son.
***
Samantha
Samantha watched as the two men reminisced about the old days and the stories of their time serving together. She had to figure out their relationship, but since they knew a lot about each other, she concluded that Roberts must have been in the 9th Special Forces.
“Ha, hard to believe is a fucking understatement of the year, brother.” As they discussed more about the case, a paramedic arrived to look at Samantha’s arm. He helped her up and told the two men he was taking her downstairs to the waiting ambulance for transport to the hospital for stitches. Samantha started to argue, but Raleigh stopped her mid-sentence. “No arguments, Sammie. I will be right down to ride with you. I am just going to grab our stuff from the room first.”
“But I…” she tried to argue.
“No…now go. I will be right down. I promise. I am not gonna let anything happen to you or me.” He tried to reassure her, but he could tell she wasn’t happy being separated from him. Their partnership had gone from a working one to intimate very quickly, but it didn’t feel fast to her at all. It felt like they were meant to be together. Fate had intervened once, and Samantha decided she would not allow fate to interfere again, unless that fate was that they would spend the rest of their lives loving each other.
***
Raleigh
“Ah, Fitz, man, I’m sorry, but I can’t let ya remove anything from the scene until we process it,” Roberts said as he walked Raleigh from the room. “You go down and help out your friend, and as soon as we process the scene, I will call ya. But it’s gonna be a few days, though.”
“Well fuck, that’s gonna put us in a bad spot. I have evidence in there that concerns my investigation, as well as no clothes to change into. I gotta at least get my evidence bag and papers. Can ya call your chief and see if you can process it now then release it into my custody? We can do a chain of custody form so we can both keep track. Give ‘im a call would ya, for old time’s sake?” Raleigh almost begged, and Roberts finally gave in and called his chief who ordered the crime scene technicians to process what Raleigh needed quickly so he could proceed with his own investigation.
“I appreciate you callin’, brother. I’m gonna go catch up with Samantha and ask the hotel to set us up in a new room. Looks like I gotta do some shopping tomorrow. Thanks for everything, Rob. I appreciate ya,” Raleigh said as he got into the elevator.
“Hey, no problem, brother. I will call ya in the morning so you can come by and pick up your evidence,” Roberts said as he shook Raleigh’s hand just as the door to the elevator started to close.
/> When Raleigh reached the lobby and stepped out of the elevator, the foyer was full of hotel guests standing around as the police checked each one—taking statements and answering questions. As he passed the officers interviewing witnesses and hotel guests, he overheard one of them tell another they had found a body that the hotel manager had identified as one of the maids.
When Raleigh approached the reception desk, he was greeted by the hotel manager who, despite being clearly shaken and upset, had already made the arrangements for another room and to have some clothing delivered to them in the morning. Raleigh thanked the manager then quickly made his way outside to the waiting ambulance to accompany Samantha to the hospital. A paramedic stopped him.
“Sir, are you family?” the paramedic asked as he held Raleigh back from the vehicle.
“No, but I am her…” Before he could finish, Samantha interjected.
“He’s my fiancé, and I am not going anywhere unless he is with me.” Samantha started to get up from the gurney, but the other attendant placed his hand on her chest as a way of keeping her in place.
“I don’t think it will hurt anything,” the attendant inside the ambulance said to the one holding Raleigh at bay.
Finally relenting, the paramedic allowed Raleigh inside, then jumped into the driver’s seat and proceeded to the hospital. Raleigh got comfortable as the other paramedic took Samantha’s vitals. “Sammie, you know this is the second time I’ve had to watch you be wheeled away on a gurney. I really don’t like watching that happen. Let’s not make it a habit, okay?” He couldn’t help but laugh because again they were in an ambulance and again he was watching Samantha give the paramedics a run for their money.
“Ya, Ya, I know,” she said as she pushed the paramedics away and tried to reach for Raleigh, swinging her fist, attempting to punch him in the arm.
“Ma’am, please stay still so I can get your vitals,” the paramedic ordered.
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