Nikolai and his goon were escorted to the Atlanta PD station. Romanov and Murphy accompanied the CTS agents in charge of the transport while others combed through the house for more evidence. Romanov was there to make sure Nikolai didn’t reveal more than was needed. Murphy said he’d reached Porter and the admiral was on his way.
Colt, Olivia, and Trent climbed into the CTS vehicle with Brody and took off straight for the heart of Atlanta. “The second wave already started,” Brody informed them from the front of the truck. “I have an agent meeting us at Centennial Park who’ll take care of her.”
The park was the start and finish of the marathon.
Brody turned his body slightly and looked back at them. “Get anything more out of her?”
He felt Olivia stiffen beside him.
“No.”
He and his friend had a heated exchange earlier. Brody wanted to interrogate Olivia, but Colt, backed by Trent, blocked him.
“Hundreds of lives are at stake,” Brody snapped. “The girl knows something. She’s been kidnapped by her own mother. For all you know, Kate brainwashed her and we have—”
Colt slammed him against the wall, cutting him off. CTS agents had drawn their weapons on him, but he didn’t give a fuck.
“She’s protecting her mother, you son of a bitch,” Colt snarled. “You already have units searching for Kate. That girl isn’t giving you another reason to shoot her mother on sight.”
“It’ll be on you, Montgomery,” Brody snarled back, shrugging off his hold. “People die. It’ll be on you.”
Colt nodded. “Fair enough.”
He had faith in Kate. She was strong and one of the most resilient women he’d ever known. She’d beat back whatever evil had taken control of her mind. Romanov explained how the brain spindle had changed Kate’s personality. It created false memories that altered its host’s reality. With an AI processor, it took it a step further and affected the brain and created hallucinations. It also suppressed activity in the orbital cortex of the brain that regulated emotions as well as morality and aggression.
Olivia squeezed his hand.
Colt looked at her and leaned in.
The girl cupped her hand beside his ear in a manner of telling a secret. “I can’t tell because Mama will die.” Her voice broke. “If I tell them where she is, what she looks like, they will shoot her. He wouldn’t even ask her anything. He’d be afraid and just shoot her.”
The torment in his little girl’s eyes broke his heart. It was too much for one so young to bear. “But if I don’t tell,” this time her voice was for everyone to hear, “she has a chance to stop this.”
Brody shook his head, snorting in derision. “Wishful thinking, kid.” Trent, however, exchanged a look of understanding with Colt. He and the sheriff were the only people in the truck who knew Olivia was a telepath and precog.
“We’ll be at Centennial Park in ten,” Brody said.
Their vehicle was allowed through some road closures. Runners from all walks of life, ages, and nationalities, together with their supporters, electrified the air with their revelry.
“A marathon is the hardest sport to secure in a free society,” Brody said. “But we try our best anyway because that’s what we signed up for.”
His friend glanced over and locked eyes with Colt, holding out his closed fist. “Hooyah, brother.”
“Hooyah,” Colt replied as they bumped fists, and just like that, they were brothers again with a common goal.
“The bald man,” Olivia whispered. Colt turned and saw a faraway look on her face, like she was in a trance. “You need to stop him.” Her voice rose. “He has the control.”
“Why the fuck does she look like that?” Brody asked. “What’s wrong with her eyes?”
“Can’t explain now.”
“Liv, you need to tell us more,” Colt prompted.
“If he can’t contact Nikolai, he will blow up the bomb from his cell phone.”
“Is he with Kate?”
“No, you need to find the bald man.” She started to panic. “His name is Hassan Petrov.”
“On it,” Brody muttered.
“Talk to Cam Murphy to access agency records,” Trent said.
“Damned spooks,” the CTS officer mumbled.
“Do you have a surveillance van at the race?” Trent asked.
“I do.”
“Liv, will you be able to identify him?”
The girl nodded. “I can go with you, Colt. We can look for the bald man and Mama.”
“I’m not putting you in any more danger. Let the grown-ups do this, okay?” he told her gently. “You have an important job here, princess. Watch the videos and tell Brody when you see Hassan.”
She paused, as if considering his words, but he realized she was doing a telepathic scan of the area.
“He’s close by,” Olivia said.
“Uh, how does she know that?” Brody asked, looking at her with a slightly puzzled, if not plain freaked-out, expression.
“She just does,” Colt replied and changed the subject. “Where are we with the marathon organizers?”
“I’m getting a runaround from their assistants,” his friend muttered. “They’re not gonna shut it down. Too much money in sponsorships on the line.”
“People may also panic,” Trent added.
Their vehicle reached the staging area for first responders. A female officer met their arrival. As they exited the truck, Brody introduced the woman to Liv. “Olivia, this is Officer Hastings. She’ll be taking you to our surveillance van.”
Olivia looked worried, so Colt bent forward and rested a hand on her shoulder. “I’ll get your mom back.”
“You won’t let anyone hurt her?”
“Not if I can help it.” He couldn’t make false promises. She was old enough to understand there would be consequences if that bomb went off. Olivia tugged his hand, leading him away so other couldn’t hear them.
“I can’t do what I did at the festival.” Her smile was small and regretful. “That wouldn’t help. But I fixed Mama’s spindle when she drove us to Atlanta.” She confirmed what Romanov suspected. Her voice dropped to a whisper. “She’s mixed up right now, but Mama has her feelings back and knows what’s right from wrong.”
Then her mouth quivered and she whispered shakily, “I want to go home.”
Olivia had given him the best hope since this whole ordeal began. He gave his girl a tight hug and led her back to the officer, then headed to the LEO tent where Brody and Trent were discussing the situation with select agents.
“It’s logical to say that the suspect should be near the finish line where the crowd is thickest. We’re not sure if she has a ticket to go into the main area, but keep an eye out,” Brody said.
One of his men looked at his phone. “Why would someone like her do this?”
“We understand she’s under some kind of duress,” Brody said, glancing at Colt. “We’re tracking info on another player. Once we have intel, we’ll send it to your handheld. In the meantime, stay vigilant.”
“What are the rules of engagement?” the same man asked. “If she refuses to comply? If she reaches for the detonator?”
“Then you take her out,” Brody said, his eyes locked with Colt’s. “But only as a last resort.”
Colt was beginning to regret he’d trained these guys. Then again, the scenarios never involved one of their own.
“That’s my wife you’re hunting,” Colt spit through gritted teeth. A murmur of surprise and expletives made the rounds among Brody’s crew. “You guys better be one hundred and ten percent sure before you pull that trigger.” Clearing his throat, he continued. “Pair up. One can concentrate on the perp, while the other clears the crowd.”
Brody nodded. “Good idea.” Addressing his men, he said, “Let’s go with our Charlie Team configuration. I’ll inform Atlanta PD working the event that we’re tracking down a credible threat. If anything happens, you guys take the lead. Got it?”
“All right. Good luck, team.”
His friend stepped up into his space. Again, they were eye to eye. “Don’t ever threaten my men again,” Brody growled.
“That wasn’t a threat. That was a warning,” Colt shot back. “Some of your men are jittery. They need to be reminded that there are consequences to their actions. I’m not about to have my wife shot twenty times because your men can’t hack the pressure.”
“They’re some of the best and you damn well know it.”
Colt smiled darkly. “Agreed. That’s the only reason I haven’t gone rogue.”
Brody scowled. “We do this by the book. I shouldn’t even allow you on this dragnet.”
“I’m not sitting this out and we’re wasting time arguing about this,” Colt inserted the CTS receiver back in his ear and donned a flak jacket. He looked at Trent. “You ready?”
“Yeah.”
Brody contemplated them with a grim, conflicted expression. It was a given they weren’t following protocol, but Colt was the one most familiar with the situation and in the position to make informed decisions.
“I’m running point from the surveillance van,” Brody said. “For all of our sakes, Montgomery, I hope you get your wife back.”
31
Gray Room Kate
Crowds packed the sidewalk five people deep from the race barrier. Euphoria filled the air. I paused my trek to the finish line, holding up my camera to capture the moments of the marathon. A young woman held up a sign “You’re a badass. You got this.” A father had his son on his shoulders. “Run, Mom, run.”
I couldn’t stop taking pictures. There were also funny signs. “The end is near.” Then there were the runners with their names hanging on their shirts.
One man’s placard read, “Ryan.”
The crowd yelled. “Go, Ryan, go!”
Emotions I didn’t think I possessed leaked into my soul. The sheer energy and positivity squashed the directive in my head. It stopped making sense. It was as if someone had written a script and told me what to do.
A blinding headache ripped into me. A feeling of a thousand daggers stabbed into my head. The sound of the crowd receded while my breathing echoed in my ears. My eyes focused on a runner struggling with crutches. He tripped and fell. Other runners rushed to help him up. And together, they resumed their race to the finish line.
A cheer went up in the air; the roar and clapping thundered in my ears.
This was the best of humanity.
These people didn’t deserve to be massacred.
What the hell am I doing?
I staggered into the alley between two buildings and rested against its wall. Then I sunk to the filthy ground. My head might as well have been a cannon ball as my chin dropped to my chest. Images flickered in my head like a TV with bad reception. Memories clashed and my reality became a blur.
“Why the fuck are you here?”
I recognized Hassan’s voice, but I didn’t have the strength to lift my head.
“Headache,” I whispered, then louder, “Give me a minute.”
“We don’t have time.” His shoes scraped against the asphalt as they appeared in my line of sight. “Nikolai is not answering his phone. We need to detonate the bomb now.”
I vaguely understood him.
But I remembered …
Colt in my kitchen.
Me in his kitchen.
Josh and Liv.
Toothpaste on the mirror.
Movie night.
The wedding.
Colt making love to me.
Cutting Olivia.
A strangled cry rose in my throat. These people made me hurt my daughter.
I raised my head slowly, all my rage honed in at Hassan.
He frowned at me. “Are you okay now? Why are you looking at me like you’re pissed?”
I didn’t answer.
I attacked.
* * *
Colt
“All CTS agents,” Brody barked. “Suspect is in the alley between Cal’s Seafood and Regent Hotel on Marietta Street.”
“Trent and I are on it. Everyone else, approach with caution,” Colt returned on comms.
They raced up Marietta Street. The sign for the Regent Hotel came into view just as a disturbance distracted the crowd from the marathon. People appeared confused as they witnessed a woman with twin braids and a fedora tackle a hefty man to the ground.
She straddled the man and managed two strikes before he threw her off him.
Colt felt a growl rise up his throat.
Kate was slammed against the wall and then backhanded, her hat flying off her head as she fell to her knees.
He pumped his feet faster to get to his wife.
The bald man, who Colt assumed was Petrov, drew a gun from his back and fired at two men who tried to approach. They fell to the ground bleeding.
“Shots fired! Shots fired!” Trent shouted into his mic.
People started screaming, fleeing the scene as they toppled the race barrier. Yet some remained, taking cover by some buildings.
“Get away!” Kate yelled at everyone, struggling to get up. “There’s a bomb!” Hassan spun on her and kicked her in the stomach. She doubled over, coughing.
That man was dead.
Adrenaline coursed through his veins when he saw Hassan slip his phone from his pocket with his left hand and swiped on the screen. People rushed by Colt so he couldn’t take a clear shot. He pushed a man aside and then another, found an opening, and took a flying leap.
Hassan’s eyes widened and he fired at Colt. A burning sensation tore through his side but Colt never slowed down as his shoulder rammed into the bastard. They crashed on the sidewalk and Colt straddled him, letting loose a series of punches to the man’s face. White-hot rage powered every fist that connected to Hassan’s face until he felt Trent pull him back.
“Colt!” He held out Hassan’s phone. And through his fury, he managed to focus on the screen. A series of numbers counting down.
“30 … 29 …”
“Where’s Kate?” He pushed back from Hassan and stood up. The battered man on the ground started laughing from his bloodied mouth.
“You’re too late,” he choked. “It’s going to blow.”
“Kate …” Colt whispered as his gut plummeted to his feet. His eyes scored the alley in mounting fear.
“She disappeared down there with a black case,” one of the onlookers shared, pointing to where his own gaze was fixed.
“Get them back,” Colt told Trent as he moved toward the path between the buildings. The sheriff snatched his bicep but he shook him off. Their eyes clashed briefly, before Trent gave him a curt nod. If it were Cassie, he would have done the same.
No time to waste.
Colt rushed down the alley. Up ahead, it opened into a clearing. Whether it was another road or parking lot, Colt knew he wasn’t going to make it. The timer in his head counted to zero.
Boom!
The ground shook as a fireball erupted, hurtling straight toward him.
Next thing he knew, he was staring up at a cloud of smoke, but his mind was clear and his body was lit up with adrenaline like fucking fireworks.
Hyperaware.
Somewhere in the distance someone called his name, but he barreled through all distractions, neither the physical pain nor the numbing fear impeded his single-minded focus to get to Kate.
The clearing was a war zone. At the corner stood a mangled dumpster that looked like a T-Rex had taken a chomp out of it. Bits of paper floated down with charred edges, while garbage and other debris burned in small piles amid fallen concrete chunks and bricks as smoke billowed around him.
No sign of her.
“Kate,” he whispered. Her name an agonizing ache in his chest. Not again. He couldn’t lose her again. Once in a lifetime was enough. Twice? There was no coming back from that.
“Kate!” he roared as determination surged through his already charg
ed-up system.
“Here …” a weak voice croaked.
He whipped around, his heart felt like it had stopped beating. The smoke behind him swirled but an outline of concrete steps leading to an underground level took form. He nudged aside burning piles and scrambled to the top of the staircase.
There, at the bottom of the steps, sat his wife.
Activity and voices swarmed behind him, but he and Kate were the only people in the world as they stared at each other.
Relief stole the strength from his legs, but he’d be damned before he spent another second without her in his arms. He cleared the steps in two leaps and swept her into his embrace even before she managed to fully stand upright.
Her yelp of pain had him loosening his hold, but he couldn’t let her go. He cupped her face instead and pressed a gentle kiss on her lips. Drawing back, he asked. “Are you hurt?”
“Just banged up. Blast wave sent me hurtling down the stairs,” she explained before she noticed his side. “You’re bleeding.”
“Just a scratch.”
There were so many things he wanted to say to her, but both of them seemed incapable of speech.
“Are you back, Goldilocks?” he asked finally with a mixture of hope and dread.
“Sure am, cowboy.” She smiled. “Don’t ever wanna see that bitch again.”
Colt chuckled. “Let’s have you checked out.” He never thought he’d experience what people called giddiness, but he was sure he was feeling close … overwhelming relief and a burst of happiness so powerful, he couldn’t breathe.
When they reached the top of the steps, Kate stumbled. It was a good thing he had his arms wrapped around her. “Want me to carry you?”
“Don’b ridicls,” she slurred. Frowning, he stopped their walk and glanced down at her. “Kate?” Her crystal blue irises met his gaze with fear. She held out her hand but it shook with tremors. She opened her mouth, but no words came and soon she started to choke.
Colt wasted no time and scooped her up in his arms and dashed through the alley. “Hold on. Don’t you fucking quit on me, babe.”
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