Then, tonight, when Sam saw Tessa’s husband standing half-naked with another woman in his room, something came unhinged in her he’d never seen before. He’d often suspected the two women had a love-hate relationship but didn’t care to get involved in the way they coped with each other, as long as it didn’t get in the way of a mission. But thinking about their relationship faded to what really concerned him. Why was Robert Scott entertaining a woman like Reeva Kaplan, a known South African money launderer for conflict diamonds, in his room at this hour of the night? Some said she also could be hired as a problem solver: meaning, for the right price, she’d kill.
The van rolled down an alley then up to a steel door highlighted by a flickering bulb over the doorframe. Once he found out why Robert hooked up with this woman, he’d be willing to drop his worthless body off the Bay Bridge. Such a solution pleased him more than he imagined possible.
~~~
Tessa watched the knob twist in slow motion. She grabbed the iron fireplace poker, used for decorative purposes since she only needed to flip a switch to get a blaze going then moved to the side of the door, which creaked open. The dim light appeared to bounce around the room with the sudden rush of cold air ahead of the body coming into the house.
At first, she thought a giant white yeti had entered then realized the padded snowsuit only created a larger image. His profile, although barely visible, revealed a black man with chubby cheeks and a wide nose.
“Hello?” His voice sounded like a deep base drum until Tessa, who stood to the side, reared back with the poker and slammed it into his back. With a grunt, he sucked in pinkish lips over teeth as white as his suit. “Damn,” he moaned.
Tessa who stared at him in disbelief. How could he still be standing?
When she drew back the poker for a second time, he threw out a beefy arm reminding her of the Michelin Man. He jerked the iron from her hand, and stared at her as his brow pinched in confusion. She bolted toward a small fire extinguisher fastened to the wall. When she touched the cold red metal, a giant hand clamped on her shoulder then spun her around so fast, she wobbled on unsteady feet. She realized too late her boys were sneaking up behind the intruder whose nostrils flared and a sour frown deepened the creases around his bulbous eyes.
“No!” she warned.
Sean Patrick leapt high enough to wrap his arm around the man’s neck then hammered his head. Daniel retrieved a decorative piece of birch log next to the fireplace and slammed it into the back of the man’s legs. For a couple of seconds, his eyes bulged then he reached back, freed himself of Sean, and held him at bay with one hand while grabbing Daniel with the other.
Both boys swung their fists, and Heather let loose a shrill scream. The man released the boys and covered his ears.
“Mrs. Scott, please quiet your daughter. I’m here to help you. Weren’t you notified?”
She rushed to Heather, kneeled and gathered her in her arms. “Boys, stop it immediately.”
“But, Mom…”
“Now, Sean Patrick.”
Both boys backed toward their mother and placed a hand on her shoulder.
The Yeti pushed back his white hood then unzipped his puffy snowsuit. “Hey, I remember you. You’re the guy from the convenience store where we got gas. You helped us get away,” Sean Patrick said incredulously.
“Are you sure?” he asked in a baritone voice. “I got one of those common faces.”
Sean Patrick and Daniel exchanged glances and offered timid smiles.
“Yeah. Pretty sure.” Sean Patrick stroked his sister’s hair. “You do kind of look like my sister’s ballet teacher.”
The Yeti’s deep laugh shook his entire body.
Tessa stood and rubbed her hands down the side of her jeans. “I apologize, Mr.—”
“Handsome C. Jones,” he said, taking a moment to survey the room before dropping a dangerous glare on her.
“Is your name really Handsome?” Heather asked in a soft voice, batting her eyes nervously.
He nodded his bald head and stepped toward the little girl, who scurried behind her big brothers. “Yep. My momma said I was an ugly baby and figured I’d be a big boy, so she named me Handsome. Everywhere I go, people say, ‘Hi, Handsome,’ and this makes me feel good about myself.”
Tessa took a deep breath. “Thank you, Mr. Jones.”
“Handsome. Call me Handsome. Having a pretty woman call me by my name makes getting out in this horrible weather worth it. I should be at home eating the great northern beans I put in the Crock-Pot this morning, and a hunk of cornbread.”
“We got peanut butter and granola bars. Mom stole some soda from your store, but I don’t know if we have any left.” Heather peeked around Sean Patrick.
Handsome shifted his eyes to Tessa.
“I intended to come back and pay. I poured it in the gas tank of those men.”
“What kind of mother teaches her kids it’s okay to steal?” He stuck out his hand. “Two dollars.”
“It was on sale for a dollar fifty!” she protested as she hurried to get her purse. As she dug for the money, her fingers touched the cell phone her son had shoved inside before leaving the car. She lifted it to see there was a missed message from Captain Chase Hunter. Even seeing his name quickened her pulse. Probably a wisecrack about her skiing while he saved the world from a new threat. She wasn’t in the mood tonight for verbal combat. Dropping it back inside, she gathered up enough change to give to Handsome.
“There. Happy?”
“I was happy when I thought I was going home to eat beans. Now I’m stuck with you four.” He counted the change and nodded. “Okay, it’s all there.”
“Kids, finish your dinner.” Tessa motioned to their seats in front of the fire. “Mr. Jones and I—”
“Handsome. Call me Handsome.”
“Yes. Handsome and I are going to have a little chat in the kitchen. I’m going to make him a snack.”
The kids crashed on the floor and returned to eating and jabbering about their ski trip. Tessa closed the kitchen door and faced their guest. “What is going on, Handsome?” She laid a paper napkin on the counter.
The big man smiled ear to ear. “I sure do like you calling me that.”
He sounded pleasant enough, but she wasn’t about to let her guard down. “Why you? Who do you work for, and how did you find us?”
“What is going on is one of your kids hacked into a sensitive data base where a great deal of money laundering is done by some really bad people.” He grabbed an apple and chomped on it, juice rolling down his chin. He dabbed at it with the napkin. “As to me, I’m all you got. Taking a break from Enigma. House-sitting for my brother-in-law and managing his station while they go to Florida. Florida!” He rolled his large bulging eyes. “And here I am in ten feet of snow. Our little Southern belle in the sky told me how to get here.”
“Taking a break from Enigma? You can do that?” Wasn’t it kind of like the Mafia? You never were allowed to leave. “Sign me up.”
Handsome shoved the apple core into the garbage disposal and flicked a switch on then off again when the sound changed. “Humph.” He eyed her. “Never seen you before but heard plenty.”
“I’m pretty sure I’d remember if we met—you being so handsome and all.”
This time he pursed his lips, but the edges quirked up. “I’m taking you to my place.”
“No. I don’t even know you,” Tessa refused quietly. “How do I know you’re Enigma? Do you have some ID?”
“No. Do you?” he mocked. “The only time we carry ID is when we’re impersonating law enforcement. You know, like the time Captain Hunter and some Serbian vampire pretended to be Highway Patrol to get you away from authorities in Auburn.” He towered over her, her eyes lifting toward his condescending expression. “You and some old guy who lived next door. You sure stirred up a hornet’s nest.”
Tessa put her hands on her hips. “Who told you?”
“Do you really want to stand here and ch
itchat about old times with Enigma, or do you want me to get you to a safe place until we can get you back home? And if your kid has any computer equipment, tablets, phones, or video games, they are off-limits until this is resolved.”
“I’m going to call in to see if you’re legit.”
“And I’m thinking we got about an hour before those creeps at the gas station pick up our trail. They aren’t amateurs.”
“Why didn’t you neutralize them back there?” A likely crack in his explanation.
“Because, at the time, I believed your story. Besides, you did a pretty good number on them.” He chuckled then pulled a banana from the plastic bag. “I didn’t get the call until I locked up and headed out. What’ll it be?”
“I’m still going to call.”
“Go ahead, Tessa Marie Scott.” He moved like a sloth toward the living room. “I’m getting the kids ready to move. My place isn’t far. You got four-wheel drive?”
“Yes. Why?”
“You’re going to need it. I brought a snowmobile. We’ll take your car in case they find this place. I’ll drive.”
Tessa held up a finger as her phone buzzed a number at Enigma. Nothing happened. Why wasn’t anyone answering? What good was national security if no one minded the store? She clicked off as Handsome spoke over his shoulder.
“Those guys are probably jamming signals.”
“Enigma phones can’t be jammed,” she accused.
“They can if towers are down in a snowstorm. You think Vernon can think of everything?”
Tessa decided Handsome did indeed know a lot about Enigma. Vernon was the Albert Einstein of cyber warfare and little details like cell phones. If only he were here. Heck. If only the whole team was here, even Sam. The constant intimidation she offered sounded kind of touching at the moment. At least she’d be able to take care of Handsome Yeti if he wasn’t the real deal.
“Hear that?” Handsome mumbled as he used one of his sausage-sized fingers to pull back the edge of a window shade. “We got company.”
“How close?”
“Sound carries over the snow, so three hundred yards.”
“Kids, grab your stuff and get in the car. Sean, back seat. Daniel, turn off the fireplace.”
Handsome picked up speed as he gathered trash, backpacks, and one little girl under his Goliath arm. Tessa grabbed coats, gloves, and sock hats. They all moved toward the garage door.
“Sean Patrick, help your sister buckle in,” Tessa whispered as they moved into action. Whether they sensed danger or not, the children didn’t question her.
Handsome slipped out even as the garage door rose. He motioned for Tessa to back out as he pushed his snowmobile inside. She hopped out and let him behind the wheel where he struggled to push the seat back far enough for his huge frame. Fastening her seat belt, she rolled the window glass down to listen. On this side of the house, the forest of evergreens buffered any sounds.
“Let’s get out of here. Too quiet.”
“Ready, kids?” Handsome sounded cool as a cucumber as he adjusted the rearview mirror. They answered with nodding heads and frightened expressions. “Nothing to worry about. Handsome has taken charge.”
Tessa bristled. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.”
Chapter 5
C hase Hunter sat down at a computer screen next to the rest of his team who studied their own monitors. He held a cup of strong black coffee and decided somebody on staff actually knew how to brew a good cup of joe.
His screen revealed a man in a small room he knew to be down the hall. He’d been there for nearly three hours. There was a cot he used to take a fitful nap, a padded office chair pulled up to a table with another one across from it. A coffee pot had been switched on remotely, thanks to Vernon’s warped sense of humor.
Vernon wasn’t the most intimidating guy on the team, so he liked to play mind games where maybe the rest of them couldn’t. Chase relied on brute strength and posturing for his style. Whatever worked was okay with him. The empty walls gave no indication of date, time, or style of the building where Robert had become a reluctant guest.
“Our FBI friend here yet?” Chase took a gulp of coffee then let his thoughts return to the Grass Valley housewife who had wreaked havoc on his once-orderly life.
“Soon. Said there had been a development,” Carter offered with a flatline voice as he stared at the screen. “I hate this guy,” he continued, frowning, his forehead creased. “Tessa deserves better.” He elbowed Chase. “You know. Like me. We all know she has a thing for astronauts.”
“You’re an ex-astronaut,” Sam chimed in as she zoomed in on Robert’s picture. “You’re no different than Robert, a lying, cheating, womanizer who can’t keep his pants on.”
“I didn’t hear you complaining the other night at two a.m. when—”
Sam punched him in the side, which only managed to make him laugh. “Shut up, you halfwit. If I ever come to you in the middle of the night, it will mean every other man on Earth is dead and I’ve had a stroke.”
Carter winked at Chase then addressed Sam. “So, I have a chance,” he said matter-of-factly.
Chase leaned back in his chair until it squeaked and rocked a little, enjoying the banter between the two. He admired Carter’s brain, loyalty, and even his self-inflated ego. Until NASA got fed up with his explosive romances, he had been one of the country’s most experienced astronauts. Along with being a playboy, the “no guts, no glory” attitude got him quietly kicked to the curb. He wasn’t very good at taking orders from higher-ups who had never been in the trenches or, in this case, the final frontier.
“As I was saying”—Carter doubled his arms across his chest— “Tessa needs to dump the guy.”
“Maybe we should hear what he has to say. Kept saying it wasn’t what it looked like.” Chase sat his coffee cup down after draining the contents.
“I can’t believe what I’m hearing. She belongs with us. Full-time. He’s holding her back. Bathes in the knowledge the president got her the State Department job. Struts around like a pompous peacock. You could—”
“Enough. She’s married and an agent. Taboo. Not interested.”
Zoric pulled up a chair on the other side of Sam who scooted over for him to see her computer screen. “I’ll remember that the next time she’s up to her eyeballs in trouble and you go rushing in like a crazy person to save her.”
“I’d do it for any of you. Besides, she’s not like us. She’s an innocent.”
Sam huffed then snorted. “And I’m Mother Teresa. She’s tougher than you think and not all gooey and sweet like she pretends.”
“Seems to me you got pretty miffed at seeing her husband half-ass dressed with another woman.” Vernon blew a bubble with his gum then popped it.
Sam ignored the comment and leaned closer to the screen while removing the red wig and shaking out her ebony hair. In slow motion, she pulled it up, wrapped it in a knot, and grabbed two chopstick-like objects from the desk. She used them to hold the waist-length tresses in place.
The action drew Carter’s attention. “Do you enjoy driving me crazy?” he whispered in her ear. Sam continued to stare at the screen without so much as a blink of her cat-like eyes. “You can ignore me all you want, but I know all your teasing means more than you let on.”
Chase cleared his throat. “Focus. FBI headed our way.”
Besides each team member having a monitor in front of them, the wall was divided into ten large screens. Each one showed the movements of various things going on in the warehouse where they resided. Periodically, two or three screens switched to world maps, global hot spots, or various Washington D.C. streets. Several showed live feeds of Kabul, Baghdad, and Pyongyang. A few other tech-looking people with headphones and pocket protectors wandered in and out. Vernon paid them little mind as they attempted to interact with him by speaking in low voices. Like him, their skin needed a little more sun.
Chase propped his elbows on the table as the door opened t
o their little slice of paradise with Special Agent Martin joining the Enigma team. His scowl told Chase he wasn’t happy about being dragged out in the middle of the night.
The FBI agent paused and put his hands on his hips, pushing his suit coat back. Even at this time of night, the man appeared to be dressed for work. Instead of getting up with a warm greeting, Chase reached back and pulled a chair on wheels up close to his terminal.
“Have a seat, Dennis.” Chase nodded to the chair. “Nice of you to drop by.”
The agent dropped his hands to his sides and joined him. “It wasn’t like I had a choice. And it’s Special Agent Martin. No one made us friends.” His gaze drifted to the computer monitor showing Robert Scott sitting on the edge of his cot with his head in his hands. “That him?”
“Umm. Guess you didn’t meet him in D.C. when the attack on President Austin went down.”
“No. I was trying to cover my butt for throwing in with the likes of you guys. I’m sure I’ll live to regret it.” Chase observed how the agent tore his attention away from the monitor to evaluate the other team members who ignored him. “I see your people practice being invisible even when they’re not.” The last comment caused heads to jerk in their direction. “And hello to you, too,” he quipped. A few nods of greeting and a chuckle from Chase was the extent of the warm fuzzy reunion.
“They don’t talk much,” was the extent of the Chase’s explanation.
“If you ever want to train a bunch of pit bulls, let me know. You obviously are good at calming the savage beasts.” Agent Martin sounded a little snarky.
Zoric stared with his dark, dead eyes at Agent Martin then took out his switchblade and clicked it open and closed.
“Is he even in this country legally?” the agent asked, holding eye contact with the Serbian.
The Enigma Series Boxed Set Page 105