by Dee Davis
“I was fighting for my life—and Adam’s.” Annie felt as if she were drowning. One step forward, three steps back. “But I was coming back when Dominico’s goons intercepted me.”
“Because you were in trouble.” Tom smirked. “Have there been any further phone calls?”
Annie shook her head. “No, but—”
“My point exactly.” Tom smiled, the expression lacking any humor. “Dominico is dead. Your part in this little farce is over. And there’s no further threat to your son.”
“As long as Kim Sun is out there, there’s a threat. Surely you can see that?” She shot a look at Nash and Avery, hoping for support. “The man is looking for payback. He said so himself.”
“I see nothing of the sort. If Kim Sun was involved, I’ll concede that he should be brought to justice, but that doesn’t change the facts as they stand. Which means that you also have to pay for your crimes.”
“I didn’t kill Dominico, and I’ll be damned if I’m going to let you use me as a scapegoat.” She shot a pleading look in Avery’s direction.
“What’s really going on here, Tom?” Avery asked. “Nash and Annie are right. You’re just a little too zealous about bringing her to justice. The facts may not all be in place. But I, for one, think we’ve got something more complicated than just an ex-CIA agent taking out a diplomat to save her son. I can understand why she’d run. But if nothing else, I can’t see her taking her son along while she offs a man.”
“She had no problem putting him in the middle of a gunfight on the side of the highway.”
“That wasn’t my fault. Maybe I could have handled it better. But I was fighting for Adam’s life,” Annie responded, wondering if she’d every really known this man at all. “That’s what all of this has been about. Fighting to free my son. And you of all people know how much he means to me. What I gave up for him.” The minute the words were out she wished them back. It would be so easy for Nash to put it all together. But he wasn’t paying attention, his concentration centered instead on Tom.
“I don’t know anything about you anymore,” Tom said, his tone dismissive.
“Well, I know that she saved two of my operatives.” Avery frowned. “That’s got to mean something.”
“Yeah, that she played you. I saw the reports. Nash’s gun jammed. And the only other fingerprints on the gun were Annie’s. Are you saying those were transferred as well?”
“No.” Annie shook her head, her eyes on Nash. “I did handle the gun. I unpacked the gear. But I didn’t do anything to it. Even if I’d wanted to, there wasn’t time. And besides, my son was in grave danger. Why would I want to thwart the effort to rescue him?”
“I have no idea what was in your mind. I’m just repeating the facts.”
“And avoiding my questions,” Avery said, pulling out his BlackBerry and punching in a number.
“Who are you calling?” Tom asked.
“Paul Jackson,” Avery responded, lifting the phone to his ear.
“No, wait,” Tom said, his voice losing all semblance of bluster.
Annie frowned as Avery disconnected the call. “Who’s Paul Jackson?”
“A good friend of Avery’s,” Nash said, the corner of his lip twitching upward. “And an even closer friend of the president’s. He’s currently acting as the executive branch’s liaison to the CIA. And interestingly enough, he also happens to be married to the head of Homeland Security, Mary Alice Branch, Tom’s boss.”
Avery shot a pointed look at Tom. “This isn’t a bluff.”
“You don’t have anything to tell them.” Tom’s try for defiance was undercut by a flicker of fear in his eyes.
“Actually I do, because the order for the hit on Kim Jin didn’t come from above, did it, Tom? The order came from you.”
Annie sucked in a breath, waiting for something from Tom.
“What on earth would make you think that?” His voice was a little too casual, the note of surprise forced. Annie glanced over at Nash, but his attention was focused on Tom. His frown indicated that he, too, recognized that something was off.
“I did a little research on you, Walker,” Avery responded. “Seems your career wasn’t exactly cruising along in the fast lane. You’d been passed over for two promotions. Had requested a transfer and even that had been denied. Your ability to handle delicate operations was, shall we say, less than perfect. Your decisions consistently put your operatives in danger. In fact, you’d just been reprimanded again when the order to rescue Kim Jin came through.
“Now of course this is just supposition, but I’m guessing you decided you needed to get Langley’s attention, to pull off something big. So you invented the story about Jin’s allegiance to the insurgents.”
“That’s insane,” Tom said, his eyes flashing with anger.
“I don’t think so.” Avery shook his head. “Look, Tom—this can go one of two ways. I’ve already reported everything we suspect to Jackson. Including Annie’s version of what happened in Saida.” He paused, his steely gaze impaling Tom’s. “One way or the other there’s going to be an investigation about what really happened in Lebanon. And the truth is going to come out.”
“It’s just Annie’s word against mine. And Nash’s.”
“You can count me out,” Nash said, his frown fierce now. “In case you’ve forgotten, I don’t remember anything that happened.”
“So,” Avery continued, leaning forward, his tone deceptively calm, “the way I figure it, you can either come clean and I’ll tell Paul you cooperated fully. Or you can keep lying, and when the truth finally comes out it’ll be that much worse for you. It’s up to you.”
For a moment the two men faced off, Avery’s dark eyes giving nothing away, Tom’s fingers clenched as he considered his options. Then Tom sat down. “What do you want to know?”
“I want to know if you fabricated the information about Jin working with terrorists.”
“Actually,” Tom said, his face still mottled with anger, “it could have been true. There was some intel suggesting that the kid was in fact associated with Red Sword.”
“In Malaysia?” Nash asked, his voice sharp. “What the hell does that have to do with Lebanon?”
“I believed the story that his academic journey was actually cover for his being in the area to train with the Lebanese resistance movement. And that his so-called kidnapping was, in fact, his attempt to cover his ass when his father suspected something was amiss.”
“And you had evidence to back this up?” Avery queried.
Tom hesitated.
“I take it that’s a no.”
After a moment’s bluster, Tom sighed. “I didn’t have enough evidence to make my case, but I knew I was right. And I knew that taking action was the best thing for the country.”
“The best action for you, you mean.” Nash’s tone was harsh as he stared at Tom, his eyes filled with incredulity. “You thought that if you pulled off the assassination—proved that Jin was a traitor—you’d get a promotion.”
“I acted as a patriot.” Tom shoulders were ramrod straight as his gaze dueled with Nash’s. “Jin’s death was for the greater good.”
“But you weren’t certain he was guilty.” Annie’s stomach clenched as she grappled with the enormity of what Tom had done. “Which means that it’s possible that I shot an innocent man.”
“Oh, please,” Tom said, his voice harsh with contempt, “you’re an assassin. What the hell difference did it make if they were guilty or innocent?”
“It mattered to me,” she said, sinking onto a chair.
“The kid was guilty,” Tom said. “And if things hadn’t gone so terribly wrong I’d have been able to prove it. I’d have been a hero. But once everything went public, it was too late.”
“So you covered it up,” Nash said. “Pretended the secondary order never existed.”
“That’s why you wanted me out of the game,” Annie said, her incredulity turning to rage. “So there’d be no chance of my t
elling what really happened.”
“It worked for eight years.” He shrugged.
“And thanks to your supposed heroics in rescuing me,” Nash said, “it accomplished your real mission. You landed that promotion. A top job with Homeland Security.”
Annie struggled to breathe. “So I sacrificed my job—my life—all of it, just so that you could get a promotion? Tom, we almost died in there. Hell, we lost Drew and Jake. And all of it because of a hunch?”
“You’d have been in the same situation no matter whether the mission was to rescue Jin or kill him. None of that was my fault. And I did rescue Nash. Just not as completely as I led people to believe.”
“So Annie’s version of the operation is the truth,” Nash said, his voice shaking with anger. “She pulled me out of the building.”
“Yes. But I was there to get you both out. If I hadn’t come for you, you’d both be dead.”
“If you hadn’t changed the rules of the game,” Avery said, “maybe none of this would have happened.”
“So my cover was never blown?” Annie asked, realizing for the first time just how much had been lost that day.
“No.” Tom shook his head.
“And Nash—you let him believe that I deserted him. That I left him to die?”
“It was better for all of us,” Tom said. “I needed to keep my part in the secondary mission buried. The best way to do that was for you to disappear. Look, I did what was best for everyone under the circumstances. The country had one less threat. Annie got her out. I covered my ass. And Nash was allowed to move on. It was win-win for everyone.”
Avery’s phone rang, the sound harsh in the emotionally strained atmosphere. “It’s Paul Jackson,” Avery said, checking caller ID. “I’d better take it.” He walked out the door into the hallway, leaving the three of them alone.
“Why didn’t you tell me the truth?” Annie asked, her nails digging into her palms as she struggled to maintain control.
“It would have defeated the purpose. And besides, you were always a little too high-minded. I couldn’t be sure you wouldn’t decide it was better to come clean.”
“But we trusted you with our lives. And you threw that trust right back in our faces.”
“And lied about everything,” Nash said, shaking his head. “You son of a bitch.”
“I’m pragmatic.” He shrugged. “And if you’re honest, so are both of you. So spare me the sanctimonious bullshit. Hell, I did you both a favor. Gave you just exactly what you wanted. Annie got her freedom. And you got A-Tac.”
“And people died. Innocent people. And my son…” her voice caught in her throat as she thought of Adam. “My son almost died, too. If Kim is behind all of this, then it’s on your head, Tom. Yours.”
“You pulled the trigger, Annie.”
“You son of a bitch!” Annie lunged forward, Nash catching her by the shoulders, holding her back.
“He’s not worth it, Annie.” She sucked in a breath and nodded, tears threatening as she ran the gamut from rage to despair.
“Is everything okay here?” Avery asked with a frown as he strode back into the room.
“She was trying to attack me,” Tom said.
“With good cause,” Nash snarled, his hands still on Annie’s shoulders.
“I should press charges,” Tom threatened on a hiss.
“I don’t think that’ll do you much good.” Avery shook his head. “Paul found the original orders. There was no countermand. Tom was definitely acting on his own. And for the record, there was nothing tangible to link Jin to anyone at Red Sword.”
“Doesn’t mean it wasn’t true,” Tom said, his tone defiant.
“No. But it does mean that your actions were unconscionable. And that there’ll be a full inquiry.”
“So I did shoot an innocent man.”
“In self-defense,” Nash whispered. “None of this was your fault, Annie. You were just following orders.”
“Speaking of which,” Avery said, his tone devoid of emotion, “A-Tac’s been given the green light to go after Kim. Langley agreed with our assessment of the situation and the president’s signed off on the operation.”
“What about me?” Annie asked, her voice strained.
“You’ll be working with us. I convinced Langley that it’s in all of our best interest to have you on the team for the duration of the mission.”
“What the hell are they thinking?” Tom asked. “Just because there are extenuating circumstances surrounding the events in Saida, that doesn’t clear Annie of wrongdoing when it comes to Dominico.”
“True.” Avery nodded with the hint of a smile. “But Hannah and Lara managed to prove that the fingerprints and blood found on the balcony of Annie’s room belonged to one Kim Chin-Mae, Kim Sun’s younger son. And Jason found some evidence of erosion on the fingerprints they found on the gun left behind by Dominico’s killer. Apparently the pattern’s consistent with prints that have been lifted and then transferred from one medium to another.”
“So I’ve been cleared?” Annie said, the rush of hope threatening to swamp her.
“Not completely.” Avery shook his head. “But I’d say we’re well on the way. All we need to do now is produce Kim.”
“And me?” Tom asked. “What happens to me now?”
“Fortunately, for us,” Avery said, his eyes narrowed in disgust, “you’re no longer a part of the mission. Mr. Jackson has some questions for you. And when he’s finished, I suspect your bosses will want to have a go. There are two men waiting outside. They’ll be escorting you to D.C. If I were you, Walker, I’d find a very good lawyer.”
Tom glared at them both, and then with a self-important harrumph, he turned on his heel and strode out the door.
“So what happens to Tom?” Annie asked, still looking at the empty space where Tom had been standing.
“He could be prosecuted,” Avery replied. “Treason isn’t out of the question. Which is kind of ironic considering the circumstances.”
“That’s why he wanted Annie back in Washington so badly, isn’t it?” Nash’s jaw was still clenched in anger. “He wanted to keep us apart. Keep Annie away from you and the rest of A-Tac, in case we managed to figure it all out.”
“Turns out he was right.” Avery shrugged. “Anyway, I meant what I said. I think the CIA will handle it internally.”
“Take him out, you mean?” Nash’s voice was cold. “I can’t say that he doesn’t deserve it.”
“He was our friend,” Annie said, the words coming out of their own volition.
“He was never our friend.” Nash shook his head. “He was playing us from the very beginning.”
“You’re right. But it still feels surreal. In the blink of an eye, everything’s changed. Like we’re on the other side of the mirror.”
“Who knows,” Avery said, “maybe it’s the better side. No one’s ever pretended the life we’ve chosen doesn’t come with great risk.”
“But I’m not part of that world anymore,” Annie sighed. “Although maybe the real truth is that there’s never a way out. It’s always there. Waiting to get you.”
“It’s an inherent part of what we do.” Avery shrugged. “Something we all accept even as we pretend that it doesn’t exist.”
“So where do we go from here?” She’d meant the query for both of them, but when she lifted her gaze to Nash’s the words took on new meaning, the unanswered question sucking the oxygen from the room. She lifted her hand to touch his face, but he stepped away, shaking his head.
“I don’t know, Annie. Right now, I don’t know anything. I just need to think.” He held her gaze a moment, and her heart twisted at the pain reflected in his eyes. Then without another word, he turned and walked away.
CHAPTER 22
Nash walked up the steps to his house, his mind racing. In the space of two days everything had changed, his perception of the truth no longer trustworthy. Tom had manipulated everyone, using Annie to further his career, only
to discard her when things had gone wrong.
And then there were Tom’s lies…
Nash shook his head, trying to clear his mind, but it was useless. There was simply too much going on.
Thanks to a teenage arrest in Korea, Hannah and Lara had proven conclusively that the DNA in Annie’s room was in fact a match to Kim Chin-Mae. Unfortunately, the guy was proving as elusive as his father. In the United States on a student visa, Chin-Mae had been the model student until about six months ago when the visa had been revoked and Kim’s son had disappeared. Although he and his father were supposedly estranged, Chin-Mae’s presence in Annie’s hotel room seemed to refute the idea.
Bottom line, father and son were out there somewhere waiting for the fallout from their latest attack on Annie. Or maybe even planning something new.
He slipped the key in the lock, fumbling in his haste to get inside. To get to Annie. Finally, the lock yielded and he stepped into the entryway. The house was quiet and dark. For a moment he considered the possibility that she’d run again. But even as he had the thought, he rejected it. No matter what her feelings were for him, A-Tac was her best hope for protecting Adam.
The hallway was quiet, the soft chiming of a clock upstairs providing the only sound. He climbed the stairs, senses on alert. Avery had added extra layers of security, men patrolling the perimeters both in front and back of the house, but Kim had breached their security once before, and Nash wasn’t about to take a chance.
The upstairs hallway was empty and dark, and he relaxed as he stopped in the doorway of Adam’s room. The boy was sleeping, an afghan puddled at the foot of the bed, Adam sprawled across the sheets. He was clutching an old, tattered bear, a favorite toy, according to Annie. She’d brought it from Colorado. In part, she’d said, to help her keep hope alive. Hope that had been rewarded as now boy and bear slumbered peacefully.
As if aware of Nash’s thoughts, Adam smiled in his sleep, his little arms tightening around the stuffed toy. Nash pulled up the sheet, tucking the boy in, surprised at the warmth he felt in the act. Although he shouldn’t have been. After all, Adam was a part of Annie.