End Game

by Rachel Dylan

  Bailey studied Alvarez carefully. He carried himself like a leader—full of confidence, no-nonsense. And she wasn’t surprised that they didn’t see an emotional reaction from him. He probably kept his grief private.

  Marco shifted some papers in front of him. “Why don’t we talk about your last few ops. Anything stick out there? Any missteps, any actions that could cause retaliation?”

  Alvarez shook his head. “No, sir. The last few missions have gone off without a hitch.”

  Did Alvarez know more than he was letting on? She decided it was time for her to speak up. “Lieutenant Alvarez, sometimes in these situations even the smallest detail can help us.”

  “I understand, ma’am, but it’s pretty much been SOP over the past few months.”

  Standard operating procedure. “You mentioned skirmishes among team members. Can you elaborate?”

  Alvarez raised an eyebrow. “We’re family. There’s a fight here and there, some rivalries along the way, but I can guarantee as I’m sitting here today that there is zero chance another member of the teams killed Battle. Zero.”

  “Any personal disputes that Battle had outside of the teams?” she asked.

  Alvarez kept his expression neutral. “Not that I’m aware of.”

  “Any personal problems? Money, family, drugs?” she pressed.

  “No, ma’am, not that I know of.” Alvarez looked her in the eyes.

  Marco cleared his throat. “Was Battle a by-the-book kind of guy or more of a live-on-the-edge type?”

  That question made Alvarez laugh. It was the first show of emotion he’d given. “Sir, we’re SEALs. We all live on the edge, or we wouldn’t be doing this. That isn’t to say he wouldn’t follow orders. He stuck to orders. That’s what we’re trained to do. But sometimes you have to think outside the box to get the job done—or take risks. Risks that others wouldn’t take but can end up saving lives.”

  After another half hour of questioning, Isabella escorted Lieutenant Alvarez out of the interrogation room, leaving Bailey alone with Marco. “Well, we didn’t get much from these interviews.”

  Marco shook his head. “No, but something felt off.”

  “You think Alvarez was hiding something, don’t you?”

  “More like protecting someone.” Marco shifted in his seat.

  She agreed. “He said it—they’re family. He will protect his own. They all will. And to hear Alvarez tell it, Battle was a man with no issues or problems. We all know that can’t be true.”

  “We’re just at the beginning. There’s a long way to go in this investigation.” He paused. “How many years have you been with the FBI?”

  She raised an eyebrow. “Are you trying to determine if I have enough experience for this case?”

  He lifted his hands. “No need to get your hackles up. I was just trying to get to know you better, that’s all.”

  She smiled. “Coming up on five years at the Bureau. What about you?”

  “Eight years at NCIS. Spent almost two years in the Virginia State Police first. Did you go into the FBI straight from college?”

  Bailey shook her head. “I actually went to law school at Georgetown.”

  Marco laughed. “Wait. You’re telling me that you’re a lawyer? You’re just bringing that up now?”

  She gave him a sly grin. “You worried?”

  He leaned back in his chair. “Sounds like I should be, but now I understand why you’re into the paper work. It makes a lot more sense.”

  She needed to set him straight. “I have a JD, but I’m not a practicing attorney.”

  “Still, you went to law school, which means the lawyer thing is now in your DNA. But hey, I think it’s good you’re like that, because you can be my counterbalance. As you could tell, I don’t have much patience for going through tons of evidence, looking for needles in a haystack.”

  “Sometimes that’s the only way you find the truth,” she said.

  “It’s clear you’re into that stuff, and you’re obviously really smart. Why become an FBI agent instead of a lawyer and raking in the big bucks?”

  This wasn’t the first time she’d been asked that. A lot of people thought she was crazy. Especially given the money she’d left on the table by not going to a big DC firm. She’d received some amazing offers with a lot of shiny objects waved before her eyes—the big house, the fancy cars—but at the end of the day, her heart wasn’t in it. She knew that money alone wasn’t going to fulfill her. “By the time I got through law school, I realized I wanted something different. But what I learned through that process was indispensable and makes me an even better agent. The critical thinking skills you learn from being put through the law school wringer really help.”

  Marco stood up. “So, how am I doing at playing nice?”

  “Fine.” She wasn’t sure what he was going to say next.

  He lightly punched her arm. “Don’t be so uptight, Bailey. I won’t bite.”

  She held back a laugh. This assignment was going to be anything but boring.

  “How about we get some coffee and plan our next move? Follow me.” Marco headed for the door.

  “Has anyone ever told you how bossy you are?” she asked.

  He grinned. “You would not be the first.”

  Marco was starting to think it wouldn’t be so bad working with the FBI after all. Bailey was the type to roll up her sleeves and get to work, and for that he respected her. They’d quickly put the turf battle behind them and were solely focused on the case. In his experience, sometimes the FBI had a chip on its shoulder when they had to work with others, but not this agent.

  They both had large cups of coffee and were seated in one of the conference rooms that he had turned into their war room. The room was equipped with a few computers and plenty of table space for them to spread out the paper files.

  “Okay, now we get to do some of the work you love. Why don’t you review Battle’s personnel file, and I’ll take a crack at the mission reports?” Marco suggested.

  “I’m on it.” Bailey flipped open one of the folders sitting in front of her.

  They worked in silence for a while before Bailey spoke up.

  “Says here that Battle has an ex-wife and a child.”

  “Where does she live?” he asked.

  “Fairfax.”

  “Wanna take a road trip?”

  She raised an eyebrow. “Why am I not surprised that you’d want to do that?”

  “C’mon. Work with me here.”

  She smiled. “I actually agree with you. We need to talk to her. It’s a good lead we need to run down.”

  About an hour and a half later, they pulled into the driveway of the small ranch-style house. As Battle’s ex-wife and mother of his child, Ms. Battle would have already been notified of his death. So at least they wouldn’t have to have that incredibly difficult conversation.

  He rang the doorbell and waited. A moment later a tall, pretty brunette woman opened the door.

  “Can I help you?” she asked.

  “Are you Ms. Tiffany Battle?” Marco asked.

  “Yes. You must be here about what happened to Sean.”

  “Yes, ma’am. I’m Special Agent Agostini with NCIS, and this is Special Agent Ryan with the FBI. Could we come in and ask you a few questions?”

  She nodded. “Come on in. Would you like some coffee?”

  “That won’t be necessary,” Bailey answered.

  “Please, I insist. Have a seat in the living room, and I’ll bring it in.”

  Marco and Bailey walked into the bright and cheery living room decorated in spring colors.

  A few minutes later, Ms. Battle returned with the coffee. “I spoke to some agents briefly already.”

  “And we’re sorry to bother you again, but we have some questions. The two of us are the lead investigators on the case, and we want to make sure we have all the information,” Marco said.

  Ms. Battle lifted her coffee cup but didn’t take a sip. “You know, I realized
that, given what Sean did, there was a chance he could get killed. But I never, ever thought he would be killed right here at home.” She paused. “They said they think it was a robbery?”

  “That’s our job to find out,” Marco responded.

  “Ms. Battle, how long were you married to Sean?” Bailey asked.

  “We had a whirlwind romance. We started dating and fell so hard for each other. We were married three months later. It was like a fairy tale, but when reality set in, especially with his deployments, it was all just too much. Once Jaden was born, things got even worse. We divorced when Jaden was two. That was two years ago.”

  “And how would you describe your relationship with him now?” Marco asked.

  “We weren’t like those couples who fought. It was more like he knew how miserable I was, and he didn’t want to see me like that. We were on good terms. I had no idea what I was signing up for to be a SEAL’s wife. I was ill-equipped to handle everything, and unfortunately Sean didn’t know how to help me through it. He really loved Jaden, though.” Her voice started to crack. “Jaden’s too young to really know what’s going on. His father didn’t see him as much as I would’ve liked, given his schedule, but when they did see each other, it was quality time.”

  “I assume Sean was paying child support?” Bailey asked.

  Ms. Battle nodded. “Yes, and spousal support too. He always paid, although sometimes he was a little late, but nothing major. It was never an issue, because I could always count on him. I knew he was doing the best he could, so I didn’t push it. Like I said, Sean was a good man.” A few tears slid down her cheeks.

  “Ms. Battle,” Marco said, “do you know of anyone who would want to hurt Sean?”

  She didn’t immediately respond.

  “Please, we need you to be completely honest with us so we can help,” Bailey said.

  “He was really tight with his SEAL buddies, and he had a few friends in other military branches. Sean was a bright light entering a room. People liked hanging around him. It was one of the reasons I was drawn to him from the start. He was always an eternal optimist. Saw the best in people.” Her voice started to waver again. “But there was one SEAL who didn’t see eye to eye with Sean. I know they had gotten into fights quite a few times.”

  Marco leaned forward. “And what’s his name?”

  “Tobias Kappen,” Ms. Battle said softly.

  “How well do you know him?” Bailey asked.

  “I’ve met him a few times at various events, but since I knew he and Sean weren’t on great terms, I purposely didn’t get too close. However, I have a hard time thinking that he’d stab Sean to death, no matter their disagreements.” Her voice cracked as the last words came out of her mouth. “But you should know that Sean told me Kappen has struggled with PTSD. I almost felt sorry for the guy, because I know what being on the teams can do to someone.”

  “Your ex-husband lived in a small apartment a few miles from base. Do you know if that’s the only place he lived?”

  Ms. Battle nodded. “It is. But Sean also had a storage area. He did one of those monthly rental things. His apartment was a studio, so he placed a few things in storage.”

  “Do you have any of the information on the storage facility?” Bailey asked.

  “Yes, I do.” Ms. Battle rattled off the name and general directions to the facility, which Bailey wrote down.

  Marco thought they had pushed her enough for one visit. “Thank you so much. We’re still at the beginning phases of the investigation, so we might need to visit you again.”

  “I understand. Whatever I can do to help.” Ms. Battle sighed loudly. “I have to come to the realization that my son will never see his father again, and honestly, I don’t think I’ve fully processed that yet.”

  Bailey reached out and patted her hand. “It’s going to take time. Grieving is a process. You aren’t expected to just turn your emotions on and off.”

  Ms. Battle squeezed Bailey’s hand. “Thank you for saying that. I don’t think everyone understands what this is like. Even though we were divorced, I still loved him. Always will.”

  Bailey nodded. “You’re not alone in this. The Navy provides resources.”

  Marco pulled a business card out of his jacket. “Here’s the number to someone who can connect you with Navy grief counseling.”

  Ms. Battle took the card. “Thank you for that. I’ll definitely be calling.”

  Once they were back in his SUV, Marco turned toward Bailey. “Thoughts?”

  “She didn’t have anything to do with his death.”

  “Because she cried? You do realize that killers can put on the crocodile tears when they need to.”

  Bailey shook her head. “She would’ve had to hire someone for the hit. Why would she be motivated to kill him? She was getting support from him. In my opinion, she still loved him, and it was clear to me that she was broken up because of her son. I’m telling you, Marco, that woman did not put a hit out on her ex-husband.”

  He pulled out of the driveway. “I agree with you.”

  “You just wanted to push me a bit?” She quirked an eyebrow.

  “Exactly. We should push each other. Keeps us sharp.” And he enjoyed sparring with her.

  “Sounds like we need to track down Kappen.”

  “Yes, we do, but we’ll close the loop on Ms. Battle too. We’ll still run down her financials, along with Battle’s, and do a full work-up just to make sure she hasn’t tricked us both. We should also visit Battle’s storage facility, but we have to start thinking about other options, including Kappen.” They had blank spots to fill in. Marco thought for a moment, then said, “Kappen could also be the person Alvarez was trying to protect. Maybe Alvarez knew that if he told us about the bad blood between the two men, that would put a target on Kappen’s back, and he wasn’t prepared to do that to one of his own. Especially if you consider any PTSD issues Kappen has had.”

  “We’ll follow up with Alvarez again. Also, even if Kappen has something to do with this, how would he fit in with Rogers?”

  “I’m not sure,” Marco said.

  “The evidence still indicates that the same person is responsible here. If that turns out to be right, then you’re talking about a Navy SEAL killing two people—one a civilian.”

  “You’re not hiding your skepticism.”

  “I’m not trying to,” Bailey said.

  He looked at her. “You were really good with her back there.”

  Bailey smiled. “Thank you. That kind of thing is always tough.”

  “You showed empathy. Not everyone can do that.”

  She nodded. “And that’s a shame. Just because we’re federal agents doesn’t mean we don’t have emotions.”

  He laughed. “I’ve never heard it put quite that way before.”

  “Admit it. You felt it too. You’re not heartless.”

  “Oh, I agree. That was rough. I feel really sorry for the kid. Dad’s a SEAL and gets killed stateside. What are the chances of that?”

  “Too low. Something is wrong here, and we have to figure out what we’re missing before it’s too late.”

  CHAPTER

  FOUR

  The next day Bailey was anxious to hear what Petty Officer First Class Tobias Kappen had to say. They’d brought him into NCIS for questioning and were now sitting across from him in the interrogation room.

  “Do I need a lawyer?” Kappen asked.

  “That depends,” Marco said.

  Bailey felt she had to step in. She wasn’t one for playing fast and loose when it came to someone’s legal rights. “It’s your right to obtain legal counsel. So if you want a lawyer, you need to tell us now before we start the questioning.”

  Marco shot her a look, but she knew she was doing the right thing. She took the right to be represented by counsel very seriously, and in this case especially she wanted to make sure the Navy SEAL understood his rights.

  Indecision filled Kappen’s light blue eyes. “I assume this is
about Battle’s death?”

  “Yes,” Bailey answered. But that wasn’t all it was about. They’d get to Rogers in a minute.

  Kappen sat quietly for a moment. “Yes, ma’am. I think I’d like to have a lawyer present.”

  “That’s your right.” Marco looked at Bailey as he said it. “You hang tight, and we’ll see what we can do.”

  An hour later, JAG lawyer Lieutenant Lexi Todd sat to the right of Kappen. The JAG attorney wore her dark hair pulled back in a bun, and she pulled a legal pad out of her briefcase. “You all can start your questioning, but my client is here voluntarily. He’s cooperating because it’s the right thing to do. But I’m warning you, don’t take advantage of this gracious offer. You’ll find that I may not be as accommodating as my client.”

  Bailey appreciated Lexi’s tough tactics. It was at moments like this that she couldn’t help but wonder how she would have been as a practicing lawyer. She knew she’d made the right decision by going to the FBI, but there would always be that fleeting question in her head of what kind of lawyer she would have become.

  “We appreciate your cooperation, Lieutenant Todd,” Marco said. “And yours as well, Petty Officer Kappen. Why don’t you tell us about your relationship with Petty Officer Sean Battle?”

  Kappen looked at his attorney, and she nodded for him to continue. “Battle and I are on SEAL Team 8, but we work in different platoons. I met him a few years ago. We got off to a really rocky start. A bar fight that went way too far. We were both the stubborn type, and it became a running feud that pretty much everyone on the team knew about. Our rivalry was almost part of the fabric of the team.” He leaned forward. “But I did not kill him, and I would’ve never wanted him dead. We’re brothers. I might’ve had my issues with him and given him a lot of grief over the years, but when push comes to shove, we all have each other’s backs and would die for one another. That’s what we signed up for. I take that duty very seriously.”

  “Where were you on June tenth?” Bailey asked. Best to get right to the point, as she wasn’t sure how much time or leeway the JAG lawyer was going to give them.

  “I was on base all day doing some paper work. Since this is our downtime, I drove up to DC. I grabbed dinner with a friend. After that I went to my parents’ condo in Arlington. I stay there when I’m hanging out in the city. They live in Florida now.”