The Territory of Lies

by Ana Stone

  Sydney looked at him for a long moment. "How did you know I met with him?"

  "Tyler's under investigation. He's being followed."

  "I see." She nodded. "So that's why my car and my office are bugged."

  Blake looked down momentarily then met her eyes. "Yes. So, the meeting this morning?"

  "I talked to him about going to the clinic and he agreed."

  "And?"

  "And I made the arrangements. He's safe and out of the picture - just like we planned."

  "I wasn't aware that you planned on doing it quite so soon. Why didn't you tell me this morning?"

  "Because I was afraid you'd tell me to wait until you had your meeting and I didn't want to wait for that to happen. No, that's not true. The truth is, I was afraid that once you went to the bureau either they’d turn you down and Tyler would be in the same predicament or they’d give you the green light but not want to go along with having Tyler committed and he would still be in danger. So, I decided to make sure that he was safe. He's not a bad man, Blake. He's just someone who was duped and used and he doesn't deserve to be tormented. Besides, he told me that he's already tendered his resignation. He won't be part of the Senate any longer."

  Blake wasn’t particularly thrilled that she had made a unilateral decision to take matters into her own hands. Especially now that the investigation was official and he’d been put in charge. He remembered his words to Steve that he could handle Sydney and wondered if he had spoken too soon.

  "Syd, I understand your concern and I know we planned to do just what you did. But I've been put in charge of this investigation and I can't have you making that kind of move without getting clearance."

  "You mean permission, don't you?"

  Blake could tell from her tone and the stiffness that came into her posture that she didn’t like the idea that she had to ask anyone for permission and he could understand her feelings. But he had to find a way to make her understand his position.

  "Look, I don't think this is the time or place to−"

  "Darling!" A deep male voice interrupted from behind him. Before Blake could turn Adrian Zayne walked around him and leaned over beside Sydney to take her hand and lift it to his lips. "What a remarkable coincidence. I've been trying to reach you all day."

  "Adrian." She smiled somewhat stiffly then looked at Blake. "You remember Adrian, don't you, Blake?"

  Blake nodded. "Mr. Zayne."

  "Ah, yes." Adrian smiled but didn’t release Sydney's hand. "Mr. Edwards, isn't it? The FBI chap. Delighted, I'm sure. Sydney, darling, I have a table waiting. Won't you join me? I'm sure your friend won't mind. After all, an FBI agent has so many important matters to concern himself with. Isn't that so, Mr. Edwards?"

  "Yes, it is. However, Doctor Forrest and I were having dinner and−"

  "Yes, of course you were." Adrian pulled on Sydney's hand. "But now that I am here I'm sure Sydney would prefer to join me at my table. Wouldn't you, darling?"

  Sydney wouldn’t let him pull her to her feet. "Actually, no I wouldn't. Blake and I were having a perfectly nice time and I'd like to continue to do so. If you want to have dinner then call me and we'll set a date. Now, if you'll excuse us."

  Adrian's eyes flashed briefly but he smiled down at her. "Very well, if you insist, then I shall formally request your charming company for dinner tomorrow night at my house. Is that enough notice, my dear?"

  "Yes." She smiled up at him. "I look forward to it."

  "Then I shall see you promptly at seven." He leaned over her hand again. "I have something quite imaginative in mind, my pet - something to make the pirate adventure pale by comparison."

  Sydney didn’t comment and after a moment Adrian smiled and nodded to Blake then walked away.

  "What was the pirate adventure?" Blake asked.

  "I don't really want to get into that here, if you don't mind."

  "Not at all," he said as he stood. "As a matter of fact, I don't think I want to be here at all, so let's go. We'll have Chinese delivered at your apartment. Right now I think we need to talk."

  She nodded and stood. "Does that mean my apartment's safe or do you have it bugged?"

  Blake felt the sting of her verbal jab and tried to ignore it. "No, your place is fine. Unless you don't want me there anymore. Would you prefer to join Mr. Zayne?"

  Sydney shook her head and took his arm. "You know I don't. I want to be with you."

  Blake felt his irritation and jealously fade but not disappear. As they reached the entrance of the dining room he glanced back and saw Adrian watching them with an amused smile on his face. Blake knew that his reasons were not entirely professional but at that moment he didn’t care what the motivations were. All he knew was that he was really looking forward to putting Zayne away.

  He walked Sydney to her car. "I'm parked across the street." He pointed to his car up the block.

  "Okay, I'll be right behind you."

  As Blake got in his car his thoughts were on the investigation and how he was going to make Sydney understand that she couldn’t do things like have the Senator committed without clearing it first. He was so preoccupied with formulating the words that he paid little attention to the flow of traffic around him.

  

  Adrian sipped his wine and thought about Sydney. In the beginning she had been little more than a slightly interesting diversion; another conquest in many ways.

  While he had considered her beautiful and desirable at the onset, she had not been of any real consequence. He planned merely to use her to suit his needs then discard her as he had all the others. She was no more to him than the waitress who served his meal.

  Now his opinion of her had undergone a change. Something about the way she looked at the FBI agent made Adrian experience a feeling he was totally unfamiliar with; jealousy.

  He was quite amazed that he would feel that way. Sydney was a beautiful woman, but there were thousands of beautiful women in the world, and many who were much more compliant than she. In fact, he could not remember any woman ever resisting his charms the way she did. To even entertain the idea that she would choose someone like Blake Edwards over him was unthinkable and yet the way she looked at Blake told him that she felt something more for Edwards than she did for him. But only for the moment, he thought. He had made up his mind that he wanted Sydney Forrest. And what he wanted he got. Always.

  

  The sound of blowing car horns drew Blake's attention. He looked in his rear-view mirror a split second before a black Audi with tinted windows ran into the rear of his car. The jolt made him do more than sit up and pay attention; it sent adrenaline rushing through his body in a vibrating wave.

  Blake swerved over in front of a taxi in the right-hand lane as the Audi roared up behind him again. The taxi driver blew his horn and gave him the finger but Blake didn’t notice. His attention was on the Audi that was now racing up beside him.

  The rear window behind him exploded in a shower of glass and he swerved back into the left lane, forcing another car to slam on brakes and squeal to a stop. He freed his handgun from the shoulder holster and jerked the car back over to the right lane into the side of the Audi.

  The man taking aim from the rear driver's side window was thrown back by the impact but he recovered quickly and took another shot. Blake turned his head as the rear passenger's side window shattered then jerked the wheel hard to the right, slamming against the Audi.

  The gunman fired two rounds. One hit the side of the car and the other passed through the opening in the back window to within inches of Blake's head. "Shit!" He swerved to keep from hitting a car in the left lane as the Audi rammed him. Another shot took out the rear window and that was when Blake reached his limit.

  With a vicious jerk on the steering wheel he sent his heavier sedan ramming into the Audi. The driver of the Audi fought to keep from being forced off the road but was unsuccessful. For a few tense seconds the sound of grinding, screeching metal competed with the racing o
f the cars engines then the Audi swerved sharply to the left across traffic and merged into the traffic heading up Fort Myers towards the Key Bridge.

  Blake cut a quick look in his side mirror. It would be a miracle if he didn’t hit someone but he had to make the turn. With a pound on the horn he cut in front of a car and jammed the accelerator to the floor as he turned onto the exit. Behind him the sound of screeching tires and blaring horns let him know that no one was hurt.

  He caught up with the Audi just as they were nearing the exit to the George Washington Memorial Parkway. He rammed the car from behind, steeling himself for the impact. The jolt was not the only worry he had. A moment after his car ran into the Audi, the rear windshield of the Audi exploded and bullets sprayed the front of Blake's car.

  Blake threw his left arm up to protect his face as glass rained in on him. He felt the sting of the sharp slivers against his neck and hand but didn’t let up on the gas petal. He was going to get the guys in the Audi if it was the last thing he did.

  The Audi increased its speed and headed for the exit. It passed three cars and veered into the right-hand lane behind a sanitation truck that had just entered the freeway. The tires of the Audi screamed and blue smoke boiled as the driver tried to keep from running into the back of the truck. Unfortunately, his speed was a little too high or his reactions a little too slow. The Audi slammed into the rear of the truck and crumpled like an accordion.

  Blake stomped his brake petal and sent his car into a slide. As his car collided with the rear of the Audi in a jarring impact he realized that he had been holding his breath.

  He reached for the keys in the ignition to turn off his car at the same time a man jumped out of the back of the Audi and sprayed Blake’s car with bullets from an Uzi. Blake threw himself down on the front seat of the car until the sounds of gunfire ceased then he jumped out of his car to see a man fleeing on foot down Fort Myers towards the bridge.

  "FBI!" he shouted at the driver of the sanitation truck, who had, by that time dared to climb out and check the damage. "Get on your radio and have someone call the FBI. Officer Edwards in pursuit of a suspect on the Key Bridge. And call an ambulance!"

  The man stared wide-eyed at Blake for a moment then turned back to the door of his truck Blake took off running after the suspect. He could see the man ahead of him, dodging in and out of traffic and causing cars to slam on brakes and swerve all over the road. If Blake didn’t get to him fast he was going to cause a major wreck.

  The man turned and looked at Blake which slowed him down for a moment. Blake put everything he had into a burst of speed and closed in. The man dodged through traffic to the north side of the bridge and pulled a gun from beneath his jacket.

  Blake dove behind a car that had slid to a stop. "Get down!" he yelled at the driver, a pimply-faced teenager who gawked at him excitedly.

  "Hey man!" the youth yelled at him, not bothering to do as he was told. "What the hell's going on? You some kind of hit man or something?"

  "FBI," Blake shot back at him as he made his way to the rear of the car in a crouch. "Now get down!"

  "Cool." The boy grinned. The grin was short-lived however. The suspect opened fire as Blake emerged from behind the car.

  Blake knew he didn’t have time to waste. If he didn’t do something fast someone was going to get killed. Aiming his weapon as he ran, he shouted at the suspect. "FBI! Drop your weapon!"

  "Fuck you, asshole!" the man shouted in reply and fired three rounds.

  Blake hit to the ground and rolled to one side. As soon as he stopped he took aim. His first shot caught the man high on the right shoulder. Blake saw the man's arm drop and didn’t wait to see if it would get back up. He jumped to his feet and ran towards the man.

  "You're under arrest!" he shouted as he drew within a few yards of the man who was in the process of picking up the gun he had dropped. "Hands up where I can see them!"

  "Not in this lifetime," the man snarled.

  Blake saw what the man was going to do and charged him.. He made a grab for the man's leg as he climbed up on the protective rail but was a moment too late. His fingers closed around nothing as the man sailed off the bridge to the dark waters of the Potomac.

  "Damn!" Blake holstered his gun and looked down to see the man splash into the water. He watched carefully for several seconds but did not see the man surface.

  Someone ran up beside him and he instinctively reached for his gun. "Hey man, I'm a cop!" the short, African-American man held up both hands. "Off duty."

  Blake removed his hand from his gun and pulled his credentials instead. "Special Agent Blake Edwards, FBI. You got a phone or a radio?"

  "I've got a cell in my car. You want it?"

  "Yeah, thanks." Blake leaned to look at the water again. There was no sign of the suspect.

  Who the hell were those guys? He wondered as he waited for the policeman to return with the phone. That question made his heart leap. He had forgotten all about Sydney. The last he had seen of her was right after they had pulled away from the restaurant. He said a silent prayer that she was okay and took the phone the policeman handed him.

  As he dialed FBI headquarters he thought about what had just happened. If anyone was after him then how would they know where he would be? Unless it was Zayne, he considered. Zayne had seen him with Sydney at the restaurant. Was he following Sydney? And if so, then why have muscle with him?

  Once more Blake found himself with far too many questions and not an answer in sight.

  

  Sydney had given up trying to follow Blake. She had no idea what was happening and she was very worried but there was nothing she could do. The traffic on Arlington had slowed to a crawl because of something apparently on Fort Myers. As she passed the turn she could see that the traffic was at a stand-still. She hoped it had nothing to do with Blake but something inside told her it probably did.

  Not knowing what else to do, she by-passed Fort Myers and continued to the Theodore Roosevelt Bridge, crossed the river and exited onto Virginia Avenue. She pulled up in front of her apartment and turned off the car. For a moment she just sat there, considering going back to look for Blake. Since she had no clue where to look she decided against that course of action and opted on another; to call GW and see if he knew anything.

  She pulled out her cell phone as she took the elevator up to her floor. It went straight t voice mail. "It's Syd. I need to talk to you. Call me."

  Sydney tossed her keys and purse on the table in the foyer and went into the study. She turned on her computer and sent GW a message for him to get in touch with her as soon as possible then exited and went into the kitchen.

  There was nothing particularly appetizing in the refrigerator. Besides that her stomach was in knots. Now that she was home alone she was beginning to fear that something had happened to Blake.

  Sydney grabbed a bottle of wine from the refrigerator, and a glass from the cabinet and went into the den. She turned on the television, sat down on the couch and poured a glass of wine.

  She turned on the news and settled back on the sofa. Before she realized it her glass was empty. She refilled it and leaned back, wondering how long it would be before she heard something from or about Blake.

  Fears that something had happened to him made her anxiety level rise. She tried to push the thoughts out of her mind and switched the channel to a movie. After fifteen minutes or so she put her empty glass down on the table and stretched out on the couch. Two glasses of wine on an empty stomach seemed to be having more of an effect than normal. She felt very sleepy; so sleepy in fact that it was almost impossible to keep her eyes open.

  She sat up and tried to focus on the movie. Less than a minute passed before she lost the battle to stay awake. Her last thought before she fell asleep was that she would just rest for a few minutes then she would try and locate GW and see if he knew anything about Blake.

  

  It was almost dawn. The search had been ongoing all night, witho
ut success. Blake called a temporary halt and the boats came in for the night with plans to head out again at first light.

  When he left the scene, he went directly to FBI headquarters. All night he’d thought about what had happened and he was convinced that Adrian Zayne was behind the attack. What worried him more than anything was that there was no word from Sydney. He’d tried to call her apartment several times but all he got was a busy signal and her cell phone went straight to voice mail. Even the texts he sent went unanswered.

  Weasel was waiting for him as he entered the security door. "Any luck?" Weasel asked as soon as they were within speaking distance of one another.

  "Not so far." Blake then gave Weasel a grateful smile as he accepted the cup of coffee Weasel offered. "Have you talked to Syd?" "Got a message from her last night on the answering machine and on my e-mail. She said she was at

  home and needed to talk to me asap."

  "Did you call her?"

  "Not yet. Been busy on that car chace exhibition of yours."

  "And?"

  "And the body of the driver's been identified."

  "Let me guess. " Blake pushed open the door of his office. "He works for Zayne."

  "Baaah!" Weasel blurted. "Wrong. Seems like someone followed you from Jacksonville, my man. You pissed off a lot of drug dudes with that last bust and it looks like they decided to play get even."

  Blake looked at him in surprise. "You sure about this?"

  Weasel crossed his arms over his chest. "Does the Pope shit in the woods?"

  "Let's see what you have."

  "On your desk."

  Blake picked up the folder and sat down at his desk. He spent the next fifteen minutes reading the stack of papers inside. When he finished he looked up at Weasel. "I would've bet the farm Zayne was behind it."

  "Why's that?"

  "He showed up at the restaurant when Syd and I were having dinner and made this big show of drooling all over her hand and calling her 'his darling' and shit like that. And he made some sly remark about outdoing some kind of pirate thing he did for Syd."