Seek and Destroy (TREX, #5)

by Allie K. Adams

  He brought his hand up to knock again. The knob turned and the door swung open to reveal JT Weber with a baby on her hip. The mini-JT had little blonde curls scattered all over her head and the biggest green eyes Charis had ever seen. Hands down she had to be the cutest baby on the planet.

  “David!” JT practically jumped into his arms, baby and all. He threw his arms around JT and the baby, laughing and kissing the female Weber. It was only a peck meant in greeting, but it still made Charis’s heart jump in protest. She didn’t want him kissing anyone but her.

  “Ah, JT. I can’t believe how much I’ve missed you.” He held her in his arms and squeezed until the baby squealed to be released. “Sorry.”

  “Don’t mind her. She’s cranky. Her dad is in a bad mood and she picks up on that. Come on in.” JT opened the door the rest of the way. As Charis stepped inside she smelled something so delicious it literally made her mouth water. Savory, like her parent’s house when the McKoys got together for Sunday dinner.

  “Hi,” she said with a smile when JT’s gaze finally left David to rest on her.

  “You did it!” JT then threw her arms around her until the baby squealed again, this time crying and reaching for her daddy, who’d just come out from another room to greet them. The director looked completely different than how she’d ever seen him. He seemed relaxed, and dare she say, even smiling. With a towel over his shoulder, he couldn’t look more domesticated.

  “Come here, my baby.” He reached for his daughter and brought her close to him. She leaned into her daddy and laid her head on his shoulder, her thumb firmly in her mouth. She eyed Charis and blinked away her tears as she kept her body safely pressed against her protector.

  “David Snyder,” Weber stated and smiled proudly as he looked down at his little girl. “Meet Stephanie Weber. My daughter.” He kissed her forehead. “She’ll be six months old tomorrow.”

  Charis’s heart melted. Maybe he wasn’t such a bad guy. She stole a glance at David, who smiled as proudly as the director. He must really have a special bond with the Webers. She’d love to have that special of a bond with anyone, let alone an entire family other than her own.

  “Stephanie? After Gessler?” David brushed the curls out of her eyes and played with her nose until she smiled and buried her face against her daddy. She peeked back up at him, the whole while never removing her thumb from her mouth.

  Weber nodded and swallowed. If she didn’t know any better, she’d say his eyes misted. “Yeah. Steve always said he thought I’d make a great dad.”

  “He’s right,” JT purred and wrapped her arms around him.

  “Okay, you two,” David drawled and stepped back to give them some space. “Enough, already.”

  Weber grinned and shrugged before kissing his wife. Little Stephanie fussed, clearly not wanting to share daddy. JT took David’s coat off Charis and hung it on a rack by the door.

  The director motioned for them all to follow him and led them into a large dining room. In the middle of the room sat a gorgeous oak table set with all the trimmings for dinner. Roast chicken, garlic mashed potatoes, baby peas. Her mouth watered again.

  “Food,” she breathed. She was starving, having only coffee with David since landing in Seattle.

  “Not just food, McKoy,” Weber barked at her. “JT’s been working on this food all day since I had to stick around HQ until you got around to checking in.”

  She cursed herself inwardly. Just once she’d like to be able to stop from saying exactly what she thought. Maybe then she’d stopped pissing off the director every other word. Feeling about an inch tall, she paused at the end of the table. “Sorry, I—”

  “Don’t mind him,” JT cut in and took her daughter from him as she started to cry. “He had this dinner planned since finding out you found David. Besides, he has this thing about his cooking.”

  His cooking? Didn’t he just say she’d done the cooking?

  “He got up at six this morning to start on the dinner. It’s been ready for hours,” JT explained. “I only kept it warm. Trust me, you don’t want to eat anything I cook.”

  She smiled, grateful JT pulled her out of another disappointment in the director’s eyes.

  “Be sure to tell him how much you love the food,” JT offered. “If you don’t congratulate him and declare him the Master Chef of the Universe, he gets cranky.”

  “Are you dissing on me again, woman?”

  JT lifted her eyebrows in an attempt at innocence. “What? Me? Hell, no. I don’t have to cook, just warm. You could make cold cereal for dinner and I’d still declare you the Master Chef of the Universe.”

  Weber rolled his eyes. “That makes it all worthwhile.”

  “Ah, damn. It’s good to be back.” David grinned from ear-to-ear.

  “I’m going to go put her to bed,” JT said and excused herself.

  Weber watched his wife leave, admiration shining in his eyes. Charis hoped someday a man would look at her like that. She stole a glance at David and when their gazes caught, the connection shocked her heart into skipping a beat.

  He took a seat as Weber did, sitting opposite from each other. Since there were only four chairs, she took the one next to David so JT could sit next to her husband. Besides, she didn’t want to be that close to the director.

  Once JT rejoined them, Weber passed the food around and took the opportunity to start the briefing. “McKoy, did Snyder tell you why you’re here?”

  She accepted the bowl of peas from David. “No, sir.”

  Weber scooped up a pile of potatoes before offering the bowl to David. “We have a situation.”

  “You said that earlier.” David jumped in. “After she brought me back in.”

  Weber narrowed his eyes at Snyder. Something passed between them. David shook his head. Weber nodded in return.

  Were they mind readers? Performing some sort of spec ops mind meld?

  “I hate it when they do that,” JT commented and dug into the peas.

  “What?” The men asked in unison, looking as guilty as kids caught breaking into their dad’s liquor cabinet.

  JT ignored them and looked across the table at her. No question where their baby got her gorgeous green eyes. The blond hair must have come from her daddy since JT’s long waves were a dark brown. Charis knew why SD Weber couldn’t take his eyes off his wife. She was beautiful.

  “They used to do this all the time,” JT explained. “One would say something then they would have some sort of eye conversation. Next thing I know, they have some secret pact.” She then turned her gaze to Weber. “You know I hate secrets, Dan.”

  Weber stole a final glance at David, gave him a slight nod, before turning to JT. “Pass the potatoes, please.”

  JT growled. “You’re slipping, Special Director.”

  Weber cocked his head. “How so?”

  “You already have potatoes on your plate.”

  He looked down and muttered some of the cuss words David seemed to favor. Not willing to be shadowed by his flaw, he scooped more potatoes onto his plate. “I know. I’m just really hungry.”

  Riiight. Charis grinned inwardly. It was nice to see the director squirm for a change.

  Weber continued after setting the potatoes down. “We think we may know where Surreal is. At least the general location.”

  David stopped chewing. “Seriously? Where?”

  “You won’t believe this. Same location as before.”

  “It’s a decoy,” Charis added without hesitation. Both Weber and David looked at her. But JT nodded knowingly.

  “You’re shitting me,” Weber stated, his mouth full.

  Charis shook her head with an easy shrug. “I wouldn’t shit a director.”

  David snickered at her response.

  “How do you know?” Weber asked, still not bothering to swallow.

  “Because I installed traces in that location. If he so much as sneezes within a hundred feet of where the shack used to stand, I’d know.”

&
nbsp; David nodded at her. “Tell me what you remember about that day. Did you know you weren’t alone?”

  She turned to him. “Yes. It all happened so fast I didn’t even have time to register shock that I had company. I was standing there, ready to approach the shack. The next thing I know, another agent pops up over the hill on the other side of the field. I take a step toward him to tell him to back off and feel a tug on my foot. I look down to see a wire wrapped around my shoelace. I realized what I did a split second before the explosion.” The memory caused her eyes to sting, her throat to burn. Her scars throbbed. Swallowing, she looked down to regroup. “I don’t know what ever happened to the other agent.”

  “I do,” David admitted, then colored when both Weber and JT stared at him. He shoveled in a mouthful of chicken and kept his gaze down at his plate. He swallowed and, after no one looked away, he met their expressions before turning back to her. “I was the other agent.”

  Charis blinked once. Twice. “You?”

  David looked at her.

  His eyes! Of course. She did know him. The flutter of recognition. How could she have forgotten? “What was spec ops doing there?”

  “What was intel doing there?” David countered.

  They both turned toward Weber, waiting for an answer.

  Weber cussed and shook his head. “Snyder was sent in to eliminate the threat. He was supposed to be alone,” he ground out as his eyes fixed on her.

  “Intel was there to negotiate Surreal’s surrender,” Charis added.

  “He would have never surrendered,” David pointed out. “He wanted you there for a different reason.”

  Charis shuddered. She knew why Surreal wanted her and he’d made it no secret how he felt. To have. To hold. The death do us part would have happened quickly, since Charis would have killed him with her bare hands if he touched her again.

  “Don’t the two divisions talk?” JT asked, looking at her husband. “We’re all TREX. With two agents onsite, neither knowing of the other’s role, they could have ended up killing each other.”

  “I know. We’re lucky they didn’t or blow the whole thing. If Donovan was involved somehow...” Weber trailed off and shrugged, another cuss word falling from his lips.

  “The last director,” David explained to Charis.

  “I know who Ron Donovan was.” How could she not? The news of the ex-director, turned double agent, turned co-conspirator, sending his own team into a trap sent shockwaves throughout all the divisions of TREX. Knowing he died in the trap instead of his team and those surrounding her at this very table had everything to do with that made her proud to be in the same room with them.

  Weber turned and addressed David and Charis. “I’m still cleaning up after that asshole.”

  JT cleared her throat. Weber looked over at her and smiled an apology. “Sorry, sweetheart. I know, no cussing at the dinner table.” He gave David a sideways glance and rolled his eyes, shook his head. “See how domesticated I am now?”

  “It’s a damn shame,” David commented. Charis wanted to kick him under the table. She thought it was cute.

  Weber brought his attention back to them both. “As long as I’m the SD over all the directors of this region, shit like this won’t happen. Full fucking disclosure, you got it?”

  “Dan,” JT warned.

  He rolled his eyes again.

  “Full fucking disclosure,” David repeated and then gave JT a smile when she narrowed her gaze at him. “Sorry.”

  It was JT’s turn to roll her eyes.

  David took a bite of potatoes. “If this is a decoy, where do you think he really is?”

  “I don’t know,” Charis answered, then added, “yet. I need to get to my system. I know him. I can e-track him.”

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

  Charis met his eyes with a conviction she felt clean into her soul. “His name is Thomas Robert Macy. He’s 5’8”. Dirty blond hair. Brown eyes. Very average looking. An only child raised by his grandmother when his parents were killed in a car accident. He was seven. He’s allergic to shellfish. He hates the Denver Broncos and loves the Pittsburgh Steelers.” She paused, waiting for the director’s reaction. When he leaned toward her, his attention completely fixed on her, she smiled. “Do you want to know his favorite cereal?”

  “And that, right there, is why your transfer is approved.”

  Her heart jumped to her throat. She didn’t request a transfer. “My what?”

  “Your transfer to the cyber division,” Weber explained. “You filed the paperwork.”

  “I never filed any paperwork.” Was this what that email was about?

  The room fell silent as the agents all exchanged glances.

  Charis finally spoke after she knew, without a doubt, who had filed that paperwork. “He really is back.” She fought the panic rioting inside her. A shiver ripped up her spine at the thought of having to face him again. At least this time she wouldn’t be alone.

  “Why would he want you transferred to the cyber division?” JT asked. “That makes no sense.”

  “It makes perfect sense,” Weber countered. “She’s the only one who can stop him and he knows it. He’s sending her a message. He’s sending all of us a message.”

  It clicked and scared the hell out of her while at the same time giving her a rush of adrenaline. “He’s challenging me. In intel, I’m never assigned to a single mission, to carry it out from cradle to grave. Intel agents gather intelligence for all the other divisions. We don’t have our own missions. He wants me to transfer to the cyber division so I’ll be assigned to hunt him down. No distractions gathering intel for other missions. Just this.”

  “Can you do it?”

  She could as long as she had someone like David watching her back. “Absolutely, sir.”

  Weber turned to David. “Now you know why you’re back. I don’t trust anyone else to protect her. She’s our biggest asset on this so guard her with your life. Find that son of a bitch. Bring him in at any cost. He doesn’t get anywhere close to her. Got it?”

  David nodded. “He’ll have to go through me.”

  THIRTEEN

  Charis concentrated on the monitor of the laptop TREX gave her for the flight to Montana. The Wi-Fi scrambler blinked green and blue, signaling IP shifts every 1.5 seconds. Nine different points should be enough. Still, even the untraceable connections could be hit if the hacker knew what to look for. She increased her points to fifteen, not about to underestimate a hacker like Surreal.

  This end of the airport baggage claim hardly had a soul in it. The Pacific Marketplace sat clear at the other end of the airport and attracted the travelers much more than an empty carousel. With nothing more than a few vending machines, there wasn’t anything to draw a person to this end. The baggage claim looked eerily still. It creeped her out how the lighting wouldn’t stop flickering, just like in the movies before someone got sliced to shreds. The fact it was five in the morning helped to keep the population down.

  At least she had her bodyguard pacing behind her. If she could call David her protector, anyway. She didn’t know whether she should be protected by him or from him.

  “Are you sure?” he said into the cell phone against his ear. “And it was him? You’ve ID’d the device?” He cussed. “Why didn’t you find this out earlier? Not connected, my ass. Yeah. Thanks.” He ended the call.

  “What was that?” she asked, not sure if she really wanted to know.

  “Another bombing. That’s three buildings in three weeks. Surreal took out the History of Arts server room in Houston two weeks ago.”

  “An art company?” That didn’t make any sense. Surreal usually went after technology companies. Well, except for that odd bombing that took out an architectural company.

  “Not just any art company,” he explained. “A non-profit historical society. Jesus Christ. This doesn’t fit his MO at all.”

  “How do they know it was him?”

  “They dug the dev
ice out of a pile of rubble. They didn’t connect it to the other bombings until then since this company had nothing to do with technology. That goddamn broken heart symbol stood out like a sore thumb. Now that is the same MO.”

  “Hmmm,” she nodded. Yes, that definitely fit his MO.

  He rested his hands on her shoulders, unsettling her, sending chills across her body. “How’s it going?”

  “Not any better than the last time you asked me.”

  “Sorry. I just feel so helpless. Is there anything I can do to help?”

  “For the last time, no. I need to break into the site undetected. For that, I have to have the password.” She tried another array. Access denied. She blew her hair off her face and tried again. “Crap.”

  “I thought you said you were the best.”

  Yes, thank you for your faith in me. “Hackers aren’t the most trusting of sorts. They change their access codes like I change my underwear—where... Where did I put my pen?” Did she really say that? Yeah, nice cover McKoy. The heat from her embarrassing comment burned into her cheeks. Why couldn’t she control her tongue?

  He grabbed her pen from behind her ear and thrust in into her face. “Here.”

  “There it is.” She giggled like an idiot. He didn’t seem amused. After a dismissive glance, he went back to pacing.

  “You’ve been working on it for the past,” he stopped and looked at his watch.

  “Fifteen minutes,” she answered, cutting him off. She didn’t need him keeping time. She was well aware of how much time she’d taken. “Our flight doesn’t take off for another couple of hours. That should give me plenty of time to find him and attach a tracer.”

  He continued to pace behind her, stopping every other passing to stare over her shoulder. Every time he did, she had to stop. She smelled him. Not his cologne. Not his soap. It was him. Deeply masculine, musky. Sexy.

  She’d never been able to smell a man before. Sure, some of the men she’d dated wore cologne. But she’d never smelled them, their essence. She smelled David’s essence. Her senses came alive.

  Oh not again. Apparently, her senses weren’t the only thing to come alive. Her nipples squeezed to hard little buds. She ignored her body’s response. Not now.