Operation: Midnight Guardian

by Linda Castillo

  “I can have two U.S. Marshalls there in a couple of hours.”

  “What about jurisdiction?”

  “You know I can take care of any jurisdiction or extradition problem with one phone call.” Wolfe paused. “Two hours, Sean.”

  “I’ll be here,” Cutter said and disconnected.

  MATTIE STOOD at the bedroom door and listened as Cutter gave the man on the other end of the phone line their location. She couldn’t believe he was going to turn her over to the authorities after everything they’d been through. Was he doing it because he cared for her and wanted to keep her safe as he claimed? Or had she been a fool and let him use her in the worse possible way a man could use a woman?

  The questions hit her like a punch to the stomach. She nearly doubled over with the pain. She didn’t know what to think. Sean Cutter seemed like a straight shooter. But six months ago, so had Daniel Savage. The one thing she did know for certain was that she was not going to prison.

  She took a final look at Cutter. He’d hung up the phone and was sitting on the sofa with his elbows on his knees, his face in his hands. He looked…broken. The need to go to him was great. But Mattie couldn’t let herself. No matter how painful—no matter how dangerous—she had to do this.

  Quietly she eased the door shut and backed away from it. Looking around quickly, she gathered the clothes Cutter had bought for her when he’d picked up their dinner. She slipped into the parka and spotted one of two cell phones he’d bought lying on the night table. She snatched it up and dropped it into her pocket. Never taking her eyes from the sliver of light beneath the door, praying he didn’t walk in before she could get out, she crept to the window. The wooden sill creaked when she opened it.

  Squeezing her body through the opening, she slid outside into the frigid night air and set off at a run.

  CUTTER FELT LIKE HELL. Truth be told, he felt worse than hell. He felt as if he’d betrayed Mattie. That he’d made love to her just minutes before turning her in gave the situation a cruel twist.

  After hanging up the phone, he sat on the sofa trying to come up with a way out of this mess. But all he could think of was Mattie. The way she’d looked at him when he touched her cheek. The heat in her eyes when he kissed her. The way her eyes had glazed in pleasure when he’d been inside her.

  Martin Wolfe was right. He’d crossed a line with her. Put a black mark on his career. But the worst thing he’d done was betray a woman he cared for deeply. Too deeply, he thought.

  The realization that he’d fallen for her frightened him. Cutter was a whiz at dodging bullets, but to be confronted with feelings so overwhelming was something else altogether—and a hell of a lot more terrifying.

  Cursing, he rose. He looked at the bedroom door where she lay sleeping just beyond. The need to go to her and spend these last hours with her ate at him like acid. But he knew making love to her again after what he’d done would only make things worse. It would only make their inevitable parting more painful for both of them.

  Better for him to get some sleep. He was mentally and physically exhausted. He needed distance from her. From all the things she made him feel. From the emotions boiling inside him.

  He went to the closet in the bathroom and pulled out a pillow and blanket. Carrying them back to the sofa, he flipped off the light. But as he lay down in the darkness and stared at the ceiling, he knew sleep would not come.

  MATTIE SAT in a booth of the coffee shop, looking past the cup of cold coffee in front of her. Outside fluffy snowflakes floated down from the night sky. It was a beautiful scene, and she wished she could have shared it with Cutter.

  She wondered if he’d discovered that she was missing. If federal agents were on their way to pick her up. She didn’t have much time.

  Judging from the conversation she’d overheard, Cutter’s superior wanted to use her as bait. That she had been right was little consolation. Evidently, the agency he worked for had deemed her expendable.

  Over coffee she formulated a plan. A plan that was dangerous at best. Deadly at worst. The prospect of facing The Jaguar terrified her. But if she wanted her life back, she was going to have to do this.

  Picking up the cell phone, she checked the outgoing calls. One call to a Washington, D.C., area code had been made. She could only assume Cutter had called his superior. Praying she got the right person, she hit the redial button and waited.

  “Martin Wolfe,” came a curt male voice on the other end of the line.

  “This is Mattie Logan,” she said.

  The silence lasted so long that she thought they’d been disconnected. “Are you still there?” she asked.

  “Where’s Cutter? And what are you doing with his cell phone?”

  “He’s fine.” She took a deep breath and plunged. “I want to help you catch The Jaguar.”

  Another long silence. “Put Cutter on the phone.”

  “The Jaguar wants something I have. I want to help you catch him.”

  “I don’t deal with—”

  “Cutter won’t use me because he…he doesn’t want to put me in danger. I don’t think you have any such qualms, do you, Mr. Wolfe?”

  “Put Cutter on the phone. Now.”

  “I can help you capture The Jaguar. You know I can. Damn it, let me do this.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I’m innocent and I’ll do anything to stay out of prison.”

  A brief hesitation. “Keep talking.”

  “Daniel Savage was my coworker at the Department of Defense. Over a period of several months he stole confidential information from me and sold it to The Jaguar. Then he proceeded to frame me.”

  “Savage was cleared.”

  “Someone didn’t look closely enough at the evidence.”

  Wolfe said nothing.

  Mattie played her ace. “He’s going to sell the next phase of EDNA if someone doesn’t stop him.”

  “What’s your plan?”

  “I call Savage and ask for his help. Tell him I need money and ask him to wire it. I’ll wait for it at the telegraph office here in Silver Lake. Chances are, The Jaguar or one of his men will show.”

  “You expect me to trust you?”

  “If you want The Jaguar, you don’t have a choice.”

  “How is your plan going to help me take down The Jaguar?”

  “When The Jaguar shows up at the wire office for me,” she continued, “your men can nab him.”

  “How do you know The Jaguar won’t send one of his thugs?”

  “Because I think this has become personal for him. There’s something between him and Cutter.”

  “He told you about what happened in Africa?”

  “Yes.”

  “And you’re not afraid?”

  “I’m terrified.” A sigh shuddered out of her. “But I want my life back. I’m willing to do this.”

  “How do I know you’re not going to take the first bus out of there?”

  “Because you trust Sean Cutter’s instincts.”

  He sighed heavily. “Where is he?”

  “At the chateau. He doesn’t know I’m gone.”

  The man on the other end of the line swore softly. “Well, he’s in for a surprise, isn’t he?”

  Mattie regretted doing that to him. He’d trusted her. But she had to believe that in the long run it would be worth it.

  “Call me with the time and location,” Wolfe said. “I’ve got agents en route. They should be there in a couple of hours.”

  “Okay.”

  “If you run when this is through, I’ll throw every resource I have at catching you.”

  “I’m not going to run,” she said. “But I want your word that when this is over I can count on you to do the right thing.”

  The silence that followed was thoughtful. “I’ll have someone take a closer look at Savage.”

  “And the evidence he used to frame me.”

  “All right. I’ll see what I can do.”

  For now Mattie had to settle f
or the faint hope he offered by that. What other choice did she have?

  Chapter Fourteen

  Cutter woke suddenly and with a bad feeling. For the first night in months he hadn’t dreamed of The Jaguar or the fourteen hours he’d spent in agonizing pain. Instead he’d dreamed it had been Mattie strapped to that gurney and at the mercy of a madman….

  He sat up abruptly, his heart pounding, his body slicked with sweat. The room felt empty. It was too quiet. Mattie had a way of filling up a room just with her presence. He knew she was gone even before he crossed to the bedroom door and opened it.

  She’d gone to the trouble of placing the two pillows beneath the comforter to make it look as if she were in the bed. But the window was ajar, the drapes rippling as the icy wind blasted inside.

  An emotion filled curse broke from his lips. It was not the sound of an agent who’d lost his prisoner, but the sound of a man who feared for the life of the woman he loved.

  Loved.

  Where the hell had that come from?

  The question flitted through his mind as he rushed to the living room and quickly put on his clothes. Cutter tried to think rationally. Where had she gone? He knew she wouldn’t have run merely to escape. Her mind didn’t work that way.

  Then suddenly the truth dawned on him. She was going after The Jaguar.

  Sick with dread, he sat down hard on the bed. In the past he’d always been good at keeping his emotions out of his work. But knowing that Mattie was out there alone and willing to put herself on the line shook him to his core. It was foolhardy. Suicidal, if he wanted to be honest about it. But Mattie was smart. She knew she possessed the one thing The Jaguar wanted most, the single most powerful tool with which to draw him in: the future plans for the EDNA Project. But how was she going to handle the situation once she found herself face-to-face with a madman?

  Mattie was eons out of her league. She was desperate and willing to risk everything—including her life—to clear her name. She thought the knowledge locked inside her head would protect her. But Cutter knew otherwise. Once The Jaguar extracted the information he needed, he would kill her.

  Fear sent him to his feet. He had to find her and fast. Before she did something crazy. Something irrevocable. Because once The Jaguar got his hands on her, Cutter feared he would never see her again.

  Snagging his coat from the sofa, he headed for the door.

  MATTIE DIALED Daniel Savage’s number from memory and waited, her hands trembling. He answered on the second ring.

  “Daniel?”

  “Mattie?” Shock laced his voice. “My God. I was watching the news and heard about your escape.”

  “I didn’t escape, but I don’t have time to go into that right now.”

  “Are you all right? Are you hurt?”

  “I’m okay. But I need your help.”

  “You know I’ll do anything to help you. Anything at all.”

  She felt a wave of anger, but quickly shoved her emotions aside. “I need some money.”

  “All right. How much? I’ll send you whatever you need. Just tell me where you are.”

  A quiver of uncertainty went through her. Once she revealed her location to him, her plan would be set into motion and there would be nothing she could do to stop it. If Daniel was the one who’d framed her—and she was certain he was—he would contact The Jaguar. The Jaguar would come for her. Could she handle the terrorist on her own?

  “I’m in Alberta,” she said. “A ski resort near the U.S. border called Silver Lake.”

  “Is there a wire office?”

  “Yes.” She rattled off the phone number of the tiny shop on the edge of town, next to the post office. “Five hundred dollars should tide me over.”

  “Tide you over until what, Mattie? My God, the police are looking for you. What are you hoping to accomplish?”

  “I think someone framed me, Daniel.”

  A beat of silence. “Who?”

  “I don’t know. But I’m going to find out.”

  “Honey, maybe you should let the authorities handle it.”

  She cringed at the endearment. “I’m not going to prison.”

  “I’ll wire the money immediately.”

  “I’m using an alias.” She mind spun through several names. “Donna Clark.”

  “You got it.”

  “Thank you, Daniel.” She looked through the window at the wire office across the street. “I’ll be waiting.”

  “Take care of yourself,” he said.

  “SILVER LAKE?”

  “That’s what we were told.”

  The Jaguar looked at the map pinned to the wall and pondered how to best handle the situation. “That’s an hour from here.”

  “She’ll be waiting at the wire office for the money to be sent.”

  “Excellent.” He looked at his watch. “Is there an airport?”

  “Yes. It’s a ski resort. Lots of small planes flying in and out.”

  “Have my jet fueled and ready to go in ten minutes.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “And be sure to reward our contact in Washington, D.C., for his loyalty. Ten thousand dollars ought to keep him happy.”

  “I’ll make sure he gets the money.”

  “Good. We will continue to treat him well as long as he remains useful.”

  “I’ll meet you at the landing strip in ten minutes.”

  The Jaguar disconnected and walked to his desk. He smiled as he opened the manila folder containing the file he’d compiled on Mattie Logan. Her photograph smiled up at him. So lovely, he thought. It would be a shame to mar that face. He wondered how long it would take to make her talk.

  Anticipation zinged through him. He would finally have the plans for EDNA. He would finally have the power he needed to bring the West to its knees.

  Then he would have the pleasure of killing Mattie Logan.

  THE TOWN OF SILVER LAKE was small, but one man could only cover so much ground. Cutter started on the west end of town and worked his way east. He stopped at every business—the café, the boutique, the antique store, even the bookstore, and asked about the young woman with big blue eyes. But no one had seen her. Where the hell had she gone?

  Before leaving the bed and breakfast he’d discovered she’d taken one of the cell phones. He’d called the number a dozen times, but she hadn’t picked up. Damn her. Didn’t she realize what this was doing to him? After twenty minutes of striking out, he was nearly out of his mind with worry. Had The Jaguar already found her? Had she become frightened and gone on the run? Either way, she was in terrible danger. He had to find her. But how?

  Cutter hadn’t wanted to enlist the help of the agency. Not because he was trying to save face; he’d long since concerned himself with anything so superficial. But Mattie’s life was on the line. It was only smart to use every available resource to find her.

  Pulling the cell phone from his pocket, he called Martin Wolfe. “She’s gone,” he said simply when the other man picked up.

  “I know,” the other man said.

  It wasn’t the response Cutter had been expecting. His stomach twisted into a knot. “What the hell are you talking about?”

  “She called me, Sean.”

  The words crashed over him like a tidal wave. “You had better start talking.”

  “I figured she would have called you by now.”

  Cutter’s heart began to pound. “She didn’t. So, talk to me, damn it.”

  “She’s going to try to make contact with The Jaguar. Use herself as bait. Try to set him up so we can move in.”

  He swore darkly. “Tell me you did not go along with it.”

  “You know as well as I do that she’s our best bet for nabbing that sick son of a bitch. If you weren’t personally involved with her you’d see that as clearly as I do.”

  Uh-oh, Cutter thought. Of all the things he’d anticipated Mattie doing, calling his superior was not one of them. He sure as hell hadn’t expected a man of Wolfe’s professional s
tature to go along with her cockamamie scheme.

  “When were you going to clue me in on this?” Cutter snarled.

  “She was supposed to call you.”

  “Since when you do rely on a civilian to keep me informed?”

  “Since you lost control of the situation.”

  Cutter wanted to reach through the phone line and strangle the other man but knew he didn’t have a leg to stand on. He wasn’t exactly sure when it had happened, but he had lost control of the situation. As hard as he’d tried to combat his feelings for Mattie, he admitted he was running on emotions now, not logic. If he could just put his feelings for her aside, he might be able to think through this and get to her in time.

  “Where is she?” Cutter snapped.

  “I don’t know.”

  “You bastard.”

  “Come on, Sean…”

  “I’ve got to go.”

  “Let her do this. I know you don’t want to put her at risk, but we need her.”

  Cutter disconnected before the other man could say more. Without pausing, he dialed his old cell phone number, praying she would answer.

  “Cutter?”

  The sound of her voice shook him so thoroughly that for a moment he couldn’t speak. When he finally found his voice, it was thick with emotion. “I’ve been trying to call you.”

  “I couldn’t pick up.”

  “Why not? Are you—”

  “Because I didn’t know what to say.”

  He sighed. “Are you okay?”

  “I’m fine.”

  “Where are you?”

  She hesitated. “I’m in a safe place.”

  He gripped the phone tighter. “Mattie, tell me where you are.”

  “I can’t.”

  “Damn it, don’t do this.”

  “Evidently you’ve talked to Wolfe.”

  “He filled me in on your little scheme. If I didn’t know better I’d think you have a death wish.”

  “Quite the contrary, Cutter. My only wish is to get my life back.”

  “Not like this.”

  “It’s the only way.”

  “Mattie, damn it, where are you?”

  Another hesitation. Longer this time. Damn, he was losing her. “Tell me where you are. I’ll meet you. We’ll talk about this.”