Striking Distance

by Debra Webb

  Her whole body sagged beneath the weight of the words he’s spoken. How could anyone hope to overcome that kind of violence. “How…” She cleared her throat and moistened her trembling lips. “How did you survive?”

  He shook his head. “You don’t get it, do you? I didn’t.”

  She saw the change in his eyes…knew what his next move would be. Her fingers wrapped around the pen in her jacket pocket. “I just want to help you,” she urged.

  “I don’t need your help.”

  She jerked her arm upward and brought it down hard against his neck.

  His body tensed.

  For two beats she was certain she was dead.

  The weapon bored more deeply into her flesh.

  And then he dropped like a rock.

  CHAPTER 33

  Logan entered Victoria’s home office, and Lucas looked up from his final preparations. “Any word on Agent North?”

  Logan shook his head. “No luck with the CIA. Since she hasn’t been upgraded to field work yet she didn’t receive a tracking implant.”

  Lucas hissed a curse. He’d hoped they could locate her that way since she’d removed the one Maverick had implanted. He leveled his gaze on Logan’s. “You keep me posted. Ramon and Maverick are on this?”

  “I called in Blue and Noah to help them out. They’re combing the city along with Maverick. Ramon’s hanging out at the Metro Link in case our guy shows up there.”

  Blue Callahan and her husband Noah Drake were two of Mission Recovery’s finest assets. Lucas should have thought to call them in. He sighed in self-disgust. “I appreciate the way you’ve stayed on top of things, Logan. I haven’t…” His words trailed off as a wave of weariness washed over him. He’d tried to keep the exhaustion clawing at him at bay, but his efforts were quickly losing ground. “I haven’t been at the top of my game this go-around.”

  “That’s understandable, sir. Are we ready to go?”

  They had waited for the cover of darkness. A switch-off would take place in the event that the still-unidentified assassin was watching. Ian Michael’s wife, Nicole, disguised to look like Victoria, would leave with Lucas and two of his men in the SUV waiting outside. Nicole had arrived dressed as a man so anyone watching wouldn’t suspect just such a setup. Thirty minutes after their departure, Victoria, disguised in the male clothing and wig Nicole had worn, and her two most trusted men, Ian and Simon, would leave in an SUV parked in a neighbor’s driveway. Another of Lucas’s men, along with two more of Victoria’s, would be watching the small gated community for any sign of the assassin as Victoria departed. Vince Ferrelli would follow as backup. They’d covered every possible base.

  Lucas didn’t like the idea of being separated from Victoria, but it was the only way to ensure her safety at this point.

  “Almost ready,” he said in answer to Logan’s question. “Victoria is briefing her people before leaving. Since we can’t be sure how long she’ll be away, she wants to ensure that both Ian and Simon feel comfortable in their positions as codirectors of the agency until her return.”

  “I’ll be waiting outside,” Logan said before he turned away.

  “One more thing,” Lucas said, waylaying him. “I’ve decided to change my orders on the assassin.”

  Logan looked surprised. Lucas rarely made last minute changes without overwhelming motivation. “In what way?” Logan inquired.

  “Until now I’ve wanted him alive so he could lead us to Leberman. I think that might be a mistake. It’s now clear to me that Leberman has grown impatient and will want this over just as swiftly as we do. I think he’ll make a move with or without his hired help.” Lucas looked directly at Logan then to ensure there was no misunderstanding. “If you get our assassin in your scope, take him down.”

  Logan nodded slowly. “Do you want him alive for any reason?”

  “No.” Lucas didn’t hesitate. “I want him eliminated.”

  “Understood.”

  Lucas watched Logan go, then took a moment to ensure he’d taken care of everything in his makeshift command center. He considered the possibility of any loose ends and could think of none. Director Casey would continue to handle ongoing operations at Mission Recovery until Lucas’s return. Assuming he returned.

  Lucas closed his briefcase and exhaled another heavy sigh. His top priority right now was getting Victoria to safety. He touched his still-tender forehead and the fresh, much smaller bandage that had been secured there today. His back was still tender as well. There was no doubt in his mind that he would be dead right now had the assassin wanted him that way. More of Leberman’s games, Lucas had decided. Well, he’d had enough games. It was his and Victoria’s turn now. Whatever it took, Leberman was going to die.

  He thought again of the video he’d watched when the assassin dropped by North’s apartment. He couldn’t shake the feeling of familiarity in the way the man moved. But he’d studied that video over and over and nothing had come to him. Familiar or not, he was a dead man, the same as the man who’d hired him.

  * * *

  “Are there any other questions?” Victoria looked from Ian to Simon and back. The two men sat on the sofa, both watching her closely as she stood before them. She couldn’t sit for more than ten seconds without squirming.

  “None,” Ian said.

  Simon chimed in as well. “No questions.”

  Victoria nodded. “Very good.” She propped her hip on the arm of a chair and pretended to relax, knowing she wouldn’t be able to tolerate it for long. “If for any reason I don’t return,” she stated succinctly, “Zach has the proper instructions for continuing to conduct business.” Victoria suddenly wished Zach were here. She missed his steady support. As the Colby Agency’s top legal eagle, they worked closely together. But Zach was on leave back home in Indiana where his lovely wife was giving birth to their second child.

  Victoria couldn’t help a pang of jealousy. They had their whole lives ahead of them, just as Ian and Nicole, Simon and his Jolie did. Time was running out for her and Lucas, and here they were wasting it on a horrendous part of the past that wouldn’t go away.

  God, how she wanted Leberman dead. She wanted this over so she could move on. Eighteen years was long enough to grieve and keep fighting the same old battle. She couldn’t change the past…couldn’t bring her husband and son back. It was time to move forward.

  She closed her eyes and thought of the way Lucas made her feel when he kissed her. So warm and contented. Happy in a way she had not known in a very long time. His kisses had been chaste the past couple of days, because of the mounting tension and all the horrible reminders of the past, she knew. But she was ready to move beyond that. She was sick to death of having her painful history dashed back in her face. Life was so fleeting. Why couldn’t she have this time with Lucas?

  “Victoria, are you all right?”

  Nicole’s voice dragged her back to the present, and Victoria’s eyes fluttered open. She managed a smile for the young woman. She nodded then. “Yes. I guess I’m just tired.” A frown worried her brow. “Nicole, are you absolutely certain you want to do this?”

  Nicole Reed-Michaels smiled. “I’m positive. I can handle it. Don’t worry about me.” Nicole was former FBI. She knew how to take care of herself.

  But that didn’t keep Victoria from being concerned. A dark wig covered her blond hair, and she wore one of Victoria’s suits. If the assassin or Leberman were watching, she was a target. Leberman was an evil bastard. His assassin had proven every bit as devious. Those kinds of men were capable of anything. Killing a lovely woman, wife and mother of two, would be nothing to them.

  Victoria stood abruptly. “Excuse me a moment.”

  She rushed to the guest room to take care of a task she’d forgotten. A quick flip of the wall switch and light filled the space. Her gaze went i
mmediately to the bed. A box, its contents scattered across the pale green comforter, drew her deeper into the room. Settling on the edge of the bed, she reached for a photograph of her young son. Tears gathered in her eyes as a bittersweet smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. If only she could have protected him.

  She’d failed.

  Laying the picture aside with trembling fingers, she surveyed the mementos of his short life. This was all she would ever have of him…it wasn’t enough. She’d dragged out the box of painful memories earlier that afternoon, she had to look one last time.

  He was gone.

  She had to face the finality of that glaring fact.

  With a heavy heart she pushed up from the bed and moved to the door without looking back. Freda would put things away…she didn’t need to bother—to put herself through the pain. It was time to forget.

  As hard as it was to do, Victoria turned out the light on that part of her past.

  “It’s time,” Lucas said as she entered the den once more.

  She nodded her understanding. “All right.” She looked back at her trusted Colby agents and reminded herself to be strong.

  Determined not to allow this moment to become an emotional farewell, she produced an appreciative smile for Ian and Nicole. “Thank you for everything.” To Ian and Simon, she added, “I’ll be in touch.”

  When the decoy party had moved to the entry hall, Lucas glanced back to Victoria. He wanted to take her in his arms, she could see the need shining in those caring gray eyes. But he wouldn’t, not now.

  “We’ll rendezvous in one hour,” he told her.

  Somehow she managed to keep her smile tacked in place. “One hour,” she repeated. “Be safe.”

  “Let’s step back into the den, Mrs. Colby,” Vince Ferrelli, one of Lucas’s specialists, said.

  Victoria’s heart pounded so hard she feared she might be incapable of a response just then so she nodded and followed him from the entry hall. She wanted to say so much more to Lucas before he left. Wanted to tell him again how very much she loved him. She’d only told him that once.

  Please, God, she prayed, don’t let that be the last time.

  “We’ll wait here, Mrs. Colby,” Ferrelli said. He gestured to the sofa. “Everything will be fine.”

  It had to be, she thought as she settled onto the sofa’s edge. Fate couldn’t be so cruel as to take Lucas from her. She’d already lost too much.

  * * *

  Lucas’s cellular phone vibrated in his jacket pocket. He frowned at the intrusion. He didn’t need any distractions right now. But if it was one of his people it had to be important, otherwise they wouldn’t risk talking over the air waves and interception by anyone who might be listening.

  He hoped like hell it wasn’t bad news involving North…or Victoria. He’d only left her minutes ago.

  He fished the damned phone from his pocket and flipped it open. He didn’t recognize the number of the caller. “Yeah,” he said instead of identifying himself.

  “Lucas?”

  His frown deepened. “Ebb?” Dr. Ebb Deason was the genetics expert Lucas called upon whenever he needed the very best in DNA analysis. Not to mention he could count on his old friend dropping everything and working his team until he had results.

  “I apologize for calling you like this,” Ebb hastened to explain. “Maverick insisted it would be all right, considering the subject matter.”

  Maverick had given the doctor this number? It had to be important. “It’s fine. Go ahead, Ebb.”

  “I finished that latest analysis you sent me.”

  The seminal fluid specimen North had provided. The memory pinged Lucas’s conscience. “That’s good to hear. What have you got for me?” Unless the doc had found a match in some database, a mere analysis wouldn’t be much help.

  “Well, I was a little bewildered at first. I knew immediately that I’d seen this DNA strand before.”

  Anticipation seared through Lucas. “You found a match in CODIS?” The FBI’s Combined DNA Index System proved a useful tool for all government agencies. It contained DNA specs for violent criminal offenders. That would be the most likely source of a match considering the specimen donor’s occupation.

  “No…the match was with another specimen you provided.”

  Lucas stilled. Every sensory perception stood at attention.

  “This specimen was a perfect match to the one from the Cubs T-shirt.”

  Lucas blinked, breaking the paralyzing spell the news had cast. “You’re certain of that.” Of course he was certain. He wouldn’t have called otherwise.

  “Yes. Quite certain,” the doctor confirmed.

  “Thanks, Ebb.”

  Lucas didn’t remember terminating the call, but somehow his cell phone made it back into his pocket.

  “Dear God,” he muttered.

  This was…impossible…

  The assassin determined to kill Victoria was…her son.

  CHAPTER 34

  Tasha collapsed on the floor in the massive entry hall. Her breath heaved from her chest as if she’d run a marathon.

  It had taken her at least thirty minutes to drag Seth’s unconscious body to the house. The woods, she discovered, bordered the side of Victoria Colby’s lake house opposite the water. She’d used the code Maverick had given her to open the gate and then the front door. For once, since taking finals in college, she was thankful for her fantastic memory. She’d only seen the code once but it was forever imprinted across some brain cell that floated around in her gray matter just waiting for her to access it.

  After getting Seth into the house, she’d tied him to one of the massive columns in the entry hall. She’d used the electric cords for the coffeemaker and the toaster to secure him. She glanced at the clock on the wall. She couldn’t be sure what time she’d injected him, but she imagined he would be coming around anytime now.

  She had both weapons and his cell phone.

  Leaning back against the wall, she watched him and considered all that she’d bullied him into telling her. She would bet her life, which ultimately she’d just already done, that he’d never told anyone that horrifying story before.

  She closed her eyes and fought the sting of tears when she thought about the child he’d been and how that bastard Leberman had brutalized him. Shackling him in the basement like an animal, restricting his food and water. No wonder he had such excellent night vision, he’d spent his formative years in the dark.

  Then, worst of all, sending him to stay with those scumbags who’d done far worse things to him. At fourteen he must have believed that nothing could be worse than what he’d faced so far in his young life, and then he’d been left to discover that his nightmare had only just begun.

  They’d tortured him…starved him…dear God, and they had raped him. Anguish roared through her. Leberman had made him a monster. He’d disfigured his body and then he’d killed his soul.

  How…how did you survive? Even now tears burned in her eyes as that moment replayed in her mind. You don’t get it. I didn’t…

  Seth was right. He hadn’t survived. Whoever he had been back then had died. The man that he was now had been born of violence and despicable evil. A beast. Like Leberman said. Her fingers tightened around the weapon. She wanted to kill that bastard with her bare hands and now she had the bait.

  She flipped open the cell phone and went through its menu. There were no numbers entered into the speed dial function. She checked the incoming call log and dialed the number from which he’d last received a call. Three rings passed before a very pissed off, male voice answered.

  “Where the hell are you? They’re on the move.”

  It was him. A shudder of dread quaked through her. It was Leberman.

  “Seth’s a little tied up right now,�
� she said flatly, almost smiling at her own wit. “Why don’t you come and help him out. I think you know where we are.” She ended the call and tossed the phone aside. “Bastard,” she hissed beneath her breath. She would kill him all right and never feel a moment’s remorse.

  “That was a mistake.”

  Seth’s voice jerked her attention to him. His eyes burned like a high-octane blue flame. Fury didn’t begin to describe what she saw there. She swallowed back the fear that threatened to clog her throat. “Maybe,” she allowed, then cocked the weapon in her hand. “I’m of the opinion that he’s got this coming to him.”

  Seth made that noise in his throat that was probably as close to a laugh as he got. “You think you have what it takes to stop him? Others have tried and they’ve all failed. Just ask your boss, Lucas Camp. He’ll tell you.”

  That he’d tossed Lucas’s name into the equation with such glibness made her want to shake the hell out of him. She eased out of her sitting position and moved toward him, settling again near his bound feet so she could read him better. She wanted to see even his subtlest reaction to what she was about to say.

  “After all he’s done to you, why would you care if I kill Leberman or not?”

  He looked straight at her from beneath lids still heavy with the lingering effects of the drug. “Who says I do?”

  She shrugged, deciding to go with her gut and not pretty this up in the least. “I don’t know. Maybe it’s because you haven’t killed him yourself in all this time. After all, he did all those cruel things to you and still you let him live.” She said the last with as much repugnance as she could muster, then pressed him with a fierce gaze of her own. “Maybe you liked it.”

  The change evolved instantaneously. The fury she’d noted before morphed into pure, unadulterated rage. But even that savage ferocity didn’t hold a candle to the lethal intensity of his voice when he spoke. “Cut me loose now and I’ll let you live. Drag this out and you’ll end up dead.”