by Mary Alford
The CIA’s firewall was impenetrable for a reason. No one could hack their way beyond it to erase a file unless…
“How’d you first come to discover this asset?”
Travis hesitated then said, “From Kate’s computer. The one you gave me to look over. The assets name was Knight. Kate had him flagged as useful.”
“I’ve never heard of him before,” Jase admitted.
“There’s more. The file contained information about The Foreigner and another person she referred to as The Dark One.”
Something about the name The Dark One sounded familiar. But then, maybe he was grasping at straws. “You said you found it on her computer? How is it possible I missed it? I went over every file on that computer a dozen or more times. There was nothing.”
“She had it well encrypted. I guess she didn’t want it to be found by the wrong person.”
What Travis said made sense, but still, Jase considered himself to be pretty savvy when it came to cracking computer codes, and he did know Kate better than anyone. Why hadn’t he discovered this information before Travis?
What Hannah had said earlier about Kate’s killer being one of them reverberated in his thoughts. He dismissed it immediately. This was Travis. He trusted Travis with his life. Still, why would Kate go to such an extreme in hiding her contact info on a secured computer unless she was fearful of whose hands it might fall into?
“What do you think happened to the file?”
Travis blew out a shaky sounding breath. “I don’t know. It disappeared. It was there and then it wasn’t. But it’s pretty strange that when this went down and the tip the asset gave me fell through, out of the blue we hear noise about an unusual amount of activity taking place at farm house outside of Kandahar. The team regrouped, and the weapons were discovered. Strange, huh?”
“Geez.” Jase breathed out the word. “What’d Aaron say?”
He glanced around the sleepy little ski village of Diablo. The place was all but deserted. Even the local bars had long ago closed. It felt as if he were the only person in the world right then.
“Nothing. He tried to appear to be supportive, but I could tell he didn’t believe me. He didn’t believe me. And get this, when he did the initial debriefing, he asked me only a handful of questions. You know Aaron—he’s anal about the details. When I arrived this morning, the director, Aaron, and all the top brass where meeting behind closed doors and I wasn’t asked to sit in. Give my prospective on what happened.”
Jase searched for something to say that might ease Travis’ fears. “That’s protocol. You know the rules.”
“Maybe.” Travis sounded doubtful. “It just feels like more. And I haven’t told you everything. Kate’s computer is gone. I think Aaron took it, but I don’t know for sure.” Travis let out a shaky laugh. “I know I’m sounding paranoid, but I can’t help but feel that the noose is closing in around my neck.”
Jase had to agree. “You’re right, it does. But Aaron has your back. He’ll support you on this.”
“I hope you’re right. I’m not so sure. Sorry, Jase. I don’t mean to unload on you, but I thought you should know what’s happening. Anything new on your end? Has the Sandoval woman told you anything useful yet?”
For reasons he couldn’t explain, Jase chose his words carefully. “I’m not sure yet. I need more information to go on, but I’ll let you know as soon as I have anything concrete.”
“Good. Let’s hope it comes soon. Because right now I don’t like my chances of getting through this thing untouched.”
Jase couldn’t say it aloud, but he didn’t either. “Try not to worry too much. Keep your nose down and your ears open.”
“Roger that.”
Jase sat for a long time trying to digest what Travis had said. Nothing about the scenario made sense, from the file he hadn’t found on Kate’s computer to the missing asset and disappearing file. There had to be something he was missing. Had Travis, in his distress, failed to tell him everything? He hated to admit it, but given the information he had, he could certainly understand Aaron’s reaction. If Jase didn’t know Travis the way he did, especially after what Hannah had told him, he’d be questioning Travis’ involvement in Kate’s death.
He didn’t want to go there. He couldn’t think that of his friend.
Jase put the truck in drive and pulled out onto the empty street. At this hour of the morning, the only thing open for business was a convenience store that carried some groceries. He bought the necessities. Milk, eggs, coffee, whatever he could find that they might scrap together a meal with.
Then he drove around for a while longer, trying to dismiss what Hannah had told him while hoping to make sense out of what Travis had said.
By the time he returned to the cabin, the place was dark, and he was no closer to understanding anything than he had been when he left.
He stepped inside and listened. No sound beyond the slight hum of the refrigerator. Jase dropped the groceries by the door and cracked the door to Hannah’s room. She was lying on her side, facing the opposite wall, and he let go of the breath he’d been holding.
He put the stuff in the fridge and made some coffee. He was exhausted and in desperate need of sleep, and yet he couldn’t help but think time was running out for Hannah. Himself. Travis.
He poured some coffee, added more fire to stove, and then sat on the sofa watching the flames lap at the glass door.
“Start from the start. Clear your head of all the things you suspect. Now, tell me what you know. Go where the facts lead you.” He could almost hear Kate saying those words as she had a dozen times in the past whenever something didn’t quite add up.
Start from the start. To do that, he’d have to go back to before Kate’s death.
He thought about the last few months before her death and the conversations they’d shared. Most of the time work was the topic even when they were alone and on those rare occasions when they came to this cabin.
He tried to recall what Kate had told him about The Foreigner. Her details had been sparse. The Foreigner had a family. He’d once been part of Al Qaeda. He’d stop believing in their cause and wanted a better life for his family. But Kate had never mentioned how he came to be her asset. She protected those in her care along with their secrets. He knew most of her assets by their contact names only. Had she ever mentioned The Dark One before? Was he the missing piece to the puzzle that would help them solve the mystery surrounding Kate’s death? He hoped so, because he didn’t know how much more of this life he could handle.
Chapter Eleven
“You should have listened to Jase. None of this would have happened if you’d stayed home where he wanted you. Where you belonged.” She could almost see his face. If only he stepped a little bit farther out of the shadows. His voice was so familiar. She knew him.
He dropped the weapon and brought out something from his jacket. A knife. The glistening blade guaranteed her pain would be great.
“Goodbye, Kate. I wish I could say, I’ll miss you, but the truth is, I never really liked you all that much and you’ve outlived your worth.” He motioned to the man holding her. His grip tightened. He grabbed a handful of hair, forcing her neck back. With one fluid movement, the knife sliced across her throat. Instantly, blood rushed from the wound down the front of her shirt. She tried to speak, to call out for help. The only sound that came forth was the gurgling of blood gushing from the wound. She was helpless to do anything more than slump back against the man holding her.
“No! Please no. Not like this.”
In an instant, Hannah sat up in bed, shivering in spite of the warmth of the room. Her breathing came in labored gasps. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to recapture the dream in spite of its heartbreaking end. She tried to see his face. Why couldn’t she see his face?
Hannah had this same dream many times since she’d awakened from the coma and the outcome was always the same. Kate knew her killer.
She couldn’t bear the thou
ght of being alone again. With the dream so fresh and after reliving Kate’s death once more, she needed to be close to someone.
She climbed out of bed and went to the guest room. The lights were off. Jase was sleeping. It looked as if he’d literally dropped onto the bed and fallen asleep. One arm dangled awkwardly on the floor. He appeared about as uncomfortable as any human could but that didn’t stop her.
“Jase.” She shook his arm gently.
His eyes flew open and he sat up. It took him only a matter of two ticks of a second hand to shake off the sleep. “What is it? Are you okay?”
She drew in a shaky breath. “Yes. No. I don’t know. I had a bad dream. I don’t want to be alone. Can I stay with you?”
He didn’t hesitate. Didn’t ask her about her dream. He simply moved over and waited for her to slide under the covers before he gathered her close.
She snuggled next to him and waited for the expected rejection from him. There was none of those things tonight. Only comfort when she needed it most.
When she woke again, bright sunlight streamed through a tiny window close to the bed. She was alone. The side of the bed where he’d lain had grown cold. She could smell fresh brewed coffee.
Hannah went to the kitchen.
He must have heard her come in. “Want some?” He glanced her way. She nodded and sat down at the table.
Jase poured a cup and brought it over to her.
She cleared her throat. “Thank you.” She felt awkward. She didn’t know what to say to him.
He went back to making breakfast and she watched him work. He sat a plate in front of her with scrambled eggs, toast, and sat across from her.
She took another sip and studied the eggs.
“Just eat them. They’ll do you good.” He sounded amused. He took a bite of his food and leaned back in his chair, watching her.
“Don’t do that.”
“Don’t do what?” he asked after a moment.
“Don’t look at me as if I’m some weird bug or something. Besides, you know I hate it when you watch me eat…” She stopped studying the plate. Her gaze flew to his and locked.
He let her remark go without challenging it. “You want to tell me about the dream?”
She shivered at the very thought of it. “No.”
“Was it about that night?” he asked quietly.
So much for not talking about it. “Yes,” she said at last. “I can almost see his face Jase, I’m positive Kate knew him. But this time, well his voice was so clear. I know if I hear it again, I’ll recognize it.” This was the first time she felt hopeful.
He shook his head. “Hannah, there are literally thousands of CIA employees. We need more to go on.”
Which meant he still didn’t buy what she was telling him. She focused on her plate to keep from showing him her disappointment. She’d thought they might be making progress. Obviously, she was wrong.
“So how’d you meet the coach?”
His question took her by surprise. Her gaze flew to his. She didn’t want to talk about Michael with him. Michael had been another victim to this case, just like Kate.
“Don’t do that. Don’t make fun of him. He deserves better.”
“Which doesn’t answer the question.” Jase took a bite of his toast and never broke eye contact.
She set her cup down and stared at him. There was nothing but idle curiosity in his expression. He was trying. She was behaving childish.
She shook her head. “All right. Fine. We met in high school. I’d transferred to Arlington High my freshman year. Michael was a junior. He was sweet.” Her expression softened, and she actually smiled as she remembered that time.
“Michael showed me the ropes and we became good friends. Then we started dating. And that’s all I’m saying about him.”
Jase grew quiet. He seemed to be digesting what she was certain he already knew about the relationship.
“What about you?” he asked.
“What about me.” She took a bite of the eggs.
“Did you always want to be a teacher?”
She put her fork down and looked at him.
“Hannah, I’m trying. We’re stuck here together for who knows how long. We have to talk about something. So, tell me about you.” He smiled and her heart did a little chaotic beat. Why did he have to be so handsome?
But he was right. She’d told him everything she knew about Kate’s final hours. It hadn’t helped. They had to try something else.
“Yes.”
“Yes?” Again that dangerous smile.
“Yes, I’ve always wanted to be a teacher. Since I was about three years old, I think.”
“That’s an awful long time.”
She smiled a little more. “It is. I used to hold classes with my stuffed animals and then I got sick.”
“That must have been hard.” She saw the familiar sympathy she so hated in his eyes.
She didn’t answer right away. She shrugged her shoulders. “It was. How many kids do you know who can understand when the doctor tells them they’re slowly dying?”
“I don’t know many adults who could grasp such a nightmare.”
She nodded and grew silent again. Jase finished the eggs and took his plate over to the sink. She sensed the conversation ending, and she wasn’t ready to break the spell.
“What about you? What are your dreams, James ‘Jase’ McCoy?”
His shoulders grow tense. It was because she’d used his full name. She didn’t have that right.
He came back to the table and sat again. He stared off into space considering her question. “It’s been so long since I thought about having a dream or a future beyond the Agency it’s almost hard to answer.”
It amazed her, the amount of sorrow edged on his handsome face. Whether Jase left the Agency or not, it would be with him forever. She guessed you couldn’t see that many horrific acts against humankind and not have it leave its mark.
“What about the ranch. You bought the ranch in New Zealand. That’s something.”
The spell crumbled into dust in an instant. His gaze locked on hers. All of his focused intensity boring into her. “How did you know about New Zealand?”
She watched the storm raging inside of him. Would he ever be free of it? Of Kate?
“You told me … her. Kate,” she amended. “You told Kate. I remember it very clearly. I had a dream about it.”
Her answer didn’t set well with him. Color left his face. She could feel him shutting down.
“You told Kate about the ranch a little while before her death. You said you were getting out as well. Leaving the job.”
She reached for his hand again and squeezed it. He didn’t pull away. “Will you go back there once this is over?”
He closed his eyes. “I don’t know if I can do this. This is so hard. What you claim … it goes against my very nature. I’m used to dealing with hard evidence. I understand what makes a terrorist tick. I can take down a security threat as easily as I can draw my next breath. But this—whatever this is, well, I don’t know how to diffuse it.”
“You don’t have to diffuse anything. Stop looking at this as a bad thing. It doesn’t have to be bad.” She paused for a second and then added, “Jase, did you ever think that maybe God put us together to find out what happened to Kate?”
He looked away. “I don’t believe in God. If He existed, how could He let this happen to Kate?” The bitterness in his tone was undisguised.
“God didn’t let this happen, it just did…” She hesitated. Did she dare tell him about Kate?” Hannah gathered her nerve. “She believed,” she whispered and his gaze shot to hers.
He shook his head. “No she didn’t. Kate didn’t believe in anything but herself. Trust me, I knew her better than anyone.”
She reached for his hand once more and clasp it. “You’re wrong. She did believe in God. You can too.”
He shook his head and looked away. “Once Kate’s killers are brought to justice, I’m g
etting out. I want to go back to the ranch and try to forget I ever lived this life. I want to feel normal again. Whatever that is. You have any idea how to accomplish that?” He managed an attempt at a smile.
For his sake, she wished that she did. Hannah shook her head. She was emotionally drained and exhausted beyond belief. Against her will, she had become part of something she couldn’t even begin to fathom. She didn’t understand normal either.
“Still no word on how long do we have to stay here?”
He laughed softly and it sent a shiver down her spine. “Why? You tired of my company already?”
Hannah wanted to scream that was the problem. She liked being with him a little too much. “Be serious. How long?”
“I don’t know. However long it takes.”
She squeezed her eyes shut for a second. He was back to being flippant. The moment had passed. For a second they’d connected, her—Hannah and him. And it was easy to see why Kate loved him.
“What does that mean? What are you waiting for? What do you expect to happen?”
He looked her in the eye. “What do you think?”
“You think they’ll come after us again?” she breathed out.
“I can almost guarantee it.”
“What about The Foreigner, Jase?”
He didn’t answer her question but asked one of his own. “Have you ever heard the name The Dark One before?”
His question surprised her as much as the fact that he was avoiding answering her question. “The Dark One? The Dark One.” Something about the name sent chills through her. She tried to capture the reason. She couldn’t. She shook her head. “Why?”
“I don’t know. We believe he may be another one of Kate’s assets.”
Hannah thought about it for a bit. “I’m not sure.”
“Perhaps Kate’s memories are fading.”
She didn’t believe that. “Maybe. I don’t know. I can’t place the name.” She leaned forward. “Jase, what aren’t you telling about The Foreigner. Have you spoken to him yet? He might be able to shed some insight into what happened.”