Redemption Lost

by Cindy M. Hogan

  Ace slid a stack of papers half an inch thick toward Halluis. “Of course. While you all had your heads on your pillows, I was working.”

  “Maybe that’s because some of us actually have to use our bodies.” Halluis gave Ace a withering look, which Ace answered by throwing a wadded up napkin in Halluis’s direction. It fell short by about a foot. Halluis quickly wadded up another napkin and hit Ace square in the face and then pointed to a flexed bicep and grinned.

  “All right, girls,” Jeremy said. “We’ve had enough of your bickering. You both work equally hard, just in different ways.”

  Ace screwed up his face in mock pain and then cleared a spot on the table and put his elbow down, hand in the air inviting Halluis to an arm wrestle.

  Halluis’ arm flew into action and the second he took Ace’s hand in his, he applied pressure toward the table. Ace immediately corrected and their hands sat straight up, neither gaining the advantage. Strain showed on their faces, neither wanting to give up.

  “Oh, brother!” Jeremy said. “I declare you both very French and very strong.” That seemed to take away the fun of it, and they let go and then shook hands and laughed. The two of them often acted like teenage boys and goofed off when they got together, Halluis asserting he was the only true Frenchman since he was from France and Ace a lesser Frenchman since he came from Montreal, Canada.

  “You got him everything on Bradley?” Jeremy said, placing a hand on Ace’s shoulder. “How are you doing on Miller and Edwards?”

  “I actually started on Alvarez, but I’ll switch over if you think that’s more important.”

  “I’d like to have an idea of the things that Senators Edwards and Miller are passionate about so I have a better idea about what’s causing the friction between them and Alvarez, so I guess I need it all. It’s not enough just to say they oppose each other’s bills simply because one is liberal and one is conservative, no matter how aggressive their debates are.”

  “Ditto,” Christy said. “I’ll have the half hour in the car to grab some stuff though. I’ll review it as I stand there in a comatose state.”

  Halluis chuckled. “If only we could all peruse documents in our heads as if they were right before us. One day that head of yours is going to explode with information, and it’s not going to be pretty.”

  “Aren’t you full of sarcasm this morning,” she said. “I mean it’s always there, but you’ve gotten in all kinds of jabs in just a few minutes.”

  “I blame it on politics and D.C. They drive me batty.”

  “Yeah. Me, too,” she said with a frown.

  “Feed us the intel as you uncover it,” Jeremy said to both Halluis and Ace.

  They answered in unison. “Will do.”

  Ace cleared his plates and bowl and put them in the dishwasher. “I’ll be in the cave.” The large bedroom-turned-surveillance room was filled with all the electronic equipment Ace needed to do his job as well as a mini lab for him to create tech that the team might need.

  “Thanks, Ace,” Jeremy said. “We’d be blind without you.” Ace lifted a hand in recognition and left.

  Jeremy turned to Halluis. “Be extra careful here in D.C. It’s loaded up with over-excitable cops and military people. They don’t fool around.” It was an unnecessary caution to give to Halluis, who would have done his homework, but Jeremy was nothing if not thorough.

  “You got that right. I’ll be careful. Au revoir.” He left.

  “You must be my new guy—but you’re a girl.” His perfectly straight teeth and lightly browned skin caught her attention as he smiled, but she still bristled. He probably thought a girl was unable to protect him. “Yes, sir. At your service, sir.”

  “While I appreciate you taking on a formal tone when others are present, I don’t require it when it’s just me.” Tiny smile wrinkles formed at the corner of his blue eyes as he smiled again. His thick, perfectly styled, brown hair did not show a hint of gray.

  “Sir.”

  “And you are?”

  She looked down to see if she had forgotten her name tag. It was there. Obviously noticing her looking, he said, “I see that you’re Officer Hamilton, however I’d like to know your first name.” The curious and welcoming look on his face made her want to like him. She reminded herself that he was a suspect.

  “Brittany, sir.”

  “Brittany. Just leave off the sir and we’ll get along just fine.”

  “Thank you. I’ll try. It gets ingrained.” She was liking him even more now.

  He chuckled. “I’m McKay. I hope we become good friends. Well, Brittany, if you could open my door, we’ll get a good start on the day.” He handed her his keys.

  She opened the door, stepped inside, and made sure it was safe. “You’re good to go.”

  He punched something on his phone as he entered the room and put it up to his ear. “I arrived. Yes, everything looks good for today.” Pause. “I love you too. Give the kids good morning kisses for me.” Pause. “Bye, Love. Have a good day.”

  So, he called his wife as soon as he walked in the door. Pretty great. His somehow disarming and inviting personality made her wonder how he could be at odds with anybody and how in the world he could be involved with the kidnapping at all. He seemed like a really good guy. She immediately figured it must be Jeremy’s guy, Senator Edwards who was the bad one. She hated to admit it, but she liked Senator Miller already. She held back a grimace. That probably meant this lead was a dead end.

  Still, Marybeth had identified him as one of Alvarez’s enemies. She’d stick with him for now—and hope that Jeremy was finding something more fruitful.

  She stood right inside the door as his room filled up with people from his think tank as well as a couple other senators. She checked them off a list as they entered. They discussed an interesting healthcare bill Miller was sponsoring. The morning flew by, and Christy liked what she heard, pleasantly surprised that she wasn’t bored out of her skull. The thought and care put into the bill made her like the senator even more.

  She wanted to look up the proposed bill as soon as she was off work or maybe even at lunch. And then she chided herself. She hadn’t paid attention to anything else in the room that morning because she was so caught up in the discussion and the brainstorming. She hadn’t done her job. At least nothing had been said or had happened to make her wonder about his relationship with Senator Alvarez. She promised herself she’d be better after lunch.

  She couldn’t wait to get with Jeremy to hear his impressions of Senator Edwards and if he had gotten any good intel from him. Various Capitol officers shifted through all the senators, giving other officers time for lunch and breaks. She hoped he’d be on the same lunch break as her. She hurried off to the cafeteria.

  She sat at the closest table to the door and ate a grilled cheese sandwich with a side of broccoli and a salad. She scanned the room constantly, looking for Jeremy. She was dying to talk to him about his day. Really, she’d love to talk to him about anything, but in this moment she was desperate for some good news. She knew it was probably too soon, but she couldn’t help wishing that he’d learned something already. Standing guard with Senator Miller wasn’t exactly heart-pounding, despite her interest in this morning’s meeting.

  The man seemed like a perfect boy scout; she couldn’t imagine him being involved in Bradley Durham’s disappearance. She could only hope that one of the other team members was onto something. They needed a real lead, and soon.

  Her eyes made yet another circuit around the room and caught on a familiar face. She had to fight not to gasp. Marybeth Byrd stood in the doorway of the cafeteria, holding a briefcase and scanning the crowded room. She’d changed since Christy last saw her, of course she had, but Christy would recognize her anywhere, no matter what superficial changes she made to her appearance. Her long brown hair was now shoulder length, but still perfectly shiny. Her soft, engaging face and her perfectly shaped button nose were still exactly the same. Her eyes met Christy’s, and it seeme
d she recognized her too. Her formerly anxious face broke into a grin and she crossed over to her. The innocence she’d always exuded shined through brighter than ever.

  Christy stood and met her with a hug.

  “Oh my goodness, Ch—” she started, and Christy quickly cut her off.

  “Hi! Yeah, Alicia, it’s me—Brittany!” She pulled out of the hug and gave Marybeth a meaningful look. She blushed, and Christy squeezed her arm, letting her know it was an honest mistake. “It’s been too long,” she said, grabbing her garbage from the table. “I’ll get rid of this stuff so that we can get properly reacquainted.” Marybeth walked with her to throw away the trash.

  They left the cafeteria, and Marybeth led her to a door down the hallway and opened it. The room was full of stacked chairs and desks and other furniture. “This is kind of an overflow room that I often come to when I need to get away from the chaos.”

  “Nice.” Christy perused the room. It reminded her of a school classroom. She immediately found a camera in the ceiling and tried to put Marybeth on to it, but she didn’t seem to understand.

  “Can we talk?” Marybeth asked. “I’m so glad I ran into you, I didn’t know how I was going to—”

  “Sorry,” Christy said quickly, again cutting her off before she could give them away. The place was rigged with cameras; it could absolutely be bugged too. “I’ve got to get back soon. But it is so nice to run into you. I’d really love to catch up. Maybe we can get together?” She raised her eyebrows slightly and nodded in the direction of the camera. Marybeth looked confused for a moment, then her eyes widened in understanding.

  “Oh—um—right,” she stammered, her cheeks reddening. “Of course. You have to get back to work. Why don’t you, uh, give me a call? Now that you’re back in town?”

  Christy smiled encouragingly and they walked back out into the hall. The alarm on her phone rang. “Hey, I gotta get back.”

  “Sorry about that,” Marybeth said, her head motioning toward the compromised room as she pulled out her phone. “Give me your number and we can get together.” They stepped out of the busy walkway.

  “I’d love that.” She entered her info into her phone and gave her a quick hug goodbye.

  * * *

  MARYBETH

  Marybeth pulled up to the address Christy had given her, a white townhouse with old world charm that Marybeth knew must be costing Division a fortune. A safe house. A true spy safe house. Marybeth couldn’t help feeling intimidated. The urge to flee was strong.

  She’d been working for Polity for two years, now, but she still felt like she was in the junior league. She’d proven that today—she’d been so stupid earlier. Twice, she’s almost given Christy and herself away. First by almost calling Christy by her real name and not using her alias, and second by thinking she could talk about the case in a room in the Senate where there were always eyes and ears. Christy would never make such mistakes. Christy must have left after lunch thinking how much of an inept spy Marybeth was. She bowed her head, berating herself over her idiocy.

  She took a deep breath. It didn’t matter. She’d called Christy in for a reason. She needed her help. It didn’t matter if she had to make herself look like an idiot in the process. Besides, Christy had never been anything but kind and thoughtful to her. She had never laughed at her or put her down when she expressed her concerns and fears about leaving her family and becoming a spy. Christy had done nothing but build her up. Marybeth had to believe that Christy was the same today in that respect. Besides, Bradley needed her. Senator Alvarez needed her. She swallowed the hard lump in her throat. Yes. She could do this. She could do this for her friends. She pulled on the car door handle and got out of the car.

  She knocked. Christy opened the door almost immediately and seeing her there in her sweats and baggy T-shirt banished all her worries and fears about Christy and how she might judge her. Marybeth pounced on her, giving her a thorough hug. To her surprise, Christy fell right into it and didn’t try to pull away even after Marybeth held her there a bit longer than was probably natural. She was a little surprised at her own reaction—apparently she’d missed this girl. She realized at that moment that even if Christy wasn’t helping with Bradley and Alvarez, she would have greeted her in the same way. This was her good friend. Once again, she swallowed a lump in her throat.

  “I’m so happy to see you. I’ve missed you,” Christy said. “Come inside.”

  “I missed you, too.” Marybeth was awed at the fact that Christy looked very much the same. Perhaps she looked a little older, but for the most part, her smile, her eyes, her face, the way she walked and talked, it was all the same. She found that very comforting.

  Christy led her in to a small, but lavishly decorated sitting room. Tufted couches surrounded a marble coffee table, tasteful art on every wall. She whistled, raising her eyebrows at Christy.

  “I know. Sometimes we get a hole, sometimes we get—this. Guess we got lucky this time. Why don’t you come sit down; we can talk about your friend.”

  “I’m guessing if you’d found him you would have led with that.” Marybeth grimaced. She hated feeling so helpless.

  Christy sighed. “I’m sorry. Today was a bit of a bust. Jeremy and I haven’t come up with anything on either of the senators you pointed us to.” She must have noticed Marybeth’s agitation, because she hurried to add, “But our tech guy, Ace is working on creating a program to comb security footage, looking for the limo Bradley was last seen in. It’s not quite ready yet, but he’s a genius. I swear, you won’t be disappointed. Meanwhile, our other teammate Halluis is doing the footwork, talking to all the witnesses and trying to track the limo old-school style.”

  Marybeth ran her hands over her face, trying to push away the exhaustion and frustration she felt. “I wish I’d found a way to get you here sooner. This is feeling hopeless.”

  “Don’t say that,” Christy said, placing a comforting hand on Marybeth’s shoulder. “The beginning is always the hardest. But we’ll find a lead, and everything will change. I promise.”

  Marybeth sighed. “I’m just so worried—about Bradley, but about Alvarez too. Whoever was after him has to be plotting their next move right now.”

  “I admire your dedication to your boss. You obviously admire Alvarez or you wouldn’t have called us in.”

  Marybeth’s heart thumped hard in her chest and she sat up straight. “I do. When I’m a senator, I want to be very much like him. He’s honest, hard-working, and a family man. And the bills he wants to get passed—the legislation—it’s amazing. Every single thing he’s proposed, I’ve been behind one hundred percent.”

  “So Polity put you in as Alvarez’s nanny to observe him?”

  “Yes. I can’t really talk about that,” she shrugged apologetically. “But as for the cover job—I’m not just his nanny. While the kids are at school, I’m practically his personal assistant. I’m at the Senate building a lot. Between the errands he has me run and all the things his wife has me do, I’m there almost every day. That’s how I met Bradley.”

  “So he and Alvarez are close? You said he’s Alvarez’ right-hand man?”

  “They discuss everything and, yeah. Bradley arrived every day when Senator Alvarez arrived and he stayed until Senator Alvarez left. Every day. And he and his girlfriend Mikelle,” she swallowed hard, her eyes burning, “would take me out to dinner and introduce me to their friends, set me up on double dates, and stuff. He was my first real friend here.

  “Bradley and Alvarez, they were all about helping other people, and Bradley told me that every time he suggested a cause to the senator, he found a way to help. He has a real soft spot for the disenfranchised and sick. I just can’t stand the idea that everything they’ve worked on so hard this year for this session of Congress might disappear. If something happens to Alvarez….”

  “We won’t let it.”

  “Being here in D.C., Christy, it’s like everything I’ve ever dreamed of. It’s exciting to see politics
in action from the inside. But if I’m going to have to deal with crazy stuff like this, I’m not sure how I can stick with it.” The honesty of her words scared her a bit. Could she really leave politics?

  “I can see how your face lights up when you talk about politics. I don’t share your love, but I knew you’d be great at it. And from what I’ve seen, a lot of times, the best things in life require some serious effort.”

  “You think I have it in me?” Marybeth’s voice was quiet, almost a whisper.

  Christy took Marybeth’s hands in hers. Their warmth was comforting. “Yes.” She looked Marybeth directly in the eyes. “Absolutely. You can do anything you set your mind to.”

  Why had she been worried about anything? She had been stupid to think that Christy would be judgmental. She should have known Christy would give her nothing but support. At that moment, she believed she could do it.

  “Thank you for coming to do this. I couldn’t believe it when Polity said they wouldn’t do anything about it. Seems like just the thing they would get involved in.”

  “What reason did they give you for not wanting to get involved?”

  “When I contacted my handler, he said there was no reason to suspect it was anything more than a hijacking gone wrong. He told me to focus on my job.” Her face burned at the memory.

  Christy pursed her lips, thinking. “It doesn’t seem like a crime of opportunity. Senator Alvarez’s limo wasn’t exactly easily accessible. Seems too much of a coincidence to write it off as a carjacking.”

  “That’s what I said. I couldn’t get anyone to listen to me, though.” She looked down at her hands. Yet another failure. “I’m just glad you came.”

  Christy nodded. “What are your theories—I mean, when whoever it was that took him and found him not to be Senator Alvarez, why would they take him anyway?”

  Marybeth grimaced. That thought had been torturing her the last few days. “I don’t know. Maybe once they realized who they had, they kept him because of everything he knows, like they know the strong relationship between him and Alvarez. Or maybe they just didn’t know what to do with him once they realized they got the wrong man, and they’re hanging onto him so he can’t give evidence against them. There are so many questions. Mikelle is beside herself.” Marybeth’s eyes started to burn again and she wrung her hands to help her control her emotions.