“From now on, you can’t afford to make these kind of mistakes. Excuse me.” She nods at me and gets up to make another phone call. I may not like what she had to say about Tess and me, but she’s right. I knew it instinctively at the airport, but yesterday took things to a whole new level. Assuming she’ll be satisfied when she retrieves the chip and gets confirmation from the team at the warehouse, I’ll be back to work within the day. But I can’t just go back to how things were… Not if it means putting Tess into even more danger.
“Everson’s car. Glove box.” She pauses, and just for a moment, her expression breaks from her usual cold, controlled demeanor, into something looking like panic. “What do you mean ‘it’s not here’? I’d ordered for it to be retrieved from that girl’s house when we picked up Everson last night! Don’t give me excuses. Find the bloody car! What does the tracker say?”
H cocks her hip and rests her hand on her side. “All right. I understand. Stay on it.”
“Agent Everson. Any idea what your car might be doing on the M20, heading for Maidstone, Kent?”
I shrug. Now it makes sense how they ended up at Tess’s house last night; of course, there’s a tracker in my car.
“Maybe ask one of your boys who participated in your little home invasion last night?” I remark.
Although I have no idea what’s going on, or why my vehicle is on the move, the outcome can’t be good. What’s on the M20? Where could it be heading? There’s nothing there but fields, and ferries, and…
“The tunnel,” I whisper.
“What’s that?” Mrs. H demands.
“That’s the only thing that makes sense. Nexus is planning to hit the Eurotunnel! And they want to make it look like I did it!”
“That’s ridiculous. You’re in custody, so you obviously couldn’t have,” she protests.
“True, but the general public and the media don’t know I’ve been arrested, neither will there be any records to prove it. Occupational hazard of working for an agency that operates largely without official orders… I bet that they’ve prepped my car with plenty of evidence to point my way.”
H’s heels click loudly against the concrete floor as she walks around the desk toward me. She unlocks my handcuffs and hands me back my work phone.
“You’re restored to active duty. Agent Jenkins will be your remote back-up. Follow the tracker, and I’ll dispatch another team to the Eurotunnel directly in the meantime. We can only hope that we’ll make it in time; whoever has your car has had quite a head start.”
I rub my sore wrists and give her a nod. Now things are personal. After yesterday’s kidnapping went seriously wrong for Nexus, they’re out for blood. And what better way to punish an anti-terrorism agent than to implicate him in what could very well be the worst terror attack in recent history?
Rushing through the empty corridors and down the stairs, I dial Jenkin’s number without even slowing down. “Jenkins. What’s the traffic situation like?” I ask.
“M25 clear for now. I’ll open the hard shoulder for you. Keep your sirens on when necessary.”
“Got it. Keep me posted on where the target is.”
I grab the first car key off the hooks in the booth next to the underground parking garage, then make my way out, pressing the button on the remote until I spot the flashing lights of the vehicle I’d randomly picked. Within moments, I’m strapped in behind the wheel and speed out of the garage and onto the main road with lights on and sirens blaring.
While I do my best to dodge the much slower traffic on my way to the motorway, I dictate a quick message to Tess. It hurts to think about, but I can’t afford to endanger her further. I may have killed Fletch yesterday, but it seems like someone else has taken over control of Nexus seamlessly, planning a retaliation in less than twenty-four hours even! That kind of efficiency is what we’ve come to expect from Nexus. It was naive to think that with the death of Fletch, all that would come to an end.
She won’t be happy. Hell, I’m not happy about it either.
I instruct the phone to send the message after hearing it read back to me and making sure it says all it needs to. Seconds later, it rings.
“Hello,” I answer, dreading the conversation we’re about to have. I do my best to stay on course, to not let my emotions question the decision I’d made. It’s for the best if I cut all ties now before either of us gets too involved… It’ll hurt less.
With every word, I have to fight the urge to close my eyes and to wish I didn’t have to do this. I’d agreed to give up all this for Queen and country, but somehow that choice seemed easier before meeting Tess. Before feeling what I’d felt when I was with her.
The second time it rings, I know I can’t answer because I’ll falter. I’ll change my mind… No, I must stay on track and figure out what’s going on. I must do my job.
Chapter Three
“Yes, I was just getting the ice cream.” I try to justify my position just outside the kitchen door.
Alec looks at me suspiciously, but I ignore him and walk straight to the fridge, opening the freezer door. “Rocky Road, lovely,” I remark, while picking up the heavy tub.
Maggie gives me a wide smile as I hand it to her, along with a couple of spoons.
“Say, you guys carry on,” Alec says. “I don’t want to intrude.”
Shit, now what? He’s up to something. I just know it.
“OK, sweetheart. That’s very nice of you,” Maggie says, while stepping up to him and giving him a big hug.
Think, dammit!
I just watch them as they exchange a quick peck on the lips. Instead of leaving right away, he makes his way towards the bathroom, and I seize my chance to have a word with Maggie.
“Mags. Last Thursday he was supposedly sick, right?” I ask.
She turns to face me with one eyebrow in the air.
“What do you mean supposedly?”
“Well, he was at the airport. I saw him.”
“No way!” she calls out.
I raise my hands in a calming gesture to make her keep her volume in check.
“I wasn’t sure at the time because I’d only seen him in the pictures you’d showed me, but now I am sure. He was there.”
“So?” She juts out her chin in defiance.
“You work the same shift, but he was already there, working. Don’t you find that a little weird?”
“Maybe he covered for someone, wanted to get some extra money?” she suggests.
I shrug, maybe…
“Do you ever work the checkin desks?” I ask, while looking suspiciously at the closed bathroom door.
The boy is certainly taking a long time in there, but for once, that’s a good thing.
“Never. Checkin desks are handled by airline staff.”
“OK, well, he certainly seems eager to get out of here right now. I think you owe it to yourself to investigate why that might be. What if there’s someone else?” I feel bad misleading her like that, but she’d never go along with my plan if I didn’t stick the knife in her deeply.
“Oh, how dare you!” Maggie’s eyes pierce me, shooting daggers.
“I’m just saying. It’s worth checking out.”
“And you want to what, follow him?”
“It beats sitting around at home shoveling ice cream into ourselves.”
She pauses for a moment, thinking things over, then looks at the bathroom door and back at me.
“OK, fine. I just hope I’m not going to regret this.”
As soon as she finishes speaking, the door opens, and Alec walks out, smoothing his hair down with his right hand. He’s fucking involved. I know it!
They hug goodbye, and he’s out the door, leaving Maggie and me behind. I nod at her and grab my handbag. She shoves her phone into the pocket of her jeans and signals that she’s ready. We open the door as quietly as possible, in case he’s still hanging about.
The coast is clear, so we rush down the corridor leading to the elevators which are alwa
ys out of order and the staircase. There are footsteps down below us. Alec, presumably. He’s talking on the phone again, and I pause to be able to hear more.
“So he’s on the move? Good. I’ve booked the nine-fifteen pm train. With a bit of luck, the cameras will catch him just before it leaves, then, fifteen minutes later: boom. It won’t take them long to implicate him.”
Maggie is about to comment something, but I gesture at her to zip it. If he hears us, we’re screwed.
“Right on. Nexus will prevail!” Shortly after Alec’s final greeting, a door opens downstairs, and the sound of footsteps fades away.
I can hardly contain myself and grab hold of Maggie’s arm.
“Ouch,” she complains.
“Shit, this is massive,” I stammer.
“What? Who is Nexus?”
“Have you not been listening to anything I’ve told you earlier? Those are the people Liam was after!”
“But… I thought we were following him because you said there was another woman!” Maggie puts her hands on her hips and gives me an angry stare. “Explain yourself!”
“Look, I overheard him in the kitchen and got suspicious. There’s no time to get into it now, but something’s going down, and I have a feeling it has something to do with Liam.”
“What do you care? The guy dumped you!”
“Yeah… but…” She has a point, but I can’t shake the feeling that something horrible will happen if I don’t act on my gut feelings with Alec. Something irreversible.
“No buts, I think you’re losing your mind,” Maggie says.
“I don’t have time to argue. I overheard Alec say something about the nine-fifteen train from Folkestone. What’s in Folkestone?” I demand.
“The Eurotunnel.”
“Exactly.” Holy shit, they’re planning an attack on the tunnel.
“So?” Maggie argues.
“So what would some evil organization want at the Eurotunnel?” I wait impatiently for a response.
“I don’t know, Tess, what would they want?”
“You heard Alec: boom! Blow it up! This is fucking serious, and you’re standing here arguing with me over who dumped who!” I rant. “Look, I have to call Liam. I don’t have time for this.”
Maggie waits while I get my phone out and dial his number again. Busy signal. Goddammit.
“Shit.”
“He’s ignoring you, isn’t he?”
I shoot her a nasty look and tap out a quick message instead.
Overheard phone call about Nexus attack on Eurotunnel. My best friend’s boyfriend, Alec-something is involved. On the way. T
Send.
Then I race down the stairs with Maggie hot on my heels.
“Now what are you doing? Where are you going? Come back?” she calls after me.
“Gotta go. I’ll see you later,” I shout back, as I exit her building and head straight for my car. I know it’s risky, stupid even, but I have got to do something about all this! They may not have mentioned him by name, but it’s obvious they’re trying to pin this whole deal on some agent. I’m pretty sure it’ll be Liam.
He did kill their figurehead at the warehouse yesterday, so they’re bound to be out for revenge. It all makes perfect sense.
I twist the key in the ignition, and my car coughs to life. Just as I pull out of the parking, I see a frazzled Maggie appear waving her arms. Sorry, but I can’t waste any more time. Liam needs my help, and I’m determined to be there for him. If nothing else, it’s payback for saving my life yesterday.
After quickly going through all the options in my mind, I pick what I assume will be the fastest way to the M25. It’s just past rush hour, so the roads are slightly quieter already, allowing me to make good time, filtering in between slower vehicles. Speed limits are for suckers; they mean nothing to me right now, and neither does the risk of more speeding points on my license.
I make it to the motorway in record time, hitting the ramp at sixty-five mph already. As soon as I can see clear ahead, I put my foot down all the way on the gas and milk every last bit of power out of my tired old engine.
There is still a fair bit of traffic, as there always is on the M25, but there are plenty of gaps for me to go through. Gone is the fatigue I’d felt earlier, gone is the helplessness. I have a goal now, and failure is not an option.
My phone rings and rings, but I don’t dare answer it while going this fast. It’s probably Maggie, trying to convince me to turn back.
Liam
I’m boxed in by cars front and back, all making their way through the road works at a snail’s pace. The only release for my impatience is with nervous taps on the steering wheel. I’ve never been claustrophobic, but this gets pretty close right here.
Sure, the speed limit is fifty mph, but usually, there’s always some arrogant BMW driving bastard who thinks he’s above the law, racing through much faster. Not today, though. Today, when actual lives depend on me reaching Folkestone at a decent time, everyone chooses to obey the limit.
“Jenkins, any way around this mess?” I bark into the phone.
Jenkins pauses at the other end; all I can hear is the tapping of keys.
“Afraid not, Everson. But you’re halfway already, then the road opens up again.”
I sigh and disconnect the call. Damn.
Then it buzzes again, once. A message. I take a quick glance at it. Attack on Eurotunnel. Tell me something I don’t know. Wait, who is this from? Tess?!
I do a double-take on the message reading it more carefully this time. This girl has a talent for finding trouble!
I want to tell her to turn back, not to get involved, but she doesn’t answer her phone. After trying for five, maybe ten minutes, I see the end of the road works up ahead. Jenkins was right; the traffic does open up almost immediately.
Time to fly, so that hopefully I can resolve the mess at the tunnel before Tess gets anywhere near it. The last thing I need right now is for her to be anywhere near Nexus people. They’re obviously trying to punish me for what happened yesterday, and if they can get their hands on Tess, they won’t hesitate to kill, perhaps even torture her.
I grip the steering tightly until my knuckles show white and speed up as much as the car allows. Lights on, sirens on, and hopefully everyone gets out of the way quickly enough. I’m about an hour away from my target even at this speed. There’s no time to waste.
And so I push on, dodging the occasional Peugeot driver going at fifty-five in the fast lane, hitting the M20 soon after. Thankfully, all is clear up ahead, and I’m making good progress.
Jenkins checks in occasionally with updates about my car’s signal. It’s now at the Channel Tunnel checkin area and has remained stationary for the past twenty minutes. I don’t stop to wonder why it hasn’t been loaded onto a train yet, presuming that that’s what Nexus has planned. I’ll have to see what happens when I get there. If I get there on time.
Chapter Four
The road is clear for the most part throughout my drive along the M25, as well as the M20. Similarly, luck was on my side in that today’s excursion came one day after my regular once a week trip to the petrol pump, meaning I didn’t need to make a stop on the way for fuel.
By the time I see the signs for the Channel Tunnel, what was previously a warm, clear day, is turning cloudy and ominous. A sign of things to come, perhaps?
The wind is picking up. The trees lining the motorway cheer me on with their swaying branches. The sun has disappeared behind a big, grey cloud.
I wonder what Maggie must be doing now. I’ll have to make things up to her later, whenever she’s calmed down.
And Liam… I’ve had nothing better to do for the past hour or so than to think about everything that’s happened so far. From worry, to anger, back to worry again, my emotions have run the entire spectrum today. He may have let me down, but some little part of me still wants to believe that things can work out. Otherwise, why am I here? I’m doing this for him, right?
> I pull into the exit towards the tunnel, and only now realize that I have no plan whatsoever. I’m about to reach my destination, and I have not the faintest clue what I’m going to do there!
It’s not very busy. meaning there are only about four cars ahead of me at the entrance. I guess I’m going to have to get a ticket on the spot. Do they do those? Fuck.
“Hello, welcome to Eurotunnel. How may I help you?” the bored-looking man inside the booth says.
“Can I get a ticket for the nine-fifteen train, please?” I ask, while nervously fumbling with my wallet. Shit. How much does a ticket like this cost?
“Just a moment, I will have a look… Yes, there is still space on the nine-fifteen, but you don’t have much time, meaning you’ll have to go straight through to the checkin. Single?” He looks down at me impatiently while I rummage around in my purse looking for some form of payment.
“Hmm?”
“Single or return?”
“Uhh… Single.”
“That’ll be seventy-three pounds, please.”
I don’t have that kind of money on me. Damn. OK, credit card it is then.
“Here.” I check the dashboard clock. There really isn’t much time.
Soon after, he hands me the receipt, as well as the funny sash type thing I’m supposed to hang up on my rear view mirror. I put my car in first and crawl ahead. That’s when I notice an innocuous black sedan parked up ahead in the security check area. That’s Liam’s car, isn’t it? The license plate number is the same. I only notice because it ends on ‘1234.’
I’m just about to drive up next to it to find Liam, when I see a blond-haired man dressed all in black, waving to one of the policemen standing by the barriers blocking our way. That’s not Liam! He turns to walk back towards the car, and I recognize him immediately.
He looks just like the detective who killed himself at the airport, just with slightly longer hair. Either it’s his ghost or his doppelganger. Either way, I’m certain he’s Nexus. What’s he doing with Liam’s car, though?
Man of Mystery: A BBW Romantic Suspense Page 8