Deadly Escape_A Shelby Nichols Adventure

by Colleen Helme

  Gabriel smiled, remembering that I’d had a diet soda during the interrogation in Paris. “I should have remembered the soda and had it ready for you.”

  “It’s okay.” I smiled back, happy that I could still smile under the circumstances.

  Blake glanced between the three of us, thinking that he’d missed something. Still, it amused him that I’d managed to have Wells scurry off to do my bidding.

  Two soldiers brought in a square table, and I directed them to the corner I wanted. They also moved the chair, and Wells came back in with a can of diet soda. I thanked him profusely, and his irritation with me subsided.

  “Are you ready?” he asked me.

  “I think so. Who’s going to ask the questions?”

  “We both will,” Gabriel said, indicating Wells with his hand. I picked up from Wells that this was something he’d insisted upon because he was an excellent interrogator. He was also pretty good at knowing when someone was lying, and he wanted to keep an eye on me as well. Since he’d be facing both me and Cypher, he thought that would be easy.

  “Okay. I guess I’m ready.”

  “We’ll watch from the monitors in the other room,” Blake said, indicating that Ramos was included with him in that remark. “Good luck.”

  Ramos glanced at me to make sure I was all right with that arrangement. I sent him a nod. “See you in a bit.”

  Gabriel sat down, and I followed suit, squeezing into my chair behind the table. I liked having the table in front of me. As silly as it sounded, the table was like a small barrier between me and Cypher. I mean, if he tried to attack me, I could shove the table at him, right?

  Wells left the room to get him, and my pulse raced. Even if he didn’t attack me physically, his thoughts were a different matter, and I braced to hear a lot of awful things coming my way.

  The door opened and I held my breath. Two soldiers holding onto Cypher’s arms led him inside the room. Chains shackled his ankles together, so he had to shuffle. Along with handcuffs, heavy chains connected his wrists to his feet, going through a belt at his waist.

  With his head held high, he glanced around the room. Catching sight of me, his eyes widened. Loud cursing came from his mind. Between all the f-bombs, he wondered what the hell I was doing there. This couldn’t be happening again. He should have gotten word to one of his men to find me and kill me after what had happened in Paris. Now it was too late. He didn’t know what I did, or how I did it, but I’d ruined all of his careful planning. He’d have to make sure it didn’t happen again.

  None of that showed on his face. From his expression, he looked as cool as a cucumber. It relieved some of my anxiety to know that I rattled him just as much as he rattled me. Still, the part where he wanted me dead, and could arrange it from prison, sent shards of ice through my veins.

  A shudder wracked my body, and I was grateful when the soldiers pushed him into the chair and locked his wrists to the table so he couldn’t move. At least now I couldn’t see his face, but he seemed too close to me for comfort. I automatically pushed against my chair to scoot it back, but it was already against the wall.

  My brain short-circuited, and my body went on full fight-or-flight alert. All I wanted to do was get out of that room. I might have tried it but, in order to leave, I’d have to move even closer to him, and I wasn’t about to do that.

  Then Gabriel’s words broke through my panic. His lips didn’t move, but I heard him telling me that he was right there. He’d never let anything happen to me. I had nothing to fear. Cypher’s chains could not break. Cypher couldn’t hurt me. He’d kill him first, with his bare hands if he had to. No harm would come to me. Not now, not ever. That was a promise he’d take to his grave.

  I let out my breath and calmed down. I glanced at him. As his steady gaze held mine, I swallowed my fear and nodded. His lips curved up with encouragement, releasing the panic in my heart. I wasn’t alone. I could do this.

  With my mouth so dry, I popped open the can of soda and took a long swallow, grateful it was there. Setting it down, I picked up Wells’ thoughts of can we start already? At least he knew enough to let Gabriel take the lead and didn’t say that out loud.

  Gabriel was thinking, let me know when you’re ready, so I sent him a quick nod and held my pen to the paper, ready to write.

  As Gabriel focused on Cypher, disdain passed over his face. “We have done as you asked,” he began, his tone cold and full of contempt. “I hope what you have to give us is worth it, otherwise I will take you back to France and leave you to rot in the darkest hole I can find.”

  Derision and scorn raged through Cypher. Some of it must have shown in his eyes, because Gabriel narrowed his gaze. Then he sent Cypher a grim smile. “You don’t think I will? The agreement I made with the United States gives me full control of you. I can do with you what I wish. Now talk or I take you back.”

  Anger rushed through Cypher, but he tempered it with a flicker of hope. He was here and not in that hellhole in France. There was still a chance for him if he played his cards right.

  “There are three terrorist sleeper-cells in the states. They are based in New York, Los Angeles, and here in DC. I can give you names and locations. I don’t know if they’ve moved from my last communication, but they shouldn’t be hard to trace if they have.”

  “And what is their agenda?” Gabriel asked.

  Cypher shrugged, glancing pointedly at Wells. “What it has always been – chaos, fear, and disruption. They are sowing seeds of division between groups of people by encouraging prejudices and racism. When it reaches a boiling point, they hope to push the country into war, eventually bringing down the government.”

  He smirked. “Your leaders are already doing much of the work for them. The internet is a firestorm of misinformation. Neighbors turn against neighbors, shootings rage in schools and public places. The stage is set, and your economy will spiral into ruin.

  “That’s when infrastructures will fail. With timed precision, bridges will collapse, fires will rage, power grids will crumble. Your government will sit on the sidelines, mired in gridlock, and the time will be ripe for new leadership.”

  Wells shook his head. “I’ve heard nothing new here. You’re just spouting the fanatical ideas of all terrorists. It’s not enough. I need more details, or you’re going straight back to France.”

  Cypher let out a breath. He knew he had to give up the names of the top leaders, or this whole trip was a bust. But he didn’t care. He’d never cared about any of it. He was playing the long game, just like he always had before it all went to hell in Paris.

  “The leader in New York is Rashad Massoud. The man in Los Angeles is Fareed Assaf, but the mastermind of the whole plan is here in DC. His name is Alan Rehmann. They’re all US citizens.”

  He knew they would all check out, but they were…Cypher paused. He turned his head to glance at me over his shoulder. What was it about me? He knew I’d had a hand in foiling his plans before, but how? It was almost like I’d read his mind. But that was ridiculous.

  “Anything else you want to tell us?” Wells asked.

  “Isn’t that enough? I’ve given you the key players. They would gladly rip my heart out for this. Now I have some demands of my own.”

  “Not so fast,” Wells said. “We need to make sure your information is good. If it’s not, Gabriel’s ready to take you back to France.” He paused to let that sink in. “Now, are you sure you don’t have more to say?”

  “There are other things I could mention, but…right now, I’m done.” He wanted to tell them he’d say more if I wasn’t there, but he didn’t think that would work out for him. There were plenty of attacks he knew about which he could feed to us a bit at a time.

  But in the end, it didn’t matter. He’d never planned on giving us everything the first day, because he needed more time for his strategy to work. His contingency plan was worth every penny he’d saved. Abruptly, his thoughts turned to me. Everything could be undone if I picked up
any of this. What was it I did? Somehow, I knew things that I had no business knowing. Was I some kind of psychic? With an effort, he forced his brain to begin working mathematical equations, starting with his times tables.

  Gabriel glanced my way, wondering if I had everything I needed, or if he should ask more questions. I shook my head. I’d picked up a lot, but if Cypher kept doing mathematical equations in his head, this was going to be difficult. Still, I’d heard enough to give us something to go on, so I couldn’t be too discouraged.

  Gabriel nodded at Wells, who opened the door, and called the soldiers inside. They unclipped his chains and made him stand up. After locking his wrists back together, they escorted him past me to the door. He passed so close to me that I automatically cringed away. That pleased him, bringing a slight smile to his lips. His cold gaze caught mine, and he thought, I’m going to kill you Shelby Nichols.

  I inhaled sharply, then covered it with a frown of disgust and called him every name in the book I could think of. Too bad he couldn’t hear any of it.

  After he left the room, it took me a moment to calm down. Letting out a breath, I relaxed my shoulders and closed my eyes. That was not an experience I ever wanted to repeat. Too bad both Wells and Gabriel were thinking that I might have to stick around a little longer.

  Wells glanced my way, eager to know if I’d picked up anything. His gaze drifted to my notebook where the only thing I’d managed to write was a bunch of doodling. I thought the designs were pretty cool, but he could hardly believe it. Had this just been a total waste?

  “Did you get anything?” he asked.

  “Yes.” I nodded, surprising him.

  “Oh…okay. Let’s head back to my office and you can explain.”

  “Sounds good to me.” I stood and grabbed my diet soda before following behind him. Gabriel touched my arm, thanking me in his head. I smiled and nodded, then continued out the door.

  We met up with Blake and Ramos in the control room. They both looked me over to make sure I wasn’t going to fall apart on them. I rolled my eyes, and Ramos smiled. He’d had his doubts when Cypher first entered the room and I’d nearly fainted, so he was glad I’d survived.

  I wanted to smack his arm but just shook my head instead. On the walk back, no one spoke, so I decided to break the ice and ask Gabriel a question. “So how’s Suzette doing? Is she still in Paris?”

  Suzette had let me and Ramos stay in her mansion in Paris while we hunted Cypher down. She’d also nursed Blake back to health after he got shot, and stolen him from the hospital right from under Gabriel’s nose. Gabriel had forgiven her since she’d been instrumental in capturing Cypher.

  Ramos was thinking about her awesome motorcycle that she’d let him drive, along with the Ferrari. It brought back all those memories of us driving with the top down and ending up at the Eiffel Tower to see it sparkle at midnight.

  That was pretty great, and it helped keep me from freaking out about the other parts of the adventure where I’d been held hostage and nearly killed by Cypher and his men.

  “Oui!” Gabriel answered. “She left for a while, but she is back. You should visit her again. She would like that.”

  I smiled. “I would love to. I love Paris.” Gabriel nodded, pleased with my declaration and thinking that it was the most beautiful city in the world.

  Blake smiled too, but he wasn’t thinking about Paris, he was thinking about Suzette. He knew where she’d gone because she’d been with him. His convalescence had necessitated some fresh air and ocean breezes, and she’d been happy to accompany him to the Riviera and help him recuperate.

  What? Blake and Suzette? I tried not to turn red with embarrassment from his memories of that time, and quickly blocked his thoughts by tuning into Wells’s mind. He was thinking that we were a pretty chummy group and realized he probably didn’t know half of what had happened in Paris.

  Back inside the main building, we all trooped into Wells’s office. Ramos took the seat beside me, with Gabriel on my other side, and I relaxed to have them both so close. Wells faced me and smiled, but wished he could send Ramos away. He didn’t like having Ramos privy to top-secret information like he was a spy or something. He was just a no-account hit-man for a mob-boss.

  Then he thought of the part Ramos had played in Cuba and had to admit a grudging respect for the guy. Sloan admitted to Wells that she would never have gotten the device without Ramos’s intervention. Although how it all went down, and how he escaped, was still a mystery.

  Since Sloan had a thing for Ramos, it might be a good idea to have her involved with his visit. He could assign her to keep track of him while he was here. She’d probably be happy to have an excuse to be around him, and she was ambitious enough that he could count on her to keep him informed of Ramos’s activities.

  This was the second time I’d heard Cuba mentioned. What was that all about? When had this happened? How come I didn’t know? Sheesh! He was a lot better at keeping things to himself than I thought. If he’d been there with Sloan, and it hadn’t gone well, it was no wonder that he’d been unhappy to see her earlier.

  “Uh…Shelby?” Wells said.

  My gaze snapped to his, and I jerked with a guilty flush. “Oh…sorry. What?”

  “Cypher. We’re waiting to hear what your premonitions say about him.”

  “Yeah, right.” I glanced at my notebook to gather my thoughts. “First of all, there’s more to this than he’s saying.”

  Wells’s brows rose. He could have told me that.

  “Uh…the first thing I picked up was that he wanted me dead, and that he should have asked his men to take care of that before now. So it sounds like he has some communication with them from prison.” I shrugged for Gabriel’s sake since that meant Cypher was getting messages in and out of prison somehow.

  “I don’t know how he did it,” I said, answering Gabriel’s unspoken question. “But he’s here for a reason. I don’t think he’s really a terrorist like most terrorists. I got the feeling that he doesn’t believe in any of that crap he spouted about taking over the government. He’s got something else in mind…and he’s playing the long game, whatever that means.”

  “What about the names he gave us?” Gabriel asked.

  “Those are legitimate. You should check them out. I think he felt bad about giving them up, but he had to in order to gain your trust for the next step in his plan.”

  “Do you know what that is?” Wells asked. He thought my premonitions should certainly give me a clue that I could share.

  Too bad I had no idea. “Uh…not right now. But maybe something will come to me later.”

  Wells let out a breath. I hadn’t given them much. Maybe he needed to pursue a different line of questioning. One that didn’t involve me. It wouldn’t hurt to add some sodium thiopental into the mix. Cypher was a damn traitor. That was reason enough to go hard on him. But he supposed one more round of questioning in the morning wouldn’t hurt. After that, he was taking the gloves off.

  I didn’t like hearing about the methods of torture he wanted to use, so I interrupted. “So what’s the plan? Can we go now? I’m starving, and it’s been a long day.” My watch read five-thirty, which kind of surprised me.

  Wells hated to let us go anywhere, but he could always make sure Sloan kept us within sight. “Yes. But you might need to come back in the morning for one more round.”

  “Okay, but then I need to get home.”

  “Of course,” he agreed, although he didn’t really mean it. If he needed me longer, I’d just have to suck it up and stay, whether I wanted to or not.

  I was beginning to dislike Wells. He caught my expression and frowned. Why did I look at him like I’d just read his mind and didn’t like what I’d heard? “Is there something else, Shelby?”

  “Yeah, there is something else. I think Cypher’s got a lot of money stashed somewhere.”

  Wells nodded. “Thank you. When we question him in the morning, we’ll ask him about it. Maybe you can pick u
p something more then?”

  “That’s a good idea,” I agreed.

  “Good. Then we’re done for now. I’ll have someone take you to your hotel.” Wells left the table, heading to his assistant’s office to make the arrangements.

  “I asked Wells to put you in the same hotel as me,” Gabriel said, smiling. “That way we can spend some time together and catch up.” He thought it the best way I could tell him everything without Wells or Blake involved.

  “I like how you think,” I agreed. “We could go to dinner together. I haven’t been in Washington DC for ages. I’d love to explore a little before we go home tomorrow.”

  Blake wasn’t sure he’d been invited, but he had work to do and couldn’t make it. “I’m afraid I can’t join you tonight, but I’m sure Gabriel will be great company.”

  “I have no doubt,” I agreed.

  We stood just as Wells came back into the room. “Your car is waiting out front. I shall see you in the morning at eight a.m. sharp.”

  I nodded, grateful to be leaving, and grateful Wells wasn’t coming with us. Blake escorted us back to the entrance and through security, and finally to the doors where he said his goodbyes.

  A black SUV waited at the curb, with Sloan standing ready to usher us into the car. I listened closely to her thoughts and picked up that she was assigned to watch us for the evening. She was still smarting from being left out, but tried not to let it show.

  “Hello,” she said. “I’ll be taking you to your hotel, but if there’s anything else you need, I’m assigned to get it for you.” She glanced meaningfully at Ramos, and I wanted to gag.

  Ramos wasn’t surprised to see her, thinking that Wells knew how to do his job in asking Sloan to spy on us. She’d probably try to weasel her way into whatever activities we had planned for the night. He glanced my way, thinking that we needed to keep our plans to ourselves.

  “Take us to the hotel for now,” he said, before Gabriel could comment.