Rescue Me

by Allie Adams

  Where the hell was his head? If she spotted him out there, he'd have some explaining to do. Although it would damn near kill him, he'd wait in the seclusion of the trees until he could figure out what the fuck he wanted to do. He chose TREX over Kathryn last time and it gave him a year of misery. Choosing her over TREX this time had seemed like a solid plan back at the cabin. But now as he stood there in hiding, no contact with his former agency, he questioned his decision. As a TREX agent, he had endless resources. Now, if Weber figured out where Spencer was, he'd just had a very pissed off ex-SAC and no team.

  Gessler walked up to the Com Van. He said a few things to Kathryn, nodded, and then left. Spencer saw him disappear into another group of trees, where he knew Team One waited for their assignment. Did Weber already tell Gessler that Spencer was off the find? Did Team One know that Team Two had a new team lead?

  It made sense for Weber to remove Spencer from the team. Right now, his priorities were skewed. He couldn't think straight when he knew Kathryn may be in danger. If Weber hadn't removed him as lead, Spencer would have. He refused to be a liability to his brotherhood. The boys could take care of themselves without him leading them. He'd at least remain on the team in his plan.

  But not Weber's plan. No, he kicked Spencer out altogether. And now here he stood, debating whether Team One knew of his sudden departure.

  Only one way to find out.

  He snuck around and approached Team One's location, making sure not to be seen until he came right up on them. When he did, the team tensed but when they saw him, they all relaxed.

  “Jesus Christ, Allen.” Gessler dropped his pistol into its holster. “You almost got yourself shot.”

  Spencer knew better. Steve Gessler was a hell of a driver and loved his field work, but he had lousy aim. “Just checking in.”

  “Where's your radio?”

  “Lost it in the chaos.”

  “Schmitty, hook him up.” Gessler nodded at an agent leaning against a giant rock.

  Schmitty pulled a mic out of his kit and tossed it to Spencer. “Key of A for us. Key of B for you.”

  “Thanks.” Spencer caught the device and slipped it on, careful to look and sound casual. He still had his earpiece from the last search dialed into K-SAR's frequencies. Once he had everything in place, he gave Gessler a nod and turned to leave.

  “Hold up, Allen.”

  Shit.

  “Yeah?” he said once Gessler caught up to him.

  “Dude, I get where your head is at. I really do. She's more than a piece of ass to you. But seriously. Don't throw everything away for her.”

  “Weber told you.” It annoyed him that his SAC shared this with Gessler.

  “And only me. I have to tell you, you've got some serious brass balls walking into the middle of my team like that.” Gessler slapped him on the back. Hard. “It's no wonder we're friends.”

  Spencer didn't care much for Gessler, but kept it to himself. “I need to be able to talk to my team.”

  “From what Weber tells me, they're Snyder's team now.”

  Heated irritation gripped his insides. He'd lost his team, his career, and now his focus. All for a woman. Was it all worth it?

  “They will always be my team, Gessler.”

  “I hear that.” He stepped back and touched his collar, his expression gone. “He's wired.”

  Weber's voice came over the airwaves. His tone had just a touch too much amusement for Spencer's taste. “It's about time, Allen.”

  He should have known these two would have something like this planned. No wonder Weber demanded Spencer's radio. He wanted to get something in place with Gessler before Spencer showed. “What the hell, Weber?”

  “You're slipping. I figured you'd be all over Team One the minute you showed.”

  “At the exact place you told him not to go,” Gessler added, ever so helpful.

  “Gessler,” Weber growled. “Radio silence. I want to talk to Allen and only Allen.”

  “Then don't do it over the radio, dumbass.” Gessler switched off his radio before giving Spencer a look and walking away.

  “Goddamn that guy,” Weber grunted.

  “Interesting way to refer to your best friend.” Spencer wanted to be irritated. He wanted to feel a sense of betrayal. Instead, he felt relief. Relief that he still had contact with TREX. Relief that he had TREX's permission to do so. Relief that he may not have lost everything after all.

  “It's because he's my best friend that I refer to him that way. You should hear the way he talks about me.”

  Spencer knew the way Gessler talked about Weber. They had a very interesting relationship, those two. He thought about Lyons and suppressed a shudder of emotion.

  There was a pause and Spencer tensed.

  “Let's do this in person.”

  “You didn't say enough when you took my team from me?”

  “You threw it away!” Weber roared. Shit, Spencer hoped no one else heard that. “Jesus fucking Christ, Allen. I had no choice. You made me take your team from you. I told you what would happen if you chose her over TREX. I. Told. You.”

  Spencer switched off his radio. Not surprising, his phone buzzed. He let it go. It buzzed again and he debated, but finally picked it up. “What?”

  “Don't you start that shit,” Weber barked back.

  “You're no longer my SAC so I can talk to you any goddamn way I want.”

  “I got intel back on that email threat sent to Kat.”

  The breath whistled out and deflated Spencer's lungs as well as his fight. The son of a bitch threatening Kathryn wouldn't be able to hide from him. He'd kill the bastard with his bare hands.

  “And?”

  “It's someone inside.”

  “What the fuck does that mean? Inside TREX? Inside K-SAR? What?”

  “McKoy said some shit about an internal IP address or something. I don't understand half the bullshit she spouts. Only that the computer the email was sent from is inside our firewall.”

  “Our firewall? As in TREX?”

  “That's what she said.”

  Rage and the unknown ate at Spencer's insides. “Are you seriously saying the threat is coming from someone inside of TREX?”

  “That's what our intel is saying,” he clarified. “I had McKoy verify it.”

  “Who sent it?”

  “That we don't know.”

  Un-fucking-believable. “What do we know?”

  “That it came from a computer that doesn't even exist on our network. We were hacked.”

  “This is bullshit. We're chasing our tails on this. What good is our own fucking intel if they can't find a threat inside our own agency?” His voice jumped an octave and he paused to collect himself.

  “Don't get yourself worked up. We'll figure it out.”

  But something deep inside told him to get worked up. Get very worked up.

  “I gotta tell you, Allen. I don't like this. Everything is playing out just as it did at the Haynes search.”

  Not everything. This find didn't start with a call from TREX HQ. This find didn't involve a cover up.

  This find didn't have a directive for TREX to terminate the subject.

  * * * *

  The sun had just started to set and darkness threatened to creep in, creating an ominous scene at base camp and setting a mood. Dark. Uneasy. Menacing.

  Kat wanted to tell TREX to pull their teams, but two members of Gessler's team had yet to radio in, according to him. The rest of the TREX teams had completed their assignments and now stood by. Everything hinged on the duo and they were long overdue.

  The search took second chair to her finding the TREX men. If they didn't radio back with their status on the next check, she'd call on another two-man TREX team to track them. Anytime a unit didn't respond during a status check, the entire command team went on alert. It usually meant the unit was out of radio range, but until she knew for sure, they were her top priority. Even though TREX didn't officially work for her, while she r
an this search, they were every bit a part of her team as the ones she paid to be there.

  Travis barked a curse. “Where are the rest of the fucking TREX gods? They should be here tracking their own lost team. It's not our job.”

  “We don't need a piggyback search. We run the search from here.”

  “Then give the command.”

  She chewed on her thumbnail. “No, Travis. We run this my way.”

  Travis started to pace. “We need more hasty searchers. Containment. We need to find this guy. We need to find him now! The TREX team is just out of radio range. Shit!”

  “Calm down, Travis. We don't know that.”

  “I can't just sit around here and wait. I'm going to run up a couple of the roads and see if I see anything.”

  Kat stared at him, completely baffled. The command team didn't leave base. Period. “Why?”

  “Because you're wasting time searching for a goddamn team out of radio range, that's why.”

  “If you have issues with the way I'm running the search, there's the door.” She crossed her arms in front of her, warm anger creeping up her neck and steadying her glare on him.

  His expression fell slack as he stared at her, the hurt swirling in his eyes. “Are you firing me?”

  God, she really hated when he looked at her like that, like a kitten that just had his favorite toy taken away. As with every other time he'd given her that expression, she caved. “I need us on the same page, okay?”

  He nodded and dropped his gaze as he walked out of the Com Van.

  Kat went back to her papers and chewed the end off another pen. Where the hell was that TREX team? Were they okay? A knock on the Com Van door brought her attention out of her notes. When the door opened, she practically sprang out of the bench seat at the table to greet Spencer as he smiled at her. She hurried out of the Com Van, stopping just short of throwing her arms around him and planting a sound kiss on his full lips. They were, after all, working.

  “Kathryn? Are you all right?” His velvety voice, so full of concern, caused her chest to swell.

  Oh, to hell with it. She threw her arms around him and kissed him, grateful to see him. She squeezed him tight and didn't want to ever let go. “What are you doing here? Weber said you were on a find.”

  “It's over.” He had a slight tease in his tone, but something else had his gaze darkening. Worry? No, she'd seen him worried. This was something more. If she didn't know better, she'd say it looked like fear, which had her on edge. Nothing scared the surly TREX agent. Knowing that something did had her terrified.

  “Are you okay?”

  He gave her a curt nod. “I'm fine. How about you?”

  “I'm good. But there's a TREX team still out there. They've failed to respond to status checks.”

  Spencer cussed and paused as he stared off into the trees. “Are they just out of radio range?”

  “I certainly hope so.”

  “But...”

  She chewed on the inside of her cheek to try and hide her concern, but he picked up on it immediately. “What is it?”

  Kat finally admitted aloud what she'd feared all along. “Their last known location is only a few miles up the road. That's well within radio range, Spence.”

  He stiffened as he studied the hills around them. “Have you sent anyone up there to check it out?”

  “Travis went up there.”

  “Travis? The command team runs the search, not participates in it.”

  “I know,” she replied and rubbed at her eyes. Her weariness started to show and she knew it.

  Gessler popped up between them. “Allen, buddy! What are you doing here? I thought our SAC's orders were pretty clear.”

  He threw Gessler a look and a million things passed between them that Kat couldn't even begin to read. Spencer nodded once. Gessler shook his head in return.

  “It's your ass,” Gessler finally stated.

  “Yes, it is. You can go now.”

  Gessler brought an arm out and pulled Kat to him, squeezing her soundly. “I guess our time is over, baby. But don't worry. Spence has all the time in the world to take good care of you.” He turned to Spencer. “Right, Spence?”

  “Right.” Spencer rested his gaze on Kat and the assurance in that obstinate glare slammed into her. “And now that I'm here, I order you to stay at the Com Van. If there's any trouble out there, it's my job to deal with it, not yours.”

  Her admiration melted, replaced by irritation. His arrogance not only annoyed her, it pissed her off. “You can't pull rank on me. I'm not TREX and you aren't running this search.”

  The look he offered as his answer shut her up. Again, another one of his glares she knew better than to ignore.

  To hell with that. The old Kat would have obeyed that hard, not up for discussion, take it or leave it look.

  The new Kat would not.

  “If I want to go out there, you'll have to do more than attempt to pull rank and order me to stay. As you know, I don't follow orders very well.”

  Spencer stepped toward her, their lips only inches from touching. She smelled the desire on his breath as it tickled her face. The air between them charged, transforming the tension to sexual energy, thickening it like the air before a big storm.

  “I could always restrain you.”

  That could make things interesting. “You wouldn't dare.”

  That look in his eyes said he would.

  “Are you a gambling woman, Kathryn Davis? Because I'm willing to place a large wager that I would.”

  “Awesome,” Gessler laughed. “I had no idea I'd be getting a show. Go ahead. Tie her up.” He wiggled his brow.

  Spencer glared at him. “Are you still here?”

  “We all have our orders.”

  “And were yours to piss me off?”

  “Fine. Give me a call if you need any help restraining her. We could tag team.” Gessler hurried off when Spencer stepped toward him. He got a safe distance from Spencer and turned back. “Hey, Allen? I want my radio back when you're done.”

  Spencer gave him a single nod. Gessler turned and jogged away, disappearing into a cluster of trees.

  “There's something I need to tell you,” he whispered in a grave voice. His eyes clouded with some sort of expression Kat had never seen before. It forced the worry she had coiling inside her to the surface. “It's important.”

  “Spencer,” she whispered and swallowed hard. “You're scaring me.”

  “I don't mean to, sweetheart. But I need to talk to you. It's about the Haynes search.”

  Oh, hell no. She would not have the shadow of that search looming over her. She needed to focus on this search, not work herself into an anxiety attack over that one. “This isn't the Haynes search.”

  “Kathryn, there's something you need to know about that search.” His voice was frantic and her worry drove higher.

  But she didn't want to talk about the Haynes search. “Hey!” she interrupted, pointing behind him at the giant black TREX vendor truck as it pulled up. Completely ignoring him as he stayed on her like a shadow, she approached the truck as the driver got out.

  “Lunch is served.”

  “Great. I'm starving.” She greeted the driver. Spencer kept close by her side and she gave him a puzzled glance. His eyes were unreadable. He didn't act like the Spencer she knew and loved. And frankly, she wanted that Spencer back.

  “Please Kathryn,” he pleaded with her and stole a glance at the driver before leaning closer to her. “I need to tell you something.”

  She frowned at his urgency. The Haynes search was over a year ago. What could possibly be so important he couldn't wait until this one ended?

  Kat turned to the driver, fighting the dread filling her veins. “What have we got today?”

  “Spaghetti and meatballs.” He leaned into Kat. “Though I'd be a bit leery of the meatballs, if you know what I'm saying. Fed them to a team yesterday and they had the screamin' meemees within the hour.”

  Her st
omach cringed at eating what she hoped was only day old meatballs. She thought of her options. There were some Tic-Tacs in her purse and if she really fumbled around, she might even find a stick of gum. The day old spaghetti started to sound pretty good.

  “You can set up here.” She pointed to the other side of the Com Van. The driver jumped back into his truck and pulled it around, leaving her and Spencer alone.

  Spencer tensed as he pressed a finger against his ear. “What the…” He then glanced off to the patch of trees Gessler disappeared into. He clicked something on his receiver. “Get me another radio. Now.”

  A man she recognized as a member of Gessler's team ran up from that grouping of trees, handed Spencer a receiver, and disappeared again. She really hated that about TREX. They were like ghosts, disappearing and reappearing at will.

  Before she could ask Spencer to explain, he shoved the receiver into her ear. At first it sounded like a prank call with heavy breathing. But then she heard a distant masculine voice scream, “Get away from me!”

  “Sir. We are here to help you.”

  She jerked her attention to Spencer, who nodded in return. Oh, shit. Something was wrong. Her heart hit the pit of her already churning stomach.

  “Sir, please stop running.”

  “Get away!” The frantic voice sounded again. The man was terrified.

  “Please, let us help you.”

  A million scenarios raced through Kat's mind, but she decided to focus on the safest one possible. The subject was probably bipolar, confused, and damn scared. He must see the team as a threat. People suffering from bipolar disease could be very dangerous if they went off their meds. He could be bordering on a psychotic break.

  “What's happening?” she whispered as she kept her focus on Spencer. He shook his head and narrowed his eyes as he continued to listen.

  “Get away. I can't go back. They'll kill me if I do.”

  Spencer touched the mic on his neck. “Team One, pull back. Do not pursue. I repeat, do not pursue subject.”

  Kat nodded. It was too dangerous for them to continue. If this guy was crazy, he could hurt them, or hurt himself. She would not place any member of any team in harm's way.

  “Get away!” The subject screamed again.