See Me, Cover Me: Full Heart Ranch Series #4

by Barbara Gee

  “Thank you for telling me,” he said softly.

  She wasn’t quite finished. “I want you to remember that when we’re apart, okay? Remember you’re not just another guy to me. You’re Tanner, and that makes all the difference.”

  His eyes were full of regret. “I’m also the guy who’s dumb enough to walk away from a girl who feels like that.”

  “I know, right?” she teased, poking him with her foot. “But seriously, Tanner, I’m not going to make you feel guilty about doing what you need to do. I already know there’s something innately special about you. I think it must be what your dad had. It’s what allows you to take a stand for what you believe and make a difference. Just know I’ll be waiting here for you, no matter how long it takes.”

  He stood and drew her into his arms, holding her tightly against his body for a long time. It wasn’t the kind of hug that led to something more—it was simply two people holding onto each other for dear life.

  CHAPTER 18

  Tanner wanted to keep her there in his arms until he had the feel of her completely memorized, but too soon the phone in his pocket vibrated. Izzy stepped back, letting him know it was okay to check it. She watched as he read the brief coded text, in which Luther was telling him to read through the attachments he’d sent with an email and call him in the morning.

  “Do you need to go?” she asked, apparently seeing something in his expression that told her it was important.

  “Soon. Luther sent me a bunch of reading material, and wants me to call in the morning.”

  “Oh, shoot. I was hoping you might want to go to church with me tomorrow.”

  “What time does it start?”

  “Ten thirty if we skip Sunday School.”

  Truth was, he wanted to go with her. He wasn’t sure why it sounded appealing, but it did, and spending time with Izzy was teaching him to actually listen to his inner voice.

  “I’ll call Luther before that, then.”

  Her face lit up. “Really? You’ll come?”

  “Sure. Do I dress up?”

  “No, we’re pretty informal. Most guys wear jeans.”

  “Okay, I’ll be ready.” He looked at her apologetically. “Sorry to cut the evening short.”

  “I’m not complaining,” she said as they walked to the door. “It was a perfect evening.”

  “It was,” he agreed readily.

  “Oh, and plan on lunch at the Desmonds tomorrow,” she said. “It’s kind of a tradition after church, plus Boone will be there, so it’ll be a good time of catching up with him. Wait until you see him with Virgil. The more time they spend together, the more alike they seem to become. They’re so obviously father and son, and it makes me happy every time I see them. It’s so scary to realize they could’ve gone their whole lives without knowing about each other.”

  “And ironically, they found each other thanks to a blackmailer.”

  “Yep. A happy ending in spite of it all.”

  They walked out onto the porch and he turned her into his arms. “We’ll have ours, too. Our own happy ending.”

  She looked up at him, her face showing her delight. “I like that optimism.”

  He couldn’t help but smile. “I’m working on it.”

  “It’s this ranch. It makes us all better, happier, more optimistic people.”

  “That may be, but it’s also you, sweetheart.” He kissed her quick and hard. “I need to go. I don’t know how much reading I have ahead of me.”

  She wrapped her arms around his waist and squeezed. “Okay. Good night. Thanks again for tonight.”

  One more quick kiss and he tore himself away, wishing Luther hadn’t interrupted the evening. At the same time, he was eager to know what he’d sent. The more detail he had, the easier it would be to mentally prepare.

  ***

  Two hours later, Tanner sat back in his chair and rubbed his burning eyes. For several minutes he just sat there, staring at the wall and contemplating what he had read.

  He’d been given more than he expected. He now knew why Agent Luther had been so determined he take a break before starting this assignment. It was going to be long, and so difficult, it would be almost a miracle if he was able to pull it off.

  His goal would be to infiltrate the cell led by the man Luther had told him about previously, Ahmed Khalud, a second generation American who had deep ties to family in Iraq.

  Khalud had drawn the attention of the FBI soon after being released from prison, when he’d first started trying to recruit for Al Qaeda. When he’d wearied of that endeavor, he’d put out some feelers to a weapons dealer known to cater to radical Islamists. Although there were many extremists with visions of grandeur living in the city of DC, and most of them would never do more than talk big about their thirst for revenge, every tip had to be checked out. In this case, further investigation had revealed Khalud’s ties to an uncle and cousins in Iraq. Together with his interest in acquiring weapons, it was enough to make the man a definite person of interest.

  The FBI had watched him closely for a while. After a year, when nothing had happened, they backed off, but continued to check up on him every so often. Another year passed with no activity worth noting. Then, four years ago, Khalud had begun reaching out, looking for like-minded men to aid him in an as yet unknown cause.

  He’d steadily assembled a team. He wasn’t interested in a lone-wolf attack—he wanted to do something big, and he wanted it to be sanctioned by the big guys from overseas. Not another 911, that would be too difficult, but something that would make more of a statement than shooting up a nightclub or driving a car bomb into a crowd of people.

  The FBI knew this because they had informants scattered through several DC neighborhoods, where Khalud’s men liked to hang out. Although the information they got on Khalud was second or third-hand—friend of a friend of a friend kind of stuff, the bureau had gradually become convinced Khalud might have the capability of actually pulling something off. So they’d continued to watch from afar.

  Four years was a long time to plot and plan. Most people would get impatient and move on to something else, but Khalud had methodically gone about his business. His team now had six men, plus himself. His fervor didn’t seem to be waning, either. He’d lost patience with his original contacts overseas, and had found people locally who had put him in contact with leaders of the Islamist State movement.

  Where Al Qaeda had strung Khalud along for many years, word had it that the much more aggressive ISIS group was apparently ready to find a use for him.

  The bureau needed more information. Khalud had gone from a person of interest to a credible threat. They needed an operative who could get on the inside and find out the details of his plot, because they’d become convinced there was indeed something in the works. Potentially something big. They also wanted to know who the overseas contacts were, and who Khalud was answering to in DC.

  They’d approached Agent Luther about using Tanner when one of their informants passed on the word that Khalud was now looking for an explosives expert. Tanner had gone through half a year of intensive explosives training before the job that had gone bad, and he’d kept his knowledge and skills current by going to the FBI’s training lab on a regular basis since then.

  Obviously the FBI had others with just as much ability in that field, maybe more, but none who came close to Tanner’s abilities with all things cyber. The plan was to use his explosives background to come up with a cover that would make him irresistible to Khalud, then, once he’d embedded with the cell, he’d use his hacking skills to gain access to whatever methods of communication Khalud was using. Then it would be a matter of following the bread crumbs back to the source.

  Gleaning all this information would likely take many months. As long as they were getting useful information, the FBI was prepared to take the operation all the way up to the planned event, whatever and whenever it was. They wanted to cast a wide, wide net, and pull in as many potential terrorists as possible.<
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  It would make a big statement if they were successful, and a big statement was exactly what was needed. And, in the opinion of the National Security branch of the FBI, Special Agent Tanner James was the one to help them make it.

  ***

  Tanner closed the secure mail app on his iPad and picked up his secure phone, tapping out a text to Luther that said simply: You’re not asking for much, are you? Then he deleted it, because it sounded whiny and petty. This operation wasn’t even Luther’s brain-child, he’d just been asked to loan the DC team his operative to run it.

  He wouldn’t send the text, but he did plan to ask some hard questions when he called Luther in the morning. Namely, whether he would be guaranteed the same level of support he got when working a job with Luther himself, and whether his boss thought he had any chance whatsoever of succeeding…..and getting out alive. Tanner was pretty sure that some of the information he’d just read had come as a surprise to Luther, and he wondered if the man would have agreed to loan him out if he’d known it all.

  He got up and threw his phone onto the bed, then went to the bathroom to brush his teeth and strip off for bed. Whether he’d sleep at all remained to be seen. All he could think about was what he was going to tell Izzy. He wanted to be up front with her, but how could he manage that?

  He could picture her face if he laid it all out in black and white. I’m heading to DC and straight into the heart of one of the most organized terror cells the FBI has so far been able to identify in our country. I’ll have to maintain my cover by building bombs that are good enough to fool experts, but won’t really explode. Oh, and I also have to find a way to infiltrate their communications system so I can open a back door that allows the FBI to monitor everything that goes on. But don’t worry, okay? I might even make it back in one piece.

  Getting into bed, he put an arm over his eyes, took in a long breath and slowly let it out. And then, because he knew Izzy would want him to, he said a short prayer, asking for wisdom as he prepared both himself and Izzy for what came next.

  It felt a little awkward, but a little good, too. Maybe it was something he could eventually get used to.

  ***

  Izzy hadn’t slept well. After Tanner left, she’d tried to read for a while, wanting to make sure her light stayed on so he’d know she was still up, in case he wanted to talk after going through what Luther had sent him. When she finished her book, she’d spent a while browsing online furniture stores, trying to get ideas for her house.

  Two hours later Tanner’s own light was still on, but she hadn’t heard a peep. He probably wouldn’t call her this late even if he knew she was still up, so she got ready for bed and turned the light off, then laid there stewing in the dark, wondering what he’d found out.

  Did he know now when he had to leave? Where he was going? How long it might take? Would he be able to tell her anything, or would she stay in the dark for the duration? Did she even want to know, or would being kept in the dark be less worrisome?

  She managed to fall asleep at some point, but woke before six. When it was clear she wasn’t going back to sleep, she got up and pulled on shorts and a tee shirt and went out for a run. Five miles later her mind was a little clearer and she felt confident she’d be able hide her fear and dread from him. She’d leave it up to Tanner to tell her what he could, and do her best to handle it in a way that didn’t add to the burdens he already carried.

  An hour later she was sitting out on her back deck, when she heard his front door open and close. She quickly went inside and looked out the window, hoping she’d see him crossing the yard to her front steps. Instead she saw him heading out on a run of his own. She had no idea if that was a good sign or a bad one. And it was still an hour and a half until she would see him and get some idea of how he was doing.

  ***

  Tanner had talked to Luther for over an hour. His boss didn’t have much to add to the material he’d emailed, but he’d been willing to answer questions, and his answers had been frank. He strongly believed Tanner would get the support he’d need, in fact, Luther had requested that he be allowed to consult with the team that would be overseeing the operation. That request had been granted, and Tanner was relieved to hear it.

  They had also spent a while discussing the objectives of the operation, and which agents had come up with the plan. It was a team of five, all of whom were very knowledgeable about the cell he’d be infiltrating. Two had actual undercover experience, and the others had spent years researching and tracking its leader and members, watching it grow and become more organized.

  Tanner had saved his toughest question for last—the one where he asked Luther what he thought the chances of success were. Success being he managed to stop whatever evil plot was afoot, gathered enough evidence to arrest a plethora of bad guys from all over, and got out unharmed. Or at least breathing.

  Luther had been silent for a long moment. “You tell me, Tanner. I sent you everything I have, so you know as much about the operation as I do.”

  “Come on, boss. Give me your percentage so I can see if we’re close.”

  Again the silence. “I’ve never lied to you, Tanner, and I won’t start now. If we’re talking total success, I’d say fifty-fifty.”

  Tanner had expected it, but hearing it confirmed sent a flash of heat through his body. He wiped the sweat from his forehead with the bottom of his tee shirt. Was he going to be taken out of the game before he and Izzy could find that happy ending he’d talked about?

  His voice revealed none of his inner turmoil. “Yeah. That’s what I thought.”

  “Remember, though, you don’t have to achieve every objective in order for the operation to be considered a success. You know good and well you can call it off early if need be, and we’ll still be glad for whatever crumbs you’ve gathered. So your chance of coming away unharmed is certainly greater than the fifty-fifty rate.”

  “Yeah, well, we both know I’m not great at settling for crumbs,” Tanner had replied.

  “Which was why I resisted when they asked for you, until they convinced me only you would do.” Luther’s sigh was audible. “I know you don’t know how to do anything half way, but for Izzy’s sake, I hope you don’t take unnecessary risks.”

  “That makes for a dilemma, boss,” Tanner said heavily. “One I don’t have any experience in handling.”

  “I understand. The job and the home life don’t often mix well, as all too many of us have found out. But your lady is something special. She’s worth figuring it out for, I think.”

  “Yeah, I need to wrap my head around it somehow. I gotta go. Talk to you later, boss.” Tanner had hung up and immediately got dressed for a run. A long, hard one. He needed the physical release before seeing Izzy and going to church.

  Maybe during the run he’d figure out what he was going to say to her, because he sure had no idea as of now.

  ***

  “Just tell me one thing.”

  Izzy and Tanner had both walked out of their front doors at the exact same time and met at her car. He looked oh so handsome, with a light green button-down shirt with thin white stripes tucked into the slim waist of his dark jeans. She wanted to wrap her arms around him and never let go, but her pressing question took precedence.

  He raised one dark brow. “Just one thing?” he asked a little skeptically. “And by the way, good morning to you, too.”

  “Good morning, Tanner.” She gave him a warm smile. “You look great and I’m so happy you’re going to church with me, and yeah, just the one question for now. So you won’t think I’m a pest.”

  His eyes flicked over her white top and floaty lavender skirt. “You’d be the cutest pest I’ve ever seen,” he teased.

  She grinned, smoothing a hand down the front of his shirt. “Stop distracting me.”

  “Is it a hard question?”

  “Nope. I just want to know whether Agent Luther told you when you’ll have to leave.”

  He shook his head. “No. W
e should still be at least three weeks out.”

  She sagged with relief and slid her arms around him. “Thank goodness. I somehow managed to convince myself once again you were going to tell me you had to leave right away, or in a day or two.”

  He hugged her back. “I can’t promise it won’t be sooner than expected, but as of now, we’re good.”

  “So we’ll keep making the most of the time we do have,” she said, her words muffled against his shirt. “Believe me, I’m grateful for every minute.”

  “Grateful enough to give me a good morning kiss to tide me over until we’re alone again?”

  She’d gladly kiss him morning, noon and night for as long as she possibly could. Rising up on her toes, she took his handsome face between her hands and pressed her lips to his.

  He groaned softly. “Mmm, I needed this,” he said against her mouth. “Can we skip church and make out instead?”

  She giggled and pulled away. “Priorities, Mr. James. We can kiss any time, but we can only go to church once a week.”

  He leaned in for one more quick peck before plucking the keys from her hand. “I’ll drive, you tell me where to go.”

  They got to the church on the other side of Barlow in plenty of time, but it took them a while to make their way inside, because it was an exceedingly friendly congregation, and everyone wanted to meet the new guy. Izzy realized she should have warned him, and maybe given him the option to get there right as the service started, so he could avoid the crowd.

  Tanner had a somewhat sincere smile pasted onto his face, but she could tell he wasn’t exactly comfortable with the attention, or the good-natured questions. It seemed like every person asked him where he was from and what he did. To which he always answered Minneapolis, and I work in the IT field.

  “Sorry about that,” she whispered as they made their way through the church vestibule. “I didn’t mean to make you run a gauntlet just to get inside.”

  “Just don’t leave my side,” he whispered back, his lips quirking up in a small smile. “I don’t want to face these people alone. They’re way too friendly.”