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

by Barbara Gee

  ***

  Maliq Hadim descended upon the house like a force of nature. It was definitely not the furtive, low-profile visit Tanner had expected. Hadim and Khalud had been at each other’s throats from the first moment. The cousins claimed to love each other like brothers, but they also fought like brothers. Or maybe worse.

  Tanner soon realized that was perfectly normal for them, and it was obvious Khalud trusted his cousin in spite of the animosity. Within hours of Hadim’s arrival, Khalud had proudly shared all the details of what was planned for the concert. When he’d finished, Hadim disdainfully told him everything he should have done differently. The argument that followed was loud and passionate, and had lasted the entire evening, ending only when Hadim went off to his hotel in a huff.

  Tanner was afraid they’d seen the last of him. He quizzed Khalud at breakfast the next morning.

  “Do you think that crazy cousin of yours will come back? Or did he get his feelings hurt when you didn’t take his suggestions?”

  Khalud grunted. “Of course he’ll be back. That’s just how he is. We fight, but there’s no harm done.” The man laughed. “He’d be disappointed if I caved in to him. He likes a good argument.”

  Even as he spoke, Tanner heard the front door open and close. Sure enough, Hadim was back, and acting like nothing had happened.

  Khalud hugged him warmly, then asked Tanner to go get the bomb from its hiding place in the attic and meet them in the study. He was eager to try again to impress his cousin.

  Tanner knew this was his chance to try to interest Hadim in purchasing a similar bomb. He showed him the device and gave a basic description of how he’d built it, including just enough information to intrigue him further. Then he went into a long spiel about the capacity of the bomb, watching the man’s eyes begin to gleam as he realized the possibilities.

  He finished his description and waited, feeling certain he’d said enough to make owning one of the bombs irresistible to a man who earned his living selling hard to get weapons. His phone was sending the conversation to a team of agents, and Tanner knew they were waiting as anxiously as him.

  But Hadim didn’t offer to buy it. No, he promptly and at great length told Tanner everything he’d done wrong, and how it could have been so much better. It was a bunch of nonsense, spewed by a man who felt compelled to prove his superiority, even when he was obviously outclassed. Still, he had to try to make the attempt—his pride and arrogance demanded it.

  So he pointed out all the supposed flaws in the device. Then he offered to buy it.

  By that time, Tanner’s dearest wish had been to feel his fist connect with the man’s flapping jaw, but he reeled himself in and stuck with the plan. He held his tongue as Khalud explained to his cousin that they obviously couldn’t sell this particular bomb, but it was possible another could be quickly built, and also customized to Hadim’s precise needs.

  Hadim had then assured them he didn’t want the bomb for himself, but to resell. If word got out that he had acquired and sold such a thing, his reputation would be raised to new heights, and business would soar.

  At that point, Tanner asked Khalud for permission to go get his computer. The reason he gave was so that he could show Hadim how the detonator had been miniaturized for placement inside the pedestal, but he really just needed an excuse to leave the room to find out whether Hadim had said enough to lock him up with the others. He suspected the agents would want more, an agreement on the price and the delivery date at the very least, but Tanner was confident he had Hadim on the hook now. He wanted a bomb so badly he could taste it. The rest would be easy.

  “Bring your computer,” Khalud had said agreeably, the dollar signs almost visible in his black eyes.

  Tanner crossed the room and opened the door to Khalud’s study. He stopped abruptly when he almost ran into one of the men from the house who was standing in the hall facing him, looking very surprised to have the door swing open. Before either Khalud or Tanner could ask what he was doing there, Hadim began screaming that his cousin had stupidly hired a traitor who was spying on them. He actually ran at the man, knocking him down and putting his hands around his throat, demanding that he tell them who he was working for.

  Tanner pulled Hadim off and pinned him against the wall. “Shut up and give him a chance to explain why he’s here,” he said.

  Khalud glared at his cousin. “How dare you accuse me of hiring a traitor,” he spat, then he calmly asked his man to tell them why he’d been standing right outside the door.

  The man almost tearfully told them he had only come to knock on the door to see whether they needed anything from the grocery store. Since the man took requests for food on a regular basis, Khalud had no reason to doubt him. “You overreacted, cousin,” he accused, his face reddening with his anger. “He only wanted a grocery list, and you tried to strangle him.”

  Unfortunately, the explanation didn’t convince Hadim, who was in a state of full-blown paranoia. As soon as Tanner loosened his grip, he pulled away and fled out the front door.

  Khalud roared for him to stop, but Hadim was halfway down the block before Tanner and Khalud made it to the door themselves.

  “Let him go,” Tanner said, trying to calm the other man whose chest was heaving with fury. “He’ll be back when he realizes he completely overreacted. What does he have to hide, anyway? It must be quite a bit to panic like that.”

  Khalud took several deep, calming breaths before going back inside, where the man who had interrupted them was waiting, still wide-eyed and rubbing his throat.

  Tanner gave him a grim smile. “I didn’t think anyone could be crazier than Khalud,” he said, slanting a glance at Khalud, hoping to break the tension with a bit of humor. “Guess I was wrong.”

  Khalud barked out a laugh. “Hadim has always had a hard time controlling himself. I shouldn’t have allowed him to come. I don’t need this stress right now.”

  “It’s normal to want to share your success with your family,” Tanner said, “but you’re right, we don’t need this now. When he comes back, we need to get a deal done quickly, so we can send him on his way.”

  Khalud agreed. After a while, he tried to call Hadim, to get him to come back and talk more about the bomb, but his cousin wouldn’t answer.

  ***

  A day later, they still hadn’t heard from Hadim and Tanner was ready to cut their losses. He sent a message to Agent Shelby, requesting a meeting.

  They got together the next day, this time in a dark corner of a Metro station during rush hour, letting the crowds and the trains keep attention off them.

  “We can’t wait for him to come back. We’re already cutting it too close. You need to have the team call it.”

  Shelby’s lips thinned. She was frustrated, and Tanner was equally so. He hated to lose. If he thought there was any chance of turning it around and catching Hadim in their net, he’d stick it out another day or two. At this point, though, he knew it was the right decision to let him go. They couldn’t risk everything else falling apart because they’d waited too long.

  In hindsight, Tanner wished they hadn’t ever added Hadim to the equation. The operation should have ended months ago, before that email had changed things.

  “You’re right,” Shelby finally admitted, her arms folded tightly. “I hate it, but you’re right. I’ll tell the team to round up the troops. They’re on stand-by so it won’t be long.”

  “Tomorrow?” Tanner asked, trying not to show how hopeful he was.

  “My guess is yes. You’ll get a text, and you need to leave as soon as it comes in. When you’re clear, we’ll move in. We’ll go for the middle-men at the same time. Two live in the same apartment, the other one in a townhouse a few blocks away. We’ll use cell phone jammers at all locations to make sure they can’t get word to each other.”

  “I’ll be ready,” Tanner assured her. “The bomb is in the attic, make sure your people get it. It can’t go off, of course, but the C4 needs to be locked up.
It’s the good stuff. Military grade.”

  “We’ll take care of it.” Agent Shelby’s rigid stance relaxed slightly. “You’ve done an incredible job, Agent. The sky’s the limit for you after this one.”

  “Don’t care about the sky, I just want some time off,” he said with a hint of a smile. “I’ll be waiting to hear from you.”

  ***

  The text came just as the men were sitting down to lunch the next day. Tanner felt the buzz in his pocket, and he knew what it was. He inwardly applauded the timing—people lowered their guard when there was food in front of them.

  He looked down and covertly checked the screen on his phone.

  Leave.

  He took a drink of water and looked casually around the table, making sure no one had noticed he’d checked his phone. They were all focused on the food, oblivious to everything else.

  Tanner sat still for a few seconds, watching the men he’d lived with for the past ten months. Their worlds would drastically change in the next few minutes, but he felt no remorse. These men had dedicated their lives to hate and horrible violence. They sought to take innocent lives, and justified it through a radical interpretation of a religion more than a billion people followed peacefully.

  They would never change, and the world would be a safer place with them locked up for the rest of their lives.

  He looked at Khalud. There was so much he wanted to say. He wanted to tell the man how misguided he was, how perverted his beliefs had become, how his visions of glory indicated desperate gullibility and fanaticism rather than greatness.

  “What is it, Aazim?” Khalud wanted to know, looking up from his plate with a frown.

  “Nothing, Khalud,” Tanner said evenly, rising to his feet. “I just need a bit of air. The smell in here makes me feel sick.”

  Khalud shrugged. “Smells like lunch to me. I’ll be happy to eat your share.”

  “Help yourself. You need to keep your strength up.”

  He turned and walked out of the room, straight down the hall, and out the front door. He kept going until he was at the end of the block, far enough away not to interfere, but close enough to have a perfect view of the house he despised.

  One minute passed. Two. Three. He saw movement at the side of the house, then across the street. Then there was a wall of bodies, all clad in black tactical clothes and body armor. All heavily armed.

  Tanner watched and nodded slowly, approvingly. Khalud and his men didn’t stand a chance. They probably wouldn’t even have a chance to drop their forks and raise their guns. They’d be caught with mouths full of eggplant and halal lamb—maybe the last they’d ever have. Not much eggplant and lamb in prison.

  The agents and cops took position all around the house, then a line of them ran up the front steps and slipped in the front door, which Tanner had conveniently left ajar.

  Tanner tensed, listening for gun shots. Enough time passed that he thought they were in the clear, then he heard a volley of six shots, and then it was quiet again. He saw some of the black-clad cops talking on their radios before several more entered the house.

  People in the neighborhood had gathered quickly, talking excitedly about what was happening. It was obviously big, judging from the numbers of law enforcement officers in the area. As the crowd began to build, some of the cops left the yard and calmly asked the people to stay back so no one would get hurt.

  Tanner stood unmoving, waiting for what came next. He felt a strong sense of satisfaction. It had taken ten months of his life, ten months away from Izzy, but it was over now. He’d done his part to keep his fellow citizens safe, just as he’d pledged to do when he’d joined the bureau.

  He studied the lively crowd, seeing their excitement and curiosity. Many of them had cell phones pointed at the house, no doubt taking videos and hoping to capture something big.

  They’d likely never know exactly what was going down in that house right now, or what had been going on in there for many years. The FBI didn’t broadcast much about their successes in the fight for terrorism, because they didn’t want to reveal their tactics. But the people were safe. That’s what was important.

  As his eyes roamed over the crowd, his gaze caught on something—he wasn’t sure what, but something had registered subconsciously and triggered an inner alarm. He searched through the faces anxiously, looking for the source. Then an almost painful shot of adrenaline flooded his body.

  Hadim. He was in the middle of the crowd, staring at the house. Even from a distance Tanner could see his fury and desperation. Tanner’s training took over and he moved slowly and smoothly toward the milling group of people, making sure he did nothing to draw attention to himself.

  He was twenty feet away when a little boy in his path let out a shrill scream, then accused the older child beside him of making him drop his lollipop. Tanner’s eyes went to the child, then quickly back to Hadim. The man was staring at him, his eyes wide with shock.

  Tanner broke immediately into a sprint. He knew Hadim would be armed and he knew he had only seconds to get to him.

  Hadim’s eyes went still wider, then he turned to face the crowd.

  Tanner knew what came next, he saw it on the man’s face. His legs pumped faster. He was closing in, but still too far away. Hadim raised both hands high, one of them holding a gun.

  “For my cousin!” he screamed. “Allahu Akbar!”

  Tanner felt like he was moving in slow motion. The muscles in his thighs bunched, then propelled him horizontally through the air toward Hadim. The man’s arm was coming down, and the gun would soon be pointed at the crowd. Thankfully that seemed to be in slow motion, too. Tanner’s hand caught Hadim’s forearm and held it aloft as he crashed into him, bringing them both to the ground. The one shot Hadim managed to get off went harmlessly straight up into the sky.

  Tanner tried to hold him down, but Hadim struggled like a man possessed. He got his gun hand free momentarily, and Tanner missed when he tried to grab his wrist.

  Hadim twisted beneath him, bringing his hand up. All Tanner could think was that there were too many people around who could get hurt. In that split second, he became aware of their terrified screams as the he struggled to get the gun back down.

  There was no time for a prolonged fight. Tanner pushed himself slightly up, then flung his body over Hadim’s gun hand. When it went off, he felt profound relief. Thank God the bullet had hit him, and not a bystander.

  His mind automatically classified the injury. Shoulder area, non life threatening.

  But Hadim still had the gun, and he was still fighting. Tanner raised his head and bought his forehead down hard on the bridge of Hadim’s nose. Finally, the crazed man’s body went limp.

  A sea of cops descended. They didn’t know the good guy from the bad. The people were shouting and screaming, making the scene complete chaos. The cops would sort out who was who later, but immobilizing both men was their first priority. They tore Tanner off the now bloodied Hadim and threw him to the ground. His head smashed against the curb.

  Everything faded to black.

  CHAPTER 27

  It was a sunny Saturday in Barlow, North Dakota, warmer than normal and way too nice to stay inside. Izzy worked at clearing old growth from a flowerbed in front of her house in the morning, ate a quick sandwich for lunch, then decided to go for a bike ride. She changed into neon green bike shorts and a matching top, then carried her shoes and socks outside to her front porch. She sat on the top step to put them on, frowning when she heard a racing engine down the street. Who in the world would drive like that in a residential neighborhood?

  She stood up with her hands on her hips, ready to give the driver a good glare—not that he or she would even notice. The vehicle approached her block, then slowed abruptly and turned right into her drive. With a start she recognized Ryan’s black Jeep.

  Her heart rolled painfully in her chest. No no no no! This wasn’t happening. Her throat closed up and she couldn’t breathe. She held up her hands,
palms out, as Ryan and Tuck both exited the car and came toward her.

  “No!” she said vehemently, shaking her head. “No! Go away! I don’t want you here! I don’t want to hear what you’re going to say!” The last words came out as a keen and her knees gave out. She collapsed onto the porch and then Tuck was lifting her up, holding her tight and hushing her.

  “Shhh, Izzy. It’s not what you think. Tanner’s alive. He’s injured, but he’s alive. We’re still waiting to hear the details, but we wanted to come to you before you heard it yourself.”

  “What do you mean he’s injured? What’s wrong? What happened?” Izzy pushed back and pounded her fists on Tuck’s chest. “Tell me what happened, Tuck!”

  “Let’s go inside,” Ryan said calmly, opening her front door. “Come on, Iz, take a deep breath and come inside. We’ll tell you what we know.”

  Tuck had to practically carry her, then she sank onto the couch, her hands shaking so badly she had to sit on them. She couldn’t form any words, she just stared at them, her chest heavy with dread.

  “All we know so far is what we saw on TV,” Ryan said gently, sitting down beside her while Tuck paced. “As soon as we saw it, we came here to make sure you weren’t alone.”

  “S-saw what?” she whispered.

  “There’s a breaking news story out of Washington DC,” Ryan continued. “The good news is it looks like Tanner’s undercover op is over. The bad news is he was taken to the hospital. They haven’t said what his injuries are, but he’s alive. I put a call in to Luther, but he’s probably still trying to get information himself. I’m sure he’ll call as soon as he knows something.”

  “Tanner was in DC? That’s where he’s been all this time? How did he get hurt? Why’s it on TV?” Izzy knew she was being slow and dense but she couldn’t wrap her mind around what they were saying.

  “There was an incident in a neighborhood in the city. Lots of cops going into a house and making arrests. A bunch of the neighbors had gathered to watch, and then a man with a gun came out of the crowd and turned on them. He had the gun raised when Tanner tackled him. He took at least one bullet.”