Tangled Mark

by Becky Harmon

  Brad started the engine and eased out of the alley before answering her. “It wouldn’t hurt.”

  Quickly, Nikki punched a message to Mel on her cell phone. She stared at the phone after hitting send as if a response would be instantaneous.

  “I’m starving, but let’s wait until we get through security at the airport before grabbing something. Time is short and I don’t want to miss our flight.”

  Nikki didn’t answer him at first but eventually nodded as what he had said registered. Within minutes they were back on HaYarkon Street and approaching the US Embassy. Brad stopped at the guard gate and asked the officer on duty to call them a cab. Once they were parked, Brad unlocked the trunk and they secured their weapons inside the lockbox. Nikki left a voice mail message for Ron Dayton letting him know the car was in spot ten and reminding him their gear was in the trunk. After seeing all the security checkpoints at the airport, Nikki now understood why it was less of a hassle for the embassy to pick up and return their weapons to the airport than to try to do it themselves. With their bags slung over their shoulders, they returned their identification and weapon permits to the officer on duty before climbing into the back of the cab.

  At the airport, the driver dropped them at Departures, where their checked baggage was carefully screened before turning it over to the airline and picking up their tickets. The trip through immigration was quick, and they had thirty minutes before their plane would begin boarding.

  “Do you see somewhere fast?” Brad asked as they passed through the food court.

  “Burger Ranch?”

  “That works for me.”

  They carried their food to the departure gate before consuming it. Finally seated on the plane, Nikki dropped her head back against the headrest and closed her eyes. She slept fitfully during the four-and-a-half-hour flight to Paris, her thoughts jumbled and filled with gunshots. When the pilot announced they were about to land, she opened her eyes and sat up. Her head was fuzzy and her eyes still burned from lack of sleep.

  “Did you get any sleep?” Nikki asked.

  Brad groaned. “Barely.”

  “At least we’ll be back in the States by midnight and we can sleep in a bed for a couple of hours before our flight to New Orleans Saturday morning.”

  “I will dream about that during this eight-hour flight.”

  With only an hour layover in Paris, they barely had time to grab food and arrive at the gate before boarding the plane to D.C. Nikki watched Brad consume his third pastry as she glanced at her cell phone again. She had sent Mel two more texts and still had received no response.

  Brad shoved the last bite of the pastry into his mouth before patting her leg. “I’m sure they’re fine.” He held up the bag of food. “Are you sure you don’t want another one?”

  She wrinkled her nose. “No thank you. I don’t think I’ll be able to eat again for a while. At least not until I adjust back to our time zone.”

  Brad grinned. “We should get barbecue on the way back to the office tomorrow.”

  Nikki grimaced. No food, and definitely not barbecue, sounded good right at the moment. Her stomach churned as she agonized over where Mel could be and what she might be doing. The plane would be taking off soon, and she would have to turn off her cell phone until they landed. She dialed Mel’s number from memory and glanced out the window while she waited for it to ring. It went to voice mail on the first ring. Nikki frowned. “Her phone is turned off.”

  “That’s odd.” Brad frowned too. “That’s their only form of communication.”

  “The backup team arrived hours ago, so why would she turn off her phone?” Nikki sighed. “I guess she might be back in her room catching some sleep, but if she was, why didn’t she respond to my earlier texts?”

  “I’m sure you’ll have a response from her when we land. Did you leave her a voice mail?”

  “No.” Nikki dialed her number again. When the voice mail answered this time, she left a short message. “Carter, call me when you get this. We’re taking off from Paris now and should be in D.C. in about eight hours. Call me, please.” Nikki punched the disconnect button and powered down her phone before sliding it into her pocket. She settled back into the seat and replayed the night she spent with Mel, remembering how it felt to press her body against Mel’s back as she slept. She had felt safe and comfortable. She wanted that feeling again. She wanted Mel again.

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  A door slammed somewhere above her and Mel lifted her head, licking her cracked lips. Her stomach roiled at the metallic taste of blood mixed with dirt. She tried to see into the darkness surrounding her, but it was too thick. Her arms and legs were bent behind her and tingled with numbness when she tried to move them. She moaned from the pain of shifting as she realized they were tied together.

  “Mel?” Liam’s voice called softly.

  “Liam!” Her voice cracked, and she swallowed hard, pushing away the edge of panic. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to take a calming breath. She was not in Afghanistan. Donala would not be coming to torture her. She was in…Israel? With Liam and…Nikki! Please don’t let Nikki be here too. “Is there anyone else…Nikki…Brad?”

  “No, it’s just us.”

  Mel said a silent prayer for Nikki’s safety. “Where are we?”

  “In a basement, I think. Are your arms and legs tied together too?”

  “Yep.”

  “Slide toward me and let’s see if we can undo the connecting rope. Mine doesn’t feel very tight.”

  She started to inch toward him, but the shooting pain in her ribs made her stop moving. “I think my ribs were hit by a freight train,” she groaned.

  Liam closed the remaining distance between them and maneuvered around her until they were back to back. He began working on the rope connecting her arms and legs. “I haven’t been awake long, but I heard two men arguing just now. One was angry because the other one had been kicking us while we were unconscious. I wasn’t sure if you were down here with me or not.” Liam grunted, giving a tug on the rope. “They didn’t do a very good job tying you. These knots are fairly loose.”

  Liam concentrated on the knots, saying no more but giving an occasional quiet groan as he shifted position.

  “Are you hurt too?” she asked gently when he shifted yet again.

  “Bumps and bruises. No broken bones.”

  Mel thought about the men Liam had heard talking earlier. “Did the men sound familiar?” Mel asked.

  “Not to me, but maybe you’ll recognize Abbott since you listened to all those phone recordings.” Liam grunted again. “Got it. Now you can at least sit up.”

  She moved slowly, rolling her legs in front of her until she was sitting. Her head swam and she fought the urge to vomit. She sat very still until the feeling passed, then slid her hands under her butt, pulling her thighs into her chest. Her shoulders throbbed with the strain, but eventually she was able to stretch her arms under her feet and pull her tied hands in front of her body. She gently touched her face, probing the sore spots to check for damage. She moaned when her fingers touched her eyelid. “I don’t think I’ll need eye shadow for a while.”

  “That’s a positive note,” Liam said with no humor.

  Mel squirmed closer to him until she could reach the ropes connecting his arms and legs. She ran her fingers up the rope until she felt the knots and began working them back and forth. Minutes turned to more than an hour before she had success. It took Liam longer to work his hands under his body and get them in front of him. Mel heard him grunt as he pushed himself into a standing position.

  “Wow, that feels good.” Liam groaned as he stretched his body. He sat down facing her. “Now for the other knots.”

  Mel began working at them, but they were tighter and closer to his skin without any play between the knots. “These aren’t going to be as easy, Liam.”

  “I know, but it’s our only way out of here.”

  Mel heard the anxiety in his voice, and sh
e hesitated before questioning him. “What did you hear them say?”

  Liam was silent in the darkness, and she bumped his arm with her hand. “Liam?”

  “They’re not sure what to do with us.”

  Mel continued to work the knots while she thought about their situation. “How’d we end up here?”

  “I’ve been thinking about that too,” Liam said. “I think the coffee guy drugged us.”

  “Whoa. What?” Mel asked surprised.

  “I remember drinking the coffee and then seeing Abbott come out of his apartment building. I was trying to tell you, but I couldn’t form the words. It’s like my body wouldn’t respond and that’s the last thing I remember.”

  “Yeah,” Mel finally agreed. “I remember coming back to the car with the coffee.” She paused for a minute. “He gave me the death stare.”

  “I think he was the one beating us. The other guy is the one upset about what they’re going to do with us. He said everything is all screwed up now.”

  “So it really was the death stare.” Mel contemplated this knowledge. “What does he want to do with us?”

  Liam hesitated. “Get rid of us.”

  “Then I guess we better get ready to defend ourselves.” Mel pulled harder on the knot.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Nikki crawled into the cool sheets and reached out to set the alarm clock. She was asleep before Brad came out of the bathroom. The alarm went off while the sky was still dark and Nikki had to remind herself where she was before rolling out of the bed and stumbling to the bathroom. As soon as the steam from the shower cleared her head, her first thoughts were of Mel. She hurriedly finished and dressed so she could check her phone for messages. She sighed when she saw there were none.

  Brad rolled over and looked at her. “Still no call from her?”

  “No call and no text. Something is wrong, Brad.”

  “I’d like to reassure you, but I’m starting to agree.” He got to his feet. “Let me shower and then we can talk about this.”

  Nikki stuffed her dirty clothes into her bag and heard the manila envelope crinkle in the outer pocket. She pulled it out and sat down on the edge of the bed. She had told Mel they would open the package if she needed them to. Now Mel needed them to. Nikki had never considered opening a package after she had picked it up. Her job was only to transport, never to open or ask questions. However, this situation was different. Mel and Liam’s lives could be in danger, and whatever was in the envelope could hold some information. She was still sitting on the bed holding the sealed envelope when Brad opened the bathroom door.

  “I was thinking the same thing. Open it.” He sat down on his bed across from her.

  She gently ran her finger under the flap, pushing through the sticky glue. Reaching inside, she withdrew four black-and-white pictures. The first two must have been snapped hurriedly from inside the coffee shop. They might be too blurry to other eyes, but Nikki could easily identify Mel’s stride in the grainy shot. The last two photos, taken from somewhere in front of the car, were sharper and clearly showed Mel and Liam sitting in their surveillance sedan on the street outside Daniel Abbott’s apartment. Nikki looked at them and then passed them to Brad.

  “He must be asking Josh to identify them,” Nikki suggested.

  Brad nodded.

  When he didn’t comment, Nikki continued. “We can’t give these to Josh. Not if we believe he’s involved.”

  “Come on, Nik. Josh has to know what the score is after all the surveillance on us last week.”

  “Maybe, but he doesn’t know they were in Israel too.”

  “Okay, then.” Brad agreed. “What if we give him the two fuzzy ones of Carter? We can hold on to the clear ones for now.”

  Nikki nodded. “I’d feel better about that.” She rubbed her face. “We don’t even know what’s going on over there right now. Something is keeping them from contacting us.”

  Brad was silent for a few minutes. “I tried Liam when we arrived in D.C. His phone is off too.” He looked at her and then stood. “We can’t do anything until we get back to Flagler. Besides we don’t know if anything is wrong. We aren’t in the same loop as Mel and Liam and we don’t know where their case might have led them. Let’s try not to worry until we know there’s something to worry about.” He picked up his bag and she followed him out the door.

  * * *

  Nikki was withdrawn on the flight and Brad didn’t try to coax her out. She tried to envision what she would do when she arrived at Flagler. Part of her wanted to get back on a plane and return to Israel, with or without permission from Flagler. She worried at the problem as they arrived in New Orleans, throughout the jumper flight back to Pensacola, and as she and Brad retrieved their car for the drive to Flagler. Nikki sat silently in the passenger seat as he cleared them through security and back into Flagler’s parking lot.

  Apparently Josh had asked security to notify him of their arrival, and he met them at the front door. “Package?” he said as a greeting.

  Nikki said nothing as she pulled the manila envelope from her bag and handed it to him.

  “I’ll meet you in the debriefing room,” he said as he turned and walked away.

  Nikki’s gaze followed him until he turned the corner at the end of the hall. She looked at Brad and he shook his head. Following Josh down the hall, they dropped their bags in the empty office and went straight to the debriefing room. Lewis was waiting when they entered, and they each took a seat across from him. “I know you guys are ready to get home. We’ll get started as soon as Josh gets here.”

  Josh walked in and Nikki noticed he no longer carried the manila envelope. She glanced at Brad and he raised his eyebrows. Nikki spoke first. She wanted to see if Lewis was aware they had made a package pickup, so she told the entire mission from start to finish, leaving that part out. Josh’s head remained bent over his laptop. Nikki waited for Lewis to question her, but when he finally looked up from his own typing he only asked Brad if he had anything to add. Nikki avoided looking at Brad so it wouldn’t look like they had something to hide. Brad shook his head no and they were both dismissed.

  “Wow,” Nikki said as they stepped into the hallway.

  “So, apparently, Lewis didn’t know about the package,” Brad said softly.

  “It seems that way.” Nikki led the way into their office and sat down at her desk. “Let’s do your report first and then you can get out of here.”

  “Are we going to include the package pickup?”

  Nikki nodded. “Of course. Josh would expect us to record it.”

  “Okay. Here goes.” Nikki typed while Brad talked, and then she saved his report and printed him a copy.

  Brad retrieved his copy from the printer and returned to her desk. “What are you going to do?”

  “I don’t know yet.” Nikki smiled at him. “Don’t worry.”

  “Well, I am worried. Not just about you either.” He turned to leave and then looked back at her. “I won’t go to sleep when I get home so I’ll be able to sleep tonight. Call me if you need something or if you hear from them.”

  Nikki nodded and then motioned for him to leave. She began typing, and the words flowed quickly, especially since she left out all the parts involving Mel and Liam. She finished her report and saved the document. After emailing herself a copy, she sat staring into space. She needed to find out what was going on and she didn’t know who to ask. As far as she knew, Mr. Flagler was the only one in this building who knew Mel and Liam were in Israel and it didn’t make sense he could be the leak. Why would he ruin his own company? She couldn’t go home without information about Mel. If talking to the head of Flagler Security was a mistake, then she would have to face the consequences later. Right now he was her only source of information.

  She stood up and moved quickly into the hall, nearly colliding with the other woman who had been shadowing her. “What...where...why are you here?”

  “I had a meeting,” the woman said hesitantly
. “I’m Angela, by the way.”

  Nikki placed her hand on Angela’s arm, moving them out of the hallway and back inside the empty office. Nikki looked her in the eye. “Have you heard from Carter?”

  “I can’t talk about an ongoing investigation.” Angela’s expression was stone-cold.

  “I don’t want to talk about the investigation. I just want to know if they’re okay.” She glared at Angela. “Tell me what’s going on.”

  “Look, I know you are a good agent and I respect you, but I don’t have the authority to disclose any information to you.”

  “Then take me to someone who does,” Nikki demanded.

  “That’s not going to happen.”

  Nikki turned to walk away and then spun back to Angela. “She was shot. Do you know that?” Angela’s face showed surprise, and then it became unreadable again. “What?” Nikki asked. “I’m not supposed to know that?”

  Angela started to speak and then shook her head. “Their mission is confidential.”

  Nikki fumed. “He was watching her. I have pictures.”

  Surprise crossed Angela’s face again as the frustration and fear echoed in Nikki’s voice.

  “Her phone is turned off. Just tell me she’s okay.”

  Angela looked around the empty room. “She will be okay.”

  “What the hell does that mean?”

  Angela looked away from her glare.

  “Shit! You don’t know where she is either, do you?” Nikki dropped into the closest chair and put her head in her hands. “This is so fucked up!”

  Angela sat beside her. “What pictures do you have?”

  “Josh sent us to pick up a package before we left Israel, and it contained pictures of Mel and Liam on surveillance.”

  “And you have them?”

  “We gave Josh the fuzzy ones and kept the ones he’d be able to identify them with quickly.”

  Angela stood. “Let’s go.”

  “Where?”