Raz reached for her hand. He entwined their fingers and held on. She gave him a soft smile and squeezed his fingers. When the traffic started again, he didn’t let go.
They drove in silence for a while.
“Jack bought the building,” Raz said finally.
“I saw the update,” Alex said. She forced her tear-constricted voice to sound cheerful. “They’ve started construction already.”
“Now that’s a very good thing,” Raz said in keeping with her cheer.
“I’m excited,” Alex said.
Her voice held so much sorrow that he laughed.
“What do you want to do?” Raz asked in a soft, intimate voice.
“Retire?” Alex asked.
“Really?” Raz’s voice rose with surprise.
“Oh, probably not,” Alex said with a sigh. “I won’t admit this to anyone else, but it’s incredibly humiliating to be a Lieutenant Colonel, the leader of one of the most successful teams in the US Special Operations, and be treated…”
“Like a bad seed?” Raz asked.
“Red-haired step-child?” Alex said.
“You are Irish,” Raz said. He winked at her.
“Half,” Alex said.
When he looked at her, she smiled. He grimaced.
“Unbearable to watch,” Raz said.
Alex raised her eyebrows in a nod.
“What do you think he’s up to?” Raz asked.
“Best case?” Alex asked.
“Sure,” Raz asked. In a wry voice, he said, “Let’s give the prick the benefit of the doubt.”
Alex grinned. His loyalty and fondness for her were a balm over her bruised ego. He returned her smile.
“Best case is that all of that was for show,” Alex said. “We work for the President, so he can’t really do anything to us.”
“He can’t?” Raz asked.
“No,” Alex said. “We work for his boss’s boss. The team is mostly untouchable. For now.”
Alex shrugged.
“Until the President is replaced by another,” Raz said.
“Well, there is that,” Alex said. “But that’s not for another few years. Maybe we’ll be sipping Mai Tai’s on our own private island by then.”
“On our government salaries?” Raz asked.
“Oh,” Alex scowled. “I thought you owned a Caribbean island.”
Raz laughed, and Alex smiled.
“And the worst case?” Raz asked.
“Worst case is that he’s a complete asshole who will undermine everything we’ve worked so hard to create,” Alex said. “Or even worse, he’s owned by these Black Skeletons.”
“Worst case is that we have to go to war against the Admiral,” Raz said.
“Who would you bet on?” Alex asked.
“You,” Raz said. “He doesn’t really know what he’s in for, does he?”
Alex shook her head. To avoid talking, she looked out her passenger window. He touched her shoulder, and she turned to look at him.
“I get tired of fighting,” Alex said.
Raz gave her a slow nod.
“I do have a trust fund,” Alex said.
“And a surgeon for a husband,” Raz joined her in saying.
She laughed. He pulled the car to the gate at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling. The two dog handlers moved their dogs around the vehicle while the guards at the gate checked their IDs.
“Sir,” the guard at the gate said. He leaned into the vehicle. “I’ve been told to tell you that the Jakker’s in a Chinook waiting for you on the tarmac.”
“Thank you, Sergeant,” Alex said.
“And Fey?” the guard asked. “You have a guest.”
Alex raised her eyebrows, and the guard nodded.
“You can go through,” the guard said. “Do you know where to go?”
“Yes, thank you,” Raz said.
“You’re welcome, Agent Rasmussen,” the guard said. He popped to attention. Alex returned his salute, and Raz continued onto the base.
“What the fuck was that?” Raz asked.
“Someone’s waiting for us on the helicopter,” Alex said.
“Any idea who?” Raz asked.
“Could be anyone,” Alex said.
“You think we’re supposed to know?” Raz asked.
“No,” Alex said. “I believe the Sergeant was doing us a favor.”
“A favor?” Raz asked.
“I think so.”
“How do you know?” Raz asked.
“I rescued his sister a few years ago,” Alex said.
Raz nodded. He pulled into the parking lot near the helicopter tarmac. Getting out of the vehicle, he took his handgun from his side holster. He flicked off the safety and chambered a round.
“Just in case,” he said when she gave him a questioning look.
She nodded. They walked to the warming black Chinook with a large white Vivaldi “F” painted on the side. Raz took out his weapon, and Alex put her hand on the Glock 9mm that rested at her sacrum. With a nod, they walked up the ramp into the Chinook.
“Show me your hands!” Raz yelled at the person standing midway on the helicopter.
Coming in from the bright day, Alex couldn’t make out what was going on in the dark Chinook. She continued forward with her hand on her weapon. When the sight came into view, she had to fight to keep from laughing.
There were two fit men in Navy uniforms lying on the floor of the Chinook with their wrists cinched together behind their necks. US Air Force Sergeant Clifford “The Kid” Bauer stood over them with a handgun. A man was standing with his hands on his head. His head was covered in a Navy baseball cap, and he was looking down. He wore blue jeans and some kind of leather armed felt jacket. US Air Force Captain Zack Jakkman stood behind the man with a handgun to the back of his head.
“Finally,” the man said upon seeing Alex. “Will you tell this madman to let us go?”
Alex looked at Zack. He shrugged. When she didn’t say anything, the man looked up at her.
“I am an Admiral in the US Navy!” the man said. Alex winced as she realized she was looking at Admiral Ingram. “I can do whatever the fuck I want, Captain.”
“That may be true when you’re in the world, Admiral,” Zack said. “But you are standing on an island in the Archipelago of Jakker.”
“I am your superior officer,” the man said. “For a simple mind like yours — I am your boss.”
“You’re not my boss,” Zack said. “I answer to one person only, and I can guar-an-fucking-tee that is not you. You are not my boss. You are not my Lord and Savior, either. This is my bird, and I am her only commander. And you, sir, boarded the Archipelago of Jakker without even a ‘by-your-leave.’”
Alex scowled to keep from laughing.
“Can I shoot him now?” Zack asked.
“Best not to,” Alex said. “Too much paperwork.”
“You sure?” Zack asked.
Alex lifted an eyebrow as if she were thinking about it before nodding.
“How ’bout this SEAL garbage?” Cliff said. He stepped on the upper back of the man closest to him. “These boys thought we were just some ‘putz fly boys.’ Said that to my face.”
Cliff leaned down so that his mouth was next to the men’s ears.
“We’re the Fey Team, assholes,” Cliff yelled. “If you have any lingering doubts, I’d be more than happy to kick your ass again.”
Cliff looked up at Alex and then nodded to Raz.
“Sorry I didn’t let you take them yourself,” Cliff said. Alex raised her eyebrows, and Raz turned away to keep from laughing. “Cocky bastards. Who’s the putz now?”
Zack nodded toward Cliff, and Alex smiled.
“Permission to take out the garbage,” Cliff said.
Alex nodded. Cliff jerked the first man onto his feet. Raz grabbed the second one.
“They are my bodyguards,” the Admiral said.
“You don’t need a bodyguard in the Archipelago of Jakker,” Raz said
. For good measure, he added a grin and a “Sir.”
Admiral Ingram scowled at him.
“Just don’t call them putzes,” Alex said.
Zack laughed manically.
“Come on, boys,” Raz said. “If you don’t go now, they’re likely to toss you out at altitude.”
The young men sneered at Raz.
“Hey, I’m not the one with my hands tied behind my neck,” Raz said with a grin.
He pushed the SEAL in front of him forward. Mimicking Raz, Cliff shoved the other SEAL forward. They encouraged the men in this way until the SEALs were off the Chinook. Raz waited until the ramp was rising before cutting the SEALs zip tie with the flip-knife hooked on his belt. Raz took a pair of leather gloves from his pocket and made a show of putting them on.
“Now, you’re grounded like us,” one of the young men sneered.
“We’re the Fey Team, boys,” Raz said. “Watch and learn.”
Raz jumped up and grabbed the edge of the ramp. In a move everyone on the Fey Team had practiced at least a hundred times, he pressed himself up and hoisted his legs over the top.
“See ya later, boys,” Raz said.
He slid down the rising ramp. Alex caught him at the end and helped him to his feet.
“Special ramp?” Admiral Ingram asked.
“In our C-130, as well,” Alex nodded.
“Neat trick,” Admiral Ingram said. “Now, will you let me go?”
Zack looked at Alex. She nodded to encourage him. Zack shrugged. He holstered his handgun.
“You can put your hands down,” Zack said.
The Admiral put his hands down. He swung around in such a way that it looked like he was going to punch Zack. Alex, Raz, and Zack stepped back into an easy fight stance. The Admiral laughed. Under their guard, he straightened his jacket and took off his hat. Zack recovered first.
“Where to?” Zack asked Alex.
“We’re meeting Admiral Ingram in New York,” Alex said.
“Who’s that?” Zack asked.
Alex gestured to the man. Zack’s head went back in a belly laugh.
“When you figure out where you want to go, let me know,” Zack said. “Come on, Kid.”
He held out his arm for Cliff. They turned in near unison and sauntered to the bridge.
“Cocky bastard,” Admiral Ingram said.
“He’s the best,” Alex said. “He can afford to be cocky.”
Admiral Ingram looked up at Alex.
“What do you want?” Alex asked.
The man looked away from her. Very slowly, he lifted his finger to his ear.
“Zack?” Alex asked into the intercom. “Get us off the ground.”
“Destination?” Zack asked.
“You pick,” Alex said. “Need privacy.”
“Roger, that,” Zack said.
“Shouldn’t he say ‘out’?” Admiral Ingram asked.
“You don’t want him to listen in?” Alex asked with a chuckle. “You’d have done well not to enter the… What was it?”
“The Archipelago of Jakker,” Raz said at the same time as Cliff said over the intercom.
Afraid she’d laugh out loud, Alex gave her most sincere nod. She glanced at Raz only to see that he was trying not to laugh, as well.
“If you’ll excuse me, sir,” Alex said. “I have a couple of things to attend to before we talk.”
Admiral Ingram nodded.
“How do you take your coffee?” Raz asked.
“Coffee?” the Admiral asked.
Raz nodded to Alex. She had opened a large metal cabinet. She was standing in front of an expresso machine, which she was turning on. The Admiral’s mouth dropped open.
“Look around you, Admiral,” Raz said. “The Archipelago of Jakker is luxurious.”
Raz pointed to the thick carpet on the floor of the Chinook. The Admiral gave a quick shake of his head.
“How do you afford it?” Admiral Ingram asked. “I’ve seen your budget. You don’t waste money.”
“We get to spend a small portion of the money we make,” Alex said.
“What money do you make?” Admiral Ingram asked.
“When we’re not on assignment, we consult with royalty and the super wealthy from around the world,” Alex said.
“Couple of governments,” Raz said. “Senators. Presidents. Prime ministers.”
“We train their guards,” Alex nodded to Raz. “Fill in when they need support. Help them spot holes. Stuff like that.”
“Some of them keep us on retainer,” Raz said.
“We monitor the chatter so that we know if something is coming in their direction,” Alex said.
“Does that work?” Admiral Ingram asked.
“Have you heard of any children of royalty or super rich being held hostage?” Alex asked.
The Admiral scowled for a moment before shaking his head.
“I’d say that we’re successful,” Alex said with a nod.
She was lost in a puff of steam and the loud scream of the expresso machine.
“We’ve folded Steve Pershing’s team into our own,” Raz said.
“You have?” Admiral Ingram asked. “Why didn’t I know that?”
“Why would you?” Raz asked. “They’re a dark-ops team. We had a couple of their team members on the Fey Team. It wasn’t a big trick to integrate the rest, especially while Steve was recovering from being held in North Korea.”
“They answer to…?” Admiral Ingram nodded toward Alex.
“If you don’t know, it’s not really up to me to explain it to you,” Raz said with a shrug.
Shaking his head, he went to pick up the hot drinks in insulated mugs that Alex had completed. He left them in the cabinet outside the bridge for Zack and Cliff. When he returned, Alex set two more drinks in his hands. He brought them to a small table in the center of the Chinook. He took a seat.
“What do you take in your coffee, Admiral?” Alex asked.
“No one works an expresso machine like the Fey,” Zack said over the intercom.
“Latte?” Admiral Ingram asked.
“Milk okay?” Alex asked.
“Sure,” Admiral Ingram said.
Alex worked for a moment before finishing the last drink.
“Our coffee has a touch of chocolate in it,” Alex said. “Something Raz found. Hope it’s works for you.”
She brought the drink to the table.
“Admiral?” Alex asked.
She waved him to a seat at the table. Looking confused, he went to the table. He looked up expectantly.
“What are you looking for?” Alex asked.
“For the cone of silence to come down,” Admiral Ingram said.
Alex and Raz laughed. The Admiral took a seat and rotated to face the table. Alex tapped the center of the table. The center ring of the table turned over to reveal a touch-screen computer.
“The outside three inches is wood,” Alex said. “You can keep your drink there. The inside is a computer. I thought we might need it.”
“Is it secure?” the Admiral asked.
“Moderately,” Alex said. “If there was a plane or chopper nearby, we’d have some concern. This computer runs off the Wi-Fi from the onboard server. We sweep our servers for hacking every three hours.”
“That seems excessive,” the Admiral said.
“Necessary,” Raz said.
“It’s like knowing there’s AIDs and HepC and whatever else out there, and having casual, unprotected sex with strangers,” Alex said. “You know the risk is there. Why not take precaution?”
Alex shrugged.
“We know the risks,” Alex said. “We take precautions. It’s about that simple. We’ve encouraged the Intelligence Center to follow suit, but they move at a slower, bureaucratic pace.”
“You’re worried they’ll catch computer AIDs?” Admiral Ingram asked.
“Something like that,” Alex said with a grin.
“Are we secure now?” the Admiral asked.
“Not quite,” Raz said.
“He’ll announce,” Alex said.
“In the meantime, enjoy your coffee,” Raz said. “Would you like some music?”
“Music?” the Admiral asked.
“The Fey listens to Alternative Metal,” Raz said. “I’d encourage you to pick before she does.”
“I’ve got it,” Cliff said.
Raz mouthed, “Thank God.”
“In celebration of our guest,” Cliff said. “How ’bout some White Denim?”
Cliff started the album “D” over the intercom.
“Didn’t you see them in San Francisco this summer?” Raz asked in a mild tone of voice.
“How did you…?” Admiral Ingram started.
For the first time, the man looked intimidated.
“We’re an intelligence team,” Alex said. “Some say that I am a US intelligence asset.”
Alex shrugged.
“To others, I’m just the piece of shit to leave standing at attention while you work,” Alex said. She gave him a mild look. “Takes all kinds.”
Admiral Ingram looked at Alex over his cup. She focused on her coffee. Five minutes passed before anyone said anything.
“We’ve reached altitude and distance,” Zack said over the intercom.
“Thank you!” Alex said. “Raz?”
Raz got up from his seat. He went to the cabinet and took three over-the-head headsets from their chargers. He pressed a button on a headset before giving it to Admiral Ingram. He gave one to Alex. He put the third on his head and sat down. Alex adjusted the microphone piece so it was in front of her mouth.
“What is this?” the Admiral asked.
“Shortwave two-way radio,” Alex said.
“Walkie-talkies?” Admiral Ingram asked.
“They are secure,” Raz said. “They function well with almost zero downtime and everyone knows how to use them.”
“How did you get one so small?” Admiral Ingram asked.
Alex gestured for him to put his headset on.
“Oh,” Admiral Ingram said. He put his headset on and adjusted his microphone. “Who cleans them?”
Alex grinned.
“I do,” Cliff’s voice came over their feed.
“Your pilots are hooked in?” Admiral Ingram asked. “What about command?’
“This feed is within the aircraft,” Alex said. “Often we’re flying through the night and we only sort of know the location. The pilots must be hooked into our conversation. We have to be able to function as a team.”
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