“Hmmm,” he said, turning his face so that her lips hit his. “Anything you’d like to do with this body?”
“I can think of one or two things,” she grinned. Squeaking, she gasped as he picked her up in one swoop, carefully carrying her down the hall, giving her the chance to show him what she thought of doing with his body. Then he showed her.
*
In the middle of the night, Dani got out of bed and padded sleepily to the bathroom. As she finished, she flipped off the light and started back but halted at the second bedroom door. Pushing it open softly, she stepped inside and closed the door behind her before turning on the light so as not to wake Chad.
Walking over to the boxes still stored, she flipped open the closest one. She hated the idea that someone had been in this room…in these boxes. Pulling out a few of Adam’s books, she flipped through a few pages. Nothing jumped out at her. Nothing appeared misplaced, no secret message, no signs of anything untoward. Adam, what were you doing? Did you leave something behind? Is there something here that someone would want? Is that why someone is after your things? Angrily closing the box, she shoved it to the side. Whatever you were doing, you brought this crap to my door!
A click behind her sounded and she whirled around in fright. Her hand flew to her chest as she saw Chad standing in the room, dressed in boxers and nothing else.
“Oh, Lordy, you scared me,” she said, slumping against the nearest box.
Moving to her in two steps, he held her close, kissing the top of her head. “What are you doing, babe?”
She gave a little shrug, saying, “I just found myself in here, wondering what secrets might be hidden in what little is left of Adam’s belongings. I have no idea what Jack was hoping I’d find, cause there’s nothing here.”
“Come back to bed, Dani,” he gently ordered, propelling her into the master bedroom. “Let the Saints do their job searching for answers. You need to take care of you,” he said, placing his hand on her stomach. “By the way, when is your next doctor’s appointment?”
“Next week. Why?”
“I’m coming,” he pronounced, snuggling to her back, curled around her body.
Lying there, in the dark, surrounded by all that Chad was, she smiled. “Okay,” she whispered into the night. “I’d like that.”
*
Bart and Cam attempted to stretch their long legs. Even flying first class, as large as they were it was a tight fit. The trip to St. Louis had been fruitful and if the early intel from Jack was correct, the info they retrieved was useful.
The two men had flown in the previous day, taking a cab to a non-descript hotel. Traveling under one of their many assumed names, they had another cab let them out several blocks from their intended location. The suspect they were assigned to, Robbie Carter, rarely left his apartment. The early reconnaissance told them that he had an affinity for take-out food. Luke monitored his phone, just as he was monitoring the other suspects’. As soon as the call to the local pizza place came in, Luke rerouted it to Bart’s.
Convincing the suspect that their pizza delivery guy was out sick and he would have to pick it up, they observed as the young man left his apartment.
“Jesus, easiest maneuvering of a suspect I’ve ever encountered,” Cam laughed.
“That’s one thing about these loner types,” Bart commented. “They order out a lot.”
The two men slipped undetected into the apartment. At first glance, it appeared uncluttered. Kitchen unused, living space orderly. Turning the corner, they saw what would be the dining area. Instead of a table and chairs, several desks took up the space, all of them covered in computer equipment. Laptops, PCs, various monitors, external hard drives…all resulting in a multitude of wires coming from the backs and plugging into numerous surge protectors.
“Fuck, man. He’s not working a real job and yet has all this computer shit?”
“Remember, Luke said they can work from home for a variety of companies and make serious bucks if they’re really talented. Especially talented in the art of covering their tracks and writing programs to help others cover their tracks as well.”
The two efficiently inserted the special drives Luke had supplied them with into every computer in the room. Notifying Luke to begin, he was able to start extrapolating the data from the various machines.
“This doesn’t usually take long, but with so many we’d better hope it takes him a while to grab his pizza,” Bart commented while walking around Robbie’s apartment. A quick search found nothing out of the ordinary.
“Done,” Cam called out, getting the signal from Luke. Disconnecting his phone, the two carefully removed every thumb drive, pocketing them before slipping unnoticed from the apartment. Back on the street, they noticed the young man going into his building, the pizza box in his hand.
Once they were back in Virginia, driving home, Bart threw his head back against the headrest.
Cam, driving, glanced over, saying, “You’ve been wound tight ever since we completed the mission.”
Sighing, Bart shook his head as though to clear his thoughts for a moment, finally saying, “He looked kind of normal.”
“Who?”
“Robbie Carter.”
“What’d you expect?” Cam asked. “A sign hanging around his neck saying I’m a traitor?”
“Do you think these guys understand what they’re doing?”
“You mean who they’re actually taking money from?”
“Yeah. I’d like to think that they really don’t have a fuckin’ clue that they’re helping terrorists with bomb detonations.”
Cam sighed, “I don’t know, man. I don’t know.”
“As a SEAL, I knew my mission. I fought an enemy overseas so we could try to keep the war from coming into our backyards, and here we’ve got people undermining everything we did.”
The two men drove silently for a while before Cam spoke. “Do you ever wish you were in a completely different business? Like a banker or grocer or…or…hell, I don’t know, but someone who goes about their life oblivious to what’s in their own city? I used to never have these thoughts, but now with Miriam pregnant, I wonder about the world our child will be born into.”
Running his fingers through his hair, Bart knew if Faith was with him she would smile at the way his hair was now standing on end. Thinking about Faith calmed him…gave him purpose…and a place to land when life was coming fast and furious. “Nah,” he answered. “As much as I fuckin’ hate what we find out sometimes, I’d rather be in the know and keep doing something about it.”
Cam nodded, understanding what Bart was saying. Pressing on the accelerator a little more, they churned up the miles heading back to their women…and their own private peace.
*
Muhammad, Abdul, and Fazan walked into the room occupied by Habib, as he looked up from his computer screen, a smile on his face.
“I’ve got a good one,” he said, handing his written notes to Muhammad. “Took a while, but this one’s in.”
Looking at the notes, Muhammad said, “Oliver Sands. Atlanta, Georgia. Single. Former student at MIT. Dropped out?” Muhammad lifted his gaze to Habib in question.
“Yeah. He’d been an “A” student but says the money ran out.”
“Did you check?”
Habib’s irritation showed on his face. “Of course.”
Muhammad nodded. “Good. Get him in.”
His irritation passing as quickly as it came, Habib nodded. Looking over at Fazan, he said, “I have you scheduled next. The spring is making the selection good. This time of year, more and more are getting online to find the loves of their lives.”
The men chuckled as Fazan started to slide into a seat. He was halted as Muhammad placed a hand on his shoulder, saying, “No, not now.”
Fazan looked up in surprise but said nothing, waiting for their leader to speak. Muhammad continued, “I’ve got a new assignment for you. We’ve got a new site for you to supervise. We have a man near
by that will offer assistance. This will be different—our explosives will still be easily made but our detonators will be more sophisticated…and with our computer recruits, we will be able to program them to detonate from greater distances. The man works for a company where he can obtain what we need to make a bigger…statement.”
The others laughed and Fazan nodded his agreement as he stood, following Muhammad out of the door as Abdul took his place at the laptop.
*
Luke eagerly began collating and analyzing the data from Robbie Carter’s computers that Bart and Cam had delivered. He could have worked from home, knowing his security was absolute, but there was something about being in the compound. It was quiet—when the other Saints were gone. Perhaps it was the professional surroundings that were stimulating—as opposed to his house which was lonely. Funny, I’ve never thought of my house as boring. I like boring. I like predictable. I like—
The sound of an incoming email rang through the silent night. Jerking his gaze to his computer, he smiled as he recognized the sender. His mystery assistant.
I see you have a new project.
Chuckling to himself, he typed, Yes. I’m not sure how you can see what I’m working on. But yes, new mission. National security.
The reply came back after a minute. I’m just special, I guess. You will find that you need to extrapolate the intel from the garbage they encrypt it with. I will send you coding.
Luke sat for a moment waiting to see what they were sending, but he already knew it would be invaluable. He would be able to figure it out alone, but having his mystery assistant help would make the job go quicker. Finally, his email alerted again and he downloaded the program sent.
Thank you, he typed. I wish I could repay you.
No need. Just keep me a secret. Until next time.
Luke immediately let the program begin to do its work, watching as lines and lines of code ran across his screen. Several months ago, he had been contacted by this person who could see what he was working on, even though his system was equipped with the best encryption available. But they needed to be anonymous, saying it was too dangerous for them to be discovered.
When the other Saints inquired about his mystery helper, he told them that there were leagues of brilliant computer geniuses and the ones not snapped up by the big companies would sometimes work independently. For the most part, legally. But there were some employed by the criminal underground, and the money was good. Some had no idea what their genius was being used for, thus entrapping them when they wanted to leave. He often wondered if this was not the scenario of his mystery assistant. At least, I hope so. I’d hate to think they were willingly involved in criminal acts!
He stood to leave, knowing the programs would run all night. As he made his way up the back stairs to Jack’s garage, he slipped out to his jeep. Driving home, he felt the loneliness seep in. He thought of his fellow Saints, whom he loved like brothers. Many of them were now involved with someone special. Like them, he was a tall man, physically fit, and sure of intelligence…if a little rusty in the social graces. Allowing himself a moment of pity, he wondered who would go for a man like him—one who preferred the quiet life.
Chapter 14
Feet up in the stirrups, Dani decided she had to be in the most vulnerable position for any woman to be in. Her shirt was pulled up to under her breasts and a sheet covered her bottom half. Glancing nervously to the side, she met Chad’s grinning face and pretended to glare.
He leaned forward, taking her hand in his, lifting it to his lips and placing a kiss on her palm. His lips were warm and comforting. They both jumped as the doctor came in.
“Mrs. Turner, how are you?” the friendly doctor asked, her eyes moving between Dani and Chad.
“I’m doing well,” she replied. “Um…this is a good friend of mine, Chad Fornelli.”
Chad stood and shook the doctor’s hand.
Smiling, the doctor nodded and proceeded with the examination. We’ll move to the sonogram in a few minutes, but everything looks good now. You’re approximately fourteen weeks along so we won’t be able to determine the sex at this appointment, but we should be able to by the next one.”
The doctor left after answering Dani’s few questions and the sonogram technician came in. Lowering the sheet, exposing Dani’s small baby bump, she squirted the cool jelly on her stomach and began moving the sonogram transducer around.
Swush, swush, swush immediately sounded throughout the room.
“Baby’s heartbeat sounds good,” the sonographer said, as she continued her work.
Dani’s eyes filled with tears as she turned her head, capturing Chad’s gaze. His eyes were riveted to the screen before dropping down to hers. Linking their fingers, they peered in awe as the sonographer completed her measurements.
The machine printed out a length of pictures, showing the tiny baby against the black background of the amniotic fluid. Tiny legs and arms stood out and its head was clearly visible.
“Oh, my God!” Dani cried as the pictures were handed to her. Chad stood and leaned over, seeing the images. He kissed her forehead and whispered, “Congratulations, little mama.”
Lifting her eyes from the picture of her baby, she turned to Chad, her anxiety replaced by gratefulness at the smile on his face.
As the sonographer left them, he assisted her from the table before handing her pants to her. She dressed quickly and then turned nervously back to Chad, her eyes at chest level.
He lifted her chin with his fingers, saying, “What’s wrong? And don’t tell me nothing, because I can always tell when something’s wrong.”
“This is a lot…I mean, the pregnancy is a lot for me to take in so I can only imagine this is a lot for you. I don’t want you to feel…trapped.”
“Trapped?” he said, his voice dropping an octave.
Sucking in her lips, she nodded. “You said you wanted to be here, but Chad…I’m afraid of…of…”
“Of what? That I’ll turn tail and run? That I’ll wake up tomorrow and feel trapped? Don’t you know me better than that?”
Her nervousness was now replaced by irritation. She grabbed her purse off the chair and tried to move around him.
“You do that, you know? When you’re pissed,” he commented, his feet apart and his hands on his hips.
“Do what?” she glared.
“Try to maneuver around me without actually looking at me.”
Stopping, she grumbled, “Well, if you weren’t the size of a barn, maybe I’d have an easier time getting around you!”
“Babe,” he said, his voice now gentle. He waited until she looked up at him, her gaze uncertain. Stepping closer, he cupped her cheek. “I’m here because I want to be. Not out of guilt. Not out of a misplaced sense of duty. I’m here because you’re the woman I want to be with. You’re everything to me. And this baby,” he said, placing his hand on her slightly rounded stomach, “will be mine to love as well.”
Her eyes filled with tears as she looked up into his beauty. He pulled her in, and as her cheek rested on his chest, his steady heartbeat comforted her. “My life is so crazy right now,” she whispered, her voice catching on the words. “And this,” she held up the fetal pictures, “just makes it all so real. Chad, I can’t screw up again.”
“I know. And I’m here to be with you every step of the way. I promise.” He leaned down, placing a soft kiss on her warm lips, feeling them curve into a smile underneath his. “Now how about we go feed this baby?”
*
A week later the Saints were meeting, this time with Roscoe and Mitch on video-conferencing, now that Luke’s programing analysis was complete. He had sent the results to both ATF and FBI the day before.
“We appreciate the information you sent to us. Of course,” Roscoe added, “we don’t want to have any knowledge about how the intel was discovered.”
The Saints grinned as Bart and Cam fist bumped each other.
“Our analysists are using it to pinpoin
t where we think more cells will be located and to see if we can interpret what their next moves are. Good work. We have a couple more for you to do the same with and then that should complete the original contract with the Saints,” Roscoe finished.
Jack looked up quickly. “Original? You have more?”
Mitch nodded, saying, “We’ve got intelligence telling us that another local location may be created for the purpose of bomb making.”
“Fuck!” Chad cursed, the memory of Adam fresh in his mind. Ever since he took Dani to the doctor and heard the heartbeat, he had Adam in his thoughts—wondering what he had gotten mixed up with and how the situation was now carrying over to Dani and the baby.
“We’ve got no location and no specifics at this time, but are hoping to gather more intel from what we got from the computer links that we now have access to,” Mitch added.
“So what do you need from the Saints?” Jack queried.
“Right now, just the same mission as with Robbie Carter. I’m sending you two more. One in Dallas and a new one in Atlanta. Once we obtain their computer information, we hope to know more about the local cell.”
After Mitch and Roscoe signed off, the Saints continued to process their cases. As the others reported on what they were working on, what had been completed, and new missions assigned, Chad continued to turn his mind over and over to Adam.
We were heading to a call in a Metro station outside of D.C. and as usual, Adam was driving while I was coordinating with the other team members.
Tamping down the adrenaline that always ratcheted up before a mission, I was shocked when out of the blue, Adam said, “This never gets old, does it?”
Shooting him a curious look, he continued, “This. You know, heading into the unknown. Someone reports a strange bag and we get called.”
Still not knowing where he was going with his thoughts, I waited, aware that Adam would keep talking.
“We always hope it’s nothing, but in this day and age…that bag represents all the possible evils in the terrorists’ arsenal.”
Sacrifice Love: Saints Protection & Investigations Page 12