Tough Justice: Countdown Box Set

by Carla Cassidy

  “Well, shit.”

  * * *

  Lara didn’t care that her stomach growled, that her mouth was dry and she was thirsty, or that she had to pee so badly that she was getting a cramp. The aches and pains of sitting in a chair—if she lived through this she would absolutely throw it out for not being comfortable in the least—also dulled in comparison to the raw anger she felt for Halpert.

  “Now that’s you’ve told me about Daddy dearest, why don’t we talk about what you did when you fell down the rabbit hole of your mother’s case.”

  Halpert’s attention had waned once, his eyes flitting out of frame but he hadn’t seemed surprised or angry or happy at whatever it was he had looked at. Which probably meant that he still didn’t know what her team was up to.

  Then again neither did she.

  All she could do was hope.

  And, as always, try to keep him talking so he didn’t have time to detonate any bombs.

  “Don’t you already know everything about it?” she asked. Her mind might have given her a kick in the pants to try and get back to the mission of distraction, but her voice was as raw as her emotions. It wavered. A sound she didn’t like at all.

  “You give me too much credit,” Halpert mused. “Yes, I could find out every little detail, but as you can see I’ve been busy lately. And the last time I checked the world doesn’t revolve around Agent Lara Grant. So, enlighten me.” He moved his hand off screen. Lara stiffened even more, if that was possible. “Or else.”

  She imagined him clicking a detonator and then what was left of her family, her team, engulfed in a fireball. A lump started to form in her throat. She talked around it.

  “I know you’re more thorough than that,” she countered. “Be specific. Tell me what you want to know and then I’ll answer you.”

  Halpert didn’t seem to be offended by the suggestion. He leaned back in his chair. It appeared to be more comfortable than the one Lara was invisibly strapped against. The man hadn’t even flinched during their extended sitting session.

  “Okay, let’s start with how you got the gun. And, Lara? Don’t leave out any details. And, believe me, I usually have a good idea when you’re lying now.”

  Lara’s stomach bottomed out. The wave of adrenaline she’d been riding somehow grew.

  Halpert was absolutely grinning now.

  “The choice is yours.”

  Chapter Nine

  Dean Hargrove wore a sweater vest and a no-nonsense expression. He sized up James and Xander as soon as they were led into his office. His expression soured when Xander shut the door.

  He looked like he’d been punched right where the sun didn’t shine when they had finished introductions.

  “And what does the Crisis Management Unit want with my school?”

  “What we’re about to tell you cannot leave this room,” James prefaced. “Do you understand?”

  Hargrove didn’t look like the kind of man who liked taking orders from someone he didn’t know—then again who did?—but he seemed to, at the very least, understand the gravity of their presence. He nodded, though with some uncertainty. James didn’t have time to ease Hargrove into the water. So he dove.

  “We believe there could be a bomb on the premises and we need to evacuate immediately.”

  Hargrove’s mouth slacked open. He recovered quickly.

  “I haven’t heard of any bomb threat,” he pointed out.

  “Believe us,” Xander said. “There’s a real threat and we don’t have time to sit around and talk about it.”

  Hargrove went past shocked and straight into anger. “Then why wasn’t I notified earlier?” he asked. “Do you realize how many children and staff members attend and work here?” He started to move around his desk. “I need to make an announcement!”

  “You can’t tell anyone,” James reminded him.

  “The hell I can’t,” he exclaimed. “You’ll have to excuse me but you, nor any part of the FBI, are responsible for the children here. I am.”

  He made to walk past them to the closed door. Xander stepped in his way, blocking his exit. Hargrove was older than them, balding, and had a gut. But that didn’t mean James couldn’t read how strong his intent had become within seconds. Like the chief of police had said, he seemed to be a good man. Instead of rushing to leave the grounds as fast as he could, he was more concerned with his students.

  Which is why he needed to lie to them.

  “The man responsible for making the bomb will not hesitate to detonate it if he gets even the smallest hint that we’re evacuating students or staff,” Xander explained. “We’re not even allowing the bomb squad in here until everyone is out.”

  “So we can’t allow you to notify anyone, including staff members, why you’re evacuating,” James underlined. “It could get everyone killed.”

  Hargrove let that sink in. He ran his hand through what hair was left on his head. Then he was all business.

  “Do you know where the bomb is?” he asked.

  James hated that he had to shake his head at that.

  “But, if it is here, we have to imagine it would be in a low traffic area,” Xander guessed. “We don’t know when it could have been placed but, again, we have to imagine it was done so the bomber would have somewhat easy access. Is there—”

  Hargrove’s eyes widened. “The renovation,” he interrupted.

  “The renovation?”

  Hargrove was nodding with fervor. “We were renovating an old section of the school but had to postpone it indefinitely because of funding falling through,” he answered. “It’s been roped off for months. We even instituted a rule that students would get automatically suspended if they were caught near it. Staff has also been warned. Our janitorial crews also have strict instructions to steer clear. As far as I know we haven’t had anyone in there unless they were supposed to be.”

  James felt a thrill of excitement run through him. The feeling wasn’t joy. It was the possibility of a lead. A good one.

  “But you had someone who was supposed to be in there recently?”

  “Yes. Last week in fact,” Hargrove said. “An inspector from the concrete company came in to test the material for integrity.”

  James’s blood started to pump harder. “Was he a young guy? Did he give a name? Did he have any equipment with him?”

  Hargrove’s face went slack. His eyes were right back to saucer-status.

  “He had a small cart with him and yeah, he was young,” Hargrove admitted. “I—I can’t remember the name he gave. Oh, my God.”

  “What?” James asked, worried at how the man’s entire body seemed to fall.

  “My secretary realized he took the work order form with him when he left,” he said. “We thought it was an accident.”

  James would have bet any amount of money right then and there that the inspector had been none other than Mitchell Halpert, if he hadn’t decided to give another false name. Which meant that they were at the right school.

  Which meant they had a bomb to find and children to evacuate.

  “We need to get going,” Xander said, picking up on the thought. “Mr. Hargrove, we need to begin the evacuation. There are plainclothes officers in the lobby waiting to assist you and your staff. You know each member of your employees better than we do, so we’ll leave whatever lie you have to tell to get them to keep quiet and leave up to you. But remember, it’s imperative that no one communicates with the outside world until everyone is safely out and the bomb is found and dismantled.”

  Xander lowered his voice. Zoo shirt or not he looked like a man not to be toyed with.

  “Do you understand?” he prodded.

  Hargrove lost his look of fear. Of worry. Of trepidation.

  It was replaced by sheer desire to get the jo
b done. And as quickly and successfully as possible.

  Good, James thought. Because that’s exactly what we need.

  Xander brought in the officers and, with Hargrove, they began to discuss the plans. James turned to his partner.

  “Ready to find a bomb?”

  Xander cracked a grin. “I was born ready.”

  James laughed. Then felt his expression harden. They started to leave the principal’s office when Hargrove stopped them.

  “Agents, I might not remember the inspector’s name but I know for a fact my secretary would,” he said. “She has a photographic memory.” James shared a look with Xander. He felt his spirits lift a fraction at the very idea of possibly having another lead to go on. “Her name is Linda,” he added. “She should be in the teacher’s lounge. It’s on your way and has a sign on the door.”

  And then they were off.

  * * *

  Xander was trying not to think about Maddy. But at every door to every classroom they passed, her little face seemed to pop up and stare at him. He wanted more than anything to see her. To hold her. To hear her babble about one thing or the other.

  But he also wanted to save everyone. Wanted to stop the damned Whisperer. Wanted to ensure that no one else had to be notified that their loved one had been killed in such a violent, senseless way.

  All of these desires didn’t seem so crazy, right?

  He tried one more time to give a giant push to thoughts of his daughter—and everyone else’s daughters and sons around him—and narrow his focus as the door marked Teacher’s Lounge came into view. James didn’t knock and opened the door.

  A young woman stood talking to an older man. Both had coffee. Both looked surprised at their appearance.

  “Can I help you?” the woman asked, polite.

  “Are you Linda?” James asked. Xander could hear the rising excitement in the short question. He couldn’t deny he felt some himself when she nodded.

  “The inspector from the concrete company,” Xander dove in. “What was the name he wrote on the work order? It’s very important.”

  Before she even said the name, Xander knew they had him. It was a feeling that was born out of hope and excitement but, by God, if it wasn’t justified.

  “Harlen Michaels,” she answered. “His name was Harlen Michaels.”

  “Holy shit,” James said, turning back to Xander.

  Xander couldn’t help but smile. “How much you want to bet he has enough ego that that’s his real fucking name?”

  James agreed by pulling out his phone. Xander turned back to Linda and her company.

  “Thank you, really, thank you,” he said, already on the way out of the lounge. He heard James trail behind him beginning to talk to their team back at the office. It was a short convo and one that silenced as they hurried down several hallways. He was off the phone by the time they made it to a section that was roped off.

  Xander shared a look with his partner. James had his phone in his hand, it was lit up. Their team was, no doubt, listening.

  James gave him a nod to show he was ready.

  Xander moved the caution tape out of the way and proceeded to the end of the hallway. Two doors were opposite each other. Both were covered in tape. Xander took the one on the left and inspected it closer.

  “The tape’s been cut,” he said, touching the door. It pushed open easily enough. “Someone’s opened it.”

  “Same here.”

  James pushed open his door, too.

  “Well, looks like we’re splitting up, then,” Xander said. “Gotta be fast about it.”

  “But smart, too,” James pointed out.

  Xander agreed. “Don’t touch anything,” he reminded. “Eyes open. We’re only here to find it.”

  James visibly took a deep breath. Xander tried to still his nerves, too. They had been building beneath his skin with rapid progression the closer he’d gotten to the construction.

  “Good luck,” James finally said. He moved through his door and was soon out of sight.

  Xander faced his own door and opened it slowly. When nothing went kaboom he pressed on.

  The room was in apparent disarray. Caught in between what used to be and what it should be with the tools to destroy and rebuild it scattered around. To Xander it didn’t look like a normal classroom. In fact, it wasn’t until he was stalking toward the shell of a counter that he realized what the room had once been.

  “Great,” he muttered. “I got the library. That’s not spooky at all.”

  Whether it used to be an old library or had been in the process of becoming one for the first time, metal shelves lined the middle of the space. Half were covered in cloth drapes, some had tools and building materials on the open spaces. There were no books around but he couldn’t be completely sure about the left side of the room. Two of the windows were gone and boarded up, cutting off the light to the far corner.

  “So, Harlen, if I were you where would I possibly hide a—”

  The sound of movement cut Xander’s external monologue off. His head swiveled around to the back of the room, farthest from him. For a moment he didn’t move, waiting for his mind to conclude he was hearing things. But then he heard it again. Someone moving around.

  “Who’s in here?” he called, hand flitting to the gun in the back of his jeans.

  When no one answered, he started to ease in that direction. The idea that Michaels was lurking in the back of the shut-down renovation crossed Xander’s mind. But why would he be there? Unless he was checking up on the bomb? It didn’t seem his style.

  Xander cut between the stacks, eyes narrowed. The movement had stopped but he wasn’t letting his guard down yet. The last row of shelves was draped in drop clothes and covered in dust. He couldn’t see through them. Which meant he couldn’t see behind them to where the noise had come from.

  Xander drew his gun. He became the epitome of stealth as he quickened around the row.

  They didn’t see him at first. Not until he had closed the few feet between the beginning of the shelf and the figure partially hidden behind a series of plastic crates. Xander trained his gun on the unknown figure. The light wasn’t great where they were. So he wasn’t taking any chances.

  “Don’t move or I’ll shoot,” he barked.

  “Don’t shoot!”

  Xander immediately lowered his gun. He moved closer so he could get an inhibited view of his perp.

  It was a little girl with beaded hair, a pink dress and tears in her eyes. She didn’t look more than eleven.

  “I’m not going to shoot you,” he assured her. In a flash he put his gun back in his jeans. He put his hands up to show he was defenseless. “What are you doing back here?”

  “Please, please, please don’t tell on me,” she said in a rush of fresh tears. “I—I was dared and—and Rebecca said I was a chicken if I didn’t and she’d tell Marcus and he’s in the seventh grade and—”

  “Whoa, whoa,” Xander interrupted. “Calm down.”

  The girl didn’t look like she was going to listen to his order.

  “If you tell on me I’ll get suspended,” she started up again. “And then my mom will...”

  She continued to rattle off her little-kid worries but Xander didn’t hear her anymore. His attention had strayed to her surroundings. With her back against the wall, her side hidden by the crates, on the wall above her head—eye level he guessed if she stood—was a glass case with a fire extinguisher in it. Unlike the rest of the dust-covered, messy room, it looked clean. New, even. Xander glanced at the top of the crates. Tools.

  The hair on the back of Xander’s neck rose.

  When he saw a cart a few feet away from them, his heartbeat picked up something awful.

  Xander focused again on the case. There was a lock on i
t. He’d have to break it to grab the extinguisher.

  If there had been an extinguisher in there. No, under closer inspection, what he was looking at was anything but an extinguisher.

  Instead he was looking at a container.

  And in that container was something that shouldn’t be anywhere near a school.

  Xander adjusted his focus back to the little girl. He didn’t have to tell her to stop talking so he could get a word in edgewise. His expression must have done that for him.

  “Listen,” he said, trying to sound as comforting as he could. “I promise that if you do exactly as I say I won’t tell anyone you were in here, okay?”

  “Really?” she asked around a sniffle.

  He touched his chest. “Cross my heart.”

  The girl nodded. The beads in her hair clinked together. It sounded odd against the adrenaline waging through him.

  “Okay, good,” he said. “I want you to not stand until I tell you to. Crawl this way, okay?”

  He held out her hand and she took it. This time she followed orders without giving him her entire backstory of school drama. Once she was next to the shelves and away from the bomb, he pulled her to her feet.

  “Is anyone else in here?” he asked as he kept her hand and pulled her along with him back through the room.

  “No, just me.”

  “You promise? This is very serious.”

  “I cross my heart,” she said, repeating his words. It made him think of Maddy. “Okay.”

  They made it out into the hallway just as James was walking through his door.

  “Clear,” he said before stopping to stare. His eyebrow skyrocketed at the girl. Then his brow dove down into a look of pure concern. James knew then that Xander had found it.

  “I need you to take her away from here,” Xander said to his partner. He felt the little girl tense. “And make sure she doesn’t get into any trouble about being in there. Got it?”

  James nodded and they exchanged the girl’s hand. With the other he gave his cell phone to Xander. They started to hurry off.