In Plain Sight (Covert Justice Book 3)

by Mary Alford

  Justin’s expression hardened. “So that’s the way it is. Well, I guess I’m not surprised. You are CIA, after all. But you don’t know the whole truth, Lena. No matter what you’ve read.”

  “What are you saying? That you’re not responsible for the things you’re being accused of? Then who? Doren?”

  At the mention of Doren’s name, my brother got to his feet and came toward me.

  I reached for my weapon out of instinct because I wasn’t sure of him. He froze after a few steps, holding his hands up. He gave a faltering smile, leaving me with the impression he wasn’t sure whether I would actually fire or not.

  “Are you going to shoot me, Lena? You’re going to kill your own brother?” His words sounded confident but his gaze never left the weapon in my hand. “Can you shoot an unarmed man?”

  “If I have to, yes. Without blinking an eye. So don’t push me, Justin. Family or not, you’re still working for the wrong side and I have an obligation to bring you in.”

  “You know I’m a dead man if you do, don’t you? By either my team or yours, it doesn’t really matter. I’ll never walk out of that interrogation room alive.”

  “Then answer my questions. Sit down.” I was surprised at the calmness in my voice. I’d waited a long time for this moment. All the things I wanted to ask him ran through my mind as Justin took his seat again. He still held his hands in the air and I lowered the gun but I didn’t put it away. I needed him to believe I was serious. Even if I wasn’t sure.

  “I won’t talk about Doren. All you need to know is that you are to stay away from him.”

  “That’s not exactly cooperating, is it? Why should I take your word for that? Why should I listen to you at all?”

  “Lena, I can’t talk about it. Please, you just have to trust me on this,” he said with more emotion than I’d seen from him up until this point. “He has people everywhere. He’s watching me, you, and who knows what he’s planning. Just know that everything isn’t always as it seems. Don’t trust him. Get out of this stupid game while you still can. Don’t pursue this revenge any further. Don’t let Doren near you. That’s all I can tell you.”

  “That won’t do. I need to know how you’re involved in this and if you’re not in charge, then who is? I need names and dates. I need more to go on than mere speculation.” I feared he would guess the truth and simply walk away from me forever. I’d been too young when Justin disappeared. I didn’t really know what to expect from this person before me.

  “Someone was killed recently. Who was he? What was his connection in the group? Who killed him?”

  “Why don’t you ask yourself where your husband is tonight?” he asked instead of answering my question.

  For a long time, I couldn’t get any words out. “My husband? What are you talking about? How did you…”

  “I know all about your relationship with Roc Branson, Lena.” I stared at him while I processed what he’d said. “So why don’t you ask yourself where he is tonight? And more importantly, where is Doren Alderees?”

  My mind reeled with the possibilities. Was Justin trying to tell me Roc might be the independent responsible for taking the life of the FLA operative? The stubborn expression in his eyes told me I would be wasting my time continuing down this path of questioning.

  “I know about the plot, Justin.” I waited for some reaction.

  “What plot?” he asked without emotion, but there was just enough hesitation in his voice to let me know he was bluffing.

  “We have the document. It’s only a matter of time before we figure out the rest. You need to come clean and tell me everything.” Justin’s eyes grew large.

  “It is my job after all—understanding terrorist threats,” I said. “Did you really think I wouldn’t understand the language?”

  “So you know. I should have realized Dad would teach you as well. He loved that language.” Justin smiled. “What are you going to do with it? You haven’t told your superiors, otherwise you wouldn’t be here with me right now, would you, Lena?”

  I thought about lying but I found I couldn’t return the favor. I couldn’t lie to my brother, not even after realizing what he had become. Not because of Justin, but because of my parents.

  “Something is about to take place, isn’t it? There’s an attack planned. I need the details.”

  “Oh, Lena, you are so misled. I can’t help you. I’m not in charge. You’re being deceived by the people closest to you.” He got to his feet.

  I raised the gun again. “What are you talking about? What do you know about Roc?”

  “I think you know what I’m talking about. You’ve let your emotions blind you to the truth. Watch what you’re doing, little sister. Stop trusting the CIA and the government so much. Especially the ones closest to you.”

  I was stunned. I couldn’t think. Couldn’t believe what Justin alluded to.

  “That’s not true! Roc’s not involved in any of this.”

  “Lena, think about it. Do you really think no one from the CIA or your Agency has managed to uncover the truth about our connection so far? Grow up. Open your eyes. Of course he knows. He’s using you. And if he knows the truth, do you really think he would allow you to continue to remain in the position you hold without having you watched every second of the day?” Justin reached my side, ignoring the gun entirely.

  He’d seen me waver.

  In a flat tone I said, “I don’t believe you.”

  Justin smiled with compassion. “Get out while you still can. Before you get in too deep to escape. Before they force you to do something you can’t live with, Lena.” At my stunned expression, Justin took me in his arms once more.

  “You’ll be okay. There’s so much more I want to say to you, but I can’t. At least not now. I’ll find you again. In the meantime, don’t let them get you involved in this. Get out of this game while you still can, because it will only end up costing you your life if you don’t.”

  I leveled the gun at his chest. “Stop. That’s far enough, Justin. Don’t try to escape.”

  But my brother had stopped listening to me. He walked quickly over to the back entrance of the storefront before facing me. “I’ll do what I can to stop what’s in the works. You have my word on that, but I can’t do it behind bars. I’m leaving and you’re going to let me because you don’t have a choice. You would never hurt me. Even if you really believed all those things you’ve been fed about me.” He opened the door and stepped outside, turning back to me one last time. “Watch your back, Lena. Your life’s on the line as well.”

  “Justin,” I called out to him but there was only silence in answer. I ran to the door leading out to a dark alley but I was too late. Justin was gone.

  ~

  The second I reached the apartment, I locked all the doors and windows. I couldn’t stop shivering. I didn’t know who to trust anymore except for God and so I dropped to my knees and poured out my heart to Him.

  Without the answers I so desperately needed, I got to my feet and reread the document a thousand times, hoping I’d missed something, but found no further information in it. I logged onto the Free America website and searched for hours without any luck. Something was missing. The document predicted an inevitable attack but there had to be more. Somewhere there had to be more.

  I was on shaky ground with The Agency. I couldn’t keep doing this. Not now, not after all the new doubts about Roc that Justin had planted in my head.

  I figured if I were going to be taken into custody for all the things I had done—which amounted to crimes against my own government—it would happen quickly, within the next few days. But as each day ticked by, I wondered what they were waiting for.

  In the days that followed my conversation with Justin, I had a terrible premonition something bad was about to happen. Something unstoppable. It felt as if the whole world waited for the inevitable.

  And when it finally happened, nothing could have prepared me for what I learned next.

  Chap
ter Six

  I’d been logged onto Free America, tediously going over every single post when Ed Peyton, accompanied by Mark, knocked on my door late one evening. The second I saw Mark’s expression, I knew this wasn’t about me, but Roc. And it wasn’t good.

  “What’s happened to him? Is he all right? Where is Roc?” My words sounded as if they were coming from somewhere far away and yet I felt as if I were screaming them. Someone—I’m not sure which of the two men—got me back inside the apartment and closed the door.

  “Lena, you have to prepare yourself. This is bad,” Ed told me while trying to get me to sit down.

  “Just tell me what’s happened to him…Is he dead?” Please God, no.

  Ed and Mark exchanged looks as the truth dawned raw and heartbreaking.

  “Lena, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I know how much you cared about him, but I’m afraid he’s gone.” I listened to the man who Roc described as being like a father figure to him, tell me that my husband was dead in a voice that lacked any hint of grief. Something in Ed’s expression hit me as odd. The way he couldn’t make eye contact told me far more than Ed’s words did.

  “No, that’s not true. I don’t believe you. Roc can’t be dead. Tell me the truth.”

  “Lena, I am telling you the truth. Do you think I would tell you Roc was dead if it weren’t true? I’m sorry. I know how hard this is to accept but it’s the truth. He’s gone. You have to accept this and let him go.”

  I was crying but I didn’t care. I couldn’t believe what Ed said to me. “Let him go? No…You have to tell me what happened.”

  “Lena…”

  “Ed, tell me what happened to him,” I begged in a barely audible voice. I put a hand over my trembling mouth.

  He hesitated a moment longer, his gaze going to Mark’s before he nodded and Mark handed me a folder.

  “It’s all in there. I was hoping to spare you this. I didn’t want you to have to see those, but I can tell you won’t be convinced until you do. Roc was fatally wounded earlier today, while on assignment in an undisclosed location. The specific details have been reticulated. The location isn’t important.” He held up a hand when I would have argued the point. “Trust me, there’s sufficient proof to convince even you. I’m sorry to say, some of the photos are graphic. As I’ve said, I’d hoped to spare you. Roc wouldn’t want you to see them. He wouldn’t want you to have to remember him that way.”

  “Oh, no.” I couldn’t keep the sob from escaping.

  “Let it go, Lena. I know you and I haven’t always gotten along, but for Roc’s sake, I’m asking you not to pursue this any further. You’re hurting, but leave it the way Roc wanted you to.”

  The way Roc wanted you to?

  “What do you mean? What did Roc tell you?”

  “It means don’t go chasing after ghosts. Accept the facts in that folder and move on.”

  “I want to see him. I need to see him, Ed.”

  “No, you don’t. Those pictures are proof enough. Leave it alone.”

  I ignored Ed and turned to plead with Mark. “Mark, I have to see him. If he’s dead, I need to see that for myself. I need to bury him.”

  “Lena, you know that’s not allowed. Not with Agency members—it’s too risky. There can be no funeral.”

  “He’s not dead, is he? That’s why you’re not telling me everything. He’s not dead--”

  “Mark, can you step outside for a moment?” Ed cut through what I’d been about to say.

  Mark hesitated. He wanted to be there for me because of my connection to Roc, but he must follow Ed’s command. He gave me a look that was the closest thing to sympathy I’d get from him and left me without another word.

  Ed waited until the door closed before speaking. “I know how hard this must be for you. It’s hard for me as well. You know that I loved Roc like my son, but you have to accept this, Lena. He’s gone.”

  I shook my head, refusing to listen. I couldn’t accept this was the way things would end between Roc and me.

  “Lena, I’ve known about you and Roc since the beginning.” At my stunned expression, he smiled. “We were very close. What you have to understand now, is this is what Roc wanted. He took this assignment for you—not for himself or because I asked him to. He did what he had to do, knowing all the risks involved in it because he cared about you.”

  “What are you trying to say? If Roc really cared about me so much then why did he leave?” I tried to comprehend what he wasn’t telling me.

  “Because he knew how you felt about…things lately. Roc did this for you.”

  I shook my head. “I don’t understand.”

  “I’m trying to tell you Roc knew how badly you wanted out. He went on this assignment with the understanding that you would be allowed to leave The Agency. I’m still prepared to fulfill my promise to Roc, because I cared so much about him. I will allow you to leave The Agency and the CIA, but only under the condition that you leave this alone, Lena, or I swear you’ll regret it. And I think you know that’s not just an idle threat.”

  I watched as Ed walked out my door without as much as another word. I tried to determine just what he really knew about my relationship with Jeremiah Silvers but all I could think of was Roc. The man that meant everything to me was gone. I sank down to the floor where I cried until there were no more tears left inside me. Until I felt nothing but numbness. A few days ago, I thought I wanted nothing more than to be done with The Agency no matter the cost. Now it felt as if I would cry forever.

  ~

  I never would have survived those first few days without Margaret’s help. She knew right away from the choking sound in my voice that something was terribly wrong.

  “Lena, what is it?” At the concern in Margaret’s voice, I tried to gather my composure. I tried to say the words but they were impossible. For the first time in years, I felt like a frightened girl again. I didn’t know how to survive Roc’s death.

  “Lena, what is it?”

  The last of my resolve cracked and I sobbed, “Its Roc. He’s dead, Margaret. Roc’s dead. Can you come?”

  “I’ll leave right away. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

  I hung up the phone as tears flooded my eyes once more. Roc was gone. It wasn’t possible, was it? I prayed I would wake up and find this was just a bad dream because I didn’t know how to go on without him.

  Margaret arrived soon after and took charge of everything. She got me to bed and stayed with me through the rough days, never leaving my side.

  As word of Roc’s death spread, the team called to offer their condolences. Becca even put our differences aside and brought food. Thanks to Margaret, over the next few days, friends outside of The Agency learned the news and stopped by. For a while, the apartment was never empty. After another week, Margaret reluctantly returned to work and with her absence, the apartment grew quiet again and time slipped by in silence.

  This was something I would come to associate with this time in my life. Silent. Waiting. The people that were once so comforting were all gone now. I found myself with too much time on my hands and too many troubling questions that needed answering.

  As hard as I tried to do as Ed asked and accept Roc’s death as real, in my heart it felt as if Roc had committed the worst type of betrayal. He wasn’t dead. He just didn’t want to be with me anymore. At times, I wished that he were dead because the thought of living without him now was crippling.

  One morning, I picked up the phone and called Roc’s secure phone, punching in the pass code. I listened as a strange silence followed, then the clicking sound that alerted me to the fact the call was being traced.

  “Caller, please identify your rank and division,” a sterile voice on the other end asked, but I didn’t wait to hear anything else. This was standard CIA procedure when an agent went missing or was down in the line of duty.

  Finally, I forced myself to look through the folder Ed left for me. The pictures I found there were gruesome. The person in those phot
os had been shot numerous times. The body was barely recognizable as human. It could be Roc, or it could be any one of a million other men who possessed a similar build and appearance. If those photos were real and if indeed Roc was truly dead, had his death been in the line of duty? If not, was Roc truly a double agent working with the FLA as my brother alluded? Could his death have been the one Mark reported on? The questions went round and round in my head without any answers.

  For days, I never left the apartment. I spent most of my time simply staring out the window and seeing nothing at all. For a long time I thought I would lose my mind. If it hadn’t been for my faith, I probably would have. I threw myself into the Bible and prayed throughout the long days.

  I found one thing that helped ease the pain was being with the people who knew Roc the best. Most of the team seemed surprised when I showed up at the next Agency meeting. In my absence, things had definitely changed in the group.

  Mark told the team he would now begin recruiting new members. He didn’t say it but we all knew he was looking for Roc’s replacement.

  “Don’t you think it’s a little too soon for that, Mark?” Stevie challenged, his eyes flashing anger. “Roc’s barely been gone a month. We should leave things as they are for a while out of respect for his memory. This is hard on all of us. We all cared about Roc. We’ve lost one of our own and you’re callously talking about replacing him. Have some feeling for Lena. Besides, things have gone cold here. There hasn’t been any new sighting of Silvers in weeks. I think the immediate threat may be clear. He knows we’re on to them, obviously.”

  Yet Mark seemed determined to prove himself fit as commander of The Agency.

  He turned to me. “Lena, I know how hard this has been for you, but unfortunately, our work doesn’t stop with Roc’s death. And I know you and the rest of the group miss him, but Roc would want us to keep going. Which means being prepared for anything. I know there’s been a lull in the chatter but that could mean anything. I, for one, don’t want to be surprised again. The Agency’s work isn’t over just because Roc is no longer part of it.”