by Julie Hyzy
I understood, but wished I didn’t.
Yablonski took my nonresponse as an opening to continue. “All that just took place here, coupled with the intelligence we’ve received thus far, supports what we’ve suspected all along: Kern is on the attack. He’s targeted the administration to bring about Farbod’s release, and he’s targeted you, personally. Although we thwarted him here tonight, he isn’t going away.”
Gav gave my shoulders another squeeze. “We have a day, maybe two at the outside, before Kern gets wind of all this. After that, we estimate it will be less than a week before he sends another squad to accomplish what these men failed to achieve. If Joe and I can persuade these prisoners to cooperate, it will be our best chance at stopping Kern permanently.”
“I understand,” I said.
Gav shot Yablonski and Maryann a “Do you mind?” look. They trotted out of the cottage, giving the two of us a moment alone.
“What kind of ‘persuasion’ do you and Yablonski plan to offer the prisoners?” I asked.
Placing his hands on my shoulders, Gav turned me to face him. “Nothing you wouldn’t approve of,” he said. “I’m surprised you’d even ask such a thing.”
“I have no doubt about you.” I flicked a glance toward the open door. “It’s Yablonski I worry about. Sometimes he scares me.”
“I’m sure he’ll be happy to hear it.” A smile played at Gav’s lips as he raced his gaze around the room. “We’re probably still being recorded, you know.”
I’d forgotten. Totally. With a groan, I let my head drop.
Gav lifted my chin, placed a soft kiss on my lips, and grinned. “Don’t worry,” he whispered, “sometimes you scare him, too.”
* * *
Spending the rest of Friday night alone in Erma and Bill’s guest bedroom wasn’t terrible. I slept fitfully, but at least I slept. Spending half of Saturday knocking around the house while waiting for word from Gav, however, stretched my nerves to the breaking point. Yablonski, Gav, and the prisoners were no longer on property, and Maryann couldn’t—or wouldn’t—tell me where they’d gone.
My belongings had been shuttled over from the cottage to the house, which meant that at least I had books to read. And if I became bored with the titles I’d packed, the home’s jam-packed shelves offered plenty of alternatives, plus a plethora of magazines. Erma subscribed to dozens of them, it seemed.
Bill and Erma’s house was comfortably lived in and chock-full of cozy corners to snuggle into. But, whether it was Maryann’s presence or the events of the night finally taking their toll, I was too restless to do more than pace and sit.
Settling myself at the kitchen table after a prolonged period of trekking between the living room and the back porch, I stared into one of Erma’s cooking journals for an extended period of time before realizing I had no idea what the article was about. I pushed the glossy magazine to the side and stood up.
Across from me, Maryann looked up from her laptop. “Are you hungry?”
“Not in the least.”
We’d eaten when I’d first gotten up. Eggs, toast, coffee, bacon. Simple stuff from the cottage cupboard’s bounty. Maryann had offered to cook, but I took over, claiming it would help settle me, help clear my brain. That was true. I insisted on cleaning up afterward, for the exact same reasons. Although breakfast had taken place hours ago, I had no fresh appetite. I was, however, antsy.
“Am I allowed outside?”
Maryann laughed. “You’re not a prisoner.”
“Good to know,” I said, striving for levity. “And I’m not trying to be difficult. I just feel as though it would help if I could stretch my legs a little. Do something.”
“Not a problem. Until we get the all-clear, we have the entire property covered. Don’t be alarmed if you notice you’re being followed. It’s only to ensure you stay safe.” She reached for a nearby cardigan. Hardly government issue. I assumed it was one of Erma’s—or at least one provided to look like it belonged to Erma. “I can come along if you’d like.”
“No, thanks,” I said. “I appreciate the offer, but I’m feeling a little claustrophobic.”
A glance around the spacious house made my words sound silly, but I could tell she knew exactly what I meant. Reclaiming her seat, she resumed working at her laptop. “I’ll be here if you need me.”
The early afternoon air hit me with a burst of unexpected joy. I loved the fall season with its crispy leaves and tickling chill. Standing on the front porch, I closed my eyes for a moment to take in the sunshine on my face and the brisk breeze through my hair.
With one hand on the wooden rail, I decided to take my time to enjoy the moment before setting off. Keeping my eyes shut, I breathed in slowly, allowing the smells of wet dirt, green leaves, and sun-warmed porch paint to settle my nerves.
Gav had been gone for less than twelve hours, but it felt like much longer than that. I wanted him to return, of course. But if I were being truthful, I wanted more. I needed to know what the Armustanians were up to, what their boss, Kern, had planned for us. Yablonski had alluded to the fact that this revenge war Kern had declared on me wouldn’t be over until Kern was taken down or I was dead. Given the choice, I hoped to heaven that the Armustanian prisoners had chosen to cooperate.
I didn’t want to live the rest of my life in fear. But worse, I didn’t want Gav and I to have to give up our lives the way Yablonski had hinted we might have to do until the Kern situation was fully resolved.
They had to have gotten answers. They had to. I tilted my face toward the sun and breathed deeply, determined to quell this temporary impatience and even more adamant to permanently reclaim my life.
Tires crunched gravel. My eyes flew open as a government-issue sedan pulled up and parked near the property’s entrance. Gav stepped out one side of the backseat and Yablonski emerged from the other. I ran down the porch stairs to greet them.
The older man rubbed his palm against his stubbly cheek. “Good morning, Ollie,” he said. “As promised, I brought him back to you safe and sound.” With that, he gave a giant yawn and lifted his elbows high to stretch.
Gav’s eyes were small. The tiny wrinkles at their corners seemed deeper than usual. “Sorry it took so long,” he said, giving a stretchy yawn of his own, “but we got him.”
“You got . . . him?”
“Kern,” he said. “He’s in custody.”
“He was here in the United States?”
Gav pulled me into a tight hug. “We got him. You’re safe.”
“We’re safe,” I corrected.
Gav chuckled.
“Break it up, you two.” Yablonski waved as though shooing us apart. “We need sleep now. We’ll fill you in later.” He pointed to the house. “They’ve got an empty couch or two in there, don’t they?”
Even though Gav looked ready to fall asleep standing up, he raised a hand. “Thanks, but I think Ollie and I would prefer to head back to the apartment.” He turned to me. “You don’t mind driving, do you?”
Thrilled to be able to go home, I shook my head and started for the stairs. “Get in, I’ll pack up our stuff and be right out.”
CHAPTER 23
Gav dozed in the car on the way back and, once home, went straight to bed. I didn’t mind. Content beyond belief, I read a little and puttered in the kitchen, humming as I prepared dinner.
Life had returned to normal and I intended to enjoy every moment I could. Especially cheery was knowing that all listening devices had been removed from the apartment. The minute the Armustanians were in custody, Yablonski had given the go-ahead to a group of agents. They’d swept through the place, restoring our cherished privacy. On top of that, our Secret Service bodyguards had been relieved of duty.
I wondered if Mrs. Wentworth had been around when the surveillance team had let themselves in to clear the apartment. I had no doubt that if she had, she’d hit me up with hard questions about it soon.
Gav emerged from the bedroom around seven in the evening,
looking adorably rumpled in his T-shirt and pajama pants, with half his hair sticking straight up. Scratching at the top of his head, he tried to flatten it down but that only made it worse.
“Good morning, sunshine,” I said.
“Morning?” He gave a low chuckle and pointed to the balcony doors. “It’s dark out.”
I shrugged. “Close enough. You hungry? I’m making those grilled chicken breasts you like.”
“Starved.” For the second time, he pointed toward the balcony. “Do you need me to light the grill?”
“Already done. I heard your alarm go off a few minutes ago, so I knew you’d be up soon. Everything should be ready in less than twenty minutes.”
He sat at the kitchen table, still trying to tame his hair with one hand, holding his cell phone with the other. “Wasn’t my alarm,” he said, holding the device aloft. “It was Joe.”
“I thought he’d still be sleeping, too.” I lowered the flame under one of my simmering saucepans. “You guys had a busy night.”
“Yeah.” Gav grimaced and looked away.
I lifted the pan of marinating chicken from the counter, intent on taking it out to the grill but something in his mood stopped me. “Are you ready to bring me up to date on everything you guys learned from our visitors last night?”
He sat back, plunked the phone on the table, and used a fingertip to spin it. “Yeah,” he said again with just as little enthusiasm.
I put the chicken back down and sat across from him. “What’s wrong? Did Yablonski change his mind about sharing information with me? Did he issue some sort of gag order?”
“Not at all. The big news you already know—we got Kern. That’s better than we were hoping for.”
“You thought he was still in Armustan.”
“So much for recent intelligence reports.” Gav grimaced. “We caught up with Kern about a half mile away from the winery. He was waiting in a cargo van that was meant to whisk the two of us away. In addition to apprehending Kern, you’ll be happy to know that we got Cutthroat to identify two of the men as the ones who killed his friends. They were the same two responsible for Margaret’s murder.”
“They admitted it?”
“Initially, the captives refused to cooperate, but once we got the first one to break—he’s the one who gave up Kern—the rest followed suit. And once they let loose, they let us have it, spewing platitudes and vitriol . . .” He leaned back and rubbed his temples. “Got ugly. Kern and his men are furious to have failed at their objective—killing you and securing Ansari’s release—but they are arrogant and inordinately proud of what they have accomplished. Their sick satisfaction at the amount of damage done . . .” He shook his head. “Tough to listen to but we learned a lot.”
“Wow,” I said, at a loss for words.
He held up a finger. “We won this time. No question about it. Kern is going away for good, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t some eager Armustanian warmonger out there waiting to have a go at us next. In fact, I’d count on that.”
“So we can’t relax?”
“The United States government can’t relax,” he said. “As long as we have Farbod Ansari incarcerated, the Armustanians won’t let up. But you, on the other hand . . .” There was a twinkle in his eyes I hadn’t seen in a long time. “You’ve sailed through another life-threatening circumstance unharmed. Kern’s failure is your ticket to freedom.”
“And that’s it?” I said. “There are no other avengers in that family—no cousins or other relatives ready to take up the cause?”
Gav shook his head, not even bothering to tamp down his smile. “We’ve done extensive homework on Kern’s faction. Under the brother, they were a fractured group, but one feared by other factions. Kern offered his followers hope and, from our perspective, presented a real and credible threat. Armustan is not a forgiving culture. Now that Kern has been defeated, they’ll find someone else to follow.”
“And because it won’t be one of Kern’s relatives . . .”
“You are almost certainly safe.”
I found myself grinning. “That’s wonderful news. Absolutely the best.”
He nodded.
“So, what’s bothering you? Isn’t all this finished?”
“Not for me. Not yet, at least. As you know, Joe took me off duty because my cover had been compromised—because Kern and his men knew who I was.” He glanced up and waited for me to acknowledge that I remembered. I did. “Now that the Armustanian attack has been defeated, now that we have these men in custody, now that we’ve been presented a weeklong window of opportunity, he wants me back in.”
“To find the next leader waiting in the wings?” I finished, seeing the big picture come into focus.
Gav gave a slow nod.
“We have a chance to make a difference right now. Until the other factions in Armustan learn of what went down here with Kern, we have the opportunity to get in there and influence changes. And until this window of safety closes, Joe wants me to lead the strategic sessions. I’ve been to Armustan enough to be considered the resident expert.”
“He wants you to go there? Isn’t there a risk that your cover was compromised beyond Kern’s people?”
“I won’t enter Armustan.” Gav drew in a long breath. “You’re right; it’s too big of a risk. I will, however, be invaluable as a consultant. We have a number of safe houses in nearby countries. Allied countries.”
“Which ally?”
“That hasn’t been determined yet. Even if it were, I couldn’t tell you. Joe believes that between the two of us and the team we’ve assembled, we should be able to mount and implement a mission before anyone takes another swing at us.”
I blew out a breath. “When do you leave?”
He nodded. “Tonight.”
Moments ago, my heart was light. Not anymore. Stiff and solid, it sat like an angry brick in my chest. And yet, I understood. “You want to do this, don’t you?” I asked rhetorically. “You want to determine for yourself that we’re safe from future attacks.”
“I’m going there to ensure the safety of all the citizens of the United States,” he said. “But yes. Even though there is no one in Armustan who would want to target you, I won’t be able to relax until I can ascertain for myself that the threat against you has been eliminated completely.”
He stared as though to press the weight of his words into me.
“We don’t negotiate with terrorists. That’s why there will never be room for discussion where Farbod Ansari’s release is concerned. But right now, before news of Kern’s failure makes it to his remaining followers, we have the rare opportunity to help influence who becomes that country’s next leader. We have to take advantage of this window and put our people in motion before a more aggressive faction assumes control.”
“I understand.”
“I knew you would.”
I stood up to get back to preparing dinner. “Let’s at least get you fed before you take off.”
When I picked up the pan of chicken and turned, I was surprised to see Gav blocking my way. “Ollie,” he said with such gravity I felt my stomach drop. “You need to know that if we weren’t successful this weekend—if we hadn’t managed to capture Kern—you and I would have had a serious talk about our future.”
“I know,” I said. “Yablonski danced around that topic.”
“He was concerned. He is concerned.”
“I know he believed I didn’t understand what he was hinting at,” I said. “I understood perfectly, but I preferred not to hear.” I met Gav’s eyes with no apology, no regret. “I chose to ignore the warnings for as long as possible.”
Gav smiled again. “That’s what I told Joe.”
“And this time it paid off, didn’t it?”
“We were talking about your life, Ollie.”
“Yours, too,” I said.
“You know as well as I do that I was always a bonus. You were the target. They get you, they get me, too. If you’re safe, out of t
he picture where no one can find you, then we both survive.”
“But Yablonski meant he wanted us gone.” I put the chicken pan back on the counter and laid both hands on Gav’s arms. “I know he wasn’t being heartless or cold. He cares about us. About you especially. I realize that. But I also know that he has a job to do and that my very existence made his job harder. I can’t blame him for wanting us out of the picture.”
“He never intended for us to be gone for good.”
“But he did want us to disappear, didn’t he? To leave D.C. and start anew across the country. Maybe even take on new identities. Was that it?”
Gav nodded.
“Like the Witness Protection Program?” I asked.
He nodded again. “It would have only been temporary. Until Kern was apprehended.”
“And now he has been,” I said. “Which means we don’t have to worry about leaving our home, our families, our lives. So let’s be grateful that this drama is at an end.”
“I am grateful. For you.”
I stared up at him. “I’m safe now, but until the entire Armustanian threat is eliminated, other Americans are at risk, aren’t they?”
“We have a chance to make this right, Ollie.”
“Then go,” I said over a lump in my throat. “Go study, infiltrate, influence, whatever you need to do to keep our country safe.”
CHAPTER 24
“Boy, it’s great to be back,” I said to Bucky Sunday morning.
My assistant looked up from a cookbook he’d been reading. “You’re here.”
“I am.”
“How did it go? Or can’t you tell me?”
“Very well. So well that I’m free to tell you that the Armustanians are no longer a threat to me.” I tucked my tote onto my shelf next to my purse and peeled off my coat. “That’s not exactly right. The current regime is no longer a threat, and there’s hope that this détente continues.”
“Wow,” he said, eyes wide. “Details?”
“Let’s just say that we accomplished everything we set out to do. And as our reward? Gav has been spirited out of the country again.”