Wrong Time

by Mitchel Grace

  “Well, great. I think that we might be working for the wrong people,” Lee said with a laugh.

  * * * * *

  Later that night, Jason and Burt were still working on going through every profile possible, but they were having no luck finding anyone who could be suspected of being a traitor.

  “This is ridiculous. All the people here have impeccable records. How are we supposed to look through all of these profiles that look equally impressive and expect to see a criminal?” Burt asked.

  “I have no idea, but I’m just about ready to call it a night,” Jason said and yawned.

  Jason stood and started walking toward the door, but a noise stopped him.

  “I thought that everyone on this floor had gone home for the night,” Jason said.

  “I did, too.”

  Still, he could clearly hear the sound of footsteps. Jason stepped out of the office and walked around the corner to see several familiar faces. There stood Lee, Trish, Michael and Jess.

  “What are you guys doing here, and how did you get into the building?” Jason asked.

  “Well, we were supposed to come as soon as Lee got well, and apparently, Nathan and Sam gave the guard at the gate our names, so we were able to come straight in without any trouble,” Trish said.

  “Okay. I get that, but Lee doesn’t exactly look well. What’s with the early release from the hospital?”

  The group explained exactly what had happened.

  “I’m glad that all of you are okay, but we need to get you some medical attention soon, Lee.”

  “I’m fine.”

  “I know, but you at least need some antibiotics or something.”

  “That would be best, I suppose.”

  “All right. I have some connections, and I’ll get you some medicine first thing in the morning, but for now, do you need somewhere to lie down?”

  “No, I’ll be fine. Besides, we came here to help.”

  “Yeah, we did, but where is everyone?” Trish asked.

  “Well, everyone has gone home for the night except for Burt and me. If you guys want to help right now, you can help us look through about a billion profiles.”

  “What are we looking for in the profiles?” Jess asked.

  Jason explained what they were looking for and how he and Burt had been at it for hours with no luck.

  “I’m pretty sure that I can help a lot with that,” Trish said confidently as she walked into the office where Burt was still working.

  Jason walked into the office and introduced everyone to Burt, and then they began to work.

  “What kind of system are you using to look through these,” Trish asked.

  “The one at a time system,” Burt said.

  “You should stop looking at their service records, and only look at what their service was prior to their attempt to join the CIA. Then group the top twenty most qualified candidates into a pile, and let me interview them one at a time,” Trish said.

  “Okay. First of all, why would we only look at twenty individuals, and second of all, why would you be the one interviewing them,” Jason asked.

  “If you wanted to get a mole into the CIA, what would you do? You would make him overqualified for the job. Also, let’s just say that I can read people. It would be in your best interest to at least have me in the room when you conduct the interviews.”

  Her reasoning was sound. That much Jason couldn’t deny.

  “All right, our way hasn’t been working, so we’ll try it your way,” Burt said.

  “Great! Then let’s get to work on sorting these files,” Lee said.

  * * * * *

  Nathan and Sam had finally arrived in Houston and had checked into a hotel. The hotel they checked into was gorgeous. They were on the top floor in a suite that cost Sam a little over four hundred dollars.

  “Are you sure that we should be spending government money on something this expensive?” Nathan asked.

  “I’m hearing this from the man who once wanted to buy a camera with government money,” Sam said while laughing.

  “I know, but it’s just that this place seems really pricey.”

  Nathan had a worried expression on his face. Earlier that day, he could tell that Mr. Campbell didn’t care for him very much, or at the very least, he didn’t want Nathan working with them. Nathan didn’t want to give Campbell an excuse to dislike him even more.

  “Don’t worry so much. If our government doesn’t believe in limiting spending, then why should we? Besides, after everything we’ve been through, I think that they owe us a lot more than this. Don’t you?” Sam asked.

  “I didn’t think of it that way. I suppose you’re right.”

  “Great. Now I don’t know about you, but I am absolutely beat, so I’m going to bed,” Sam said while jumping onto the bed.

  Nathan joined her soon after. Once they both got under the covers, and all the lights had been turned off, Nathan’s mind began to wonder.

  “Hey, Sam, I have a question.”

  “What is it?”

  “So am I officially an agent now? Do I get paid?”

  “Yeah, as far as I know. They will deposit money into an account for you every month. We agents are always on the move. We move around so much that we hardly ever get a chance to touch any of that cash.”

  “I suppose this is the first official job I’ve ever had that I actually wanted,” Nathan said.

  “Can I ask you a question now?” Sam asked.

  “Sure. What is it?”

  “Were you really serious about us going away with each other when this is all over?”

  “I was dead serious. I wouldn’t joke about something like that.”

  “Okay, but how would we do it? I don’t think that it would be very easy to get away from the CIA. We would need to have some type of plan.”

  “I could get us some fake IDs and passports from Lee, and after that, we could just split.”

  “That doesn’t sound like a plan that would actually work. Don’t you think that they would come looking for two rogue agents?”

  “I know that it isn’t perfect, but it’s only the beginning of the plan. More will come to me. All of this will work out in the end. You’ll see.”

  “All right. Just don’t make promises to a girl that you can’t keep,” Sam said as she turned toward him.

  “Never,” Nathan said while leaning in and gently kissing her lips.

  Sam didn’t think that his poorly crafted plan would actually work, but she had to believe in him. He held her and kissed her in the softest and sweetest way possible. It was as if he thought that she might break otherwise. Surely someone so loving and gentle would find a way, or at least that’s what she had come to believe.

  “I love you,” he softly whispered as he pulled her closer to him. There they slept entwined, and while the rest of the world was in chaos, this moment felt absolutely perfect to Sam.

  “I love you, too,” she said gently into the night.

  * * * * *

  Back in the office at Washington, the sun was rising, and the twenty profiles had been assembled by Jason and the others.

  “Finally,” Jess said while yawning.

  “It should be pretty easy to get nineteen of these people, but one of them will be a little difficult to get here,” Burt said.

  “Which one is that?” Lee asked.

  “Brad Jacobs. He’s currently in charge of interrogating the prisoners in Houston that we took from the facility in Tampa, Florida,” Burt said.

  “Well, I suppose this might be a good job for Sam and Nathan then. They’re looking for Markus Boyd, and who knows, considering that this guy may know Boyd, this could be a lead for them. I’m going to give them a call,” Jason said while picking up his phone.

  Sam heard the phone ring once, then twice, and then again. She didn’t want to answer it. She was so comfortable, and for the first time in a while, she had been in a deep sleep. Nathan began to reach for the phone, but Sam quickly reache
d up and grabbed it.

  “Hello,” she said while sounding extremely tired.

  “Hey, it’s me. I think that I may have a lead for you, and it might just help us out here, too,” Jason said.

  “Who is that?” Nathan asked.

  “It’s Jason.”

  “Okay. Well, tell him that I don’t like guns, but I’m going to shoot him with one when we get home.”

  “What was that?” Jason asked.

  “Oh, nothing. Nathan says hi.”

  “Oh, okay. Tell him I said hello, too. Anyway, how would you two feel about going to Houston?”

  “We’re already there.”

  “Why are you in Houston already?”

  Sam explained their situation and how they hoped to get information out of Jeffery Sandusky.

  “Okay. There’s a situation I should probably explain to you,” Jason said.

  He then explained how there were suspected traitors within their ranks and how a man named Brad Jacobs was suspected of being one of them.

  “So what makes you think that this Jacobs guy is a traitor?” Sam asked.

  “His resume is just unreal, and Trish and Lee both have a feeling that this guy may be worth looking into. Can you just bring him back with you?”

  “Wait! Why is Lee with you? He’s supposed to be in the hospital.”

  “It’s a long story, and I’m sure that they’ll tell you all about it when you get back. Just know that there was an incident back in Florida, and now they’re safe and also quite useful.”

  “All right, we’ll bring Jacobs back with us tomorrow.”

  “Okay. Thank you. I’m sorry that I woke you up. Go back to sleep for a few hours. I think that I’m finally going to get some sleep myself.”

  “Great, I’ll talk to you soon,” Sam said and hung up the phone.

  “So does that guy always call you this early?” Nathan asked.

  “Pretty much, but you’ll get used to it.”

  “What all did he say? It must have been pretty important to call this early.”

  “We’ll discuss it when we wake up. For now, just go to sleep,” Sam said as she turned and laid her head on his chest.

  Nathan really wanted to know what was going on, but it was obvious that she was exhausted, and in truth, so was he. He put his arms around her, closed his eyes, and then slowly drifted off.

  * * * * *

  In Washington, Zane arrived at the office. Dan hadn’t arrived yet, but that was understandable. It was still very early, but Zane wanted to get an early start. The day before, Dan and he had picked out the soldiers they were going to bring to Atlanta. All that was left to do was make the necessary phone calls. Zane would have normally pawned that task off to Jason, but he knew that Jason had much more important things to attend to at the moment. Zane was excited to be back serving in an active way, but at the same time, he couldn’t help but feel like something was about to go horribly wrong. When they took the place in Tampa, they did it by surprise, and even then, they had only barely managed to succeed. This time they wouldn’t have the element of surprise as a luxury. This would be a pure firefight, and no matter how much he planned or fought, he was going to lose a lot of men during this operation. Zane had never had a problem with risking his own life, or even with taking a life, but he had always had a problem with sending others into a location where he knew that they probably wouldn’t make it out alive. That was exactly what he was doing now. Zane finally cleared his thoughts and began making phone calls. First the calls, then tonight we’ll fly to Atlanta, and finally, the following night, we’ll attack, Zane thought to himself.

  * * * * *

  At the prison in Houston, Brad was sitting with Jeffery in what appeared to be an interrogation room, but no interrogation was taking place.

  “Don’t worry. Help is on the way. You’ll all be out of here in time for lunch,” Brad said.

  “How exactly is that going to happen?” Jeffery asked.

  “Let’s just say that I have a few friends who are on their way, and when they get here, all hell is going to break loose,” Brad said with a crooked smile.

  Chapter 4

  While sitting in a hotel room in Tampa, Florida, just after the events at the hospital, Chloe made a call that she wished she didn’t have to make.

  “Hello,” Markus said on the other end.

  “Hello. This is Chloe, and I have some bad news,” Chloe said with a hint of fear.

  “What is it?”

  “There were three targets in the room, and I failed to eliminate them. I have no valid excuse. I’m sorry.”

  “I see. Well, this is very disappointing indeed. Make this right, or you’re going to become very expendable to me.”

  The truth was that Markus’s threat toward her wasn’t a real one, but she didn’t know that. She had seen the things that Markus did to other agents who had failed him, and none of it was pleasant, but Markus thought of Chloe as different from the other agents. He liked her. He felt as if they came from the same place, and he wasn’t too far off. They both came from a place of extreme pain.

  “How can I make it right, sir?” Chloe asked.

  “I don’t care how you do it, but kill them, and do it soon.”

  “But how will I even find them at this point?”

  “That’s not my problem. Get the job done if you value your life,” Markus said and then hung up the phone.

  Chloe had no idea what to do or even where to go, but she knew that she needed to act soon. As she tried to piece together a course of action, her phone rang.

  “Hello,” she said.

  “Chloe, it’s been a long time.”

  “Brad?”

  “Yes, that’s right. I need a favor, if you don’t mind.”

  “I don’t have time for favors right now. I have enough on my plate.”

  “A favor for a favor then? If you help me out with this, then I’ll help you finish whatever it is that’s so important to you,” Brad said.

  “I’m listening.”

  “You know that the people from the Tampa office have been captured, right?”

  “Just spit it out. What do you need?”

  “All right! I know where the prisoners from Tampa are being held, and I want you to put together a crew to help me break them out.”

  “That’s nuts! Do you have any idea how much security they’ll have at a CIA prison?”

  “They don’t have as much security as you may think. I’m on the inside. I’ve been posing as a CIA agent for the last year, and as soon as you and your people get here, I’ll turn loose my friends. With all the chaos on the outside of the prison and all the chaos on the inside of the facility, it will be easy to take this place.”

  “All right, I’ll see what I can do.”

  “Great, give me a call back when it’s done,” Brad said as he hung up the phone.

  Chloe made a call to the Atlanta office. Truthfully, the opportunity to rescue some of their own wasn’t even going to be a hard sell to the guys in Atlanta.

  * * * * *

  Nathan opened his eyes and turned to grab Sam’s phone to check the time. It was 8:23 in the morning.

  “Sam, wake up. We’re running a little late this morning,” Nathan said as he gently shook her.

  “What? What time is it?” Sam asked.

  Nathan showed her the time.

  “Oh, don’t worry so much. I’ve overslept by more than this before. We’re fine,” Sam said.

  She then stood up and walked into the bathroom to take her shower. Nathan lay back in the bed and smiled. Maybe this kind of life wasn’t all that bad. He was staying in an expensive hotel with a beautiful woman, and he was experiencing more adventure than he would have ever experienced back at home. In that moment, despite all of the trials that he and the rest of his friends had gone through, he was truly happy. As time passed, they both got ready and started making their way to the prison. When they pulled up to it, Sam flashed a few credentials to the guard at the f
ront gate. They were in.

  “Wow, this place isn’t as secure as you might think,” Nathan said.

  “Why would you say that?” Sam asked.

  “Lee could have easily made everything you just showed that guard.”

  “Well, it sounds like if Lee chooses to be, he could be a huge asset to us.”

  The two of them went into the prison and were directed to the location of Mr. Sandusky. As they were being escorted into the cell, another man was exiting it.

  “Did you make any progress, Mr. Jacobs?” a guard asked him.

  “Not yet, but we’re going to get there,” Brad answered.

  Sam stopped and turned to face Brad.

  “You’re Brad Jacobs, aren’t you?” Sam asked.

  “The one and only. Do we know each other?”

  “No, we don’t, but after we’re done talking to this one, would you mind if my partner and I had a word with you?”

  “Sure, that won’t be a problem,” Brad said as he walked away with the other guard.

  Brad was a fairly large guy. He looked as if he could easily break Nathan or Sam in half.

  “I hope we don’t have to take him by force,” Nathan said and smiled.

  “Me, too.”

  * * * * *

  A large truck pulled up to the front of the prison and stopped in front of the guard shack.

  “ID please,” the guard said.

  “Let us through,” Chloe said as she raised her gun and pointed it straight at his head.

  The guard complied and raised the gate. Chloe fired one bullet into the man’s skull and then drove straight through to the heart of the prison. As they stopped, a man from the passenger side jumped out, walked to the back of the truck, and opened the back doors. Several soldiers in full body armor poured out of the back. Guards rushed from the prison building, but they were almost immediately cut down. This is going to be even easier than I thought it would be, Chloe said to herself.

  Inside the prison, shots could be heard from far away.

  “What in the world was that?” Sam asked.

  “I don’t know, but it doesn’t sound good,” Nathan said.