FRACTURE: Hearts of Stone Book Six

by Woodward, Kaya

  We wander around the train station until we find an alcove that’s relatively away from the crowds as they begin to thin. Trains come and go, but as the hour grows later, it’s pretty clear the only people left to wait for the Paris train.

  There’s nothing more for me to do other than sift through the data we recovered and hope that something catches my eye.

  Levi decides to go for a walk, Merc closes his eyes, and I put my headphones on, watching the screen with one eye on the clock that ticks away the hours.

  Time slows to a crawl.

  Out of pure interest, I search through the data for anything to do with Paris, France, and I get nothing out of the ordinary in return.

  One minute has ticked by.

  There’s far too much information to sift through in the time I have available right now, and the majority is coded so that I would have to run the decryption program Merc gave me multiple times.

  That could take hours. Hours upon hours that we don’t have if Noah is alive and we are to get to him before Geoffrey does something that we cannot reverse.

  Or, more likely, Noah may already be dead and cold in the ground somewhere.

  There’s a third thought, but I don’t even consider that because Noah would never abandon his family.

  Especially Tinsley and Sebastian.

  Damn.

  “Dead end?” Merc asks.

  “I don’t know,” I tell him in earnest.

  “I noticed some videos in there. Maybe it’s more along the lines of what we found before?” Merc suggests.

  I search for video or audio files, and a few come up. They’re all numbered, so I have no idea what I am looking at.

  The first one appears to be a construction site of some sort. I watch it for a few minutes. I see a long shot as if taken by a security camera, pointing down from a higher floor, as it tracks a small procession of workers and some other people. Everyone is wearing hard hats, and some have clipboards.

  But, there’s something familiar about one particular group that seems out of place. They are well-dressed and interacting in a very animated fashion, gesticulating and pointing.

  Then, I gasp in shock at the realization of who they are!

  “Merc!” I gasp.

  Suddenly I grab his arm as though I am begging him to look at the screen, though it doesn’t take much convincing.

  “What’s going on?” Levi asks.

  He peers down at the way I clutch Merc’s arm curiously, and I let go of him quickly. I point to the screen, desperate for them to see what I see.

  Just then, the video ended!

  Damn it.

  Muttering curses, I rewind and fumble around for a few seconds before the video plays again.

  “Son of a bitch!” Merc says.

  Levi whistles.

  Elizabeth, Olivia, and Lauren are walking across the site, in the company of the Duke and Michael Bishop.

  “What’s the date on this?” Levi asks.

  “I think it was about five years ago?” I reply.

  I check the file date.

  “Six,” I say, forgetting that it’s 2019.

  “Holy fuck!” Merc practically yells.

  I want to clap my hand over his mouth as we’re trying to lay low.

  But I don’t, because I know why he’s swearing.

  The scene shows the five of them walking up to someone.

  It’s Noah Stone.

  27

  Evan

  January 28, 2019

  “Isaac, I think you should come to take a look at this,” I say, returning to the table.

  He and Grace and Vic are laughing at some private joke, and he shoots me a look.

  “Hold on a moment, dearest,” he says to Grace.

  “I think I’m going to go to the powder room, anyway,” she replies, looking at Vic.

  “I’ll go with you!” Vic adds, getting up to join Grace.

  The two women walk off, and I notice that a few of the other patrons are watching them.

  Isaac notices too, as we saunter over to where I thought I saw Levi.

  “The Duke has men here,” I whisper.

  “Of course,” Isaac says.

  He almost rolls his eyes.

  “I mean, I heard one of the Casino guards talking to him, over a radio. They mentioned a ‘package,’ bound for Paris. The train?” I prod.

  Isaac is watching the people watching Vic and Grace.

  “Keep walking with me, around this corner, and follow my lead,” he hisses.

  I follow him, and he stops suddenly as he rounds the corner, into a hall.

  I bump into him.

  He spins around and shoves me.

  “You asshole! You drunk bastard! How dare you say that about my wife!” he shouts.

  I am at first astonished, and then, begin to weave and respond, slurring my words.

  “Well, she’s too goddam good for the likes of you,” I say, pushing his shoulder.

  He gives me a look that warns that I shouldn’t do that again.

  I wink.

  Two Casino guards, including the one I saw on the radio, come up to us.

  “Is there a problem, sirs?” the radio guy asks.

  Isaac looks at him.

  “Are you fucking stupid? Look at this drunk shit, insulting the good name of my wife! I’ve spent a fortune here, only to have to put up with this kind of treatment!” he shouts.

  I take a swing at Isaac.

  The two guards grab me.

  “Please come with us, sir!” Radioguy says.

  I struggle a bit.

  “You too,” he tells Isaac.

  “Well, I never!” he protests, standing his ground, until one of the men takes his elbow.

  They escort us to an office.

  “In here, and sit down, while we get the Supervisor!” the man with the radio orders.

  As soon as he turns his back, Isaac gives his neck a karate chop.

  The other guard is stunned into inaction for a split second, and I punch him under the chin.

  His head snaps back, and he’s out like a light.

  “Well done. We’ve only a moment or two,” Isaac takes the radio, and I rip the phone wires from the wall jack, tossing them into a drawer. We leave the two men, locking the door behind us.

  Isaac quickly moves into an adjoining corridor, then into a utility room.

  “We’ve got to get the girls, and get the fuck out of here!” I say.

  “Not so fast! Hang on!” Isaac replies.

  “I’ve got an idea,” he adds.

  He fiddles with the radio a moment.

  “This is Harris! Two men just ran out the front with about a hundred thousand in chips!” he rasps.

  It doesn’t sound like Isaac. It’s a decent imitation of the radio guy.

  While he waits for a response, I mouth at him.

  “Harris?”

  This time he does roll his eyes.

  “Was it those two guys with jackets? The one’s from Table Five?” comes a voice on the radio.

  “Affirmative! I think they were looking for the Duke,” he says.

  “Oh. Right. He mentioned a payment for shipment of the package,” the voice replies.

  “Wasn’t he going to Artiste?” Isaac asks.

  “What? What’s that? No, the Duke is en route, to Paris, with the package, via the train!” the man says, confused.

  “Okay, my mistake. See if you can find out what those two are up to, Harris out!” he finishes.

  He smiles, grimly.

  “Let’s get the women, and get down to the train station,” he says, throwing the radio into a bin.

  “Well, that was impressive, but Artiste?” I ask.

  We walk briskly back towards our table.

  “Didn’t they teach you shit in the RAF? I ID’d our two guards from their badges, and the radios were set to a shared frequency. It was easy to imitate Harris and ask a leading question. There are a million ‘guys with jackets’ and money in this pl
ace. I took an educated risk,” he says, talking rapidly.

  “There’s Grace, and Vic,” he points.

  “Time to go, ladies!” he smiles.

  “So soon?” Vic laughs.

  “You’ll like it, though!” he grins.

  “We’re going to Paris!” Isaac says with a winning smile.

  I chuckle at the look on both of their faces, as we exit the Casino.

  * * *

  We grab a taxi to the train station, where Isaac purchases four tickets to Paris.

  I watch the crowd for signs of the Duke, or his men.

  “Here we go,” Isaac says when he returns.

  “I’ve got us a private coach, with dining,” he says, pocketing the tickets.

  We make our way to the car, and, just as we are sitting down, I spy movement out the window.

  Across the platform, I see Merc, Levi, and Leigha, walking towards us.

  “Isaac!” I shout.

  He looks out and sees the trio approach, and stands back from the window.

  “Get back, Evan!” he says.

  “Why?” I ask.

  He grabs me and closes the blinds.

  “Be patient,” he says.

  We sit down, and the train departs the station, slowly gathering speed.

  My heart is pounding!

  Leigha is on this train!

  Suddenly, the door to our compartment opens, and the three of them are standing there.

  Grace and Vic are as shocked as I am.

  “What took you so long, Merc?” Isaac asks.

  * * *

  “Wait? You guys have been working together all along?” I ask.

  Levi comes into our berth and sits down next to me.

  I can barely wait to grab Leigha, but she sits across from me, a cold look in her eyes.

  Merc sits next to her, squeezing in by Isaac.

  “Cozy in here, no?” Levi asks, with a grin.

  “Sitrep, Levi,” Isaac asks.

  “We’ve found Noah,” Levi states.

  We all gasp.

  “He’s on this train,” he continues.

  “Leigha also found evidence that Noah was somehow involved in Michael Bishop’s trafficking island. We’re not sure in what capacity, but we have video of them. All of them. Olivia, Lauren, Elizabeth, the Duke, Bishop, and Noah met about six years ago during construction of the compound. The vid is not all that long, and we have many more to review. But we did a snatch and grab of files from the Casino’s servers.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me you were here, Leigha?” I ignore everyone else.

  “Evan, this isn’t the time, nor the place,” she replies, looking out the window at the passing scenery.

  Which, I notice, is beginning to look very pretty as the train moves out. There’s a tunnel for most of this trip, but once in a while, you can glimpse the countryside, and it’s breathtaking.

  Just like my wife.

  Or ex-wife?

  Are we divorced?

  I suddenly become aware of Vic.

  It’s just not fair, the way Leigha sucks all my attention like that. Poor Vic looks like someone punched her in the stomach, but she remains calm. But, the look in her eyes tells the whole sad story.

  I also see Levi looking at her. She doesn’t notice it.

  He turns to glare at me. I cough twice, but Leigha doesn’t respond.

  “The Duke has Noah on this train, somewhere. When we get to Paris, Olivia will probably arrange for the next transfer. We need to make a decision, people,” Levi says.

  Merc and Isaac nod.

  “Wait. What?” Leigha and I say simultaneously.

  “Well, it’s like this,” Isaac begins.

  “May I?” he asks Merc and Levi.

  They shrug and nod.

  “If we let them take Noah to the next destination, we can gather better intel on the operation,” Isaac says.

  “Wait, you’re joking. We’re this close…” I protest.

  Leigha shoots me a look.

  “Evan,” she sighs.

  “If we grab Noah, then they will know how far we’ve penetrated. We need more actionable intel for the MI-6 and … my group,” Isaac says, hesitating.

  I push back a bit.

  “Your ‘group’?” I ask.

  Levi looks at Isaac, then Merc.

  “Maybe we need to lay out all the cards, gentlemen?” Merc says.

  “Hang on a moment!” I say, suddenly getting angry.

  “Just what the hell is going on here?” I demand.

  Levi sighs.

  “Noah has been working with MI-6, Mossad and the CIA to infiltrate Duke Geoffrey Whittaker’s organization for the past eight years, Evan. He’s an asset. I’ve been working the case from inside the Ventretti Crime Family. Merc and Isaac have been acting as resources for MI-6 and Mossad. Noah knew exactly what he was doing when he was ‘taken’ by Olivia. It was our best shot at uncovering the inner workings of the Duke’s operation,” he explains.

  Vic, Grace, Leigha, and I sit in stunned silence.

  “Noah has been CIA? All along? He knew you were alive?” Leigha asks.

  “Not exactly,” Merc responds.

  “Noah is the head of a completely separate entity. He’s spent the last ten years running RISC, the Restricted Interdiction Section Command. It’s a government-backed group specializing in deep, undercover operations. It has a black budget, and is completely deniable,” Isaac says.

  “Are you sure we should be telling them this?” he says, turning to Levi.

  “This is way outside of my jurisdiction,” he adds.

  Levi ponders the question, and a wait staffer knocks on the door to the compartment.

  “Would madams and messieurs wish for a refreshing beverage?” she asks.

  She’s cute, and we all take menus from her. Things calm down as we order drinks and some small dishes. We wait while she fetches some glasses and a few bottles of Perrier. She pours out the Perrier and then goes to prepare the drinks and food.

  When she leaves, Leigha is staring down Merc.

  “What? You think I can tell you everything, just because…” he goes silent.

  “Merc, you knew that Noah was alive! You should have let Tinsley know!” she says, seething.

  “Noah ordered us to keep silent, Leigha,” he says quietly.

  “But, the SD Card!” she almost yells.

  “It was a plant so that we could find Lauren,” he says.

  Lauren? My aunt?

  “She’s dead,” I say, slowly.

  I stare at Merc. The bastard has a smirk on his face!

  “What do you know, Merc?” I snarl.

  Isaac shoots him a look. Merc stares at me, coldly. He looks between Leigha and me. He looks over a Levi, who is shaking his head from side to side, slowly.

  Isaac is tensed up, drumming his fingers on the table. He and Merc lock eyes for a moment, and Isaac turns to look out the window.

  “What?” I demand.

  “What do you know about Lauren?” I say, standing and almost knocking over a glass of water.

  Merc puts a hand on Isaac.

  “Let me tell him,” he says.

  “Tell me what?” I say, angrily.

  “Sit down, Evan,” he replies. Suddenly, my blood runs cold.

  Part III

  28

  Leigha

  January 28, 2019

  My mind is spinning with the realization that we are all just pawns in Noah’s game.

  I look out the window, trying to calm down, as the impact of what Levi is saying penetrates my skull.

  How could Noah do this to us all? His family?

  Just how could he have been with Elizabeth, and Olivia, knowing what they were doing with Lauren, the Duke, and Michael Bishop?

  My mind reels as I realize that he was probably responsible, in some small part, for the demise of my own father’s business! Was all of this him pulling our strings behind the scenes?

  To what end?

>   And, poor Tinsley! She doesn’t even know!

  I look at Merc.

  Suddenly, I begin to get angry.

  “You son of a bitch!” I yell and smack his shoulder hard.

  “Hey! What the hell, Leigha!” he says, shocked.

  There’s a look on his face, but I turn to Evan, and he’s frowning as well.

  “You bastard! If I were closer, I’d punch you in the face!” he snarls.

  I get up, forcing my way past Merc and Levi. Vic, Grace, and Isaac watch me as I run out of the room, but I would bet only Isaac has any hint as to my anger.

  I walk quickly down to a restroom, wiping my face of tears as I go, hoping to not run into anyone. I didn’t want to face Evan, not now. He was right about Merc.

  Merc is only out for himself!

  Noah’s ability to lead this double life underscores how easy it is for that kind of man to move unimpeded, regardless of who he hurts!

  Merc faked his death, for Christ’s sake!

  And, now that he’s back in my life, I realize the thing that Evan kept trying to tell me: Merc’s married to his work. He’ll lie, cheat and steal to make sure he is in the game. I pity the poor woman who falls hopelessly in love with that fucking bastard!

  In the washroom, I splash water on my face and breathe a sigh of relief that I can, at last, let him go. Any former fantasies about us can be pushed into the rubbish bin of the past, now.

  Merc is not the man he pretends to be, nor the man that I thought he was.

  Noah Stone - regardless of his charm, his power, and his influence - has an agenda that doesn’t include any of us! He probably has some grand scheme; maybe he thinks he’s saving the world.

  But, instead, he’s destroying the ones he loves one at a time…

  I sit on the toilet seat, sobbing quietly. With the door to the stall closed, I need a place to sit and think undisturbed.

  There is movement as the door to the restroom opens.

  I smell Cachet D’Oro. It’s a rich smell. I only know one woman who can pull off its intense fragrance. Suddenly, I pull my legs up, above the open bottom of the stall so that she cannot see there is anyone here.

  The door to the adjacent stall opens, and I hear the woman sit to relieve herself.