by Angi Morgan
Right?
With no concrete evidence, he had to play it by ear. Waiting to decide was a logical choice, not just an excuse to try to let it unfold Therese’s way. Then why did he feel guilty that he’d be stealing all of Therese’s glory?
They approached the gate and Wade took out his badge. The security guard turned out to be an excited kid.
“Evenin’,” Wade said, holding his ID up and purposely keeping his fingers over his name. “Mind if we visit our hangar?” Hell, he didn’t know if the Rangers had a hangar or not.
The kid pulled out a clipboard. “Not at all. I just need your names.” He looked up, pen in hand, ready to write.
“That’s the thing. It would be better if we didn’t leave the reporters anything to report.”
“But I might get into a lot of trouble.”
Wade dropped a hand on the kid’s shoulder. “I promise after this case breaks open to come back and update your log or talk with your supervisor. I’ll be sure to let him know how helpful you were.”
“Aw, man, that would be really nice of you. The hangar’s a long way. Do you want to borrow the golf cart?”
“You’re all right kid. Thanks,” the big guy answered.
“No problem. Here’s the key.” He took a lanyard from around his neck and held it out.
The big guy snatched it with his thick hands while Wade put his ID away. His two companions got on the front bench, leaving him to sit backward. The big guy took off, pedal to the floor.
“Slow down, Nico. Don’t draw attention to us,” the nerdy guy insisted.
“That was too easy.” What kind of a guard just handed everything over—even young inexperienced ones? “Yeah, way too easy,” Wade muttered.
“Just go with the flow, Hamilton.” Nico turned to look at him and forgot to steer, sending the cart—and them—swaying back and forth.
Bracing himself between the bars, Wade twisted around to look at the guard’s booth. Sure enough, the kid was on the phone, pointing in their direction. Good for you, kid. But no luck for him tonight.
“We need to ditch this cart.” He could see flashing lights from the opposite end of the airfield. “Ditch it now!”
Nico slammed the cart to a halt, drawing his weapon when his feet hit the ground.
“Put that thing away and get to the side of that hangar.”
They ran to the metal hangar wall, Nico pounding into it and making enough noise to wake the dead—or alert Love Field police—whichever happened first. The nerd panted like he’d run a marathon.
“Take care of those cops,” he huffed and puffed through his words, “while we do what we came to do.”
Wade couldn’t let these guys out of his sight. No way. He had to know what they were implementing with that laptop.
“No.” He turned and used both hands to grab the nerd by his shirt collar. “Tell me what you need.”
“I can’t.”
“You should have from the get-go and we wouldn’t be in this mess. Now what do you need? What are you trying to do?”
The lights were getting closer. The little man’s eyes darted back and forth under his glasses. Nico—the big guy who Wade owed a punch to the gut—tugged at Wade’s hands.
“All right. I need to test some software.”
“Give it to me. I can get in and out without the two of you slowing me down.”
“I... I can’t.”
“It’s either that or we all go to jail. You and Reval should have been upfront about this and I would have come up with a plan. A much better plan.” He released the man’s collar and backed up. “I should hand you over to the cops and maybe I can talk my way out of this mess.”
Nico chambered a round. He made a huge mistake by acting all tough guy and keeping it by Wade’s ear. Wade whipped his elbow into Nico’s gut, then as Reval’s gunman doubled over, Wade shoved a fist into the thug’s nose.
Nico dropped his weapon, grabbing his face and moaning.
“Sorry about that, tough guy, but I owed you one.” Wade quickly knelt and hid the gun in his boot. “Instructions. Fast. Then get lost. If you’re caught by the cops, it’s trespassing and Reval can bail you out.”
“You can’t do this,” the nerdy guy said as Wade pulled the laptop from his fingers. “You need my expertise.”
“Watch me. Now what do you need?”
With blood smeared across the side of his face, Nico had a recognizable look in his eyes—revenge. But he reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. Nerdy guy watched him, shaking his head from side to side, mumbling something about Wade being not only a cop but a stupid one.
Wade crumpled the paper into his palm and ran. He made it to the corner of the building before looking around. The police cars split in two directions. The men he’d walked through the gate with were nowhere in sight.
Squinting at the paper in the dark shadow of the building, he could see that it was a list for the morons he’d parted ways with. Beginning with meeting him at the west airport gate.
Nerdy guy didn’t seem to be the programmer. Wade wasn’t lucky—unless he didn’t get caught by the police currently circling around every building. He squatted at the corner and held the note in the edge of the light, barely making out Building Six.
Feeling like he was in a World War II POW movie, he avoided searchlights and the airport police. He finally made it to Building Six and parked himself between the recycling cans and some decorative bushes.
There was no way he had the algorithm on this laptop. The directions said nothing about any kind of attack or uploading any type of file. Waiting for the police searchlights to fade in the distance, he walked up to an unlocked door and went inside the dark office.
“Stay right where you are.”
“Don’t move.”
“Freeze!” Laughter. “You know I’ve always wanted to say that.”
Greeted by three familiar voices...music to his ears. Maybe his luck was holding after all.
Chapter Nineteen
Therese sat at the corner table with the other four women. Regulars came to the door, found it locked and would tap on the window close to her. She could only shrug and smile. She pretended to be just as clueless as to what was going on.
Rushdan had practically admitted that this was his alibi for whatever task he’d sent Wade to complete. So here she sat while he flipped the “special” phone Sal had brought to him. He hadn’t used it yet.
It looked like any other cell phone as he dropped it inside his jacket pocket. In fact it was identical to the one he took from another pocket. The special phone could be what he used to contact the programmer. She needed that phone.
“God, I’m hungry. Do you think we could order a pizza, Therese?” Julie Anne asked.
“I’d go in on that,” Rachel said.
Therese got up and wove through the empty tables to her boss. “Any chance we could order or have one of the guys pick us up a pizza from around the corner?”
With his back to her, she hadn’t noticed he was on the phone.
Rushdan turned on a dime and Therese couldn’t avoid the backhand that came along with it. She didn’t fake the painful moan that escaped before she had control. The staggering blow was meant to hurt and intimidate. He raised his hand to hit her again but she blocked it.
“I’m not telling you what I want done. If the cops get their grubby paws on that laptop, I’ll kill you myself.” Rushdan’s eyes were huge in his red, puffy face. He looked like he’d pop with the prick of a pin.
If only she had a pin.
Too late she realized that her arm still blocked his second blow. She wasn’t supposed to be quick or competent enough to accomplish that. Still rubbing her face where his hand had connected, she tried to drop her arm to her side. It was caught by one of the men she didn’t recognize.
>
“Why are you bothering me, Therese? What did you hope to gain besides irritating me?” Rushdan finally asked before putting his concentration back into his phone.
Therese yanked her arm free. “The girls need a restroom break. And if we’re just sitting there, is it okay to order a pizza?”
“I don’t have time for this! Your stupid boyfriend can’t complete one task I give him. First the money and now this! I expected something. But this is outrageous. Get him on the phone. Now. Immediately.”
Rushdan paced the length of the bar. Therese had never seen him frantic, ranting as he tossed his regular phone to one of the guys to dial. His plans must have gone wrong.
Her mind had been working on a way she could keep her cover if Wade stormed the bar and arrested everyone. He must have somehow stopped the attack. Why would Rushdan look so confused if everything had gone well?
Wade was willing to blow everything—including her cover—to bring down Rushdan. She had to be ready.
“Is there anything I can do to help?” she asked timidly while taking steps away from Rushdan.
“Get me a good shot of whiskey. The stuff that’s behind the bar is terrible.” It might be watered down, but Rushdan still finished what was in his tumbler.
“I’ll need to go in the back for the good stuff.”
Rushdan tossed his chin up, essentially giving her permission to walk around Sal. Therese tried to remain confident as she passed him in the narrow hallway that held the restrooms. But Sal stayed where he was as she entered the storeroom and secured the boss man’s whiskey.
Wait. If Rushdan knew she and Wade were undercover—wasn’t that the reason he was treating her this way? Then why would he be confused if Wade hadn’t completed his assignment? Good grief. Wade hadn’t thrown her assignment away...he’d completed it. That had to be the reason Rushdan was confused.
Wade had followed through.
She felt the outline of her phone in her trouser pocket and was tempted to call Wade. Tempted, but something didn’t feel right. Rushdan was out in the open, something he never did.
She abandoned the idea of phoning Wade, deciding to wait it out. Whatever was going on, her instincts told her it wasn’t the big “show.” So she’d concentrate on getting the girls pizza and keeping them safe. Keeping her fingers crossed that Wade hadn’t taken the easy arrest and would wait to get his revenge.
Bottle in hand, she reached behind the bar on her way past and grabbed a clean tumbler.
Rushdan was on the phone, looking into it like a video call. “Bring the laptop back to me, Hamilton, or I’m afraid Therese will...”
Rushdan pointed the phone at her. Sal stepped in front of Therese and threw a right punch into her stomach. The tumbler rolled free from her hand on one side as the whiskey bottle shattered on the other when she hit the floor.
“You son of a bitch, leave her alone!”
Wade? Not here. Just the phone. He was on the phone.
No acting necessary. She hadn’t seen the punch coming and sent a major shock through her body. Julie Anne rushed to her side, helping her into a chair. It took several seconds before she could breathe regularly again or talk.
It wasn’t the first time she’d been hit. And from the reactions of the other women, they’d all seen something like it before. It was her fault they were all here. So she was glad to see them retreat farther into the corner. They looked a little more relaxed knowing it was Therese who would take the beating.
Now she knew why they were there...to keep her in line. She may be a hostage he would threaten to kill. But she was the leverage to ensure Wade behaved correctly.
Covered in whiskey, she turned to Julie Anne, “Snag me a couple of clean towels from behind that post, please.”
Julie Anne did it in as small a way as possible. Therese didn’t blame her. Sal stood close by, ready to attack. Once the towels were in her hands, she waved the young woman back to sit with the others. Dabbing up the whiskey around her face and neck, she hid her eyes and took in where all the men were.
Rushdan pushed a drink into her hands. “This will help, my dear.”
She tried to fake some calm. She couldn’t, but who would? So she acted naturally and swallowed the cheaper whiskey he’d poured in one long gulp. Then she looked into the face of evil... Rushdan.
“I should have killed that tin star bastard when he showed back up last night. What made me think I could use him?” He paced a few seconds then looked directly at her. “Or you.”
Rushdan marched to her and backhanded her again. Her head snapped from right to left but this time she concentrated, keeping her breathing even. At least both cheeks would be equally red and swollen.
“Put her in the car,” Rushdan ordered, pulling a stack of cash from his money clip. “I’m sure the rest of you could use a couple of hundred in tips tonight to keep quiet.”
At least the women would be okay. Sal tried to jerk her up from the chair. She didn’t move. She took deep breaths, controlling the urge to rub the sting away. But it was more than just defiance. She needed to hear everything Rushdan said.
She couldn’t do that from the car.
Had Wade called Rushdan or had it been the other way around? She forced herself to think. Right. Rushdan had been screaming for someone to get Wade on the phone. What had happened in those precious minutes she’d been thinking in the storeroom? “I said put her in the car.” Rushdan seemed to have control of his voice again.
Sal shrugged as she jerked her elbow from his grasp.
“I can walk all by myself. I’ve been doing it for years. Even in heels.” She stood, catching her hip on the nearby table, but keeping the “ouch” all to herself.
Sal walked closely behind her. She could see him in the bar mirror. Rushdan finished paying the women and hurried them out the front door. None of them picked up their purses from the top of the bar.
Therese raised a finger, trying to catch them, but couldn’t say anything. It was hard just putting one foot in front of the other. Each upright step was a major accomplishment. Okay, maybe she was a bit more loopy from the gut punch or that shot of whiskey than she originally thought.
Before she made it to the hallway, Rushdan latched on to her elbow, pulling her to a stop. Her heels were slick on the floor as he spun her around.
“Feeling a bit tipsy, Therese?” he laughed.
She tried to nod, but her vision went a little wonky with a lot of blinking, before the world turned completely black. Wade wouldn’t be storming the place coming to her rescue.
But the night was young.
* * *
“CAN’T YOU GO any faster?” Wade asked, knowing it was the fifth or sixth time since he’d seen Therese get punched.
“Creating a fake that looks as good as the real thing isn’t as easy as I make it seem.” The FBI computer specialist returned to clicking away at his keyboard on the other side of the office.
Jack dropped a hand on Wade’s shoulder. “I know this is tough, but he’s doing the best he can.”
“He said I had an hour. I need over half that long to get to that address.”
“Reval isn’t going to hurt her.” Jack grimaced. They all knew she’d been hurt with that punch.
“You’re right.” Wade continued to stare at his phone, watching the estimated arrival time change on his map app. “He’s got guys to do it for him.”
“Thinking like that is going to get in your way,” Heath said, leaning back in a desk chair in the corner. “I can tell you that from recent experience.”
“I think we all can,” Slate added.
Wade put the phone in his back pocket. Reval wouldn’t call him again. He probably wouldn’t hurt Therese. Or have Sal touch her. At least not until Wade arrived with the damn laptop.
Then he might kill them both.
Heath was right.
Thinking like this was messing with his mind, his training and any plans that needed to be made to ensure he and Therese weren’t killed.
“Look, guys. I appreciate that you’re here supporting me. But is it necessary for all of you to hang around?”
“You’re just lucky Major Clements was required to hang back at the task force headquarters. Talk about impatience. He’d be wondering why all of this wasn’t done in advance.” They all laughed at Jack’s observation.
“I got to ask you guys.” Wade looked at his three best friends in the world. “What would you have done if those other two clowns had shown up?”
“Arrested them,” they said in unison.
His friends and partners all nodded their heads and stopped talking. Arms crossed, each leaning on something, all more worried than they were letting on. He didn’t want to be dramatic, but none of the cases any of them had worked on were as important as this. He wouldn’t say it aloud, but they all knew it.
The “show,” as potential buyers on the dark web had been referring to it, had the potential to be another 9/11. Therese hadn’t been exaggerating. She’d been right about its importance, but wrong that she wasn’t a part of the team. There was a huge team of people working on this.
This team. His team.
That was why these men were all here for him. Waiting with him. Keeping him sane.
“Maybe you should go over what the task force has come up with one more time,” Heath said, breaking the silence.
“I got it,” Wade told him.
“It can’t hurt. Remember, Heath couldn’t recall which one of us he’d sent to find his daughter,” Slate reminded them.
“It can’t hurt.” Jack slapped Wade’s back again. “When the specialist over there is finished, you’ll have a fake schedule for the private airplanes arriving at Love Field and the surrounding smaller airports. Reval just clued us in on his buyers and their arrival times.”