Next Exit, Quarter Mile

by CW Browning

  Alina couldn't seem to form a coherent thought as he slid the hoodie off her shoulders and it dropped, unheeded, to the kitchen floor. All she wanted was to get closer to him and forget everything except him for as much time as they had together.

  She was in the process of sliding her hands under his shirt to pull it off when his cell phone broke through the haze of heavy breathing. Alina felt it vibrating in his pocket as the strident noise of the ring tone pulled her back to reality.

  “Ignore it,” Damon rasped as she started to pull away.

  He searched out her lips again, claiming them again firmly with little protest from her. However, the phone continued to ring, and she finally pulled away again.

  “You'd better get it,” she said breathlessly.

  “It can wait.”

  Damon lifted her up effortlessly, capturing her lips again as he backed her up to sit on the counter. A minute later, his shirt came off over his head and Alina wrapped her legs around him, sliding her hands over his broad shoulders. The blood pounded in her ears and her mind drained of thought once again, the cell phone forgotten. All that existed was Damon's lips on hers and the warmth of his skin against hers. He was right. The phone could wait.

  Everything could wait.

  Alina stretched languidly and watched as Damon pulled his shirt over his head. He turned to look down at her. She was lying on the couch, relaxed and loathe to move.

  “You're seeping,” he murmured, his eyes going to the bandage on her arm.

  Alina glanced down at her arm.

  “You have such romantic pillow talk,” she murmured, raising her eyes to his.

  Damon laughed ruefully.

  “I'll work on it,” he promised with a wink. “In the meantime, I'll go get a new bandage.”

  Alina nodded and watched him go, then stretched again. A warm feeling of contentment washed over her and she sighed. This new relationship of theirs was getting more and more complicated. They were in unfamiliar territory, she and Hawk, and she wasn't sure how they were going to make this work. Alina sat up and reached for her clothes. She knew one thing, though: neither of them could walk away now. That much was very clear.

  When Damon returned a few minutes later with the toolbox that housed her first-aid supplies, she was dressed and sipping a bottle of water, seated at the bar. He set the box down and opened it, pulling out a new bandage.

  “It was Harry who called earlier,” he said, ripping open the sterile package.

  “Really?” Alina gingerly pulled the old bandage off her arm. “What did he want?”

  “I don't know. I'll call him from the car.”

  Damon leaned closer to look at the wounds on her arm. He gently turned her arm, examining both the entry and exit points. She watched him examining her arm and felt a grin pulling at her lips. He'd managed to get a look at it after all.

  “I don't think it needs cleaning. I'll just replace the bandage,” he said after a moment. “You're right. It's not bad.”

  “I don't know if I'd tell Harry very much,” Alina said slowly as he turned to pull the fresh bandage out of the package.

  Damon glanced at her, his cobalt eyes questioning.

  “What are you thinking?” he asked, placing the bandage on her arm.

  She held it in place while he turned to get the tape.

  “I don't really know,” she admitted, watching as he pulled some tape out and ripped it off with his teeth. “I'm concerned about Charlie's leak and how far it goes. It's bad enough that I'm compromised. I don't want you getting tangled up in it too.”

  Damon raised an eyebrow and looked at her, amused.

  “I'm already tangled up in it,” he pointed out, taping down one side of the bandage before reaching for more tape. “Tangled up with you too,” he added with a wink. “Besides, Harry already knows I'm here.”

  “Yes, but he doesn't know where, exactly.”

  Hawk frowned and stared at her for a beat.

  “You're really worried about this mystery man in Washington, aren't you?” he asked.

  Viper raised troubled eyes to his.

  “Until I can figure out what the hell is going on, yes,” she answered bluntly. “I think we need to be very careful. We're not on friendly soil, as much as we should be.”

  Damon taped down another side of the bandage, his lips pressed together grimly.

  “That's true enough,” he agreed. “Have you heard anything more about Charlie's leak?”

  “Only that he's getting close.”

  “And when he finds it?”

  “They're mine.”

  The edge in Viper's voice made Hawk glance at her sharply. He kept any comment he wanted to make to himself, however, and pulled off another piece of tape.

  “I'll take care of Harry,” he said. “But what about you? Once you start moving on Asad, your location will be easier to tag.”

  “I've already considered that,” she assured him. “I'll be fine.”

  “Fine like you were when you were getting shot?” Damon asked pointedly, taping the last side down on the bandage and looking at her face. “Who was it who shot you, anyway?”

  “A professional,” Alina replied, testing the bandage by rotating her arm in a large circle. “It was a team, probably hired by the mystery man in Washington. At the time, I wasn't sure if they were hired by Asad, but the more I think about it, the more I think we were right in the very beginning. Asad is just a pawn.”

  “That's one hell of a pawn,” Hawk muttered, replacing the tape in the toolbox and closing it. “Well, we knew someone was pulling the strings. Now, we have confirmation that it's someone in Washington.”

  “And that it may go back as much as twelve years,” Viper said softly.

  Damon looked at her, his blue eyes meeting hers.

  “You're thinking it might be someone in Harry or Charlie's class,” he stated rather than asked. “It's possible.”

  “Whoever it is has the ability to send someone like us to tie up loose ends,” she replied. “Not a very common method of clean-up.”

  Hawk was silent for a moment, watching her.

  “It might have been merciful that they did. John wouldn't have known anything was happening,” he said after a long moment. “It would have been quick. Any other kind of hitter and it might have gotten messy.”

  Viper looked at him, her mask firmly in place.

  “The point is not many people have access to people with our...skill set.”

  “Oh, I know what your point is, and it's an obvious one,” Damon informed her. “I'm just ignoring it for the moment. Lina, you're going to have to face it sooner or later. You can't keep avoiding the fact that you're going to experience some kind of feeling of loss. John was part of your past, part of what made you who you are now. You can't just ignore it.”

  Viper's eyes flashed and he leaned forward to press his fingers against her lips lightly.

  “And before you get snarky, let me also say I would do the same thing if it were me,” he told her, his voice low and firm. “We're trained to keep moving; we don't stop for anything. But if you don't face this now, it's going to eat away at you and impair your judgment later. Now, that's a fact, and we can't afford that.”

  He removed his fingers from her lips and straightened up, his point made.

  Alina stared him for a long minute, feeling hot then cold as emotions she had forgotten existed clamored for attention inside her. He was right, of course. She had been pushing aside the feelings of anger and sorrow and loss for two days, focusing instead on moving toward getting Asad. The hollow feeling settled deep in the pit of her stomach was ruthlessly disregarded every day. It was the only thing reminding her this wasn't a nightmare, but reality.

  “I'm not avoiding it,” she finally said slowly. “Not entirely. I'm just putting it on the back burner for now. Asad is my priority. He has to come first.”

  Hawk nodded, his eyes on hers.

  “OK,” he agreed. “I'm holding you to that. Asa
d first, then you.”

  Alina nodded and stood, never taking her eyes from his.

  “Are you sure you want to be around for that? It won't be pretty.”

  Damon put his arms around her, pulling her against him. His warmth surrounded her and Alina felt some of the tension ebb out of her.

  “There's nowhere else I'd rather be.”

  “You know I was joking about asking the Black Widow if she tortured Tito, right?” Blake demanded, pulling up behind Stephanie's Mustang. “I really don't think it's a good idea to go ask her.”

  “I'm not going to ask her,” Stephanie retorted, reaching for the door handle. “I'm just going to give her the information and see what she says.”

  Blake watched as she opened the door and got out, grabbing her purse.

  “I guess you know her best,” he said, shaking his head. “I still don't see why you won't come with me to the office. You're not banned, you're just on LOA.”

  “Thanks, but no thanks,” she replied before slamming the door. She circled around the Challenger to the driver side and glanced down as he rolled the window down. “I'm not ready to face people yet.”

  Blake looked up at her, his brown eyes understanding.

  “I get it, but you'll have to face them eventually. At least right now, you have me for moral support.”

  Stephanie smiled sadly.

  “I appreciate that, Blake,” she said. “Lina was right. You're good people.”

  Blake's eyebrows soared into his forehead and his eyes widened in surprise.

  “She said that?”

  “Mmm.” Stephanie turned toward her car. “I told you. She likes you.”

  “Then let me come with you,” he said with a grin. “What's she going to do? Shoot me?”

  Stephanie glanced back at him, an answering grin on her lips.

  “Let's not find out. I like you the way you are, without any added holes.”

  Blake laughed and rolled the window up, watching as she got into her car. He waited until she started the engine before pulling away, rolling out of the parking lot and turning toward the highway.

  Stephanie backed out of her spot and watched as Blake disappeared around the corner, heading to the office in the city. He had some things to take care of at work and Rob offered him the use of their office. Rob would be there, and probably Matt, but no one else. It would have been a good time to go clean out John's desk, the task she had been studiously avoiding for two days. However, the very thought of going through his desk and personal items filled her with an overwhelming sense of panic and grief so strong she could barely take a breath. She couldn't do it. Not yet.

  Stephanie pulled out of her lot and turned left, her eyes suddenly swimming with tears. She knew John's body was in their ME Larry's care. He was performing an autopsy to confirm it was natural causes that caused John's death. Rob hadn't updated her yet today, but Stephanie expected Larry to release John to his parents by the end of the weekend. She took a deep, shuddering breath and stopped at a red light, brushing away the tears spilling from her eyes with a shaking hand.

  “God, I don't want to say goodbye,” she whispered in a choked voice.

  The light turned green and she took another deep breath, pressing the gas. Lacerations and electrical burns all over his left side? Tito had gotten off lightly.

  Stephanie's lips tightened and her hands gripped the wheel. Blake was right. She was too close. When it came time to apprehend him, Stephanie wasn't sure she could trust herself to detain Tito without adding a few lacerations of her own. Thank God Blake was there. He just might end up saving her from getting herself suspended, or worse.

  Viper glanced up at the plasma above the fireplace. The front quadrant of her security perimeter was flashing. She set down the long barrel of her rifle with a frown. Hawk was on his way to DC, following Dominic. Who else would be coming to see her? She watched the flashing quadrant, then sighed as a maroon Mustang pulled into the long dirt driveway from the road.

  “Twice in one day, Steph?” she muttered.

  Alina quickly gathered the pieces of her rife and placed them back in the cushioned slots in the case. She had just finished cleaning it, ensuring that it was ready. However, there was no reason for Stephanie to see the tools of her trade spread out like instruments on a tray at the dentist. She was funny enough already about what Alina did for a living.

  She snapped the case closed, sliding it under the couch and out of sight before standing and gathering up the soft cloths and brushes from the coffee table. Turning, she carried them into the kitchen and stored them away in a drawer. When Stephanie pulled into the back and killed the engine, Alina was waiting for her on the deck.

  “Sorry I didn't call,” Stephanie said, crossing the grass to the deck. “I didn't think to until I was already pulling in the drive.”

  “Is everything OK?” Alina asked.

  “Relatively speaking, I suppose so,” Stephanie answered, joining her on the deck. “Blake had to go to the office and I have some updates for you, so I thought I'd come here while he does what he has to there.”

  Alina studied her silently for a moment, then turned toward the sliding door.

  “Come on in,” she said over her shoulder. “I'll make you some coffee. You look like you need it.”

  Stephanie followed her into the house, sliding the door closed behind her. She glanced outside and caught sight of Raven perched on top of the garage, watching.

  “Your bird is on the garage,” she announced.

  “He saw you coming,” Alina replied, heading into the kitchen. “He keeps a close eye on the house.”

  “He's better than a guard dog, isn't he?”

  Stephanie walked over to the bar and set her purse down, sliding onto a stool.

  “He seems to think so.” Alina pulled out a mug and put it under the spout of the machine before turning to the fridge to pull out milk for her friend. “Did you get the trackers where you wanted them?”

  Stephanie watched as Alina set the milk on the bar and turned back to the coffee maker.

  “Yes. We found one of the drivers. His name is Ricardo,” she answered. “I put one on his car this morning, and the other one went onto Tito's Camaro this afternoon.”

  Alina glanced at her, her face expressionless.

  “Tito's?” she repeated. “If you have a driver, why bother with him?”

  “Tito's the one leading the meet tomorrow morning,” Stephanie told her. “I wasn't about to put all my faith in one driver. What if he bails out last minute? I know Tito will be there, come hell or high water.”

  “True enough,” Alina murmured, pulling out the mug of steaming coffee and carrying it over to the bar. “Don't water that down too much with milk. You need the caffeine.”

  “How do you know?” Stephanie demanded, reaching for the milk.

  “Because you look shell-shocked,” she answered bluntly.

  Stephanie let out a short laugh.

  “I feel shell-shocked,” she admitted. “Things are getting weird.”

  “How so?”

  “We went to the track to put the tracker on Tito's car, but he was leaving,” Stephanie said, sipping her coffee. “He passed us on the road.”

  “Good timing,” Alina murmured, leaning on the bar and crossing her arms over her chest. “Where did he go?”

  “That's the weird part. We followed him to an Urgent Care.”

  Alina raised an eyebrow.

  “Is that so?”

  Stephanie glanced up and found herself staring at the mask Alina wore so well.

  “Yes. While Blake went in to see what he could find out, I got the tracker onto his car,” she said. “Those things are surprisingly easy to attach. The ones we use in the Bureau are a pain in the ass.”

  Alina's lips twitched.

  “I only use the best, and I customize.”

  “Someday, you have to show me some secrets,” Stephanie decided, taking another sip of coffee.

  “And hav
e you cross over to the Dark Side?” Alina grinned. “You wouldn't like it. There are no laws here.”

  Stephanie glowered at her.

  “You make me sound like a stuffed shirt.”

  “No, you just work within different boundaries than I do,” Alina replied with a shrug. “That's not a bad thing.”

  She turned toward the fridge to get a bottle of water.

  “Don't you want to know why Tito was in the Urgent Care?” Stephanie asked.

  “I assumed you were going to tell me eventually,” she said, pulling out a cold bottle of water and coming over to sit next to her at the bar. “Why?”

  “He's got lacerations all over his arm and torso,” Stephanie told her. “What do you think about that?”

  “That he got careless with some repairs?”

  Stephanie glanced at her.

  “He also has electrical burns.”

  Alina stared at her and her lips twitched.

  “Electrical burns?” she repeated.

  “Yes, also over his arm and torso.”

  “Sounds like someone got carried away with a fetish,” Alina said, sipping her water. “Was there a woman with him?”

  Stephanie choked on her coffee.

  “No!” she exclaimed. “Oh my God, you don't really think that's what happened, do you?”

  Alina looked at her, amused.

  “Do you have another explanation?” she asked politely.

  Stephanie flushed a dull red.

  “Actually, we thought maybe someone tortured him,” she admitted.

  Alina's eyebrow soared into her forehead.

  “Way to jump right to the blood-thirsty option. As much as you may want to cause him extreme pain, torture is not usually a common reason behind Urgent Care visits.”

  Stephanie looked at her.

  “Do you blame us?” she demanded. “Last fall, we had body parts showing up all over Mt. Holly! That's hardly a common occurrence either.”

  Alina grinned.

  “Point taken,” she agreed. “However, I think it's reaching where Tito is concerned. He probably got carried away with a woman and things got out of hand. It happens more than you'd think.”