“I knew it! That’s the real reason you’re having problems with Mason,” she says, laughing.
“We’re not really having problems. Just small stuff.”
“He proposed to you, and you said no. That’s not small stuff. And I believe that’s two guys who have made that mistake. Or am I forgetting someone?”
“You’re not forgetting anyone, smart-ass,” I say, flicking her on the shoulder. “And the two situations are completely different. The first was a definite no. This one is a—not now, but maybe later.”
“I’m sure that made Mason feel so much better about it,” she says, rolling her eyes. “And you cannot tell me if Alex hadn’t been transferred to Moscow, you wouldn’t be married to him right now and raising your gorgeous-ass babies.”
I shrug. “I guess we’ll never know.”
She pulls me to the side before we go into the building.
“I got a call from the director’s office,” she whispers. “They said you requested me on a mission to Iraq. I’m supposed to be briefed this afternoon. What’s going on?”
“Let’s talk about it after this meeting. It’s about my dad. I need you to work on a recon mission with his friend Chase. You met him a few months ago when we got back from Bosnia.”
She looks at me warily, but nods. We start back toward the situation room.
“So what’s my new team like?” I say as we arrive at the door. “Which team did I get?”
She frowns. “What do you mean, your ‘new team’?”
“I asked Culver to assign me a new team, so I wouldn’t have to work with Mason. Who’s my new team leader? Do I know him?”
She laughs and shakes her head. “Yeah. You know him.”
She punches in the security code and swings the door open. “You know what they say—everything old is new again.”
As I walk through the door, I see Mason leaning against the wall—arms crossed defiantly in front of him—staring at me. He doesn’t smile. He doesn’t nod. He just glares at me with a look that could melt paint right off the wall.
“Hail. Hail. The gang’s all here.” Coming from the corner of the room, I hear a Southern drawl so deep it has to be Butch. I turn toward the corner to see him grinning at me. “And I guess you thought you were rid of us. Surprise. Surprise.”
I look around the room to see Mason’s old team all staring at me with varying degrees of disdain and delight on their faces. They’re all here—JJ, Bryce, Hawk, Ty, Mouse. JJ is glaring at me. I’m guessing he knows about my request to waive their team off this mission, which of course means Mason knows.
Captain Culver walks over to me. “Agent Marsh. Glad to have you back.”
“Captain,” I say quietly. “From the look on Mason’s face, I’m guessing you told him about my request.”
“I’m guessing I did.”
“And do we really think that was necessary?”
“Yes we do. As I’ve told you before, my teams need to know everything before they take on a mission.”
“I believe I asked you not to assign this team to this mission.”
“You know I’ve always thought—over my thirty-plus years of doing this job—there was something missing from my decision-making process,” he says, pausing dramatically. “I’m so glad to finally realize that it was getting Millie Marsh’s approval.”
“Funny. Seriously. You missed your calling as a comedian,” I say as I glance back over at Mason. “And I didn’t say you needed my approval. I was asking you for a favor.”
“And your favor has been denied. He’s the best person for this mission. His team is the best. Stay in your lane, Agent Marsh.”
“All righty then,” I say as I start to walk away.
He grabs my shoulder and turns me back around. “Millie, Chase told me what’s happening. I was there that day, too. Mack isn’t alive. I want him to be for you—for all of us. He’s not, though. I’m so sorry, but he’s not.”
I stare at him blankly for a minute, but then nod. He pats me on the shoulder as he walks away. I look back to Mason, who hasn’t moved a muscle. As discreetly as possible, I make my way across the room to him. He doesn’t make any attempt at civility.
“Hey,” I say quietly.
He shakes his head in disgust. I stare back at him for a second, but as always, I know I’m not going to win a staring contest with him, so I try again. “Are you going to talk to me?”
“Yeah, I’ll talk to you. How about this?” he hisses. “What the fuck, Millie? Were you going to tell me about this? Or are we back to you hiding secrets from me? That worked out so well last time. You told Culver not to let my team cover this? That’s too fucking far, Millie. Way too far.”
I keep my voice low and calm, trying to stay professional. “Don’t you think this is a conflict of interest? Your team covering me on this.”
“It’s a huge conflict of interest, which is how I know you’re going to get back here safely,” he says, the anger pouring out of his mouth. “You want to lie to me? That’s up to you. But if you’re going to do this ludicrous thing, I’m going with you. Not a chance in hell I’m letting someone else be responsible after what happened last time.”
“This kind of emotion is what I’m talking about. You’re not being objective. That’s the reason I wanted someone else.”
“What did you say to me?” He uncrosses his arms and pushes himself off the wall. He gets inches from my face. “Did you say I’m too emotional to do my job?”
“That’s not what I said,” I say quickly.
“That’s exactly what you said. You worry about your job. I’ll take care of mine.”
He takes a seat next to JJ at the table. They both stare at me—arms folded, eyes cold and hard. I’m trying to figure out how I’m going to fix this when I hear an enthusiastic “My girl Millie!” coming from the direction of the door. The voice sounds unsettlingly familiar—like a part of my past suddenly slapping me in the face. I look over to see my ex-boyfriend Alex walking over to me—his arms spread as wide as his smile.
Before I can even register what’s happening, Alex surrounds me in a bear hug, burying my face against his chest. He holds me there for what is way too long to be professional. I’m so confused, I don’t have the power to pull away. Finally he loosens his grip and pushes me back a little bit.
“Damn, girl, I don’t look that much older, do I?” He smiles widely again with that gleaming white, perfectly straight grin that hypnotized me for most of my first year at the agency.
“What are you doing here?” I’ve finally found my voice. I take a few steps back from him.
“What do you mean? I’m here to work the op with you,” he says, laughing. “Didn’t George tell you?”
I look at Raine, who puts her hands up defensively and quickly walks away.
“No. He definitely didn’t tell me you were part of this op.”
“Well, I’m not just part of this op—I’m undercover as your husband,” he says, grinning. “Perfect person for the job. Don’t you think?”
Chapter Twenty
Mason
Virginia Beach, Virginia
2020
I take my seat at the table just as the door opens and some guy I’ve never seen walks in. He’s dressed head to toe in black—black jeans, black button-up, black tailored jacket. He takes off his aviators and hangs them on his shirt as his eyes dart around the room. He seems to have found his target. I direct my eyes to where he’s looking just as he says, “My girl Millie!”
The tone is way too flirty to be directed at her by anyone but me. I knew I didn’t like him the second he walked in, and now I really don’t like him. He walks over to Millie and pulls her into a hug. Millie doesn’t make any effort to pull away. My body instinctively starts to rise. JJ puts his arm in front of me, blocking me from moving. I settle uncomfortably bac
k into my seat, but my eyes don’t budge off them. His hands are still on Millie’s shoulders, and he’s smiling at her with some bullshit fraternity-boy smile.
“Damn, girl. I don’t look that much older, do I?” He tousles her hair playfully as he takes a step back. After all these years, I’m finally starting to understand why they don’t allow us to bring loaded weapons into this room.
Culver walks over to me. “His name is Alex Laskin. He’s the lead agent on this mission. He’s the new head of Middle Eastern operations. Not sure how he knows Millie.”
I nod as I tune back into their conversation just in time to hear Alex say, “Well I’m not just part of this op—I’m undercover as your husband. Perfect person for the job. Don’t you think?”
“What the fuck does that mean?” I say under my breath. JJ’s arm starts to rise again. I shove it away.
“I know you’re probably a little nervous about your first field assignment,” Alex says, taking Millie’s arm to lead her over to two open chairs opposite of us. “But don’t worry, I’ll teach you everything you need to know.”
As he puts his hand intimately on the small of her back, I stand up quickly, pushing my chair hard against the back wall. Hawk slides in front of me. “He’s going to teach her how to be a field agent, not all the positions of the Karma Sutra. Settle down.”
Butch rolls my chair back behind me, letting it hit the back of my knees as he tries to push my shoulders down. “I’m guessing Mason already taught her most of those positions. From what I hear, y’all been going at it like rabbits out there in San Diego.”
“Shut up, Butch.” I sit down, my eyes still firmly fixed across the room.
“Man, you have been gone too long if you think you can shut him up.” Hawk laughs from behind me.
“Everybody settle in,” Culver says as he walks to the front of the room. “I want to introduce you to Alex Laskin, who will be running point on this mission for the agency. He’s been on the job for close to two decades—most of that in the field. He’s been the head of the agency’s Middle Eastern operations for a few months now. I’ll let him fill you in on the rest.”
Alex pushes his chair back and extends his legs out in front of him, like he’s getting in a comfortable position to watch a football game. His entire posture pisses me off.
“Thanks, Captain,” he starts. “I’ll get right to it. Our target is Azayiz Custovic. She’s a native of Pakistan, but also has Bosnian citizenship through marriage. She’s been a CIA operative since 1995. She has been under our protective custody since 2011. She recently went missing from her safe house in Islamabad.”
“What does ‘missing’ mean? Was she taken? Or did she leave on her own?” Bryce asks.
“Undetermined,” Alex says. “There were no signs of struggle, but we can’t think of a reason she would leave without telling us.”
“Why was she under protective custody?” Ty asks.
“She’s been informing on the Custovic/Hadzic network from day one. Her son, Fareed, was part of that network. We think he was feeding her information. She instantly became a target of the network—particularly of Yusef Hadzic. He’s dead now, but he passed the information on to his associates over the years. Azayiz is one of the most-wanted people throughout the terrorist networks.”
“Why would she run now? What’s changed? Did someone in the agency give away her location?” I ask, glaring at him. I can definitely see this douche being a double agent.
“Absolutely not.” He spins around to face me. “No one gave up her location.”
“It’s essential to find out if she was kidnapped or left on her own. If she was taken by a terrorist group, she’s probably dead. Have you had any ransom demands? Have there been any videos?” Culver says.
“Because we haven’t had any of that, we think she’s still alive,” Alex says. “We’re leaning toward her leaving on her own.”
“Do we have any intel on where she might run to?” Butch asks.
“Limited,” Alex says. “She has contacts all over Islamabad and Peshawar, where she was born. We’re working those sources.”
“So why are we going over now?” JJ says.
“Bluntly, our new strategy is to use Agent Marsh as bait. Azayiz is her great-aunt,” Alex says as he puts his hand on her shoulder. It’s way too intimate. I want to knock his hand off her shoulder and then knock his head clear off his body. “When Sayid Custovic died, we found a wealth of journals he kept throughout his life. Those journals lead us to believe Azayiz was particularly close to Agent Marsh’s mother, Nejra. And that she was likely responsible for helping Agent Marsh’s father locate Millie after her mother died.”
“So the plan’s to dangle Millie out as bait to get this woman to come out of hiding?” Butch says. “How exactly is that going to work?”
“Agent Marsh and I are getting married,” Alex says, smiling broadly.
“You’re doing what now?” I say, the anger rising in my voice.
“Fake married, of course.” He smiles down at Millie, who I notice is not returning the smile. “Part of my job as the new head of Middle Eastern operations is to improve relations with the Pakistan government. I’ve been spending a lot of time there. I let it drop that I was getting married. They invited me to bring my wife to stay at the beautiful Serena Hotel in Islamabad. It’s the perfect place for us to be right now. Azayiz worked at the hotel spa before we took her under protective custody. She still has a lot of contacts there. The news will get back to her that Nejra’s daughter is in town on her honeymoon. We expect she’ll move heaven and earth for a chance to see Millie.”
“Honeymoon in Islamabad,” Hawk says, shaking his head. “Bold choice.”
“When did we decide this strategy?” All eyes—including mine—turn to Millie. Her tone is even enough to fool most of the room, but I’m definitely hearing the edge she gets when she’s about to lose it on someone.
Alex turns toward her. “Did you and George not talk about this assignment? I was assuming he told you everything.”
“We definitely talked,” she says slowly. “But I’m pretty sure he left out the part about me acting as an undercover bride.”
“It’s a good cover, Millie. Trust me on that. I’ve been doing this for a while. It’s solid.” Alex smiles at her uneasily. From the look on his face, I’m guessing he picked up on the edge in her voice, too. I’m not sure if that makes me feel better or worse.
“It might be a good plan if she left on her own. That remains to be seen,” Millie says. “But if she was taken, me being there will be of absolutely no consequence to anyone. Unless you want to swap me for her.”
Alex laughs until he sees the look on Millie’s face. “No one is swapping anyone.”
“Because after what I did to their network earlier this year,” she continues, “I’m sure I’d be an attractive capture for them.”
“Millie, we don’t think the broader network even knows you were in on that takedown—even knows who you are. No one walked out of that house alive,” Alex says. “You’ll be fine. We’re not going to let anything happen to you.”
“No, we’re not. We won’t let anyone get near her,” I say, quickly adding. “Or you.”
Alex turns and looks at me. “Master Chief, you’re not on this mission as our bodyguards. We’ll be fine. We know how to protect ourselves. You’re coming along to rescue Azayiz once we find her.”
“We can do both,” I say, locking my eyes with his.
“No. You really can’t,” he says as he starts to walk over to me. “We can’t have you close to us in the hotel, or you’ll blow our cover.”
“Our mission is always to protect our assets in a hostile country—in addition to whatever other elements are added,” I say. “We’re great multitaskers.”
“The government of Pakistan provides protection for me, and we also have the hotel s
ecurity. Your team will stay at the embassy until Azayiz’s location is determined. Then we’ll call you in,” he says.
“My team,” I say slowly, “is going to be in the hotel with you. My mission. My call. End of discussion.”
He closes the distance between us, still smiling that bullshit smile. “Our mission. Together. If you’re in the hotel, you’ll blow our cover. You will put us more at risk than if you stay at the embassy. It’s only ten minutes away if we need you. Your job is to secure the HVT once identified, not to act as our cover.”
Culver starts to say something, but stops when Millie says, “No, Alex. No. Part of the team is in the hotel with us. They’re covert special operators. They know how to stay hidden. They won’t blow anything. And I would feel better if they’re ten seconds from us instead of ten minutes. They can be cover for us and still secure the target.”
“Millie, you’re more than capable of defending yourself and I will protect you if you need backup. This isn’t your call,” Alex says as he walks back toward her. I want to kill him so badly right now.
“It is my call,” she says. “All of this is my call. If you want to use me as bait to catch my great-aunt, then we’re going to do it how I want it done. If not, you can find someone else. I’ll leave right now and fly back to San Diego. I’ve never wanted to be a part of this.”
Alex looks from Millie to me. “One of them can stay in the hotel on a different floor.”
“Same floor. Adjoining room. As many as they think is necessary. Their call. Not ours,” Millie says.
He turns back around to look at her. “Millie.”
Culver steps between them. “Agent Laskin, I know this is your first time working with us directly, so just to update you on protocol, we are solely responsible for how we man a mission. We appreciate your input, but we will decide how to proceed. I agree with Agent Marsh. We will have a few of our operators in an adjoining room. They’ll stay out of your way unless you need them.”
Alex takes a deep breath as he heads to the computer at the head table. He flips a few pictures up on the screen. “This is the last picture we have of Azayiz, and this man is her son, Fareed.”
The Only Reason: A Novel (Trident Trilogy: Book Two) Page 10