The monitor held an image of a brunette with long, dark hair draped over one shoulder. The woman smirked. “It’s good to see you again, Ward.”
Abigail clenched her fist.
“What do you want?” Jonathan growled.
“You know what I want. The Athena file. Plain and simple as that.” She dropped her gaze as she toyed with the ends of her hair. Then she raised it, and the slate blue color radiated malice. “You put us in a hurt locker when you escaped from Frisco.”
“Good.”
“Maybe for you. Not so much for others. Kyra, say hello to your brother and his friends.” Nicole shifted to the side, revealing David’s sister—and evidence she’d been beaten.
“Kyra!” David’s cry filled the study.
“Yes, Shepherd. I’m no fool.” Nicole smirked. “I knew we were in a pinch. So here’s the deal, Ward. You get me that file.”
Jonathan shook his head. “It’s not that easy. You know that. Matter of fact, it’s going to be impossible to—”
“Impossible? Really? Kyra, did you hear that?” Nicole draped her arm around Kyra’s shoulders as if they’d been sorority sisters in college. “Ward doesn’t care enough about his best friend’s sister to move heaven and earth to get the file. What a shame.” She pressed the muzzle of a pistol against Kyra’s temple. “Maybe you need a bit more motivation, Ward.”
Kyra whimpered.
“Guess what? You’ve got a source of help standing right there. Abigail, help your brother. You’ve got until Tuesday to be out here in Burning Tree. Ward, it’s you and a drive with the file on it for her. And come alone. No cops or Feds, got it? I’ll call you back with more directions on Sunday.” The screen went blank.
Abigail’s gaze shifted from her brother to David.
Veins bulged in David’s neck, and his face reddened. With a guttural cry, he swiped everything from the top of Jonathan’s desk, including the five dollars’ worth of pennies in the margarita glass. They crashed to the floor and rolled everywhere. He reared back to kick the wall.
“David, no!” She rushed to him and gripped his arms.
His muscles rippled underneath her fingers as he struggled.
“Please,” she softly begged. She tightened her grip and wondered if she could physically wrestle him to the floor if she had to. She stared at her brother.
Jonathan rested his elbows on the now-clear part of his desk. His fingers clenched his hair. “I don’t believe it.”
“Well, believe it.” That came out as a growl from David. “You heard her. We’ve got to get that drive.” He took a menacing step toward his friend.
“You think I don’t know that?” Jonathan shot to his feet. His chair rolled back and hit the credenza under the window.
Abigail inserted herself between them. “Both of you, sit!”
Jonathan eased onto his chair.
“You too, David.” She turned and pointed at a wingback chair in the corner near the closet. She folded her arms. “I need to call Sal.”
“We can’t.” David glared at her. “You heard her. No cops.”
“I can’t just waltz into the Pentagon or wherever to get ahold of the Athena file. It’s on secure servers, and you’d better believe they’ve put more passwords and tripwires around it since it got swiped. And I’m no computer genius, got it?”
David hung his head.
“David, I’m sorry.” Abigail knelt beside him. “It’s the only way.” She touched his arm. “Please understand that.”
He jumped up and turned his back on her.
She rose. “Let me call Sal.” She picked up the house phone and dialed her CO’s number.
“Sal Torres.”
“Sal, it’s me. Abigail.”
“Abigail, hi.” Warmth filled his voice. “How’s vacation?”
“Good. Or, at least it was.”
“What happened?”
She glanced at David. He hadn’t moved. “Nicole Chardet kidnapped David Shepherd’s sister in Burning Tree, Utah.”
“Come again?”
She repeated herself and added, “She wants Jonathan and the Athena file in exchange for Kyra.”
“You know that’s impossible.”
“I know. But it has to happen. Otherwise…”
David left the room.
“I can’t.” Her CO remained firm.
“Sal, please.”
“You know they’re not going to release that file. It’s on servers with so many firewalls around them that only a select few can access it.”
Abigail drew in a breath. “If we don’t get those plans, Kyra’s going to die.”
“I understand.” Sal fell silent. “Let me think on this.” More silence followed. Then he cleared his throat. “There may be a way to do this without compromising the file. Let me make a few calls, and I’ll get back to you. And stay put because I’m headed your way.”
“Thanks.” Abigail set the receiver on its cradle.
“I’m not letting her take you,” she told Jonathan, as she ran her fingers gently over his bruised cheek. “Not after almost losing you to her and her minions.”
She paced to the window. “Something’s not right.”
“What do you mean?”
“Some stuff Nick said.”
“I’m not following.”
“I don’t expect you to.” She darted to her room, and yanked out her computer out of her backpack, then ran downstairs.
Jonathan followed.
“When I had my run-ins with him, he said some stuff.”
“Like?”
“He knew you’d accused Nicole.”
“He could have talked to Boss Man.”
“He never said he did.” She set the laptop on the coffee table. “He said he knew about the drive. You didn’t share that with anyone, right?”
“Only you and Bryson, and Bryson would never have said anything to him.” Jonathan sat down beside her.
“And he knew what was on that drive. There’s only one way he could have found out about those.”
“Nicole,” they chorused.
“How does he know Nicole?” she asked. “She was Army, right?”
Jonathan nodded.
“Get me a notepad, would you?” Abigail tapped into the Army’s personnel database. Though she knew Nick’s history, she pulled it up to confirm. Rutgers ROTC with a graduation date in 2000. Fort Leonard Wood for training followed by a stint at Fort Hood. Then on to Fort Sill as an MP in 2002 before he moved to Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington State, where he joined CID. From there, he headed to Germany, from 2005 to 2009, which was where she’d had her ill-fated run-in with him. Then he headed to the Pentagon, where he remained until he resigned his commission in 2010.
“Here.” Jonathan set a yellow tablet on her lap.
She scribbled her notes of Nick’s history. “What about Nicole? How long was she in?”
“I think she said something like only four years as an accountant.”
She located Nicole’s records. Zilch. Nicole had served at Fort Lee and then the Green Zone in Iraq for a year before transferring to Fort Bliss. Then she got out after her required four years.
Abigail scratched a big, fat zero onto her notepad. “Nicole and Nick never served together at the same place.”
“Nick never went to Iraq?” Jonathan asked.
“No. He might have been to Bagram once or twice, but when he was in Germany, his territory was mainly Europe. What about Roy?”
“He was Australian SAS and came to SecureLink when Nicole did, I think in 2011. When Chip hired him, I sat in on the interview. He seemed like a stand-up guy.”
“And Frisco?”
“He joined up in 2011 as well. But he was Spanish army.”
“And Cal?”
“Same with him as with Roy.” Jonathan picked at something on his jeans. “I remember thinking that he was your typical grunt. Not the brightest but competent for the work we needed him for. And, yeah, he served in the Army.”
“What’s his full first name? Calvin?”
“Yeah.”
She entered that information, and his service record popped up. “He did his basic training at Fort Jackson. Then moved on to—you wouldn’t believe this—Joint Base Lewis-McChord. He and Nick were there at the same time.”
Jonathan leaned forward and studied the screen. “Do you think…that’s a big base.”
“It’s our only shot right now.”
“I’m sorry.” David’s voice made them both look up. He stood in the hall leading to the dining room and kitchen. Rain speckled his T-shirt. His jaw remained clenched. What startled her were his eyes. They smoldered with barely suppressed fury.
She set her computer aside and rose. Almost timidly, she approached him. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” he grunted. “Jonathan, forgive me for lashing out.”
“Understandable.” Jonathan angled her laptop toward him.
“We found something, David.” She took his hand and led him to the couch. Once she’d seated herself between the two men, she summarized everything for him. She tightened her grip on his hand. “I think I need to have a discussion with Nick.”
David jumped up. “Let’s go, then. Where is he? At work?”
“I need to go alone.”
“Abigail—”
“If he sees you, he’s going to clam up. He sees you as his rival for my affections. Please stay here.” She waved away any additional suggestions from both men. “Sal’s on his way down. You two stay put and read him in while I talk with Nick.”
Abigail kissed him, then headed upstairs. She had to catch and hold Nick Bocelli’s attention, and that would require every weapon in her arsenal of feminine wiles. By the time she finished, he wouldn’t know what had hit him.
36
Raleigh, North Carolina
Abigail strutted through the wrought iron Judas gate onto the patio of The Ball and Dart, a pub tucked into a narrow building with a bar opening onto an alleyway. Thanks to Nick’s conversation with her brother the night before, she knew all about her ex-husband’s plans for this evening.
And tonight, she’d brought the big guns to the battle. She’d taken extra care with her looks by brushing her hair until it shone, applying her makeup in the way Nick had liked it when they were married, and adding a trace of the perfume that he’d admitted drove him wild. Not to mention the sheath that revealed her figure and a lot of leg. And heels to boot since he’d loved her in heels. Normally, she would have scorned such preparations. Not tonight. Not when Kyra’s life hung in the balance.
With her hand cocked on her hip, she lifted her chin and surveyed the local police hangout like she owned it.
Several appreciative glances rewarded her. A low wolf whistle reached her.
But no Nick.
Not that it mattered since six had barely passed.
“You’re new here.” A guy with a blond buzz cut gave her a slow, appreciative glance. “You want a drink?”
“Pass, thanks.”
“You on duty or something?”
“Or something.” She offered him a tight smile. “You know Nick Bocelli?”
“Honey, I work with Bocelli,” the man drawled. His glance swiveled to the dart tournament taking place beside the bar.
“Does he come here often?”
“Every Friday night. Quitting time just passed. He’ll show up”
“When?”
“Let me buy you a drink, and I’ll find out.” The blond guy grinned.
Oh, great. Just what she hadn’t wanted—attention from someone else. She bit back her sigh. “Okay. A chardonnay.”
“I’ll call him.” The guy summoned the bartender and ordered her wine. Then he picked up his phone from the scarred wood. “Who’s asking?”
“Tell him a secret admirer.” She cut her eyes at him and accepted the wine. She listened as he called her ex-husband. When he lowered his phone, she set her glass on the bar. “And?”
“He said half an hour. Which leaves me a bit of time to chat with you.”
Abigail endured meaningless conversation and an invitation to dine with him later. She politely turned him down and focused on the crowd. A group of four guys laughed and tossed darts toward a board. Others had pushed a set of tables together and lounged, the two front legs of their chairs high in the air. Several women sat with them as well and laughed over mugs of beer and glasses of wine with a few margaritas and martinis thrown in for good measure. At the bar, several couples chatted over drinks and appetizers.
Nick opened the gate. He high-fived and bumped fists with some of the guys. His free hand loosened his tie.
Abigail leaned her back against the bar, her elbows resting on the dark wood in a pose that had made his mouth water in times past. In her most sultry, husky Southern accent, she said, “Hi, Nick.”
He gave her a once-over. “What are you doing here?”
“Can’t I see an old friend?” She sashayed toward him and ran a finger down his chest alongside his tie.
He glowered. “The case is closed. Or at least, according to your CO, it is.”
“Right. So there’s no detective-victim relationship anymore. Thanks, Bart,” she added to the wine buyer. She slid her hand into Nick’s. “Join me.”
She led him toward a small table for two that had opened up near the entrance.
“Maybe I should go home,” Nick grumbled. He called to a passing waitress for a beer from one of the local brewing companies.
“I think you want to know why I’m here.” Abigail released him and took a seat on the bistro chair. As she crossed her legs, she hiked the hem of her skirt up ever so slightly.
She smiled when he stilled.
As he settled on a chair across from her, his gaze roamed downward to where her sandal dangled from her toes. “You’re here to make my life miserable.”
“Yet you’re not getting up.” She smiled a saccharine smile. “It must be my charm. Or my looks.”
He scowled. “It’s not your charisma, that’s for sure.”
She placed a hand on her chest. “You break my heart,” she drawled in her honeyed Southern accent. Yep, she could play this game with the best of them. Abigail toyed with her wineglass and let the smile drop from her face. “I think you have some explaining to do.”
“I’m not sure I follow. And since I’m a busy man, I’m out of here.” He grabbed the beer the waitress had dropped off and made to rise.
She grabbed his arm. “I’m not done yet. Have a seat.”
“Yeah? You think your little ‘I’m a good-looking tiger’ routine’s going to work on me? You thought wrong, babe.” He shook loose.
Abigail jumped to her feet. “Explain to me how you know Cal Bacon.”
His face lost all expression. “I don’t know any Cal Bacon.”
Abigail raised her brows. “Let me get this straight. You let a complete stranger stay with you at Lewis-McChord for three months? Why, Nick, I’m surprised.”
“Okay. Okay.” Nick rolled his eyes. “I knew him.”
“Then sit and explain it to me.”
As if she’d greatly inconvenienced him, Nick almost fell onto his chair.
“We had mutual friends.” A muscle twitched in his cheek. “We got to know each other at a party and started hanging out together. When his roommate moved out before Cal’s enlistment ended, I let him stay with me until he mustered out three months later. Satisfied?”
“No.” She rested her chin on her hands and stared at him until he squirmed. So quietly that her voice barely carried above the hubbub of the patio, she stated, “Do you realize what you’ve done?”
“I’m really not following.” He tensed. “And since you can’t seem to tell me—”
“Kyra Martin could die because of you.”
“What?”
“Cal’s been running with Nicole Chardet and her gang. Somehow, they got you to rat on the case. Am I correct?”
“I don’t kn
ow—”
“You don’t know what I’m talking about? Let me ask you a few questions that might jog your memory. How did you know there was a drive in my brother’s safe? Or that there were was a file called Athena on that drive? And tell me, Nick” —she crossed her arms on the table and leaned forward— “how did you know Nicole had discredited Jonathan?”
Nick’s tawny complexion turned a sickly yellow.
He didn’t say a word.
“That’s what I thought.” She’d won the first round. “Talk to me now, or I’m taking everything I have straight to RPD’s IAD. Once they start digging, they won’t stop until that hole you’ve gotten your professional self into is six feet deep.”
Nick glared at her but kept silent.
“Okay. I’m out of here.” She pushed back her chair.
“Wait!” He grabbed her arm. “What’s in it for me?”
“Are you so dense? Your career. You ruined it in the Army when you ran around on me with a subordinate. You want to ruin it again here with the RPD?”
Conflicting emotions ran across his face. He lowered his head, then raised it. “What do you want to know?”
“Everything.” Abigail set her phone on the table and pressed the button for the digital recorder. “By the way, I’m recording this. You lie to me or try to deny you ever said anything, and I’ve got this to prove you lied.”
“I got it, all right?” He swiped a hand over his face. “When we were getting our divorce, I made the mistake of hiring a horrible lawyer who did nothing for me but get me a raw deal. Then when I moved down here March 2010, I was feeling sorry for myself, so I decided some retail therapy was in order for me.”
Abigail couldn’t help it. She smirked.
“Guys do it too, okay? Except I bought a new big-screen television, a new stereo with surround sound, and some other electronic stuff. I suddenly found myself thirty grand in the hole thanks to that and lawyer bills. Yeah, I’d been paying it off slowly. Then Cal called me up about a month or so ago and made me an offer.”
“Had you two been talking since you roomed together?”
“Off and on. I knew he’d gone with another firm as well as SecureLink after mustering out. He told me your brother was trying to persecute him and his friends.”
The Athena File Page 29
