“He was so kind and considerate while trying to get his foot back in my door. I would tell him my eating habits were my own. He didn’t have to eat what I ate. But I’ll have you know, the very same man that picked out several hundred dollars of grade A prime beef for this evening, the same guy who is stupid crazy for bacon… Yes, Colt Michaels insisted he would eat vegan with me. And he actually still does most days.” Jace smiled a telling grin at Colt as he spoke.
Mitch pulled out his wallet and placed five one-dollar bills in front of Colt, tapping the center of the stack with his index finger. “That’s my portion of dinner.”
“Whatever. You know I worried about your protein intake, Jace,” Colt said without missing a beat or the chance to pocket Mitch’s money.
“I’m not finished. Even though we eat about the same, that refrigerator in there is always filled with meat—all sorts of meat. And most we just throw away because no one eats it.” Jace made a show of lowering his brow at Colt. Kreed relaxed a little, deciding this wasn’t turning into some earth-shattering fight. With his eyes still drawn to the scene unfolding in front of him, he slowly picked up his silverware and speared a broccoli floret, placing it in his mouth, waiting for Colt’s explanation.
“No, our refrigerator’s filled with yogurt and fancy fufu tofu that doesn’t ever seem to last until expiration. Have I told you I don’t really like tofu? It feels like a sponge in my mouth.” The knife was back in the air, pointing directly at Jace as Colt spoke. “Now, bacon… That’s the good stuff.”
“Colt’s also trying to move away from vegetables. It’s hard to be a vegetarian and not eat vegetables.” Jace lifted a glass of water, taking a drink, his eyes still on Colt. Wow, the Montgomery-Michaels duo provided entertainment with their meal. Kreed reached over and handed Aaron the condiment tray for the baked potato, encouraging him to eat.
“What’s this then?” Colt motioned to the baked potato on his plate.
“A baked potato filled with artery clogging butter, cheddar cheese, and full-fat sour cream doesn’t fall anywhere near the vegetable category. And please don’t start on how since the cow eats vegan, it makes the meat vegan,” Jace said, turning to Cody now. “He actually argued that point with me once.” Jace took a big bite of broccoli. Kreed looked over to see Mitch enjoying the show as much as he was.
“Ha. Ha. Ha. Very funny. Are you finished?” Colt asked, playfully tossing a roll across the table at Jace.
“No.” Jace chewed quickly, lifting a finger for everyone to wait. Once he swallowed and took a small sip of water, he continued, “So I keep telling Colt to pick out his funeral plot and make the arrangements before it’s too late and the arteries in his chest become solid. Now, I’m finished,” Jace said, laughing at his own joke, clearly one that Colt had heard before.
“You aren’t getting rid of me for a very long time, so stop planning your single life,” Colt added. Kreed got the distinct impression from the way those two were looking at each other, if they were seated closer together, they’d be kissing right now.
“I’ve had to sit through this for the last year. Normally they have these little spats then they make out until I’m the only one left in the living room,” Mitch spoke directly to Kreed. “Oh shit, that reminds me. I have a gift for them.”
“Not now,” Cody said, shaking his head. As Mitch started to rise, Cody reached for his thigh, but his partner blocked the move.
Mitch was up and out of his chair, almost halfway across the room when he called out, “Don’t tell them, Cody. It’s a surprise! I’ll be right back.” Mitch was off; he took the staircase up, two at a time.
“I’m sorry in advance,” Cody apologized to Jace.
“Here, Aaron. Try these. Show Colt they’re good.” Kreed handed a tray of roasted Brussel sprouts and broccoli florets to Aaron, who eagerly took two large spoonfuls.
“Here, Aaron. Try these. Show Jace they’re better,” Colt said, handing Aaron a bowl of sautéed mushrooms.”
“Thank you.” Aaron had kept completely quiet after initiating the round of banter between their hosts, but he looked up, a little startled, and took the bowl Colt held out to him. Then he spooned the mushrooms onto his plate.
“Aaron, there’s easily a pound of butter in there. I’d be fearful for my arteries if I were you,” Jace cautioned. Kreed laughed at Aaron’s hesitancy, because seriously, Jace and Colt never gave in. Over time, Kreed could see Aaron easily fitting with these people who seemed to be consumed by the food they ate. He had to hold back his laughter as Aaron looked torn whether to eat the mushrooms since both Colt and Jace were now watching him expectantly. Aaron finally caved and took only a couple of mushrooms from the offered plate.
By then, Mitch had bounded back down the stairs with all the grace of a herd of elephants. Kreed watched Cody, whose face was already tinting a deep shade of red. He began fidgeting in his chair until he completely stopped eating and pushed his almost-full plate out of the way. Based on Cody’s size, he clearly didn’t miss too many meals. Man, the gift must be something really good.
“Here, buddy. I saw this in New York and figured I should bring you two a thank-you gift for taking us in,” Mitch said proudly, handing Colt the gift bag before rounding to his side of the table.
Cody’s elbows went to the table and his fingers covered his eyes. “It’s inappropriate to do this now.”
“Nah, it’s good. Go ahead, Michaels.” Mitch took his seat, and shoved a big bite of steak into his mouth as Colt dug inside the bag, pulling out a box. Mitch waved his fork around the dinner table. “Eat everyone.”
“Bacon condoms?” Colt read from the box, a big shit-eating grin bloomed across his face as he spoke the words. “Make your meat look like meat.”
After almost choking on his food, Kreed took a quick sip of water to wash down the rest before he inhaled the wrong way. He swallowed quickly, before saying, “You did not just do that at the dinner table, Knox.”
“I did. It gets better,” Mitch said, chomping on his steak, a smug expression spreading across his face. Cody just groaned and sat back.
“Eat, babe,” Mitch said to Cody, but his entire focus rested on Colt. Kreed turned back to Colt as the ex-quarterback dug farther into the gift bag. It was hard to judge who he should watch, because Mitch’s expression was pretty damn funny right now.
“Bacon flavored lube, Jace. He got us bacon flavored lube. Fuckin’ A! He might be my new best friend,” Colt exclaimed, beaming proudly as he lifted the bottle with one hand to show the entire table, while extending a fist to Mitch. Laughing hard, Mitch dropped his fork and reached across the table to meet Colt’s knuckle bump.
“You two are too much,” Jace said, shaking his head as his eyes danced between Mitch and Colt. “I’m not sure how we’ll all coexist for the next few days.”
“Eat, babe,” Mitch tried again, tapping his fork on Cody’s plate. His partner was as happy as Kreed had ever seen him.
“I’ve had enough,” Cody replied, sounding a little embarrassed. He moved his hands up and down on his thighs, rubbing his palms. His face was still bright red.
“You need to eat. You’re going to need your energy. I got us some, too.” Mitch must have prepared to say those words, because he began laughing before he ever got them all out.
“You’d think I would’ve learned by now,” Cody said, looking up at Kreed. Embarrassment flashing in his eyes.
Kreed laughed so hard at the look on Cody’s face that he had to completely stop eating. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught Aaron reaching for another scoop of vegetables. Aaron’s plate was almost clean. How did he do that? He’d eaten an entire plate of food, never stopping the flow of the fork to his mouth, while everyone else couldn’t manage to eat and laugh at the same time.
“Where do you put it?” Kreed turned to Aaron and asked.
“I told you, fast metabolism,” Aaron shot back.
“That reminds me. We have dessert with real pure cane overly process
ed sugar!” Colt clapped his hands together, pushing back from the table.
Chapter 11
While the house was huge—more space than two people could ever need—the group huddled together around the living room coffee table. The jovial nature of dinner all but gone as they discussed the current plan to infiltrate Redemption Apostle Tabernacle.
Aaron had both his laptop and iPad out as Kreed and Mitch debated the case. If he hadn’t just spent the last several months listening to them, he’d be convinced they were fighting. Instead, he knew their process of hashing out possibilities and sat waiting for either one to request information he could access to help substantiate their observation.
In the beginning, Mitch expressed strong doubt when he, Aaron, and Kreed discussed the reason for focusing on this particular church. Mitch had actually argued, believing the better option was the church in the Maryland area that both the CIA agent and his attorney attended. Aaron watched as Mitch became animated and vocal, a total bulldozer when he got something in his head until Kreed raised his voice, stopping his partner with three simple words, “It’s this one.”
Impressed with how simply Kreed took control, the best Aaron could figure was years of working with Kreed’s gut instinct had Mitch slowing his roll. Mitch stared at Kreed for several long seconds before dropping down on his knees beside the coffee table, wanting to see the church layout a little closer from the iPad Aaron used.
Since then, their entire dialogue hinged on this being the spot to stop this particular crime wave in its tracks. Like Aaron, Colt and Jace were little more than bystanders as Cody entered the discussion, adding valuable input as the three talked about the tactical plan they wanted Director Skinner to put in place. As much as the entire group believed in the importance of keeping this quiet, they also believed whole-heartedly in their ability to fully trust Director Skinner.
Kreed finally confessed that, behind everyone’s back, Kreed had already set the wheels in motion with his direct supervisor. Even Connors didn’t know how in-depth Skinner’s involvement had become or the backup he’d put in place to protect Kreed and Aaron while undercover.
They had their undercover space secured already. The government had leased a home, strategically across the street from the massive church complex. The owners, senior citizens, had decided to vacation abroad for the next several months, the government footing their bill. Aaron added the senior citizen couple to his fake bio and updated everyone on the backstory he’d created. He’d pose as their grandson, who had moved to the area after finishing his graduate work at New Hope University. Since Kreed was now divulging the secret of Skinner’s full participation, Kreed signed into email on his phone and forwarded a thick file of places, buildings, and professors he needed to associate with in order to pull off years spent there on campus.
“Midlothian looks like a little Podunk town. What if things go bad? How long will it take to get Skinner’s team in there?” Aaron questioned as he moved his finger around the screen, looking at the layout of the city.
“Are you doubting my ability to keep you safe?” Kreed asked smugly, effectively not answering the question. The deputy marshal was good at deflecting.
“Well, kind of,” Aaron replied, using his finger to pinch the screen back to a more concentrated view, showing the entire size of the compound. Then he returned his gaze to Kreed and waited for his answer.
“I already told you. It’s my job to keep you safe. I’ll handle those details. Besides, all you’re supposed to do is set the place up, get the transmission going with Connors, and keep your head down. We’ll handle the rest,” Kreed said, patting Aaron’s thigh. He didn’t doubt Kreed Sinacola could keep him safe, but had the guy just dismissed his value in the outcome of this case? He took a deep breath and let the tension of that thought roll off his shoulders. He and Kreed would be having a talk about that later.
“Is the plan to get Aaron hired a secure one?” Colt questioned. Both he and Jace had remained so quiet throughout most of this exchange that Aaron had almost forgotten they were there. All eyes turned to Colt.
“Yeah, I think so. That’s on me, but I have a solid plan. I’ll have a job there by the end of the day tomorrow,” Aaron answered, not divulging anything more about his strategy. He never talked about the way he manipulated code or the ease of breaking through the most complicated security firewalls. No one needed that information. Not right now. With this group, less was most definitely more. “I need some time, though, before I go over tomorrow. All I’ve got’s my laptop, so it’ll take me longer. I need to get into their system and find my triggers.”
“No more all night gaming?” Kreed teased, ruffling the back of his hair. He’d pulled that same move a couple of times already today. It was a friendly gesture, maybe a little intimate, and he wasn’t entirely sure Kreed even realized he did that. Aaron quickly lifted his hand to finger-comb his hair back in place while he dodged that question.
“This whole thing’s put a damper on every part of my life. I’m vested in getting the answers and doing it as quickly as possible,” Aaron responded, getting to his feet. He sure didn’t want Kreed digging too deeply into his gaming activities. “We should get going. I have a lot to get done in a short amount of time.”
“All right,” Kreed said, rising a little slower. “I think it’s late enough to travel.”
“What’s that mean?” Aaron asked. He’d begun loading his equipment back in his backpack, but stopped and looked down at his watch. It wasn’t that late.
“It’s better to show up at the new place at night with less eyes watching. I need to stay out of view,” Kreed explained as he stretched his body before reaching for Aaron’s iPad then handing it to him. “I just got a text that the remote entry and keys are on the front porch.”
“Front porch where?” Aaron asked, feeling a little out of sorts with all the unknowns in his life at the moment. The whole undercover world worked in this fluid dance of secret movements that no one ever seemed to know about.
“Right outside,” Mitch answered for Kreed, hooking a thumb toward the front door.
“They delivered those while we were here? Why didn’t they just ring the doorbell?” Aaron asked, zipping his case.
“You aren’t very bright to be so smart, kid,” Kreed teased, bypassing Aaron to head toward the front door. “You’ll have to get used to this kind of thing. The idea’s not to draw any attention to ourselves. Remember when we came in? Jace didn’t turn on the porch light. I’m sure Mitch told him not to. It’s little things like that. Not foolproof, but precautionary nonetheless.”
“Yeah, I’m not sure that’s real effective,” Aaron said with a frown, going toward the door and reaching for his jacket.
“I know, but it’s the best we got right now. It’s early on in reopening this investigation. We’re acting fast, and it’s a downtime for the bureau. Hopefully if we do have another spy on the inside, no one’s been able to tip them off,” Mitch explained.
“My equipment’s getting delivered here tomorrow. I need that to help pull this off,” Aaron said, zipping up his jacket, before slinging his backpack over his shoulder.
Mitch clapped Aaron on the shoulder, walked with him toward the front door, and said, “We’ll have a repairman deliver it to your place tomorrow. It’s no problem, but listen, this is gonna be hard on Sinacola. He’s stuck inside, tracking you from that house. As much as you hate being called into the field, I promise Kreed hates being cooped up even more. This isn’t our normal thing. We’re used to wide open spaces, so be sensitive to that.” Mitch gave his shoulder a little squeeze before letting go.
“I hadn’t considered that,” Aaron said, and he hadn’t. He’d been single-minded, all his focus on getting himself out of there.
“It’s only because of Kreed’s rep that they didn’t stick you with Connors or Brown. Hell, I don’t think they could handle everything this is gonna take. You could’ve had worse than Connors. You could have two of him.” Mitc
h shuddered, but Aaron ignored the joke, stuck on the original thought.
“Yeah, not good. I was just thinking about days on end spent trapped within the same four walls with Special Agent Connors.” Aaron frowned. “I just wanna get in there, find what we’re looking for, and get out. If it all works out as well as I want it to, Kreed won’t be stuck inside more than a day or two.”
“Good. If anyone can do it, you can. I appreciate this more than you know.” Mitch’s voice lowered as he spoke. They were standing in the foyer, closest to the front door, with Kreed about a foot away, somewhat in the conversation, at the very least eavesdropping, but the others seemed to be giving them room.
“It’s not a problem, Mitch. You’ve been a good friend to me. You gave me street cred when I landed the NSA job, when no one else would talk to me,” Aaron said, honestly. And he did feel like he owed Mitch for more than just that.
Kreed strode forward, butting into the conversation at that point. “Wait. No. Absolutely not. You’ve been giving me hell for days now and he got off the hook so easy? Hell no,” Kreed said, shrugging on his jacket.
“You’re not Knox. I can resent you,” Aaron said, casually, defending his actions. Kreed threw up his hands.
“Story of my fucking life. Say goodbye now.” Kreed reached over and shook hands with Jace then Colt. “Thanks for having us.”
“We’re having a small New Year’s Eve party here—” Jace started, coming forward to join them at the door.
“Yeah, Bush didn’t invite us to the one he’s having.” Colt interrupted him, a look of abject disappointment flashing across his face.
“And you guys should come. Even if it’s late and only for a few hours, we would like to see you,” Jace finished, ignoring Colt’s outburst, except to reach out and pat his husband’s forearm in consolation. Clearly, he’d heard those words before.
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