"Allow me to introduce you to some of my dearest friends." Bobby turned to the two other people in the room. A woman in her sixties and a man around the same age.
The woman looked familiar, but I couldn't place her. She had sharp green eyes behind large glasses. Her hair was gray and short, brushed back off of her face in a style that made it look like she was walking into a stiff wind. Her clothing was more formal: a business suit in olive green with rounded lapels, like, I'm a badass, but also have a softer side. I didn't believe her lapels.
"This is Martha Smarg. She's the director of the CIA."
Holy fuck.
She was sitting behind the desk and didn't stand, just gave a small nod. "And this," Bobby said pointing to the man standing next to her, "is Patrick Larson, her deputy."
"Nice to meet you both. I think. What's up?"
"Well," Bobby said, stepping deeper into the room, keeping his hand on my elbow, pulling me in. "We heard about Mary's little program. Declan's cancellation of it. You shooting him." He raised his eyebrows at me. I shrugged. He smiled, his eyes twinkling. "Then you came back with an injured woman whom you rescued from a Daesh compound, basically destroying it in the process."
"I know how I spent the last week, Bobby. What I don't know is what you all want from me."
"Have a seat." Martha said, gesturing with her chin at one of the chairs facing her desk.
"Why don't we all sit down,” Bobby said, waving for Patrick to sit and letting go of my elbow. Bobby pulled up another chair for himself, making a nice little circle, and sat first, putting his hands on the armrests and looked up at us expectantly.
Patrick and I both sat slowly. Blue stood next to me, his large head above the armrest of the chair, staring across the desk at Martha. "Okay, I'm sitting. What's up?"
"The program that Mary was working on,” Martha said. "I think it has legs. And I want to continue it."
"Okay," I said. "You could have saved us all a lot of time and effort if you'd decided that like three days ago."
"Could have saved Declan surgery," Bobby said with a smile.
"Anyway," I continued. "I think it's smart and I don't understand why it was cancelled. But I don't understand the politics around what you people do."
"You people?" Martha said. "You think you're not one of us?"
Lightning sizzled in the corner of the room, the electric charge raising the hairs on my arms. "I'm positive I'm not one of you.” Unless we can all see that storm cloud brewing over the filing cabinet.
"I thought you were more self-aware."
"Considering we've never met before, it'd be hard for you to know anything about me, wouldn’t it?"
Martha was staring at me, her eyes bright and calculating. "I'm not interested in arguing with you."
"Look, you want to continue what Mary started. I think that's a great idea. A good first step would be meeting with Zerzan. She's really the person you to need to talk to. I just spent several days on the run, so I'm tired, and I'd kill for a shower. Blue needs a bath. And I'm not so sure that I can trust you or vouch for you with Zerzan."
"You trusted Mary?"
"I thought she was genuine in what she wanted to do."
"And you don't think I'm genuine?" Martha smiled; she reminded me quite strikingly of a snake.
"I don't know you. I know that there are lots of moving parts here that I'm not aware of. I don't know why this program would be so controversial. Seems to me you're arming all sorts of groups to fight Daesh. Arming these women, helping them in every way we possibly can, that seems like a no-brainer to me."
“We?”
"I misspoke. I meant, you.”
"Is Joyful Justice helping them?"
"No. If you'll recall I’d never even heard of these people until you guys brought me—”
“Homeland Security brought you in,” Patrick interrupted. “We’re CIA.”
“Great. I’m happy for you. My point is that this isn’t my show. I’m here because Mary Leventhal blackmailed me into coming.”
"You shot Declan Doyle," Bobby interjected. I looked over at him, he was smiling again.
"Yes, I shot him. But I specifically tried not to kill him."
Bobby laughed and shook his head. "Martha, Sydney obviously wants to help. The only reason she shot Declan is because he threatened to lock her up. I bet she would do the same to any one of us."
Martha's lip twitched. "Do you think Zerzan will be a problem?"
"Zerzan is incredible. I've never seen anyone fight like her, and I see a lot of really good fighters. The woman is an inspiration. I think that she would have no trouble recruiting new people to the cause. I think she just needs money, guns, and maybe some training for troops."
"She suffered quite a loss in that Russian drone attack."
"So did we,” Patrick said.
"Both sides did," I said. "Right before that happened, though, we were getting somewhere. I know that Zerzan was willing to talk. I'm guessing she still is. I'm not sure what the problem is."
"We think Mary made a vital mistake," Patrick said. Wasn't he just Mr. Talkative now.
"Which was?"
"Bringing you in."
"I'm happy to leave. That was my plan." I looked over at Bobby. "I assume I'm free to go?"
"Of course, darling. I'm happy to take you home at any time."
Martha sat forward, leaning her elbows on the desk. "Don't make promises you can't keep, Bobby."
"I always keep my promises." It was a statement, but it sounded an awful lot like a threat.
"What do you want?" I asked Martha.
"We want Zerzan to share information with us."
"Then you should talk to her. She was on the verge of agreeing to work with Mary at the time of the drone attack, and after Mary was killed, she was still ready to negotiate with whoever was left in charge. So I don't see a problem here. If you want I can talk to her."
"The problem is that you've been involved," Bobby said. "Joyful Justice, as you know, is a terrorist organization. Zerzan's organization is also considered a terrorist organization, and the US can’t be seen as supporting terrorists. So, the path forward for Martha and Patrick is either to remove Zerzan's organization from the terrorist list, which would raise a lot of questions in Washington, or to convince her to start a new organization without all the baggage.
"Okay."
"The thing is, they want to do the same thing for Joyful Justice."
"What do you mean?"
"We want Joyful Justice to disappear, and we want you to become something else," Martha said.
"This all sounds insane." I laughed. "What we're talking about here is figuring out how to get weapons and support to an all-female fighting force to help defeat our common enemy: Daesh. Names strike me as rather irrelevant."
"We call them ISIS."
"And that proves my point."
"Names are very powerful," Martha said, her voice low. “Certain organizations—think of the KKK in the US—are beyond redemption in our view.”
"That's your problem."
"Yes, and you're the one who has a solution."
"Fine, I am no longer a member of Joyful Justice. Happy now?"
Patrick made a small noise in his throat. Martha sat back in her chair and crossed her arms.
Bobby stood and I followed suit, Blue moving in close to my hip. "I'm taking Sydney back to my room so she can shower and we can talk."
Martha glared at him but didn't try to stop us as we left the room. Samantha was back behind her desk, and she nodded as we walked out. Bobby took my hand once we were on the tarmac and began to pull me along the side of the building toward another entrance about thirty feet away. "Let go of my hand!"
"Come now, Sydney. Trust me."
"Holding your hand is in some way important for that?"
"Don't worry, sweetheart. I've got a plan."
He opened the door and placed his hand on the small of my back, ushering me in first. "My room is down
on the left." Bobby's hand was warm on my back and Blue stayed close to my hip, occasionally touching it with his nose.
Bobby opened the door to his room and gestured for me to enter. It was a huge, lavish space. The living room was filled with sumptuous furniture and a full-size dining table. There were tinted windows with mountain views. "Nice place."
"The bathroom is through there." Bobby gestured to an open doorway. I could see a king-sized bed. "I'll get you some new clothing. I think I'll be able to rustle up an FGI uniform." He smiled. "I always wanted to see you in one."
I brought Blue into the bathroom with me and locked the door. I trusted Bobby Maxim with my life, but not with an unlocked door that I was naked behind. I let my mind go blank as I peeled off the clothing I'd been wearing for days and got the shower going.
The bathroom was huge, all marble with a shower stall and a bathtub. Should I take a bath? Cleanse away the last few days, sink into the water, and let the tension release so that my mind could think?
No. There wasn't time.
Besides, slipping into a bath wasn’t going to make the storm cloud hovering over my head, rumbling with thunder, disappear.
I stepped into the shower. The hot water made every scratch on me sting. My hike through the woods and days of rough treatment had taken a toll on my body. In addition to the small scrapes that littered my arms and legs, there were bruises on my hips, and my ankle was still discolored.
I closed my eyes and let the water flow over me, blocking out all sounds except the whoosh of liquid.
Changing names and wiping the slate clean was not without precedence in my life. I was Joy Humbolt, and am now Sydney Rye.
While I was not attached to the name Joyful Justice (I actually thought it was super cheesy and kind of hated it ... just a little), I was attached to the people who made up the organization and the mission that it pursued. Changing the name would make it more difficult for people to find us, and therefore for us to help them. That felt like too big a price to pay. Why they couldn't just negotiate without me, letting Zerzan change the name of her group and going from there, I didn't know.
Clean and wrapped in a towel I tried to comb out my hair with one of the combs that had been wrapped in plastic and left on the vanity for people like me who traveled without such niceties.
My hair was knotted and I winced as I pulled the comb through it. There was a knock on the door. "I've got your clothing."
Blue stood by the door. I unlocked it and opened it a crack. Bobby was grinning. "You are ridiculously predictable," I said, taking the folded uniform from him. Bobby opened his mouth to speak, but I closed the door and locked it again. "We can talk once I'm dressed."
"Okay."
The black uniform Bobby had given me fit well enough. It had the Fortress Global Investigations insignia on the left breast and I stared at the thing for a moment. The name that one fought under was important. But how important?
I had concluded that changing my name or the name of Joyful Justice was unacceptable. Would Zerzan feel the same? Her situation was direr. And she was fighting for a more tangible outcome than I was.
Would the Tigress be less deadly by a different name—or fighting under a different banner?
Bobby was waiting for me in the bedroom. He was lying on the bed, his body propped up with pillows and his ankles crossed. He looked up from the book he was reading and smiled at me. I walked past him and out to the living room. He followed moments later. "So?" I said as I sat on the couch. Blue sat next to me, watching me closely.
"Feel better?"
"Come on, Maxim. What's going on here?"
"You always like to get straight to the point."
"And you always like dicking around."
He nodded and smiled again. "Simply put, I think we're in a very powerful position. You made a valuable connection. I have many valuable connections. What I suggest we do is start our own company."
"Excuse me?"
"The world is more dangerous than it's ever been." Bobby sat down in an armchair across from me. "There are terrorist groups springing up everywhere. Fortress Global Investigations, the most trusted organization in the field, has recently suffered a major setback."
"That you made happen."
"Yes. But that's not the point. The point is that there is an opening in the market. And you and I could fill it."
"Wait, you want to start a security company with me?”
"Yes. A lot of good men are losing their jobs. We've got the capital. We have influence with Joyful Justice, the FKP, and many other organizations. We'd be unstoppable."
I held up a hand. "Bobby, slow down. Are you insane?” I felt a little like the kettle calling out the pot, but still. “I'm not starting a for-profit company that's going to protect the kinds of people that Joyful Justice pursues. Jesus."
"But don't you see how much good you can do?”
"How much good I can do?"
"Yes, think about it Sydney. The US government needs a trustworthy company to work with on these kinds of sensitive missions. One that has connections that will help keep everything going smoothly."
"What about me makes you think I want to make sure things go smoothly for the US government?"
"With the amount of money we can make, we could arm Zerzan's group ourselves."
"Joyful Justice can do that. We have enough money. Bobby, I'm not going to start a for-profit, security-for-hire company with you to replace the one that you founded and destroyed. That's insane.” A lightning bolt shot across the room, the thunder that followed so loud it almost drowned Bobby out.
"Sydney, I knew you'd have reservations."
I stood up and took a deep breath. "Reservations? Bobby I don't have reservations. I'm not doing it."
Bobby stood up; he was taller than me. But he wasn't trying to use his height to intimidate me. He was smiling, which made me want to punch him in his stupid face. "I understand that you don't want to do this. But if you want to avoid ending up in a black ops prison, then you have to. You have to start this company with me because it's going to legitimize you, which is going to make it possible for us," he put his hand over his own chest, "to get the contract to train Zerzan's people."
"You bastard."
"Look, I'm not the only one who thinks this is a good idea. Dan agrees with me."
"I’d want to hear that directly from him."
"That's not really safe here."
"Fuck!"
"Sure, happy to."
"Ugh, you're disgusting. Which is another reason I don't want to be partners with you."
"Come on, Sydney." Bobby stepped toward me, his hands out by his side, palms up. "This is brilliant. Don't you see? It gives Joyful Justice a legitimate arm. The kind of intel we would have! The resources!"
“Fortress Global Investigations represented people who Joyful Justice targeted. Wouldn’t our new company also represent these sorts of people? The ones who have something to fear and can afford our services?"
"Here's how it would work. Let's say Joyful Justice has a problem with someone. What's the first thing you do?"
"We deliver a warning and a message of change. An outline of steps to take in order to avoid our wrath."
"Exactly. Now, who better to help them with that change than a company like the one you and I could create? We are going to do this right." He took another step closer to me, entering my personal space, which made Blue push against my side. "This is how we save the world."
I laughed. "You want to save the world?"
"Sydney, I've told you before. I'm a changed man. You inspire me." He was even closer now. I put my hand on his chest to stop him.
"Bobby, get the fuck out of my personal space." I pushed back.
He stumbled holding his hands to his chest. "You break my heart, darling."
"I'm not your darling. I hate that shit."
He smiled. "I love that you shot Declan Doyle."
"I can tell."
"This is the onl
y way to do this," Bobby said and sat back down in the chair, his eyebrows raised. "They can't let you go if you're Sydney Rye, Joyful Justice council member and top operative."
"What was Mary going to do?"
"What Declan wanted to do: lock you up. First, of course, they were going to use you to the full extent that they could."
I smiled. "So Declan's plan wasn't to get shot?"
Bobby laughed. "This makes it all good. You won't be Sydney Rye of Joyful Justice. You'll be Sydney Rye, co-founder of ... well, what would you want to call it?"
"I'm not doing this." I started to walk toward the door. Bobby jumped up and grabbed my arm. Blue let out a low warning growl. Bobby looked down at him, his gaze fierce. Blue locked eyes with Bobby, his hackles rising.
"You two always do this,” I said.
"That's why he respects me," Bobby said, not taking his eyes from Blue’s.
"Let go of me—and get me the fuck out of here."
"If I get you out of here, it will be bloody. And Zerzan will be left with no support."
"Joyful Justice will support her."
"You don't have the resources or know-how to operate in this war zone." Blue growled and Bobby growled back.
"Enough!"
Blue sat and licked his lips. Bobby turned his gaze to me, his hand still on my arm.
"You've been here for what? A week?” Bobby said. “You think you have any idea what is going on this region? It's a shit show. And you have no one on the ground."
"I have Zerzan."
"She can't get weapons in here. You have no way of moving supplies."
"We can figure it out."
"You don't even have a way of contacting Zerzan right now." He had points. Bobby-fucking-Maxim always seemed to have a point. "What I'm offering you is the best deal you're ever going to get."
"The best deal ever?"
"Your other option is that we leave. You and I fight our way out of here. There are men loyal to me here, we could do it. You know, I've always got an escape plan. But, that doesn't get you what you want. You want to help Zerzan."
"I do."
"I know, and so does Dan. So do the rest of the Joyful Justice council members. That's why I'm here. That's why this offer is on the table. Because it makes sense. Because it's smart."
The Girl With The Gun (Sydney Rye Book 8) Page 15
