by Dale Mayer
“She was after the kids. For that she deserves every bit of hell she gets.” Brett walked to the edge of the garage. “Do you think it’s over?”
“No.” Mason shook his head. “We need to find her accomplices first – if she has any here.”
“They would’ve taken off when she didn’t return.” Brett turned to look at Mason.
“Maybe,” Mason said. “If they have a visual on the house they would know the operation failed.”
“Good.” Swede smiled, but it wasn’t a nice one. “Better than us going after ghosts, knowing there could be an attack anytime.”
Brett stared down at the blanket wrapped body. “I’m not sure what to do about Ceci and the kids. They can’t stay here.”
“That’s a given.”
Chase came in the side door from checking the backyard. “There’s no sign of anything back there.”
“I didn’t expect there to be, honestly,” Brett said. “It wouldn’t have been hard for her to get into the house. There was no security to speak of.”
“She’d be better off at your house,” Chase suggested. “We can keep an eye on her and the kids there. Like we did with Amrit and Peter.”
Brett smiled. That was exactly what he’d been thinking. His house was ideal. “What we have to do is find the woman’s cohorts and take them down.”
“You let me handle that,” Mason said. “I’ll talk to the commander. Once he realizes what we’re up against you know we’re all going to be pulled into this.”
“First thing first. We need to find out everything we can about her.”
Swede nodded. “That will lead us to the others.”
“She acted and spoke like she had the authority to pull off that embassy attack.” Brett admitted. “Partly why it never occurred to me she’d come after Ceci herself.”
“Which means she’s following someone else’s orders. There’s no other reason for a high ranking official to be pulling off a job like this.”
“Unless it’s so secret she can’t afford to have anyone telling tales. As in this is her operation.” Mason pulled out his phone and stepped outside of the house.
Swede turned to look back at the woman on the ground. “She wouldn’t have been working alone.”
“I agree.” Brett glanced toward the kitchen door and added, “She probably walked right into the house, saw the kids and realized with the coffee brewing we’d be out anytime. If I hadn’t been here…”
“Don’t even think about it, man.” Chase gave him a light slap on the shoulder. “You are here. And that makes all the difference.”
“And what if one time,” Brett murmured, “I’m not?”
Chapter 20
Back inside her small house, Ceci tried to focus on the kids. But it was as if her entire world had flipped. There was no normal anymore. She’d been sure that going home would solve everything. That life would return to the way things had been.
Although having Brett with her changed everything too.
Shaky, she sat down at the kitchen table, a coffee at her side, and helped Jimmy slather peanut butter on his second piece of toast. She swore he had more on his chubby fingers and cheeks than he did on the toast. But it wasn’t in her to admonish him for trying to do something on his own. He was going to need that independent spirit when he grew up.
Because it gave her something to do, she stood, found a washcloth and did her best to clean up some of the mess. There was no point in giving Jimmy a complete wash down because he was still eating. Jennifer sat in her high chair chewing away on the crust of her toast. She still looked tired. Hell, they all were.
“How are the kids?” Brett asked as he walked inside.
Jennifer came to life and started banging her tray calling out, “Brett. Brett. Brett.”
His eyebrows shot to his forehead as he sat down beside her. “Well hello, little lady. I didn’t realize you could say my name.”
The toast was jammed into her mouth and she gnawed away on it for a few seconds as she stared at him, silent once again. Brett turned his attention to Jimmy and the peanut butter mess. He winced. “Hey, Jimmy, what are you doing with all that peanut butter?”
Jimmy was a very generous soul at the best of times. He immediately reached out his piece of toast stuck to his fingers, offering Brett a bite.
With a big grin Brett said, “Thanks, buddy, but I’m not hungry yet. You go ahead and eat up.”
Jimmy shrugged and shoved the last piece in his mouth.
“Jimmy, that bite was too big,” Ceci said.
He just looked at her, grinned, hopped off the chair and ran to the bathroom where he stood on his little footstool so he could reach the taps. She went in to help but it was too late. The taps were already covered in peanut butter. She grabbed a cloth and proceeded to scrub him down. He giggled then headed toward the living room. She went back into the kitchen and collapsed.
“It’s never going to stop, is it?”
“This might actually put an end to it,” Brett said. “But first we need to find out who traveled to California with her.”
She studied him. “And what good will that do? Do you expect them to confess to being involved?”
“You’re such a cynic,” he said with a smile. But she sensed the seriousness behind that twinkle.
“I was wondering something,” she said. “Why a woman?”
“Not sure, but maybe she thought the children would be less afraid of a woman.”
“That’s smart of her,” Ceci admitted.
“Not smart enough. She’s dead now.”
At that reminder Ceci stared down at the cup in front of her. “Then why do I want to go out and kill her all over again?” she cried out in pain. She muffled her voice as much as she could. She didn’t want her son to hear her talking about killing someone.
“That’s a natural reaction. Someone tried to hurt those you love.”
She gave a hiccup of a laugh. “That is very true.”
Restless, she got up to wash the few dishes and stared out the window. Something else bothered her. She half turned back to look at him. “How did she get in?”
“She broke in through the garage door.” He got up and wrapped an arm around her shoulder, dropping a kiss on her temple. “I hate to say it but you need a decent security system.”
“It’s not my house.” And she doubted her uncle would pay for one.
She busied herself playing with the soap suds. Not a whole lot she could add to that. She didn’t have much money as she was living on what she got from the government after Jimmy died. Choosing to stay home and look after Jennifer rather than putting her in a daycare wasn’t an option most people would choose, but as a single mom she wanted to be there for her children as much as she could. Particularly after losing Jimmy. Of course that left her financially strapped a lot of the time. She did babysitting part-time, which helped, but she didn’t have money for luxury items. Which was why the vacation on the yacht had been such a godsend. But a security system? How was she supposed to come up with the money for that?
On the other hand how could she not? There was nothing more important than keeping her children safe.
“Maybe I should go away for a few days,” she said abruptly.
“Where would you go?”
Her shoulders sagged. “I don’t know. I could pack up the car and just drive. Find a hotel somewhere I can afford to stay for a week or two.” After everything they’d gone through already, all she had been able to think about was getting home. Letting go of that dream was really hard for her right now. But when compared to her children’s safety – it was an easy decision.
“Alternatively I suggest I move in and we put in the security system.” He smiled at her. “Even when you come back you’ll need to feel safe. That means a security system.”
“Will I feel safe then?”
He reached across the table and grasped her hand, his thumb slowly stroking up and down hers. “You will.” He looked out the w
indow. “We just have to finish this and with any luck that will be today.” He stroked her hand again gently. “However, the best idea is for you to move into my place. I have lots of room. We might need to anyway as it will take a few days to put in a security system.”
His phone rang and he dropped her hand to pull it out and check the number. “It’s Mason.”
*
“She flew in with two men and booked a flight home on the last flight out today. They were staying at a hotel close to the airport,” Mason said.
“So what? A quick flight in, take care of business then fly home?” Brett thought about the number of times he and his unit had to do something similar. It was all too possible.
“One of the two men was giving a talk at a business conference in the hotel. He appears to be related to her. The other one is at large.”
“That’s the one we need to speak with then. I presume the man at the conference has an alibi?”
“Tight as a drum.”
“Of course he does… What’s his relationship to the deceased?”
“Waiting on confirmation now but it looks to be her brother.” Mason spoke to someone briefly in the background. “We’re assuming he had a legitimate reason for coming, and she took the opportunity to join him.”
“Right. Can you send me photo IDs of the two men? That way both Ceci and I will be able to identify them if they come around.”
“The brother is still at the conference. We have one man keeping an eye on him to make sure he doesn’t leave. The second is the deceased’s lover.”
“And he could be coming here for all kinds of reasons.”
“Exactly. Watch your back. As soon as we track down the second man, I’ll let you know.” Mason hung up. Brett turned to study Ceci’s face. Quickly he told her what they knew, and then he added what they didn’t.
“So we have no idea if he’s coming after us. Considering they were lovers he may very well want to come for revenge. If she was the leader, the one pushing for an attack on the embassy, the military government is going to bend over backwards to say they will handle this issue. And of course they must apologize to the US government.” She leaned back and snorted. “Are we really going to believe she was masterminding this little coup on her own?”
“One thing to remember is that when there’s an unstable government,” Brett explained, “people in the ranks below like to take the opportunity to rise up themselves. So I have no trouble believing that’s exactly what she was trying to do. With the attack on the embassy the government would have been blamed, further weakening their position. A perfect time for her to take advantage.”
Chapter 21
She mulled over the information. If he was right, with the woman dead the problem over in Somalia was going to be brushed under the table. The embassy would once again re-staff and carry on. “What about the missing staff members in the van?”
“They’ve been found. Alive, but in rough shape. They were held in an empty building close to where the vehicle was found.”
“At least you found them in time,” she cried. “It would have been terrible if they’d all been killed.”
He nodded. “Another day or two and they’d likely have died. No one would have known.”
That was a horrible thought. “It feels very much like a large chessboard and the next move is somebody else’s. I can do nothing but wait to see what their strategy is going to be.”
“That’s a good way to look at it.”
She held out her hands for Jennifer who Brett had cleaned up and removed from the high chair. It was amazing to have somebody around who did something, to not have it all fall on her shoulders. Still, she didn’t want to become complacent and expect it. “Thank you very much for looking after her.”
He lifted Jennifer higher and dropped a kiss on her pudgy cheek. “No thanks required. She’s a joy, not a job.”
She smiled up at him realizing she could get used to this. When she thought about having another relationship it never occurred to her she would find somebody who would love her children as much as she did. Having been such a bad judge of relationships up until now she didn’t figure her luck was going to change anytime soon. But maybe she was wrong.
She put Jennifer down on the floor, opened the fridge, and checked her cupboards. “We’ve been gone for a while. I do need to go shopping.” She reached out an arm toward the living room. “We could order in, but it would be good for the kids to get out and visit some of our usual places.”
“What does that mean?”
“A little shopping, a walk in the park. Potentially meet a friend for a play date this week.”
At that Brett shook his head. “No play dates. We can’t put anybody else in harm’s way.”
Her shoulders sagged at that. “You’re right. That’s not what we want to do. So no play dates. Instead we could rent a movie or some games and maybe just spend lots of time at home doing stuff we like to do. Jimmy loves crafts and math.”
At that Brett’s eyebrow shot up. “Math? How far along is he?”
She gave a proud smile. “He’s already got his numbers one through one hundred, and his addition with small numbers down pat. Now he’s working on subtraction.” She grinned. “He loves to use Lego blocks for doing math.”
“Sounds like he’s going to be an engineer one day,”
She laughed. “He can be whatever he wants to.”
Brett’s phone rang again. He glanced at the number and groaned. “It’s Mom.”
“Go ahead and answer it.”
He rolled his eyes, clicked on the talk button and said, “Hello, Mom.”
He listened for a moment and then said, “Ceci is fine. Yes, the children are too.” With a wicked grin he said, “Here, you talk to her. She’s right beside me.”
He handed the phone to her and Ceci immediately tried to pull her hands back, but he wasn’t having anything to do with that. “Go on, talk, Mom, Ceci can hear you.”
And he got up and went to the children.
She shot him a glare. “Hello, Mikka, how are you?” It really wasn’t a hardship to speak with Mikka because in actuality no one got a word in edgewise. She bubbled away about how concerned she was for the children and how sorry she was about the vacation turned nightmare, plus she’d heard from Jason and he was really upset, and why didn’t she phone him and let him know she was okay. The man was really interested in her, and it would be good for her and the children. Making the appropriate nods and murmurs Ceci got through the bulk of the conversation. Then there was an odd silence. Followed by a gasp. “My Brett is there?”
Ceci knew she was in trouble as Mikka finally stopped talking long enough to connect the dots. “Yes. Sorry, I have to go. Bye.”
And she hung up quickly. Then giggled.
Brett popped his head back into the room and gazed at her suspiciously. “What was that for?”
With a twinkle she handed him his phone back. “She just realized you’re here with me.” She turned and walked away, turning back to say, “Have fun with that.”
On cue his phone rang again. She heard his muttered oath and laughed out loud as he tried to decide what to do.
He shot her a look and said, “You have a mean streak.” Then he answered the phone and walked back into the living room. “Hello again.”
As much as she wanted to hear the conversation she also really didn’t. He was going to get grilled like a red-hot barbecue right now.
She also knew his mom understood how badly hurt he’d been before, so it wasn’t going to be an easy phone call. Maybe it was mean of her, but she didn’t have any more answers than anyone else as she had no clue what was going on between them. Just that they’d taken a step this morning she’d never thought would be available for her again.
*
Brett didn’t even bother lowering his voice. “No, I’m not sure what I’m doing, Mom, I just know I have to do this.” He listened as his mom ran on about how badly hurt he’d been. “An
d none of that matters. Because this is where I find myself right now. I never stopped loving her. It’s she who walked away from me.”
“And that’s what I don’t want to have happen again,” his mom said in a pained voice.
“You’re the one who told me how unhappy she was with Jimmy. How difficult her life was after his death.”
“That didn’t mean I wanted you to step in and save her,” his mom protested.
“There’s no need for that. She’s doing just fine on her own. Now I’m at work so I’ll talk to you later.”
As he hung up he realized his conversation had been overheard. He spun around to see Ceci leaning in the doorway, tears in her eyes.
“You still love me?” she whispered.
Self-conscious but never one to back down or surrender – unless it was the kind that was great for both of them – he said, “Why does that surprise you? I loved you years ago. You were everything to me. That hasn’t changed.”
Her lip trembled. “But I hurt you.” Her eyes welled with tears again.
“Yes, you did.” He shrugged. “Apparently I don’t let go easily.” He stared across the distance wondering what it was going to require to cross the divide. “The good thing is I stay true to my heart.”
A small gasp escaped. “And I don’t?”
Feeling like he was heading into a minefield with horrific consequences if he took a misstep, he shook his head. “I think you got hurt and didn’t know how to handle it, and you did what you are quite used to doing.”
“Running away?” she said bitterly, her body stiffening as anxiety washed over her.
“No. Hiding.” He walked closer, his steps calm and sure. “What was it about Jimmy that attracted you?” He didn’t touch her. He just stood in front of her not really giving her a chance to back up or move forward. “Think about it,” he urged.
She shrugged. “I thought I loved him.”
“But what you actually said was that you loved the package. That you were looking to settle down and have a family.”
She nodded. “Yes, I said that.”
