The Enigma Series Boxed Set

by Tierney James

  God always protected her. Always. She wasn’t so sure Enigma could promise the same.

  ~~~

  Zoric backed down the aisle until Tessa leaned forward in prayer. Something about that simple act pleased him. He didn’t know many people who prayed and knew no one who prayed for him. Becoming a hollow being with the deaths of many on his black soul felt normal. Closing his eyes after reaching the back of the church, he imagined her pouring her heart out for his well-being and protection against the forces of evil. The smell of her remained on his hands as he lifted them to his nose to inhale. An urge to paint her in this setting momentarily distracted him until he saw a movement to his right.

  Slipping around to the side of the sanctuary, he saw a tall man watching Tessa. The figure, muscled and lean, almost stood as one of the statues throughout the church. He stood with his large hands down at his side. The back of his neck looked dark above his Grateful Dead tee shirt. Zoric’s stealth-like steps moved to intercept. He noticed the man’s short black hair made his neck look thicker than most men. With each light step, Zoric began to make out the profile of the man’s face.

  Even in the shadows, the narrowed eyes the color of dark chocolate displayed danger. So intent on the man’s observation of Tessa kneeling in prayer, he failed to notice when Zoric approached like a determined killer. The man clenched his jaw several times. The nostrils flared in some kind of mental control. Not once did he bat his eyes or move a muscle as if by doing so would reveal his imposing presence.

  The Serbian slipped his switchblade from his pocket to his hand. With a knowing touch the knife sprung open as he slipped it under the chin of the man who was several inches taller than himself. With surprise on his side, Zoric forced his weight against the watcher, pushing the man against a pillar.

  “You should not be staring at this woman,” Zoric growled in the man’s ear. When the man did not respond the Serbian withdrew the knife and placed it back in his pocket.

  Captain Hunter turned around and leveled a dangerous glare at his Enigma friend. “Do that again and I’ll use that knife to turn you into a eunuch.” He let his eyes return to Tessa.

  Watching Chase place a thumb on his chest to rub a spot over his heart, Zoric knew this was the first time in over a year his partner felt a familiar stab of lightning pain. It happened the very first time he saw Tessa and several times after when he nearly drowned in the woman’s blue eyes. Zoric wondered if Chase welcomed the pain, proving he was alive and capable of emotion. The rumors of him being nothing but a military robot dissipated once he involved Tessa in a terrorist plot.

  “I could have killed you. Again, you let the woman get to you.” Zoric looked at Tessa talking to her God as if there was only good in the world.

  “Shut up,” was Chase’s only mumbled response.

  “We need to talk, my friend. She is in danger and doesn’t even know it. Someone came into her room last night while she was bathing.”

  Chase turned narrowed eyes back to Zoric. “Who?”

  Zoric shrugged. “She thought it was Enigma, maybe even you. But…” he let his sentence fall.

  “Did she see who it was?” Chase didn’t like someone prowling around in Tessa’s hotel room in the middle of the night. He’d had her watched from a distance until she’d entered the hotel lobby, but after that it was assumed she’d be safe.

  Zoric told him what little information Tessa relayed to him. “I did not tell her if it had been you, perhaps you would’ve stayed to make passionate--”

  “Stop it. She’s a happily married woman with a family. Your fantasies have nothing to do with me.” Chase bit his words off as if they were bitter.

  “Then why were you staring at her like a love-sick puppy?”

  Chase turned from watching her and strode away with Zoric grinning as he followed. “Making sure you behaved yourself. Between you and Carter it’s a full-time job. We’ve got work to do.”

  ~~~

  Just as the two Enigma men walked away Tessa jerked her head up and looked around, knowing deep down Chase was near. How she knew this remained a mystery since there was nothing to link them together on some metaphysical level. Yet she knew it to be true.

  The sudden flutter of her heart, the march of heat up her neck and the feeling of being watched engulfed her ability to continue with prayer. Her eyes scanned the area, hoping to see the man who’d saved her life and forced her world in a different direction. The ability to breathe became difficult, knowing his presence meant both danger and safety. Turning her eyes to the crucifix, she asked for forgiveness for her impure thoughts.

  “Mrs. Scott?”

  A male voice, comforting yet strangely unholy, broke the spell of the transcendental connection she tried desperately to make with a man she’d known for such a short time a year earlier. Tessa looked over to see a priest dressed in black cassock with the typical white collar. He nodded as his hands folded in front of his short body.

  “Dr. Zoric asked me to see to you. He was called away. If you need more time to pray I’ll wait in the back.”

  Tessa wasn’t surprised to see a priest in an Episcopal church. She just couldn’t remember ever seeing an Asian American priest. But after all, it was Washington D.C., a multicultural Mecca. He was a little taller than herself, she noticed; five six or seven. His eyes were so narrow they looked almost shut as she edged out into the aisle.

  He carefully removed his round glasses and wiped them on his sleeve before returning them to his narrow nose. His smile looked artificial but patient. A few strands of gray were visible in his ebony hair. She thought it odd an Episcopal priest would wear his hair long enough to be pushed behind his ears. He even wore a diamond stud earring on his right earlobe.

  Must be the youth pastor, Tessa thought. He appeared vaguely familiar when he extended his hand, indicating she should begin walking. “I’m sorry, Father--”

  “Wu.”

  “Father Wu, did Dr. Zoric say where he was going?”

  A fake-like smile came to his narrow lips, revealing teeth that appeared to have been bleached. “Dr. Zoric only said for me to escort you to your hotel room.” Their steps grew slow, as if prolonging the departure. “I see now why Dr. Zoric painted you. You are quite lovely.”

  Tessa’s eyes widened in surprise. “Thank you, Father Wu.”

  A soft chuckle escaped his throat as he took her elbow, steering her in an unexpected direction. “Are you surprised I’ve seen that old Serbian’s work or that I find you fetching?”

  Tessa resisted pulling away. “A little of both, I guess.”

  “Confucius say ‘just because you’re on a diet, doesn’t mean you can’t look at the menu.’”

  “I don’t think that was Confucius.”

  Father Wu shrugged. “Well it wasn’t John the Baptist.” This drew an unexpected laugh from Tessa. “And this is the magical laugh that toppled the mighty Chase Hunter. I find it infectious for sure; light, spontaneous and happy. I never thought I’d meet the person who could break through that barrier of steel the captain cloaks himself in.”

  Opening a door, he stood aside to let her pass into a driveway. The car turned out to be a dark and dated limo from the eighties. Chipped paint around the front bumper and a hairline crack across the windshield gave the wide vehicle the appearance of a bygone elegance replaced with forgotten maintenance.

  He opened the door with such careful manipulation that Tessa almost missed the creak of rusty hinges that came with a vehicle kept too long. A fleeting thought that this would be a great car for Halloween crossed her mind. She slid into a seat made of faded leather that bore creases resembling spider webs. A little Yankee Candle air freshener danced with the movement of air as the priest joined her.

  Visiting with a complete stranger, especially a priest, created a feeling of being trapped with her sins. She remained quiet, forcing a cool stare out the window in hopes of communicating a lack of interest in conversation.

  “I’m glad we have this
chance to visit, Tessa.” The car lumbered out into traffic as Tessa searched for a seatbelt and found none. He pointed out various green spaces along the way, indicating special gardens planted in honor of this person or government agency. “I understand you are a gardener.”

  Her heavy silence eventually caused Wu to end any attempt at conversation until they entered the elevator at the hotel. “Chase is not the most forthcoming person at Enigma. We aren’t exactly on good terms.”

  Finally, her interest peaked at his choice of subjects. Tessa turned to face Wu fully. “Why is that?” Father Wu reminded her of a Jedi master; choosing his words carefully, moving with purpose and examining the world around him at each step he took.

  “He calls me a mind bender. My job is to help people cope with the stress of saving the world. I’m the psychiatrist for Enigma.”

  “Not a priest.”

  “Well not an Episcopal priest.” He grinned. “I thought perhaps this outfit would set you at ease for our first meeting. You never came to see me last year after your first encounter with Enigma.” He motioned Tessa to hand him her key card then inserted it with ease. Swinging the door open, Dr. Wu walked in first. “Please sit, Mrs. Scott. I’m just going to check things out before I leave.”

  Reluctantly, Tessa went to the couch, sat on the edge, straight backed and ready to bolt. She waited for Dr. Wu to finish his sweep of the rooms. Her mind raced back now to their first encounter. His appearance and demeanor that day was of a caring physician, encouraging her to seek help for posttraumatic stress in the weeks to come. She never had, but remember his words.

  “I don’t need a psychiatrist, Dr. Wu.”

  “You will before this is all over, Mrs. Scott.”

  Dr. Wu, after making sure there was no danger, bugs or prying eyes, began boiling some water in the coffee pot. “Let’s have tea while I explain how we need your help.”

  “Why?”

  “Someone is going to try and kill the president. We think it’s your uncle.”

  Chapter 5

  S omething about the way Zoric ignored how others reacted to the darkness in his eyes, gave him an edge during interrogations. Chase took advantage of that gift whenever a situation needed immediate results. He’d gotten used to people stepping aside for him to pass on elevators, sidewalks and especially narrow hallways. Much to his amusement he realized the hollow cheekbones and close-set eyes added to his evil demeanor. Chase suggested wearing something more American to soften his look when not on the clock.

  “Would it hurt you to wear jeans and a baseball jersey?”

  The Serbian shrugged. “You are cranky, my friend. Thinking of the woman?” Zoric enjoyed baiting him about Tessa.

  “More like unloading my Glock into your head.” His voice was calm as he poured over a city map lying on the table before him. They headed to the safe house after leaving the cathedral to go over any new information.

  Chase’s eyes never left the paperwork. “Just wondering if the doc tried to play mind games on Tessa. Being so naïve, she could easily fall for his gibberish.” The woman was in his head again.

  He could hear the muffled sound of Zoric’s voice but his mind drifted back to the year before when he’d tangled with the housewife. Stubborn, innocent and idealistic mixed with tenacity and courage, frustrated his no-nonsense personality. She’d forced him to laugh, something he’d not done in years. The sadness and guilt that plagued his conscience evaporated every time her lips parted. Even now, he could see the shape of her mouth, the blue of her eyes and the few freckles across her nose that makeup couldn’t conceal.

  In spite of being terrified, Tessa had come through for Enigma, nearly giving her life in the process. He remembered the smell of her hair and the way it curled around his fingers. The press of her body against his…

  “Are you listening to me?” It was Zoric. “Chase?”

  He blinked to clear the flashback. “I’m listening. What did Wu say after dropping her off at her hotel?”

  Zoric frowned. “I just told you.”

  “Tell me again,” he snapped as he turned to face the Serbian with folded arms across his chest. “Give it to me straight without all the romantic crap.”

  Zoric shrugged, pulling up a bar stool. “When Wu told her about the plot to assassinate the president and her uncle being involved she nearly flipped. She refused to believe it. Remember how that temper of hers could flare up at a drop of a hat?” Chase nodded recalling how it had nearly gotten her killed. “She unloaded on Wu for a good ten minutes, informing him her uncle was a hero and would never do such a thing.”

  “Did Wu turn all Shaolin Warrior to calm her down?” Chase could envision the doctor becoming aggressive to get her to shut up. The unassuming housewife had once brought Chase to his knees after attacking him. She’d even put one of his men in the hospital using nothing but a broom stick. Later she’d redeemed herself by saving the life of another soldier from a Libyan terrorist using the pepper mace in her purse.

  Tessa never failed to surprise him. Maybe that’s why he…Chase stopped himself from thinking further.

  The Serbian took out his switchblade and started opening and shutting it; a habit that usually annoyed his friend. “I doubt he even flinched. The man has ice water in his veins.” When his partner didn’t respond, he continued. “He basically laid out the facts. Her Uncle Jake is one of the leaders in the Remember the USS Liberty movement. Some sons and daughters of survivors have gotten involved but nothing serious. It’s only been recently that Tessa’s uncle started disappearing on trips for days at a time.”

  “The reason?”

  “Dr. Wu asked Tessa about that but she didn’t know anything.”

  “Or she wasn’t telling the truth.”

  “Dr. Wu would’ve known. Besides she’s a terrible liar.”

  Chase nodded and grinned as well. “Let’s hope if she comes to work for us she doesn’t get captured.”

  Zoric’s cynical glare met Chase’s eyes. “You should tell her we’ve been evaluating her for the last year.”

  “She’ll over react.” Chase folded the maps and papers on the table. “I’m not exactly her favorite person.” He rubbed the aching spot on his chest. The pain disappeared a year ago. The doctor checked him out and said he was in perfect health. Men didn’t get any more fit than him.

  The doctor forced Chase to see Dr. Wu, thinking it was something deeper. The visits resulted in a staring contest, Chase answering questions with questions of his own. When the two sessions concluded, Dr. Wu filed a report saying the captain leaned toward god-like tendencies and felt very little responsibility for actions that may have led to the deaths of others. In the weeks that followed the pain disappeared. Now the pain returned with an image of a bumbling housewife in his head.

  Dealing with women and the emotional baggage that came with it wasn’t new to Chase. There usually was a willing female waiting back home for him. If she started asking too many questions, complaining about not seeing him enough or wanting him to meet the parents, he moved on. Broken hearts failed to concern him.

  This strange sensation he experienced every time the Grass Valley woman’s name came up was disquieting, even irritating. At the same time Chase took solace in the fact he was capable of feeling something other than apathy and revenge. She made him want to be a better man.

  “When are you going to see her?” Zoric joined Chase at the table and shuffled through the information.

  “I’m not-if I can avoid it.” He forced his concentration back on his work.

  ~~~

  The Smithsonian decided educators should be treated like royalty by using the Mandarin Pacific Hotel as its launch site for the conference. In partnership with the Smithsonian, government agencies and other university gurus, they plan to seduce educators into promoting their platforms.

  Normally Tessa would have believed she had finally reached Nirvana if not for Enigma agents sneaking around, making her life miserable. Then there was Robert�
��s news from back home. The new neighbors had started moving in to old Mr. Crawley’s house.

  She mentally turned over Robert’s earlier report. “I only met the lady. Her husband was on some business trip or was it a conference? I forget what she said. No, I didn’t get her name. She’s kind of the grandmotherly type. Kids took to her right off.” He paused long enough to reprimand one of the boys for farting.

  “Jeeze! What are you feeding these kids, Tessa? Anyway, we’re taking over those cookies you have in the freezer. Will they still be good?” She heard Heather singing. “Gotta go, honey. Another dinner at McDonalds. Yay. I wouldn’t mind if you left us a few meals in the freezer when you decide to get a wild hair and take a trip with your rowdy girlfriends.” He made a kissing sound and hung up.

  After walking her friends to their scheduled session Tessa searched until she found the poster outside a room that read: “Can You Dig It? Dr. Francis Ervin.” Slipping inside she noticed six others had taken seats at the round tables.

  Dr. Ervin looked up and spotted her immediately and waved in recognition. He really was a dear, she thought, and worried the audience might be too small. This first evening of workshops might not be well attended. She smiled, noticing he was having some difficulty with the smart board and computer.

  “Can I help you with that? I have the same system in my classroom. They’re tricky.” She reached for the computer. With his nod of approval, Tessa managed to pull up his power point presentation and showed him a few short cuts. “There. All set. It’s nice to see you again, Dr. Ervin. I’m looking forward to hearing you speak.”