She took a deep breath and stretched her arms up before feeling a tickle on the bottom of her foot sticking out from the soft blanket. Jerking herself upright, she found Darya sitting at the end of her cot with an amused expression. He held his finger to his lips as he pointed toward the sleeping captain.
Tessa eased off the cot to stand before the man who had changed her world. A year ago, she’d believed only Captain Hunter possessed that talent. Squatting down, she drank him in, longing to feel his embrace.
“Darya,” she whispered with pleasure. She reached out and touched the injuries to his jaw. “They let you go?” Her optimism couldn’t be restrained.
Closing his eyes, he placed his hand on hers. “Not exactly.” Her hand slid to his hair. “When do you leave for the States?”
Tessa blinked. This life would soon be over for her. “Tomorrow. Will you be coming with us?”
A click of a readied weapon drew her attention to Chase who eased out of his chair with his Glock pointed at Darya. “The answer to that is no.” His voice sounded methodical and slow.
The tribesman lifted his hands to clasp behind the back of his head, continuing to stare at Tessa with an unemotional expression. He rolled to his knees. She jumped to her feet as Chase grasped Darya’s collar and jerked him to his feet.
“Tessa, find Zoric.”
She maneuvered around cots until she reached the door. Zoric lay on the ground, gagged, with his hands zip-tied behind his back. A welt the size of a quarter protruded from his forehead.
“Zoric,” she said bending down to move his shoulders. A moan escaped his parched lips as he blinked at her. She felt in his vest pockets for his knife but found none.
“His weapon is in my pants, Tessa.” Darya spoke with calm as he watched Chase. Tessa hurried to his side, plunging her hand inside his pockets. Before the captain could stop her, she pulled out the blade. It never occurred to her how intimate the gesture was until Chase rammed his weapon into Darya’s side to move him away from her.
“Zoric?” She dropped the knife when it sprang open but managed to retrieve it in order to release his hands. She rubbed his arms to help him with the stiffness until he stood up.
Shoving her aside he barreled toward Darya like a lopsided toy with some of its wheels missing. Outmaneuvering the Serbian, she wedged herself between the two men and pushed against his chest. “Please. No. The children, Zoric.” With a gentle touch to his chest, she felt him step away.
Tessa pointed to the girls so he would turn to see them and understand they were waking. Slipping off their cots, they spotted Darya and gasped, displayed a few yawns. They waited as if they were traveling the road to the Wakhan and knew he would call them to his embrace as he did each day.
Zoric took a step back but his chest rose and fell rapidly.
Little voices called to Tessa then Darya.
“Put your gun down, Chase,” Tessa demanded. “You’re frightening the children. If Darya wanted you dead, your throat would have been slit during the night. He means us no harm.”
Darya spoke in Pashto to the children as Zoric made a quick body search. When the Serbian stepped back, satisfied he didn’t carry a weapon, he dropped his hands. “It is good, little ones. Do not be afraid. These men are doing their job.”
With several more yawns and a couple of sneezes, the children moved toward the only father they’d ever known. He reached down and patted each one on the head. Even Shirin got a pinch on the cheek, making her lower her eyes in shyness. Arzo yanked on his clothing. Lifting her up into his arms he stroked her tangled hair.
“Your man here was dozing when I came through the door.” Darya spoke to Chase but his accusation hooked on Zoric whose nostrils flared like those of a fire-breathing dragon. “It has been a while since you slept.” He jerked his chin up toward the captain then continued. “Some protection you offer. I have been here for hours.”
Chase lowered his weapon then shoved it into his belt holster.
“How did you get out?”
“Misunderstanding with one of the guards when the government woman came to see me. He didn’t even realize I took the key.” When Arzo laid rapid kisses on Darya’s face then giggled, he turned her upside down then back up, much to her delight. Zoric covered his mouth to hide a possible smile before he turned to leave. Even Chase laughed at the girls who jumped up and down, begging for their turn.
“Why did Bonnie come see you?” Tessa knew this couldn’t be a good thing. “What did she promise you?”
“I’m a little curious about that myself.” Chase folded his arms across his chest. “The Bonnie Finley I knew in Washington always had a motive when she did something nice.”
Tessa and Darya locked knowing glances before diverting their eyes.
“Is there something you two know I don’t?” Chase walked up to confront her. “Now’s the time, Tessa. You have a history of withholding information from me.” She opened her mouth to speak as he continued. “You also have a habit of lying to me.”
“I told you everything last night.” Tessa squinted her eyes to prevent them from batting. He understood she evaded the question.
Darya raised his brows then gave her a knowing grin. “Everything?” His words came with triumphant amusement.
She bristled. “Shut up, Darya.” He clamped his lips together in a frown. “You’re just trying to anger him.” Her glare bounced from her boss then back at the tribesman. “If Chase and Zoric hadn’t come after me, all of us would be in serious trouble with Massoud. Admit it.”
Darya stuck out his lip and tilted his head to the side. “This is true. But I won’t be jailed like an animal when I’m an American citizen. I will use Bonnie Finley, your CO, and anyone else it takes to remain free. I’m a patriot, not…”
“An outlaw? Deserter? How about drug dealer?” Chase quipped.
“Darya isn’t a drug dealer,” Tessa lied. “I don’t like your implication. He saved us from the Taliban. I told you that. If he hadn’t come along”—she turned her softened gaze to him—“we’d be enslaved or dead.”
Chase’s frown deepened. “We will see. In the meantime, you will have no contact with him.”
“You can’t tell me what to do,” she stormed. “After all he’s my…” She stopped herself as both men seemed to hang on her words.
Three broad-shouldered MPs filed through the doorway, weapons drawn. The children cried and fell against Darya and Tessa.
“Put those guns away, you idiots.” Chase stepped in front of them.
The tallest MP spoke with an unsure voice. “The colonel said we should drag his ass back to the brig dead or alive, sir.”
“And I’m telling you, if you don’t put those guns away I’m going to ram them up your—”
“I’m coming,” Darya said, handing Arzo to Shirin then kissing Tessa on the edge of her mouth. “I’ll not give you any trouble.”
Chase pointed toward the doorway. “Out. I’ve got this. He’s not going anywhere. I’ll escort him back to interrogation.” One of the soldiers took out a zip tie. “I won’t need that. This man is an officer and will be treated as such. If you can’t do as I say, then get the hell out of here.”
“Yes, sir. I’ll wait outside until you’re ready, Captain Hunter. I’ll lead the way for you.”
Chase turned his back on the MP. Tessa now held Arzo against her legs and let her gaze linger on Darya who moved closer to her side.
“Thank you, Chase.” Her voice turned raspy, parched from so little humidity. She took the opportunity to run her hand down Darya’s forearm.
“I’m going.” Darya tapped several of the girls on their heads or pulled their tangled hair as he walked past them. “Be good girls.”
Little heads bobbed obedience as they watched him leave with the captain.
“When will we see him again, Miss Melanie?” Shirin wrapped her arms around Tessa.
“I think never.”
Chapter 31
Sacramento, Californ
ia
F all robbed the few oak trees of their leaves when the winter rains moved in earlier than usual in northern California where Tessa lived and worked. She loved this time of year or had until she spent part of it in the Hindu Cush in Northern Afghanistan.
Transitioning into a normal life again took some work on her part. Robert had been fed a line of half-truths, which he chose to believe. Director Clark and the State Department had personally contacted him before Tessa’s return, explaining she’d witnessed a fatal helicopter crash. Stranded for days with the threat of Taliban insurgency, she and the Undersecretary of State were left to protect a group of orphan girls until help arrived. They were forced to move several times with the help of some mountain folks who had no love for the Taliban. Special Forces managed to orchestrate a rescue, but she’d witnessed several brutal deaths in the process.
“Your wife showed remarkable courage, Mr. Scott.” Director Clark remained calm as he stirred his coffee the day he met with Robert to catch him up to speed.
“I don’t understand why she went to Afghanistan. Her job was at a conference in Kyrgyzstan.”
The director had made sure Tessa knew his exact story so there would be no confusion if her husband started asking questions. She could imagine the hard resolve in both the director’s hawkish grimace and voice as he calmed Robert down. “Yes. The plane experienced some mechanical problems and Undersecretary Finley went with the pilot’s recommendations to put down in Kabul.”
“That doesn’t explain why my wife ended up in the north in some godforsaken hellhole. Why didn’t the military take care of this?”
“It was thought to be a safe area with lots of local support. The ambassador needed women to pick up the girls since the helicopter would be flown by men. There was no cause for alarm. Mrs. Scott and Ms. Finley volunteered to go.”
“Alarm? For heaven’s sake, Director Clark, it’s Afghanistan.” According to the director, Robert paced, ranted, and raved for a good fifteen minutes before coming up for air. “Was my wife injured in any way?”
“I assure you, Mr. Scott, your wife was never in any real danger. We had her on radio the entire time. Because of a storm, we couldn’t get a helicopter to them as fast as first thought. But I will say she has seen the horrors of war up close and personal. You need to give her a chance to acclimate back into the real world as we know it.”
“What does that mean exactly?” Tessa could imagine her husband’s voice lowering as if he were about to hear some bad news.
“The State Department protocol has any employee who witnesses a tragic event overseas, related to the job, receive some counseling.” Tessa could imagine Robert might be concerned about the cost. “It is one of the perks of the job, Mr. Scott.”
She had to give it to the director; he knew her husband well. “She has been given a clean bill of health. The possibility of a few nightmares and being—how can I put this—standoffish, is probable. Give her some time. She did slip and bump her head, causing a little confusion for a few days. That appears to have dissipated as well, but you can never be sure. So be patient, understanding, and the caring husband she claims you to be.”
Even now, weeks later, when Tessa thought of the conversation between the two, she wanted to chuckle. The gentleness Robert demonstrated upon her arrival with the Afghan girls proved him capable of great love and support. He insisted they come home with them until their host families arrived from different parts of the state. Fortunately, most were within two hours of Grass Valley, assuring her visits with the girls would be manageable.
The fact she remained a little jumpy caused Robert some concern. After being home a month, they still had not become intimate. “Tessa, I love you. No matter what, I love you.”
“I know, Robert.” The fall of his face when she didn’t echo his declaration of love caused a wave of guilt to wash over her. “Maybe we can have a date night this weekend. The boys are going to a Boy Scout campout and Heather is doing a sleep over at the Ervins. Martha promised her a baking marathon. She so loves that child.” Tessa reached out and caressed his face with the palm of her hand. When he tried to pull her into his arms, the image of Darya overwhelmed her so suddenly she turned away.
“Tessa, I’m sorry. What did I do?” Robert touched her shoulder.
Forcing a light laugh she waved her hand in a nonchalant fashion then decided to plant a kiss on his mouth. A satisfied look spread across his face as he pulled her close. “I have to catch a flight first thing in the morning. I’ll be gone for a few days. I won’t be back until Monday night. Sorry, hon. We’ll hire a sitter next week. How about I make reservations at a B&B in Nevada City for us. We’ll have dinner, cruise the shops, and take a carriage ride.”
Somehow she felt relieved to postpone the promise of intimacy. “Sounds great.” Pulling away and picking up her briefcase seemed normal.
The rush out the door always meant she couldn’t wait to leave for the safe arms of Enigma. At least they knew how she suffered from the weight of her sins. Dr. Wu would be waiting for her and take her someplace tranquil to talk before letting her go to work. She’d come to depend on him since her return.
“Robert, I do love you. I’m sorry I’ve been so distant. It has nothing to do with you.” Tessa grimaced inside knowing it had everything to do with a Kyrgyz tribesman she owed a debt. She needed to talk to Dr. Wu about feeling guilty in returning to her wifely duties. Why she experienced a sense of betrayal to Darya continued to mystify her.
He opened the front door for her. She thought perhaps the “love” word made her husband happy. “I know, Tessa. I mean”—he puffed out his chest in mock humor—“I’m the total package. Right?”
“That you are.” She pretended to be amused at his attempt at humor. Waving good-bye, she escaped to her car.
Had that conversation really been yesterday?
“Hello, Betty Crocker,” came a female voice from the open door of her office. Tessa switched from grading papers to see her trainer, Dr. Samantha Cordova, leaning against the doorframe. The two women failed to make much effort at pretending to like each other. “Isn’t this your day to be home baking cookies and cleaning toilets?”
Tessa stacked the graded exams for her college students and clipped them together before shoving them into a file cabinet. “No school today. Had to get the kids off for their weekend activities. Decided to come in and catch up on some work.” She leaned back in her chair. “Why are you here? I know it’s not because you want to do lunch.”
Discovering the way to best deal with the Enigma diva meant confronting her head on and never show fear, not an easy task under any circumstance. Besides being by far the most beautiful and dangerous creature, she’d ever met, Sam had the psychological bite of a Black Mamba. Most of the time, the woman scared the living daylights out of her. Tessa like to refer to the female agent as Satan’s spawn.
“Good to see you didn’t get your head shot off, Betty Crocker.” High praise coming from a trainer with a Vlad the Impaler complex.
Sam had watched the little girls gather around Tessa the day they returned, trying to make sense of the new life they were about to embark upon. Those first few hours at the airport were tough.
She’d said only, “Tell me what I can do to help.”
Thunderstruck would have been putting it mildly. Sam went to great lengths to help her reassure the children. Her Pashto, although slow, was almost as good as Tessa’s. The girls couldn’t stop talking about the beautiful lady. Exhaustion from her ordeal, paired with the long trip home, took a toll on her body. For the first time since they’d met, Tessa saw a caring side of Sam. She did the physical management of things so Tessa could concentrate on the children.
Because she had never met Robert, Sam stayed out of sight. She had a way of drawing too much attention and seemed to understand that Tessa didn’t need another distraction or too many questions. In the days that followed, Sam took a rest from the verbal harassment and name calling. Today, she�
�d switched back into the agent from Hell.
“The director wants to see you.”
“He could have called.”
Sam shrugged. “I was headed this way. Told him I’d stop in.”
Tessa let herself do a once-over of the woman and again thought about joining a gym on her way to Weight Watchers right after she went to the BOGO sale at Victoria’s Secret. “Thanks. Be there as soon as I lock up here.” The Enigma agent stepped farther into the tiny office and shut the door. She put her hands on Tessa’s desk and leaned in, muscles bulging like she could crush a man’s neck with one squeeze.
“I’m not sure what happened in Afghanistan—Tessa.” Hearing Sam speak her name for the first time rattled her a bit. “You had to do things to survive.”
“Are you my therapist now? Did Dr. Wu send you?”
“Humph. That hack?” She straightened to her five-foot-ten-inch frame. “No. You were this naive little toad”—Tessa rolled her eyes feeling the warm and fuzzy moment of being called by her name evaporate—“who thought everything to be rainbows and jellybeans before we met.”
“Yeah. Thanks for the wake-up call.” Sarcasm directed at Sam could be considered a survival instinct.
“We’ve had our differences.”
Tessa pulled out a drawer to retrieve her purse, pretending not to care what Sam had to say. “I’m sorry. What?”
She dared meet Sam’s contemptuous gaze to brace against a new onslaught of insults. “I like this Tessa better. Smart. Hateful. Knows how to survive.”
“And doesn’t give a rip what you think.” Tessa raised her chin in a fictitious show of bravery.
Sam’s eyes narrowed. “Listen to me. You came back alive. I now know if I need you to have my back, you’ll be there.”
Tessa’s lips parted in shock, but words failed her.
“I doubted you could handle it. I was wrong. Those kids you saved can make a difference. That’s on you.” Sam arched a brow. “Good job.”
The Enigma Series Boxed Set Page 98
