by Dee Davis
“And then there was a noise, coming from the far end of the corridor. I pushed my way past debris, praying that I hadn’t imagined it, that somehow, Nash had managed to survive. And then he was there. Battered and broken, but alive.” She smiled despite herself, her eyes filling with tears as she looked at Nash. “I tried to explain what had happened but you were bleeding badly and totally beyond comprehending. And the fires were getting more intense. I knew I couldn’t carry you. And I sure as hell wasn’t going to leave you.
“So I dragged you to a window and shot off a flare. I knew it was the equivalent of a Hail Mary pass. But it was our only chance. And miracle of miracles, a helicopter appeared out of the smoke. Tom riding to the rescue. Clearly, that’s the part you remember.
“But I was there, Nash. I held Jake as he died, and I pulled you out of the rubble. I didn’t leave you. I wouldn’t do that. Not ever.”
“Then why didn’t you come to the hospital?” he asked, his voice rough with emotion. “Why did you just disappear?”
“I did come. Once. But you were pretty out of it.”
“And after that?”
“Tom said it would be best if I didn’t come again. That to protect the operation I had to disappear. So I left.”
“Hell of a story,” Avery said, his eyes narrowed in concentration as he considered her words.
“Exactly the word I would have chosen,” Nash said, anger and confusion coloring his voice. “Story.”
“So you don’t believe her?” Avery asked.
Annie held her breath, waiting. Feeling as if somehow everything that mattered depended on his answer.
“I don’t know,” he said, avoiding eye contact. “Some of the details fit with what Tom told me. Others don’t.”
“What about your own memories?” Avery frowned. “How does Annie’s story match up to that?”
“I don’t have any memories,” he sighed, his frustration evident. “At least not cognizant ones. The doctors said it was normal to forget, my brain protecting me. I remember everything up to our arrival in Saida, but after that I’ve got a big gaping hole. There are fragments, but most of them don’t make a hell of a lot of sense. I’m afraid all I really have to go on is what Tom told me. And, at the end of the day, he wasn’t actually there.”
“I’m telling the truth,” Annie said, her own frustration cresting. There was so much riding on their believing her. “It happened just the way I described it.”
“Then why would Tom let me believe you deserted me?” Their gazes collided and she willed hers steady, her stomach tightening with anxiety.
“I don’t know,” she snapped. “Maybe for the same reason he didn’t tell you about the real objective of the mission. Maybe he didn’t trust you anymore. After all, you were the one deserting the ship.”
“Oh, for God’s sake, Annie. I wasn’t deserting anything. I was just seizing an opportunity. A good one, I might add. And besides, Tom supported the move. He even helped me secure the transfer. So I hardly think trust was the issue.”
“Then I guess it was just need to know.” She shrugged, the gesture an attempt to hide the fear and doubt crashing through her. “Maybe he lied to protect me. To keep me safe.” It was a comforting thought, but she knew in her heart the facts weren’t there to support it.
“And maybe you’re the one who’s lying,” Nash said, his voice taunting.
“You don’t believe that.” She leaned forward, her hands clenching the edge of the table, feeling as if everything important depended on his answer.
“No,” he said, shaking his head. “I guess I don’t. But that doesn’t change anything.”
“You’re wrong,” she whispered. “It changes everything.”
Silence stretched between them, and for a moment, everything else disappeared. Avery, the war room. All of their problems. For just one second out of time, there was nothing but the two of them and the emotions that bound them together.
Then Avery cleared his throat, and the fragile connection broke, placing them back on opposite sides again. “So what happened after the rescue?”
Annie leaned back in her chair again, forcing herself to breathe. To clear her mind of everything but the situation at hand. “Nash was evacuated to a military facility in Germany. And the CIA went all out to create a cover story for the incident—an American construction company helping to advise a Lebanese conglomerate. Something went wrong and the building exploded. A horrible accident with limited casualties. Fortunately for everyone, the fire destroyed most of the evidence.”
“What about Kim Sun?” Avery asked.
“He was told his son perished in the fire. I don’t know the particulars. I wasn’t there.”
“Where were you?”
“After the airlift, I went back to Vienna—” Annie paused, looking down at her hands. “There was a safe house there. My cover was blown, so I waited there for word on Nash, and for orders from Tom.”
“How exactly was your cover compromised?” Avery asked.
“Someone who saw me in Saida and connected me with the explosion? I never really knew for certain. Once Tom got the ball rolling, things moved pretty quickly. I went to visit Nash, and from there I was sent back to the States.”
“Did the CIA handle your relocation?”
“I assume so, although I never had contact with anyone beyond Tom and a few people he said he trusted.”
“Did you stay in touch with him?” Nash asked.
“No. Only a couple of times in the beginning. I needed his help with a few things. But after that, he made it pretty clear that I wasn’t to call him anymore. I shouldn’t have been surprised. I mean, they tell us from the beginning that we’re expendable. That for all practical purposes we don’t even exist. I knew if things ever went really wrong I’d be on my own. But I guess I never expected to be completely cut off.”
“So you had no contact with anyone from your old life?” Avery asked.
She swallowed tears as she fought against memories. “There was no one to contact.”
“And Adam’s father?” Nash queried, his words cutting through her doubts. “Did he know the truth?”
“I told you, he wasn’t in the picture.” She wrestled for control and won. “Just a mistake I made. Although that isn’t really accurate, I suppose, considering Adam is the greatest gift I’ve ever had. Look, I know you’re trying to figure out if I inadvertently gave myself away. And I can’t tell you that it’s impossible. But I did everything I could to keep my past buried. I had to, for my son.”
“Still,” Avery said, “if Kim knew you killed his son, he’d have had the motivation to find you.”
“And make me pay,” Annie said, shivering as she remembered Kim’s words. “That’s what he said on the phone—in the motel room. He wanted to make me pay.”
“By kidnapping and killing your son.”
“So you believe me?” Hope flooded through her even as she forced herself to remain wary.
“There’s no denying he kidnapped Adam. We’ve got witnesses who can identify him,” Avery allowed. “And when you couple that with the events of eight years ago, it all falls into place.”
“And Dominico?” she asked, keeping her expression guarded as she watched Avery. “Do you still think I killed him?”
“I’m not sure it matters what I think once Homeland Security gets hold of the evidence. But, no, I don’t think you did it.”
“So you’ll help me?”
“If I can,” Avery said. “But you have to do things my way. Is that understood?”
Annie nodded, her gaze darting between the two of them.
“And the two of you have to find a temporary truce. I can’t have you working at odds with each other. There’s too much riding on this.”
“Fine,” she said, her agreement a necessary evil. She knew she couldn’t trust them. Nash, most of all. Last night, he’d made her feel as if anything were possible. And then he’d callously ripped it all away, his doubt negatin
g the love she’d thought she’d seen in his eyes, a love she’d thought long dead.
Hope was a dangerous thing.
Especially in the hands of a fool.
CHAPTER 20
One of the things Nash loved most about Sunderland was the campus. Set among towering trees, the ivy-covered brick buildings, some dating back to the 1800s, were surrounded by stone walls and cobblestone walkways. The quiet hush of the grassy lawns lent an air of academic solitude even when the grounds were flooded with students. And now, on a Saturday, with only a few students out and about, it was positively peaceful.
Or it would have been if only he didn’t have so much on his mind.
For eight long years, he’d believed Annie had betrayed him. Left him to die in Saida. And now, in the space of only a couple of hours, everything he’d believed had been turned on its end.
He headed up the steps to the Aaron Thomas Center. Usually he prided himself on staying removed from operations, on keeping his personal feelings locked away. But this was different. This was Annie.
And yet, he’d doubted her. From the beginning, he’d believed she had crossed over to the other side. And with Dominico’s death, the evidence of her guilt had seemed irrefutable. But if he truly cared about her, surely he’d have never allowed himself to be swayed.
It was all so damn complicated.
And it was far from over. Avery was right. There were other forces at work here. People who didn’t give a damn about Annie’s past. About Kim or his son or the things she’d done for love of country. All they were going to see was a scapegoat. And the evidence mounting against her.
Which was why it was crucial that Avery win Tom over when he arrived. That he convince the powers that be to let A-Tac work with Annie to take down the real culprit—Kim Sun.
Nash blew out a breath and nodded at a couple of passing coeds as he stepped into the faculty elevator. The girls giggled and whispered as they passed. Nash suddenly felt old. And tired.
It was all so twisted. Or maybe that was the problem. Maybe twisted was the norm, part and parcel of who they all really were, damaged individuals who chose danger and adrenaline in an effort to avoid anything at all resembling real life.
He stepped off the elevator and slapped his hand against Aaron Thomas and walked through the open door. To the left, in one of the computer rooms, he could see Adam, feet swinging off the floor as he concentrated on something on the screen.
“Hey, dude, whatcha up to?” he asked, stepping past the security guard to look over Adam’s shoulder at the fight on the screen. “Pretty bad-ass dragon.”
“I know, but he isn’t that hard to defeat.” Adam hit a key and then another and the dragon bellowed fire and then disappeared. “See?”
“You’re really good,” Nash said.
“Nah.” Adam shook his head. “It’s an easy game. I’ve beat it a couple of times. There’s a sequel out, Wings of the Dragon II, but Mom won’t buy it for me. She thinks I play too much.”
“Moms can be like that.” Nash shrugged.
“Did your mom let you play computer games?” The boy tilted his head to one side, considering the idea of Nash as a gamer.
Nash laughed. “She did, but our games weren’t nearly as good as yours. I started with something called Space Quest. The graphics sucked but the game was pretty fun. There was this one part where if you let a monster kiss you, then later on, a monster jumps out of your stomach.”
“Cool,” Adam said. “Like Alien.”
“Yeah, only not as scary. I’m surprised you’ve seen it.”
“I wasn’t supposed to. Mom watched it on Halloween. She likes scary movies. And I snuck to the top of the stairs and watched from there.” He stopped, clearly regretting the admission. “You won’t tell her, will you?”
“No way.” Nash held out a fisted hand. “Swear.” They bumped knuckles and Adam grinned, the first true smile Nash had seen from the boy. He looked so damn much like his mother.
“You want to try?” Adam said, hopping up from the chair. “I can coach you.”
Nash nodded, sliding in front of the computer screen.
“Okay,” Adam continued, leaning close. “The arrow buttons move you right and left. And the space bar makes you jump. The up button is your sword. All you got to do is remember that dragons have really mushy bellies.”
The dragon roared, and Nash started swiping the air with his sword, jumping to miss the dragon’s bursts of fire.
“Careful,” Adam warned as Nash moved too close to the dragon’s claws.
Nash swung again, hitting the dragon on the chin. The beast howled and the green life bar above his head dropped down to halfway. Adrenaline surged as Nash focused in on the fight, parrying to the left, then faking the dragon to move right.
“Go,” Adam cheered. “You’re almost there. Now.”
Nash thrust upward, pressing the appropriate computer key for everything it was worth. “Come on, buddy, die already.” He moved to the side, then thrust again, this time cutting into the beast’s leathery hide.
“Just a little more to the left,” Adam counseled.
Nash lunged right, then struck left, his sword slicing through the soft belly of the beast. The dragon roared, then burst into flames and disappeared.
“See,” Adam said. “I told you it was easy.”
“No way I could have done it without your help,” Nash said, feeling his beeper vibrate against his thigh. He reached into his pocket and checked the message.
“You gotta go?” Adam asked, looking disappointed.
“Afraid so. I’ve got to go to a meeting, but I’d like to play again later if you’re up for it.”
“And in the meantime,” Jason said, appearing in the doorway, “you can play with me.”
“Cool,” Adam said, hopping on one foot with excitement. “Jason’s really good.”
“Which I guess puts me in my place.” Nash laughed, surprised at how at ease he felt—and how much he hated to break the mood. “But I learn pretty quickly.”
“You did great,” the boy added supportively. “Honest, you did.”
“Thanks.” Nash smiled. “But now I’m afraid I’ve got to go to work.”
The kid’s expression sobered. “To help my mom.”
“Yeah. And to keep you safe.”
Adam nodded solemnly, his eyes looking way too old. “You gotta kill the dragon.”
“Exactly,” Nash said. “But first we’ve got to find him.”
“So what have we got?” Nash asked as he walked into the war room, dropping down into a chair next to Drake. Annie was sitting across the table. Their gazes met briefly, but she turned away. Hannah, who was sitting at the head of the table next to Emmett, raised an eyebrow, and Nash shrugged. No one said working with Annie was going to be easy.
Tyler sat at the other end of the table, next to Lara. The only ones missing in action were Avery, who was working on arrangements for their meeting with Tom, and Jason, who, having drawn the lucky straw, was still playing computer games with Adam.
“I was just telling everyone that I’d managed to ID the two bodies Annie and Drake took out. And it looks like the stakes are getting higher. These men are both players. Antoine Marcel is a French mercenary. International connections. No political agenda. Just follows the money.”
“And the other one?” Drake asked.
“Yuri Atomov. Russian dissident with ties to radical communist splinter groups. No known relationship with Ashad. And nothing to connect him to Kim or Rivon. But he’s definitely got a history of providing muscle when the price is right. So my guess is that they were both just hired guns.”
“What about the scene?” Nash asked Tyler. “You guys find anything?”
“Nothing concrete. The car was clean. And there was nothing on the bodies except a couple of cell phones.”
“Both throwaways,” Emmett said.
“So nothing at all to help clear my name.” Annie’s tone was bitter and she still kept
her gaze averted from his.
“I wouldn’t say that.” Drake shrugged. “I did find corroboration that you were at the Sweet Rest. The name on the register was just as you said it would be and the manager identified your picture.”
“I told you I was telling the truth,” Annie said, her chin lifting as her eyes met Nash’s.
“It wasn’t enough, Annie,” Lara said. “Nothing the manager said changes the timeline. You could easily have checked in and then driven on to Dominico’s.”
“What about the room?” she asked. “There should have been prints. Something to prove we were there? The White Castle trash?”
“The room had been wiped clean.” Emmett shook his head. “Professionally, if I had to call it. So either you did it, or someone wanted it to look that way. Jason and I went over the phone Rivon gave you again, and there was still nothing. Which leaves us, I’m afraid, with a hell of a lot of questions.”
“You’ve all been briefed, I take it, on what happened in Lebanon?” Nash asked.
“Yes.” Hannah nodded. “And I’ve been working up some information on Kim Sun.”
“So what did you find?” Annie’s hands clenched and unclenched, her nails biting into her skin as she struggled against her demons.
“The guy pretty much disappeared after his son was killed,” Hannah said, flashing a picture up on the overhead screen. “The notoriety surrounding Jin’s death and the resulting investigation pretty much doomed his career. He resigned his post, but there’s evidence he was actually forced out of the diplomatic corps.”
“For a time,” Drake said, taking up the story, “he worked as a consultant. But there are at least some indications that his dealings began to move toward the political fringes.”
“We can’t substantiate this, of course.” Hannah shrugged. “But there have been indications that Kim has become a key player in the effort for Korean reunification.”
“But he’s South Korean,” Annie said with a confused frown. “I thought they were happy with their freedom.”
