Conspiracy (Alex and Cassidy Book 4)

by Nancy Ann Healy

  “Shut the hell up!” Krause yelled. “Call Fallon. They are in New York going through files. He’s close enough to get to Alex.”

  Eleana shook her head. “Hawk tried. Even called Tate, they are offline. Fallon and Brady, no one knows where they are.”

  “Fuck!”

  “How do they know where Alex is?” Eleana asked.

  “Only one way. Should have seen it long ago. Everywhere we were led, all the obstacles…Like someone was one step ahead of us from the beginning. Because they were,” Krause said as he pushed the gun into the flesh of Paul Daniel’s back. Daniels remained still and silent.

  “Jonathan?” Eleana implored him.

  “There is only one person who knows where we all are at any given time. Only one person who knew who we were looking for all along. There is only one person she trusts completely and she tells him everything,” Krause explained. “General Waters. Am I right, Ambassador?”

  “Oh, my God,” Eleana shook her head in disbelief. “Matt? Matt would never betray Jane.”

  “You’d be surprised what people will do,” Daniels said. “Put the gun down, Jonathan. You can have the file. It will explain many things. Just put down the gun and let me make a call.”

  “Why would I do that?”

  “Because, I am the man who can help you right now.”

  Krause had less than a second to make his decision. He looked at Eleana. “Do you trust her?”

  “Who?” Eleana asked.

  “Claire. Do you trust whatever she told you?” he asked. Eleana was stunned by the question. “Eleana!”

  Eleana snapped to attention. “Yes. Yes, I trust her.”

  “Call her now. Tell her that her father is on his way to Alex. They are our best chance now.”

  Eleana nodded and put a few paces between them. Krause heard her voice growing quiet in the distance. “Claire?”

  “You are going to send The Sparrow to save Toles?” Daniels laughed. “Brave—or stupid.”

  “Shut up,” Krause said. “Give me the file.”

  “And then what? You kill me?” Daniels asked.

  Krause chuckled. “That’s too kind.” Daniels took a deep breath. Krause moved to subdue the ambassador fully. “We have a lot to talk about.”

  “What makes you think I will say a word?” Daniels spat.

  “You will. And, if you don’t? I know someone who can help you.”

  “If you reach them in time,” Daniels replied.

  “For your sake, I hope we do. Because, Paul?” Krause whispered. “If anything happens to my family? I promise you, you will pray for death.”

  ***

  “Claire, what are you doing?” Hawk grabbed hold of Claire’s arm.

  “I’m going with you.”

  “You can barely walk!”

  “He’s my father, Hawk. You know what? He has fucked with one too many people I care about,” Claire declared as she struggled to fasten her bra. Claire grabbed her shirt. She moved to extend her arm into the sleeve and yelped in response. Hawk took a deep breath and walked to Claire. She grabbed the shirt from Claire’s hand.

  “What are you doing?” Claire asked heatedly.

  “Helping you get dressed. We need to move. We’ll be here until morning if I let you do this yourself.”

  Claire watched as Hawk methodically buttoned the blue shirt. Hawk’s eyes followed her hands while Claire’s eyes followed Hawk. When their eyes met, Claire froze. Hawk smiled, leaned in and placed a chaste kiss on Claire’s lips.

  “I don’t know who you are,” Hawk said.

  “That makes two of us,” Claire agreed.

  Hawk smiled and extended her hand. “Come on, Gimpy—let’s go save the savior.”

  Claire chuckled. “I won’t be gimpy forever,” she commented as Charlie helped her down the stairs.

  “I’m not sure if that is a threat or a promise,” Hawk replied.

  “Depends on which you prefer,” Claire deadpanned.

  Hawk laughed. She helped Claire put on a jacket just inside the doorway. “You’ll need that,” she said. Claire looked at Hawk in questioning. “I don’t need a gimpy agent with pneumonia,” Hawk explained.

  “Hawk,” Claire grabbed Hawk’s arm. Hawk was stunned at the terror she saw in Claire’s eyes. “He will do it. He will kill Alex. He’ll kill them all if he thinks that he can…”

  “Maybe you can help with that.”

  Claire shook her head. “He’ll kill me too, or worse.”

  “Worse?” Hawk asked.

  “Yeah. Make me forget.”

  “Claire, I’m not going to let that happen,” Hawk said with conviction.

  “She’s….”

  “What?”

  “Cassidy, I might not be to her….But, Hawk? She’s the only friend I ever had besides El. At least until…”

  “Let’s go,” Hawk said. “I don’t let my friends die,” she told Claire.

  “Alex,” Claire muttered as Hawk opened the door to her Jeep for Claire.

  “Her too.”

  ***

  Cassidy woke up feeling more rested than she had in days. She could feel the chill in the air from the snow that had fallen most of the night. She wondered if the trails would be open on the mountain this morning. Oddly, she felt the desire to ski. At times, it had helped her to clear her thoughts. At times, it had helped her connect with her father. She needed both. She smiled at the sight of a sleeping Alex with Dylan sprawled across her. Typically, Alex rose before the sun. It was ironic. Cassidy was sure that the events of the last few days had taken the greatest toll on Alex. Alex struggled with feeling helpless. She had a need to make things better for the people she cared about. That was easy to accomplish with the physical realities of life. Alex could carry Dylan when he was hurt or sick. She could protect them from physical danger. Cassidy had witnessed that when Carl Fisher had captured her. Emotions existed in a different universe.

  Alex could not take away Cassidy’s confusion or pain. She tried in every way she knew how to, but at the end of the day all Alex could do was hold Cassidy and tell her that she loved her. That was enough for Cassidy. For Alex? Alex needed to do more. Cassidy wished that somehow she could make her wife understand that even if Alex solved all the riddles in the world, and managed to forge world peace, there would still be pain to confront. Alex knew that, of course, she just could never seem to accept that loving Cassidy was enough. Cassidy didn’t need all the answers, the solution to her life was lying beside her, and if she guessed correctly, cuddled with her grandmothers down the hall.

  Cassidy pulled herself from the bed quietly. She retrieved some warm, clean clothes and made her way to the shower, hoping that perhaps she could get a few runs in before the day started for everyone else in the cabin.

  ***

  “Help is on the way to Alex,” Jane told Krause. “They should be there before the day begins, before Bill arrives.”

  “Claire called Eleana a few minutes ago. They’re on the mountain now. They just need to get to the cabin.”

  “Jonathan, do you think Claire is a safe bet?”

  “I think Eleana trusts her on this. I trust Eleana. I hate to admit it,” he said. “Claire is…Well, she’s not changed as much as she is different.” He heard a soft sigh escape Jane’s lips on the other line.

  “I think I can imagine,” Jane replied. “Being betrayed by the one person you trust more than anyone will make you see things differently.”

  “Jane,” Krause called softly over the phone. He imagined that she had spent the last few hours trying to convince herself that there had been a mistake. General Matthew Waters was considered by most to be reputable, forthright, and ethical. Krause would never have dreamed that General Waters would use his sister. He could not comprehend what would have made Matt align himself with William Brackett. Then again, much of what Jonathan Krause had confronted in the last few years continued to astound him. It never became normal.

  Jane put her face in her hands. �
��I can’t believe it.”

  “I’m sorry,” Krause said sincerely. “I have Daniels. I have some interesting information too. Not complete, but it’s more than we had. Do you want me to make my way to Matt?” he asked cautiously.

  “No.”

  “Jane, I know that you love him. I know….But, Jane…”

  “I will handle it, Jonathan,” she said.

  “How?”

  Jane sighed. “I will handle it.”

  Krause wasn’t sure he wanted to know what that meant. “And me?”

  “Secure the ambassador as usual.”

  “If I do, if I go through the usual channels, Matt will know within minutes.”

  “I know.”

  “Jesus, you’re going to let him hang himself,” Krause said.

  “He’s already done that,” Jane said sadly.

  Krause understood. “It doesn’t mean he had a hand in John’s assassination.”

  “Of course, it does,” Jane said flatly. “We both know that, but thank you for denying it for my sake,” she said honestly.

  “Janie,” Krause called gently to her over the line. “I…”

  “You have someone else to worry about,” Jane observed. “Secure the ambassador. Take Eleana home.”

  “Fallon and Brady?”

  “They obviously did not like pushing paper,” she said. “Perhaps you will collide.”

  “You think they are on their way here to MyoGen?” he asked.

  “Stands to reason.”

  The theory made perfect sense to Krause. Neither Fallon nor Brady would have taken kindly to reviewing transcripts and reports amid all the insanity that had unfolded. “If I see them, I will…”

  “Send them home,” Jane said. “This ends today.”

  “It never ends,” Krause observed honestly.

  “No, it doesn’t,” she admitted. “But, it can end for a day.”

  “If you need me…”

  “You have your directive,” she said.

  Jane set her phone on the table and took a deep breath. The one person she had always trusted completely had betrayed her at every turn. She had told her brother everything since childhood. Jane wondered if John Merrow had suspected anything about Matthew Waters. If he had, he had spared his wife that suspicion. If he hadn’t, Jane was certain it was for the same reasons she had not. They didn’t want to see what was right in front of them. It was too painful to believe that someone you loved could be so cold. She shook her head in disbelief. Was it really necessary to suspect the worst in people to protect them? Ironic and sad if that were the truth.

  “I’m sorry, Matt. There is just no other way.”

  ***

  Dylan woke and went in search of his mother. He hobbled into the large living space and startled at the sight of a tall man walking through the door with a bundle of wood.

  James McCollum smiled over the load he carried and placed it by the fireplace. “Good morning, Dylan,” he said.

  Dylan was unsure and took a step back, only to bump into something solid. “It’s okay, Speed,” Alex’s voice assured him. She paused. Why hadn’t she and Cassidy talked about this? Where was Cassidy, she wondered? “This is Mr….”

  McCollum stepped forward. “You can call me Jim,” he said with a smile, extending his hand to Dylan. Dylan accepted his gesture and nodded.

  “Jim is…Well, he’s….”

  “He’s someone very important to your mom,” Rose broke through the uncertainty and tension. “I’m sure she will tell you about it when she gets back.”

  “Where is Cass?” Alex asked.

  “She left over an hour ago for the trails, hoping Bear Claw would be open early now that the snow stopped,” Rose explained.

  Alex looked out the window. “How’s she getting there?”

  McCollum laughed earnestly. “She’ll manage.”

  Alex looked over at a sullen Dylan. “What’s wrong, Speed?”

  “If I didn’t bag yesterday, I’d be with her.”

  “On Bear Claw? Isn’t that that double diamond thing?” Alex asked.

  Dylan giggled. “Yeah. We’d do Black Bear or Allagash. Then she’d let me watch her,” he explained.

  Alex was puzzled. Rose smiled at her. “There are monitors in the small lodge that sits halfway up the trail. You can watch the different trails from there. Bear Claw has the most cameras,” she said. “Why don’t you take Alex there?” Rose suggested to her grandson.

  “Is that such a good idea?” Alex asked. “Speed, your ankle is still swollen.”

  Dylan shrugged. “I can make it.”

  Alex was skeptical. She expected Cassidy might have her head on a platter for even letting Dylan try, but the determination in his voice convinced her to let him. Plus, she needed to put some distance between herself, Dylan and James McCollum. Dylan would inevitably have questions. Alex was a bit surprised Cassidy had left at all, much less without telling her.

  Dylan saw Alex’s apprehension. “I’ve hurt my ankle before on the mountain. Mom helped me, but I still had to ski to the bottom,” he told Alex. Alex sighed. Cassidy was full of surprises. She guessed that she would still be discovering things about her wife in thirty years.

  “Take the snowmobile,” Rose said.

  “Dylan, go get dressed. Do you need help?” Alex asked him.

  “No,” he said as he limped from view.

  “I’m not sure this is such a great idea,” Alex admitted. “Why didn’t she tell us she was leaving?”

  “Alex,” Rose began. “Dylan will be all right. For Cassie, that mountain is a place to escape. She grew up here, so has Dylan in many ways. I know you don’t understand.”

  “No, I do,” Alex replied. Rose grinned.

  “Ever seen Cassie ski?” McCollum asked. Alex shook her head. He nodded. “There won’t be many people on that run this morning. It’s late in the season, and with the snow…Well, you should get some glimpses of her. Not as exciting as watching her in the terrain park, but…”

  “Terrain park?”

  Dylan reappeared with a sweatshirt in his hand. Alex smirked and helped him pull it over his head. “They have jumps and stuff,” he mumbled through the fabric.

  “Like ski jumps?” Alex asked nervously. McCollum and Rose both chuckled at the wonder and fear in Alex’s voice.

  “Not like what you are picturing,” Rose assured her.

  “It’s cool, Alex. Mom is really good.”

  Alex nodded. “I just never realized she was so into it. I mean, I’ve heard you talk…”

  “You thought I was just bragging like some of those soccer moms I have seen at Dylan’s games?” Rose guessed.

  Rose had told Cassidy numerous times that some of the women on the sidelines made her crazy. It had never been in Rose’s nature to embellish Cassidy’s talent. Cassidy was the same way with Dylan. Dylan was quite the young athlete and he thrived on his summer soccer games. Cassidy cheered for the entire team, and Rose had heard her council Dylan more than once on the need to be a team player. He was not as big as some of his teammates, but he was fast and coordinated. Rose had never allowed Cassidy to get cocky, and Cassidy was determined to instill the same message in Dylan.

  “Well, I am bragging. I’m just not exaggerating. Go see for yourself,” Rose said. “Besides, with all these kids you seem to want, she might not have much time for this,” Rose added. Alex’s eyes grew wider and Rose laughed. “Oh please, Alex. I swear if you could have had her pregnant the day Mackenzie came home, you would have.”

  “What were you saying about exaggerating again?” Alex asked her mother-in-law.

  “She’s not exaggerating,” Helen defended her best friend with a yawn as she entered the room carrying Mackenzie. “You know, Alexis, you could take the pressure off Cassidy and have the next one yourself.”

  “Who says there’s going to be a next one?” Alex replied.

  “Oh, please,” Helen and Rose chimed in unison.

  Alex grumbled. “Speed, wh
y don’t you eat something while I get ready and then we’ll go.”

  “Can we eat there instead?” he asked.

  Alex grinned. Anything that might get her out of the lion’s den faster sounded like a good idea. Helen and Rose reveled in teasing Alex. She truly did not want Cassidy’s father and Edmond to see the way the two older women could make her blush.

  “Sounds good, Speed. Are you sure you are up to it? What about your wrist?”

  Dylan wanted to go to the slopes. “It’s okay,” he said. Alex looked at him skeptically. He shrugged. “It hurts,” he admitted. “I’ll be okay, Alex. Please?”

  “Only if you promise me that you will tell me if you need to come back. If I think it’s too much, we will turn around. I’m not sure this is the best idea, Dylan. And, only if you understand we are not going all day, just to see Mom and then we are coming back here. Understood?”

  “I promise, Alex.”

  Alex smiled. Dylan was determined. “Give me a few minutes to shower and we’ll go.” Alex sidled up to her mother. “How high is half way up the trail?” she whispered.

  Helen shrugged. “It’s halfway, Alexis.”

  Alex groaned and headed for the shower. “What the hell kind of answer was that?”

  ***

  “Claire? Are you okay?” Hawk asked as the Jeep approached the cabin. “Hey, listen, we made it here in time.”

  “You don’t know my father,” Claire said.

  “It’s only a little after 7:00. We beat them.”

  “Or, they are waiting,” Claire suggested.

  “If they are, we’ll handle it.”

  Claire looked out the car window. She felt an unfamiliar sensation rising through her veins—fear. What kind of person kills the person they supposedly love? What kind of person deliberately harms his child? Claire Brackett had done many things in her young life that she was aware would make people shiver. She wondered how much of it had been by her choice. Surprisingly, that answer seemed to hold little concern for Claire. Whether or not she would have done it without her father’s interventions did not change the facts. She had taken life. She had used people for any number of reasons. Then again, she did not deal with people often. She dealt with assets. Claire had thought she understood that distinction.