by T. K. Leigh
Placing my hands on my hips, I gave him an irritated look.
“What? You have a routine. If I were you, I’d think about straying from it for a bit. It makes you an easy target.”
“A target? For what?”
“For anything. I’ll see myself out.” He spun around, heading away from me. “Oh, and from now on,” he called out over his shoulder, “always arm your security system when you go to sleep. There’s a night mode for a reason…although it won’t keep me out.” He winked and disappeared around the corner.
Tyler
“TYLER, IS THAT YOU?” a voice called out as I walked through the door of my house early that morning, throwing the keys on the entryway table.
“Yeah. Just me, Eli.” I made my way down the hall and into the study, files and papers spread all over the large mahogany desk he sat behind. Sitting down in an armchair across from him, I rested my hands behind my head.
“You spent the night?” he asked, raising his eyebrows. “Again?”
I shrugged. “Yeah. So?”
He gave me a concerned look. “I don’t know all the details of what the hell it is you’re working on, but I’ve got a bad feeling in my gut about this one, sir.”
“Eli, I told you. You don’t always need to call me sir. We went to high school together, for crying out loud.”
I had practically known Eli since I was a kid. We became close friends after my family moved to Boston just before my eleventh birthday. We played baseball together in high school. He didn’t come from a life of wealth and privilege like I did. There was no money for him to go to college, so we went our separate ways after graduation. I moved into a dorm at Boston University, and Eli got assigned a bunk on Parris Island. After he left the Marines, I got him a job with the company, which happened to be around the same time I went into the navy. Now that we were working together, our friendship had grown stronger.
“Just a habit. You are my boss, after all.”
“No. My brother is.”
“Last I checked, you’re an equal owner of the company.”
Sighing, I said, “I know. I don’t need the formalities like he does, though.”
“I don’t mind the formalities. I need this job.”
I knew I wasn’t going to convince him otherwise, so I dropped it. “Speaking of the job, Alex thinks it’s time you’re clued in on what this case is about. We’re going after Colonel Francis Galloway or, as his followers refer to him, ‘the Dragon’.”
“‘The Dragon’? How did he get that nickname?” Eli asked.
“From his field days. When he was overseeing a unit, he always did this circle of trust thing, a way to remind them they were one cohesive unit and if one person left the circle, they’d get burned…literally.”
“Literally?” he asked in disbelief.
“Yup. Anytime his unit got a new member, he would assemble them in an area, toss a match into a circle where he had already poured lighter fluid or gasoline, flames encircling all of them. He would give this whole speech about trust and working together as a unit. Everyone started calling him ‘the Dragon’ because of this.”
“The fire.”
“Yeah. He got to be well-known for it. Anyway, he left the field and was reassigned to Army Counterintelligence over thirty years ago. Roughly sixteen years ago, it was found that he had been using his security clearance to sell information and weapons to known terror organizations. He had arranged a trip overseas under the guise that he was investigating suspicious deals, as well as various bombings and attacks on embassies. It was during one such trip that he went missing and was presumed to have perished. Shortly thereafter, it was discovered he was the one responsible for those deals and attacks. The trail he left behind was a bloody one, but the army and the family members of his numerous victims found solace in knowing he was dead…until about a year ago when new information came to light that he wasn’t dead all those years. He was just hiding.”
“And what’s the girl’s connection to all of this?”
I shook my head dejectedly, wishing this was all a giant nightmare. “Mackenzie is Galloway’s daughter. Her real name is Serafina Galloway. She was reported missing, along with her mother, Magdalena, just a few days after Colonel Galloway was thought to have died. A two-year search yielded nothing and they were finally declared dead. It was by pure luck that a CIA agent familiar with the Galloway case stumbled across a nearly seven-year-old obituary one day of a woman named Isadora Delano during the course of a separate investigation. He thought the woman looked suspiciously like an older version of Magdalena and, after running facial recognition on the photo, it was confirmed that Isadora Delano was Magdalena Galloway. The CIA found Isadora’s sole heir was one Mackenzie Delano…her daughter…and they finally had a lead on finding Galloway after years of silence, although there were allegations of more of his dealings across the world. That was when they decided to contact the security company. When Alexander handed this case to me, I thought it would be easy. Get in, get the information, get out.”
“But…”
“But it’s complicated,” I sighed. “She is convinced her father’s dead. I have no idea how I’m going to get her to not only tell me her father’s alive, but also where he is. Not to mention who she really is.”
“And the CIA thinks she knows?”
I slowly nodded. “Yes. They believe she’s aware that her father is alive, that she knows what he’s done, and that she’s covering for him. That’s why she’s maintained the new identity all these years, according to them.”
“But if they think that…”
“She’ll face prosecution for conspiracy to commit treason and obstruction of justice when this is all said and done. So not only do I have to betray her trust, I’m also going to be the one to hand her over to the authorities on a silver platter.”
“Shit,” Eli muttered, startling me. He rarely swore.
With an ache in my chest, I stood up and headed to the wet bar by the window. I poured two tumblers of scotch and returned to my chair, handing one to him. He raised his glass, but didn’t drink any. I, however, took a hearty sip, hoping to find clarity, but I knew I wouldn’t.
“So, now you know what I’m up against.”
“Tyler, I−”
I held up my hand. “Eli, I’m already in over my head. I’ve toiled over this situation for hours, days, trying to find a way where this will end with no one getting hurt, but I just don’t see that happening.”
He leaned back, his perceptive eyes studying me. “You’re falling for her, aren’t you?”
Closing my eyes, I tried to convince myself that I wasn’t. I tried to keep my distance from Mackenzie. I did everything I could to remain aloof, while still hoping she felt some sort of connection to me so she would open up and tell me everything about her. But, in a short period of time, she shattered through the walls I built around my heart. She chased away the loneliness I had been living with for the better part of the past several years. And I wanted more of her. I was walking a tightrope, balancing between selfishly wanting to spend every waking hour of the day with her, and wanting her to walk away so I couldn’t complete my assignment.
The silence in the room was thick and I wanted to scream, yell, anything to release the frustration I felt from the tough spot I was in with Mackenzie. I could shut it off, stop feeling, stop caring, but I was feeling again for the first time in years and it was because of Mackenzie. Her presence. Her beauty. Her light. Something made me believe that no matter what I did to fight my feelings, it wouldn’t work. Lightning had jump-started my heart after years of solitude and loneliness. It would take a disaster to cause it to stop beating once more.
I cleared my throat, eyeing all the files spread across the desk. “So, what’s all of this? Any new developments on the Charlie front?”
“Your brother sent this over.” His expression turned from sympathetic to professional, switching from the role of best friend to employee. He turned his laptop so
the screen was facing me.
“What is that?” I asked, scrunching my eyes to try to focus on the random markings of a scanned copy of something. What? I had no idea.
“The ramblings of a mad man, apparently. This was found in Charlie’s doctor’s office at Walter Reed. It was hidden in the ceiling.”
I began scrolling through the document, surprised by the sheer magnitude of it. “How many pages?”
“Over five hundred. And that’s just the first book.”
“It’s complete gibberish,” I said in awe.
“Yeah. Your brother has some of his analysts on it right now. It’s written in some kind of code. No one has any idea what kind, though, so trying to figure out the key is nearly impossible, but they’re doing what they can.”
“Anything else turn up other than all this gibberish?” I asked, turning the laptop back around.
He slid a few papers across the desk for me to peruse. “Just some background info. Harvard graduate. Went into the army after graduating.”
“This guy had a degree from Harvard and he went into the military?” I asked, shocked.
“Yes. Apparently, his father was a Ranger, and his father was a Ranger, and so on. According to people who know him, he felt it was his duty to serve his country, regardless of his level of education. Of course, he went in as an officer.”
“Naturally.”
“He spent some time in Afghanistan before being recruited by Cryptology, where he worked for most of his service. Until May, about eight years ago, he had an exemplary record. Not one mark at all. Then, out of nowhere, he was sent to Walter Reed due to schizophrenia.”
“Who ordered it?”
He shook his head. “That’s where it gets weird. We can’t find the official order anywhere.”
“Did anyone talk to his supervisor in Cryptology?” I asked, growing uneasy about the entire operation. There were too many suspicious circumstances now, too many pieces of a puzzle that didn’t quite fit.
“Yes. Granted, it was eight years ago and he did admit he may not be remembering correctly. All he recalled was receiving a letter from the director of Walter Reed, indicating that Charlie was being institutionalized for schizophrenia. He had him listed as AWOL for a week before receiving that notification. According to him, the letter apologized for the delay, but said it was an emergency and couldn’t be helped. His supervisor said he would try to comb through his old files to see if he could find it. He did mention that when he attempted to access Charlie’s computer file, nothing came up, as if he never existed.”
“Hmmm… That’s a bit odd, don’t you think?”
“Yes. And Charlie wasn’t discharged from Walter Reed. He escaped, but the powers-that-be decided not to issue an alert as to his escape. And his doctor?”
“Yeah?”
“Missing. There’s something going on that’s not sitting right with me, but I have no idea what that is.”
I considered everything he just told me, my mind buzzing from an overload of information. “Let’s think about this. Walter Reed doesn’t issue an alert about a missing patient and we don’t know why. Could be on the grounds of national security. Could be because he’s a schizophrenic who thinks the government’s after him anyway, so why add to that fear? They conveniently misplace all of his intake paperwork and orders institutionalizing him. This guy worked Cryptology. Maybe he stuck his nose somewhere he shouldn’t have and someone found out.”
“If they were that concerned, don’t you think they could have just killed him?”
“Not likely. If you were worried your cover was about to be blown by a crazy intellectual spewing about a cover-up, would you kill him knowing that any investigation into a murder would lead to whatever he was working on at the time? No. Killing him wasn’t the answer. They needed to discredit him, and what better way than to institutionalize him for schizophrenia? This guy’s a genius. There’s a thin line between brilliance and madness.”
Talking through everything was certainly helping me, giving me the clarity I had wanted to feel all day…all week.
“Do you think this has some sort of connection to Mackenzie’s father?” Eli asked quietly.
“That’s the million dollar question now, isn’t it?” I said, taking Eli’s full tumbler of scotch and sipping it. “If what she says is true…if, on the night this guy was taken to Walter Reed, he was asking about her father…I think there’s a damn good chance there is a connection.”
“What do you think it is?”
“Perhaps Charlie had proof Galloway didn’t die and was getting close to finding out where he was hiding. Our sources believe he still has people on the inside…some high-ranking officials, if their intel is to be believed. Maybe one of them got wind of what Charlie was investigating.”
“Or maybe he found differing intel that would incriminate someone else, someone who wanted everyone to think Galloway was responsible,” Eli offered.
I shot my head up, a feeling of hope washing over me. I knew the only way there could be a happy ending for me and Mackenzie was if her father wasn’t the monster he was painted as. I wanted it to be true. Would that solve all my problems? No. But it was a start.
“I’m not trying to get your hopes up,” he said. “With everything going on, I think we need to look at all of this from the beginning. And the beginning may be the real reason for Galloway’s disappearance. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have doubts regarding the story you were fed.”
“What? You think the CIA lied?”
“It wouldn’t be the first time and it certainly won’t be the last, especially if someone who wields a ridiculous amount of power is the one responsible.”
It felt like my brain was about to explode. The assignment was getting more and more convoluted with each passing minute. Now, instead of simply deceiving Mackenzie so that she would tell me where her father was, I had to find out if he really was guilty of the crimes of which he was accused, figure out Charlie’s connection to everything, and come up with a way that Mackenzie wouldn’t hate me when it all ended.
Abruptly, I stood from my chair, feeling like the dark walls in the small study were about to close on top of me. I needed to go somewhere to think, to breathe, and I couldn’t do that in this house.
“Come on, Eli. Let’s get out of here and grab some breakfast. And we’re not going to talk about anything work-related.”
Eli laughed, getting up from his chair and unbuttoning the top button of his suit shirt. “How’s that going to work? From where I’m standing, your work life has become your personal life.”
I shook my head. “Don’t remind me.”
Mackenzie
LATER THAT MORNING, A gentle breeze blew through my hair as I emerged from my building and paused for a moment. I inhaled the salty sea air, finally feeling somewhat balanced for the first time in days…until my eyes fell on Tyler leaning against his Bronco, his arms crossed in front of his chest, a smirk drawn on his face. His dimples popped and the boyish expression made my heart do backflips.
“Hey,” I said, sheepishly brushing my hair behind my ear as I approached him.
“Hey,” he replied, pushing off his car to meet me. “I’ll take that.” He reached for my laptop bag.
“No, it’s okay. I’m just on my way to the restaurant.”
“I need to talk to you about something important, and then I need to steal some of your time today.”
I looked at him skeptically, curious as to what he was about to say. By the sudden change in his demeanor, I grew somewhat troubled.
“It’s about the break-ins…”
I straightened my spine, recalling my conversation with Charlie. Then I wondered if Tyler knew he had broken in again this morning.
“What do you mean?”
“I had my guy hack in and get the camera feeds from your building, and the guy who broke in Monday did not match Charlie’s description.”
I feigned surprise. “Then who was it?”
“We’re still trying to figure that out, but my guy ran a comparison with the feed from the club on Sunday night. We can say with relative certainty it’s the same person. We still have absolutely no idea who that is so, in the meantime, I need to know that no harm will come to you.”
“And how precisely do you plan on doing that? I’m not going to change my lifestyle because of a few break-ins at my place.”
“And some rather disquieting phone calls,” he reminded me, raising his eyebrows.
Huffing, I crossed my arms and glared, feeling like an errant child.
“Mackenzie, don’t worry. I promise I’m not going to smother you with my presence twenty-four/seven.”
“Damn straight,” I muttered. The last thing I wanted was for Tyler to think I needed him to protect me or watch out for me. While I liked that he cared for me and wanted to keep me safe, I hated the notion that he thought I needed him in my life.
“So what do you suggest?”
A grin crawled across his mouth. “Have you ever shot a gun?”
My eyes widened and I shook my head. “Nope. I may be the only person who lives in the fine state of Texas who hasn’t.”
His smile grew even bigger. “Good.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me toward his truck. “I’m glad I get to be your first. I’m about to pop your gun-shooting cherry. And honestly, I may have a hard on right now picturing you holding a gun.”
I laughed at his enthusiasm. “Well, let’s go shoot some guns then. And maybe put that hard on to good use afterwards.” I winked, allowing Tyler to help me into the front seat of the Bronco.
He leaned toward me once I was situated in my seat, his lips hovering on my neck, his breath hot. “Not yet.” His fingers trailed down my arm, a low burn starting deep in my stomach. “Tomorrow,” he whispered. “I can’t wait to hear you screaming my name, begging me to touch every inch of your body. And I plan on exploring each and every inch of this body.”
