by Kells, India
Grasping his hand, she kissed the warming metal. Sully returned the favor, his eyes on her gold band. “Gabrielle, I regret I didn’t have enough time to choose something special. If you’d like, we can shop for something else. I don’t mind.”
Gabrielle closed her fingers. “I like my ring! It looks old, and worn, as if it has proven itself, upheld its commitment. I’m curious, though … where did you get it?”
“A gift from Abbess Brigit. The wedding ring of her mother … well, her adoptive mother, she had kept all those years. She told me it had been the ring of a long and happy marriage. And we needed that blessing, more than anyone else she knew.”
“I hope to thank her someday. For everything.”
Sully nodded and pulled her to her feet before sweeping her up like a bride. “Now, I wish to unwrap the most incredible gift I have received, if you don’t mind.”
“Oh, I don’t mind, Mr. Thorne. I don’t mind at all.”
And he made his promise true, all through the night, until the first lights of dawn lit up the sky on Christmas morning. In this drowsy state of sleep and bliss, her world only revolved around the beating of her husband’s heart against her cheek, and his hand rhythmically caressing her back.
She was so entranced; it took her a moment to realize a phone was ringing.
Sully shifted and looked around for his pants. “Hold on, honey. Let me get that.”
Gabrielle opened her eyes just in time to see his perfect ass in the dim morning light. She stretched languidly, enjoying the view. When he found his phone and answered it at last, the mood changed. He didn’t speak, but his posture revealed everything—it wasn’t good news.
Ending the call, Sully turned to her. “Alie’s baby has been kidnapped. James requested our presence immediately. Arrangements have already been made.”
Already on her feet, Gabrielle grabbed a pair of pants. “Where are they?”
“India.”
Chapter 12
Kolkata, India
Meeting room, basement of the US Consulate.
Hot and humid didn’t even begin to describe the weather since Gabrielle and Sully had landed in India. Apart from making sure they were not followed, Sully kept a close eye on Gabrielle, who wasn’t on top of her game, not yet. He knew he would have been foolish to expect her to stay home—he would have done the same thing—but there was no reason for not keeping her near, ensuring she was not overdoing it or putting herself in an impossible situation.
And he’d better be careful about the whole situation, because his lovely wife would kick his ass if she ever suspected he was shielding her in any way.
James and Beatrice had been tracking the possible whereabouts of Simon for weeks now, and all of their combined resources had pointed to India as a potential landing point. In the laboratories in Namibia by Lance, they had found several former laboratories in South America and Asia. The organization changed their location every ten to twelve months, as only two or three laboratories were active simultaneously. Once the research or experiment was completed, they closed down, the data transferred, and the scientists moved. However, it was unclear about the subjects—what happened to them was still a mystery. Were they relocated? Killed?
Most of what was recovered was analyzed back in the United States, but the admiral kept a close eye on everything, nonetheless.
Beatrice started the update as James was still on the phone.
“So far, we have discovered that the current active laboratories are the one in Prague, one in Belize, and another one in India. As we know, the one in Prague was destroyed, although we got our hands on some useful information. The one is Belize was only starting up and a call to the local authorities stopped everything, leaving the laboratory in India. We’re still searching for the exact location. Lance has been on it with the help on three SEAL Teams, but until now, all the leads have been dead ends. It’s all circumstantial, but the laboratory in India is the only safe place left for him. The only place he could have brought Alie’s baby and hid.”
Sully studied the maps and satellite pictures spread across the working table. “Have you found anything about a building with satellite dishes? It may be our only lead.”
Bea shook her head. “So far, we’re still analyzing, but there is nothing of that sort. Bear in mind the analysis will take some time; there are a lot of buildings very close to each other. The density makes our work quite difficult. We have sent teams in recon to certain locations, but they weren’t conclusive.”
Gabrielle started sorting the images. “Maybe we’re searching for the wrong clue. What if he’s not using satellite dishes anymore?”
Sully turned, frowning. “Satellite dishes had been their communication mode from the start, why would that change now?”
Grimacing, she absently massaged her temples. “I don’t know, it’s a possibility, that’s all. Simon may suspect we know about his installations. The solution could be in finding another connecting link between him and the laboratories.”
He sighed. “Gabrielle has a point, Bea. We find a connection, or we try locating the convergence point where all his scientists and personnel have landed. Then we follow them.”
Bea nodded. “I’m ahead of you. I’ve pulled strings to have access to flight records. I’m waiting for more details soon. On the other hand, it will only give us the landing airport. They could easily go anywhere afterwards.”
“It’s a beginning, at least. Depending on what we can find.”
James returned to the table as he ended his call, his face grim. “None of our leads worked. I received news from those in charge of investigating the lab in Belize. The place is up in flames. They’re standing close by, waiting for the authorities to give them access. And it won’t happen until the fire is under control and ruffled political feathers are smoothed. They’re searching for the scientists, but so far, nobody could be found. Either they’re in hiding, there or here in India, or they’re up in smoke.”
“I tend to choose the last option.” Bea sat down.
Sully turned to Gabrielle. “I don’t know. I think he’ll keep his men alive until he’s done.”
With a furrowed brow, Gabrielle stared at him. “He’s done.”
He came closer to her and took her hand. “Honey, why are you saying that?”
She closed her eyes and her face contorted due to the pain for an instant. “I don’t know, Sully. I just know, or feel I know. It’s weird. And when I try to search deeper for an answer, my head aches like crazy.”
Bea came around the table. “Sully, bring her to the safe house. She needs to rest; the jetlag is a killer here.”
Gabrielle frowned at Bea. “She’s staying here and stop talking to Sully as if I’m not in the room. There is a lot to do to find Alie’s baby. And I’ve come to India before; I’m used to jet lag.”
Bea took her hands and Sully saw Gabrielle tense up, readying for a fight. He had to defuse the situation. Since arriving in India, Gabrielle had been on edge, like a bomb ready to explode. He supposed it was the possible aftereffects of her amnesia, as Luke had pointed out, but he suspected something else.
Taking a deep breath, Gabrielle seemed to rein in her anger. “I’m sorry. It’s like there is something behind a wall in my head … some piece of the puzzle, and when I’m about to crack it, it shifts and I lose focus.”
Sully came beside her and put his hand on her back soothingly. “It’s okay. This is not something you can fight. It must crack open, like you say. If you feel you’re closer to finding what it is, I suggest you take a small break, let your mind rest a little. Let’s go for a walk. There is nothing more we can do, until Lance calls in and Bea’s informants give us their report. We cannot go faster than computers and satellites. None of us can.”
Gabrielle sighed. “I need some air, anyway.”
“Let’s go eat. I’m starving,” Sully stated, putting his arm around her shoulders.
As he hoped, she smiled. “You’re always hung
ry.”
Sully nodded a silent agreement to Bea and James as he waved with his cell phone in hand, and pulled her through the maze of hallways and elevators to get into the light of day. As for fresh air, they would have to imagine it. The air was laced with the stink of garbage, the overwhelming smell of spices, and an unknown undertone of dirt he didn’t want to analyze. They had changed into khakis and light linen shirts, but his back was soaked in a matter of minutes. The neighborhood had mostly a business population, but the crowd changed as they walked for a while.
Gabrielle was lost in her thoughts, looking more at the pavement than the passersby. Sully knew she was still trying to sort her memories, and if she could use an ax, and breaking open her skull to find was hidden there, she would. She had been at it since they learned of the disappearance of Alie’s baby.
Sully took her arm and hooked it with his. She looked up, questioning.
“The trick with the walk is to envision where you’re going, not where you put your feet.”
“Smartass.” A corner of her mouth quirked up
“Exactly. And the smartass you love also tells you the objective here is to give your poor brain a break so it can crack the code all by itself. So, what do you think you’re doing?”
“I know! I know! But letting my brain lead on this one would require time and that’s precisely what we don’t have. It’s not like we’re going after him and his organization anymore. The target has changed. What would happen to Alie’s baby if Simon freaks out? I can’t even wrap my mind around this.”
“Don’t.” Sully stopped walking and made her meet his gaze. “We’re doing everything possible to find the baby. Even if your brain never releases the information, you’re not responsible. You do understand that, don’t you?”
Gabrielle shook her head. “Am I? What if I would have waited? I saved Bea and James, but when I thought I killed the bad guy, sacrificing myself in the process, I didn’t accomplish anything apart from setting us back, losing time.”
“Hey! You uncovered a whole organization. The information found in Namibia and Prague led us to so much more. And ultimately, it led us here, in India. It’s only a matter of time before we find Simon and Junior.”
She arched an eyebrow. “Junior?”
Sully felt silly calling the baby Sullivan. It made him feel as if the baby was his and it put him in an uncomfortable place. So he deflected, hunching his shoulders.
“Yeah, Junior has an interesting ring to it, don’t you think? Now, let’s take a break, walk a little, maybe shop, find something for Junior, and let a new perspective sink it.”
“Okay, let’s try that.”
“That’s my girl.” Sully cupped her cheeks and kissed her softly, letting his hands run up and down her arms in a calming caress. When he stepped back, something caught his attention. He didn’t see it at first; there were so many people around, walking, talking. The noise around them was distracting.
Grasping his hand, Gabrielle tugged. “What’s going on?”
He squeezed back and decided to let it go, uncertain if his mind was hallucinating.
Sully smiled reassuringly, and they started exploring a side street filled with food carts and colorful displays of clothing and fabrics. He kept his hands on Gabrielle’s back, but his eyes were in the crowd, scanning restlessly. The people ebbed and flowed and he thought he saw— Damn it! His eyes were playing tricks on him. He blinked again and he didn’t see anything. Gabrielle eyed him for a second and he shook his head. If he wasn’t careful, she would start to worry, and he didn’t want that. Not now. She needed to relax, to let her mind relax.
As she was debating on buying a sari or not, his instincts tingled and when he turned his head, he saw him. Simon. And he wasn’t trying to hide. On the contrary, he was standing at the end of the street, smiling like a loon and waving at him. Sully reacted and pulled Gabrielle behind him.
“Hey! What’s—” Her voice died when she glanced over his shoulder and saw what he saw. “Simon.” Her voice was dead calm, but he felt her tense.
Simon winked and took off.
Sully took Gabrielle’s hand. He’d be damned if he lost her again, but he couldn’t let him get away either.
“Sully, be careful, we might be running into a trap.”
“I know. Keep your eyes open.”
When he was sure she could keep up, he let go of Gabrielle and grabbed his cell phone. “Reception is crap here. I cannot reach the admiral to relay the information.”
At an intersection, they stopped.
“Did you see which way he took?”
Gabrielle shook her head and looked all around. “No, there are too many people; he’s using them against us.”
“We need to tell the others. If we can contact one of the teams, we can better scan this maze.”
Gabrielle nodded and checked her phone. “My reception doesn’t work either. I’ll run back to the consulate; we’re still close.” Sully saw her hesitate, waiting for his answer.
“Go. Keep your phone open and as soon as you have reception, contact Bea. She’ll find Lance. He should have landed by now. Just promise me to keep going into the consulate and wait for me there.”
“But—”
“No! You’re still recovering. It’s too dangerous. Call for Lance to come meet me. I’ll leave my phone on for his tracker.”
Gabrielle took a step back and he smiled. “Hey, honey, don’t forget you married a SEAL. We’re hard to kill.”
“You better not die. I still owe you six months.” And she took off. He felt calmer, knowing she was out of harm’s way.
Sully started walking, his eyes on every single face, checking every corner and shadow there was. Maybe the bastard was long gone. The street stretched for a long way, and there was no sign of Simon. As he was debating to turn into an alley, Sully saw him again and started running, trying to avoid people while not losing sight of the man taunting him.
Sully knew something was wrong, but he couldn’t miss the chance to get close to the man and kill him. He kept a safe distance between them and his brain registered every turn he took, creating a map in his head. Sweat poured down his back and he could feel the warming metal of his sidearm in the waistband of his pants.
The houses slowly disappeared and he entered an industrial area. He expected it. He would have made the same choice if wanting to trap a target. When he saw Simon go into a warehouse, he stopped. No way I’m following him through that door. He examined his surroundings, and saw the warehouse was in fact more like a tall garage attached to what appeared like an abandoned office complex. That’s where he would enter.
The place had been clearly empty for a while now. Once inside, he took his gun out and started exploring. The first few rooms were easy—the layer of dust all around assured him they weren’t rigged. One after the other, he silently crossed the rooms, until he heard movements from upstairs. From one door, he could see the staircase, but decided against it. Instead, he went to the windows and crawled out. He never thought he would be grateful for intricate motifs carved around the windows, but they allowed him to get a firm grip as he climbed to the upper floor. The next window was dirty and he had to move up more to see. Nobody through the glass, so he opened it.
Undisturbed dust everywhere, he was about to enter when a shadow walked past the office door. No time to hide, he jumped inside as gunshots resounded in the room. Sully took refuge behind a desk. Two more shots and footsteps. Someone was running. Was that Simon? He didn’t see. Simon or not, he would see this through.
A quick peek into the hallway confirmed the shooter was gone. Sully was grateful for the all-concrete building, avoiding any possible give away of his presence. Unfortunately, it didn’t help him locate the threat either.
Only one logical escape, and it was going down. He looked and didn’t see anybody. Then a door squeaked and he moved forward, following the sound, and making sure he wasn’t leaving a threat in one of the rooms he passed by.
It took him quite some time to go down the stairs undetected, and when he heard a voice, he took position with a partial view of the first floor. Three men. One was Simon; the other two were most likely his guards. They were carrying cases inside the last room at the end of the hallway in a hurry. Small, but heavy cases by the posture of the two men. The guards exited and Simon took the last box on the floor. That’s when Sully decided to attack.
Running, he fired two shots at Simon, who jerked back and closed the door, leaving his two guards with him. One of them grabbed his gun and started firing. Sully knew he had to find a better position; the wooden door wouldn’t last forever. When he heard the characteristic click of recharging, he decided to jump into the second room and fire a round. One hit, by the yell of the man. Curses and more footsteps. Another click. He got out and fired again. This time, he hit the wounded man in the head. The other guy yelled and started firing. Wood splinters flew and Sully had to crouch more into the room.
