by Dee Davis
Tyler walked behind the desk, dropping down into the chair, waiting as Avery sat down across from her. “Okay, I’m a captive audience.” She frowned. “Spill.”
The big man exchanged a glance with Emmett and then crossed his arms, his dark gaze meeting Tyler’s. “I know that you’ve been working closely with Owen Wakefield.”
This was not the topic she’d been expecting. She’d assumed they were going to talk about her being too involved to deal with the investigation professionally. “Yes,” she said, her frown deepening. She wasn’t about to tell them just how intimate the two of them had become. And she prayed that they weren’t going to ask. Some things were meant to be kept private. Even from close friends. “I mean, isn’t that what you wanted?”
“Absolutely.” Avery nodded. “It’s just that Emmett has discovered some things that may make that more difficult. And I wanted you to find out before we confront Owen.”
“Confront him?” Now she was confused. “What the hell did you find out?”
“Well, for starters,” Emmett said, “his name isn’t Owen Wakefield.”
Tyler felt as if someone had just nailed her with a sucker punch. “I beg your pardon?”
“His real name is Owen Cantor,” Avery said. “And he’s not working for MI-5. He’s working for Logan Palmer.”
“IA.”
The internal affairs division of the NSA was universally hated by everyone in the Intelligence community. Created in the wake of new government “transparency,” it was especially loathed by the CIA. There had never been any love lost between NSA and the Central Intelligence Agency. But the post-9/11 era had only increased the rift. And the creation of Palmer’s IA team had sealed the deal, the National Security Administration using its newly minted powers to hamstring the CIA’s black ops divisions. Basically, Palmer was a major thorn in their side.
“You’re telling me that Owen is actually working for IA?” She shook her head, willing there to be some alternative explanation.
“Yes.” Avery nodded, his expression grim.
“And you’re sure?” she asked, the idea not sitting well at all.
“Positive,” Emmett sighed. “I ran a check on his cell phone calls. And it was right there in black and white. He’s been talking back and forth with Palmer this whole time.”
“But I thought you checked his credentials when he showed up at Sunderland.” She shook her head, her stomach churning at the thought that Owen had lied.
“We did,” Avery said. “And he checked out. But we didn’t really dig that deeply. And it turns out it was all a scam. I talked with the director of MI-5 this morning. Took a little browbeating but he finally admitted that the confirmation had been at Logan’s behest. A little NSA arm twisting. Fortunately, the CIA still trumps NSA when it comes to foreign operatives.”
“So he was never with MI-5?”
“Oh, he was with them,” Emmett said, disgust chasing across his face. “But they ran him off the reservation. Issued a burn notice. Apparently he went rogue and interfered with an operation. Two MI-6 operatives were killed in the process. He’s lucky he wasn’t tried for treason.”
“When did all this happen?” she asked.
“About six years ago,” Avery said. “We don’t have all the details, they’re classified. I’ve started the ball rolling to get them released, but it has to go through diplomatic channels. Anyway, the bottom line is that Owen Wakefield is actually Owen Cantor. And as far as the Brits are concerned, he’s a liability, not an asset.”
“Have you talked to Palmer?” Tyler asked, her hands turning clammy.
“No.” Avery shook his head. “We wanted to confront Owen first. But Emmett’s digging did produce another piece of information you should know; Owen was tasked with proving that someone in A-Tac had a hand in the detonators’ disappearance.”
“And the primary suspect was me. Actually, he admitted that he thought I was guilty. But he said he didn’t believe it anymore. I guess he was just playing me.”
She’d thought Owen was different. That he was one of the good guys. Someone she could trust. She thought about all the things she’d told him. She’d been so fucking gullible. She’d opened her heart, and yet, when she thought about it, he’d told her practically nothing. And the hard, cold truth was that anything he had said had probably been a lie.
“I’m sorry,” Avery said, his eyes conveying more than just perfunctory sympathy. He knew how much she’d started to care. The idea made her physically sick. She’d let down her defenses—and it had all been a trap.
“I’m fine,” she lied. “I just can’t believe any of this. What about Harrison? Does he work for Logan, too?”
“No,” Emmett said. “He seems to be exactly who he says he is. But clearly, he knows who Owen is working for. And what their objectives are.”
“To nail me for something I didn’t do.”
“I think that might be putting it a bit too strongly,” Avery said, his eyes kind. “I think the truth is that Owen was sent here to try to figure out if we had anything to do with what happened. And you of all people have to recognize that on the surface there were good reasons to assume you might be involved somehow.”
“Agreed.” She nodded once, her fingers curling into fists. “But that doesn’t excuse his pretending to be something he’s not. We offered him carte blanche because we believed he was part of the Intelligence community of an allied nation. And that that nation had been our partner in the detonator project. If we’d known he was from IA—”
“We’d have shown him the door in short order. Which explains why he had to lie to gain our trust.”
“It might be an explanation, but it doesn’t do a damn thing to excuse the transgression,” she said, anger surging to replace the initial wash of despair. “The man’s been lying to us about everything. And you know as well as I do that Logan Palmer would like nothing better than to bring down A-Tac. He hates everything we stand for.”
Logan Palmer had worked for the CIA long before Tyler had opted in. He’d been a rising star, to hear some people tell it. But he’d also had a single-minded need for power, and he didn’t much care what he had to do to get it. He’d pushed the limits and placed his people at risk.
Avery had been among the people to call him on it, succeeding in tarnishing the star and pushing him back down the ranks. But Palmer wasn’t about to let anyone stand in his way. So the minute public sentiment turned against covert ops, Palmer had seen his opportunity, outing Intelligence operatives and operations that never should have seen the light of day.
Heads had rolled, people’s careers had been ruined. And worse, public exposure had meant the death of several key undercover operatives, the other side only too delighted to have their adversaries unveiled.
And as a result of his handiwork, Palmer had moved to NSA as head of the newly established Internal Affairs division.
“I’ll handle Logan,” Avery said.
“So what do we do about Owen?” Emmett asked.
“Nothing we can do. I’ve talked with Langley, and to avoid a public spectacle they want us to work with NSA on this. And if it’s not Owen, it’ll be someone else. Or worse, they’ll send in someone else to work behind our backs, which will just make a mess of everything.”
“But it seems to me that Owen is dangerous,” Emmett said. “He’s gotten operatives in England killed. What if he goes rogue again?”
“There’s nothing to indicate that’ll happen.” Avery shook his head. “So far, I believe he’s been totally forthcoming.”
“Except for lying about everything,” Tyler said, bitterness coloring her tone.
“I know this is going to be difficult.” Avery’s gaze was probing. “Especially for you.”
“It’s no worse for me than any of you,” she snapped.
“He was investigating you,” Emmett said. “And you have to work closely with him. That’d be hard for anyone.”
Tyler nodded, knowing that protesting too
much would be the same as confessing she’d fallen for the man. Past tense.
Turned out there hadn’t really been anyone to fall for.
“So it’s just business as usual?” she asked.
“I think we’ll need a little more oversight. I’m going to pull the full team in on this now. And as I said, if you want out—”
“No fucking way.”
“All right then. I’ll tell him we know. Which ought to at least even the playing field.”
“I’m not so sure,” Emmett began. “Logan is a dangerous adversary. And Owen Wakefield, or Cantor, or whatever the hell his name really is, seems to be cut from the same cloth.”
“I can understand your concern,” Avery acknowledged. “And I’m grateful that you uncovered it. But I think we’re better off staying in the mix.”
She didn’t like it one little bit, but Avery was right. “What’s the old saying?” she asked with forced brightness. “‘Keep your friends close and your enemies closer?’” Little had she known she’d been doing exactly that.
So much for happily ever after.
CHAPTER 17
I’ve managed to isolate a server,” Jason said, frowning down at his computer. “It’s out of Washington, but there’s no ID, and it’s definitely not the end user.”
Owen swiveled his chair so that he could see as well. “Can you tell how close to the source we are?” They’d been working on an email extracted from Smitty’s flash disk. There’d been a whole series, actually. But so far none of them had been traceable.
“No. But we’ve got to be closing in,” Jason said. “Harrison, I’m sending it to you. Maybe you’ll have more luck.” For the moment at least, Jason seemed to have dropped his animosity. He’d been quite useful as they’d worked to try to isolate the source of the communications.
“I’ll give it a shot,” Harrison said. “And I’ll go over the original protocols again. Maybe there’s something we’ve missed.”
Owen stifled a yawn. It was slow and painstaking work, reminding him of why he preferred the field. Give him a gun and a good lead any day. Computers were the wonder of the modern age, but computer forensics was slow and ploddingly dull stuff.
Of course, there was another reason he was having trouble concentrating. Tyler. The woman had worked her way under his skin. In a good way, to be sure, but there were so many complications. Not the least of them being that he hadn’t found the courage to come clean with her. He’d tried, but she’d been focused on other things, and to be honest, he’d been relieved.
There was nothing to say she wouldn’t run for the hills as soon as she learned the truth. Not only because he was working for Logan and had originally suspected her, but also because of what he’d done six years ago. There had been good reasons, of course. And at the time it had seemed his only option. His only way to avenge. But there were costs involved. And now, for the first time in a long time, he wondered if he’d made the right choice.
“Hang on a minute,” Harrison said, looking across at Jason. “I think I’ve found a link between the server in Washington and one in New York. And this one isn’t just a relay. Which means it’s possible the emails originated from this network. But so far I’m not finding access to IPs for individual computers.”
“What about a physical location?” Owen asked, forcing himself back to the present.
“Nothing that helps.” Harrison shook his head. “At the moment all I’ve got is Manhattan.”
“Great, that narrows it down to a few billion computers.”
“I said it wasn’t much.” Harrison shrugged, still studying the display.
“Hey, it’s a start,” Jason said, rolling over to Harrison’s station, squinting at the computer screen. “It might not be as difficult as it seems to narrow it down. It just takes perseverance.” He grinned at Harrison, whose answering smile was like a secret handshake. They were clearly lost in their own little world. And even though neither completely trusted the other, they still spoke the same language.
“Tell me we’re making some progress,” Avery said, striding into the room, his stature, as always, imposing.
Emmett stood in the doorway behind Avery, arms crossed, watching Owen. There was something in his expression—a warning maybe—that set off Owen’s internal alarm.
“Everything’s fine,” he said. “Harrison and Jason think maybe they’ve got a lead.” His gaze shifted from Emmett back to Avery. “What’s going on?”
“We need to talk.” Avery hadn’t moved since he’d walked into the room, his expression carefully guarded. “Jason, why don’t you go with Emmett.”
“But I…” Jason began, his frown mirroring Owen’s confusion.
“Emmett will explain everything,” Avery said. “Harrison, I’ll ask you to go as well.”
Harrison shot a questioning look toward Owen, but he shook his head, thankful for the support, but equally certain that it was better to deal with Avery one on one. “Just keep looking for answers. I’ll check in when I’m finished here.”
“Jason,” Avery called as Harrison gathered his laptop, “I want you to work with Harrison. Make sure you mirror everything he’s doing. I want to be sure we’re all working on the same page.”
Owen’s stomach twisted. Avery knew. The question was how much.
Jason shot another quizzical look in Avery’s direction.
“No problem,” Harrison said. “We’re all after the same thing. Finding the nuke and stopping it.” There was an undercurrent in his words, but his face remained affable. And Owen wondered, not for the first time, if anything ever rattled Harrison Blake.
Avery waited until everyone had left the room, then indicated a chair at the table. Owen sat down, and Avery followed suit. For a moment there was silence, the older man studying him intently. “I’m guessing you know what this is about,” he began.
“I have an idea,” Owen said, settling back, determined to keep his cool. “But why don’t you tell me anyway.”
“Emmett ran a check on your phone records.”
“My phone is secure.”
“And I make my living end-running that sort of thing. NSA’s technology isn’t good enough to stop us from gaining access, although to be honest, I’m not so sure you were as protected as you’d like to think.”
“So what? You’re saying Logan wanted you to find out who I was?”
“I wouldn’t put it past him. Sort of a way of thumbing his nose. As you probably are aware, the two of us have a history.”
“I didn’t know specifically, but it doesn’t surprise me. Alpha dogs seldom agree to play nice.”
“Yes, well, we’re cut from slightly different cloth, Logan and I. And to be frank, I’m surprised you’re willing to play on his team. I wouldn’t have pegged you for a whistleblower.”
“Desperate times and all that. Have you ever been burned?”
“Can’t say that I have,” Avery said, “but I can imagine it’s not a pleasant situation. It’s not designed to be.”
“It’s like being erased. As if you never existed at all. No records. No bank account. Nothing. One minute you’re a contributing part of society and the next—everything that made you ‘you’ is gone.”
“Sanctions like that exist for a reason, Owen.”
“Perhaps.” He shrugged. “But it’s possible the reason isn’t what you think it is. There are two sides to every story.”
“I don’t doubt that. But your past isn’t my concern. What I care about is the viability of my organization. And the well-being of my people. And just at the moment, you are a threat to both.”
“All due respect, I think you have a hell of a lot more to worry about than my involvement with A-Tac. We may not be on the same team, Avery, but we’re playing with the same goal in mind.”
“You understand if I’m a bit skeptical about that. Logan Palmer is out for one thing and one thing only. To work his way up the political ladder any way he can.”
“I take it you’re not going
to keep this under wraps?”
“I don’t lie to my team. I find it undermines authority. And besides, Emmett made the discovery and he’s not the strong and silent type.”
“So what happens now?” Owen asked.
“If I had my way, you’d be out on your ass. But we’re in a strange new world politically and Langley wants us to take the higher ground. Meaning you’re still part of the team. But I warn you, if I see anything that makes me think you’re acting outside my authorization, I don’t give a damn if the president himself wants you to stay—you’re gone. Am I making myself clear?”
“Perfectly. And just for the record I don’t give a damn if I stay or go.”
“Somehow, I’m not buying that. I’m not blind, Owen. I’ve seen you and Tyler together.”
His heart leaped into his throat, an awful possibility presenting itself. “Does she know?”
“Yes.” Avery’s gaze was steady. “I thought she had a right to hear about it before everyone else found out.”
“Bloody hell.” The words came of their own accord. “I wish you’d waited.”
“For what? For you to twine her around your finger and then blow her to bits?”
“It’s not like that.”
“Prove to me it isn’t. Walk away. Walk away now.”
“I can’t do that. For any number of reasons. But most principally because of Tyler. She’s become very—important to me.” The words sounded lame but he wasn’t going to delve into his private life with Avery. Hell, he hadn’t really even dealt with it himself.
“Then I’d say you have your work cut out for you,” Avery said. “As you can imagine, my news didn’t go down well.”
“You say you don’t want to hurt her,” Owen growled, coming to his feet. “What the hell did you think was going to happen when you told her?”
“I didn’t lie to her, Mr. Cantor. You did.” Avery stood up, hands on the table as he leaned forward, his anger palpable. “And I can promise you that if you so much as lift a finger to upset her, you’ll have to deal with me, and believe me, I have the power to make your burn notice seem like a walk in the fucking park. Am I making myself clear?”
