by Mel LeBrun
MICHAEL CLIMBED in the backseat with Dillon while Corvo drove to meet up with Martin and Josh. Not wanting to be touched, Dillon moved away from him. Though longing to be hugged and comforted, as any child would be, he found it hard to trust an adult. Michael understood and kept his distance. He knew Dillon must be struggling with terribly conflicting emotions because of everything he went through.
“I need a favor from you, Dillon.” Michael turned to him.
“What is it?”
“When you talk to the police. I need you to say that Agent Corvo here found you.” He gestured to Corvo.
“Why?” Dillon asked.
“Well,” Michael pursed his lips trying to think of how to explain it. “I do things the police aren't allowed to do, in order to catch the bad guys,” he answered. “It's better if they don't know I'm involved.”
“So you're not a police officer?”
Michael shook his head. “No.”
“What are you then?”
“Uhh,” Michael really didn't know how to answer that one. He didn't even know. “It's complicated.”
“Are you a spy?”
Michael thought for a moment. “Yeah, that's probably closer to the truth,” he admitted.
A huge grin broke on Dillon's face. “I won't tell them.”
“Good.” Michael smiled. “If you need anything, or you even just want to talk, Agent Corvo knows how to reach me. He'll give you his card and you call him if you need anything at all.”
Corvo pulled out one of his business cards and passed it back to him. Dillon looked down at the card with a smile and breathed a heavy sigh of relief. He was beginning to feel that he was finally safe.
Chapter 26
Corvo pulled in next to Martin and Josh in a parking lot they had arranged to meet at after the operation was complete. Things had not gone according to plan though so instead of a victory celebration, they were regrouping to make their next move. Dillon stayed in the truck while Corvo and Michael got out.
“You should get a new ride for the next part of the journey,” Corvo suggested. “I got agents staked outside Roth's place.”
“You wouldn't happen to have ski masks in the back of your truck?” Josh asked.
“Or shotguns?” Michael added.
A sly grin crossed Corvo's lips. “I was a Boy Scout, you know.” He opened the back of his truck and pulled a large duffel bag towards him. He unzipped the top, revealing two shotguns, two flashbangs, ski masks, gloves, and zip ties. “Guns are untraceable.”
“Always be prepared.” Michael smiled, pleased though not entirely surprised. Corvo was a very competent agent.
“Yes, well. Not that I was planning on things going south, I'm just experienced enough to know it happens.”
“What do we need to know about Roth?” Michael asked as he zipped up the duffel bag and carried it to the other truck.
“He's staying in an apartment not far from here. I'm assuming it's a safe house they keep for when they conduct business in New York.” Corvo related the address and showed them a picture of the building provided by his men. “My two agents are in a black Ford Taurus. New York plates, YNG8472. Don't let them see your faces.”
“I think we can handle that,” Michael said confidently.
“I figured you could,” Corvo replied.
AFTER STEALING a black Chevy Impala with tinted windows, the guys made a pass by the apartment building. They spotted the agents watching Roth and parked a few cars behind them on the opposite side of the street. Martin stayed with the car while Michael and Josh, sporting hats and sunglasses to conceal their faces, walked down the sidewalk to the apartment building. With Michael toting the duffel bag, both kept their backs turned to the agents insuring they would be impossible to identify.
The agents noticed them enter the building. Unable to see their faces on the way in, they figured they could just take photos as they left instead.
Once inside the building, Michael and Josh traded their hats and sunglasses for the ski masks and gloves. They each grabbed a shotgun and made their way quickly to Roth's apartment. Without hesitation or even needing to communicate they each positioned their guns on the door to take out the locks. Within seconds the door was breached and Josh tossed in a flashbang. Once the smoke cleared, a very surprised Roth was staring down the barrel of Michael's gun while his driver's face met the back end of Josh's.
While Michael restrained Roth and his driver with the zip ties, Josh cleared the bathroom and moved on to the bedroom. Keeping his gun ready, he opened the door to find two scantily clad women huddled in a corner of the room, likely unwilling prostitutes. Josh called Michael to assist in restraining them.
Terrified by the heavily armed men in ski masks, the women didn't resist. Even though they were in all likelihood victims, there was no way to predict how they might react under intense fear. Keeping them restrained and subdued would keep them safe. Michael informed them that the FBI would be there shortly to free them but in the meantime, they needed to stay in the room.
“You have no idea who you're messing with!” Roth shouted angrily as he struggled to get free.
Josh grabbed the laptop while Michael walked over to him on the floor. Crouching next to him he calmly replied, “I know exactly who I'm messing with.”
“You're both dead!” Roth growled.
“Now you see, that would mean more if you knew who we were.”
“We'll find out. No matter what agency you work for, we'll find you.”
“I doubt that,” said Josh. “Since we don't work for any agency.”
“What do you want?” Roth asked.
“You'll know soon enough,” Michael replied ominously.
Having found what they came for they quickly left, hoping to avoid a confrontation with police. In all they were there less than five minutes.
The two FBI agents watching Roth's apartment were carrying on a lively conversation about football when they heard gunshots. With all the surrounding buildings, it was impossible to tell where they came from. They called it in to local police who were already getting calls from other tenants in the building. Learning that the shots came from Roth's building, they ran to it, drawing their guns as they quickly made their way up the stairwell.
With Josh in tow, Michael opened the door to the stairwell surprising the two agents who had just rounded the corner. They wasted no time retreating back into the hallway, ignoring the agents' orders to surrender and drop their weapons.
“I thought we'd at least get out of the building,” Michael complained.
Josh pulled the second flashbang and looked at Michael. He nodded and Josh tossed it into the stairwell. One of the agents yelled for the other to run but it did no good. While the agents were stunned from the grenade, Michael and Josh easily ran past them down the stairs and out the building. Sirens were closing in as they jumped in the car with Martin and sped off. Once clear of the street, they took off their masks.
“How'd it go?” Martin asked.
“Without a hitch,” Michael answered.
DITCHING THE stolen car, they returned to the hospital in the banged-up SUV. Martin stayed behind in the parking lot to call his wife while Michael and Josh went ahead inside.
Lauren and Emily were sitting next to Jinx playing with iPads. When they saw Michael, they abandoned the iPads and ran to him. He dropped to his knees and took them in his arms, squeezing them tightly and telling them he loved them. Weary, frazzled, and emotionally depleted from his long day of traumatic events, even the girls picked up that something was wrong.
Jinx became concerned when she saw the state he and Josh were in. She stood when Josh approached and he scooped her up in his arms embracing her so tight she could hardly breathe.
“What happened?” she asked. After a few minutes with no answer, she asked again.
“I don't want to talk about it right now,” he replied, still holding her tight.
Jeff sat quietly by himself, feeling awkward abo
ut the flurry of affection going on around him. He watched Michael with Lauren and Emily, imagining what Michael would be like as a parent. Far better than he was, no doubt.
“What's wrong, Michael?” Lauren asked, as he nearly smothered her.
Releasing his hold he looked into the girls' faces and smiled. “I'm just happy to see you.” He stroked their hair and kissed their foreheads.
Emily wrapped her arms around Michael's neck and kissed his cheek. “I love you, Michael.”
His eyes watered at the sound of her sweet little voice. He didn't understand how people could do such terrible things to innocent, defenseless children. “I love you too, Emily. I love you both very much.” He took a deep breath trying desperately to bury his feelings about what happened to the other children. “I'm going to go see Jess,” he told them.
His heart ached as he walked away from them. He quietly entered the room where Jessica was sleeping soundly.
Kevin looked up at him. “How did it go?”
“As planned, for the most part,” he answered. “Josh has the laptop.”
“Good. Should I check it out?”
Michael nodded. “Please.”
As Kevin left, Michael took the chair next to Jessica. Stretching one arm over her legs, he buried his face in the bed next to her. As hard as he tried to think of something else, his mind relentlessly replayed the sales of the children over and over. The joy in the buyer's voices, their laughter, it haunted him. He felt Jessica's hand on the back of his head and instinctively looked up.
She was smiling at him and though he quickly smiled back, he was caught off guard and in that split second she saw his distress. Her smile vanished.
“What's wrong?” she asked.
Michael shook his head and looked away, unable to answer her as his eyes filled with tears.
“Baby, what happened?” Anxious with concern she tried to sit up, resulting in a searing pain that reminded her she had been shot.
He squeezed her hand. “Everything is fine.”
Jessica could count with one finger the times she had seen Michael cry. For him to be distressed to the point of tears, it had to be something serious. “Everything is not fine Michael. Talk to me.”
He looked away, trying to gather his thoughts. “I don't want to do this anymore.” He shook his head. “I can't ... I can't do this anymore.” Unable to hold it together any longer, he buried his face in the bed and wept.
Seeing how distraught Michael was moved Jessica to tears herself. She ran her fingers through his hair, trying to comfort him. “What happened, Michael?”
Composing himself somewhat, he reached out and caressed her cheek, wiping her tears away. “They were just children.”
“They were selling children?” she asked, horrified.
He nodded. “Lauren and Emily's age.” He used his sleeve to dry his eyes. “I'm tired, Jess,” he continued. “I'm tired of seeing the worst side of humanity. I want out.”
“I'm sorry Michael.” She squeezed his hand. “I'm so sorry I got you involved in this.”
“No. Don't.” He looked her square in the eyes. “This is not your fault. And if you hadn't gotten me involved then those kids would still be in the hands of those horrible people.” He stroked her hair. “I don't know what to do, Jess. I wish I could live in blissful ignorance, like the rest of the world.”
“But you know too much to do that?”
Staring down at his hand in hers, he nodded. “As you know, once your eyes are opened, they can't be closed.”
“You've saved many lives, Michael. More than your share. Others can take over from here. I'm sorry I forced you to get involved in all this.”
“No one was going to save those kids, Jess. Where are the others?”
Not knowing what to say to that, she pursed her lips and squeezed his hand. He stood from the chair and leaned over her. He tenderly kissed her lips and then pressed his forehead to hers.
“I love you, Jess,” he whispered. “I can't live without you.”
She reached her hand up to his neck. “I feel the same way, Michael. You mean everything to me.”
JEFF SAT leafing through the only magazine left that he hadn't yet exhausted. Having only gotten brief moments of sleep throughout the past twenty-four hours, he was beyond fatigued. Letting out a fierce yawn, he closed the magazine and glanced around. His heart fluttered when he saw a man he knew well speaking with someone at the nurse's station. Leaping from his chair, he darted into the room with Michael and Jessica. He shut the door, pressing his back against it.
Michael's first reaction was to be annoyed but when he saw the look on Jeff's face it turned to concern. He quickly walked to him. “What happened?”
“One of Meier's men is here,” he replied.
“What do you mean 'one of Meier's men is here?'”
“I saw him talking with a girl at the nurse's station. He didn't see me. At least I don't think he did.”
“What does he look like?”
“About five foot ten, short brown hair, black leather jacket, dark pants, and black boots.”
“Wait here.” Michael casually left the room. He glanced around, quickly spotting the man Jeff described walking down the hallway towards them. The way he looked around it was clear he was searching for something. Michael pretended not to notice him and took a seat next to Josh and Martin. Kevin and Jinx had left a few minutes ago with Lauren and Emily to get something to eat and see what they could gleam from Roth's laptop.
“See that guy walking down the hall in the leather jacket?” Michael whispered.
Josh and Martin glanced at him.
“What about him?” Josh asked.
“One of Meier's men.”
“What's he doing here?” Martin asked.
“No idea. But if he goes anywhere near Jess ...”
“I'll break his neck.” Josh finished his sentence.
Michael grinned. “There's a reason we're friends.”
“We mastered telepathy years ago?” Josh joked.
“Exactly. I'm going back to talk to Jeff and try to find out why he's here.”
Michael returned to the room where Jeff was sporting a Glock.
“Put that away before I use it on you,” Michael said angrily.
Fearing he meant it, Jeff did as he asked.
“Did the laptop have a tracker?” Michael asked.
“If Meier thought the laptop was here, he would've sent more than just one man.”
“Why is he here then?”
“Probably looking for me. I missed the auction last night and I haven't returned any of his calls since then.”
Incensed, Michael pushed him back against the wall. “Why would you do that? Now he's going to know something's up.”
“My daughter was clinging to life in a hospital bed,” Jeff snapped back. “You think I would leave her to attend some hypocritical dinner auction?”
“Funny hearing you talk about hypocrisy.” Michael stepped away trying to keep his cool. “You didn't stay here for her. You stayed for yourself. To appease your own conscience. In doing so, you've put her in jeopardy. If you really cared about her, you'd get out of her life.”
Jeff made no reply but his body language made it clear he didn't agree with Michael.
Michael held his hand out to him. “Give me your phone.”
Jeff flatly refused. “I am not giving you my phone.”
“It's how they're tracking you. Either give it to me now or I'll break your arms and take it from you.”
Jeff glowered at him as he locked his phone and reluctantly held it out to him.
“Unlock it,” Michael demanded.
“No.” Jeff pushed the phone towards him.
“Josh is going to call your phone and then I'm going to make a three-way call to Meier so you can tell him something that will get his man out of the hospital and away from Jessica. So unlock it or give me the code.”
“I'm not doing that,” Jeff said defiantly.
“I think you know I don't need the gun to kill you,” Michael said. “You have five seconds before you go from being Jessica's father to being a body I have to dispose of.”
His hands trembling, Jeff unlocked his phone and held it out to him. “What am I supposed to tell him?”
Michael took the phone. “You're a good liar. Think of something.”
After removing the ammo, Michael tossed Jeff's gun on the floor in front of him. Jeff glared at him as he took it back.
Even with one hand covering her eyes Michael could see Jessica was crying as he walked to her side. “Hey.” He reached out and gently touched her arm.
She looked unhappily at him. “Why did you have to do that?”
He frowned but didn't answer.
“You know it scares me when you do stuff like that.”
Reaching out he stroked her hair and caressed her cheek. “I'm sorry,” he said contritely. “Your father just really pisses me off.”
Having the same problem herself, she forgave him. “It's all right.”
“I'll be back in a little while.”
She nodded. “I love you.”
“I love you too, Jess.” He leaned down and tenderly kissed her goodbye.
After updating Josh and Martin on his plan, Michael left. While walking to the truck he took the opportunity to snoop through Jeff's phone. He scrolled through his address book, recent calls, and text messages. He made note of a few international calls that piqued his interest. There were multiple calls and texts from Meier. The urgency of his messages increased after the theft of the laptop. There wasn't much to the messages, mostly just pleadings for Jeff to contact him. He seemed to be getting desperate.
