Sanctuary Breached WITSEC Town Series Book 3

by Lisa Phillips

  Shadrach dropped it. He ran his hand down his thigh to wipe the blood away, and then lifted both hands.

  John emerged on the other side, covering Sam. When John nodded, Sam stowed his weapon and pulled cuffs from his pocket. He tugged Shadrach’s arms behind him. The sniper didn’t fight it, as though all energy had seeped away like Abigail’s blood from her body.

  “Shadrach Carleigh, you’re under arrest for the murder of…whatever this woman’s name is. We’re still trying to find out.” John sighed. “I’ll have to call the US Attorney and find out what on earth we’re supposed to do. Though I suppose that will lead to explaining the president’s death and Grant’s involvement.”

  Sam glanced at him. “And Susan’s death.” Or was Shadrach’s story true? He’d held off telling Beth because he hadn’t been sure.

  “Grant didn’t confirm it as fact until two nights ago, when I called to confirm what Shadrach told us. He won’t until this is over, and the threat associated with her had been eliminated. I need your wife focused on staying safe.”

  “And you need me focused on helping you.”

  John took Shadrach’s other arm. “Let’s get you back to town. Then I can work on finding a coroner.”

  **

  Ben crept through the woman’s house. Paneled wood on the walls. A woven runner stretched from the base of the stairs down the hall to where the floor plan indicated the office was located.

  As he approached the double wood doors with gold decorative handles, he could hear a woman’s voice.

  “That is unacceptable, Stephen.” Her name was Claire Horton, and she was part of the syndicate.

  Ben passed an ugly Chinese vase on an end table. The door was within arm’s reach, cracked open two inches so the light inside spilled across the runner in a strip.

  “No, you listen to me. You did this to our family, and now it’s up to you to deal with it. I won’t be made the bad guy here. You’ve left me destitute. You’ve turned my children against me because you can’t keep it in your pants.”

  She swore, and he heard plastic slam. Hung up on him.

  Ben eyed the vase, unsure as to her definition of destitute. Though it wasn’t unheard of for materially rich people to be cash-poor, this woman wasn’t exactly slumming it. Appearances mattered to her. He’d venture to guess appearances might even be everything—or at least everything she had left, other than her furniture.

  “You may as well come in. I know you’re there.”

  Ben pushed the office door open. Behind the gun barrel pointed at him was a vibrant woman in a blue dress, fully made up like she was ready to step into a court room or in front of a TV camera.

  What she hadn’t done was call the police to inform them a strange man was in her house.

  His hands were tucked in his pants pockets, his shirt crisp. He’d even shaved. She wasn’t going to converse with a hobo. His appearance was probably why she hadn’t already shot him for intruding in her house.

  He grinned as though she’d bested him. “Hidden cameras?”

  The desk was heavy cherry wood. The shelves on all sides were stacked with books. Expensive looking antique chairs. This room had audio and video recording, fed to an off-site company she paid to keep a record. And yet she’d still pulled a gun on him, a move that was either foolish, or completely without fear of any consequences blowing back on her.

  “You received a call four hours ago from a highly classified, secure satellite phone. The caller—who did she speak to?”

  “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  “Your phone records included the call, if not the origin. How was it that a male took the call?” Ben glanced around the room. “Guest?”

  Her eyebrows rose. The rest of her forehead did not. “I suppose you’re here to interrogate me into telling you all about this fictitious call. And if I don’t tell you everything, then what? You’ll hurt me?” She smirked. “You seem unaware I am the one holding the gun.”

  “I’m aware.” He rocked back on his heels. The arm holding the gun was stretched, revealing the skin of the inside of her forearm. “Nice tattoo.”

  The swirl was calligraphy—the letter D.

  Her eyes narrowed. Claire Horton shouldn’t do that too much. She was going to get more lines on her face that she’d have to have smoothed out. “A youthful indulgence.”

  “I’m sure.” Ben pulled his phone from his back pocket and showed her the screen. The photo he’d taken of the unconscious men’s arms at the warehouse where they’d been holding Abigail Myerson hostage.

  She gritted her teeth. “Friends of yours?”

  “Dead men.” They’d been killed when the bomb exploded.

  “Did you kill them?”

  Ben shrugged. “Would it make a difference if I had?”

  “I don’t know anything about the call.” Smart woman. She held the gun, but she understood he was a bigger threat. “I re-routed it through my computer. That’s all.”

  “Why would I assume you’re telling the truth?”

  “I’m not lying.”

  “You lied just last week in court, when the evidence clearly indicated your husband wasn’t the only one having an affair. Evidence that has conveniently disappeared now.” He studied her as she bristled.

  “I should shoot you right now.”

  That was probably true. “Tell me who the man was that received the call.”

  No answer.

  Ben shifted his weight. “How long have you been a part of that organization?”

  “I am but a servant to the cause.”

  He’d heard that before, and it hadn’t set well with him any of those times, either. “A woman like you doesn’t strike me as a fanatic. More like someone who is getting something out of a deal like this.”

  “My dear husband has a number of health problems.” A gleam entered her eye. “When the item is recovered, justice will be done. My children will finally understand who was right and who was strong.”

  He didn’t like that gleam. Ben stepped toward her and drew his gun from its holster in one move.

  She twisted her hand. The gun touched just below her chin.

  The shot went off before he’d even aimed.

  Claire Horton’s lifeless body fell to the ground, and Ben walked back out of the room.

  One hour later there was a break-in at a less-than-reputable security company, and a number of their computer files were wiped. No one ever reported it to the police.

  **

  “Why is Shadrach back in jail? Where is Abigail?” Nadia Marie glanced around.

  Sam looked between all the women outside the sheriff’s office: Beth, Remy, and Andra standing with their friend. “Don’t you guys ever sleep?”

  Andra snorted.

  Sam pulled Beth aside. “You should get some rest.”

  “I need a bodyguard, don’t I?” She folded her arms. Uh-oh. “Or has something changed? Maybe you should tell us why John looks spitting mad and you’re all broody again.”

  “Broody?”

  Beth turned aside to her posse of girls. “Why is it ‘spitting mad’? I’ve never understood that. I mean, sure, mad. But spitting? That’s just disgusting.”

  Nadia Marie nodded. “Right.”

  “Okay.” Sam motioned with his hands for a little calm. “Shadrach killed Abigail.”

  The three women gasped. Remy said, “Oh, no.” They glanced at each other, the bond between the women evident in the way they shared a look without words.

  “He’s still in holding for breaking into Sanctuary, and John isn’t sure how this is going to shake out in the end. But then Shadrach killed her. The semantics of it being a crime is for lawyers to figure out.”

  Maybe he could call his mom and explain. Have her represent the gunnery sergeant. Sam didn’t want the man getting a raw deal because he didn’t have the best lawyer.

  Sam moved closer to Remy. His heart pinched at the rare flash of emotion in her eyes. “I’ll do everything
I can to help him, okay?”

  She stiffened and looked around.

  “Remy?” He needed to ask now, while she was in the care of people who liked her.

  She frowned.

  “What did you hide that the syndicate wants?”

  Her mouth opened, but she didn’t say anything. She closed it.

  “It’s time for you to tell us.” They all turned as John strode toward their huddle. “It’s time for you to let us in on all of this. What did you steal, and where is it?”

  Remy’s eyes widened.

  “They’re coming here for you, Remy.” Sam tried to be gentle, but firm. She trusted John, that was apparent, but Sam didn’t want her seeing shadows of her father if the sheriff came on too strong. “The syndicate has sent a team of mercenaries here. They’re on their way now. We need to keep these people safe, and we need to be able to help you. We can’t do that if you don’t tell us.”

  “I don’t want to leave.”

  John frowned. “Why would you have to leave? We can send someone to get it if it’s somewhere else. And we’ll work to make all of us safe here.”

  Remy took a breath, straightening from Nadia Marie’s hold. “You don’t understand. You’ll make me leave, and I like it here.”

  Sam regarded her. “Did you do something that voids out your WITSEC contract?” Breaking the rules put everyone in Sanctuary in danger.

  “It’s not live, or active, or even really functional. But the two suitcases together make up the pieces of a bomb.”

  Nadia Marie stepped back, her hand over her mouth.

  Remy continued, “The two suitcases. I—”

  “You brought them here.” John’s voice was quiet and steady. “How?”

  “I smuggled them here as soon as I knew where here was.” Remy bit her lip. “I know I shouldn’t have, but I couldn’t risk the missile falling into the wrong hands. It had to be here, where I would know it remained undisturbed. That’s the only way I could make sure it was safe.”

  John didn’t give her any sign he agreed with or condoned what she’d done. “Where?”

  “Buried in the hills.” She pointed to the forest beyond the ranch, south of where Shadrach had been hiding. “The other is past the farm in a cave I found.”

  John nodded then, recognition of the fact she’d told them. “I’m not going to send a team now to dig them up. I want them left buried for the time being. We have to face the threat that’s coming first, to deal with whoever shows up—however many of them there are—and get beyond that. After, we can figure out what to do about the missile.”

  “It can’t be destroyed.” Remy sighed. “We should just leave it where it is.”

  “We’ll figure that out. Okay?” John waited until she nodded and then, “I have to make another call.”

  He stepped back into the sheriff’s office.

  Sam talked the girls into going upstairs and crashing on John’s couches. He stuck around in the office where John paced back and forth. “Call me when you get this message.”

  John hung up and dialed a different number. “Yes. Sheriff John Mason for General Harper.” He paused. “Please initiate lockdown procedure on the town of Sanctuary. We’re preparing for a breach.”

  Chapter 18

  Tommy took point on the four-man team hiking the mountain. Monday morning had broken late. The sun still fought off clouds at nearly nine a.m. The three men he’d hired were little better than thugs, though they had training. Not Tommy’s level of training, but he didn’t need a team that was better than him. Two were old Army buds from back in the day, and he’d met them both here and there. Small world and all that. The third man was the anomaly. Tommy wouldn’t have hired him but for his skills. Since he unnerved Tommy and the other two the way he did, he’d surely do the same for the targets they met with on this operation. And that would come in handy.

  Tommy glanced back. The man was right behind him. Tall, six-four. He’d pulled a leather jacket over his black cargo pants, black T-shirt and no flak jacket. Not exactly the uniform Tommy had requested, but he expected as much from a non-SEAL. He wasn’t even convinced the man was former military like the other two.

  The top of the mountain was half a mile up, but they were in the right spot this time. Something about the elevation, or the geography, was screwing with his equipment. The GPS was giving him freaky readings. This whole valley was like the Bermuda triangle.

  His iPad wasn’t acting much better. The internet connection was still searching for a signal, when he knew the town connected through satellite to the outside world. They’d told him he wouldn’t get a signal until they got to the top and in the line of sight.

  “You’re sure this is the place?”

  He shot the non-SEAL a look and got one back. “You’re the one who said your electronics are all screwy.”

  The two men bringing up the rear had their guns out, though what they were planning to shoot was anyone’s guess. There was nothing out here but deer.

  Tommy saw the same question on their faces. “The fact the GPS is acting like this, is an indicator. When we hit the top of this ridge we’ll know for sure if it’s the town’s safeguards.”

  “Seems like a lot of trouble just to hide a town. Who are these people anyway?”

  “Criminals, mostly. People the government has reason to coddle instead of throwing them in jail where they’re supposed to be. So they hide them from the rest of us and pray we never find out their dirty little secret.”

  The man muttered something under his breath. Tommy felt that way, too. He was going to serve these people a little of what they deserved.

  Tommy stowed the GPS in his left pant pocket. “So where do you hail from?”

  The man’s eyes flickered. Yes, Tommy did have the gall to ask a personal question. They were going to work together. It wasn’t unreasonable to establish a bond before they razed a town.

  “Do you really care who I am?”

  “Just making conversation, man.” Tommy didn’t back down.

  “I’ve lived everywhere you can imagine. Military brat. Army non-com officer. Discharged. Didn’t like the rules, didn’t like the food. Now I do almost the same job, but I have no boss, and there are no rules. Not to mention the pay—and the benefits—are way better.”

  “High life.”

  “There’s nothin’ like it.” The man’s drawl had a hint of East Coast. His dad was probably some big-wig officer. Stuffy, ruling the family with an iron fist. Tommy knew exactly what that was like.

  The crest of the mountain was three feet wide. It ran around in a circle he couldn’t see the end of.

  The two men at the rear didn’t halt when he did, so Tommy stuck his hand out. “No farther.”

  “We’re here. It’s time to do this, right?”

  Tommy shook his head and pulled the iPad from his backpack. He had a new message from Olivia, but there was no time to reply right then. He clicked through to the program and initiated the scan. The alarm beeped immediately.

  The smell of leather got stronger. “What is that?”

  “Safeguards. We can’t disable them, so we have to go around them.”

  “Thought you said the mountains go all around. Don’t we have to cross this line, ’cause it’s the only way in?”

  Maybe it’d have been better if he’d hired imbeciles. They’d need a close eye, but he wouldn’t get questioned on every single move he made. “Look in your packs. The suits will hide your signal from the sensors.”

  “What about our gear? The weapons?”

  “They don’t have a heat signature. Though, if you have a cell phone or anything that gives off a signal, I’d advise you to turn it off.”

  One of the back two elbowed the other. “You think all this is to keep us out, or to keep them in?” They both snickered.

  “Heads in the game, fellas.”

  The leather jacket guy snorted then turned to Tommy. “So where’d you find out how to do all this?”

  “
Money talks.”

  “Sure does.”

  Tommy grinned. “Now these people are going to learn how to listen.”

  “I thought we were here for a girl and the location on a missile. That’s my specialty. Extracting information.”

  “I have a plan. You should also be prepared for anything to happen. These people could have an army ready to face us, and there’s no abort plan. We finish this, we get what we came for.” Tommy glanced at the ridge and beyond to the drop off—the basin where Sanctuary sat. “If they get in the way, we kill them all.”

  “I didn’t sign on for a massacre.”

  “Who cares? No one will ever find out, and you’re being paid well enough you’ll keep your mouth shut.”

  The man didn’t back down. Tommy’s iPad beeped, but he ignored it. Something about this man didn’t sit well with him. He could cause some serious problems.

  Tommy studied his face. “What did you say your name was?”

  The man lifted his chin. “Daire.”

  **

  John crouched. “I’ll see you there, buddy.”

  Pat burrowed himself in John’s chest, his little-boy arms wrapping around John’s ribs. “Okay, daddy-o.”

  John smiled against his son’s hair then glanced up and saw his wife smile down at him. “It’s time to go.”

  Pat pulled back, and Andra immediately wrapped her arm around Pat’s shoulders. “We’ll see you there.”

  John nodded. A noise came from the other room, some kind of thump. He didn’t know what it could be that had fallen, but something had hit the floor. They all went to the door of Aaron’s room.

  “He was getting his book.” Andra’s voice didn’t quaver, but she set her hand on Pat’s shoulder. Prepared but not overtly, so it was less obvious she was ready to hold him back. Aaron wasn’t dangerous, otherwise they wouldn’t have brought him into their home and made him part of their family. But he did have to be handled with care. Especially if they wanted him to feel like one of them.