“Ah, she looks so peaceful,” Rutledge commented.
“Let’s get going, Kay. I’ll push Nancy. We’ll see you tomorrow, Tom, thanks.”
“Be careful, Colonel.”
After McDaniels and Rasheed left the office and were heading toward the elevator, Donaldson jogged after them.
“Colonel, I’d like to come along,” Donaldson requested, coming abreast of the two men.
“I don’t know, Pete.” McDaniels returned Donaldson’s look appraisingly. “This won’t be the same kind of gig as the last time. It would probably be best if you held on to your deniability quotient, depending on how things work out. Besides, we can’t leave Tom and Jen alone in the office together.”
Rasheed and Donaldson both laughed in appreciation.
“Let him come, Mr. Reskova. The newbie can help with the digging. It is freezing out there.”
“Digging?” Donaldson asked hesitantly.
“See, I told you deniability would be best.”
“I’m in, no matter what. You can count on me, Sir.”
Rasheed put his arm around Donaldson’s shoulders. “We will be like the three Mouseketeers.”
“That’s Musketeers, Kay,” McDaniels corrected. “You’re mixing the French up with cartoon rodent fan clubs.”
Rasheed paused for a moment and then shrugged. “Yes, I believe you are right. Suraya holds little Cold while watching the Disney channel. I saw the mouse you spoke of… ah… Mickey… yes, Mickey Mouse. The Goofy dog, raging Duck, and the Mickey were pretending to be swordsmen. I have seen the Three Musketeers though. That was from the time when the French at least pretended they could… what?”
By this time both McDaniels and Donaldson were laughing, their wheelchair bound prisoner completely forgotten. McDaniels held up his hand in a stopping gesture.
“Enough, Kay - let’s get going. I’ll change out of my uniform in the van. Okay, Pete, let d’Artagnan wheel Nancy while you go and grab some clothes you don’t mind getting dirty.”
“The ground is frozen, Mr. Reskova.”
“Relax, Kay, I have it all set.”
“I remember you saying that in Iraq when you thought our safe-house was compromised. You decided we should lay in wait for the perpetrators,” Rasheed reminded McDaniels, who was already hanging his head comically.
“Why, what happened, Kay?” Donaldson had turned back to hear the story.
“They blew up our safe-house with mortar fire while we watched,” Rasheed answered, evoking a sigh out of McDaniels. “It is too painful to remember all the personal belongings I lost when they obliterated the building.”
“You weren’t in the building, were you?” McDaniels commented with some exasperation. “We got the guys, didn’t we?”
“Yes, after every extra piece of clothing and gear I owned was reduced to atomic dust,” Rasheed mused as Donaldson stifled his laugh impulse and endured a warning look from McDaniels. “Hopefully you are more ‘all set’ this time.”
* * *
“Well, Kay, what do you think, not so bad, huh?”
The men were standing around a mound of earth with a half-inch inner diameter plastic tube angling out of the loose dirt.
“Adequate, Mr. Reskova, and not too much work,” Rasheed admitted.
“That box you put Tamara in with the readymade com unit and tube was ingenious, Colonel,” Donaldson complimented him. “The box looked like the packing crate for a shoulder fired rocket launcher.”
“I confiscated it from the stuff we found around the warehouse. I came back when the demolition boys arrived. I had them excavate a spot here in the warehouse leaving some of the loose dirt from outside next to it. I knew I’d have to hear Kay whine for hours otherwise. She’s the perfect size for the launcher crate.”
“Man, when she wakes up we better not be close to the speaker,” Donaldson remarked.
“I believe you’re right,” McDaniels replied with some satisfaction. “Nancy will be putting out stereophonic screams for a while. I brought along some laughing gas to pipe down there if she won’t shut up. I guess we can feed her some oxygen and get her woke up. It’s the green bottle, Pete. Check the knob on the speaker. Make sure the volume is turned down.”
Donaldson walked over to where two tanks were hooked to a manifold. A small feeder tube from each bottle snaked into the plastic pipe slanted out of the earth. Three chairs were placed around a small table near the tanks. On top of the table, McDaniels had arranged a speaker and beside it a transmitter. Tamara would only be able to hear outside noises if the transmitter button was pushed. Donaldson cracked open the oxygen valve slightly before sitting down on one of the chairs. McDaniels and Rasheed took their places next to him.
“You are indeed the Cold Mountain,” Rasheed stated. “I think perhaps it would be a good idea to lock you up.”
McDaniels chuckled. “How about you, Pete? You want me locked up too?”
“No Sir,” Donaldson said quietly. “I was over at the hospital yesterday to see my guys. Whether Tamara talks or not, you can leave her there for all I care. I vote we go get Dillon when we get through with the bitch in the box.”
“We’ll have to settle with Dillon sometime in the future,” McDaniels replied seriously. “Her leaving out the little detail of recruiting Nancy makes me wonder what other little tidbits of information she has. Maybe we should just go tell her how much more money Tamara received than her. That’ll piss her off. Some time will have to go by first. As soon…”
Tamara’s groan came through the speaker. The men heard a rustle of clothing as Tamara moved inside the sealed crate. A moment later her screams began ululating out of the speaker. McDaniels waited nearly five minutes before speaking into the transmitter. He repeated her name until finally Tamara’s screams quieted to horrified gasps and sobs.
“Quiet down, Nancy and we’ll get down to business,” McDaniels told her.
“Oh…oh my God!” Tamara shrieked. “You…you’ve buried me alive. Wha…what kind of monsters are you?”
McDaniels looked over at Donaldson. “Want to take that one, Pete?”
“No, Sir, let’s get what we can out of the bitch before she has a stroke.”
“Are…are you still there… answer me… what…”
“We’re here, Nancy. Now then, reach down by your right hip. There’s a small flashlight there. Do you feel it?”
“Yes…yes, it’s here.”
The men could hear Tamara turn it on. She began to sob piteously again.
“Let…let me out… I’ll tell you everything,” Tamara pleaded.
“No can do, Nanc. You may say yes down there and then no back up here. The faster you get to talking, the faster we get you dug up. In case you’re wondering, you’re in a place no one will be stumbling across. If you don’t tell us everything you know and quick, we’ll just leave you where you are to mellow for a day. I think even your bargaining attitude will have changed by then.”
“You’ll all go to prison for this,” Tamara said, her voice raspy from screaming. “I’m an American. You…”
“Don’t play the citizen card again, Nanc,” McDaniels interrupted her sharply. “By God I’ll leave you this instant.”
“No…no… wait… I’m sorry. Wha…what do you want to know?”
“First off, who recruited you?” McDaniels figured to ask her a question he thought he already knew the answer for.
“Di…Dillon recruited me. It’s cold down here. I’m freezing. Can’t…”
“It’ll get a lot colder if you don’t keep talking.”
“I cannot believe Dillon did not give her up when Reskova interrogated her,” Rasheed remarked with some surprise, not having fully trusted McDaniels’ assumption.
“It seems Dillon did guess how far Diane would go. I thought maybe we weren’t getting the whole story. Dillon’s no dummy. She knew Diane wouldn’t let Dino rip her apart and it was all a bluff.”
“Cold, even I did not know if the Boss was g
oing to allow the hellhound to eat the woman. If you had been there…”
“I know how it must have looked, Kay,” McDaniels cut in. “Maybe right after Diane came out of the minefield it wouldn’t have been a bluff. Later after Dillon was in custody she knew how far Reskova would go.”
“Jesus… are any of you still there… I…”
“We’re still here for the time being,” McDaniels answered her. “Be still for a moment.”
McDaniels released the button on the transmitter. “In Iraq from your childhood on you knew the authorities could order the torture of anyone. Dillon grew up just the opposite, Kay. You’ve already seen how we’ve turned America’s justice system upside down in favor of even the most vicious criminals. Believe me, she knew.”
“I see your point,” Rasheed acknowledged.
“Nancy is in a little different situation, Colonel,” Donaldson said quietly.
“Indeed she is, Pete. She knows it now. I believe Diane suspected the same thing I did when she suggested I have a go at interrogating Tamara.”
“What if Tom had not agreed to this?” Rasheed asked curiously.
McDaniels shrugged. “Thankfully, he did.”
McDaniels engaged the transmitter. “Did you and Dillon ever meet up with anybody else other than the Russian mob guy?”
Moments of silence passed. McDaniels looked at Rasheed and Donaldson with justification. “I guess we’ve hit a sore spot. Let’s have lunch.”
“Dillon…and I… we… ah…” Tamara began again desperately.
McDaniels switched off the receiver. “She won’t be stuttering in a few hours except from the cold. Turn the oxygen up just a tad, Pete. We don’t want her gasping away all the air down there.”
Chapter 32
Mero
When the three men returned two hours later, McDaniels turned up the speaker volume slightly. Tamara’s voice sobbed intermittently. Donaldson shut off the oxygen bottle. The men sat down again at the table. They finished the coffee they had brought back with them in silence. McDaniels reached for the button on the transmitter.
“Hi, Nanc, how you doin’?”
There was a loud intake of air. They could hear Tamara mumbling to herself.
“Bash…Bashar Mero,” Tamara blurted out finally. “He…he is… part of the Syrian delegation. Hon…honest to God, he…he’s the only other one I’ve ever been contacted by. Deb…Debbie said he recruited her.”
“Has he ever taken a meeting with you in person?”
“I…I met with him once… but I’ve spoken to him many times on the phone.”
“How did you manage to get double what Dillon got?”
“I convinced him I could deliver more… from Aginson’s office.”
“How long have you been bugging the Director’s office?”
When Tamara remained silent for more than a moment, McDaniels leaned forward and pushed the transmitter button angrily.
“The next pause Nancy, me and the boys are going away for a day.”
“Sor…sorry,” Tamara cried out. “I had to think… for a moment… it’s been three months.”
“Great…” Donaldson mumbled, shaking his head. “It’ll take us three months to trace every iota of data that’s been processed through Aginson’s office.”
“Okay, Nanc,” McDaniels said finally. “Close your eyes and start talking. Take us through every day having to do with this nasty business. Stay specific. If you start boring me I’ll let you know.”
“Th…then you’ll dig me up?”
“Of course. We’re not traitorous duplicitous bitches from hell, like you. Pete will be taking you directly under his wing. You will not be out of his sight. We’re going to put you back to work for the right side in this war. I swear to God the first time Pete even daydreams you’re messing with us I’ll put you back down for good.”
“For…for God’s sake… I won’t…” Tamara pleaded. “I’ll do anything…anything.”
McDaniels switched on the recorder. “Okay, start talking.”
Nearly an hour and a half later the three men dug up the shallow grave.
“What did you mean I wouldn’t be letting her out of my sight, Colonel?” Donaldson asked.
“Just that Pete - you don’t have a girlfriend do you?”
“I… ah…”
“Hey, relax, I meant I know how this particular line of work cuts into our social agendas.”
“Especially with the Special Ops team,” Donaldson admitted. “I’ve lost a few due to having my date end with a call up.”
“Good, now you have a steady girlfriend. She goes where you go. If you have a problem with that say so now because I want her chained to your bedpost at night until we trap this son of a bitch behind our two interoffice traitors. They may or may not have her under surveillance. You’ll have to play the boyfriend convincingly. We’ll feed misinformation from Aginson’s office.”
“I am most happy you have not decided to make me watch over the woman, Mr. Reskova.” Rasheed winked at Donaldson. “The young newbie here will charm her into complete submission, right Pete?”
“That’s right, Kay. I think the Colonel would have been hard pressed to use you. Hell, you’re not even allowed to take a shot of Jack, let alone house a strange woman.”
“Why you…” Rasheed mumbled, heading toward Donaldson with an amused McDaniels blocking Rasheed’s path. “You will soon learn the meaning of payback, young Pete.”
Donaldson put down his shovel. He slipped his arm around Rasheed’s shoulders in a placating manner. “Sorry Kay, I couldn’t resist. I’ll never do it again.”
“Another lie.” Rasheed picked up his shovel again.
“If you two are done dancing, I’d like to get out of here sometime today - as would ol’ Nancy. Remember, we need to haul her around like she’s coming up from the deep, and then take her out by the van.”
With the makeshift coffin lying next to the van, Tamara methodically pounded on the lid with the palms of her hands. McDaniels used a battery operated screwdriver from the van’s toolkit to remove the fasteners he had sealed the lid with. McDaniels and Rasheed gripped the vibrating lid and lifted it off. Tamara scrambled from inside the crate gasping and brushing at herself frantically. Donaldson threw a blanket around her, holding it in place.
“We’re going to need a new crate.” Rasheed turned away and walked around to the driver’s side of the van.
“Calm down, Nancy,” McDaniels soothed as Donaldson gripped her tightly. He waited until her shaking subsided. “We’re going to take you back to Pete’s apartment. He’ll get you cleaned up. After you’re settled, he’ll outline some of your duties - understand?”
Tamara nodded her head vigorously, huddling closer to Donaldson. “An…anything… just don’t ever put me down there again.”
“You stay straight with us and you’ll never see the crate again. Screw us or compromise our operation and I’ll hunt you down to the ends of the earth. Believe me when I tell you I’ll do just that if it takes me a lifetime. Can you stand being in the back of the van with her, Pete? Otherwise we’ll have to cuff her.”
“I’ll manage, Colonel.”
“Don’t bring her in until tomorrow morning. Brief her on all the parameters we talked about. We’ll handle the details tomorrow. I don’t have to caution you about how important not letting her out of your sight is, do I?”
“No, Colonel, I know she’s our best chance of getting this cell.”
“Good, let’s go. We’ll stop at Nancy’s place on the way to your apartment and pick up some clothes for her.”
Donaldson leaned toward Tamara as McDaniels and Rasheed entered the van.
“Nancy, strip off those clothes while I hold the blanket around you.”
Tamara nodded meekly. She immediately stripped off her soiled clothes. Donaldson helped her into the back of the van. He then picked up one of the shovels. While McDaniels kept an eye on the still shivering Tamara, Donaldson buried the clothin
g in one of the freshly excavated mine crevices. After loading up their equipment, Pete dragged the crate off to the side of the warehouse. Donaldson climbed in next to Tamara. She immediately huddled closer to him with her head on his chest. He looked up to see McDaniels and Rasheed both smiling at him.
* * *
Nearly an hour later, Rasheed parked in front of Donaldson’s apartment building. Donaldson helped Tamara out of the van along with a bag of clothing he had packed at her apartment. Tamara clutched the blanket tightly around her. Donaldson waved at McDaniels and Rasheed drove away. Donaldson peered up into the darkening sky as a light snow began to fall.
“Let’s get you inside.” Donaldson guided Tamara toward the front entrance to his building. “We’ll get showered before I make you something to eat.”
“I…I can cook…if you want.”
Donaldson patted her shoulder, glad the woman had finally spoken. “That’ll be fine. Look, I know it’ll be tough tonight for you. After I deliver you tomorrow morning in good health we’ll figure out a more trusting living arrangement.”
“I’ll do anything you say.”
“I know you will. You can believe the Colonel. If you don’t, he’ll make you a believer in the worst possible way.” Donaldson led her through the entrance to the elevator where they rode in silence to the third floor.
They were able to get from the street to his apartment without running into any of the other tenets. Donaldson opened the door to his apartment, allowing Tamara to go in first. He followed with her bag before dead bolting the door closed.
“You can see pretty much everything in the apartment from here. The kitchen’s right here by the door and the bedroom is straight ahead.”
Donaldson led Tamara through the small living room. A couch and loveseat combination fronted an entertainment center butted up against the main wall of the apartment. Setting aside the bag, Donaldson took off his holstered Glock 9mm. He locked it up in a small gun safe next to the entertainment center. Pete quickly stripped out of his own clothing and boots. He gestured to Tamara as he stepped toward the bathroom.
Monster Page 33
