Nike's Wings

by Valerie Douglas

  It was time for her to move.

  There weren’t very many places for her to go.

  Somewhere in the book The Art of War, Sun Tzu said to be where the enemy does not expect you to be.

  Below her were catwalks. She hoped they were in good condition. The timing would have to be perfect. There wouldn’t be much room for mistakes.

  With mental apologies to Ty, Brad and the others for the scare she was about to give them, she cleared the remaining glass with the barrel of one of her guns.

  Ty had heard the charge blow the door. So he wasn’t surprised to see Buck, weapon shouldered, with Mitch and Brad covering him, stride through the door, almost seeming to appear like magic from the smoke.

  “Stand down,” Buck snapped at the two Dies Irae soldiers.

  Both raised their hands, the expression in their eyes mutinous.

  “Live to fight another day,” one of them said to the other, as a reminder.

  “Fanatics,” Ty said.

  “Here,” Buck said, handing him an automatic and a headset. “It looks like you could use this.”

  All of them ducked as more glass rained down.

  Ty looked up just in time to see Niki grasp the edge of the skylight and roll over it to dangle among the shadows cast by the lights below her.

  She dropped to the catwalk below. Ty’s heart was in his throat, watching as the apparently fragile structure bounced and swayed, creaking.

  Glancing over the railing of the catwalk, Niki looked down at them.

  For a moment their eyes met.

  He hadn’t been certain he’d ever see her again.

  She smiled down at him and he thought he’d never seen anything so good.

  “I could use some help up here,” she said.

  Ty saw the mischievous gleam in her eye. What he didn’t see was how she would get down from there.

  Then he did, as she turned and fired at the windows of one of the offices. It shattered even as she holstered her guns and ran. If his heart had been in his throat before, he thought it would stop completely as she leaped to push off from the railing and out over empty space, shifting in midair so her feet went through the window first.

  “She’s got to stop doing that,” Ty said, “or she’s going to kill me.” He took a breath. “Well, you heard the lady. She needs some help up there.”

  Buck and Brad looked at him, grinning as Mitch shook his head.

  “Why don’t we?” Buck said, setting his weapon against his shoulder.

  The others followed suit, Ty with his own weapon braced to provide cover.

  In her ear, Nike could hear Victor’s evident consternation. In the cavern of the warehouse the shots had echoed, making it difficult to determine where they came from. Garcia wasn’t answering Victor any longer. Neither were the guards in the warehouse.

  The confusion wouldn’t last long.

  “Clear the roof,” Victor snapped. “Find Garcia. I want to know what’s happening.”

  If they reached the roof, Nike knew they’d see the cavalry arrive – Beta pulled off protection detail, coming in as backup. She couldn’t allow that, she had to draw them off.

  She opened the door a crack. She could hear feet moving on the stairway.

  No one was in the hallway.

  Yet.

  She darted out to carefully open the door to the stairwell. A breeze rushed past her face. Another door was open somewhere. There was movement above her. On nearly silent feet, she ran lightly up the stairs, eyes upward, gun braced.

  Although members of the Unit rarely worked together, the procedure was standard. She darted up the stairs to see one of the Dies Irae with his hand on the handle of the door, the other two men braced to cover.

  Trouble was, the man at the door saw her at about the same moment. His eyes and weapon tracked her.

  In the distance she heard police sirens approaching. Victor wouldn’t like that.

  She hoped she’d stay alive long enough to find out.

  Holstering her guns to leave her hands free, she spun and leaped for the corner where the railings came together, vaulted over it and dropped down to the next landing as the first shots rang out.

  Light exploded above them just as Ty and the others reached the doors. He looked up as the night turned incandescent. Helicopters hovered.

  Above them, windows shattered.

  Thick glass rained down.

  Ropes dropped as their own Beta team rappelled down out of the darkness.

  He nodded to Erik.

  “Nice of you to join us, gentlemen,” he said.

  “Nice of you to ask,” Erik said, with a grin, as his men turned swiftly to provide cover.

  Gunshots echoed.

  “Let’s move,” Ty said.

  Buck and Mitch took the doors, pulled them open fast as Ty, Brad and Erik advanced, with Beta team guarding their rear.

  Only speed and agility kept them off her, but Nike was pushing her Parkour talents to their absolute limit as concrete dust and shards sprayed. She just concentrated on keeping moving.

  Then a figure burst through a door to intercept her, weapon raised.

  She should have expected it. Even so, she was moving too fast to check her momentum. Twisting in midair, she tried to change direction.

  He obviously wasn’t anticipating her either, even as he fired in reaction to her movement.

  She felt the burn of the bullet as her feet hit his face, driving him back, even as she tumbled out of it. Landing on her feet, barely, she scrambled to stay on them. She hit ground level, running out of places to go, and yanked the door open.

  A large open space with no cover, with a shiny faux marble floor for visiting customers. Her shoes squeaked as she sprinted across it. Reaching for her weapons, she dove, flipping onto her back as doors both in front of her and behind her opened.

  The members of the Unit came through the door, one with his face bloody.

  She opened fire, driving the first of them back as her bullets hammered into his armor.

  Bullet exploded around her. Chips of faux marble flew.

  From behind her, she heard a familiar deep voice shouted, “Federal agents. Put down your weapons.”

  Nike looked back and up into Ty’s blue eyes as Alpha and Beta teams surrounded her.

  Outnumbered, the members of Dies Irae went still, their expressions visibly furious…but even so they surrendered.

  Ty pulled her up into his arms as she wrapped hers around his neck, her guns still in hand as Buck, Mitch and Brad handcuffed the members of the Unit under the watchful eyes of Beta .

  With the memory of Andy’s death, she knew none of either Alpha or Beta were inclined to be gentle, or to take any chances. Andy had been well-liked.

  Looking down into her face, Ty touched her cheek. “You nearly gave me a heart attack, you know.”

  Sliding her guns back into her holsters, she looked up at him, her fingers tracing a bruise on his cheekbone.

  “I love you, too,” she said with a shaky grin. Her fingers drifted across his mouth where it was swollen and split. “It’s going to be hard for you to kiss me for a while.”

  Ty laughed, winced as his lip pulled in places when he touched his mouth to hers. “Not so bad.”

  With the assistance and backup of the local police department, Alpha and Beta teams systematically searched the entire building.

  There was no sign of Victor Torrance, or any of the other members of his Unit, although there were clear signs that a small army had occupied the space for at least several days.

  Somehow Ty wasn’t surprised.

  A police car, its lights dark, rolled out of the shadows of the alley between the buildings. The window slid down, a whisper of sound hidden by the breeze and the distant crackle of police radios. Lurid red and blue lights lit an area a short distance away.

  “Sir,” the officer said.

  Three figures stepped out of the darkness. Car doors opened and closed.

  Victor Torranc
e laid his head back against the car seat and restrained his anger. It would take a while, but he would be back.

  Chapter Forty One

  The invitation for Ty and Niki to meet at Byron’s house came as a surprise. Ty couldn’t help but wonder if there was a reason Byron hadn’t wanted to talk to them at NIO headquarters. Even as they pulled in to the Hood’s drive, Buck’s truck turned into the driveway.

  “Buck,” Ty said. “I didn’t know you were invited.”

  “Neither did I until a little while ago. Do you know what this is about?” Buck asked.

  “Not a clue,” Ty said, a little uneasily.

  Niki’s status was still up in the air.

  Melody Hood met them at the door and escorted them out onto the patio. Everyone had food and coffee in front of them. She gestured them to the food and drinks.

  “Help yourselves,” she said.

  To Ty’s surprise he found that both Mark Foster and Miri Cochran were there, as was Jerry, his long legs stretched out in front of him.

  Repairs to the house after the attack were still on-going, but the most visible damage was gone.

  Byron let them get a few bites in before he spoke, for which Ty was grateful.

  Glancing at Niki, he could see she was unsettled, too.

  Settling back in his chair, his expression a little grim, Byron said, “I won’t draw out the suspense. I wanted to talk to you all here, where there was less chance of listening ears.”

  That sounded ominous.

  Almost all of those around him – except for Melody – set their cups aside, completely focused on Byron.

  With a sigh, his eyes on the remaining damage to his home, mostly landscaping, Byron said, “Political pressure is being brought to bear to let the investigation into Victor Torrance’s activities die a slow death.”

  “What!?” Buck demanded.

  “And you’re going along with it?” Jerry exploded.

  Ty took a breath, gestured at both of them for silence, and sat back as he reached out for Niki’s hand. “Can I ask why?”

  Byron glanced at Jerry and then turned to Ty.

  “Officially? No one really wants to say, but realistically? There are quite a few people who don’t want to rake up the past. In the current political atmosphere no one wants to raise questions about what was done to whom and why. Victor Torrance would raise those questions. Loudly. More than a few don’t want him to testify for fear of what he might say. As far as they’re concerned Torrance has disappeared, his Unit disbanded. Unofficially? I suspect Torrance’s high-powered friends are using their influence to quash the investigation.”

  “He’s still out there,” Niki said quietly.

  “Few seem him as a threat any longer,” Byron said. He studied her curiously. “You don’t seem very surprised.”

  Niki shook her head.

  “Remember what I am, Byron,” she said, then added with a wry grin and gentle sarcasm, “but then again U.S. doesn’t have assassins. They don’t invade other countries without provocation either. Or have secret prisons in other countries. At least we didn’t used to.”

  Ty remembered the doctor he’d renditioned and now wondered what had happened to the man. Part of him, of course, didn’t want to know, didn’t want to think about it.

  “So,” Jerry said. “Once again we sweep stuff under the rug. If there’s one thing this country can’t do, it’s to see ourselves, warts and all.”

  Mark Foster looked at Ty. “You don’t seem very surprised, either.”

  Ty met Mark’s look and saw a matching cynicism in his expression. “I’m not, and neither are you. Any of us, really. It’s politics. All we can do is try to hold onto our principles and do the best job we can. The rest is out of our control.”

  Looking at Niki, he raised the back of her hand to his lips.

  She smiled at him. “Whatever happens we’ll handle it.”

  Ty smiled back. “We’ve managed so far.” He looked at the others. “For now, I have better plans for the rest of the day. We’re going for a drive, have a little lunch somewhere.”

  He had a little surprise for Niki; in fact it would be a surprise for a couple of people. It had taken some arranging.

  Chapter Forty Two

  It was a beautiful drive through the Virginia countryside, skirting the exurbs of Washington D.C., but still travelling north and west until they reached some of the better areas – stately homes with broad stretches of land and horses grazing in fields. They’d put the top down on Niki’s little convertible to enjoy the brilliant sunshine and the clear blue sky. It was nice to get away from the exhaust fumes and crowded streets of D.C.

  They had lunch in a pretty little French Provencal- style restaurant Ty found along the way.

  It was a lovely meal in a charming brasserie, a chance for Niki to spend a little time with Ty outside of the NIO, or his apartment.

  Niki was hardly paying attention to the twists and turns of the road. It still felt somewhat strange to hold hands as they drove, but Ty handled the car well with one hand.

  It was warm, but not too warm. She could feel the breeze in her hair, although most of the mass of it was clipped up so the wind couldn’t tease it too much.

  They drove west and slightly north of west.

  When he turned into the gated community, though, she was puzzled, even as he tapped the code into the reader.

  The house they pulled up in front of was a pretty brick Georgian style house with white pillars in front and a carefully maintained garden spread around it like a skirt. It was neat, clean and very formal. The garden around it was lovely, with a Japanese maple grounding it , a myriad of annuals forming a multi-colored skirt, and yews as fencing to each side.

  “Where are we?” Niki asked as they followed the walk to the house.

  “You’ll see,” Ty said.

  He was being cryptic.

  Now that he’d done it Ty was nervous, not certain whether he’d done the right thing. It was, of course, far too late for second thoughts. All the arrangements had been made.

  He took a breath, knocked on the door.

  The woman who opened the door recognized Ty in an instant from their past association, as he recognized her. After all, he was probably indelibly imprinted on her mind.

  Despite the memory of the last time they’d met, she smiled graciously, although she was obviously puzzled at the reason for his visit.

  That was the type of woman she was.

  “Mr. Connor,” she said, before she turned to greet Niki.

  Then she froze in disbelief, eyes wide, her hand going to her throat, to flutter there.

  Beside him, Niki had gone still, her hand suddenly tight around his.

  “Mom?” Niki said, her voice nearly a whisper.

  For a moment, a breath of time, Caroline Francis stared at the woman beside him as recognition dawned in her eyes.

  “Callie? Oh, my God, it can’t be. Callie?”

  Ty watched as Niki fought back tears, then her mother threw her arms around her and she couldn’t stop them.

  Caroline Martin, now Caroline Francis, looked at Ty.

  “You found her?” she asked.

  Ty looked at Niki as she flashed a look back at him and then smiled as she took his hand again.

  He smiled in return. “No, actually, she found me.”

  Niki’s mother glanced at their joined hands, then looked back at him.

  “It’s a long story,” he said.

  He wanted her to approve and hoped she would.

  “It seems so,” she said, looking at the daughter she’d thought long dead, shaking her head.

  Then she gestured.

  “Come in, come in…”

  Chapter Forty Three

  Sleepily contented, Ty drew Niki closer against him, aware of the bandage across her ribs, but just happy to have her back in his arms again. He knew that very shortly he’d have his own chorus of aches and pains, once his body woke up completely. Until then, though, he
just breathed in the scent of her hair.

  The op had gone well – a raid on a white supremacist camp – but it had been a little hairy for a few moments when some of the friends of those in the camp had shown up unexpectedly, armed and ready for bear.

  God bless cell phones.

  Even those at the temporary HQ had had to respond. Including Ty.

  As usual, Niki had had his heart in his throat more than once as she ducked and dodged fire, Alpha picking off those who targeted her.

  Idly, he let his hands roam over her, to feel the curves of her, her smooth skin.

  She shifted in his arms and turned to face him, snuggling in tighter. The green eyes that had caught him from the first moment he’d seen her opened sleepily.

  “Morning,” he said.

  If there was anything Niki loved more than waking up warm and safe, it was waking up next to Ty. She remembered that first long ago awakening in Santiago’s camp and smiled. She kissed Ty softly.

  Ty shifted a little, a wrong movement. He groaned a little as pain awoke.

  “Where?” Niki asked, grinning.

  “Lower back, upper back.” He chuckled at the stiffness. It was no surprise, considering the workout she’d given him.

  Smiling, she coaxed him to lie flat. “In other words, everywhere.”

  “Something like that,” he said. “I’m not as young as I used to be.”

  “Oh stop,” she said.

  Ty found he didn’t mind having a naked Niki straddling him a problem at all. Her hips moved against him.

  Her hands gently kneaded and rubbed at the sore spots as she worked her way up his back, stretching out over him. The feel of her body, her hips rolling as her breasts brushed against his back, was soothing in some places, but arousing in others. With some muscles loosened and some still stiff, one part of him more than another, he found he had more the enough strength to roll her beneath him.

  It was surprisingly arousing. With the kinks massaged out, he rolled over, catching Niki around the waist to keep her in place, and then tumble her beneath him.