by Rebecca Deel
She reached for her Sig. A brush of fabric nearby had her spinning toward the right.
A man dressed in black from head to toe darted into the deep shadows, gun in his hand.
“Gun,” Veronica said, moving to a more protected position behind a concrete column. Rapid gunfire echoed, obliterating all other sounds. If someone planned to sneak up on them, she and Adam wouldn’t hear them coming.
She fired two rounds in the direction of the thug. Her shots pinged off the concrete wall at the height of his head. She didn’t have a good shot from this position. In the lull, she heard muffled curses from her target.
A glance at Adam revealed he was shifting position, trying for a better angle himself. He crouched and ran past four vehicles. Before he reached his final destination, their quarry ran. Seconds later, the car which had been idling shifted into gear. Tires squealed on the pavement. A tan four-door sedan barreled around the corner and raced past them.
Adam and Veronica fired two rounds each. Though the back and side windows of the vehicle shattered, the driver, hunched low, raced from the garage and disappeared.
“You okay?” Adam asked as he jogged toward her.
“Peachy. You?”
“Same. Catch a license plate?
She scowled. “No. Happened too fast.”
He grinned. “And that irks you, doesn’t it?”
“You bet. I’m supposed to notice details.”
“Let’s get out of here. That question you asked me earlier? I’d say the wrong people know you’re back in town.” Adam drove the SUV from the garage. As soon as they were clear of the structure, he called Zane. “Need a favor.”
“Name it.”
“Pull the video surveillance in the garage at Green Hills Mall.”
“What am I looking for?”
“Cream-colored four-door sedan laying rubber as it barreled out of the structure about two minutes ago. Shooter tried to take out Vonnie.”
“Injuries?”
“None on our part. Don’t know about the shooter. He was dressed in black, including a ski mask, about six feet tall, two hundred pounds. He was trained, Z. Maybe law enforcement.”
Veronica’s breath stalled in her lungs. A fellow cop? Her stomach soured.
“A hit?” Zane asked, his voice barely above a growl.
Adam’s hand wrapped around hers. “That’s my guess.”
“That can’t be,” Veronica protested. “We don’t assassinate people.”
“Law enforcement doesn’t,” Zane agreed. “Someone guilty of treason is trying to cover his tracks. He knows you won’t let Dane’s death slide, that you’ll fight to clear your name. The investigation is more likely to stall if you’re dead. I guarantee there would be a massive influx of proof of your guilt after you were dead and unable to defend yourself. And with your handler gone, who would take up the fight?”
No one, she realized. No one cared enough to put their career on the line to fight for her. She remained silent, unwilling to admit the truth to men who would fight to the death for each other and their fellow operatives. Though wheelchair bound for three years, Zane had gone to Belize with Claire to free Adam. None of her fellow DEA agents risked themselves to rescue her.
“The car description was generic. Anything to distinguish it from the thousands of others in the area at the time?”
“Yeah,” Adam said, his tone wry. “The windows have been shot out and the side panels have bullet holes.”
Zane chuckled. “I’ll see if I can locate your car. Veronica?”
“Yes?”
“We’ll figure this out, sugar. Hang in there.”
“Thanks, Zane.”
“Adam, I’ll tell the boss what’s going on. Expect him to contact you.”
“Copy that.” He glanced at Veronica. “I checked the SUV for tracking devices before we left your place and before we left the garage.”
“How? I didn’t see you drop to the ground.”
Amusement swirled in his gaze as he handed her a small, plastic device that fit in the palm of her hand.
“What’s this?”
“Detects activated tracking devices and bugs.”
She stared at the gadget with serious envy. “I don’t suppose Maddox would part with one of these.”
“I’ll get one for you.”
Veronica grinned. “You give me the best gifts.”
“Whatever keeps you safe, Vonnie. Now, where’s your drop site?”
“A post office box in Brentwood.”
Adam drove onto the interstate and headed toward the post office. “Take your battery out of your phone.”
She stared at him a few seconds, sighed. “Someone pinged my signal. I should have thought of that. It’s a secure phone, DEA issued.”
“It’s in the DEA database which Zane is surfing with ease. I’m sorry, Vonnie, but indications are someone in your unit is out to get you.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Adam parked in the lot outside the Brentwood post office. “Do you visit this box often?” he asked Veronica.
“I clean it out once a month when I’m in town. I have boxes in five different locations, each under a different name. This is the one Dane and I agreed would be the drop for emergencies.”
Smart. Even if someone guessed she and Carver had a drop, they probably wouldn’t know about all five of them. “I assume there was no record of the boxes in the database?”
She snorted.
“How good are your IDs?”
“I haven’t had any questions.”
Maybe, but he’d prefer Zane check the trail and add his magic touch to keep Vonnie safe. “I want the names and addresses. Let’s make sure there aren’t any mistakes. Do you have the key to your box?”
“I grabbed that along with my cell phone and money.” She pulled a small key chain from her pocket and dangled it from her hand. “Let’s go.”
“Wait.” He grabbed a Nashville Sounds baseball cap from his glove box and tugged it on her head. “Not much of a disguise, but it will have to do.”
They walked into the mail room together. She unlocked box 487 and pulled out a handful of envelopes. All but one were full of papers. Inside the SUV, she said, “I need a secure place to read these.”
“Fortress headquarters is closer than my house.”
“That will work.”
Adam took his time, turning squares, backtracking, quick turns, some weaving in and out of traffic, looking for a tail. While he maneuvered through the streets of Brentwood and Nashville, Veronica kept watch on the mirrors.
“Nothing.” She twisted in her seat. “It’s been over an hour. I think we’re clear, Adam.”
Still watchful, he drove to Fortress. How long, he wondered, would it take for the people after Veronica to realize he was involved with her, not just as her bodyguard? Five minutes of observation would reveal he felt something for the DEA agent seated beside him. He didn’t intend to hide it. The more people who knew she was under his protection and that of Fortress, the better. Smart people didn’t mess with Adam or his friends.
He escorted her to the elevator and up to the fifth floor. His fingers laced with hers, Adam walked into the communication room. His brother-in-law turned, held up his finger in a signal to wait, then returned his attention to the three screens spread out at his work station.
“Copy that, Nico. I’ll send you the information within the hour.” Zane spun his chair to face Adam and Veronica. “What do you need?”
“A quiet, secure place to check intel Carver sent to a drop for Veronica.” He inclined his head toward the screens. “The Shadow unit?”
“Yeah. They need information on a child trafficking group.”
Man, Nico’s group was tasked with the worst of the horrible assignments. All the units took on terrible jobs, but this unit seemed to have more than their fair share. Couldn’t be easy. “Are they ever assigned anything easier?”
“Not in a while. What do you have, Veronica?”
>
“I’m not sure. Dane sent several things to one of my drop boxes. I haven’t looked at the information yet. Too busy watching the mirrors for a tail.”
“Did you check the other boxes?”
She shook her head. “Not yet. The one I checked is for emergency use. There shouldn’t be anything in it except junk mail for the past two weeks.”
“Anything I can help with?”
“Veronica has five different IDs she’s been using for the post office boxes,” Adam said. “Run a check on them and see if anyone has been inquiring about her.”
“Give me the names and addresses. I’ll do the scan while you and Veronica see what Carver sent. The conference room is open, Adam. I installed a scanner in there. It will save time if you scan the documents Carver sent and project them on the wall screens so you both can read them. I’ll check with you in a few minutes, bring some water for you.”
“Thanks, Z.” A minute later, he opened the door to the conference room. Adam had always liked this room, especially at night. The windows showed a great view of the city.
He noted Zane had added several screens on the wall. Nice. Adam flipped a switch and the windows turned opaque.
Veronica shook her head. “We use blinds to block windows.”
“Fortress likes gadgets.” He extended his hand for the envelopes. “I’ll scan these in. Might take a few minutes.” He slit open the envelopes with his Gerber knife and slid out the contents of each one. Adam spent several minutes scanning the pages, taking the earliest post marked date first. By the time he finished and sent the first file to the screens, Zane entered the room.
“Everything work okay?”
“Perfect. The scanner will come in handy when we plan missions.”
“That’s what I thought.” Zane handed Veronica a bottle of water and tossed a second to Adam. “So, what do you have?”
The three of them turned to the screens. The more he read, the colder Adam felt.
Zane turned his head to stare at Veronica. “Do you have an explanation for this?”
Her face pale, she shook her head. “I don’t know where Dane obtained this information, but it’s not true.” She turned to Adam. “I didn’t do this, Adam. I would never betray you like that.”
“You didn’t know him a few days ago,” Zane snapped. “He was a stranger to you. Easy enough to sell information on someone you don’t know. How do we know for sure this isn’t the actual truth? You could have been lying to protect yourself all along. Maybe you just got caught.”
“Enough, Zane,” Adam interrupted, his voice soft.
“If she’s one of those responsible for your time in that death chamber, she has a lot to answer for.”
The angry SEAL was correct. Veronica hadn’t been part of his life for long. However, she had provided critical intelligence to aid Fortress in the past, including Adam’s rescue. What he knew of her to this point led him to believe she was innocent.
Adam faced Veronica. She didn’t protest her innocence again, just waited, resignation and sadness in her eyes. The DEA agent expected him to condemn her like her handler and his wife had done.
Without taking his gaze from hers, Adam said to his brother-in-law, “Vonnie is innocent, Z.”
Tears sparkled in her eyes as she sent him a tremulous smile.
“Think with your head, not your heart, man.”
“I am. Look at the screen again, Z.”
The tech guru scowled. “What am I supposed to be seeing?”
“The date of the first packet of information.”
“What about it?”
“That’s about the time Vonnie went to Mexico.”
She straightened in her chair. “He’s right, Zane. The date is the day after I arrived in Mexico. I was kidnapped six days later.”
“The information looks like it went to Dane’s email at work.” Adam took his empty water bottle to the trash. “Can you trace it back to the source, Z?”
He dragged a hand down his face. “Yeah.” A glance at Veronica. “I’m sorry, sugar. Adam’s captivity is a sore spot for all of us.”
“I understand. I wouldn’t turn over my worst enemy to a terrorist like the one Adam faced in Belize.” A wry smile curved her lips. “I have the scars to prove it.”
Adam froze for a second, then slowly turned toward Veronica. “What did you say?”
“What scars?” Zane demanded.
She remained mute. Stubborn woman. “Sweetheart, look at me.” Adam waited until her gaze locked with his. “Tell me.”
“The interrogations weren’t only about DEA operations and agents in Mexico. The interrogator also wanted information on you.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
Adam stared at Veronica across the conference room table, unable to believe the words coming from her mouth. “The interrogator asked about me by name?”
She nodded, breaking eye contact with him and focusing on the half-empty bottle in her hands.
He blew out a breath, his gut tightening into a knot. “How much of the interrogation focused on me, Vonnie?”
“Most of it. I refused to tell him anything. That’s why the beatings grew more intense and he resorted to using the whip. I don’t know how much longer I would have been able to hold out, but I refused to give you up, even if he killed me.”
She’d suffered to protect him. Adam’s heart hurt at the knowledge. “Zane, give us a minute.” He had things he needed to say to her and he didn’t want an audience.
“I’ll be in the comm center.” The SEAL left them alone.
Adam circled the table and knelt in front of her. “Vonnie, why didn’t you tell me?”
“What was the point? You rescued me and I’m healing. I endured for you and my fellow agents.”
“But you suffered the most to protect me. Why didn’t you give me up? I can look out for myself.”
Her face flushed. “I kept tabs on you after your rescue from Belize. Over the months, I came to care for you. You started to matter to me. I don’t regret what I went through, Adam. You’re safe and that’s all that’s important to me.”
He cupped her face between his palms and kissed her, his touch gentle, showing her without words that he appreciated her sacrifice. His own teammates hadn’t risked themselves to protect him as she had. That she gave so much for a man she didn’t know left Adam almost speechless. He pulled himself together to murmur, “Thank you for protecting me, baby.”
He suspected Zane was talking to Maddox about security for Claire. If the person targeting Adam couldn’t get to him, he might go after Claire instead. He should ask Remy and Lily to protect his sister.
Adam eased back. “Will you talk to Zane and Maddox about your interrogation?”
She flinched. “I’ll handle it.”
“Let’s read the rest of the files so we know what we’re up against.”
“Nothing good,” she muttered.
They spent the next hour reading the rest of the documents sent to Veronica’s handler, each more condemning than the last, including lists of people’s names and operations he didn’t recognize, but she did. The last envelope contained information on Adam and his assignment in Belize. His jaw clenched. How had the traitor gotten information on him? Zane was obsessive about protecting Fortress operatives. The tech guru had bots set to alert him the moment any operative or the alias in use was mentioned on the Net.
“These are people I worked missions with since the DEA hired me along with the names of the operations. Some of the operatives were killed in missions gone bad. Information leaked and we were ambushed in some cases.”
And the only common denominator in all the information was Veronica. So whoever set her up intended to use her as the scapegoat for everything, not just Adam’s capture. What concerned him the most was if she returned to the DEA, no one in the agency would trust her or watch her back. The woman who fascinated him wasn’t safe working for or with her own agency. Someone had a target on her back. The shooter in the gar
age could be connected to the interrogator or Veronica’s own agency.
He tapped a couple keys and sent a copy of the files to Zane and Maddox, then they returned to the comm room. “Zane, if the boss is free ask one of your underlings to cover for you and come meet with us.”
Zane contacted Maddox, turned. “He’s free for the next hour and says you owe him. He planned to surprise Rowan at the coffee shop.”
“I’ll make it up to him.” He clasped Veronica’s hand and led her the short distance to Maddox’s office. Helen waved him through. After a quick knock, he opened the door to the office.
Maddox glanced up from his computer screen, his expression grim. “They did a number on you, Veronica. No wonder your handler thought you were dirty. I’m not surprised someone shot at you.”
“I’m not either.” Veronica sat.
“How can I help, Adam?”
“I hate to put Vonnie through it,” Adam said, “but you need to hear what she went through and why.”
Maddox’s eyebrows rose as Zane joined them.
“He needs to listen,” Adam said. “Claire might be in danger.”
“Okay. Shoot.”
Adam faced Veronica. “The story is yours to tell.” He didn’t want to hear what she suffered on his behalf and dreaded her reliving the experience, but the other two men might hear something he missed in the storm of emotion swamping him. Plus, Zane had a right to know everything since Claire was at risk.
Adam scooted his chair close to Veronica’s and laced their fingers together to offer silent support. Although she was tough, as evidenced by her injuries and the length of time she endured the various methods of torture, Adam would make her take a break if he felt she needed one.
“Dane assigned me to another undercover op in the Chihuahua province two weeks ago.”
“The mission?”
“Locate a warehouse where drugs were being packed and shipped up to the United States. We tracked shipments of fentanyl that were laced back to this particular manufacturer, but he moves his packing locations every few days. He has several dilapidated buildings he uses for one or two days at a time. The equipment and raw materials are packed up each time. Because he packages small quantities, the operation is easy to move. Makes him hard to pin down. He’s paranoid and never sleeps in the same place each night, sometimes moves in the middle of the night.”
