Firewall

by DiAnn Mills

  Ethan pointed to the gun on the table. He rolled up the cuff of his shirt and revealed a wicked knife. He stood and displayed a holster and another gun. “Are we on the same page? I have my own method of handling unruly and uncooperative people. Your self-defense skills are worthless when my first target is the kid.”

  He was right. “I understand.”

  He gestured around him. “This small room is the only area that’s not wired to explode when entered. I have an arsenal of grenades and weaponry at my disposal. The barn will detonate in precisely twenty-five minutes. Armed helicopters will arrive to pick us up. Later on, we’ll board a private plane that will take us to our destination. I’ve been busy while you thought I was in Mexico. There’s no escape and no means of rescue.”

  CHAPTER 66

  9:55 A.M. FRIDAY

  Through binoculars Grayson scanned the area where Korzha and Wallace supposedly held Taryn and Zoey. A police officer on the rear side of the property confirmed the barn held three vehicles: an SUV, a Lincoln, and an Accord. Thermal imaging revealed four persons inside the boarded-up house, all in the rear.

  Korzha’d had months to fine-tune his plan, and this setting was the most unlikely spot for him to hold hostages. Police officers were in the woods behind the property. Additional officers and four more FBI agents covered the mud lane leading to the house and barn. More law enforcement and FBI were on their way, including a SWAT team. Not one sound from inside the house.

  Grayson handed the binoculars to Joe. “What do you see?”

  Joe panned from the far left to the right. “Either a fool or a genius. And Korzha is not a fool.”

  “If he were to initiate a war zone in this place, what would it look like?”

  “Military-trained soldiers. Weaponry. Grenades. A foolproof way to escape with hostages.”

  “A few land mines?” Grayson pointed to the dead grass and brush in front of the house.

  “That’s a bit much,” Joe said.

  “Take a few steps and prove me wrong. He had two weeks to set up the battlefield.”

  Joe shook his head. “You might be right, like you were about Russia’s involvement.”

  Grayson picked up a bullhorn from the sheriff. “Valmir Korzha and Cameron Wallace, release the hostages and come out with your hands up.”

  “Fat chance,” a male said.

  “You’re surrounded.”

  “That’s what you think. If we see anyone approaching, the woman and kid are dead.”

  Grayson played the odds of what he’d analyzed. Korzha needed Taryn to complete his plans, or she’d already be dead.

  Grayson studied the brush to the immediate right and the knee-high weeds providing coverage several feet from the barn. The area looked as deserted as the rest.

  “Joe, I’m going around the barn. See if I can detect what they’re doing.”

  “I’m with you.”

  A car pulled up to the scene. Grayson recognized the agents emerging—and Buddy. The German shepherd raced to Grayson’s side and nestled against him. What a reminder of God’s presence: the angel protector dog. Thatcher Graves jogged to his side.

  “Glad you’re here,” Grayson said. “Dealing with a couple of professionals in there.”

  “Thought you might need a good eye.” Thatcher’s dark eyes emitted sincerity. “I’ve always been the better shot.”

  Grayson grinned. He needed a boost. Buddy nearly knocked him down. “I wonder who arranged for this four-legged agent.”

  “I made a few calls,” Joe said. “So now there’s three of us going after Taryn and Zoey.”

  Joe didn’t need to be working this hard. “I’ll do this solo.”

  “We’re partners, and I guarantee Korzha doesn’t intend to stay cooped up in that old house much longer.”

  Grayson didn’t have time to argue. He explained what he planned to the sheriff and other agents, then requested a wire cutter to cut through a barbed-wire fence separating them from the overgrown field. If Korzha and Wallace were to leave with the hostages by car, Grayson and Joe would be ready to greet them. The two men made their way behind the string of cars to the fence, bending low and avoiding exposure. Grayson clipped the wire.

  “I hate snakes,” Joe said, crawling through the fence opening.

  “And they come in all shapes and sizes.”

  “Smart aleck. By the way, there’s a huge ant pile on our right.”

  “Thanks.” Grayson watched the house and barn through binoculars. Nothing was visible but the officers stationed in the woods in the distance. He hoped Buddy had an instinct for what they were about to do. “We need to hurry.”

  “Korzha and Wallace aren’t playing hide-and-seek.”

  They moved fast—crouching, crawling, rushing. Buddy made his way behind Grayson and in front of Joe. Halfway between the road and the barn, Joe groaned.

  “Are you all right?” Grayson said.

  “Yeah. Blasted fire ants.”

  “Send ’em into that poor excuse for a house.”

  “I prefer someplace hotter.”

  Only Joe could find humor in the worst of situations. They had cover from the road and from the woods, and all they had to do was take out two men and free Taryn and Zoey. FBI work had never been easy, and he had no reason to think so now. Sounds from the road indicated the SWAT team was in place.

  Grayson and Joe moved closer to the barn. The sound of a turbulent sky grasped his attention. Two helicopters approached, their swish of whirling blades growing louder. They weren’t law enforcement. The copters circled and descended onto the field behind the house.

  Grayson spoke into his mouthpiece. “Do not open fire until we see what’s happening. We’re circling behind them now. I’ll signal when to fire.” He swung a glance at Joe. The man’s face and lips were swollen. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

  Joe shook his head. Couldn’t speak.

  “Need to get you help.” Grayson contacted Thatcher. “Joe’s down. Looks like anaphylactic reaction to an insect or snake. Need an EpiPen.” He checked Joe’s breathing—shallow.

  The helicopters hovered over the field. Joe grabbed Grayson’s arm. “Go,” he mouthed.

  The pressure increased on Grayson’s arm. Help was coming for Joe, but how could he leave him, the man who’d loved him unconditionally? He stared into Joe’s eyes, and the message was clear. Grayson swallowed hard and nodded. He stole away with Buddy, praying for what he was leaving and what lay ahead.

  The barn stood a little more than fifty yards away. He calculated his speed and the copters’ mission. His thoughts turned to his dad and the cancer. Strange, when he needed to focus on disabling two helicopters without killing Taryn and Zoey. But when this was resolved, he’d call Dad. See if their relationship could be patched up.

  An explosion rocked the countryside, and the barn blew splinters up and out. Grayson dove to the ground, but a flying piece of wood scraped across his thigh, anchoring itself with a nail. Probably rusty. He jerked the nail and wood from his burning flesh. Pure adrenaline and a bigger dose of God spurred him on. Buddy was uninjured.

  “Good dog,” he whispered. “So glad you’re here.”

  Seeking cover behind one pile of debris after another and ignoring the pain in his thigh, he peered toward the helicopters landing near the house. He limped across the field while calling for backup to wait for his signal to open fire. The SWAT team would burst onto the scene when he gave the word.

  An area between the woods and the copters exploded. . . . Within seconds, another blast erupted between the house and the road. How many more land mines were planted?

  To his left, Taryn emerged from the rear of the house carrying Zoey and struggling with her left arm in a cast. She walked single file, body to body, with Wallace in front and Korzha in the rear. They moved toward the second copter. From the corner of his eye, Grayson caught sight of officers exiting the woods. One raised his rifle. Only an expert sniper needed to attempt this, and he doubted the officer was
the man.

  “Do not fire,” Grayson shouted into the mouthpiece. “I’ll give the call to take out the copter pilots.” He didn’t want shots fired into the engines and a resulting explosion.

  The officer refused to stand down, and from Grayson’s stance, he didn’t have a clear shot at the pilot nearest him. Another officer rushed toward the shooter but not before he fired, missing the pilot and plunging a bullet into the engine of the copter nearest the woods. The explosion sent fragments of metal propelling in all directions. Taryn and her captors took cover beside the helicopter nearest the house. As soon as the pieces stopped flying, Korzha and Wallace used Zoey and Taryn as shields, shoving them into the remaining copter. Only time stood between Grayson and the copter exploding from the bellowing flames.

  The pilot who manned the remaining copter fired repeatedly.

  Gunfire split the air, most likely from Wallace, while the SWAT team rushed forward. The pilot in the hostages’ copter went down.

  Grayson refused to take another shot and risk the hostages’ lives. Wallace climbed into the front of the copter, a skill not recorded in his profile. Korzha was the one with his pilot’s license. Grayson took Wallace out, then moved around the copter to face Korzha.

  “Give it up, Korzha,” he said over the swirling blades.

  “No thanks. My next bullet will take care of one of the hostages. Which one? You choose.”

  “Let’s talk. What do you want?”

  Korzha laughed. “I already have it. The export terminals in Corpus Christi and Kitimat will explode at eleven. Nothing you can do to stop it.”

  The SWAT team moved closer, but a clear shot at Korzha was impossible. “I suggest you release them. You have the password.”

  “Right. And you’ll shoot me down. This is a trio deal. We’re leaving.” He pushed Wallace’s body from the cockpit with his gun aimed at Taryn. She wouldn’t try to overpower him, not with Zoey and a broken arm.

  Grayson calculated three seconds to take the shot, but the wound in his thigh made him dizzy, affecting his aim. Buddy barked and growled, dividing Korzha’s attention. Grayson leveled a bullet into Korzha’s head. The man fell back. Lifeless.

  Taryn jumped from the copter. While holding Zoey with her broken arm, she grabbed the dead man’s backpack.

  She limped toward Grayson and Buddy amid the shouts to move away from the copter. Grayson guided her and Zoey to safety . . . hurrying them away from the death zone. Simultaneous explosions sent all of them to the ground. He positioned his body over Taryn and Zoey.

  “Thank you,” she whispered. “I knew you’d come.”

  CHAPTER 67

  10:50 A.M. FRIDAY

  Taryn allowed Grayson to hold her and Zoey. Both trembled in his arms. She sobbed while clinging to Zoey, and Buddy nestled close to her. She’d stopped questioning where the dog had come from because he’d been heaven-sent. And Grayson was another gift from God.

  “Hey, you’re safe,” he said. “Both of you.”

  “But I failed.” She shook her head, the trauma of more lives lost sinking into her heart and mind. “He programmed a sequence of events at the export terminals in Corpus Christi and Kitimat to cause explosions at eleven. At this point, I can’t stop it without using the backdoor and custom app on my iPhone. And it’s not in the backpack.”

  Grayson motioned to Special Agent Thatcher Graves. “Call for those terminals to be evacuated immediately.”

  “They have to get people away from the blast zone,” she said. “More will die.”

  Grayson squeezed her shoulder, but it did little to reassure her. “Is there anything you can do to override the command?”

  “Nothing without my iPhone. The last thing he did before he disconnected was to alter the access credentials.”

  Zoey lifted her head from Taryn’s shoulder, her dark curls framing her pale face. “Aunt Taryn, are you looking for your phone?”

  “Yes, baby.”

  “It’s in my doll. Miss Dina put it there before the bad man came.” Zoey pulled the ragged and dirty doll from under her arm. “It’s inside, under her dress. Miss Dina opened her up and then fixed her.”

  Taryn set Zoey onto the muddy lane and examined the doll. The back had been slit and glued. Inside lay the iPhone, minus her red-jeweled case. Why Dina had changed her mind would forever be a mystery, but her decision could change destiny.

  “Please, let there be juice.” She kissed the top of Zoey’s head. Had this precious child seen Dina’s murder? Later . . . later.

  She pressed in her PIN, bringing up Nehemiah’s backdoor. “How many minutes do I have?”

  “Four and counting,” Grayson said.

  She nodded. Once inside the program, which had been set to abruptly build pressure and increase temps, she was able to access both systems simultaneously and return things to normal. A few moments later her body relaxed, and she closed her eyes. “Thank You. For everything.” Glancing at Grayson, she offered a shaky smile. “It’s over. No fireworks on either coastline today.”

  He lifted her chin. “With thirty seconds to spare. You’re amazing.”

  “My doll,” Zoey whimpered.

  “Don’t worry, honey. I’ll fix it for you,” Taryn said. “Even get you a new one if you’d like.”

  “Okay. Where’s Mama? I thought she was with you.”

  Taryn choked back another sob. She stole a look at Grayson, then back to Zoey. “Jesus came to get her, honey. She’s in heaven with Him.”

  “When will I see her?”

  “I’m not sure, but when you do, it will be wonderful. Until then, I’m going to take care of you.”

  She tilted her head and blinked back a tear. “I’m sad.”

  Taryn pulled the little girl close to her. “Me too. We both loved your mama very much.”

  Grayson’s arms circled them, and she relished his strength.

  “I’ve got you,” he said. “I have both my girls.”

  CHAPTER 68

  7:30 A.M. MONDAY

  Grayson, Taryn, and Zoey walked into the stately church for Claire’s celebration of life. He stole a look at his bruised and battered lady. An usher asked if she’d been in an accident.

  “Sort of. I’m on the mend now.”

  “You have a beautiful family,” he said to her and nodded at Grayson.

  “Thank you, and we intend to keep it that way,” she said.

  Grayson felt the commitment in Taryn’s words. They had a long way to go before words of love passed their lips, but this was a beginning. They both understood it.

  Zoey sat in the middle of the pew. Fortunately the meaning of death was vague in her little mind. She’d been told people would be singing songs and talking about how much they loved her mommy. Time and patience would help heal all of them. The wall of terror had crumbled once Korzha had been brought down, and other arrests followed.

  “Will Bentley and Buddy be all right until we get back?” Zoey said.

  Taryn kissed her forehead. “They’ll be fine with Uncle Joe until we return.”

  “Good. Uncle Joe is feeling better?”

  Taryn nodded. “He just has to be careful around fire ants. I have a surprise for you. Next week, you and I are going to look for a house.”

  “A house?” Her brown eyes sparkled.

  “With a backyard for you, Bentley, and Buddy to play.”

  “Mr. Grayson too? I mean, when his leg is better.”

  He chuckled. “Oh, I’ll be making lots of visits.”

  Taryn caught his gaze. Her green eyes offered hope and promise. “Will you help us find the perfect home?”

  “You won’t mind a third wheel?”

  “I’d welcome it.” A slight blush filled her cheeks. “Mom said she wanted to meet you. You’re her hero.”

  “You’re the real hero. Hey, I’m really glad you were able to talk to your family and explain what happened.”

  “I need to arrange a visit soon.” She glanced away. “Brad Patterson called me yest
erday afternoon.”

  “Did he want to know when you were going to clean out your office?”

  She gave him her attention. “Sort of. He offered me the position of VP of product development. He tossed in his apologies and a hefty raise.”

  Grayson gave her his best surprised look. “Well done. Are you going to take it?”

  “I think so. I told him I wanted to work one day a week at home and no weekends.”

  “He agreed?” That didn’t sound like the Brad Patterson he’d met, but Taryn had helped save Gated Labs.

  “Yes.” She laughed. “I also suggested the company consider an on-site day-care facility and preschool, for better employee morale.”

  “What did he think of your idea?”

  “He’s going for it. He must have been considering it before my suggestion because he talked about parents being able to share lunch with their children. Even hire an on-site nurse.”

  “I’ll need to change my opinion of him.”

  She grinned. “Remember your SSA gave me an option of prison or being an FBI recruit? I’d make a poor agent—always going against the rules. And I don’t want to leave my little girl for training. She needs me now. Plus, I’ve grown fond of the man who saved us.”

  “Lucky man.” He would have said more, but he needed patience. “So you’re taking on more responsibility?”

  “I’ll still be doing what I love, and that sounds good to me. I requested Kinsley to take over my leadership role on the development team, but she’s resigned. Actually, Patterson said she left the city.” Taryn gave him a sly look. “I bet you know all about those plans.”

  Grayson touched her nose. Haden Rollins and Kinsley Stevens had chosen to change their names and start all over. Grayson hoped it worked out for them.

  “I’m glad you’re here with us,” she said.

  “Before the music begins, I have something to say,” Grayson said. “Congratulations on your fabulous media interview Friday afternoon. You melted those vultures. And when Zoey snuggled against you, the cameras flashed faster than the speed of light.”