by Rebecca Deel
“That your family is shattering right before our eyes. Your father’s gone. Your brother seems to be in trouble. Your mother is hurting and trying to hurt you in turn. It’s heartbreaking to watch.”
“Do you regret coming?”
Ivy twisted in her seat to face him, reached for his hand, and laced their fingers. “Never. Any time I spend with you is a gift. Thank you for letting me come.”
He raised her hand and kissed her knuckles. “Any chance I can tempt you into a dinner date?”
“I am hungry,” she admitted. “What about the rest of your teammates?”
“I’m not dating them, baby. I told them before we left that I planned to feed you. They can fend for themselves for a couple hours. Nate has the kitchen detail well in hand. Together, Durango will watch out for Porter and Mother. The next two days will be difficult and we won’t have much time to be together without a crowd of people on hand. Let me be selfish for a while. I want you to myself.” He smiled. “I brought along your second charm. You can have it in exchange for a kiss.”
“Deal.”
“Dinner first. I know a great Irish restaurant not far from here.”
Alex took the exit for Scottsville and parked in the back corner of O’Malley’s. The restaurant appeared much the same as it did the last time he stopped. The interior design had been updated, though. New seating and tables. Same cream and green color scheme. More pictures of the rolling Irish countryside. Same Irish music coming through the speaker system. Brought back a lot of good memories from his high school days. This place had been the choice of boys with tight budgets but who wanted to impress their girls with the great food and atmosphere.
Seated in a booth two minutes later, Ivy scanned the menu and looked up. “Everything looks delicious. What do you recommend?”
“The steak and biscuits. It comes with the best fries in the state.”
“Sold.”
When the waitress arrived, Alex placed two orders for steak and biscuits. While they waited, he asked Ivy about her own childhood. He was impressed with her wit and stunned at some of the scrapes she found herself in. “I would have never pegged you for being a klutz, angel.”
She snorted. “Right. That’s why Del had to practically carry me when I twisted my ankle while escaping from Crazy Curt.”
“Not the same, Ivy. You were running in the dark in the woods. Depth perception is totally skewed at night. What seems to be a shadow might instead be a hole.”
“Or a tree root. You and the rest of Durango didn’t have any problems navigating the terrain.”
“We used night vision glasses.”
He noticed her empty plate. “Ready to go?”
“Oh, yes. I want that charm.”
“And I want that kiss you owe me.” He slid from the booth and walked with her to his SUV, and helped her strap on her seatbelt. After climbing behind the wheel, Alex drove them to the house. Much as he wanted that kiss, he wouldn’t put Ivy’s safety at risk by being distracted in a dark parking lot. “You look tired, sweetheart. Why don’t we sit on the swing in the backyard instead of going for a walk?”
Taking her hand, they walked on the stone path to the swing situated under the shade trees. The stars were out, the moon full, and the Victorian lighting was on so there was plenty of light.
Once seated on the swing, Alex pulled the charm from his pocket, bent his head to attach it to Ivy’s bracelet. He shifted out of her way and laid his arm across her shoulders.
She twisted the jewelry until she caught sight of the newest charm. Ivy burst into laughter. “That’s adorable. Thank you, Alex.”
Exactly the response he’d hoped for. The small bear was holding a painter’s palette, paint brush in one paw, splashes of paint on his smock and face. “Reminded me of you.”
“It’s perfect.”
He leaned over, took his time kissing her. When he felt his control start to slip, Alex pulled back, tucked her close to his side. He set the swing in motion and just held Ivy for long minutes. By degrees, she relaxed until she tucked her face against his neck, sighed. “Rest, angel. Just be with me a while.”
Minutes later, he realized his Ivy had gone to sleep. He smiled. He might develop a complex thinking about her falling asleep in his arms all the time, except he knew Ivy trusted him to keep her safe. Never would he abuse that trust. It still angered him to think of her ex-boyfriend mistreating her.
His phone vibrated at that moment. Pulling it out, he glanced at the screen. Number blocked. He swiped his thumb across the screen, pressed the cell to his ear. “Thanks for calling, Mr. President.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
“My condolences on the loss of your father, Alex. He was a fine man and a good friend. I’m going to miss him.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“How are your mother and brother?”
“Having a hard time.” Definite understatement. Alex had no idea what the fallout would be from his father’s death. Much as he regretted it, chances were slim he’d be allowed to help. The best thing he could do would be to find the man who shot his father.
“I can imagine. If I can be of any assistance, please let me know.”
Ironic. The President of the United States was extending more kindness to him than his own family. That wasn’t likely to change any time soon. “Did you know we were estranged?”
“Your father told me what happened when you enlisted. He regretted his words and actions, son, but he was too proud to admit he was wrong. Your mother hadn’t changed her position and James didn’t wish to upset Cynthia.”
Of course not. Wouldn’t look good to his constituents for the senator to be fighting with his wife. Better to leave his oldest son to his own devices, his own life. He was grateful for his teammates. They became his family. He wouldn’t find truer friends anywhere. They always had his back, just as he had theirs.
“He was proud of you, Alex. Though he maintained the silence for far too long, James kept up with your accomplishments, your career.”
“That’s what I wanted to talk to you about, sir.”
“Yes, Charlotte passed along your message. Why ask about that particular mission? You and your team were in charge of it.”
“I found a complete, unredacted copy of the file on my father’s computer as well as an email he sent to you about the file. Mr. President, I’m aware my father had connections. But he shouldn’t have had access to Badger, not even a redacted version. How did he get it?”
“I don’t know where he got it, Alex. He told me the information had been sent to his work email with a message that the file would be kept secret for a price.”
“Blackmail.” Disgust roiled through his gut. A coward preying on the fear of a parent.
“I advised him to let the FBI or the military handle it. James had no great love for either one. Said he’d deal with the matter. According to your father, only a few people knew you were his son and those people were part of his staff. He saw the file as a direct threat to your safety and he was determined to find the leak and plug it. James knew unless he found out who leaked the information, you would always be at risk and the blackmailer would drain him dry. Son, he told me the money wasn’t the issue, but you had paid a heavy price for your service. You deserved a chance at a normal life and he intended to help you get that chance.”
“He should have told me. I could have handled it. Maybe he’d still be alive if he had.”
“You believe his death is related to Badger?”
“Yes, sir. We’ve identified the shooter. It’s Roger Evans’ son, Neil.”
“So the son is exacting revenge for the death of his traitor father.” A thread of anger weaved through his voice. “How did Evans get a copy of a classified file?”
“That’s my question. Mole. Probably more than one.”
“At least one of them is in the military.”
“Yes, sir, one with connections. This file should be only accessed by someone with top-level clearan
ce.”
“You know as well as I do information can be bought if the price is high enough. I’ll set the wheels in motion.”
“Mr. President, let me and my team handle this for now. I don’t want to alert the traitors that we’re on to them. If they feel threatened, they’ll go to ground, erase their steps, and it will be that much harder to dig them out. Other people could be caught in another firestorm, maybe threatened with exposure if we don’t stop the practice now.”
“I want names, Alex. To minimize the security risk, I won’t ask for updates. Just know that if you need help, I’ll make sure you get it. Use Charlotte as the go between. No one will be surprised that you and your team keep in contact with her.”
“I’ll do that, sir. Mr. President, you need to alert your security detail. We think Evans will come after anyone involved in his father’s death. He’s already made a run at my girlfriend. If he gets through me and Durango, he’ll come after you because you signed the order authorizing the mission.”
“Understood. I’ll alert them to the potential threat. Stay safe.”
“That’s my intention, sir.”
When the call ended, Alex glanced down to see Ivy’s gaze was locked on his face.
She smiled. “You have friends in high places.”
“That’s one friend I didn’t plan to contact. Circumstances changed when I realized President Martin could be at risk.”
Ivy leaned her head against his shoulder. “Sorry I fell asleep on you again.”
A kiss to the top of her head. “You had a rough night, angel. I should let you go on to bed. Tomorrow’s going to be a long day.” Alex walked her to her room. Another slow, deep kiss before he said, “Sleep well, baby. You’re safe. No one will get to you on our watch.”
“What about you? You didn’t sleep last night at all, did you?”
Alex tapped the tip of her nose. “Don’t worry about me. The team and I have security details to hammer out before the circus starts tomorrow.”
Once Ivy was safely in her room with Stella on night watch, he located his teammates with the exception of Quinn in the living room. His spotter must have drawn the first security shift.
“Ivy okay?” Rio asked.
“She’s tired, but fine otherwise.” He glanced at Josh. “Where’s Del?”
“She wanted to call her mother.” A knowing look from his friend. “What’s up?”
“Martin called.”
All of them straightened.
“Badger’s been leaked.”
“You know this how?” Nate asked.
“A complete copy of the mission file was on my father’s computer here. Apparently it was sent to his work email along with a note that the information would be leaked to interested parties if the blackmailer’s price wasn’t met.”
“So your father was paying to protect you?” Josh asked, voice soft.
“Perhaps. It’s also possible he was shot because he refused to pay.” Not that the difference mattered. His father’s life was always going to be forfeit because Evans was determined to exact revenge for his own father’s death. What better way to do that than to kill James Morgan and anyone else Alex loved? His jaw clenched. Not going to happen. No matter what it took, he wasn’t losing Ivy.
“We need to alert Ethan,” his partner said. He glanced at the rest of Durango. “All our families should be on alert. If Badger leaks to the right people, they’re all in danger.”
“You should go and protect your families,” Alex said. “You can’t protect mine and yours at the same time.”
“Forget it,” Nate said curtly. “We don’t leave our own in the heart of danger.”
“This is not a combat mission.”
“No, it isn’t. You may be in charge of this op,” Rio said, “but we’re just as invested in protecting you as you are in protecting us. Don’t think you’re sliding that past us. We can take care of ourselves.”
“Call Maddox,” Josh said. “Have him deploy Fortress assets to cover our families. If he doesn’t have enough people in the right areas, we’ll tap our military resources. A lot of people owe us favors. We’ll find the coverage we need.”
Alex blinked, eyes stinging. “Thanks.”
“Martin say anything else?”
“Dad was convinced at least one leak came from his staff. My father was in the Army for one tour during Vietnam. Once military, always military. I figure he called in a few favors to keep up with my career.”
“He still shouldn’t have been able to get the non-sanitized version of Badger. The other mole had to be in the military,” Nate said. “I foresee a court martial or two in the future.”
“Whoever it is deserves it. Compromised a lot of military assets and tactics.” He eyed each of his team members. “Suggestions for tomorrow’s security?”
“You focus on yourself and Ivy. Stella will double cover you two plus Del,” Josh said. “Rio, you’re on Cynthia. Nate, cover Porter. Quinn and I will stay on the sidelines, keep an eye on the crowd as a whole. Keep your comm systems activated. The feds are bound to be there with their own comm systems. No one should look twice at us. We’re just part of the security detail.” He glanced at Alex. “Did we miss anything?”
His lips curved. “You already had this planned out.”
“We weren’t all romancing the woman of our dreams,” Nate said. “Somebody had to do the work so you could kiss the girl and get some sleep.”
“We know you were on guard duty last night,” Rio said. “We have the watches split into three hours shifts. You’re off duty, so hit the sack, buddy. You need to be sharp and focused tomorrow.”
Left unsaid was the consequence of slipping could be deadly for Ivy. And that was totally unacceptable.
With a nod, Alex climbed the stairs to his room and closed the door. He called Maddox and arranged for coverage of Durango’s families with the exception of those in Otter Creek. With so many cops in the Cahill clan, he figured they were pretty well covered. To make sure, he placed a call to Ethan.
“Blackhawk.”
“It’s Alex.”
“What do you need?”
That was so typical of Otter Creek’s police chief. “One of Durango’s missions was compromised. Our families are at risk.”
“We’ll take care of security here. Who are we looking for?”
“Man named Neil Evans. I’ll send his picture to your phone and work email. His father was selling military secrets to terrorists. I took him out along with the terrorist target.”
“Good. You saved hundreds of lives, Alex.”
“Yeah, but it cost my father his and he’s already injured Ivy.” He spent a few minutes summarizing the events of the past couple days and the rest of what they’d learned or suspected to this point.
“I didn’t know James Morgan personally, but I read enough interviews and heard through sources he loved this country and its people. Though you and your family haven’t communicated in years, it’s obvious your father loved you, Alex. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have fought so hard to protect you and ferret out the source of the leak. Sounds like he might have suspected the identity of that person and the mole turned on him.”
Alex was silent a moment. “The mole sold him out.”
“That’s my take on it. Probably alerted Evans to your father’s investigation, knowing he was close to busted. When the mole handed over the new information, Evans sped up the timetable, which protected the traitor on the senator’s staff. Makes the most sense since Evans hasn’t been in any hurry to this point, had two years to come after you.”
“Maybe Evans needed that time to cultivate his contacts.”
“Wouldn’t take long to strike up an acquaintance with a civilian. That staffer was already familiar with the military personnel from the senator’s inquiries about you. I’d say the staffer either took advantage of money offered or had an ax to grind with you in particular and used your father to exact his revenge.”
Alex blew out a breath.
“Wish you were up here, Ethan.”
His friend chuckled. “Somebody’s got to make sure the fox stays away from the hens.”
“I’m telling Serena you called her a hen.”
“Go ahead, buddy. She’s nesting already. I can’t tell you how many baby stores we’ve visited over the past two weeks. Now that the morning sickness has passed, she’s cleaning everything in sight. I had to put my foot down when she started polishing my gun safe.”
Felt good to laugh at something on the heel of these dark musings.
“Aaron and Liz are driving up tonight. They should arrive by noon.”
“They didn’t have to come.”
“Yeah, Alex, they did. They consider you just as much their son as Josh. You need the support. Let them do what they can to lighten the load for you. Aaron will give you a call when they arrive so you can tell them where to meet you. If you need something I can do for you, ask. I have contacts as well that I can tap for information.”
Alex considered what his team was already covering. In light of what he’d learned from Henry this afternoon, he needed a fast read on the Morgan coffers. “You have anybody who can dissect financial records?”
“As a matter of fact, I know a forensic accountant who owes me a few favors. I helped track and rescue his son a month before I moved to Otter Creek.”
“I need someone to tear apart my family’s financials.”
“Don’t have a warrant, but as you’re a family member, I’ll get another friend with superior computer skills to pull the information for the accountant. May take a couple days to get back to you.”
Didn’t matter how long it took. He needed answers. If his brother was in trouble, he wanted to know before it was too late to pull him back from the brink. If it wasn’t already too late.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Ivy came down the stairs with Del on her heels. At the bottom of the staircase, Alex and Josh waited. Good grief. They looked like they should be on the cover of a magazine. Alex’s black suit looked as if it was tailor-made for him. If the occasion wasn’t so somber, she might be concerned that other women would hit on him.
