“No,” she shook her head. “I want you to agree it’s the right thing to do. We’re getting older Sean, and what you do is for young men with no families, or bitter single men whose ex-wives left them with king size anger issues. Let’s buy an RV and tour America and Canada, or go to the beach and run a surf shop. But if we’re going to start a family, I can’t worry about you swanning off to every danger zone once we have children.”
“I know that love. I’ve already been putting money aside from each contract into a separate account for us. If you’d like, we can contact your accountant and have them send your monthly allowance to the same account. We’d have to live on a budget for a while, but it’ll allow us the ability to run away sooner rather than later.”
“Well, there is my salary as a researcher at Georgia Tech. It isn’t much but it pays for my rent and such.” Cassie snuggled against him. They’d made the rest of the drive in silence.
He ended up inside Jordan for nine months, which led into the four months he was in London, still guarding the same client’s son. She’d argued with him the boy didn’t need Sean’s personal attention, that he could easily be transferred to someone in his London office. But Sean stubbornly refused to change his position. Which is why they were apart and the kidnappers were able to grab her with so little effort.
It pained Sean to admit she’d been right, but it was the truth. His lengthy absences during key moments in their relationship was the main bone of contention in their marriage. At first, his job was exciting and every assignment an adventure. But as the years moved on, and the assignments grew longer and the world less stable, the emptiness in their lives gave birth to bitterness and finally culminated with her miscarrying at four-month gestation, shortly before his own injury.
Turning out the light, he lay down and listened to the even sound of Cassie sleeping. The pain meds were hard at work, and she slept that heavy unnatural sleep drugs tend to induce. Her jaw was slack, and her body limp as pasta noodles. The damage inflicted by Tsichevna and his men also seemed to be healing. The bruises were darkening into purple black welts and her raccoon eyes were still deep black.
Sean’s jaw tightened as in his mind’s eye he once again saw her condition when he first entered that room. Tsichevna was right to have run early. Sean was going to kill him slowly and painfully when he found him. If Pieter only knew how many hours of intense therapy his actions undid, how many nightmares they’d unleashed. He rubbed his eyes, a headache building behind his left temple. Some days, life just sucked.
Chapter Nine
December 1st, 6:00 a.m.—Peachtree City, GA
Monday morning, Sean took the hotel shuttle to Hartsfield—Jackson Airport to retrieve a Mercedes Benz SUV, complete with an assortment of handguns, rifles, and other weapons already hidden under the cargo section. Driving back to retrieve Cassie he listened to the news for an idea of what the police were up to in regard to the bombing and kidnapping. Homeland Security and the F.B.I. along with the Atlanta Police, seemed confident a suspect would be arrested soon.
Cassie still moved slowly, as if made of cracked glass. Her bruises were no longer deep black and purple, but now showed traces of yellow and green. Once Sean pulled onto the interstate she settled into the passenger seat, plugged in her ear buds, and dozed off listening to soft classical music. Sean set the cruise control at the speed limit and headed north.
It was mid-morning by the time they finally got on the road, and the worst of the Atlanta rush hour was gone. Letting the voice navigation system give directions, Sean distracted himself by listening to satellite radio. His favorite for long drives was a classic rock channel. As Led Zeppelin and the Doors filled the background, the miles passed by and Sean thought about Martin Devlyn.
While Sean knew of Martin before meeting Cassie, he was never a fan of the Vietnam veteran. Martin certainly made no secret of his dislike with both Sean’s profession and nationality. Even his flawless military service record meant nothing to the bullheadedness of the Devlyn patriarch. Martin had a pathological dislike of his Irish son-in-law.
The more Sean learned from Cassie about her childhood and the torment of the brothers, the less inclined he was to make any overture of friendship to Greg Devlyn. Even his friendship with Kevin was a long time evolving and eventually was resolved on the rugby field, a shared passion to them both. He smiled and rubbed his jaw remembering one lengthy game that had broken into a fight. He liked Kevin, but he still wouldn’t trust him any further than he could throw him.
For not the first time in the past few days, he wondered about Ryn Devlyn’s attempted suicide. Cassie never spoke about her mother, though he knew she still visited on a regular basis, as did Kevin and Matthew. Only Martin and Greg never stopped by the sprawling facility north of Alpharetta, where those unable to care for themselves, but fortunate enough to be well off were sent to spend their days. It was Sean’s understanding Katheryn was mute, a result of severed vocal cords. But nothing was ever said about her mental condition. He wondered if she were in a coma or brain dead.
Did she know about these deals, is that why Martin tried to silence her? Had she ever told anyone of what she knew? What did Martin hold over her, to keep her silent for over twenty years?
Sean shook his head. There were too many questions and not enough information for him to make any decisions at the moment. Right now his priority was Cassie and her recovery. That was all that mattered. Leaving the Atlanta traffic behind, Sean drove up through the small towns and back roads of North Georgia, Tennessee, and the Carolinas until at last he found the sign they were looking for: Smokey Mountains Cabin Rentals.
Turning left, Sean eased the SUV down a gravel road. The one lane opened up to a parking area just past the tree line. A rustic log cabin served as the welcome center. Under the word OFFICE on the door, was the name and number for the manager on duty, Pat Mitchell. Sean was an old friend of Mitchell, a former CIA operative as well as retired head of Devlyn security. The two worked together in the Gulf and after he left the Devlyns, Mitchell retired to a small farm near Cherokee and operated a stable along with vacation rentals. More importantly, the man knew and worked with the Devlyn family for years, but also had a poor opinion of Martin which had driven them quite far apart. Ferguson extended his hand to the grizzled older man.
“Hello sir, remember me, Sean Ferguson?” Sean made sure his hands were visible at all times, though he had a Colt 1911 Special Combat .45 Auto inside a shoulder holster, in reasonably clear sight. “My passport and government ID are inside the pocket of my jacket, left side.”
The man walked forward, pulled the wallet from the pocket and double checked the documents. Satisfied, he handed the wallet back to Ferguson, while introducing himself.
“I remember you now, Ferguson. I’m happy you finally moved into the private sector. I was beginning to think you’d die in Her Majesty’s service for no damn good reason and leave that pretty wife of yours all alone.” Pat stuck out his hand and vigorously shook Sean’s. Without any prompting, the man continued walking, paying no attention to Sean’s answers.
Ferguson nodded and indicated the surrounding mountains. “Guess you don’t miss the city out here, do you Pat?”
Mitchell laughed warmly as he continued to find a map for the couple. “It was hard to convince my city raised wife to move out of Atlanta, but once she came out for a visit, she was hooked too. I always knew, no matter where I was working for the Company, I would retire right back here. So, once I turned in my notice, we were up here visiting family, and looked around until we found what suited. I’ve never looked back, nor wanted back into the lifestyle. I belong here.”
“I can understand that connection brother. My family is Irish. I love to go home myself to our family’s manor house and recharge. The land is my touchstone, it’s been in our family a long time.”
Pat nodded. “That’s the same reason Cassie’s going to love it up here. When she’s troubled, Cassie likes to move around, a restle
ss spirit. Sometimes she’s up at my farm where she can come and hide from the chaos that passes for her life and work on her research. Other times she feels safer at home. Of course, her work often sends that whole lab team off on a moment’s notice. New places seem hard for her to process but she hides things well.”
“You’ve been with the Devlyns a long time Pat, but I’d like to ask you to keep our presence here quiet. There’s a load of shit about to go down with the family, and not everyone has declared their side. Also, not all the kidnappers were accounted for, and I don’t want to have to defend your cabin from all comers.”
Pat laughed. “If you did, this would be the one to defend. Unassailable granite walls on three sides and lake on the other. There are enough provisions in there to hold two people until spring if needed. The house has its own solar power system as a backup for the standard electric. There’s also a panic room and gun closet.”
Ferguson smiled broadly. “Pat thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Let me wake up Cassie. I know she wants to say hello.”
At the SUV, Sean leaned into the driver’s door. “Cassie, come say hello to Pat Mitchell. He’s got the house all ready for us.”
Cassie stretched and stood up. Her eyes bore the lightly glazed look pain meds tend to give as a side effect. “Hello Mr. Mitchell, and thank you so much for helping Sean and me. This whole kidnapping and vendetta thing has me really out of sorts.”
Mitchell raised one eyebrow. “Vendetta? Sean didn’t say anything about a vendetta.”
Sean groaned, “Long story Pat. Basically, Martin and Greg Devlyn have been making some very bad deals and people are pissed. The kidnappers were part of this group. They’ve decided to come after Cassie to destroy Martin’s life, as his actions have destroyed theirs.”
“Oh hell, someone finally wised up to the old man’s games?” Pat was joyous. While Mitchell worked for the family, he made no secret of his dislike over their business practices. “Hallelujah, I thought it wouldn’t happen in my lifetime. However, using Cassie as a target isn’t right. You can count on my help if anyone starts sniffing around here.”
Cassie hugged Pat tightly. “Thanks again sir. I’m afraid we’ve dropped a heap of poop on your doorstep.”
Mitchell blushed, and looked away bashfully. “Oh Cassie, it’s my pleasure. You deserve to have some peace and freedom away from the Devlyn men and their insanity. If I can help that happen, then I will have done my job.”
With warm farewells, Sean and Cassie headed up into the mountains to their new hideaway. Though only ten miles from the office, the winding drive Pat installed to slow down anyone’s approach took Sean and Cassie more than thirty minutes. Outside the thick trees beside the road gave way to the cliff top house.
After turning up the driveway, Sean stopped to dead-lock the gate behind them. Doing so, Pat told him, activated the security cameras and motion sensors in the surrounding trees and grounds. Sliding back into the SUV, he breathed easy for the first time since leaving London five days before. This was an excellent location to defend.
The contemporary style mountain cabin sat at the edge of a sheer rock cliff. Below, the waters of a cold, spring fed lake kept intruders away on two other sides. Entering on the top floor, Cassie sat at the kitchen table as Sean brought in their luggage. The open style house had a floating spiral staircase down to the main living area. Off the living room, the master suite with a screened in porch ran along the entire back. The drop went straight down seventy feet into the clear, frigid waters.
While Sean finished setting up the security systems, Cassie wandered through the kitchen, finding where everything was hidden. A set of double barn doors along a wall turned out to be a pantry any restaurant would envy. The commercial grade freezer/refrigerator was stuffed with fresh fruit, vegetables, meat, and dairy.
She leaned over the railing and called down to Sean, “What would you like me to take out of the freezer for dinner? There’re some filets of fresh trout, sound interesting?”
“Absolutely,” he responded brightly. “Want to help me bring in some wood? The temps are supposed to drop tonight and there is a chance of snow later.”
Carefully she made her way down the stairs, her knees complaining after the long car trip with little use. Sean opened the side yard door, which led to a wood pile and barbeque pit. Cassie unpacked their suitcases while he loaded up with dry firewood and kindling.
The master suite was enormous. A king sized bed faced the wall of bullet proof windows looking over the lake far below. Another wall was dominated by a large stone fireplace with a wide screen hung above the mantel. The bathroom’s best feature was a tie between the stone grotto shower and the jetted tub. Cassie hung up shirts and jeans and put their toiletries away. As she returned to the main room, Sean was tuning the stereo to another favorite station, but quite opposite from classic rock. She wrinkled her nose.
“Talk radio?” she pouted in distaste. “I’d rather listen to silence.”
“Tough my love, I need to hear the news every few hours to keep our situation up to date.” Sean smiled and pulled her into an easy embrace. She didn’t flinch when he did, and he felt proud of her progress. Already she was taking steps toward healing. “Besides, I love Sean Hannity. Must be the Irish calling to each other.” He winked as she rolled her eyes.
“Do they even have cable this far out into the mountains?”
“I think Pat has everything hooked up through some magic voodoo satellite. No matter where around the globe he’s made arrangements for me, everything is always top notch.”
Cassie lifted her eyes to meet his. He frowned slightly when he noticed the vagueness in them. Time to start weaning her from the pain meds, before she had time to grow addicted. “Where is my research?”
“I set you up in the living room. Plenty of natural light, and the lounger will help your body position.” Sean took her hand and pulled her after him. “Now you sit here and work while I go take a look around outside, familiarize myself with the area. I’ll lock the doors behind me while I’m gone.”
“Sean, be careful,” she warned. “If you were to fall I wouldn’t even know who to call.”
“I will, and if anything happens, press the #5 on the sat phone. That calls Joe; he knows what to do from that point.” He grabbed a hunting rifle with plenty of ammo, a large knife, and his binoculars. Once outside, he locked the door and set the alarm before leaving. With professional detachment honed from years of black ops missions, Sean evaluated the weak areas nearest the house. Given the unique setting and Mitchell’s experienced planning, the only weakness was the driveway. A vehicle might ram through the front and into the upstairs kitchen area. Otherwise there wasn’t much he could do past the security gate.
Climbing the wall at hand, Ferguson reached the top of the ridge and surveyed the surrounding forest. The trails were clear, all signs of underbrush swept away to minimize hiding places. Here and there among the old growth trees he spotted motion sensors and cameras mounted. He was sure Mitchell had more things hidden around the grounds, if he truly cared to search for the signs.
Following the smooth path around to the far side of the lake, Sean used his binoculars to check visibility for snipers. There were two questionable angles, which he marked on the mental map in his head, along with several of the suspected hiding holes filled with ammo and weapons.
Last, he walked to the lake. The only way to reach the water was from a path next to the house, guarded by a steel gate. The water ran deep and cold, as the lake filled a former granite quarry that hit an underground spring. A constant flow through kept the water clean and brought in trout and bass both of which thrived in the stony depths.
Satisfied no water assault was possible, Sean sat on the park bench and took a few deep breaths, enjoying the solitude. The trees, barren of leaves this late in November, stood as silent giants against the darkening sky. Nightfall was coming and this far into the wilderness it would truly be inky black.
****
After Sean left to explore, Cassie eased her body down to the shaped lounger, picked up her laptop and started reading pages of notes. There was no internet service available, which suited her fine. Sometimes the online distractions kept her from moving forward. Besides, individual internet addresses were traceable; only Sean had the equipment needed to use satellite without shouting out their location.
The view out the window was breath-taking. The quarry walls ringed the lake with forests along the top ridge. The windows were tinted to prevent the afternoon sun from blazing the room with unbearable light. She slid the ear buds in and set her music to nature sounds. Using them as white noise for her thoughts, she pored through volumes of documents on varied topics, such as tropical storms and winter heating demands.
Cassie’s area of study was geothermal heating and global connectivity, the intertwining nature of systems regardless of how disparate those areas might appear. Her specialty focused on thermodynamics and emerging geothermal hot spots. She was poring over geo-microphone recordings from the Asian basin when out of the corner of her eye she spotted Sean on the top of the ridgeline on the other side of the lake.
For not the first time, Cassie thanked God for bringing Sean to her. When she had nothing left in herself, he always carried her through. Idly she wondered if he knew how much she depended on his support. Even when they were apart, she knew he would be there for anything, as this kidnapping proved.
Perhaps it was fate they were put together now, at this point in her life and career. Soon her paper would be submitted to the review board and she would either graduate or fail. If she didn’t die here first. Either way, the time to make a future was now. After her dissertation was reviewed, her career in academia might well be over. Time to leave the safety school always provided her and move on. This would be her second PhD and now was the time to take all she had learned over the past seven years and make her mark.
Before she knew what was happening, the sun was sinking into the west and Sean was still absent. Slowly Cassie made her way up the stairs and took the spare binoculars from under the counter. There was no sight of him around the lake so she decided to start dinner.
Welcome to the Family Page 10
