Scenes from Chandler’s nightmares flashed before his eyes overlaying on top of this moment. “You were in Iraq?”
“Yes.”
“Injured on August 14?”
“Ah, now you remember.” The man spread his arms wide as if in victory.
“But I don’t know you.”
“That’s right. I was a new addition, replacing someone shipping home to watch his baby be born.” The man snorted. “I was with your division two days.” His nostrils flared and he whipped the gun toward Chandler. “In two days my life was destroyed. You sold us out.”
Keep him talking. Ready to breach.
The quiet words in his ear were music to his soul.
Jake twitched, blood starting to pool beneath him, and Allison crouched next to him, pressing a jacket to the wound. “We’ve got to get Jake out of here. Please.”
“I’m not done yet.” The man gestured toward Jake. “Your choice is easy. Admit you were the traitor and die, or I’ll make sure your friend dies.”
Chandler’s thoughts raced. He’d lived that day so many times, felt the crushing burden of guilt for the paperwork and VIP that required him to stay rather than head out with the supply convoy. Twenty minutes later the routine run erupted in flames and chaos. He should have been with his team. “I’m sorry. If I could change what happened, I would.”
Chandler shifted from the hallway. Whatever was planned had to come through the back door. He eyed the explosives attached to the front door. “You have the trigger for the bomb.”
“And motion sensors.”
Chandler kept his face neutral as he heard the hissed intake of breath in the comms unit. We’ve got a handheld trigger.
The man’s mouth moved as if in a smile beneath his ski mask. “Jar that door, and we all go boom.”
Grant glanced up when Jaime rapped on his door. “Good, come in.” He waited while she took a seat at the desk in front of him. “So the ethics board cleared you.”
“Yes, as I anticipated.” She kept her hands folded in her lap.
“Good.” But instead of smiling, he sighed and fisted his hands together on the desk. “I still have to let you go.”
“What? Why?” Even if she’d anticipated his words, they punched hard.
“Because you’ve compromised the integrity of this office.”
“How? I was cleared.” She felt pressure rising inside.
“You’ve had too many of these brushes with ethics.”
“All of us have. It’s part of being a public defender. Our clients fight back and sometimes they play dirty.”
Grant met her frustration with stony silence. “Jaime, you are no longer employed here. You have an hour to pack your things. After that I’ll have someone escort you out.” He met her gaze with a hardness that surprised her. “Leave peacefully, and I’ll give you a good reference.”
Like that would be any help. “Who was the man?”
“What?”
“The one who told you to get rid of me? I overheard the conversation. If you’re going to do this, you owe me that much.”
“I don’t owe you a thing.” The man didn’t even seem flustered by the path he was taking.
“Maybe not, but you owe our clients our best. That’s me. I’m the best assistant defender you have.” She leaned forward, her fists almost touching his on the blasted desk. “Clients like Alex don’t stand a chance without me.”
Grant harrumphed. “You’re not the only one in this office who’s passionate.”
“Maybe, but there’s something political going on here, and I will get to the bottom of it.” She didn’t bother to add he’d regret it because it would be wasted breath. “Was it my uncle?” The words escaped in an unexpected whoosh, and he jerked back with a frown, his shoulders pushed back. It was all the tell she needed to know she was right. Where else did her uncle lurk that she hadn’t thought to look for him?
“You have one hour.”
She stood and left his office without a word. Anything she said now would only get her in trouble.
An hour later she waited at the base of the building for a taxi, laden down with a box of her belongings, since Chandler hadn’t responded to her text or call. Please keep him safe. Something inside whispered he needed every bit of help he could get, and she didn’t know what to do with that other than copy what she’d seen her friends do.
A cab pulled to the curb, and she gave the driver the address for Daniels, McCarthy & Associates. When she juggled her box and purse and keys to open the door to the firm fifteen minutes later, it felt like déjà vu.
Bella looked up with concern. “What on earth do you have there?”
“I lost my job at the public defender’s office.” She set the box on a chair, worn by the emotion of her new reality. Even if she’d known it was coming, it remained the death of a dream.
Bella stood and came around the side of her desk with arms opened. She tugged Jaime into a hug. “It’ll be all right, sugar. I have a feeling God’s got big plans for you.”
“He’s got a strange way of showing it.” The thought that she’d started to trust Him and He’d allow this to happen so quickly was unsettling.
“That’s His way. Sometimes He makes total sense in the moment. Other times it’s only in the rearview mirror that we can see the why of the experience.” She released Jaime and sniffed. “Now get back to the conference room. I’ll let the girls know you’re here.”
“Where should I put my things?”
“You don’t worry about that. Get on back to your friends.”
When Jaime entered the conference room, she found it had been rearranged with a podium for her to stand behind while Savannah, Emilie, Hayden, and Caroline sat behind the table with stacks of legal pads and pens at the ready.
“What are y’all doing here?”
“Making sure you’re ready for your testimony.” Caroline winked at her. “I’ve always heard it takes ten thousand hours of practice to become truly proficient at anything.”
“But we don’t have that kind of time.” Hayden tapped her pen on her legal pad. “We need to get started or we’ll be here all night.”
“You haven’t filled those with questions already, have you?” Jaime eyed the legal pads with something akin to fear.
Emilie straightened her suit jacket and smiled. “We’re prepared to get you ready for every eventuality we can think of.”
Savannah nodded. “We’ll throw questions at you every night for an hour or more.”
“I won’t have to stand at the hearing.”
“No,” Hayden assured her. “But you will feel more comfortable then if we make you as uncomfortable as possible now.”
They launched into a mock session with Hayden acting as Senator Wesley and Savannah acting as the chair of the subcommittee, Senator Langdon.
“It would probably be a good idea to research who else is on the committee.”
“I agree.” Hayden wagged her pen at Jaime. “Nice attempt to distract us. Now let’s get to work.”
They started by throwing softball questions her way. Then Caroline decided to act like the bad cop, which would have been funny if she wasn’t so good at the role.
“How can you prove any of this happened? These alleged events occurred more than twenty years ago. Seems like a mighty long time to wait to me.”
Jaime felt a spike of panic. This was the key question. She had no form of proof other than her testimony, the hidden scars she still bore, and her childish journal—that would not go into the hearing with her. She wasn’t sure how much the journal would add anyway. It was a contemporaneous account of her experience, but it still might not be admitted.
Taylor, Emilie’s assistant, slipped in and handed Hayden a piece of paper. Was this real, or was she playing the role of aide? Jaime tried not to be distracted, but avoiding Caroline’s question would be welcome.
“Miss Nichols, I’m waiting.”
So much for avoiding. “I have the counselin
g records, which show the long-term harm that was done. I also have the journal I wrote at the time of the abuse, as well as journals noting the impact over time.”
“Couldn’t your harm have been caused by any of several issues? Why him? Why now?”
“Because I’m finally strong enough to withstand grilling like this.” Jaime kept her hands on the podium, but she wanted to make a face at Caroline. “My uncle destroyed my innocence, and I cannot allow him to do that to anyone else. As an eight-year-old, there was nothing I could do, but now I have a voice.”
“How noble of you,” Caroline sneered, her acting feeling too real. “I find your timing convenient. If you really cared about making your uncle pay, you’d have pursued justice years ago. Who’s paying you to come forward now?”
“What? No one!” Jaime sputtered as she glanced at the others. Would no one jump in? While this was practice, she wasn’t eager to reveal her deepest soul even to women who knew her like no one else. How on earth would she be able to respond in the hearing? Her mouth was as dry as when the dentist filled it with cotton. “I can’t do this.”
“You can and you will.” Hayden met her gaze with directness. “If you don’t do this voluntarily, the committee will enforce the subpoena. Congressional subpoenas have broad power. The optics are better if you willingly testify.”
“You don’t understand.” Jaime could feel her breathing speed up until it felt like she’d start to pant. “I can’t. I physically cannot do this.”
Emilie was the agent of mercy as she stood and then walked around the table and escorted Jaime to a seat. “This is why we practice. We will help you do this.” She crouched beside Jaime’s chair and looked her in the eyes. “You will not be alone.”
“Is this a good time to mention I’m moving out tonight? After all this time, the apartment manager decided only the main room had to be redone right now.” Caroline made a face. “She assured me they’re done in my unit. And my rent restarts today.”
And just like that, Jaime was alone. Again.
CHAPTER 42
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 17
Sweat slid down the hollow of Chandler’s back as he searched for a solution.
There had to be one. It was impossible that Jake would pay with his life for a sin that wasn’t Chandler’s, let alone his friend’s. Jake’s wife and kids needed him to come home. Chandler had to keep the masked man talking while those outside the office formed an executable plan. Fast.
“What do you want to do? Tell me what you want me to know.”
“That you and the military destroyed my life.”
Chandler gritted his teeth to avoid arguing the point with a man who seemed on the brink of losing it all. “What could we have done differently?”
“You should have been on the delivery run.” He stepped toward Chandler but halted still out of reach. Where was the trigger?
“There are many nights I feel like I am there.”
“Nightmares aren’t the same.”
“I’m sorry for all that happened to you. Killing Jake won’t solve it.”
Jake groaned from his spot on the floor. The blood spilling everywhere could not be good. Chandler had seen enough even on his relatively straightforward tours to understand that much. Allison kept the jacket pressed down. “He needs an ambulance.”
At her words, the man spun on his heel and shot above her head. The bullet might have parted her hair on its path, because she froze, features forged in a caricature of shock. Beth opened her mouth, and Chandler gave a slight shake of his head. She shut her mouth, but her eyes told of her displeasure. Now to keep Jake alive.
“Let them go. We’ve got to get Jake help or you’ll have a murder charge waiting.”
The man snorted. “You think I care? Fool. No one cared about me, so while I’m glad to hear you caring about your friend here, he gets to take care of himself.”
“Then let the women go. They haven’t done anything to you.”
“I know exactly what will happen. They’ll tell those outside where I’m standing and where you’re standing. I’ll take a sniper shot to the head, release my hold on the trigger, and blow you up with me.”
The guy had to be bluffing.
“What was your job in the army?”
“Ordnance expert.”
Of course it was. Talk him out was the best option then.
Keep him talking. We’re working on a plan.
Sure they were.
Time was running out.
That knowledge accelerated with each frenzied step the man took.
Chandler had to end this now, whether or not those outside had a perfect plan.
The man took a step toward Jake, then three away.
He turned.
Looked at the women, gun still directed at Chandler.
Then he stopped, arms twitching.
An eerie calm settled on the man, and Chandler braced.
“Know what? I’m tired of waiting. I think I’ll just blow the bomb now. Take you all with me.” He raised his hand, as a voice in the comms unit told Chandler to duck.
How could a sniper crack the bulletproof glass?
Chandler lunged for the hooded soldier as he heard the ricochet of multiple shots.
The man jerked, and Chandler grabbed the trigger from his hand. He scrambled to ensure his fingers were locked on top.
“I’ve got it. Send in the bomb unit and EMTs.”
“On their way. Should be in the back door in seconds.”
Allison looked up from her position over Jake. “Come on, Jake. Stay with us. Your kids need you!”
A moment later Beth was there with a stack of paper towels. “Give me the jacket, and apply these to the wound.”
Then the back door banged open and the area swarmed with EMTs and police.
As soon as EMTs dropped next to Jake, two officers escorted Beth and Allison to safety. Chandler didn’t move as he clutched the device the man had wanted to detonate. The adrenaline ebbed from him and his arms began to shake.
“I need someone to take over the trigger.”
A member of the bomb squad hurried over. Another approached the package left on the door.
EMTs positioned Jake on a gurney. Pushed him out the door.
Chandler followed a step behind.
Agent Weldon approached and led him into one of the small conference rooms, away from the action. Chandler tried to ignore the blood that soaked his clothes while he fought the crash of adrenaline.
“How did you penetrate the bulletproof glass?” It hadn’t stood a chance against whatever they’d used.
“We have our ways. Secrets we don’t share.” Agent Weldon crossed her arms and studied him. “You did well in there. What can you tell me about Russ Goldman?”
“Is that his name? He’s called several times and may have followed me at the local Indian restaurant. There were other times when I saw a shadow, so he may have followed me.” Or it could have been Dane focused on Jaime. Now they’d never know for sure.
“Why you?”
He frowned and looked at her. “What?”
“Why you and why now?”
“Misplaced frustration. He’d just been shipped in, filling in for a soldier headed home to be a father. Then he went on a supply run, and it didn’t end well. We lost a man, and others were injured.” Chandler’s gut clenched. “I had to call their families. Letting them know their son was dead or critically injured. Russ Goldman must have slipped through the cracks in my system. It was a time I never want to repeat.”
She made a couple notes in a slim notebook. “All right. Don’t go anywhere yet.” She walked away, leaving him to collapse on a chair in the corner while the room down the hall buzzed with activity.
It was late in the afternoon, really time for her to leave the law firm and head home, but Jaime couldn’t. She glanced at her phone, growing more concerned with time. What had happened to Chandler? He’d been called to work hours ago. The fact he hadn’t returned her ca
lls or texts told her something terrible had happened.
She needed to get Aslan with Tiffany, but without Chandler that wouldn’t be possible. She called her mom to check on Tiffany.
“She and her mom returned to their home today.”
“What? Why?” What was Madeline up to? She’d seemed quite content to stay where Jaime’s mom would take care of them.
“They were doing fine but ready to be back in their space.” Her mother sighed. “I don’t blame them, though Happy has been mopey since Tiffany left. He’s going to miss her.”
“Has Corey Bowman been arrested?” He must have been, or surely Madeline wouldn’t return to a place he knew.
“She got a call from the police. Your father took Madeline over this morning to make sure it was okay before taking Tiffany.”
“Oh.”
“They’ll be fine. Just call Madeline and touch base.” There was a smile in her mother’s voice. “I wouldn’t have let them leave if they weren’t ready and your father didn’t think it was safe. Much as we enjoyed having them, Tiffany needs her room.”
“I know, Mom. Thanks for helping them.”
“Of course.” There was a pause, and then her mom continued in a quavery voice. “Thank you for asking.”
“I love you, Mom.”
“I love you too.”
Jaime swallowed back a sudden lump. “We’re going to make it.”
“Yes, we will.”
Her phone beeped. “Mom, before I go, I’ve been subpoenaed to testify at Uncle Dane’s congressional hearing Tuesday.”
“Want us there?”
“I’m not sure, but I didn’t want you to be surprised.”
“Just let me know when and where. Your dad will want to be there.”
“Be careful, okay?”
“Why?” Her mom’s response was quick.
“Because I’m not sure what he’ll do when he finds out I’ll be testifying before the subcommittee. But it’s something I have to do.”
“Your father can take care of us. Should you come home until this is over?”
“I don’t think so. Then he wins.” She took a breath. “I’ll let you know the details about the testimony.” The phone beeped, a reminder of the holding call. “Love you, Mom. Gotta grab this call.” As she clicked over to take the other call, it hit her that it had been a long time since she’d said those words to her parents. “Hello?”
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