by KaLyn Cooper
“We lucked out. We have her transfer paperwork.” Doug waved the clipboard so it was visible to the camera.
“Taking her out of ICU just got easy,” Rick said as they headed to ICU.
From his parking place in the second row, Daniel was about to say something when an ambulance pulled up to the back door of the morgue. He glanced at the tablet and realized it was Rafe driving the borrowed emergency vehicle.
Perfect. They were ahead of schedule.
“We’re here to pick up,” Rick made a show of looking at the clipboard, “Ms. L. Hawk.”
Without looking up at the pretend orderly from the desk where she was busily writing, she held up her hand. In less than ten seconds, she’d signed the paper and pointed. Weekend shift change made everything so easy.
The two men deftly pushed a transport bed into Katlin’s glassed room and expertly lifted her onto the new gurney. Doug unhooked the bags from the polls and placed them on the bed while Rick unclipped the heart monitor leads but left the patches. They would need those.
No one concerned themselves with the process, to Daniel’s relief. As they passed the nurse’s desk, Rick paused and lied smoothly. “The anesthesiologist asked me to grab her file. He wants to double-check the allergies.”
As soon as the ICU doors closed behind them, one of the men announced, “We have the package.”
The two carefully maneuvered the bed down the hallway to the elevators, got off on the second floor, and went down another hallway to a different set of elevators to the morgue. Rick grabbed a white sheet and Doug snagged a toe tag from the empty morgue. Once tagged, they tucked her into the sheet and headed to the back door.
With the engine running, Rafe opened the ambulance doors. They quickly loaded Katlin, taking special care by holding her head so as not to jar it. Rick hopped into the back with her. Without sirens or lights, the ambulance pulled away from the hospital.
Still dressed appropriately for the operating room, Doug headed back into the hospital. He went directly to the surgical techs who prepared all the equipment and trays for each operation. “Hey, do you have the trays ready for the IVF in OR eight?”
The tech, who didn’t look old enough to drink, smiled broadly at him. “I just finished.” She handed Doug a large stainless-steel tray. “The fertilized eggs are over there next to their shipping cooler. They started the thawing process last night.” She giggled and pointed. “Those timers are counting down the viability of the embryos. The sex is on the label.”
When he turned his back on the young tech, he spoke quietly into his comm. “I was supposed to take the tray and put all the items away as though they’d been used. What the hell am I supposed to do with the embryos?”
“Bring them,” Daniel and Top Cooper said at the same time.
An hour later at the Tysons Corner safe house, Daniel backed the white van into the extra-long garage. Transferring Katlin at the large acute care facility had been ingenious. Rafe had pulled the ambulance to the doors on the north side where patients were usually received. The Rick had ditched the toe tag and pulled down the sheet off Katlin’s face.
Leaving the ambulance running, they’d wheeled her down the hall, turning toward the east entrance where Daniel had been waiting. The covert transfer took forty-two seconds.
Somebody would eventually notify the private ambulance company and some poor clerk would search for hours looking for the work order so she could bill the insurance company.
Rafe, Rick, and Daniel carefully extracted the gurney and carried her into the house, not allowing her head to jiggle. Top Cooper opened the door and they wove their way through the kitchen and dining room, down the hall to the master bedroom they’d transformed into a private hospital room.
Gina held Katlin’s head while the four men moved her onto the new hospital bed. Then she took over as the charge nurse she’d been for over twenty years.
Daniel glanced at his watch. “Time for me to go.” He would show up at work at the usual time as though nothing had happened. The CIA had taught him to lie easily, so if Jack Ashworth questioned him, a circumstance he’d love, Katlin would be protected. Even if tortured, he would never reveal her whereabouts.
Once again surrounded by beeping machines, bags on poles sending life-sustaining liquid into her body, Daniel stepped to his sister’s bed and took her hand. “How’s she doing, Gina?”
“Very well, all things considered.” The woman pushing fifty with silver strands sprinkled through short-cropped dark brown hair gave him a reassuring smile. “We’ll know a lot more after Dr. Tobias gets here. Isn’t that right, Katlin?” Gina patted the unmoving body as though she were awake.
Daniel bent down and gave his sister a kiss on the forehead. “I love you, sis. I’ll see you soon.” He smiled as he heard the beeping increase. She knew he was there.
He felt bad that he couldn’t return to this place. Jack was sure to place a tale on Daniel knowing how close he and Katlin had become. He’d already arranged with Top Cooper for daily updates via disposable cell phones. Jack wouldn’t hesitate to tap their phones if he thought it could lead them to Katlin.
He headed out of the room but couldn't resist looking one more time. Gina jabbered to Katlin as she checked all the IV lines and equipment.
They’d done the right thing.
Katlin was safe.
Jack couldn’t get to her there.
10
Jack arrived at Walter Reed Medical Center ten minutes to seven and strode to the in-patient operating rooms as directed by Dr. James Greer who would perform Katlin’s in vitro fertilization. Everything Jack had ever wanted in life was about to come true. Katlin would be his wife. They would share a child. Maybe two or three. But damn it to hell, the next ones would be conceived the natural way.
His cock grew hard at the thought of making love to her every night for the rest of his life. His mind looped back to those few brief weeks they’d been undercover together. Those had been the happiest days of his life. He loved coming home to a sexy wife, a hot meal she’d cooked in their kitchen, eating at the beautiful table she’d set, then competing against the intelligent woman as they watched Jeopardy while devouring another delicious dessert. Damn, the woman could cook.
The first step in his future was about to take place in the operating room down the hall. He would be a father in forty weeks. The doctor had advised him that it would be better to implant several embryos, thus increasing the chance of impregnation. He didn’t care if she had a boy or girl, so he’d asked the fertilization clinic to send both.
As an Ashworth, his father and grandfather would prefer a son to carry on the name. He’d love a little boy. He would do so much more with his son than his father had done with him. His boy wouldn’t have to be perfect all the time. His son would be allowed to play in the sandbox and get dirty. He’d never be rushed to the hospital if he fell off the swing and scraped his knees and palms. And he’d never be trotted out at a dinner party in a custom-made child’s three-piece suit and quizzed on current events to prove that his parents had spawned a genius.
Nor would his son—his son!—be raised by nannies. Jack chuckled to himself. Katlin would never tolerate that. She would resign her commission as soon as possible so she could take it easy during the pregnancy. He would allow only the best care for her. He’d already started researching obstetricians and the best delivery hospitals.
Suddenly the image of a smiling blonde toddler romping through fresh-cut grass toward him filled his mind. They could have a daughter. He grinned. The image of a chubby-cheeked blonde baby with Katlin’s unique blue eyes sucking at her bare breast filled his heart.
And his cock.
According to the pregnancy books he’d read, one of the first indications of her pregnancy would be enlarged and sensitive breasts. Katlin was already well-endowed. Countless times he’d stroked himself to ecstasy thinking of holding her large breasts in his hands as he took her from behind. His grin grew to a full smile as h
is cock began to throb.
The first step to his future was only minutes away.
He had perfectly orchestrated this coup, right down to paying the floating nurse thousands to give Katlin her pre-procedure injections and forgetting to chart them. The tear he had mustered when he first approached Dr. Greer had been masterful. His wife was catatonic. They’d both wanted a baby to the point that she had undergone egg extraction and fertility treatments, and he’d already given his sperm. Their babies were waiting. She would recover, but she was primed for inception. It had to be now, or they may never have the children they so sought.
He’d sold it and Dr. Green had bought it.
Jack paced the waiting room like an expectant father. He hoped Dr. Greer would come out and speak with him before the procedure, but he’d been warned there might not be time given the full surgery schedule at Walter Reed Medical Center.
Once again, Jack debated when he’d tell Katlin she was carrying his baby, maybe even twins since she would have several embryos implanted within the hour. He considered letting her believe that she was carrying Wolf’s baby but rejected that idea. The sooner she moved beyond her Latino lover and into the reality that it was Jack’s babies, the sooner they would be married. He would tell her the moment she woke from her coma.
He wanted her now. His. Forever. The thought of her sleeping with Wolf, especially while carrying his child, sickened him. No. As soon as she regained consciousness, he would tell her.
On second thought, he would assure the eggs were securely planted and got a good start on life before telling Katlin that they were connected forever. She would want to be with her child’s father. She’d want to be with him. Forever. She would love him, he was sure. The babies would insure that.
Several people had come and gone from the operating room waiting area.
When the hell had it gotten to be eight o’clock? The procedure should have been completed over half an hour ago.
He went to find someone in charge.
In the hall, a panic-stricken Dr. Greer rushed toward Jack.
Oh, no. Something had gone wrong and Katlin…he couldn’t even bear to think the thought. She had to be okay.
“We’re trying to find out what happened,” the doctor dressed in blue scrubs started to explain.
A Navy commander stepped up beside the doctor. “Director Ashworth, we’re doing everything we can. Nothing like this has ever happened here before.”
Satisfaction that at least they knew who he was in his importance in the United States government. Then the other half of his sentence slapped him in the heart.
“Exactly what happened?” Years of running high tension operations clicked in. Define the problem.
“Your wife is missing,” the commander reported succinctly.
Jack felt like he’d been kicked in the solar plexus. He had to force himself to suck in a breath of air.
“Katlin’s missing?” Jack choked out.
“I’ve got security looking for her now,” the commander quickly interjected.
“What the hell happened? My wife is in a coma. She didn’t get up and walk out of the hospital,” Jack allowed his voice to raise with the demand.
“This is my Chief of Security,” the commander announced as an armed man walked up to them. “Please tell Director Ashworth what you know.”
“Sir, this is highly unusual, but it seems that your wife is temporarily missing. We know that two orderlies took her from her room just before six this morning, as ordered. She never arrived at the pre-op room. My men are checking the video feed now, frame by frame, but hundreds of cameras need to be viewed.”
Jack stared at the security officer. “Send a copy of everything you’ve got to Homeland Security Operations Center. My men do this for a living. They can scan video faster than anyone else on the earth.” When the man didn’t move or pick up a communications device to transfer the information, Jack yelled, “Move.”
“Yes, sir.” The man sprinted down the hall.
Katlin was a highly trained special operator. She had enemies. If any of them had found out she was incapacitated, several governments would pay millions for her, dead or alive. Most of the Black Swan team’s assassinations had been attributed to Navy SEALs, Army Special Forces, or other special operators in the area. Even though the women had been careful to cover their tracks, rumors ran rampant around the world of a special team of women assassins. That had been part of the reason he’d had her registered under L. Hawk.
The clock was ticking. How long had she been gone? Once she was found, could they still proceed with the IVF? And where were his babies?
Jack knew the fragility of the fertilized eggs. Frozen several years ago, thawed so his sperm could fertilize them, then watched carefully as several had divided multiple times, growing his babies in a petri dish before refreezing. He knew there was a very slim window of opportunity. “You do have the fertilized eggs, right?”
Dr. Greer looked away. Without meeting Jack’s eyes, he said, “I’ve been told the tray is missing also.”
“What the hell is going on?” Jack burst out. “First, my wife goes missing and now my babies are gone?” Thinking more rationally, he suggested, “Did someone move the procedure to another room? Maybe she’s already prepped and waiting for you in some other operating room.”
“No, sir,” the commander said. “That was our first thought. We’ve checked every operating and pre-op room and she is not there.”
Jack flipped open his phone and called Control. He knew where every agent was at any given minute. “Check Lady Hawk’s tracker. Where is she?”
“Yes, sir.” The click of keys could be heard through the line. “Director Ashworth, her tracker indicates she’s still in the intensive care unit. It hasn’t moved.”
“She’s still in ICU!” Jack took off running, phone in hand.
Her room was empty.
“Double-check the coordinates,” he demanded.
“Sending you a screenshot now,” the nervous tech replied.
Jack stared at the picture on his phone. Her red dot pulsed as though it were in the room where she’d been since returning from Baghdad. He knew there was no way in hell she could have removed the tracker. It was embedded in her artery.
“Call IT and have them check the program. Are her vitals reading normal?”
“Yes, sir. No change. They’re coming through loud and clear. I just notified IT and they’re checking now.” The tech sounded more confident. “The department director will contact you with updates.”
Jack scowled. They’d better unfuck this, now. With every minute that passed, the chance for the future he’d dreamed of was slipping through his fingers.
He questioned the nurses who explained that she had already been taken down for the procedure when they came on duty.
Within an hour, Jack brought in every agent in D.C. and borrowed a few from the F.B.I. under the auspice that a Federal agent might have been kidnapped. With pictures in hand, they searched every room in the hospital.
No Katlin.
No one had seen her since the two men in scrubs wheeled her out of the ICU. The security video showed her in her room one minute and gone from every frame after that.
Katlin had disappeared.
Her fertilized eggs were gone.
Jack was furious.
Defeated.
This time.
Thank God, there were more unfertilized eggs.
Even though several countries around the world may want to capture and torture the assassin of a particular target Katlin and her team of Black Swans had eliminated, Jack didn’t believe anyone knew their true identity.
The only other person who may want her removed from the hospital was Alexander Wolf.
Jack pulled out his phone and found the number.
“Where the fuck is she?” Jack hissed when Alex answered the phone.
11
“Who the fuck is this?” Alex slurred, still drowsy from sleep a
s he rolled onto his back in the San Francisco Guardian apartment. “And why are you calling me at five in the morning?”
“Jack Ashworth. As if you didn’t know.” The fucker’s shouting didn’t help Alex wake up.
“What the hell do you want?” Why the hell would Katlin’s boss call him at this hour of the morning?
“Where did you take her?” Ashworth seethed.
“Who? Where is who?” Alex asked as he took deep breaths to bring his brain up to the awakened state of his body.
“Katlin, she’s gone.”
A cold shot of adrenaline hit Alex’s brain. Fully awake now, he said, “Jack, slow down, what the fuck are you talking about?”
“As if you don’t know. Katlin is missing from the hospital. She is gone. Disappeared.” Each word was punctuated with a hiss.
“Jack, I’m in San Francisco. I’ve been here for two days. You just woke me up from a sound sleep and are accusing me of exactly what?” Alex had no idea what the hell Ashworth was rambling on about. He did get the point, though, that Katlin was somehow involved.
“Did you, or did you not, remove Katlin from Walter Reed Hospital?” The strain was evident in Ashworth’s voice. The man was truly worried.
“I haven’t a clue what you are talking about. Are you telling me Kat is gone?” Alex’s brain kicked into gear. “Have you searched the whole hospital? She was having a lot of tests these past two days and they had to take her out to other departments. Have you checked there?”
“Lobo, I’m an expert at finding people, especially those in hiding. Agents have checked every room in this hospital. She’s gone. Where did you take her?” Ashworth’s accusations were beyond annoying.
While the man continued to rant, Alex flipped to check Katlin’s tracker. She was in her ICU room. When he flipped to his video app, her room was empty.
Now, more worried than pissed at Jack, Alex insisted, “I don’t have her. Who would have kidnapped her?” Alex was out of bed and grabbing clothes and throwing them into his go-bag. If he couldn’t find a flight with the executive service they used, he’d charter a plane to get him back to D.C. He had to find Katlin, and Ashworth already had hours of searching on him.
