Target For Revenge

by Laura Scott

  He handed the computer case to her, then cautiously approached the Chevy. He wanted to believe the car was safe, but the way things had been unraveling around them, he couldn’t afford to assume anything.

  Not when their safety was at risk.

  He ran his hand along the underside of the bumper but didn’t feel anything. He stretched out on the ground to peer underneath, wishing he had a flashlight to see better. The gloomy day, along with the dark interior of the structure, made it difficult to see something as small as a GPS tracker.

  Smart of Sun to pick an older vehicle, one without fancy GPS devices built in, as her backup vehicle.

  “Allow me,” Sun said, dropping down beside him. “I’m smaller.”

  He reluctantly moved out of the way so she could examine the undercarriage. After what seemed like forever, she scooted out. He frowned. “Find anything?”

  “Other than this thing is leaking oil? No.” Sun dabbed at a spot of oil that had dropped onto her cheek. “I think we’re good to go.”

  “Okay, you want to drive? Or review the files?”

  “I’ll drive, but only because I know the area.” Sun glanced at him as he picked up the computer case. “But I’m curious to what Chandler thought was important enough to put on the USB drive.”

  “Me too.” Mack slid into the passenger seat with the computer at his feet.

  “Play the audio file,” Sun suggested as she left the structure and eased into traffic. “It’s going to take us a while to get out of the city proper.”

  He lifted the computer to his lap. “Maybe we should stick close.”

  She shook her head. “Not if we want to find a cheap motel that takes cash.”

  It was a good point. He opened the computer, then began the audio file, listening intently to the North Korean phrases being spoken in a female voice.

  There was the usual rhetoric about hating the American government because of the sanctions that had been taken against them. For a while there was nothing but compliments about the current regime and the all-powerful commander. But then he heard what Sun had mentioned. The translation went something along the lines of: Very soon they will receive a small demonstration of what we are capable of. And those who take us lightly shall learn the truth. We are many, and we are strong.

  “We are many, and we are strong,” Mack repeated. He glanced at Sun. “Does he mean people or bombs?”

  “I took it to mean people.” She glanced at him. “I mean, how many nuclear bombs could they really have?”

  “More than they should,” Mack said with a sigh. He listened to the audio chatter again and again, hoping to pick up something they’d missed.

  He could see why the FBI and NSA both felt that there was the possibility of a nuclear bomb, it was a logical theory based on the claim of a small demonstration to show what they are capable of. Yet it was incredibly vague as well.

  He hoped the rest of Chandler’s files had more to offer, or the time he’d spent breaking into the password-protected USB drive would have been nothing but a waste of time.

  And time was not their friend.

  * * *

  January 19 – 10:41 a.m. – Chicago, IL

  Jarek knew it was a risk, but he changed his mind about Union Station and directed their second taxi driver to return to the small motel he’d left earlier that morning.

  Frankly, it was the only place he could think of that felt safe.

  “We need bandages for your arm,” Hana said softly. “Every time you move, the wound bleeds again.”

  “I’m fine.” He still had trouble believing Hana was really here in Chicago. Thirty years had passed, but she was still as beautiful to him as the day they’d first met. She’d been a graduate student and he a brand-new young English professor. She hadn’t been in any of his classes, but relationships between professors and students had been frowned upon.

  Yet that hadn’t stopped them from seeing each other. Jarek had been infatuated with Hana, not just her beauty but the world from which she’d come, so different from his Chicago roots.

  They’d spent every moment of their spare time together. Looking at her now, he felt the same yearning he’d experienced thirty years ago.

  A soul mate, if one believed in such things. He did.

  “A hotel, Jarek?” Hana sounded a bit uncertain.

  Immediately, he felt contrite. “Just for an hour or so until we can decide where to go from here.” He glanced at the taxi driver who didn’t appear to be listening to their conversation. Still, he lowered his voice to a mere whisper. “I don’t think we can ride along in a taxi forever.”

  “You are right, yes. A place to plan is a good idea.” Her voice was so quiet he could barely hear her. She twisted her hands in her lap, a gesture that reminded him of their initial encounters all those years ago.

  “Hana.” A taxi wasn’t the ideal place to pour his heart out, but he wanted, needed to let her know how much he still cared. “I’ve thought of you often and can’t tell you how wonderful it is to see you again.”

  A smile tugged at her mouth. “For me too, Jarek.” She glanced at the driver. “We’ll talk more privately at the hotel, yes?”

  “Yes.” His heart soared, and he wanted to shout from the rooftops about how much he loved her. Had always loved her.

  But their reunion had been marred by gunfire and a mad escape from his condo building. The burning in his upper arm proof of their close call.

  His feelings could wait. Being safe and finding a way to escape the men who’d tried to kill him had to take priority.

  But now that he had Hana at his side, he didn’t want to lose her ever again.

  * * *

  January 19 – 10:49 a.m. – Washington, DC

  “We believe they may have the original transcript.”

  He stood in the corner of the office, eyeing the door warily. The owner of said office would be back any minute. “How could you let that happen? You disposed of the target, correct?”

  “Yes, but I couldn’t linger. It was broad daylight in Capitol Hill, and there were plenty of people around. As it was, I was lucky to escape the man who followed me.”

  “You should have lured him close and taken him out of the equation.” He muttered a harsh curse under his breath. “You’ve failed me.”

  “No, there’s still time,” the man said in an attempt to soothe his ire. “I have a plan, a man with skills that will report to me where they’re headed next. I will take care of this.”

  “You better. Time is running out. Get the job done or I’ll find someone who will.” He disconnected from the call just as the office door opened.

  He pasted a smile on his face and moved forward to pick up the boring routine business at hand as if the phone call hadn’t taken place.

  But he kept a wary eye on the clock, hoping for better news sooner rather than later.

  The wheels of the plan had been put into play. He’d enlisted help from the devil himself to prevent it from being derailed by a couple of amateurs.

  Yin-lee and Remington had to die. It was as simple as that.

  * * *

  January 19 – 11:06 a.m. – Washington, DC

  “Traffic is worse than usual,” Sun said on a weary sigh. Pushing the overwhelming exhaustion away wasn’t easy, especially since they were moving at a snail’s pace. “It’s going to take forever to get out of here.”

  “It will be worse tomorrow,” Mack predicted. “Which makes me think they’ll be working to get the nuke in place sometime during the night.”

  “But where?” She stared morosely out the windshield, then glanced at Mack. “Maybe you should start going through Chandler’s documents. Maybe there are notes that will help us make sense of all this.”

  Mack didn’t move to bring the computer back out of its case. As soon as they’d finished listening to the audio file, he’d packed the computer up. “I don’t like this. It feels like we’re exposed being stuck in traffic like this.”

  �
�We agreed it was time to get out of the restaurant,” she reminded him testily.

  “I know, but I think it was the wrong decision.” Mack rubbed the back of his neck. “I keep going back to the self-destruct command that was embedded in the transcript.”

  “What about it?”

  “It takes someone with technical skills to do that. Technical skills that are above and beyond your average fed.”

  “We already know that.” She did her best to control her fraying temper. “Just spit it out already.”

  “I was thinking of how quickly Chandler was found and taken out. And how we keep getting found. I have to assume Washington, DC, is much like New York with traffic cameras everywhere.”

  “Probably more so,” Sun was forced to admit. Realization dawned. “Are you thinking that whoever has the nuclear bomb is going to try to mess with the cameras before the inauguration?”

  “It’s possible.”

  Her breath caught in her throat. “That would not be good. What if they have access now too?”

  “They might have only sporadic access since there hasn’t been an attack on us here in Capitol Hill. But it might explain how they found your super secure safe house.” Mack grimaced as she pushed on the brake, bringing the Chevy to a stop just in time to prevent them from slamming into the SUV in front of them.

  “So much for obliterating the license plates,” Sun muttered. She turned to look at the side streets where traffic was moving slightly faster. Cranking the wheel, she took a narrow road sandwiched between large buildings. “I wish you’d have told me about your traffic camera theory sooner. Now we’re stuck.”

  “I know, I’m sorry. We’re both exhausted, Sun. It’s a miracle we’re holding it together as well as we are.”

  His calm tone didn’t do much to soothe her nerves, although his apology helped. She blew out a breath. “Okay, but we still need a plan to get out of here.”

  “We may want to find a place to ditch the car.”

  She let out a harsh laugh. “Like where? I can barely move from one street to the next.”

  “I think there’s a store coming up on the right-hand side of the road.” Mack was using the map application on his phone. “Just a few more blocks.”

  The side streets were as bogged down as the main thoroughfares. Deciding Mack was right about getting off the street, even if that meant going to some stupid store, she turned left and went back to the main road.

  After another slow progress through two more intersections, she could see the grocery store was just up ahead.

  Crack! Crack!

  The rear window of the Chevy shattered into dozens of pieces.

  “Gun fire! Keep your head down!” Mack shouted.

  She crouched as low as possible while still keeping her eyes on the road. They were almost to the store parking lot, but then what?

  Where could they go from here?

  Chapter Twelve

  January 19 – 11:34 a.m. – Washington, DC

  Mack swiveled in his seat in an attempt to identify where the shooter was located. The sound of gunshots had already caused chaos, people were running and ducking for cover.

  Both shots had come through the back window, which meant the shooter was behind them. With a scope? He had to believe so.

  Sun wrenched the steering wheel to the right, sending the Chevy bouncing up and over the curb.

  “Shots came from directly behind us so find a spot on the farthest side of the building,” Mack said urgently. “We’ll need to ditch the Chevy.”

  “I know.” Sun’s tone was incredibly calm considering they were in the middle of the city and far from anything that could be considered a shelter.

  The gunfire had stopped, but people were still screaming and running wildly. Mack understood their panic, but it wasn’t helping them one bit as cars abruptly stopped in the middle of roads, blocking traffic.

  Sun parked the car and glanced at him. “Grab the computer. There’s a Metro stop not far from here.”

  Smart to head down to the subway where the shooter couldn’t follow their progress with his scope. They ran from the car, the computer bag slung over his back, as they dashed around the grocery store to the street behind it.

  Sun set a quick pace as if she ran marathons on a daily basis. Maybe she did? It was harder than he wanted to admit to keep up with her as she dodged pedestrians, the computer case thumping against him with every step.

  The map of DC etched in his mind helped keep him on course even in those brief moments when he lost track of Sun’s shiny dark hair.

  When he glimpsed the sign for the Metro, a wave of relief washed over him. They were going to make it!

  Sun darted down the stairs leading to the lower-level station, and he put on a burst of speed to catch up. They wasted precious seconds paying in cash at the machine but soon passed the turnstiles to melt into the crowds.

  “The train should be here in a few minutes,” Sun said in a low voice.

  He was vexed that she wasn’t breathing heavily and did his best to do the same. “Any chance Jordan can provide us with another set of wheels?” He knew how to hot-wire a car, but he didn’t like the thought of stealing. It would be a last resort, and only if they were in a life-and-death situation.

  Kinda like the one they were currently facing. He swept his gaze over the area, looking for anything suspicious. So far, it seemed like these goons coming after them were long on manpower.

  For all he knew, there were dozens of men fanned out across the area searching for them.

  The seconds ticked by slowly. Standing below ground and waiting for a train contradicted the urge to keep moving.

  Finally, the roar of the train could be heard as it approached. Keeping Sun in front of him, he waited impatiently for travelers to get off the train so they could get on.

  Sun slipped through the doors. He followed as she made her way to the rear section of the subway. It was standing room only, but that was okay. He kept Sun positioned in front of him so that no one could get to her without going through him.

  They were partners in this case, but he’d readily sacrifice himself to protect her.

  No matter what.

  * * *

  January 19 – 11:51 a.m. – Chicago, IL

  Hana followed Jarek into the motel, unfazed by the musty smell lingering in the air. She’d been in worse places. Being safe was all that mattered.

  “I need to apologize.” Jarek dropped heavily into the desk chair, leaving her to sink down onto the edge of the bed. “This is all my fault.”

  “No, Jarek, it is not.” Hana offered a weary smile. Between running from gunmen and jet lag, she could have used a nap. “I told you years ago how the regime deals with defectors. They hunt them like wolves and kill them.” She stared down at her hands for a long moment. “It is my fault that you are in danger.” She hesitated, not wanting to admit she had basically been spying on the regime.

  “You don’t understand.” He leaned forward and rested his large warm hand on hers. “I began searching for you, Hana, which is what began this whole chain reaction.”

  This was surprising news. She met his gaze curiously. “Searched how?”

  He flushed and momentarily closed his eyes. “I hired a private investigator, and he found you in Geneva, Switzerland.”

  “I see.” She had used a different name when she’d gone back to North Korea this last time and knew now that going back to Geneva was a mistake. In more ways than one. “What is this investigator’s name?”

  “Charles Emmerson.” He grimaced. “I know it was wrong, but it had been so long, Hana. I felt certain that it was safe to be together by now.”

  It would never be safe, but she didn’t tell him that. It was curious, though, that this Charles Emmerson had been able to find her.

  Was it possible the regime had been tipped off by Jarek’s search? Maybe, but it was far more likely that her undercover activities had raised their suspicions. None of which mattered at thi
s point.

  “Hana, please forgive me.” Jarek’s tone was ravaged.

  “Of course I forgive you, Jarek.” She smiled gently. “You must know that the danger follows me, regardless of where I go.”

  “We’ll disappear together, Hana. Go someplace where no one will ever find us.”

  She sighed. “I’m not certain such a place exists, but it’s a lovely dream.” She’d done enough in trying to bring down the regime, wasn’t it time for her to live her own life? Did she deserve that? Maybe, but not yet. She hesitated, then asked, “You’re not married?”

  “No!” He looked shocked at the suggestion. “Never. Why—are you?”

  Hana shook her head. “No, there has been no one else for me, Jarek. But I begged you to create a life without me, so why didn’t you?”

  “There’s no one for me either.” Jarek’s tone was firm. “I’ve always loved you, Hana. Always.”

  Tears misted her eyes, but she blinked them away with an effort. Would Jarek still love her once he learned the truth? Was this the right time to tell him?

  “I understand if you don’t feel the same way,” he said in a halting voice. “Thirty years is a long time.”

  “Seems like just yesterday,” she murmured, thinking of how young they once were. How carefree. She met his gaze head-on. “There is something you need to know, Jarek. And I hope you will forgive me for the secret I have kept from you all these years.”

  “Secret?” His brow furrowed. “About your family?”

  That too, but that wasn’t what she needed to explain. At least, not yet. One thing at a time. “About our daughter, Sun Yin-lee.”

  The blood drained from his face. “Daughter? You . . . I have a daughter?”

  “Yes.” He took his hand from hers and rose shakily to his feet. She braced herself for his anger over this betrayal.

  “I . . . don’t understand.” He began to pace the short length of the room. “You had our daughter? Without telling me?”

  “I did, yes.” She twisted her fingers together. “I kept Sun’s presence a secret, Jarek, not to hurt you but in an attempt to shield her from the regime. My blood flows through her veins, and if those in power knew—” She couldn’t finish.