Jasmine bumped into him and quickly frisked him before he even knew what was going on.
“Hey!” He looked up from his phone in surprise. “What’s that about?”
She held up his firearms with a smirk. “You’re getting slow, Jansen.” She walked to the mantelpiece and deposited the guns and wait…
“Is that my knife?” He held out his arm. “What is this about?”
“We need to talk to you, Jansen.”
Simeon turned as Asher walked in. The look on his face was not friendly. Come to think of it, Jasmine had looked decidedly hostile as well.
“Ash, Jaz…what’s up?”
“That’s what we want to know, Jansen.” Asher said.
“Guys, what’s all this about?”
“Why don’t you tell us about Mila Mayer.”
Simeon froze. He looked from Asher to Jasmine and knew that this was serious. They were serious. How the hell had they found out about Mila?
“Look, guys…” He paused midway when he noticed that Jasmine had one of the firearms trained on him. His own damn firearm, for goodness sakes!
“You are one hell of a betraying bastard.” She spoke in that cool way she had, not letting any of her emotions show. He knew she was mad as hell.
“Jas—”
“You put our lives in danger. Almost got Wayne killed, you fucking bastard,” she bit out crisply. “Name one reason why I shouldn’t bust both your kneecaps.”
Simeon closed his eyes and sighed. He sounded defeated and that was exactly how he felt. At thirty-six, he was too damn old and too damn tired for this shit.
“You don’t understand.” They had no damn clue.
“Oh, I think we do. How much did she pay you?” Asher asked quietly.
Simeon looked into the lifeless eyes of his teammate and he felt his heart clench as a thin layer of moisture covered his skin. Asher Banks was a good man, the sort of man you wanted on your side, to have your back. But he was the worst person to cross. Mean as a rattlesnake.
Simeon knew he could not afford to show any fear.
“I needed the money,” he said at last.
Jasmine swore. “Damn, man! I can’t believe you sold us out for a few bucks.”
“I had no choice, dammit!” he suddenly yelled.
“That is bullshit and you know it, Jansen!” Jasmine said, taking several steps towards him with her fists clenched. “You could have chosen not to betray your team!”
Asher lifted a hand, halting Jasmine’s flow of words. He kept his eyes on Simeon.
“I just want to know why, man?” he said at last. “We’ve been through hell together. You threw yourself in front of a bullet that was meant for me in Kabul. Why?”
Simeon sank into the sofa that was closest to him and buried his head in his hands. He felt like he couldn’t breathe. Asher was right. They had been through too much together. But Jaz was also right, he was a bastard.
“I would do it again,” he stated, lifting his head and gazing at them fiercely. “I don’t wish any of you ill, but if I had to do it again, I would not think twice.”
There was complete silence, then Jasmine released a long string of curses.
“I don’t believe this!” she said, shaking her head. “When did you become such a bastard?”
“When Conner was diagnosed with neuroblastoma.”
There was total silence after he dropped the bombshell.
“Your son has cancer?” Jasmine was the first to speak.
Simeon nodded, his throat too choked up to speak.
“Damn,” she said softly.
“You should have come to us,” Asher said quietly.
He had no answer to that. He’d fucked up and he knew it. But he could not bring himself to go cap in hand begging for handouts from his friends. He knew they would give him whatever he needed, no questions asked, but a man had his pride. So he shrugged and looked away from the disappointment in Asher’s eyes.
“You are a fucking asshole!” Jasmine suddenly said. “You should have come to us, instead you chose to sell us out for money? What the hell makes you think that’s okay? If anything had happened to anyone of us or to Wayne, I would have killed you myself!” Her eyes were blazing.
“I fucked up…”
“Damn right you did!” she spat in anger. “And you’re going to fix every damn thing you’ve messed up.”
Simeon ran a hand through his hair. He was gutted. The last thing he’d wanted to do was sell out his teammates and he had made sure no harm had come to any of them. But there was no use saying that. They were angry with him and distrustful, not like he could blame them.
Conner was his five-year-old son. They all knew when a woman he’d had a one-night stand with had come up several years ago claiming that he’d fathered a child with her. There had been a paternity suit and DNA had established that he was indeed the father. At that time, the child was a little over two years old. She had stiffed him of a small fortune until she’d died a year later and the boy had come to live with him permanently. Conner was his life. He was all he had and he had spent practically everything he had on his treatment. It wasn’t enough. He needed more money for radiation and a stem cell transplant. He hated the fact that he’d betrayed his friends. It went against everything he believed and stood for. But he would do it all over again if it meant that he could save his son.
“I’m sorry,” he said, even though he knew that it didn’t change anything.
“I’m sorry you didn’t think you could trust us with your problems,” Asher said quietly before walking out of the room.
His words pierced Simeon. He should have gone to them to ask for help, but he was a proud man. Well, see where pride has gotten you, son…exactly nowhere. He took a deep breath and expelled it in one go, His life was so messed up.
He felt the sofa dip beside him and knew it was Jasmine.
“Does Wayne…?” he could not complete the question, but he did not need to.
“Yeah, he knows. He’s the one who alerted us to the fact that you were most definitely a mole…no, fuck that. A damn traitor.” She was still angry
A mole. Simeon winced at that description but knew it was true. He was a mole. He buried his head in his hands.
“What do I do, Jaz?” He heard the emptiness in his voice.
“Do you have everything you need for Conner’s treatment?”
He shook his head without looking up. “I’m still a couple of thousand short.”
“We’ll sort that out.”
Simeon’s head shot up and he could not hide the shock on his face.
“I don’t understand.”
“Oh, don’t worry, I’m still going to kill you with my bare hands, but let’s be sure little Conner’s going to be okay first.”
“I don’t know what to say.” He was stumped.
“You don’t need to say shit. We just need to find a way to fix everything for Wayne.”
Simeon nodded.
She would not forgive him easily, and he understood.
“I’ll do whatever I can,” he said just as Asher walked in.
“Great, now tell us about this Mila woman.”
Chapter Seventeen
1:25 p.m., Homeland Security meeting at the Pentagon
“We need to decide how we are going to handle the threat from this extremist group,”General James D. James, Vice Chief of Staff of the Army said. He was speaking about a recent threat from a group in the Middle East.
“We do not negotiate with terrorists,” Vice President Timothy Weaver said dismissively.
“With all due respect, I strongly recommend we do not dismiss this. It’s not going to go away,” General James said in clipped tones.
“James, you worry too much. This is what…the fifth threat we’ve received this month alone? If we give them attention, then we validate their existence. Until we acknowledge them, they do not exist.”
The nerve beneath General James’ right eye began to move in a nerv
ous tick. A sure sign that it wouldn’t be long before he lost his infamous temper.
“Sir, if I may…this is not your usual run-of-the-mill terrorist.”
All eyes swung to the slim young man at the table. He was one of the National Intelligence Officers assigned to The Pentagon and had in fact rose to the top position. He was the youngest NIO to be included in Homeland Security Meetings. And he was so damn good at his job that no one ever ignored his opinion. Well, not since he’d predicted the Chicago bombing a few years ago.
“Speak, Derek,” the vice president said magnanimously. “What is so different about this one?”
“They are one of the few groups that have access to lethal autonomous weapons. They have already carried out two attacks on remote army stations in the Middle East, each belonging to Germany and Russia respectively. They have also claimed responsibility for the drone attack that took place in France last week. I think we need to hear what they want and find a way to negotiate with them.”
There was complete silence when he was done.
“So what are you suggesting?” the vice president asked.
“I’m not saying we give in to their demands, but when we think about the potential risk of ignoring them like France did, it might be a good idea to hear them out.”
General W.D. Carter thought about the gory images of the France massacre he’d seen captured on camera. A group of top security agents had met in a secret location to discuss an intelligence report. They were found later with their throats slit in what appeared to be a drone attack. It was one reason why he needed Wayne’s prototype immediately. That attack could have been on American shores and that would have been disastrous. Not that what happened in France was not disastrous, but he was not in charge of protecting France. His responsibility was the United States of America.
“Ah, what are his demands?” Vice President Weaver asked.
Derek Copeland stared at the papers before him, even though everyone knew that he was a human computer with a mind like a steel trap. Still, he took a few moments before replying.
“He is asking for the release of five prisoners and twenty billion dollars in gold bullions.”
“Ridiculous!”
“What the hell?”
“We do not negotiate with terrorists!”
General Carter watched as a wave of consternation rippled through those seated. The demands were not new. As a matter of fact, when terrorists made demands of the US, it was often in the region of what was being currently demanded; release of prisoners and money.
“Do we know what prisoners they’re asking to be released?” His quiet voice cut into the murmurs.
“The ones responsible for the Maryland bombing.”
The Maryland bombing was one that had devastated the country. It had taken out a shopping mall and the death toll had been high. The perpetrators had eventually been apprehended and imprisoned after a short trial. There was no way they were going to release those prisoners.
“What do you suggest, Derek?” General Carter asked.
“I suggest we go into negotiations. We need to find out if there’s something else they want before we even consider the release of the prisoners.”
“There’s no way in hell we are letting those damn prisoners go!” Vice President Weaver said vehemently.
“Well, we could…” Derek let his words trail off.
“What are you suggesting, boy?” General James asked.
Derek cleared his throat and adjusted his glasses. He glanced down at his papers. “People have been known to meet with unfortunate circumstances outside the shores of the United States.”
General Carter narrowed his eyes and stared at the young man through slits. He was shaping up to be a very dangerous man, possibly more dangerous than anyone at the table could imagine. He had to say that he liked the way the boy thought, but he would need to watch him closely. He could easily turn renegade if care was not taken.
“I like the way your mind works, boy,” the vice president said jovially. “But this could blow up in our faces. We need to look at things carefully.”
For once, General Carter agreed with the man.
Just then a young man in a dark suit walked into the meeting room and whispered something to the vice president, who nodded briskly.
“Gentlemen, we have a situation,” he said after the young man had left the room. All eyes swung to him as they waited for him to explain. He picked up a remote control and switched on the screen at the end of the table.
As the screen came on, it showed a man on the other side of it. General Carter stared at the man. He looked slightly familiar, but he could not place the face. He wondered what this was about.
“Good afternoon, gentlemen,” the man said. “I know you are wondering what this call is about. I know you are all busy men so I’m going to make this brief. I have in my possession, an item that is very important to the security of this country; the lethal autonomous weapon, CID Six Thousand, created by Carter Industries. All I need to do right now is program your coordinates and I can clear out that room in fifteen minutes.”
There was complete silence.
“And in case you think I’m bluffing…”
He reached for something and placed it in front of him so that they had a clear view of it. It looked like a drone, but with a slight variation. Seeing the same design that he’d viewed several times on his computer, sitting right there in front of the man, General Carter’s blood ran cold. Still, the microchips were with Wayne, right?
“All that proves is that you stole CID. That’s just hardware, you can’t get it to function.”
“You are speaking of the microchip?” He smiled then. “As I speak, Wayne Carter is on his way here to deliver that to me.”
“Impossible!”
General Carter agreed with General James’ outburst. It had just been a guess, but the fact that the microchip was still safe in Wayne’s possession has caused him a lot of relief. There was no way Wayne was going to hand over the microchip.
“Stop bluffing, young man, you know Wayne Carter will never hand over the microchip,” General Fabian Dakota of the Marine Corps said softly.
“Maybe you need to see this…” he said.
Just then the screen changed to show two females seated on the floor of a sterile-looking room. They were bound hand and foot. General Carter recognized them immediately. Both women had been in his office a little over twenty-four hours ago. He knew then with absolute certainty, that the man was right. If he had those two women in his custody, there was no force on earth that would keep Wayne away.
The camera swung back to the man. “Those two women you saw there are Wayne Carter’s wife and daughter.” There was intense silence. “Now do I have your attention?”
“We do not negotiate with terrorists,” the vice president stated.
“Shut the fuck up, Weaver!” General James had finally lost his patience. It had been a surprise that he’d managed to keep it that long, especially around the pompous Weaver. “That’s Carter’s family right there, who the hell do you think you are to speak for us on this?”
“How dare you, James—”
“Gentlemen, let’s hear what the man has to say,” Admiral Hanson said quietly.
Both men backed down, quietly seething.
They all turned their attention to the man on the screen, but it was Admiral Hanson that spoke.
“What are your demands?”
**
That same moment, in an old warehouse somewhere outside Dodge City, Kansas
“I just want to know one thing…why aren’t you in Chicago like you’re supposed to be?”
“Seriously? You thought I was just going to let you walk off like that?”
Emily craned her neck to get a better view of the girl sitting next to her. Well, technically, they were seated with their backs to each other with their wrists bound. As she tried turning around, she winced because of the strain on her wounded arm.
> She was brought in that morning and that was when she’d seen Kendra. The relief that had poured through her was something she could not put into words. Then right on the heels of the relief had been the fear.
She had no idea what kind of situation they were in. This was going in blind in every way possible. There was no intel on who had abducted them. She had nothing. All she knew was that their lives were in danger.
“You deliberately put your life in danger?”
“Yep.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I followed you. Then got into the car with you,” Kendra said with what felt like a shrug.
Emily opened her mouth in shock, temporarily speechless.
“You’re telling me that you were in that vehicle with me? What on earth were you thinking?” And how on earth had she not realized that there was someone in that car with her? She definitely was losing her touch.
“That I didn’t want to go another seven years without my mom?”
Her words hit Emily in a way that went straight to her heart.
“Oh, baby…” she murmured, wishing with everything that she could put her arms around her. “I’m scared. I’m scared that something could go wrong and I don’t want to lose you.”
“I know you’ll get us out,” Kendra said confidently. “I was there inside the van, you know? I saw the way you handled those goons. You’ll get us out of this for sure.”
“Ahh, baby…”
Emily wished she could promise that. She had no idea who had them captive or even where they were. She was not used to working without her team either. But if her baby believed that she could get them out of this alive, then she would. She didn’t know how, but she would.
“I will get us out.”
She said it like a vow because that was exactly what it was. Her arm was throbbing and so was her head. She wished she could rub her arm to relieve some of the pain. It had been a while since she’d taken an aspirin.
Then she felt her daughter lean back against her and just like that, the pain faded to the background. The contact was like fresh water to her parched soul. She had craved it for so long. She took in a deep breath, let it out in a long sigh and just basked in the feeling.
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