8. Typhon

8

TYPHON

R ather than on my way to join my parents, brothers, and sister in the Cotswolds, or to my house on the ocean in Portugal for a quiet Christmas, I'd been summoned to the command center in Shere for a meeting with Margeaux "Nemesis" Jordan.

She hadn't even had the courtesy to ring herself and ask. She'd foisted it off on Oleander.

The only positive thing about being in Surrey last night was that I'd be able to see Kima. When we last spoke, she'd said there was too much going on for any of the task force members to take a holiday.

What I should've done was refuse to meet with Nemesis and insist Kima come to London. From there, I could've taken her to my family's Christmas gathering. It wouldn't have been the first time, and I was sure they'd all love to see her.

By the time I pulled through the gates of the command center, my mood was foul.

I stalked inside and was met by Nemesis. "I'll speak with Oleander first before I meet with you," I said, spotting her on the other side of the room.

"But, Oleander is a member of?—"

I leaned in. "Unit 23, and you'd do well to remember it. She is here, assisting with your investigation, only because I agreed to it as a courtesy. Do not push me, Agent Jordan."

I left her standing with her mouth open and motioned for Oleander to follow.

"What was that about?" she asked once we entered the first room I'd come to, went inside, and locked the door.

"The coalition commander needs a lesson in rank."

"Is that all this is, you showing her who's boss?"

I took a step forward. Today was not the day. My anger sat too close to the surface as it was. "Watch it, Smith. I put up with shit like that from one person: my younger sister, who you are not. I am your boss, and you'd do well to remember it."

"Apologies, sir."

When I didn't catch a hint of sarcasm or disrespect, I nodded. "The reason I asked to speak with you was to pass on intel Unit 23 received."

"Go on."

"You asked me about Ambassador Godwin."

Oleander nodded. "Correct. He showed up on the scene when Bexli Everdeen was rescued, saying Xavier Vella worked for him at the US Embassy in Malta."

"Then he harbored Vella in the time before he killed Mithras."

"That's right," said Oleander.

"According to Antaeus, the Maltese have been trying to get rid of him for years."

"Poseidon's father said close to the same thing."

I recalled something about him being an ambassador as well, but I didn't want to get sidetracked by it.

"You asked if I knew why Godwin left Malta and returned to the US. He'll be arrested and indicted on a number of charges within the next few days," I told her.

"Do you intend to pass this information on to Nemesis?"

"I haven't decided yet." When I smiled, she did too. "I'm glad you haven't moved over to the dark side yet."

She chuckled. "Most say Unit 23 is the dark side."

"You know as well as I do that the good we do far exceeds the bad. We let the world believe it's the other way around, so they remain afraid of us."

O folded her arms. "Who got the intel on Godwin?"

"Hornet," I responded with no hesitation.

"He's not the expert on the Eastern Mediterranean he touts himself to be."

I raised a brow. "No? I'd ask what makes you say such a thing, but I already know the answer."

"Which is?"

I leaned forward and rested my palms on the table separating us. "You are too distracted by the side investigation you've been conducting for years to pay attention to what's in front of you."

"Fuck—"

I slammed my fist on the table. "Enough!" I bellowed. "If you think for one minute that Nemesis can save your arse when I decide to burn you, you are very foolish indeed."

She opened her mouth to speak, then closed it.

"Good decision, O. Just remember I can bury you so deep that even Allora wouldn't be able to find you."

She stormed from the room, but in a few minutes, returned with Nemesis and Poseidon.

We sat down, and before I could speak, Agent Jordan did.

"Let's start with Ambassador Godwin," she began. "Do you have anyone on the ground in Malta who can dig up anything on him? According to Poseidon's father, he's been suspected of nefarious behavior for quite some time."

I raised a brow and let her think she knew more than I did. "There are times I believe Coffey is briefing you behind my back."

"Does that mean you've already got something?"

I turned to Oleander, silently warning her not to divulge what I'd told her. I'd do that in my own time. "I do not believe he has any connection to AMPS other than the possibility they too are lining his pockets."

"I find that hard to believe, given a suspected member of that organization was under his employ," Nemesis countered.

I laughed. "I would find it surprising if Godwin noticed Attila the Hun was working for him. The man is a single-minded simpleton."

"Who has somehow escaped prosecution for years."

My eyes scrunched, and I leveled my glare at the coalition commander. "No one cared enough. Dumping him in Malta was the solution."

"Why is it different now?" she asked.

"If you mean why I sent someone after him, it was to confirm or dispel the suspicion he was tied to AMPS."

"Who did you send?" Nemesis asked.

"Hornet."

She leaned forward and rested her forearms on the table. "I've requested the coalition be briefed immediately—not in the aftermath of—any investigations that overlap our own."

I didn't blink. "That, I will not agree to."

"Ultimately, it isn't your decision."

"Unit 23 shares intelligence as a matter of courtesy, not procedure." I scoffed.

"When it involves a mission owned by the UN coalition, it becomes procedure." The door opened, and Delfino walked in. Her timing couldn't have been better.

"Sorry to interrupt," she said, looking directly at me. I smiled and winked.

"What did you need, Delfino?" Nemesis asked.

"It can wait. I didn't realize you were in a meeting."

"Back to our discussion," said Nem when Delfino retreated and closed the door behind her.

While she was attempting to regain her momentum, it was too late. Kima had cut her off, and she'd lost steam because of it.

"I'll not have our mission nor our work jeopardized by Unit 23 acting outside their lane. Make no mistake, Typhon. I will not relent on this subject. AMPS is ours. You compromise this mission, and I'll see to it you are burned."

Her threat was laughable, but I'd not win this round by continuing to engage. Better to let her think she had the upper hand even though I had no intention of following a single directive or order she spoke.

"Hornet has officially moved from MI6 to the unit. Verity has as well, but is ‘on loan,' if you will, to the coalition in the same way Oleander is. I'll see to it you're briefed on any progress he makes," I said, glancing in O's direction. Wisely, she didn't raise her head to look at me.

Nemesis picked up on the fact she didn't and grew suspicious. "Not good enough. He either works with the coalition under my authority, or he stays the hell out of it."

"Very well. When would you like him to report?" I snapped.

"Now."

"Roger that." I gave her a mock salute.

When Nemesis stood, I did too.

"Just so you're kept in the loop, Hornet will work directly under Oleander," she said.

I waited until she was out of the room, then let the smile I'd been holding back, loose. I watched from the window and waited until I saw Oleander leave with Poseidon before exiting. Kima was waiting outside the door.

"C'mon. Let's celebrate Christmas," I said, putting my arm around her shoulders.

"Really? Nem just announced we could all leave if we had somewhere to go, but I wasn't certain I'd be able to."

"As far as I'm concerned, you can leave this bloody coalition whenever you'd like."

We were in my car, making the two-hour drive to my parents' place, before Kima spoke again. "I like it."

"What's that?"

"I said I like working for the coalition."

I reached over and squeezed her hand. "That's all that's important, sweetheart."

She rested her head against the seat and smiled at me. "Thanks, Ty."

"Anytime."

When we arrived, there'd be a surprise waiting for her. My mum had informed me that Nina, Kima's mother, was on her way and could be there before we were.

While the two women hadn't known each other before I joined MI6, my mother had invited Nina into our family when I asked her to. They'd grown to be like sisters.

Delfino and I remained with my family until New Year's Day. I would've stayed on longer since she and my sister were also close, except I received an urgent message from Z, asking if I could return to London. I received a similar request from Hornet, who, as of the first of the year, was officially a member of my team.

Before going to Vauxhall Cross, I dropped Kima off at my flat, not wanting to put her in the middle of Poseidon and me. She said she liked working for the coalition, and I didn't want to do anything to jeopardize her role with the Maltese task force.

"What's this about?" I asked Z when I exited the lift and saw Hornet standing down the hall, talking on his mobile.

"One of the victims from the Felixstowe raid received a threatening message on a secure line from someone the team believes may have been a bidder on the sex-slave auction. Apparently, he's abducted her best friend and is asking for an exchange."

"Shall we postpone?" I asked.

"Nothing we can do from here. There's a team on it. Who, by the way, is being led by Esencia."

"I'll never get her now," I muttered.

"You weren't going to get her anyway." Z chuckled. "Shall we?" he added, motioning to a conference room when we saw Hornet approaching. "We found information relating to Salvatore Rávdos."

My eyes met Z's. "Oleander knows the name. She was lying when she said she didn't."

"Agreed." Z motioned for Hornet to continue.

"He was formerly with MI6, but left fourteen years ago. While we know that much, everything else in the file has been redacted. Records also told us no other copies exist."

"IT is working on deciphering the information contained in the reports now," Z added.

"Rávdos was working with a partner at the time, Nathanial Jones," Hornet continued. "Rumor is he died thirteen years ago. The guy in records said he'd heard something about an accident."

"Rumor?" I asked, looking from Hornet to Z. "Anything else?"

"Other than that Jones was employed by SIS and he was Rávdos' partner, we're coming up blank," Z responded.

"Thirteen years, you say? Do you think this somehow relates to Oleander?" I asked.

Z nodded. "I'm certain of it."

"My understanding is that she and Poseidon are living together a short distance from the command center in Shere."

"I'll call a meeting and meet you there," Z offered. "George will be accompanying me."

I wouldn't call him out on it, but I wondered why he'd bring an MI5 agent with him. Was there more to it than him being her boss' boss?

Kima, Hornet, and I rode to Shere together. When we arrived, the scene was chaotic.

I couldn't believe my ears when I heard the suspect in the kidnapping had once again been killed by a bloody civilian. That Esencia was the CO on the op gave me pause. If a Unit 23-er had allowed such a thing to happen, they'd be burned.

When Oleander passed by without as much as a word to me, I saw red. Perhaps it was time to burn her too.

"Oleander? A moment?" I said, barely able to contain my anger.

She hesitated.

"The three of us have come across some interesting information we'd like to share with you," I said, motioning to Hornet and Delfino. Just then, Z arrived and joined us, widening O's already-deer-in-headlights eyes.

"Of course," she said, following us to the library, where I closed the door behind us.

After Z laid out the information he'd shared about Nathanial Jones, I asked if it meant anything to her.

I knew I had her when she responded it didn't right before bolting from the room.

Instead of being happy that I'd won the battle, I felt the same disappointment I always did when she refused to come clean. I'd tried every approach I could think of to get her to confide in me, and none had worked.

"Would you excuse us?" Z said to Hornet and Kima. He waited until they were out of the room before speaking again. "Thoughts?"

I shook my head. "I've failed her, and I don't know what to do about it."

"I couldn't agree more except that I also feel as though I've failed her."

"Whatever she's unwilling to share has to be personal on a profound level."

"Do you think she has a connection to Nathanial Jones?" Z asked.

"I think he might've been her father."

Z's expression was solemn.

I sighed. "My greatest fear is O will take this so far that it'll get her killed. That she refuses to read us in means we can't do anything to protect her."

"Our hands are tied, so to speak. Do you agree?"

Z's question was rhetorical, but I was racking my brain anyway. "Poseidon."

He raised a brow. "What of him?"

"She trusts him. Perhaps it's time I take a step back and allow him to be her knight in shining armor."

"It often feels as though they're our children, does it not?"

"As I'm not a father, I cannot say with experience. However, I bet one of the hardest things is allowing them to leave the nest regardless of your fear they may fall."

"I couldn't have said it better myself," Z agreed.

"I'm stepping away, my friend. I have other 23-ers who might benefit from my micro-management."

Z's laugh was hearty. "On another subject, how is our Delfino fairing?"

"Time to push her from the nest as well. I've done the best I could."

"Jekyll would be proud of her."

"Aye. He certainly would."

Instead of returning to London, I stayed in Surrey for a charity rugby tournament. On the final day, my mates and I went to the pub in Shere. While it was a little too close to the command center for my comfort, I didn't run into anyone from the coalition while I was there. I did, however, think I saw someone familiar in the window of one of the inn's rooms on the second level.

"You all right, Typhon?" one of them asked.

"Fine," I responded. "Just seeing things."