Chapter 20

Conrad Flynn paced behind his desk as Reid, Carson, and Sterling filed in. They took seats positioned on the other side, sharing glances between them.

“You were there,” Meg said. “Platja Fonda.”

He’d wondered when she’d piece it together. “Julia insisted we take a vacation. She likes the beach, and we’d never been there. Pretty spot, but too full of tourists for me.”

She didn’t buy it, giving him a flat stare. She had yet to put back on the weight she’d lost after Mendoza’s death, and he sometimes caught her grimacing when she moved wrong, but the heavy shadows were gone from under her eyes. She’d regained much of her confidence.

“Why didn’t you make yourself known to me?” she asked. “Hand me my orders in person?”

Because he preferred to keep his balls intact. “We both know the answer to that. If I’d shown my face, you would have considered it an act of aggression. It would’ve ended badly for both of us.”

Reid snorted. As always, he was grizzled and stalwart—loyal to his team and his country. ‘Rugged’ was the term Julia used when talking about him.

Flynn thought dangerous was more accurate.

He was a cunning one, as well. He could run circles around most of the operatives in the field these days, and Conrad appreciated that. There was no hiding behind technology, analytics, or theories with Reid. He was a boots-on-the-ground, take-no-prisoners kind of guy.

But Meg Carson? She was her own brand of weapon of mass destruction these days. She had no regard for her own safety and seemed determined to throw herself on her sword to make up for what had happened to her teammate.

There was no making up for that. It was a heavy loss, and Conrad understood the guilt and regret she lived with every hour of every day. If he could’ve taken it away from her and dealt with it himself, he would have. He had his own demons that he fought on a regular basis, people he hadn’t been able to save, but no amount of self-flagellating could bring Jessica back.

All they could do was move on.

“Mosai Hagar was found dead inside his prison cell last night,” he said.

Carson’s mouth dropped open.

Reid and Sterling didn’t so much as blink.

Good men.

“How?” Meg asked.

Conrad observed her, noting how her gaze started to slide to her right, where Declan sat stone-faced. It snapped back to him.

“A silent assassin, apparently,” he told her. He wanted to say, “A ghost did it” but that would have given too much away. “No one was caught on the security feeds. We have no leads, and I, for one, don’t give a shit if we ever do.”

He’d wanted to do it himself, but it wasn’t his kill. If he’d thought Meg could have handled it, he would have allowed her to do it. As it was, he made sure he, Reid, and Sterling had gone to that black site deep in the Virginia mountains last night and returned before morning.

“Are you okay with that?” Conrad asked.

Meg seemed speechless, then nodded. “Guess I have to be.”

He punched a button on his phone, hailing his secretary. “Get Contessa Vulpe on the line for me.”

“Yes, sir,” Kate responded.

“Tessa?” Meg asked. “What’s this about?”

Conrad sank into his chair, picking up a pen and tapping it on his blotter. “Del and Spence have broken through another layer of encryption on Tommy’s drive. I’ve also recovered intel from Tommy’s superior—against his boss’ directives, he’d been digging into an investment firm in Russia and following a money trail he believed backed up his suspicions about Hagar’s involvement in a potential black swan scenario.”

Declan and Meg looked at Spence, who cleared his throat and sat forward in his chair. Conrad gave him a nod to go ahead and explain what they had found. “Our boy uncovered a plot to set off multiple EMP bombs at US military bases across the globe,” Spence told them. “Plenty of conspiracy theories about such a thing have existed for a while, and the Department of Defense has taken measures to ensure that never happens, but this…” He shook his head as if still trying to wrap his mind around it. “It goes all the way back to the businesses supplying the superconductors for the military’s computers.”

Such weapons had been around for a while, the US being one of the countries at the forefront of designing non-nuclear tools in order to destroy information systems. They’d created devices small enough to fit in a briefcase, making them not only feasible but also practical.

Kate’s voice interrupted. “Contessa Vulpe line one, sir.”

“Thank you.” Conrad punched the button. “Tessa, you’re on speaker. The swans are here, and we’re discussing what Tommy uncovered and put on that USB.” He brought her up to speed and then continued, “As you know, EMPs can cripple electronic wiring and circuitry over several square miles, posing a threat to infrastructure. The Defense Department’s reliance on satellites and commercial computer equipment to command military forces and operations worldwide is threatened. Much has been done to take precautions to offset such attacks. Still, if what Tommy uncovered involves sabotage of the superconductors used in military computers, all of these bases are sitting ducks. Our nation’s infrastructure, as well. Forces we have around the world, the same. It could be a nightmare.”

Tessa’s voice came through the speaker. “Is that why Hagar wanted the drive? To destroy the evidence?”

“Yes. We believe he was to play a part in the dispersion of the e-bombs, and because of his showmanship in murdering Jessica in front of the world, he put a glaring spotlight on himself. Those in charge of the bomb attacks, whoever they are, didn’t like that in the least.”

Spence rubbed his palms on his slacks. “Tommy probably tripped a red flag while digging into that Russian investment company. The leader of the e-bomb attacks realized Hagar was no longer an asset to their master plan, but the plan was already in play. The best they could do was to try and destroy any evidence Tommy had.”

“And kill him, along with it,” Declan added.

Meg rubbed a hand over her face. “Oh, Tommy. Why didn’t he come to us with this?”

Conrad didn’t want to remind her that she’d been off the grid since Jessica’s funeral. “It’s not surprising that he has trust issues or is seeking retribution for what happened to his sister. He did speak to his supervisor about his concerns, but unfortunately, Marchetti isn’t an operative. He’s an ambassador. His job is to keep the peace, not stir the pot. After speaking with him, it’s my understanding that he thought Tommy was obsessed with Hagar and that any intel he provided about the man was skewed. Tommy was, after all, stationed there as an actual State Department employee, not a CIA agent. He and Marchetti butted heads frequently over his job duties.”

“How long before we find out what else is on that USB?” Declan asked.

“Tommy developed a personal encryption program,” Spence said. “It’s quite impressive. Could be a while.”

Meg frowned. “Do we have a lead on him?”

Conrad tapped his pen impatiently. “He’s still in the wind, either by choice or because he’s been kidnapped by one of Hagar’s former allies.” Meg had suspected the same thing based on the research she’d been doing. He saw the way her face tightened at his confirmation of her fears. “Our search for him continues.”

“You’re putting us back in the field,” Declan said.

He didn’t want to. Meg wasn’t ready. They were still one member short of a full team.

“Tessa,” Meg said, reading his mind. “Our fourth.”

He nodded.

Tessa said, “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

Meg shifted to the edge of her seat, leaning toward the phone. “We worked well together in Bucharest.”

“I don’t do spy shit anymore, remember?”

Meg started to reply, but Conrad waved a hand at her. “I’m not asking you to do spy shit ,” he said. “I’m putting you on the team to find Tommy.”

Meg bristled, straightening her back and giving him the hairy eyeball. “While it’s my team, and I get to say who’s on it,” she clarified, “we would welcome your skills, Tessa.”

She didn’t yet realize it wasn’t her team anymore. “First of all,”—he tapped his pen—“you’re in no condition to be in the field, and also, I fired you. Secondly, your team exists because of me. You report to me . I get the final say about who’s part of the Black Swan Division and who the leader is.”

Reid and Sterling tensed. Meg came out of her seat, planting her hands on his desk. “You’re kicking me off the swans? You can’t do that. It’s my concept. My idea to create this team. I’m its leader.”

It was the least he expected from her, and it was good to see her fired up again. Not that dead, hollow woman she’d been. But…he wanted her to work for it. “The USB was a test to see if you could handle being in the field again. You failed.”

She shot straight up, opened her mouth, slammed it shut.

Reid spoke up. “That’s not exactly true. We did recover the USB, sir.”

“And then disobeyed orders,” Conrad reminded him.

Meg glanced at her second, then turned shocked eyes on Conrad. “You’re kicking Dec off the team, too?”

He tossed the pen on the blotter and rocked back in his chair. “Unless the two of you can convince me otherwise, yes. Why should I allow you to stay part of this division and go after Tommy?”

Meg’s hands went to her hips, and Conrad settled in for the presentation she was about to give.

Bucharest

It wasn’t even 5 PM, but because of the storms that had been moving through the city, Tessa had to turn on lights as she listened to the argument on the other end of the phone. She wanted to hang up on them, but all she did was hit the mute button as she stared out the third-floor window of her loft.

This area of the city was busy with the end-of-day traffic that would only grow worse over the next few hours as people headed home from their jobs. Her view was only of another high-rise across the street, but she loved it anyway.

This section had once been a garment district, the businesses going bankrupt in the early 2000s and falling into disrepair for years until real estate investors came along and snatched them up. Each of the buildings had been completely overhauled, turning them into apartments and revitalizing the three-block radius into a hub of niche stores and short- and long-term rentals that attracted a younger crowd.

Her split lip had healed, and only the last remnants of her black eye were apparent. Those she covered with makeup when she went out. She’d had to use some of her vacation time initially so she didn’t have to answer awkward questions at work about her appearance, but she wasn’t into vacations anyway.

A knock sounded at her door, and she frowned. She wasn’t expecting company—hell, she never expected company.

Taking the phone with her, she checked her security camera and saw nothing—whoever was out there was staying out of sight.

She glanced through the peephole in the door, and as she did so, her visitor slid into view. She nearly dropped the phone.

She threw back the three locks on the door and yanked it open.

In the past year, Tommy Mendoza had put on muscle. His hair was longer than she remembered. He looked older than his thirty years, but those eyes… They were the same soulful brown as his sister’s.

“Tessa?” Meg’s voice came from the speaker. “Are you still there?”

“What are you doing here?” she asked Tommy, keeping her voice low even though her end was muted. “Are you all right? “

He glanced up and down the hall before meeting her eyes again. So haunted, so damaged. “Can I come in?”

A big debate raged inside her but damn it. She couldn’t turn him away.

She ushered him across the threshold, closing and locking the door behind him.

“We’ve all been looking for you,” she said.

“I know.” He scanned the loft, taking in the brick walls the investors had left for ambiance. The high ceilings that showed the duct worked. The neutral colors she preferred with a splash of brightness in the pillows and rugs. His gaze locked on a picture on her fireplace mantle. It was of her and Jessica at The Farm on the day Jessie had passed her final test.

Tessa hadn’t had a best friend since grade school. It was just how she was—she didn’t let herself get close to anyone. Bad things happened when she did.

She let herself get close to Jessie, and look what had happened to her.

She swallowed the lump of emotions that rose unbidden. “I was closer to her than my own sister,” she confessed.

He touched the frame with reverence. “She felt the same about you, you know?” He glanced at her, his hand falling to his side. She knew that look. It was the one you got when you’d been on the run for a while. When people were after you, trying to kill you. He needed a shower, a shave, and fresh clothes. Twelve straight hours of sleep and a few decent meals. “I need your help.”

“Tessa?” Meg called again. “Can you hear me?”

Everything inside Tessa reached for the kid. He was only seven years her junior, and yet, she thought of him as such.

And even though she should think of him as a brother, she couldn’t. Those eyes, that brain…

Few men had captivated her the way he had from the first time she’d met him. She’d never acted on her feelings for him out of respect for Jessie, but now…

She punched the mute button. “I need to call you back,” she told the swans and Conrad Flynn.

She disconnected and tossed the phone on the coffee table, motioning for Tommy to sit on the couch.

“You look good, T,” he said.

For a second, she couldn’t move. Couldn’t think. They’d always shortened each other’s names as a joke. ’TNT,’ Jessie had called them. ‘Two sticks of dynamite.’

Explosive. What she was about to do might take her down a dark and dangerous path. She cleared her throat and affected an outwardly calm face. “And you look like you could use a drink.”

He hesitated before removing his jacket. While he laid it on the arm of the sofa and sat, she admired how he filled out the gray shirt underneath. The way his jeans hugged his hips. “Better make it coffee. I have a long night ahead of me.”

Turning away so he couldn’t see her smile, she headed for the coffee maker behind the kitchen island. Her pulse hammered, her breath coming too fast. “Coffee it is.”

Because if Tommy was here, it looked like she was in for a long night, too.