Chapter 10

CHAPTER TEN

D errick stared at the closed door. It was probably a good thing there was a little boy sleeping in Jasmine's room. If not for Rabie, Derrick might storm in there and demand an explanation.

Which would be unacceptable, of course.

But, come on .

Her whole argument made no sense. She was unlovable because her parents had been stupid?

He obviously couldn't love her because they hadn't?

What in the world had her parents done to her to make her feel so unloved?

And what could Derrick do to prove to her how precious she was?

Could he change her mind? If he did, would she be open to him? Or was he fooling himself? Was her speech all some big, roundabout way of saying, It's not you, it's me ?

His phone rang, the trill too loud in the silence.

He snatched it off the coffee table and swiped to answer the call.

"Just got your message," Michael said. "What's up? "

Perfect. Because he'd already been in such a great mood.

"Jasmine asked me for a favor," Derrick said, "and I…probably should have said no."

"Hmm. We all know how good you are at that." Michael sounded amused.

"Yeah, well, in this case…" Derrick explained what she'd asked—and the plan they'd come up with. "We figured it'd be easy. Just meet them at the hotel, get them in the car?—"

"Wait a minute," Michael said. "Please tell me you're calling because you're having second thoughts."

"I wish."

"You're saying you did this? You're in DC? Did you get them, her friends?"

"Things didn't go exactly like we'd hoped."

"Explain."

Derrick told his brother about the botched rescue mission and the harrowing escape. "I had a feeling we might be followed, so I rented a nondescript car. I lost them in the city traffic."

There was a beat of quiet, and then Michael exploded. "Are you out of your flipping mind? What were you…?" Deep breath. "I can't believe…" Another breath. "I know exactly what happened. She batted those big eyes, and you fell all over yourself like some ridiculous smitten…flipping…kitten."

Derrick's churning frustration turned to fury. "Said the guy who disobeyed orders, flew to Iraq, and?—"

"I'm a CIA agent, Derrick. I'm trained. I'm?—"

"Why don't you write down everything I did wrong and go over it with me later? That'll be fun for both of us." He clamped his lips shut, took a breath. Started over. "Could we just get past the part where you tell me what a moron I am? Because I get it, all right? I get it."

Silence .

Derrick pushed his hair back. "Sorry. I'm not…" The last thing he needed was to alienate his brother. "This isn't your fault. This was all me."

"Yeah, well… I might have done the same thing, if Leila had asked me. At least you got out of there. Where are you now?"

"Hotel. We were going to fly out, but when we pulled up to the terminal, there was a guy at the door who looked like he might be a guard. We thought he was searching for us. In retrospect, I think we panicked. I can't imagine how they'd have known we'd be there—at the private terminal."

"Huh. I see what you mean."

"Then we thought someone followed us leaving Dulles, but again, we could have imagined that. Our Uber driver managed to lose the guy in the airport traffic."

"That also seems unlikely, if the person following was trained."

Maybe, under normal circumstances. But Kyle had been a little crazy.

"When we got to the hotel, I went through Rabie's clothes and backpack, just in case someone had stuck a tracker somewhere."

"Good thinking. Next time, go through the stuff before you get to the hotel. Or, better yet, just toss it all out the window. The backpack, anyway."

Next time? There wasn't going to be a next time . "The kid was freaked out enough. I was trying not to?—"

"Better than the alternative."

True. "The point is, I didn't find anything. And if there was a tracker, wouldn't they have come already? Wouldn't they be here?"

"Probably."

"The thing is, I planned to get both of them, the brother and the sister. But I only got the kid. I've been watching the news, and there's nothing yet, but I'm afraid there's gonna be an Amber Alert or something. I'm thinking we should just go back to the airport and fly out."

"No. Stay where you are." Michael's voice had that big-brother authority Derrick used to find annoying. Right now, he was happy to have help. "Where were you headed after you got them?"

"No idea. Basma didn't tell us where her cousin lives."

"And there's been no indication they reported anything to the police?"

"Not that I can tell. I thought you might be able to learn more."

"I'll see what I can do. Sit tight until you hear from me. We need to move you someplace safe until we figure out what to do with the kid or hear from the sister. Do you know the family's name? You said they're diplomats?"

"That's what Jazz said. Last name is Ghazi."

"Ghazi? I've heard of him. Never anything bad. What about this brother she's afraid of? What's his name?"

"Dari."

A beat, then, "Did you say Dari? Dari Ghazi?" The tone of Michael's voice, surprise mixed with worry, had Derrick's heart rate ticking up.

"Yeah?"

Michael muttered under his breath something that sounded very much like a curse word Derrick hadn't heard from him since he was a teenager.

"What is it?"

"If it's who I think it is," Michael said, "then your girlfriend's right. He's dangerous. We've been on the lookout for him."

Well, that was something. At least Derrick's big heroic deed wouldn't be for nothing. Wasn't going to get him the girl, but maybe he could save two people some grief, assuming Basma could escape.

"Put Jasmine on the phone." Michael spoke the words like a command.

Now that Derrick had calmed down, he didn't want to face her again tonight. He needed to process everything that'd happened that day, and everything she'd said.

He figured Jasmine needed that too.

"Can it wait until morning?" he asked. "She's in the other room with Rabie. She's probably already in bed."

"It's important, Derrick."

"I get that. I'm just saying…a couple of hours. We just had a…" It was stupid. They were dealing with big international issues. People's lives and futures were at stake.

What difference did Derrick's feelings make in the grand scheme of things?

"You had a what?"

"Doesn't matter. The point is, she's not my girlfriend, but I can get her up if you want me to."

"Ah. Sorry, man." The big-brother do-what-I-say voice was gone, and Derrick wasn't a fan of the pity he heard now.

"It's fine."

After a long pause, Michael said, "I have plenty to keep me busy tonight. I need to figure out what's going on with the Ghazis, see what they're doing to locate you, find out if they've alerted the police or the FBI. And I'll get you a place to hole up."

"I can fly anywhere, just?—"

"Don't go near your plane. If they are watching you, it'll lead them right to Portland, which is way too close to home."

If they saw the tail number, but how would they?

"Maybe you lost them," Michael continued. "Or maybe this is all a ruse to smoke out Leila and Jasmine's hiding place. Until we figure out where to take the kid, you need a safe house."

"That's easy," Derrick said. "We can go to Uncle Gavin's cabin. I just have to get there."

"Not a bad idea. It's off the grid, but I don't want you telling Gavin you're there."

"Uh…why?"

"Or anyone else," Michael added quickly, but Derrick had the distinct impression he hadn't meant that. He'd meant their uncle, specifically.

Which was weird, but whatever.

"I know the door code," Derrick said. "He told me I was welcome to go there anytime I was in town."

"Let me find out where he is, make sure he's not around and the place is empty. And I'll check on the rest of this stuff. Keep your phone charged and your ringer on. Get some rest, but be ready to move when I call. Where are you exactly—address and room number."

"You're not going to return Rabie to his uncle, right?"

"Of course not. Why would you even ask?"

"Jasmine's worried."

"Wow. And here I thought she trusted me, but obviously, if she went to you?—"

"She knew you wouldn't let her?—"

"She's right about that. I'm trying to keep her and Leila alive."

"I know. I should've talked to you." Derrick yanked the cushions off the sofa bed and stacked them beneath the window. He wasn't tired, but he should at least try to sleep. "I think she's afraid that, since you work for the government, you might have to turn Rabie over."

"Tell Jasmine I've got my future-brother hat on, not my CIA-agent hat. She can trust me. And so can you. "

"I never doubted it." Derrick gave his brother the address and their room number, then ended the call.

He unfolded the bed and made it with pillows and blankets he found in the closet.

He checked the locks on the door, turned off the lights, and settled between the sheets. It wasn't exactly sleep-number luxury, but he'd slept on worse.

Not that he'd be able to sleep after the longest, hardest day of his life. He'd practically kidnapped a kid, barely escaped a bunch of armed thugs, and lost his shot with the only woman he'd ever loved.

Talk about a red-letter day.