Finding North (14 page)

“
And the explosion,” White
Boy said.

“
I thought, ‘We should go
take a look. Maybe there’s someone who needs our help’ — and what
do we find?” Trece nodded.

“
I didn’t want to,” White
Boy said.

“
You’re going to have to
talk to our new
boss
, Alex,” Trece said. “He’ll be pissed that we’re not doing
the training.”

“
But we had to get you!”
White Boy said. “I mean — it’s Alex! And Raz! And that guy we
rescued from the pirates a couple years ago — how you doin’,
man?”

“
Wet,” the young police
officer said.

“
And some other guy,”
Trece said. “Who are you?”

“
Detective Zeno,” Dex
said. “NYPD.”

“
You’re Rasmussen’s old
partner,” Trece said.

“
I’m what?” Dex
said.

“
I saw that SUV hit the
cruiser and I thought, ‘Look — someone has pissed off somebody like
Alex always does,’” Trece said. “Then, wham! It
is
Alex!”

White Boy dropped an
emergency blanket over Dex’s shoulders before giving a blanket to
Raz. Trece was wrapping Alex up in blankets.

“
I’m Chris, but everyone
calls me ‘White Boy,’” he said. “That’s Trece.”

“
You could have drowned!”
Trece knocked Alex’s shoulder. “If we didn’t see
Jesse . . .”

“
You saw Jesse?” White Boy
asked.

“
Didn’t you?” Trece looked
at White Boy.

“
Well, sure,
but . . .” White Boy started.

“
Who
are
you people?” Dex
asked.

“
They’re the Fey Team,”
the ex-Navy SEAL said.

“
The what?” Dex
asked.

“
We have some catching up
to do,” Raz said.

FFFFFF

Monday night

May 16 — 8:10 p.m. MDT
(10:10 p.m. EDT)

Denver,
Colorado

Warm and wobbly from her
time with Samantha, Erin let herself into the kitchen of her home.
She had cried her eyes out and drank an entire half of a glass of
red wine by herself. Now, all she wanted was a bath and her warm
bed. She’d waited until after Matthew usually went to bed before
coming home. She positively could not deal with any more drama
tonight.

Hearing movement in the
house, Erin said, “Hello?”

“
There you are!” Rebecca
came into the kitchen from the dining room. “Just in
time.”

“
Mom,” Erin said. “I’ve
had a horrible day. I’d really like
to . . .”

“
Sure,” Rebecca said. “Do
you have a minute to look at something?”

Erin nodded. Rebecca put
her arm around Erin’s shoulder and led her into the dining room.
The dining room and living room had been transformed. Their worn,
second-hand furniture was gone. Enormous bouquets of yellow roses,
Erin’s favorite, sat in silver urns on either side of the doorway
between the rooms. White rose petals lay on the floor, and a
garland of white roses surrounded the archway. A few short rows of
chairs were set up on the end of the room near the front
door.

“
Wh . . .
what’s this?” Erin asked.

“
I was told that you said,
‘The sooner, the better’?” Nancy Walter, Joseph’s wife and the
unofficial leader of the “Fey wives,” came in from the entryway
carrying an armload of roses. “This is what you asked for,
right?”

“
Can’t expect a man to
delay.” The voice of Fey Special Forces Team member Dwight Harris’s
grandmother, Mrs. Harris, came from a corner of the room. She
turned toward Erin, and her dark face appeared among the roses. The
elderly woman was wearing all white and was so tiny that Erin
hadn’t seen her among the roses. “What do you think?”

“
What is it?” Erin blurted
out. The women laughed.

“
You’re getting married
tonight,” Rebecca said.

“
I’m . . .
what?” Erin asked.

“
You had a conversation
with Captain Matthew tonight,” Mrs. Harris said. “He told Max, and
John called us.”

“
We’re all here,”
Jennifer, wife of Fey Special Forces Team Member Dean Kearney,
said.

Colin’s wife, Julie,
leaned her head in from the entryway and waved.

“
But, who has the kids?”
Erin asked. Her voice rose with concern, “Where’s my daughter?
Where’s Grace?”

“
You remember Paige’s
daughter, Beth? She and MJ’s sister, Bonnie, are with them at the
rooming house,” Jennifer said. “We’re staying there
tonight.”

“
But . . .”
Erin looked from the perfect white and yellow rose candle piece on
the mantle to the big white bows on the chairs.
“But . . .”

The women fell silent.
Erin’s mouth opened and closed a few times.

“
What am I going to wear?”
Erin blushed bright red. She looked like the very young woman that
she was. “I don’t have . . . I
mean . . .”

“
You’d better get up here,
then,” Quanshay, Chief Petty Officer Royce Tubman’s wife, said as
she came down the stairs.

“
I’d
better . . .” Erin squinted. “What?”

“
We have a few dresses for
you,” Rebecca said. “I took the liberty of bringing mine. Sami
called her friend Val, who dropped off a couple of her designer
dresses.”

“
But I’m not as tiny as
Val or you,” Erin said. “I can’t sew. You don’t sew,
either.”

“
We still have time for me
to make you something if we have to,” Quanshay said. “But you have
to get up here.”

“
What
about . . .?” Erin pulled on her long red
hair.

“
Shower at 10:30. Hair and
make-up at 11:15. I made a schedule.” Nancy held up her
phone.

The other women got out
their smartphones to show that they had the same schedule. MJ and
his younger brother, Kenny, came through the front door carrying a
tulle-and-flower covered arch.

“
Wedding’s at midnight,”
Mrs. Harris said. “We have time to finish up here, get dressed
ourselves, and, then, it’s show time.”

“
But . . .”
Erin started.

“
The guys have everything
else,” Rebecca said. “They even got the license.”

“
Matthew?” Erin said his
name as if it had just occurred to her. “He’s not here?”

“
He’s not here,” Jennifer
said. “He and the guys are busy with cake and rings
and . . .”

“
Honeymoon!” Mrs. Harris
said.

The women gave Erin a
bright smile. Samantha came in the back door.

“
Oh Sami, I’m glad you’re
here,” Rebecca said. They moved into the dining room. “You can help
me with . . .”

Erin’s mouth dropped open.
Clearly, Samantha knew all about this and had never said a
word.

“
Come on,” Quanshay said.
“Let’s see what you’re going to wear.”

Erin stared at the woman.
Smiling, Quanshay took Erin’s arm and led her upstairs.

F

Chapter
Eleven

May 16 — 10:51 p.m. EDT
(8:51 p.m. MDT)

The Warehouse
Apartments
New York City, New York

“
Can you do me a favor?”
Orchid asked on the elevator ride up to their apartment. She’d been
acting like a cross between a babysitter and older sister since
picking them up at the New York Police Department.

“
Sure,” Alex
said.

“
Can you just do what
you’re told?” Orchid asked. “You have no idea how much trouble
you’ve caused!”

“
You know, the SUV ran
into
them
,” Colin
said.

Orchid gave him a dark
look.

“
We promise to stay in for
the rest of the night,” Alex said.

“
I know you’re used to
doing your own thing, but this isn’t nowhere-ville Colorado. This
is New York City!” Orchid continued. “We don’t have shootouts or
police cruisers falling into the river
or . . .”

“
As inconvenient as this
might be for you, they
did
try to kill us,” Alex said.

“
If you had
stayed in
your
apartment, they wouldn’t have had a chance,” Orchid
sniffed.

Alex crossed her eyes and
glanced at Colin. He smirked.

“
Where is Agent
Rasmussen?” Orchid asked.

“
Attending to a matter of
importance,” Alex said.

“
He is supposed to be with
you!” Orchid’s voice rose with anxiety. “He’s not supposed to leave
you. What could he possibly be doing?”

The elevator reached their
floor, and they got out. Rather than risk being heard in the
hallway, Orchid waited until they were in the apartment to continue
to scold them.

“
Where is Agent
Rasmussen?” Orchid asked.

“
You do realize that I am
a senior agent, don’t you?” Alex said.

“
Answer the question,”
Orchid said.

“
Whatever he’s doing is
not any of your business and happens to be beyond your
jurisdiction.”

“
How do you know?” Orchid
asked.

“
Because I sent him,” Alex
said. “You have no authority to question my actions or
orders.”

Orchid flushed bright red.
Rather than respond, she turned in place and left the
apartment.

“
Thanks for the ride!”
Colin said into the hallway.

Orchid turned to look at
him, and he closed the door to the apartment. Alex went to one of
the cameras in the apartment.

“
I’m tired, waterlogged,
and sick of being watched,” Alex said into the camera.
“Bye.”

She waved at the camera
and clicked the button on her electronics disabler. They checked to
make certain every camera was turned off.

“
You know they’re still
listening,” Colin said.

“
Through the electrical
outlets,” Alex said. “I know. We’re not doing anything secret. I’m
just tired of being watched.”

Colin smiled.

“
Are you all right after
being hit?” Colin asked. “We didn’t get you checked out at the
hospital.”

“
A little sore,” Alex
said. “But okay. You should check Raz when he gets in.”

“
Will do,” Colin said.
“I’m glad you’re all right.”

“
Oh, yeah?” Alex
smiled.

“
You promised to help me
with my dancing,” Colin said. “I’ve been practicing, but I can’t
seem to get any better.”

As Ben had insisted for
her, Alex had insisted that Colin needed to learn a series of
old-world skills to be an agent. He’d easily learned to set a
table, cook a gourmet meal, and carry on a pleasant conversation
with almost anyone in the world. But at six foot, five inches,
Colin had the natural grace of an ox. He was struggling with
learning to ballroom dance. While it seemed like a small thing,
Alex’s ability to dance had brought her into close contact with
people she needed to speak with privately. Colin needed to learn to
dance.

“
How ’bout if we shower
first?” Alex asked.

“
How ’bout if I call home
while you shower?” Colin asked. “I didn’t take a dip in the river
tonight.”

“
Deal,” Alex said and went
into the room she was sharing with Raz.

“
I’m keeping track of the
time,” Colin yelled.

Alex slipped off her
clothing and got into the shower. If she’d had her way, she would
have stayed under the warm spigot for the rest of the night.
Instead, she showered quickly and dressed in a pair of soft pajamas
and four-inch heels. Colin was waiting for her in the living area.
He turned on the music, and she stepped up to him.

They started dancing a
slow international Rumba. Colin led with swift
movements.

“
Just relax,” Alex said.
“Let your legs hold you.”

Colin made an effort, but
his steps were choppy.

“
Remember when we were
kids and Steve had us walk on the rice paper?” Alex
asked.

“
God, that was hard,”
Colin said.

The choppy motion of his
dance eased as he relaxed.

“
Yeah,” Alex said.
“Everything Steve had us do was hard.”

“
I can’t imagine asking
Paddie to do half of it,” Colin snorted.

“
He’s not you,” Alex said.
“What if this floor had rice paper on it, and you wanted to slide
across the floor? How would you move?”

Colin began to move his
feet across the floor, and she followed.

“
Nice,” Alex
said.

“
How did it go with Dad?”
Colin asked. His voice was low, so that only she could hear. This
was part of the dancing skill training.

“
Hard,” Alex
said.