Freefall (19 page)

“Yeah, just tell me which saddle you want on what horse,” Brent said as he followed her through the stable and into the tack room.

Amy pointed at a western saddle. “You can put that one on the palomino. She's in the second stall.”

Rather than reach for the saddle, Brent just stared at her. “You know, I don't know if I'll get a chance to be alone with you again today.”

Amy smiled slowly, turning toward him. Just as Brent moved closer, Jim's voice echoed through the stable.

“Hey, Amy. Can you hand me a lead rope?”

Brent let his head drop, fighting back a combination of frustration and laughter. He reached up and grabbed a lead rope that was hanging on the wall. Turning, he stepped out of the tack room and held it out to Jim. “Here you are, sir.”

“Thanks.” Jim was dressed in jeans and a plain T-shirt, but he still carried an air of authority.

Brent turned back and picked up the saddle Amy had indicated along with another lead rope. By the time Katherine arrived, they had finished saddling up four of the horses. Katherine divvied up portions of their lunch to be put into saddlebags and then led her horse outside to mount.

They started off at an easy pace, Brent and Amy both appreciating the ease of riding with a saddle and bridle rather than just makeshift harnesses. The day was warm, broken up by an occasional breeze. The trail narrowed in places, forcing them to ride single file. Finally they arrived at a clearing across from the falls. Water cascaded down the rock face, the sound a distant rumble.

Jim spread out a blanket for them to sit on, and Katherine started setting out food. When they all settled down, the conversation flowed easier than Brent had expected. Jim was even cordial, making him wonder if Katherine had warned him to behave or if he was finally warming up to him.

When the conversation turned to his profession, Brent concluded that the politician was just setting him up.

“Is your father in the military, Brent?” Jim asked casually.

Brent reminded himself to stay at ease and took a sip of water before answering. “No, he worked for a government contractor in DC before he retired last year.”

“What made you decide to join the Navy then?” Jim persisted.

“My mom, actually.”

“Your mom was in the military?” Amy asked now.

“No, the CIA.” Brent leaned back, a little more willing to share information now that Amy was asking the question. “She quit working before I was born, but I got a glimpse of the kind of work she did when I was a teenager. It made me decide I wanted to be part of protecting the freedoms we enjoy in this country.”

“You are in a very honorable profession,” Katherine stated before her husband could continue his interrogation. “I'm sure your parents are very proud of you.”

“Most of the time.” Brent shrugged. “Although I think I'm still in the doghouse with Mom since I mowed down her garden last month.”

Amy laughed, trying to imagine him doing something as simple as mowing his parents' lawn. “I hope she didn't have much planted.”

“The chives took the worst of it.” Brent bit into one of the finger sandwiches Katherine had packed and nearly managed to hide the spark of mischief in his eyes. “The good news is that my nephew gets to do lawn duty from now on. It will make a good summer job for him.”

“How old is he?” Katherine asked.

“Twelve.” Brent grinned. “He's been trying to start his own lawn mowing business so he can start saving up for his mission and college.”

Amy studied Brent for a moment before asking. “Does he know that you mowed down your mom's garden on purpose?”

“It was his idea,” Brent admitted, the words coming out of his mouth before he realized Amy had seen through him.

Amy threw him a line before he sank any deeper. “So you were just being a supportive uncle.”

“Something like that.” Brent turned from Amy and spoke to her mother. “Sister Whitmore, these sandwiches are wonderful.”

“Thank you, Brent.” Katherine gave him the gift of a genuine smile and then stood up. She turned to her husband. “I think I'm going to take a little walk. Jim, why don't you come with me?”

Jim hesitated for a second before standing and taking his wife's hand. “I'd love to.”

“We'll be back in a few minutes,” Katherine said casually as they started toward a wide path through the trees.

Brent waited until they were out of sight before he leaned toward Amy, lowering his voice. “I can't believe your dad left us alone.”

Amy grinned. “Maybe he's decided to like you after all.”

“Oh, I doubt that.” Brent shook his head as he reached for her hand. “He just knows that if he says you can't go out with me, you'll do it anyway just to spite him.”

Amy laughed, lacing her fingers with his. “What makes you say that?”

“Let's just say I'm a trained observer. I don't think you like to be told what to do, and your father knows it.” He skimmed his thumb over hers. “The last thing he wants right now is for you to decide to keep me around.”

Amy's eyes met his, confusion and hope shining from them. For a fleeting moment she wished she had the nerve to ask him if he wanted her to keep him around.

Oblivious to Amy's insecurities, Brent changed the subject. “What time do you have church tomorrow?”

“I'm not even sure,” Amy admitted. “I've been debating which ward to go to. If I go to my parents' ward I'm going to be smothered by people asking me if I'm okay, but I'm not sure the singles ward would be much better.”

“There's a singles branch that meets down in Fredericksburg. We don't meet until three in the afternoon, but if you want, I'd be happy to come pick you up.” Brent lowered his voice. “I don't think many people down there know you.”

Amy nodded. “Let's hope.” A beeping noise startled her, and she watched as Brent pulled his cell phone from his pocket. “Is everything okay?”

“It's probably nothing,” Brent said as he accessed the flash message. His eyes widened as he read through the information sent to him by Admiral Mantiquez's office. He quickly stood and extended a hand to Amy. “We need to find your parents.”

“What's wrong?”

“Two of the other hostages from Abolstan were just killed.”

“What?” Amy's jaw dropped at the startling news. “How?

“I'll tell you in a minute. First we need to find your parents.”

Brent didn't mince words when he found the senator and Katherine standing on top of a ridge looking out over Great Falls. “Senator Whitmore, what kind of security system do you have at your house?”

“What?” Jim looked at him, confused. “Why?”

“It's important, sir.”

Impatiently, Amy answered for him. “It's an enhanced system in the house, installed by the government when CJ was in Witness Protection. There's also a secondary system on the perimeter of the property.”

“Infrared beams?”

Amy nodded. “We keep the system on in the house any time we leave, but we only use the perimeter alarms at night.”

Jim folded his arms across his chest. “Would someone please tell me what's going on?”

“Two of the other hostages were just killed. We have to eliminate the possibility that the remaining five hostages could also be targets.”

“What would someone gain by killing me or the others?” Amy asked, dumbfounded.

“I don't know.” Brent shrugged. “But we have to make sure you're protected until we can check it out.”

Jim pulled out his cell phone. “I'll call and have Secret Service send over a couple of agents. They can check out the house before we get back.”

“I would rather you waited on that for a little while.”

“Why?” Jim asked, surprised.

“The easiest way to get past your security system would be to send in someone disguised as Secret Service. Someone intercepts a phone call and shows up a couple minutes later. By the time the real agents show up, it's too late.” Brent looked over at Amy. He tried to think of her as just another assignment but failed completely. He couldn't let anything happen to her. A plan forming in his mind,
he turned back to Jim. “I have an idea, but I need your complete cooperation.”

The muscle in Jim's jaw twitched with irritation. “I will do whatever is necessary to protect my family.”

Brent kept his eyes on Jim's. “That's what I needed to know.”

* * *

“I still don't understand why you think I'm in danger,” Amy said as Brent led her to a picnic table in the park next to Great Falls. After Brent made several phone calls, they had ridden to the picnic area near the road. A few yards away, Jim and Katherine were tying up the horses.

Brent continued to scan the area, his gaze finally landing on the nearby parking lot. “The first victim was shot leaving the hospital. A few minutes later the second victim received a phone call telling him about the incident, and he called the police for protection. When the police arrived, he was already dead.”

“You think someone showed up pretending to be the police and killed him?”

“There's a reason Trojan horses work, and it wouldn't be the first time someone used this approach.”

“But why come after any of us in the first place?”

“Retribution, probably.” Brent shrugged, glancing at her for a moment before turning his eyes back to the road. “It hasn't been confirmed, but we think that one of the men killed during the rescue attempt was Namir Dagan's brother. In fact, it was one of your sketches that caught someone's attention at the CIA. They believe one of the confirmed dead was Lieb Dagan.”

“This just seems so farfetched.” Amy shook her head in disbelief as two cars approached.

Brent stood, shielding Amy from the road. Jim and Katherine came to stand beside Amy. Brent turned and said to Jim, “Keep them here. I'll be right back.”

Brent moved forward and shook hands with the six men who emerged from the cars. A few minutes later, he returned with four of the men and introduced them as Secret Service.

“These men will stay with you here while we flush out any problems at your house.”

Jim looked at him, confused. “I don't understand. I thought you said you didn't want me to call Secret Service yet.”

“I contacted them through secure channels. When they tell you, I want you to make a call to Secret Service as though you just found out about the two hostages. If anyone is out there waiting to impersonate them, we'll know it within a few minutes.”

Jim nodded, understanding dawning. “Just let me know when.”

Brent glanced at Amy before speaking to her protectors. “Keep them safe.”

The men nodded and set about deploying their manpower to do just that.

* * *

Leaves rustled in the summer breeze. A bird chirped in the distance. The sound of children laughing rang out down the street along with the noise of a passing car. A man walking a German shepherd passed by on the sidewalk in front of the Whitmore home, glancing for a moment at the quiet surroundings.

Brent peered through the shrub he was hiding behind, listening for any sound that didn't belong. He saw a shadow move in front of the living room window, a shadow he knew to be Tristan giving the appearance that there was someone home. The whole team had arrived within an hour of receiving Brent's call.

From his perch in the top of an oak tree, Kel watched the traffic on the street, occasionally glancing over at the front of the house. He watched two cars drive by. He checked his watch and shook his head. Nearly five minutes had passed since the senator had made the phone call to the Secret Service. If something didn't happen within the next ten minutes, they likely had made the trip to the Whitmores' home for nothing.

A plain black sedan approached on the street, slowing as it neared the Whitmores' driveway. “I've got something,” Kel said into the mike on his earpiece. He looked through his binoculars and counted two inside the car. “Two confirmed in the car.”

Seth's voice came over the line a moment later. “We've got confirmation that Secret Service did not send anyone else out.”

Silence hung in the air once more as the car slowly pulled into the driveway. The curtain moved inside as Tristan played his part. A moment later, two men stepped out of the car, one with jet-black hair and the other blond. Both were dressed in the dark suits common to Secret Service agents. They even had the subtle bulges beneath their jackets and the earpieces for communication. Slowly they scanned the area before the dark-haired man moved to the front door. The other man stayed by the car, his eyes sweeping the yard.

The man by the door rang the bell. He waited patiently while Tristan peeked out from behind the curtains once more, and then his footsteps sounded in the entryway. As the door creaked open, the man moved for his inside pocket as though reaching for identification. The movement stopped immediately when he looked up to see Tristan holding a pistol to his forehead.

In the same instant, Seth moved forward with his weapon also trained on the man by the door as Brent and Quinn emerged from opposite sides of the yard, weapons aimed at the blond man standing by the car.

The man by the door found his voice first. “What's the meaning of this? Senator Whitmore sent for us.”

“I don't think so,” Tristan drawled as Seth reached into the man's pocket and pulled out a semiautomatic pistol.

Seth shook his head as though scolding a naughty child. “That doesn't look like identification to me.”

Seth and Tristan secured the first suspect as Quinn apprehended the second, shoving him against the car while instructing him to assume the position to be searched. Brent kept his weapon trained on the blond as he moved forward to look into the back seat of the car. He saw the figure crouched down in the back seat, gun in hand, just in time to jump out of the way. Brent dove for the ground as he shouted, “Gun!”