Out Of The Night (20 page)

“It is a place called Bab Sharqi, the Gate of the Sun. The stone building is two blocks east from the Umayyad Mosque. The house is light blue, two stories, with a gated balcony. The door is at street level. It’s the only one like it in that area.”

“We’ll find it.”

A.J.
and Arman were jumping aboard a helicopter and heading for the airport. They’d catch a flight back home in a matter of hours. So, it came down to Tony and Abby.

He walked over and put his arm around her. “We’ll be al
l right.”

“I’m not
as afraid as I was when the Russians were chasing us.”

“
Abby, trust me when I say this guy is much worse.”

On their way out
, Tony thanked the doctor and shook his hand before getting in the car they’d ridden in from the hotel. He ignored the bloodstains in the backseat as he pulled onto the highway.

“How far do we have to drive?”
Abby asked.

“Prepare yourself for about eight to nine hours. Most is open road with a few villages here and there. But we can stop and eat in Israel. There are some good restaurants there.”

“I hope this car makes it.”

“I’m sure it will.”

“Do you want me to drive?”

“Not in this area of the world. You never know when someone out of the blue will decide to ride up on us and ask questions. If a woman is behind the wheel
, our cover will be blown.” He looked at her. “Women over here don’t know how to drive.”

“I keep forgetting that.”

“It’s really important you remember where you’re at, or you could get us both killed.”

“I promise to be submissive.”

He laughed. “Yeah, right.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

Washington
, DC

Senator Parker stomped out of Brad’s office, while Karla took another route
, probably to meet up with the Senator.

Bea decided to follow. There wasn’t an area on this floor she wasn’t cleared to enter. Grabbing a stack of papers,
she lit out of the room and into the hallway.

Just as she exited their section, Parker and Karla slipped into a storage
room. Bea stopped and gazed up and down the empty corridor. No one stirred this late in the afternoon. At thirty-five minutes before five, most employees were wrapping up their day.

Bea inched closer. Keeping an eye on the area, she stood outside
the room. Leaning over, she propped herself against the wall.

She heard whispers and moved right up against the door.

Parker’s voice carried through the wood. “You sure you’ve fixed everything?”

“Yes,” Karla hissed. “What are you so fucking pissed about?”

“I have this goddamned reporter right up my ass.”

“That’s not new.”

“Okay, word has it Joe has escaped.”

“What the fuck!” Karla screamed. “You were going to take care of him, remember?”

“And I did everything I said I’d do and still he’s in the wind.”

“Okay, let’s not panic,” Karla assured him. “I’ll take care of Brad tonight.”

“Is the gun in your desk drawer?”

“Right where you told me
to put it.”

“Do it tonight. I want that fucker dead no matter what else goes wrong.”

“Leave it to me, sweetheart. I’ll blow his brains out and claim he tried to rape me. Anita Mitchell can vouch for how desperate he is.”

Parker laughed. “Very clever of you to talk him into going to Anita’s house to patch things up.”

“With every arrow pointed at Brad, it won’t be hard to convince Vince that Brad was a screw–up. Let’s just hope I can convince him to fuck me tonight.”

The door suddenly opened
, and Bea dropped all her papers and struggled to keep her balance. “Excuse me,” she said. With her glasses perched on the bridge of her nose, she peered over the top of them. “What are you doing in there?”

Parker stepped over and took her by the arm and dragged her toward the concrete stairway. “You
nosey old bitch. What were you doing out here? Listening?”

He
was hurting her arm. “I was merely walking by when the door opened.”

“Really, just like you weren’t at the hotel the other night
, eavesdropping on everyone? Sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong.” He pointed a finger at her. “People get killed for a lot less.” He backed her into the stairwell.

Bea grabbed a corner of the wall, but he pried her hand loose. Did he plan to shove her backwards down the stairs? She looked over her shoulder at the wide steps. The fall would surely kill her. With both his hands on her chest, Bea opened her mouth to scream when out of nowhere, Jake Taylor walked up the stairs, two at a time.

“Good afternoon, Ms. Waters,” he called out. When he reached the top of the stairs, he took her hand in his and smiled. “Would you mind coming with me to Vince’s office?”

Bea grabbed the agent’s arm and squeezed. “I’
d be delighted.” She glared at Parker through slit eyes. “I’ll see you later,
Senator
.”

She held on to Jake like a life raft. She’d come close to being murdered. Well, that was the last straw
; time to bring Colanglo up to date.

“It appears you were in a little trouble back
there, Bea.” He smiled, and Bea thought if she were thirty years younger, she’d kidnap the agent, take him home, and do all kinds of things to him.

But she wasn’t. That didn’t mean she couldn’t find a man handsome, and Jake Taylor filled that bill. Tall, handsome, and able to save a damsel in distress. What more could a woman want
…besides a tiger in bed.

“I appreciate your timely appearance. I’ve been eavesdropping and doing a little spy work lately.” She touched his arm. “I think it’s time I let the boss know what’s going on.”

She turned to leave, but Jake said, “I’ll be right there. I have a little business with Brad Hall. I’ll catch you in Vince’s office.”

“Okay.”

***

Frank had sent Jake to take care of some personal business and that came first. He didn’t bother to knock on Hall’s office door. He simply walked in and closed the blinds.

Hall jumped from his chair, but Jake shoved him back down. “What’s the meaning of this?”

Jake spun the leather chair to face him, his knees bracketed by Hall’s legs. “Before I leave, you and I are going to come to an understanding. If I go and later learn you’ve gone behind my back and done exactly what I’m about to warn you not to do, I’ll kill you in a slow, unmerciful, and painful way.”

Sweat popped out on Hall’s forehead and he licked his lips. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Jake emptied the drawers, flinging things on the floor
. Then he checked everything on the desk. He reached in Brad’s shirt pocket and took his smartphone.

“I demand an explanation before I have your ass tossed out of this building
,” Brad shouted.

Jake grabbed him by the collar, yanked him out of the chair, and threw Brad against the glass wall, crumpling the window blinds. Terrified, Brad’s eyes fully engaged with his. A thread of disgust turned Jake’s stomach.

Brad looked at the mess surround him. “Have you lost your damn mind?”

“Not yet.”
Jake cocked his right hand and slammed his fist, with two hundred and twenty pounds behind it, into Brad’s face.

The CIA operative fell like a skydiver without a parachute. Jake squatted next to the bleeding man, who would need a nose job if he ever wanted to be presentable to the ladies again.

“Listen up, Hall. You go anywhere near Anita Mitchell or show any videos or pictures of past transgressions, and I’ll hunt your ass down like a rabid dog. When I find you, and I will, your life won’t be worth shit.”

Jake stood while Hall struggled to sit. “I mean what I say. Stay clear or you’re a dead man.” He turned to leave. “By the way, those are Frank Hamilton’s words.”
He threw Brad’s smartphone on the floor and stomped it.

Jake entered Vince Colanglo’s office. Bea was already seated across from Vince’s desk. He walked over and the men shook hands. Jake had been the agent sent to recapture Vince’s young daughter when a bunch of Serbs went rogue
a few years back and kidnapped her. Thankfully, Falcon managed to get her home safe and unharmed.

“I’m glad to see you. What have you heard about Joe Mitchell?”
Vince asked.

“Tony is doing all he can to wrap up that case.”
Jake looked at Bea. He liked her, but not enough to say too much in front of a civilian.

Vince nodded his understanding,

“As I was telling you,” Bea said, wringing her hands. “I think if Jake hadn’t come when he did, I’d be at the bottom of the stairwell.”

“I’ll back that up,” Jake said. “Parker had her heels right on the edge of the step. One little push and she’d have taken a tumble.”

“I always knew Parker was up to no good. And if that son of a bitch thinks he can come in here and push my people around, he’s out of his mind.”

Bea sat on the edge of her seat. “But what about Brad? They plan to kill him tonight.”

“Where did Karla say she had the gun hidden?”

Damascus

Youssef paced one of his many homes in the southern part of Damascus. His rage held no bounds. If he ever got his hands on Hussein, he’d kill him and his whole family. How could a man be so stupid? To let such a priceless object slip between his fingers made the man a fool in
Youssef’s opinion.

Also, a dead man. Ali and Faraj had rounded up several men and
were on the hunt to find Mitchell. Without him, Youssef’s whole plan would fall apart. The bargaining chip was gone. He had nothing to throw in Falcon’s face, to taunt and mock their stupidity.

Ali rushed into the room
, giving Youssef hope. “Have you found him?”

“No, but we did find Hussein.”

“Bring him to me.”

Faraj flung the traitor
on the floor. He sprawled at Youssef’s feet. Out of anger, Youssef kicked him in the face and stomped on his head.

Hussein rolled over and held up his hands. “What do you want? I’ve don
e nothing wrong.”

Youssef leaned closer. “You let the American slip away.”

“No, no, I did not.”

“He’s gone.”

“My wife and I took care of the American for weeks. We fed him and kept him from escaping.”

“Then why can’t we find him?”

Hussein coughed and licked his bloody lips. “I don’t know. Nadir came and told us to leave and go to my wife’s family in case the Americans later found out we were involved.”

“When you left was the prisoner alive?”

Hussein crawled up to his knees and palmed his hands together. “Oh, yes. Very much so.” He looked around. “What has happened?”

“Nadir is dead and the American gone.”

Tears filled Hussein’s eyes. “No, no, it can’t be true. My cousin is dead. How?”

“The American.”

“I swear to Allah. When my wife and I left, everything was fine. I have done what was asked of me. Now, you punish me because of something that happened while I wasn’t there?”

Youssef flinched. He’d assumed Hussein had been the traitor. Perhaps Joe Mitchell
was
much stronger and cunning than he’d first thought. Nadir wasn’t a foolish or careless man. No, he would have killed the prisoner himself if Youssef hadn’t forbidden it.

Perhaps Hussein told the truth and somehow it had happened as he
’d explained. He had been easy to find, staying at his wife’s family home.

“Get out.”

Hussein didn’t wait for him to repeat the order. Instead, he stood and swiftly walked out the door.

Faraj stepped closer. “You do
n’t think he’s guilty of releasing the prisoner?”

“You said he was at his relatives.”

“Yes, he was. They were sitting at the table having tea.”

“That is not the actions of a man afraid he’d done something wrong.”

“It is if he’s very clever.”

Youssef
eyed Faraj with a hard calculating glare. “Have him followed. He does anything out of the ordinary, kill him.”

Faraj’s lips pulled back in an animal
istic snarl. “I have already done that.”

“So, you think he
’s lying?”

“I think everyone lies.”

“You have no trust, Faraj.”

“That is true, but few deceive me for my first instinct is to react violently.” He pulled the long bladed knife from his belt. “I am always amazed at what a man will say when a knife is pressed against his throat.”

“Like I said, let’s watch him and see what happens.”

Faraj left and Youssef wondered if he’d made a mistake letting Hussein go. Maybe he’d been too soft to see the truth. But surely
, if Hussein’s cousin had been killed and he knew about it, wouldn’t he at least bury his own relative?

Not if his carelessness had caused Nadir’s
death. Youssef would deal with Hussein harshly once Mitchell had been captured. For today, he needed to get his hands on the prisoner before it was too late.

Suddenly
, the door slammed open. Youssef turned to see Ali had Joe Mitchell with a rope tied around his neck. Now the fun would begin.