Patriots Betrayed (27 page)

Without a word, Carla turned around and drove back onto the main road to continue on, putting miles behind them.

“You know,” Raylan said, “I’m rethinking the idea of going after Janowski. Looking at the odds tells me we have a better chance if we run and hide than if we try to kill him. He’s using himself as bait to draw us in.”

She looked over at him and smiled. “Yeah. With all the new and different mistakes out there waiting to be made, why keep repeating the same ones?”

He laughed. “Well, once Janowski’s dead, this death hunt is over. Unless…”

“What?” In the dim glow from the dash instrument lights, she searched his face for any sign of what he had on his mind.

“It’s strange that the police suddenly stopped hunting us, but there’s no word about the CIA not wanting us anymore.”

Carla blinked. “No word, but we haven’t been bothered by company killers in a while.”

“We haven’t had any trouble from the company since the cops stopped hunting us.” Raylan rubbed his face. “President Riley. He’s playing games. Riley and maybe the acting Director and who knows who else. Perhaps Homeland Security and National Intelligence.” He shook his head. “No. It’s Riley who needs to clean up a steaming mess he’s made. Janowski is part of that mess.”

“What to do,” Carla said. “That’s the question.”

“Yeah. Should we do Riley’s dirty work? And if we do, what do we get for a prize? Does Riley call off the dogs for good or sic them on us again?”

Chapter 20

President Riley stood in the Oval Office and greeted Trey as if he were a long-lost son, giving him a firm hug. “I’m so happy you’re safe. How are Abigail and the children?”

Trey didn’t fall for what he considered to be a show for his benefit. “They’re all well.”

“Good to hear. Have a seat. We need to talk about what James did.” Riley sat on a chair in front of him. “I want you to know James acted on his own. I knew nothing about his plan to have you killed until you disappeared. That day. The day he stabbed me. I asked him if he had any idea where you were. Well, his response didn’t satisfy me, so I pressed him for the truth, and as he kept eluding the question, I became more and more suspicious. Finally, I told him I was calling a Secret Service agent in to have him arrested.” He touched his chest. “Dulling went nuts. I had no choice. I fired in self-defense.” He grew misty-eyed.

Trey looked on, not displaying any clue as to whether he believed Riley or not.

Riley continued. “After all of that, I thought James must have had you killed. Still, I instructed the DOJ, CIA – everyone – to search for you and your family.” His face washed over in glee. “You can imagine my relief when I learned you’re alive and well.”

“So,” Trey said, “I’m to go back to work as if nothing happened?”

Riley didn’t need to think over his answer. He had rehearsed this moment countless times, predicting all possible questions. “In a way yes.” He slid to the edge of his seat, moving closer. “But I have not been doing my job as usual.”

“What does that mean?”

“I’m cleaning up James’s mess.”

“It wasn’t just Dulling,” Trey said, in a flat tone.

“First things first.”

Trey stared impassively at Riley. “I see. What about the two CIA spooks?” he asked, leaving the big question for later.

“The wants and warrants have all been canceled. They’re home free.”

“They don’t know that.”

“They will.” Riley sat up straight. “Announcements informing the public and therefore them, about the police no longer searching for them have been made, and they will figure out soon enough that the CIA is out of the picture too.” He raised a shoulder dismissively. “They’re both pros; they’ll get the message soon enough.”

“I still don’t think you’re telling me the whole story with those two.”

“I’m not hiding anything,” Riley said. “There
is
Janowski, though. He wants Maddox dead for killing his son. You may have read in the papers about those two ex-agents slaughtering many powerful men in the international crime syndicates.” He raised an eyebrow. “That certainly made a lot of enemies for them.”

“Let me guess,” Trey said. “You’re using the two spooks to kill off Dulling’s business partners.”

“No. They did that on their own. But they made a mistake when they didn’t get Janowski. You remember Janowski, the slave-selling bastard in Russia?”

Trey nodded grimly. “Of course, nearly being killed and going into hiding with my family hasn’t caused me to lose my memory. He was one of Dulling’s darlings.”

Riley didn’t flinch. “Was. Anyway, Maddox knows he wants him, so Maddox, being the proactive type, is after Janowski. Baylor, well, she seems to be with Maddox.” Riley tried to read Trey’s face as he talked. “And she seems to be the kind of woman you want on your side.”

Trey stared back, trying to read Riley as Riley tried to read him. “I think this country owes them both an announcement that they are free of all charges and can go live their lives.”

“We’ve already covered that.” Riley seemed to be confused. “And as I said, they
are
free of all charges.”

“I will not hold anything over your head, Mr. President,” Trey said, in a solemn voice. “What I have learned through the course of my employment with the NSC and my relationship with you, I will take with me to the grave. But I
will
make my objections known to you whenever I feel obligated by my conscience to do so. I will repeat that I feel you should announce that you have called off the CIA dogs and that those two are free to live their lives. Using them to kill Janowski is wrong. The U.S. Government has plenty of trained killers under its employ to do the job. There’s no need to get a freebie from two retired agents.”

Riley recoiled. “Wow. You’re really putting on airs, aren’t you?”

“Call me an uppity nigger if you want, Mr. President, but my objection still stands.”

Riley’s jaw dropped. “You have me confused with James. I’ve never had that kind of mind-set with you or any other minority.”

Trey hadn’t taken his eyes off Riley. “I believe you. Unfortunately, there’s that other problem; the big one: Mita Agenziano.”

Riley didn’t seem in the least surprised Trey had brought her up. “I was going to get around to that. But first let’s finish with the two ex-agents…”

~~~

Carla pulled into the nearly empty parking lot of an open-all-night department store. Dawn proclaimed the birth of a new day with brilliant colors splashed across the eastern sky. They stopped off there to buy more duffel bags to keep their weapons hidden from public view and to grab a newspaper. They needed the classifieds to search for another vehicle. The stolen Jeep was an invitation to be pulled over by police.

Raylan stepped out and leaned in before closing the door. “You want me to get something for you? They have subs in the deli. At least it’ll stop the hunger pangs.”

She shook her head. “No time to eat. We need to get this stuff in bags and out of sight and then dump this hot Jeep ASAP.”

He nodded in agreement and walked away at a fast clip.

~~~

It turned out they didn’t need the classifieds. Raylan had his head buried in the papers, searching for a vehicle to purchase when Carla pulled off the road and parked in front of a motor home that had a for sale sign on the windshield. “Have you made up your mind?” she asked.

Raylan looked up at her, his face a question mark. “Huh?”

She stared back at him, her mood serious. “I’m with you either way. Are we going to fight or run?”

He slid closer and kissed her. “Our chances are at least a little better if we run. Maybe a lot better.”

“And?”

“I’m tired, Carla. I’m tired of worrying about you. Janowski isn’t your fight, and I have no right to drag you into this shit. If the world wants to let trash like Janowski exist, why is it our job to take him out? His killers may find us in the end, but you and I both know that our luck is going to run out if we keep getting into gunfights like we have lately. I think it’s time to go back to running and hiding.”

“Just leave me out of the equation, and I’ll accept your decision either way.”

He touched her face. “That’s impossible. You
are
part of this, part of me.” He sighed and looked out the window. “A cold calculation of the facts…” He noticed the motor home for the first time. “So that’s what’s on your mind.” He nodded. “We can try that. See parts of the country we’ve never seen. The company doesn’t seem to be after us anymore and the law has been called off. We can stay at RV parks a night or two here and there, but most nights we’ll have to spend in a park or forest out of sight. Might be able to find someone willing to rent us a parking space and utilities hookup on their land. We get tired of that, we can sell the motor home and do something else. Sooner or later, though, I’ll have to find a job.”

“Sooner or later our past will catch up with us again,” she added. “But until then, I would rather spend that time with you.” She wiped her face. “We’re not likely to grow old. We’ve made too many enemies. Powerful men on both sides of the law hate us. The American people have been told we’re traitors.”

He put his arm around her shoulders. “Riley wants us to take out Janowski, that’s obvious. So if we stop hunting him, will Riley sic the company on us again? The law?”

Her chest swelled, and she looked away. “How are we to know what’s on the mind of a man who would have his pregnant lover killed? We can go insane trying to read him. All I know is I’m tired of being the tool of criminals in powerful positions. Yes, Janowski’s a piece of shit that needs killing, but if the president, those at the top of the company, or anyone else wants him dead, let them get their own hands bloody. We both left the CIA a long time ago and owe them and this country nothing.”

An elderly man stepped out of the modest home the RV was parked in front of and approached them with a smile.

Raylan opened his side window. “Hi. We would like to take a look at the RV.”

The motor home was well-used but not abused, and the old man had receipts showing that all of the mechanicals had only seven thousand miles since a complete rebuild, including the engine and entire drive train.

They came to an agreeable price and Raylan asked, “Will you take Federal Reserve Notes?”

The elder gentleman looked confused for a second and then laughed. “Of course I’ll take cash.”

Carla followed in the Jeep until they came to a desolate stretch of country road. There, they transferred all of the gear to the RV and left the Jeep parked in thick woods out of sight.

“Where to?” Raylan asked.

She smiled and pointed down the road.

~~~

A week later, Janowski sat by his pool in Florida, drumming his fingers impatiently on the glass patio tabletop. Skin formerly Russian-snow-white had burned to lobster-red in the Florida sun. A colorful umbrella shaded his shirtless rotund body from further burning. He couldn’t stay in the States much longer, and Maddox hadn’t been killed yet. In fact, those two ex-CIA agents had disappeared. His iPhone rang. “Yeah, what?”

It was Viktor Chuikov. “Still no sign of them, sir. They’re on the run again. I’m certain they have given up on coming after you. At least for now.”

Janowski slumped in his chair. “That’s very disappointing news. You have let me down again.”

Viktor’s voice came back strong and sure. “I disagree. This was out of my control. As long as they were in town, I had enough men to cover the area and the chances of us getting them were high. But now that they’ve abandoned the idea of coming after you at your beach home, it’s going to be a lot more difficult. I don’t have enough men to cover the whole American Continent.”

Janowski’s voice roared. “Oh, you don’t have enough men. Bullshit! You hired losers who let one man and a woman kill them. No wonder you’re now short on men. You’ve cost me millions, and I’ve gotten zero results.”

“That’s not true, sir. You’re still alive, and that’s after two of the best trained killers on this planet were hunting you.”

“Bullshit, bullshit, bullshit!” Janowski screamed. “The best way to protect me is to kill them.”

“Sir, you know that everything we say over the air is being recorded. I’ve warned you about this before. The NSA –”

“To hell with that. I still own Washington and Langley. Don’t you fret over shit you know little about.”

“Sir, I wouldn’t flaunt it in their face. The president is no longer a reliable ally, and the new head of the CIA seems to be untouchable.”

“No one is untouchable.”

“Very true, sir. I think you should keep that in mind.”

“Uh? What are you saying?” Janowski blew a gasket. “Get over here now. I want to speak to you in person.”

“I’ll be there in less than an hour.”

“An hour? Where the hell are you?”

“Supervising my men in the field.”

“Just get here. I’m leaving the States today, and you have to make security arrangements. I’ll expect you to stay here and keep hunting while I’m attending to business back home.” Janowski terminated the call.

Chapter 21

Raylan stepped out of the motor home with two cups of coffee and walked the short distance to the folding table. He handed Carla a cup and sat down across from her. While taking a sip of the steaming brew, he felt something almost indiscernible land on his nose. Holding his open hand out, he caught two delicate snowflakes. “First snow of the year,” he said.

The Wyoming valley they were camped in was beautiful, with mountains jutting up, reaching into the blue sky on one side and into a descending white cloud on the other, bringing with it light flurries and a gentle, but increasing wind. The cloud would be over the valley by nightfall.

Carla wrapped both hands around her cup for warmth. “I guess we should head south soon. I’d hate to drive that big rig in the snow.” Her eyes drank in the natural wonders around them. “I don’t want to leave so soon. The last weeks have been great, but there’s no need to stay for the winter when we can be in warm climes in a few days.”