Locked and Loaded Page 7

  “I can tell you have been spending time with the Recovery gentlemen. You share their propensity for exaggeration.”

  She didn’t want to waste one more second in this man’s presence. “Call off your henchmen.”

  “Ma’am, I am not sure what Adam here told you during your time together, but I am a legitimate businessman. I have employees and staff. No henchmen.”

  He sounded so reasonable, so honest.

  She didn’t buy it at all. He’d already given hints that he knew about West Virginia.

  “What you have is no reason to want me dead.”

  “I believe that is what I just said.”

  Adam put his hand on the table and leaned in close to Trevor. “Enough with the games.”

  Trevor wiggled a finger in the air. “Temper.”

  “I’ll show you just how angry I can get. Call off whichever goon has a weapon trained on me right now and we’ll settle this. We’ll give it a go. Just you and me.”

  “You were always the calm one. I wonder what happened.” Trevor smiled. “Maybe your lady friend has the answer.”

  “She’s under our protection now,” Adam said.

  “How charming of you.”

  “You come after her, we’ll view it as coming after us.” Luke didn’t shout. Just laid it out there in a calm voice.

  Trevor made a tsk-tsk sound. “I can hardly be blamed for the danger inherent to a woman in witness protection.”

  He let the information hang there. She figured it was a deliberate crumb meant to let Luke and Adam know Trevor was watching everything they did and everyone with whom they came in contact.

  Maddie wanted to scream. The man clearly knew who she was and what was happening to her. Yet he pretended to be separate from it all.

  “You know our deal,” Luke said.

  “That covered the Recovery agents only.”

  “As of this minute she is one. If anyone hurts her—” Luke pointed at Maddie “—we destroy you.”

  Trevor’s blank expression didn’t change, but he hesitated before talking again. “I did not realize we were allowed to change the rules in the middle of the game. Maybe I will see fit to make an adjustment of my own.”

  Adam knocked his fist against the table. “You’re allowed to live, to function as a productive member of society even though you should be in jail. That’s all you get.”

  “I am beginning to think this is not a fair exchange.”

  Adam stood up, lifting his shirt and showing off one of the many weapons he had on him. “Just remember, one step in her direction and it ends for you.”

  “Clear?” Luke asked.

  Trevor gave them a half smile. “It would seem so.”

  Chapter Eight

  Adam looked in the rearview window for the fifth time. The view didn’t change. “We have a problem.”

  “What now?” Maddie turned toward him, but the seat belt held her still. Between the wince and the way she rubbed her lower back, it was clear the pain pills had worn off.

  “How long?” he asked.

  “What?”

  He maneuvered the truck in and out of traffic, but the dark sedan followed. The guy was good. He stayed back, even stopped at a light that Adam blew through on yellow.

  If he made the turn after the Air and Space Museum and headed south, Adam would have his answer. At the least he would assume he had a tail and engage in a game of lose-the-jerk.

  Adam preferred playing like this only long after rush hour, when the roads were clearer. He couldn’t race through the streets at this time of day. He had to be more subtle, which was not his specialty.

  Until he got a handle on the tail situation, he would focus on his other problem. “The pain. How long does it usually last?”

  Maddie stared out the window as they waited for the light to turn green. “It’s fine.”

  “But he broke your back.”

  “It will spasm for a few days and then get back to normal.” She traced a finger over the glass. “The pain never stops.”

  “Maddie…”

  “You can go now.” She pointed at the green signal.

  “Are we done with this topic? We can talk about you being a hacker, if you want. That sounded interesting.” She leaned in closer. “Yeah, I heard what Trevor said.”

  As if Adam needed another reason to punch the guy. In a few short sentences Trevor made it clear he knew a great deal about Adam’s past. The time in West Virginia and then the biggie: his life as a hacker-turned-agent.

  “The man has an honesty problem.”

  “So, it wasn’t true?” Her bored affect had disappeared. She was invested in the conversation.

  That made one of them. “I mentioned we had a problem. Let’s concentrate on that for a second.”

  She smiled. “What is it?”

  He turned left as planned. After two blocks, the sedan followed. “I think we have company.”

  Her amusement vanished. “We’re being followed?”

  “Yeah.”

  She dug her fingernails into his thigh. “By Trevor?”

  “I’m thinking by someone he paid.”

  “We need a diversion. I could—” She stopped when Adam shook his head. “What do you suggest we do?”

  “Nothing.”

  The nails went even deeper. “What kind of plan is that?”

  He turned down the radio. They didn’t need it since she was screaming over the music. “I expected the tail.”

  “What about your blocking devices and the special gizmos and all the other stuff…?” She shifted, holding her body stiff and moving only her shoulders as she tried to peek out the side mirror.

  When she turned the rearview mirror in her direction, he turned it back. “Stuff?”

  “You know. Whatever you call it.” She mumbled and fidgeted.

  He thought he heard the word idiot a few times. “You okay over there?”

  “This isn’t a game.”

  She clearly had reached her limit. He covered his tracks every time he drove in or out of Recovery headquarters. He was used to doubling back and driving through restricted areas to throw off potential attackers. He always assumed someone, probably Trevor or his men, was trying to gather intel on Recovery, and Adam acted accordingly. They all did.

  He forgot that this wasn’t standard for her. “This is how life works. It’s what I do.”

  “And I thought my life was nuts.”

  “It is right now.”

  This part of town wasn’t as congested as he’d feared, but that left the problem of the street layout. One wrong turn and he’d lose his edge.

  “Hang on.” He crossed under the Southeast-Southwest Freeway and headed toward the waterfront.

  The sedan sped up behind him. The pretense dissolved when the vehicle pulled close enough to fill the rearview mirror. Adam could see the lights and hood and nothing else.

  Adam hit a straightaway and gunned it. The truck flew over the holes and divots in the road. Maddie bounced around her seat, wincing with each hard landing, but never complained.

  A quick turn sent the truck’s back tires spinning. The sound of screeching and the smell of burnt rubber filled the cab. The swift move didn’t lose the tail. The sedan hung back for a second, as if suspended in air, then rammed the back of the truck.

  Adam’s chest slammed into the steering wheel and he grabbed his glasses to keep them from breaking. He would have continued through the windshield except for the seat belt digging into his shoulder.

  Maddie braced her arms against the dash, but the force of the hit threw her forward. She covered her head and he struggled to retain control of the vehicle.

  “What’s the plan now?” She screamed the question from her tucked position. Seemed she was going with panic.

  He clicked a button on his watch. “Caleb, we need help.”

  She grabbed for the handle above the window as the truck’s front wheel dipped into a nasty pothole. “Can he get here in time?”

&
nbsp; “Caleb can take care of his part from there.”

  “That’s not—”

  “Hold tight.” Adam slowed down. He saw a few people on the sidewalk and noted their location. The last thing he wanted to do was take out innocent civilians.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Taking back the advantage.”

  The sedan edged against the truck’s back end. Adam could feel the car bumping and grinding against the metal of his bumper. When the car behind him lurched, Adam hit the brakes and turned his wheel sharp to the right. The truck swerved and bobbed. The sedan smashed into the truck’s bed. The hood crumpled under the truck and the driver’s hands flew in the air.

  Adam smelled gasoline and hot metal but he didn’t stick around to exchange insurance cards. He eased on the accelerator, letting the vehicle regain its balance.

  Even though they were once again on all four tires, progress was sluggish. They moved, but the handling was questionable.

  So was Maddie. Her shoulders shook from her heavy breathing. “Did you lose him?”

  Adam glanced in his rearview mirror. Two men ran toward the sedan but the car stayed still. “We will.”

  “I don’t mean to sound skeptical, but—”

  Adam slipped the truck into an alley. When he turned back onto the street at the opposite end, he’d slowed down to compensate for the way the truck’s back end kept pulling to the left. “Watch the lights.”

  “We’re in D.C. There’s traffic.”

  “Not as much in this area and not much at all in two seconds.” Each light turned green right as they hit the intersection. He didn’t even have to tap the brakes.

  When the apartment buildings gave way to the industrial area, Adam knew they were going to be fine. He turned off the main road and drove through a series of alleys until they reached a smaller road lined with trucks and work vehicles.

  Fifty feet down, a steel gate opened, but not the one to headquarters. This place sat blocks away from Recovery. The only resemblance was the grouping of low-slung warehouses. Anyone following who didn’t know the area would get lost in the maze of buildings.

  He slipped into the entrance of the building that purported to deal in medical supplies. Adam knew better. Unless weapons systems for the army were now health related, this place was a front for the military.

  As he drove across the parking lot of a building, one gate closed behind them while the one at the opposite end opened. Lots backed up to one another. As he exited one, he’d drive perpendicular across a short street and enter another, creating a makeshift road out of rows of secured parking lots.

  Looked as if Caleb had listened during all those sessions in front of the computers. Adam was grateful for the many drills Luke made them perform. They were prepared for just this sort of emergency.

  The truck hit a curb and bounced. He was grateful the bumper didn’t fall off.

  “Be careful of the people.” Maddie held her hand out toward the windshield.

  Workers stepped out of the way. No one tried to stop them. Adam weaved in and out of the open spaces, going from building to building, mapping out a route where none existed.

  He glanced in the mirror and saw only pavement behind him. “It’s working.”

  “Where are the police?”

  “Still want to get picked up and rescued by law enforcement?”

  “No.”

  Her answer pleased him more than he wanted to admit. “That’s progress.”

  “Keep your eyes on the road.”

  He’d rather keep them on her, but she was right. Another look in the mirror confirmed they’d lost their unwanted companion.

  He checked in. “Caleb?”

  “Gone.” The lone word rattled in Adam’s ear.

  Maddie tugged on his sleeve. “What did Caleb say?”

  Adam winked at her and talked to Caleb. “Where is the guy who wanted to play smashup with my truck?”

  “He broke away from the crowd of well-meaning citizens. Now he’s driving around blind miles away from you.”

  “The license plate?”

  “Wasn’t one.”

  Adam swore. “Figures. Will be there in five.”

  They continued to drive, circling until the tires squealed. He guessed they needed air. Looked as if he’d need more than a body shop to put the truck back together again.

  He shot her a smile. “We’re clear.”

  “Why, did we finally run out of gas?”

  “I meant the chase is over.” The rush that came with danger hadn’t cooled. It had found a new target: her. “I’m slowing down now because I don’t want to attract attention.”

  “Isn’t it a little late for that?”

  “Except for the crash on the street, we’re fine.”

  She looked at him, all wide-eyed and spooky, as if he’d lost his mind. “How do you figure that?”

  “People tend to see what they want to see. Anyone noticing a truck screaming through a secure lot will think it belongs there. At most they’ll complain to management about an out-of-control visitor in the building area.”

  “What about security? Some of those places had to have cameras poised outside. There were witnesses to the crash.”

  “Caleb erased all the video evidence by now.”

  “I thought he was the forensics guy.”

  “He can press computer keys when I tell him to.” They all could.

  Every agent could stop bleeding, plant an explosive device and work communications during a job. They had areas of expertise but could back each other up. Another duplication Luke had added to the system when he took over the interim-leadership role that fit him so well.

  “And the witnesses on the street?” she asked.

  “The plates on the truck won’t trace back to me or Recovery…or anyone else.”

  “When did you set up all this protection?”

  “When I installed the system two years ago. I mapped out the entire city, just to be safe. My favorite is the stoplight trick. I’ve never gotten a ticket and never got caught messing around in District computers. Every time I go in, the metro tech folks spend weeks trying to figure out how the glitch happened.”

  “You’re the glitch.”

  “Exactly.”

  She stared at him for a few seconds before talking again. “Are you ever unprepared?”

  “I wasn’t expecting you.” He held her gaze for an extra second before looking ahead again. “Does that count?”

  “Meaning?”

  They pulled into the Recovery lot. “You figure it out.”

  TREVOR STALKED INTO his office, brushing past Sela and heading straight for his desk. “Any news?”

  She followed behind him and shut the door. When she just stood there, shifting her weight from foot to foot, he knew it was bad. End of the world bad.

  His direction had been so simple. He’d used one of his best people. This should have gone off without trouble. But it never worked that way when Recovery was involved.

  The biggest mistake Bram ever made was taking away the legitimacy of the group. As a quasi-govern-mental agency, there was the possibility of oversight and control. As a private organization, they made up their own rules.

  Trevor was sick of it.

  He stared at Sela. Actually saw her shake. He didn’t care. “I am waiting.”

  “It’s not good, I’m afraid.”

  He sat down nice and slow, letting the rage dissipate as he prepared for the news he knew would ruin his day. “Tell me my guy accomplished something.”

  “Our signals were blocked, as you suspected they would be.”

  “Not a surprise.”

  “We couldn’t get a lock on any transmissions or surveillance.” She rubbed her hands together as if gathering the strength to keep going. “The restaurant’s cameras have been wiped clear, if they were even working in the first place.”

  “Was he able to tag the vehicles?”

  Sela shook her head. “Both Recovery agents
checked for devices on the cars. They had someone outside watching over everything.”

  “Of course they did.”

  “There was really no way to get the devices on the cars.”

  Trevor threw his pen down on the desk. It bounced hard enough to travel halfway across the room.

  She flinched at his explosion. “I’m sorry.”

  “Not your fault.” He pressed his fingers against his closed eyes and counted to ten before looking up again. “The tail?”

  When she visibly swallowed he knew the news wouldn’t be good on this front, either. Another round to Luke. The man won entirely too often for Trevor’s taste. While he admired the work of the Recovery Project, even Luke’s showmanship, the time had come to change the stakes.

  Recovery needed to lose a few, but Trevor couldn’t allow the responsibility to trace back to him. He also refused to sacrifice his men or risk bringing any more danger into his private life. He had a son and a life to protect. That’s why he didn’t send his own team in today or do anything to even the odds with Luke.

  Trevor needed a target and someone to take the potential fall. John Tate was perfect for both.

  “Well?” Trevor asked the question in the most reasonable voice he could muster.

  Sela didn’t deserve his wrath and he couldn’t afford to lose her. From the way she cowered, her shoulders folded in on her, she wasn’t taking his show of temper well now.

  He rarely lost his cool around her. Not that he showed that side to anyone. Not anymore. He’d learned that lesson from Russell and that tape.

  “Our guy lost Adam’s car,” she said.

  “Where?”

  “Southwest.”

  “Okay.” He struggled to regain the rest of his smooth control. He could handle this the way he handled everything else. The blackmail, Bram’s death, the loss of good men to Recovery. It all rolled over him. “I’ll find another way.”

  “Is there anything I can do?”

  “No.” He had to figure this part out on his own.

  Chapter Nine

  Maddie stumbled through Recovery headquarters’ door ready to sit down and put her feet up. Confused feelings about Adam and pure exhaustion pulled at her. The wild ride through the city didn’t help, either.