Lean on Me (16 page)

“
Where did you…?” she
started.

“
They had an extra
machine,” Raz said. “They were willing to get up to make it for
you, but I thought that was silly.”

“
I may as well get as much
coffee as I can in me,” Alex said.

“
Before the whiskey?” Raz
asked.

“
Indeed,” Alex said. “You
have my costume together?”

“
Trece found the shoes last
night,” Raz said. “He left them here.”

“
Perfect,” Alex said. “What
do we have?”

“
Troy? Or this stuff?” Raz
asked.

“
One second.”

Alex held up a finger, closed her eyes, and
drained her coffee cup. She felt more than saw him refill it.
Without opening her eyes, she drank another cup and sighed. She
pressed the warm cup against her heart.

“
Ready?” he
chuckled.

“
Ready,” she said. “Troy,
then work.”

“
What were Cian, Eoin, and
Jimmy arguing about last night?” Raz asked.

“
What did you
see?”

“
I saw John break them up,”
Raz said. “Cian was mad. The second John stepped away, Cian went
after Jimmy with fists flying. Eoin held him back. I was just about
to get involved when John stepped in again. I saw Jimmy give a real
apology, but Cian was angry, angrier than I’ve ever seen
him.”

“
The IRA is back,” Alex
said. “Or so the reports say. There’s talk that the IRA is looking
for money. Jimmy’s concerned that Cian and Eoin are funneling money
back to Northern Ireland. He’s not the only one. I wouldn’t be
surprised if every expat volunteer gets a visit from
MI6.”

“
Seems like a reasonable
question,” Raz said. “Why did that piss Cian off?”

“
Oh…” Alex sighed and
closed her eyes.

“
What?” Raz
asked.

“
It’s the same old thing,”
Alex said. “When they came, Cian and Eoin said all they needed was
a chance to have the life they wanted. Cian’s furious that Jimmy
doesn’t get that.”

“
They’ve worked their asses
off,” Raz said. “I didn’t think they’d pull it off.”

“
I was skeptical too,” Alex
said. “But they’ve done it. They aren’t going to blow it by sending
money to the IRA.”

“
They’re involved in our
other little project,” Raz said.

“
Exactly,” Alex said. “They
want to help people, not go back to the horror and despair politely
called the ‘Troubles.’”

“
Seems like something Jimmy
would get,” Raz said.

“
Jimmy has to be sure. He’s
been assigned to secure all the Kellys. He feels like it’s real
prejudice. He told John later that he’s concerned for his
life.”

“
And the life of every
Kelly?” Raz asked.

Alex nodded.

“
Holy pressure, Batman,”
Raz said.

“
Batman?” Alex squinted and
cocked her head. Raz laughed. “You’ve been spending way too much
time with Sami. Why didn’t she come this weekend?”

“
Work,” Raz said. “She has
to defend the desperate in court today. Plus, Val’s in
town.”

Alex nodded. Samantha, her elder sister, was
best friend’s with a movie star. The two had been inseparable from
the moment they had met at a high school beauty pageant. People who
say that gorgeous women can’t be friends have never met Samantha
and Val.

“
Speaking of which,” Alex
said. “Shall we cast aside global politics and love to dive into
the intrigue and suspense of intelligence work?”

“
Intrigue and suspense?”
Raz burst out laughing.

“
Computer research and
telephone calls sounds so much more boring,” Alex said. “I’m going
to…”

She pointed to the coffee pot. He nodded.
She filled his cup and made another pot. When she sat down, it was
time to work. The next time she looked up, Zack was standing in the
doorway in his full dress uniform. He held a bottle of Red Breast
Irish Whiskey and two shot glasses.

Time for a different kind of work.

FFF

Monday morning

October 26 – 5:45 a.m. EDT

Sheridan Circle Mansion, Washington DC

“
Alex?” Zack held out
another shot of whiskey.

Unable to move while Max was tucking her
short hair under a nylon wig cap, she held out her hand. Zack put
the whiskey in her hand. Max dabbed the whiskey onto the cap.

“
Close your eyes,” Trece
said.

Alex closed her eyes and he flicked whiskey
on her face and put some behind her ears. He set the whiskey down
to pick up the bright pink curly nylon wig with straight bangs.
Trece dabbed whiskey on the wig. Alex bent over and Max rooted the
wig on her head. Margaret appeared with a comb to straighten out
her pink bangs which covered half of her eyes. Alex batted
inch-long, blue false eyelashes, which matched her cosmetic
contact-lens-altered blue eyes.

“
Sparkles,” Leena
said.

Everyone stepped away and Leena doused her
with glitter dust.

“
Captain Jakkman?” Leena
asked.

Zack hugged Alex and rubbed his face on her
neck. While they were hugging, Leena sprinkled glitter dust over
them.

“
What do you think?” Alex
stepped back for the team to take a look.

She flicked her short blue and green pleated
schoolgirl shirt to show off the sheer pink thigh-high sheer
stockings. She scooched up the pink, padded push-up bra with
silicon bra inserts tucked inside to show breast flesh in the neck
opening of her white see-through tank top. Trece held out an arm so
she could step into five-inch clear plastic heels.

“
Can you walk?” Raz
asked.

Alex walked to him. The team clapped.

“
I don’t think she’s
disheveled enough,” Margaret said. “Hookers usually look a little
more… used.”

The team turned to look at her.

“
What? I used to see them
in Farmington,” Margaret said. “They work across from the
Walmart.”

“
Not unlike JFCOM,” Trece
laughed.

The doorbell rang and White Boy went out to
greet the driver.

“
Dishevel me,” Alex
said.

“
You too, Captain Jakkman,”
Margaret said.

While Zack was being woman handled, Max got
his hand wet with whisky and smudged her overdone make-up. Joseph
and Colin tugged her here and there. Matthew reached into her bra
and shifted her breast so the edge of the nipple showed.

“
You must be really good
friends,” Leena said.

“
Went to SF training
together,” Troy said from the doorway. “Confirming that I’m out but
available today. The boys and I have to meet with the Social
Services this morning and the DA this afternoon.”

“
We’ll keep you apprised,”
Matthew said.

Nodding, Troy’s entire being seemed to ache
to join their action.

“
You’re welcome to any
resource,” Alex said.

“
Thanks,” Troy said. “You
look magnificent. I’d take a photo, but you’d probably kill
me.”

“
Let’s go over this one
more time,” Matthew said. “You are breaking into the Joint Forces
Command Center.”

“
JFCOM,” Alex
said.

“
The Joint Forces Command
is a combatant command center,” Matthew said. “It plays a central
role in the US military’s capabilities. All conventional US forces
are led through direct contact with JFCOM. The command oversees
more than 1.16 million men and women and…”

“
Are you reading off the
website?” Zack asked.

“
He is,” Alex said. “What
do we need to know?”

“
JFCOM is central to daily
operations of the entire US military,” Matthew said. “As such, it
is the most heavily guarded of any US installation. There has never
been a breach of security there. Not one in its entire
history.”

“
And?”

“
This mission is crazy,”
Matthew said. “Absolutely nuts. Even for us.”

“
We need to get to the
center of the entire military to see if what I think is going on,
is going on,” Alex said. “They aren’t going to throw open the doors
and say, ‘Come on in and check it out.’”

“
How do you know they
won’t?” Matthew asked.

“
The Admiral already
asked,” Alex said.

“
If we’re going to do this
thing,” Raz looked from Alex to Matthew. “Let’s just get it
done.”

“
Trece?” Joseph nodded to
the big man.

“
Two of our team are
working the door at JFCOM today,” Trece said. “They give you a
thorough going over – body scan and search, x-ray, and hand wand.
Before you leave them, make sure you each receive a
weapon.”

“
You’re trained to
automatically check the ammunition,” Joseph said. “Accept the
weapon. Do not check it.”

“
Do we know how many rounds
we’ll get?” Alex asked.

“
Six,” Trece
said.

“
Bullet piercing,
government issue, like you’re used to,” Joseph said.

“
They will take your cell
phones from you,” Raz said. “Complain bitterly. Sergeant Dusty has
provided a pocket computer. You will receive that with your
weapons. Look for the pocket computer. You have the
cord?”

Zack took a battered iPod from his pocket
and took out the head phones. He flicked an ear bud off the
earphones to show a computer jack.

“
They shouldn’t take that
from you,” Joseph said. “But you’re going to have to pretend to be
listening to music. Did you pick something?”

“
Living Colour, ‘Cult of
Personality,’” Alex said.

“
Our song,” Zack
said.

“
Your song,” Max said. “Not
ours.”

Alex and Max looked at each other and
laughed. Raz cleared his throat. As if they were ten years old,
they gave him a shameful look and laughed again. He shook his head
at them.

“
Can we focus on the
mission drunk ones?” Raz asked.

They nodded in unison.

“
Until you take over, you
and Zack are out of pocket,” Raz said.

“
We have you on the MI6
x-ray and infrared satellite,” Jimmy said from a computer near the
edge of the room. “But we won’t have sound or clear imaging until
you’ve acquired the CCTV.”

“
We’ll be across the street
at the Walmart,” Raz’s eyes spoke his worry. She smiled at her
partner. “Vince is already there in the Winnebago monitoring
communications.”

“
You’ll be on your own from
the moment you leave the house,” Joseph said.

“
Like Dad’s wilderness
training for spies,” Colin said.

“
Oh God, I nearly died that
weekend,” Zack said.

Alex shook her head at them. The pink wig
moved a tiny bit and Max put a hairpin in to secure it.

“
Remember,” Matthew said.
“You are not wearing body armor. Alex, you’ve worn body armor
almost every day for more than a decade. You’ve got to remember you
don’t have it on and act accordingly. You too Jakker.”

“
Copy that,” Zack
said.

“
Zack?” Joseph said. “Your
cell phone.”

Joseph gave him a Blackberry.

“
We tried to mimic your
actual phone, so you’d be used to it,” Joseph said. “This phone has
a very small explosive device in it. If you need it, it will create
a sound for a diversion, but that’s about it. Alex?”

Joseph held out a cheap disposable
phone.

“
Your hooker phone,” Joseph
said. “Both phones will be placed in a cubbyhole near the entrance.
We’re planning on getting audio from your phone, Alex. Try not to
break it.”

“
I don’t intentionally
break them,” Alex said.

“
That’s what you always say
and still you go through four or five a year,” Joseph said. “That’s
not counting the pocket computers.”

“
How is it my fault…?” Alex
started.

“
We don’t have time for
this,” Matthew said. “Don’t taunt her. She’s been
drinking.”

“
Both phones are
GPS-enabled,” Joseph continued. “They’re on call at the GPS
Operations Center. They will help us track you. If you have to get
out of there fast, grab the phones. We have no other way to track
you.”

“
We’ve activated your Trudy
account,” Trece held out a driver’s license. “It’s expired, but
that’s almost better. If they run your fingerprints, that’s what
will come up.”

“
How do you have a Trudy
account?” Matthew asked.

“
I work with Trece
sometimes,” Alex said. “I’m pretty good at breaking
security.”

“
She’s gotten through every
single time,” Trece said. “She’s a ringer. You remember
Trudy?”

“
Trudy is from Ohio,” Alex
said. “She’s not married. Her mother’s alive, but an alcoholic. Her
father’s deceased. She was a waitress last time. She’s a hooker
now?”

“
Service personnel on her
tax returns,” Trece said. “I need your tags.”

Alex looked surprised. He pointed to her
neck. She had worn identification tags for so long that she no
longer felt them around her neck. Of course, John wore her Fey
Special Forces Team primary dog tag and Alex wore these tags. She
gave her tags to Max.