Lone Wolf (20 page)

“I'm Lacey,” she said after a few seconds. Neil looked up again, and that's when he realized that she was sitting at a table alone, but where two other places had obviously been occupied a few minutes before. She saw his glance, and grinned. “My mom and dad,” she said. “They're out there on the dance floor, too.” She pointed, and Neil followed her finger to see the couple she was indicating. A second later, he did a bit of a double take.

“Is that Mister Jackson?” He blurted out the question before he thought about what he was doing, and was about to apologize when he saw that she was nodding.

“Uh-huh,” she said. “He's my dad.” She leaned as far toward him as she could without getting out of her chair, and whispered, “He works where you do.”

Neil's eyebrows shot up. He made a face that he thought would indicate that he sort of understood, but wasn't sure. Lacy grinned wider, then startled him when she stood up and walked over to his table. He sat there looking up at her, suddenly realizing that she was probably at least six feet tall. She waited for a moment; then, deciding that he was not going to offer her a seat, she simply snagged a chair from an empty table and pulled it over to sit beside him.

“Don't worry,” she said, “I'm cleared. I work in the Neverland data center. I know who you are, Neil.” She indicated the other chairs at the table with her eyes. “I know who all of you are. You're Team Camelot. I just finished compiling your after-action reports on your last mission.”

“Oh,” Neil said, then mentally kicked himself for sounding so lame. “That sounds like an—interesting job,” he finished.

Lacey laughed. “Oh, my goodness,” she said, “you're a shy one, aren't you? Don't worry about it, I know I tend to be a little overbearing, sometimes. If I get annoying, just tell me to get lost, okay? Believe me, I won't be offended.”

Neil tried to smile, but he wasn't sure if he made it or not until she smiled back. “Oh, I'm not really shy,” he said. “I'm just not used to girls who want to talk to me.” Again, he wished he could bite off his own tongue, but he followed up with, “I mean, it seems like when you're this tall and skinny, most girls are a little put off. I mean—I'm really messing this up, aren't I?”

Lacey laughed again, and the thought crossed Neil's mind that she had the laugh of an angel. “Neil, relax,” she said. “Trust me, I know the feeling. There aren't a lot of guys who want a girl as tall as I am, either. Oh, you know, if I was built like Geena Davis, then maybe that would work, but I don't have her boobs. My dad calls me Six O'clock, because he says I look like the hour and minute hands on a clock at exactly six.”

Neil's eyes got a little wider than they already were. “But you're very pretty,” he said, and then cringed once more, afraid he was being too forward.

Apparently Lacey didn't think so, because she put a hand on his arm and said with a smile, “Oh, that's so sweet. Thank you.”

The music suddenly ended, and Noah, Sarah and Moose all returned to the table. Neil fumbled the introductions, so Lacey took over and introduced herself. A moment later, her father stopped by the table and shook hands with the men.

He looked down at his daughter. “Well, you finally found him,” he said, and then he looked up at Neil, who had stood as he approached. “She saw your picture and read your file when you were first recruited, and kept asking me if I had ever met you. When I finally did, and told her so, she drove me nuts with questions for two solid days. I guess it isn't often she spots a guy that really interests her. I hope she doesn't drive you crazy, but if she does, please don't shoot her. Just send her back to me, I'll try to straighten her out.”

Neil made a sickly grin, and waved as Jackson walked away. Sarah and Lacey were talking, and it took a moment for Neil to realize that he was the topic of their conversation. He did his best to ignore what they were saying, but it pleased him to know that Lacey had wanted to meet him even before they ran into each other at the Saloon that night.

The five of them sat and talked for a while, but then Sarah asked Noah to take her back onto the dance floor. Elaine was busy, so Moose waved at them to go on, then looked at Neil. “Well, come on, boy, aren't you going to ask the young lady to dance?”

Neil's face went into full-blown panic. “Dance? I have enough trouble walking across an even floor, and you want me to try to dance? Are you insane?”

Lacey laughed out loud again, then got to her feet and grabbed his hand. “You can dance, don't give me that. Anyone can dance. Come on, I'll prove it to you.”

Unable to argue, Neil let her pull him to his feet and onto the dance floor. She grabbed his hands and positioned them onto her waist, then took hold of his shoulders and began moving. “Just do what I do,” Moose heard her say, and a moment later Neil looked like he was actually enjoying himself.

Out on the dance floor, Neil and Lacey were actually talking more than dancing. She told him that she had read his entire file, but that what had really gotten her interested was watching the hours of video interviews he had been put through as part of his recruitment and initial training.

“You have the quickest comebacks of anyone I've ever known,” she said. “I almost fell out of my chair, I was laughing so hard when I watched the one of you and Doctor Parker. Doc can be one of the most cantankerous old buzzards in the world, but you had him so flustered that he figured he had to pass you just to find out what you might do in the future. When he asked about your time in the juvenile jail, and you told him it was a great place to hone your criminal skills, I literally laughed so hard I almost hit the floor.”

Neil, who was slowly gaining his confidence back, shrugged and smiled. “Hey, what can I say? I'm a guy who never lets an opportunity for higher learning get away. I learned a few pretty neat tricks in there, like how to beat someone with a bar of soap in a sock. It doesn't leave a mark, but boy, can they feel it the next day!”

They continued to chat as they danced, and Neil found himself relaxing. He was terrified of getting his hopes up, but he wondered if he might have finally found a girl who would actually like him.

B
ecause they had a flight the next morning, Noah insisted they leave by ten o'clock that night. The Jacksons stayed until then, as well, since Lacey and Neil seemed to be getting along so well. Mrs. Jackson confided in Sarah at one point that Lacey's problem was that she wanted a guy who was taller than she was, and since the girl actually stood six foot one, they weren't all that easy to come by. They were delighted that she had finally found one.

Ten o'clock arrived, however, and Neil had to say goodnight. Lacey walked him out to the car and stood with him for a final few moments.

“Well,” she said, “I hope I get to see you again sometime. Maybe, if you want, you could give me a call?”

Neil's eyes lit up and he snatched out his phone. “I'd like that,” he said, and then swallowed hard as Lacey took his phone and put her number into his contact list.

“I know you're going out on a mission tomorrow,” she said, “but call me anytime, whenever you can. At least, call me as soon as you get back, okay?”

Still grinning, Neil promised that he would. Lacey handed his phone back and let her fingers linger on his for a moment before she turned and walked back into the bar.

Moose, of course, couldn't let the opportunity to tease the kid go by. “Well, I'll be doggone if Neil isn't growing up,” he said. “Did you see that, Boss? I think he even has a girlfriend! Maybe now he'll stop whining about you and me having somebody to snuggle with, you think?”

“Leave him alone, Moose,” Sarah said. “Neil, just ignore him. Lacey seems like a very sweet girl, and hopefully you too will hit it off. We can triple date sometime, that would be cool.”

Noah didn't say anything, but Sarah noticed a bemused expression on his face. She leaned close to him and whispered, “What?” Noah glanced at her but didn't say anything. He let one eyelid droop in a wink, which she took to mean that he would tell her later.

They arrived back at Noah's place, and since they had to leave for Denver by seven AM, Moose just crashed on Noah's couch. Neil went across to his trailer, promising to be wide awake and ready to go on time.

When they got into the bedroom, Sarah stripped down quickly. “Who knows when we'll get another chance? I'm not going to skip this one, so get your butt in bed, Mister.”

Noah grinned at her, something she had noticed him doing more often lately, and quickly got out of his own clothes. After a quick trip to the bathroom, he slid in under the covers with her.

“Oh! Stop that, your hands are cold!”

They were both up at four, and got a quick shower before getting dressed. When they came out of the bedroom, they could hear the shower in the main bathroom running as Moose got ready to go, so they went into the kitchen and put on a pot of coffee. Moments later, a tap on the door signaled Neil's arrival. He joined them in the kitchen for coffee, but Sarah didn't think he needed any. Neil was more lively and cheerful than she had ever seen him before. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that Lacey had a lot to do with that.

Moose joined them only a few minutes later, and guzzled a cup of coffee as they all got ready to go. Neil had brought over his big Hummer, and they put their bags into the back and then climbed inside. Neil started the SUV and put it into gear, and they were off to the airport.

When they arrived, Neil drove right up to the charter flight gate so that their luggage could be loaded onto the plane, and then a courtesy driver with a golf cart followed Neil out to long-term parking and brought them back. Five minutes later, they were all inside the big Gulfstream and getting comfortable as the pilot started up its engines.

Within another fifteen minutes, they were in the air and the big jet was banking toward the east. All four of the team members sank into their seats and drifted off to sleep.

Noah and the team woke several hours later, and the flight attendant served them a rather delicious meal. The plane landed at London's Heathrow Airport an hour later, at just after one AM local time, and they made their way down the steps. An airport employee was putting chocks under the wheels, and looked up as they stepped onto the tarmac.

“Morning, mate,” the man said, and Noah nodded in response. He started to speak, but he heard footsteps behind him and turned to see a familiar face.

“Mister Colson,” Catherine Potts said with a smile. “I was surprised when I was notified that you'd be coming back in tonight. I was told to get a car ready for you; I hope a Land Rover will be right.”

Noah put on a smile. “It's good to see you again, Catherine,” he said. “I take it you weren't left with any problems after our last visit?”

She laughed. “Oh, there might have been a wee fuss amongst the locals, trying to figure out who snatched up one of our favorite sources of information, but I was able to steer some of the investigators in the wrong direction. Speaking of Mister Pendergrast, I understand he arrived home today, with one arm in a sling. I appreciate you leaving him relatively intact, he really is valuable at times.”

“My pleasure,” Noah said. “He was rather useful to me, and he probably will be again. I'll be paying him a visit in just a little while. Am I going to run into any problems at his place, do you think?”

Catherine's brow furrowed slightly. “It's possible,” she said. “I know that both NSA and MI6 are keeping pretty close tabs on him, right now.” She chewed her bottom lip for a moment. “Are you going after him right away?”

Noah nodded his head. “Yes, I don't want to take a chance on him either getting away or finding out that I'm here. Any suggestions on how I should go about it?”

It was Catherine's turn to nod. “Actually, yes. It will take you 'round half an hour to get there, and I'll put the time to good use. I'll use a chatter channel I have that doesn't trace back to me, by which I can send out an urgent alert claiming that two suspects on our major terrorist watch list have just arrived at Heathrow. That will draw our boys off, and the NSA will intercept the message so theirs will follow. I can't do anything about the Germans or Italians, they watch him too, but they won't interfere with you. Just do try not to get yourselves killed, that could be so embarrassing.”

Noah let his smile get even wider. “You're just a grab bag of surprises, aren't you, Catherine? Okay, I appreciate it.” He accepted the keys to the Land Rover that Catherine held out to him, and instantly passed them to Sarah. Catherine turned and walked away without another word, and Noah slid into the front passenger seat, while Neil and Moose took the back.

The Land Rover had built-in GPS, and Sarah punched in the address for Pendergrast's flat. Twenty seconds later she put the car in gear and they were on the way. Traffic was light at that hour, and they had no trouble getting to the place. As Catherine had predicted, they arrived on the block where Pendergrast lived almost exactly 30 minutes later.

All four of them looked around as they cruised down the street, but saw no sign of anyone watching his apartment. At Noah's instruction, Sarah parked directly in front of the building and Neil got into the front seat as Noah and Moose got out.

Having arrived on a private flight, they had managed to bring weapons along, concealed in their bags. Moose had gotten their new special handguns out while they were on the way, and they were tucked neatly into their waistbands. Their light jackets covered the weapons, so that they were not readily visible as the two men approached the building.

This time, they didn't even attempt to pretend to have business in the building. Moose grabbed the door and yanked it twice, snapping loose the lock and pulling it open. Noah led the way inside and directly to Pendergrast's door.

Guns drawn, they burst into the flat immediately after Moose kicked the door open. Pendergrast could be heard somewhere further inside, and it sounded like he was in a panic. They hurried as quickly as they could through the apartment, and found the open door to his bedroom, where he was sitting up in his bed and staring toward the door. His eyes went wide as soon as he saw Noah and Moose, but rather than panic as Noah had expected, he flicked his eyes to the door that stood open.