Master of the Game (Rush Series Book 3) (8 page)

Glancing
around the room one more time, he reached down to where he’d kicked off his
clothes and slipped them on quickly and efficiently. He closed the door firmly
and lumbered down the hall to the stairs, not that he needed the exercise after
last night, but he really needed to burn off his frustration. Normally, it was
he who slunk out before the other person woke. He found he didn’t particularly
like this sensation. It made him
feel
a little guilty
wondering if the women he’d done this to had felt this way.

He’d gotten
halfway down the stairwell when his cellphone blared out its pre-programmed
ringtone. For the millionth time, the thought he needed to change it to
something else crossed his mind. “Masters,” he said absently.

“Allred,
you mean,” Jacob Roundtree, his handler, said.

Alex
stopped stock still mid-step. In his entire career with the CIA, he’d never
broken cover before. He gave a quick shake of his head. He needed to pull his
thoughts away from the dark-haired beauty from last night and get his head back
in the game. Instead of responding to the reprimand – which was deserved – he
said, “What’s up, Jay?”

Silence
met his words. He knew Jacob was trying to read the situation. “Everything all
right?” he finally asked.

“Right
as rain,” Alex replied briskly.

“I’ve
just gotten word there’s been a little hold up, some last minute change up with
Taggert
Lainer
and his
archaeological group. Their new arrival time is in two days.
So
just sit tight for now.”

Alex
was a pro, his years in the military – of learning to deal with
hurry up and wait
- had been fantastic
training for the work he now did. Jacob’s words only caused a mild irritation
to run through him. He wished his diversion from the night before was still
around to continuing being a distraction.
There
was always a chance she’d show back up
again
,
he thought.

“…
shake
up in Negro Caballero’s camp.” Alex realized he’d once
again allowed himself to be distracted by the thought of his little Tasmanian
devil.

To
cover his inattention, he said, “Jay, my reception is bad. Can you repeat
that?”

“I said
,
there’s been some kind of shake up in Negro Caballero’s
camp. We’re not sure if they are moving drugs, the missiles, or looking to buy
the missiles. But something is definitely up,” Jacob repeated.

“What
makes you think something is up?” Alex asked as he leaned back against the wall
in the stairwell.

“The
lower minions are scurrying about and then reporting back to the compound.
We’re not sure what’s going on right now, but we’ll keep a watch on it and let
you know.”

“Okay,
Jay. I’ll sit tight and wait for
Lainer
and his group
to show up. Will he contact me?” Alex asked.

“Yep,
he has your room number. Sit tight… get some sun… and try to stay out of
trouble,” Jacob finished with a laugh.

Alex
returned the laugh. “I make no promises.”

“Call
if you need anything.”

“Will do.
Thanks. Later,” Alex said
before disconnecting the line.

Alex
looked around the stairwell. It was going to be a long couple of days as he
waited for the archeologists. He knew he was going to need certain supplies to
promote his cover. Moving back to his room, he shrugged back out of the clothes
he’d just put on and took a quick shower before heading out.

As he’d
known, his downtime went by mind-numbingly slow. He was a man born of action
and while he tolerated the time of inactivity, he didn’t like it much. It made
him edgy to think that while he sat in his room, or out by the pool, missiles
could possibly be, right at that moment, being put into the hands of reckless
killers. He studied the advance materials Jacob had secured regarding
Taggert
Lanier’s team.

According
to the information, beside Lanier, there were six other people going on the
dig. Jose Suarez, the longest running member of Lanier’s team, he’d worked with
Lanier since the beginning. The chances of him being the arms dealer was slim.
Dr. Hector Maldonado had joined the team a year prior and had advanced degrees:
doctorates in both language and archeology. Professor Nate Childers was a
professor of Archeology at Baylor University in Texas. Sara Daniels was
Professor Childers’s intern. And finally, there was Roman Alcazar, who had just
graduated with his degree from Baylor. And while he was known by Professor
Childers – and had been recommended by him even, Alcazar was from Mexico. Alex
studied all the background information carefully. Among these seven people was
the person who could lead him to the missiles.

He was
sitting at the hotel’s bar when a man around fifty, with a shock of snow white
hair, entered and looked around the room. When he noticed Alex, he made his way
to him. Alex didn’t know the man personally, but knew who he was courtesy of
the advance materials. He kept the man’s eye until he reached him and hitched
his body up onto the barstool.

Turning
toward him, the man said, “Are you Allred?”

Alex
held out his hand to the man. “Ben Allred. You must be
Taggert
Lanier.”

The
older man looked at the extended hand for a second before shaking it with his
own. “It’s just Tag. I want to be clear about something up front, if you don’t
mind,” he said in a tone which said he didn’t really care whether Alex minded
or not.

“All our cards on the table, so to speak?”
Alex
answered straightforwardly. “By all means, lets.”

Lanier
waved a finger at the bartender. When the young Hispanic man with the thin
mustache approached, Lanier told him, “Scotch, neat.”

Turning
back to Alex, he said, “Mr. Allred, you are a guest on my team. You will be
expected to pull your own weight as well as help out where needed. I don’t mind
telling you, if it weren’t for the money fronted by your company, I’d never
allow you to go with us.” When Alex started to speak, Lanier raised his hand to
silence him. “Let me finish, please. I personally feel that you and I are at
cross purposes. I want to preserve, and you and your company seek to destroy. I
won’t allow that to happen while you are with me. What you do after we part
company is no business of mine. Are we on the same sheet of music?”

Alex
studied the man intently. Could this be the man who’d stolen the missiles and was
now transporting them into the jungle? No, he didn’t think so. He’d keep a
close eye on him, of course, but he didn’t think he had anything to worry about
with this man.

 
“Mr. Lanier,” Alex began before he was cut
off.

 
“Tag, please. We are all very informal in the
jungle.”

“Tag,”
Alex began again patiently, “You have nothing to worry from me or my company.
This is merely a scouting expedition. I am more than happy to help in whatever
way is needed. I do have a request, though.”

Alex waited
until Tag gave him a small nod to proceed. “I have brought with me several
expensive items to help me in my research. I would like to set up a secure
perimeter that encompasses the compound. This is a win-win as it would not only
safeguard my items, but yours as well.”

Tag
studied Alex as he thought over the request. With a slow nod of his head, he
said, “I think that’s doable.”

Alex
lifted a finger to the older man. “I do have another small request to make. I
would like it if you’d not tell the others about the security. If everyone
knows where the cameras are, the area becomes… less secure.”

Again,
Tag nodded his head slowly. “Yes, I see what you mean. I have no problem with
that as long as whatever you set up doesn’t harm the environment. No footprints,
Ben, no footprints.”

“I
promise you won’t even know they are there,” Alex promised. “So when do we
leave?”

Tag
took a sip of his scotch before answering. “We are waiting for the last member
of our team. So, our timeline has been bumped by one day. We’ll head out the
day after tomorrow. Does that work for you?”

Alex
groaned to himself at the loss of one more day, but smiled his acceptance.
“Well, Tag, I have a few calls to make. I’ll see you around the hotel
tomorrow.”

Tag
tilted his drink in Alex’s direction. “Goodnight, Ben.”

Alex
made his way slowly back to his room. He was ready to get on with this
assignment. The quicker it was completed, the quicker he could get back to
Savannah. He briefly thought about finding someone to help him
wile
away the time, but his mind immediately brought into
focus the picture of him and his Spanish beauty standing in front of the
mirror, their bodies entwined.
Her breast swaying to the beat
of their passion.

He
sighed deeply and raked a hand over his blonde hair. It’d been a long time
since he’d let a woman get next to him. He wondered if the only reason he
wanted her was because she’d been the one to
leave?
Maybe he’d been alone too long. He thought once he got back home he’d give the
Vance brothers a call, maybe take them up on their offer of long ago to go up
to the lake house. He really needed a change in his life.

 
He’d been thinking for a while that it was
finally time for him to get out of this game. He wanted more than the half-life
the agency allowed him. Maybe he’d go into business for himself. It seemed to
be working for his buddy, Slater, who had a successful private investigation
business in Charleston. That would be his obvious choice as well.

He lay
down, fully clothed, as these thoughts swirled in his mind. Frustration at
playing this game was eating at him. Hurry up and wait… hurry up and wait.

~*M*~

Alex
used the next day to survey maps of the area they were going to the next day
looking for possible dump sites. The problem was that the jungle was so dense.
If the missiles were buried, he’d never find them.

He made
a list of everything he’d need, then checked it against the supplies he had. He
went out about mid-afternoon to pick up a couple of spare cameras. He wandered
around Mexico City afterwards and finally ended up in a small cantina. He
ordered a margarita on the rocks and sipped it as he snacked on chips and
salsa. While he kept calling himself every kind of fool, he couldn’t stop the
tightening of his stomach muscles every time a new Hispanic woman with long
wavy dark hair entered the small restaurant. For just an instant each time, he
thought he’d found her again. But each time, it would be a stranger. Finally
tiring of the disappointment and self-recriminations, he paid his tab and went
back to the hotel. He ate a solitary dinner in the dining room before heading
back. He found Tag had left him a voicemail in his room letting him know they
were all meeting in the lobby at seven a.m. and would leave from there.

After
showering and packing up his room, he lay down and closed his eyes. Finally,
tomorrow he could really begin his mission. By this time tomorrow, he’d be deep
within the dense jungle. Maybe then he would stop thinking about a certain
little devil.

Chapter 5

Alex
rose early the next morning and his former edginess evaporated. He thrived on
the thrill of the game. He retrieved a luggage cart and loaded his numerous
bags onto it. He did one more walk-through of his room, but thought he’d packed
everything. He placed a quick call to Jacob Roundtree before heading
downstairs. He arrived at six-thirty and checked out. Moving to the outer edges
of the lobby, he sat on the one of the couches and nursed his third cup of
coffee as he waited. It wasn’t long before others, whom he assumed were on the
team, began to converge in the area.

When he
saw Tag coming off the elevator, he rose to his feet and bent to pick up his
duffle. He’d just straightened and slung his bag over his shoulder, when he saw
her
. She’d obviously ridden the
elevator down with Tag. His breath squeezed from his lungs. She was just as
stunning as he’d remembered. Today, unlike the night they’d met, her long hair
was gathered back in a ponytail. She stood clutching her own duffle and looked
around the room searching for someone. He couldn’t believe it. She was here.
Without conscious thought he moved swiftly toward her.

She
turned her head and looked past him for only an instant before recognition had
her swinging her head back in his direction. So many emotions flitted across
her face: surprise; happiness; followed by a too brief expression of pure need.
These disappeared quickly as her face fell. Her bag slipped unheeded to the
floor as he drew near. Her chest was heaving when he reached her and he could
see dread and fear in her eyes.
What was
going on
, he wondered. He set his own bag down at his feet.

Lifting
one hand, he brushed her cheek with the backs of his fingers. “Hey, Little
Devil. I was wondering where you took off to,” he said softly.