Out Of The Night (21 page)

CHA
PTER TWENTY-SIX

Damascus

Tony and Abby were in the outskirts of Damascus when he finally pulled over for the night. He couldn’t really go much further. Exhaustion made his eyes blurry and his nerves tight. He parked outside a small hotel he knew to be safe for Falcon agents. In the past, he’d used it several times without problems.

He looked at Abby, the dark circles beneath her eyes and the slack of her jaw marked the fatigue she suffered. “We’ll spend the night here and get a fresh start in the morning.”

“That sounds wonderful to me, but is it safe?”

“Yeah, Falcon has several places here in the Middle East they send a monthly disbursement to, so we have a place to go when it gets too hot. This place is owned by a man very loyal to America, and he knows what’s happening here.”

Tony looked around the dark, deserted area. “Let’s go in together. I won’t leave you alone here in the car.”

He opened the door and stepped out. Abby met him at the entrance to the hotel. This place was nothing fancy. Just a rest stop with several rooms where guests could sleep for the night. No room service or televisions. The hotel had only the bare necessities, which in this area of the world meant a mattress on the floor, clean linens, and an indoor toilet with a handheld shower.

Tony had met the owner on several occasions. They greeted each other
, and the round, smiling man handed him the key to a room. At the very end of the hall, Tony opened the door and Abby entered.

“I love the accommodation
s.” She tossed their small bag on a table. “I mean you really know how to make a girl feel special.”

Tony laughed and pulled her into his arms. “Nothing like Vienna, huh?”

They both stilled. He leaned away from her, and the frown on her face told him that memory didn’t say happiness. “What’s wrong,” he asked. “It was you in Vienna, wasn’t it?”

She cleared her throat. “Yeah. We celebrated my birthday there.”

He looked at her bare wrist. “I remember I bought you a diamond bracelet.”

She forced a smile. “I still have it.”

He leaned down and captured her lips in a nicely modulated manner, dragging her scarf from her head and tossing it on the floor. He hadn’t meant for it to turn sexual. But the instant she slipped her tongue into his mouth, Tony’s blood pulsed faster and harder. She tasted of honey and sunshine, roses and forever. God, he loved this woman. Had always loved her, but something stood between them.

Lowering her to the mattress, he broke the kiss long enough to unbutton her top and nibble at her delicate shoulder
. Then he moved down to her left breast. She had beautiful breasts. Not too large, and not too small. Perfectly proportioned to the rest of her body.

When he pulled the nipple into his mouth, she moaned
, and he wanted inside her more than anything. He had to have her. Even exhausted and riddled with pain, he wanted her so badly, his body burned like a wicked fire with need.

She pulled his shirt over his head
then worked at the buttons on his pants. Finished with that task, she shoved her loose fitting slacks down past her knees, so she could kick them off.

She put her arms around his neck and pulled his mouth hard against her lips. Her kisses were like an illegal drug. He wanted more and more, and he’d do anything to keep her with him. Raw hunger had them locked in an embrace that nothing on earth could separate.

He slid into her satin silkiness and let out a deep sigh. He was home where he belonged and never wanted to leave. She was tight, warm, wet, and eager.

Lifting her hips, she stroked his slick
, hot dick. He swelled enormously as blood pounded in his head. Her breath on his earlobe signaled they wouldn’t be holding back this time. They both pumped in long, hard strikes, each one bringing them closer and closer.

Then she screamed his name
, and Tony climaxed so hard he felt he’d exploded.

Their bodies satisfied, they collapsed against each other and fell asleep.

Langley

After Jake left, Bea returned to her desk to find her boss gone. She went into his office and was surprised to see the room a mess. Things were strewn everywhere. She picked up a busted glass frame of Brad’s daughter and went to put it on his desk when Brad charged into the room.

A black eye and a swollen cheek told her Jake had indeed paid
Brad a visit before coming to Vince’s office.

“What are you doing in here?” Brad stood with his fists balled. “Get out.”

Bea backed away, putting her hand against her mouth. The fire in his glare told her that the man she’d come to know as a lying sneak was indeed on the edge.

As Bea went to exit
, she ran into Karla.

Without cause, Karla shoved her aside. “What the hell is going on?”

Bea shook her head. “I don’t know.”

Karla moved into the
office. “Are you okay, Brad?” Before he could answer, Karla slammed the door in Bea’s face.

But Bea didn’t move. She stood right next to the
office, hoping to overhear something they could use.

Brad didn’t do a good job of keeping his voice down. He cursed the Falcon agent and swore to see the downfall of Frank Hamilton and his agency.

Bea knew Brad wasn’t the first person to make that claim. Of course, no one had managed that monumental feat so far.

However, he did say something about blaming Joe’s death on Tony. She didn’t know if that meant Joe was already dead or if Brad was only planning. She wouldn’t take any chance
s. She’d call Frank and notify him to tell Tony to be careful.

Just as Bea went to walk away
, she heard Karla sweet talking Brad into joining her at the Harrington tonight. Then he chuckled, but Bea felt sure he’d taken the bait.

Bea made plans to leave early.
When Jake, Colanglo, and she had met, they’d decided Bea should spearhead the operation to take down Senator Parker. With the approval from Vince, Bea walked out of the building with the thumb drive in her purse.

Walking across the grounds to her Honda, Bea slid behind the wheel and headed for her rendezvous with a mysterious man she’d never met and didn’t know if she could trust.

Damascus

Joe Mitchell hung from his wrists in a warehouse, his feet tied and a dirty rag in his mouth. He had been so close to his confidential informant’s house when one of el Jibar’s men grabbed him off the street, threw a bag over his head, and brought him here.

He didn’t know his location, only that the warehouse had no windows, dirty floors, and two doors large enough to drive a car through. He only knew that because when they took off his hood
, he’d been standing exactly where they strung him up.

El Jibar had worked tirelessly to force him to talk. The one called Faraj did a job on his body. Joe couldn’t feel his hands anymore. Several hours ago
, his stomach had emptied on the floor. They’d beat his face, head, stomach, and kidneys for hours, but he’d gritted his teeth and decided he’d die before giving that motherfucker a single bit of information.

And Joe knew that could happen because his torturers had been relentless. They
’d beat and kicked him, hooked him up to a battery and shocked him to the point he passed out twice. Then they’d burned the bottoms of his feet until he could smell his own flesh cook.

Somehow
, he’d find the anger and tenacity to hang on until his heart gave out. And if the sharp pain in his chest was any indication, he didn’t have long to wait.

El Jibar had left several minutes ago, and Joe used the time to catch his breath. Ali came up to him with a bucket and threw
the contents at Joe. The icy water momentarily startled him. Then he wished he could open his mouth.

As droplet’s dripped from his hair, Joe blinked
, trying to clear his vision. Any minute now, they would come back and torture him. Joe prayed he could hold out or God would be merciful and let him die.

Washington, DC

Bea parked her car and walked to the Lincoln Memorial to meet the man she’d heard so much about but had never came in contact with. As she looked around,
she knew she was being watched. Vince would never allow her to go out on a limb without providing the protection she’d need.

She picked an empty bench and stared up at the enormous statue of one of America’s most revered leaders. She’d often wondered what Lincoln had been thinking during his difficult presidency. Probably much what President Davis thought every day with
their security constantly at risk.

She hugged her purse to her chest and prayed she had done the right thing. Yes, Vince had sanctioned this little ploy, but if there came a time it got out to the public who’d leaked the information, she could be tried as a spy. Not a way she wanted to be remembered.

Much too soon, a young man sat down next to her. He spread his arms out across the back of the bench and propped his ankle on his knee. “Are you Bea?”

“Yes.”

He looked at her. “I expected someone younger.”

“Really?”

“I don’t mean that as an insult. I only mean this is very dangerous.”

Bea looked away. “Oh, you don’t have to tell me that.”

“What have you got?”

“First, your name and the password.” She’d arranged all that over the phone. Couldn’t take the chance she was speaking to an agent.

“Jason Lamb, reporter.” He looked toward the statue. “Password, Falcon.”

Bea nodded. “I have a thumb drive with copies of all the papers you requested from Senator Parker
about Gulf Green Construction. Also, several confidential files about CIA agent Brad Hall. Together, they plotted the whole thing. On the drive are emails, pictures of them meeting, and detailed information on how they plan to take out a Falcon agent by blaming him for the death of Agent Joe Mitchell.”

Bea figured by now, the newspaper reporter would be slobbering to get his hands on
the drive. That wasn’t the case. Jason Lamb must be a very good reporter because he knew the right questions to ask.

“How did you come by this information?”

“I have worked for the CIA for thirty-two years.”

“Can I
fact check this material?”

“You can if you want to get it taken away from you before you get a chance to print it.”

“And you’re doing this why?”

“For my country
, and all the people who would suffer if Senator Parker succeeds.”

Mr. Lamb sat for a while, staring at the Lincoln Monument. “He was a man I always admired.”

“Abraham Lincoln?”

Jason looked down at the concrete walkway. “I think he always told the truth.”

Bea nodded because she felt the same way. “I agree.”

“Do you know these Falcon agents?”

Bea turned and looked at the young man next to her who was barely out of his twenties. “I know them and the owner of the company, Frank Hamilton. My boss and he are good friends.”

Jason leaned forward and braced his elbows on his knees. “One night when I was working late, I prowled for food in my colleague’s desk drawers. I came across a
n article written by that reporter.” He stood and moved in front of her, his face flushed and raw. “Being a brilliant young news journalist looking to make a name, I turned in the article.”

Bea didn’t like anyone going through her desk. “That’s not a good habit to form, young man.”

“No, it’s not. But by being ambitious and unethical, I impressed the hell out of my editor.”

“Oh, dear.”

“Yeah, you think?” He jammed his fingers in the front pocket of his jeans. “My editor agreed to publish the article anonymously, but the information in that story ended up getting someone killed. I never had the nerve to own up to writing the article to my colleagues, and I was disloyal to a good friend. Later, I heard a Falcon agent was also injured, but was able to get away.”

“I don’t know what to say.”

“My friend who had this information knew I’d taken it. Oh, she never said anything, but she knew. The really amazing thing is she never betrayed me.”

“You must feel horrible about that, Jason. What happened to your friend?”

“I think she was dating a Falcon agent at the time, and when he read the article, he must have assumed she’d written it. Soon afterwards, she took a leave of absence, and I never saw her again.”

“Jason, you must make this right. You’ll carry it the rest of your life if you don’t.”

His sad little smile broke her heart. “Maybe someday.”

Bea stood
and shook hands with the reporter. By doing so, she passed the thumb drive and they parted ways.

She
stopped and called out, “Jason, it’s better to tell the truth than live with a lie.”