Payback (18 page)

Faith’s shoulders sagged in relief.

“Unfortunately, Dr. Montague was also…um…injured in the attack.”

Faith paused and turned around. “What the hell does that mean?”

“Ah…apparently she died for a few minutes,” McDermott said. “But Kai Paterson figured out that administering a specific drug would revive her. She’s now in a coma.”

Faith’s stomach twisted into a complex knot of tension. “God, poor Rafe.” She’d never met the man, but she’d heard the story about his recovery and how his love for Dr. Montague had been the only thing that kept him going. It was too cruel for Rafe to be on the brink of losing the woman he loved on top of everything he’d endured at the hands of Dr. Kaufmann.

“Will this impact Toby’s progress?”

“No. Paterson is Dr. Montague’s co-leader on the medical team, so he’ll be taking charge of your brother’s recovery. Paterson and the rest of the team are extremely knowledgeable and skilled.Your brother’s progress should not be affected in the least by Dr. Montague’s absence.”

“Is it—” She cleared her throat. “Would it be possible to see Toby before he reaches Georgia? Just to ease my mind?”

McDermott glanced down at his phone. “If we leave within the next three minutes we should be able to meet his plane as it lands here. You won’t have much time, though. He’s going to be transferred immediately to another plane.”

“Done.” Faith raced into the bedroom, threw on some clothes, and was out the door with McDermott with a minute to spare. “After Toby, you’ll take me to Mark?”

“Yes.”

To Faith’s relief, they reached the small airport not far from the SSU compound in time to watch the transport plane land. Lips pressed tightly together, she watched as the plane was secured and stairs were pushed up to the plane’s door. A few agonizingly long moments later, two guards appeared, escorting Toby between them.

Tears stung her eyes. Toby was confined in a straightjacket, and his face was covered with bruises, but he held his head high and walked without limping. Best of all, his expression was wary, not angry.

Halfway to the second plane, Toby noticed Faith standing off to the side. His dark blue eyes lit up.

“Faith okay?” he shouted.

She nodded, then forced a verbal response through her tears-clogged throat. “I’m fine, Toby.”

Despite her reassurance, Toby tried to get away from his guards, who struggled to restrain him. “No! Toby don’t fight them. I’m coming.”

Faith rushed over, careful to stop before she got within striking distance. “Let these men help you, Toby. They’re taking you to some very good doctors. They’re going to make you better.”

“Faith come?”

She shook her head. “Not yet. A…friend…of mine is hurt. I need to be with him. But I’ll see you soon, okay?”

“No. Want Faith. Miss Faith.”

“I know, Toby. I miss you, too. But the SSU is going to help you. I promise. We’ll get to visit again once you’re better.”

“Nooo…”

It took all of Faith’s willpower to walk away from Toby’s lost puppy eyes and tune out his cries of protest. She was surprised that he’d reacted positively to seeing her. Before the attack, Dr. Montague had warned that Kaufmann used torture and drugs to turns his victims against their family and friends. So Faith had expected Toby to treat her like an enemy. Maybe even strike out at her.

That he’d wanted the comfort of her presence made it that much harder to leave him.

Returning to McDermott, she nodded. “Let’s go.” She had to get out of here before she did something really stupid, like run back to Toby and insist on going with him. There was nothing she could do to help her brother. But she could make damn sure Mark knew he wasn’t alone. That he had a reason to fight for his life.

She loved him, and she wasn’t going to let him forget it.

Chapter Thirteen

One Week Later

SSU Medical Facility

Oregon

M
ark stared impatiently at the door of his hospital room. Faith had promised to return this afternoon at two, and it was four past. While he understood that Faith was being kept busy by the SSU as they tied up the loose ends from the aborted attack, he didn’t rest easy without her. Forget pain medication. Having Faith by his side was all he needed.

He almost scoffed at such sappy thoughts, but her love filled him so completely there was little room for pain. She softened the edges of the arrogant, self-centered man he’d become during his quest for revenge and turned him into a more patient, more compassionate man. The fact that he hadn’t once asked for an update on Jamieson and Kerberos was proof of how much he’d changed. Right now he was more concerned about Toby’s progress, because that had the greatest potential to hurt Faith.

He hoped Dr. Montague had survived. He liked the woman and knew that she would fight for Faith’s brother. But last he heard, the doctor was still in a coma.

Six after the hour and still no Faith. Mark scowled and thought about ringing for the nurse.

You’re acting like a petulant boy.

He sighed and tried to curb his impatience. If only he could get out of this damn bed and pace, maybe he’d be able to rid himself of some of this nervous energy. Instead, he had so many tubes running into him he felt like a science experiment. He knew he was lucky to be alive, but he was tired of having his bodily functions performed by machines. He wanted out of here.

He wanted Faith, dammit.

Five minutes later, the door finally opened, but it wasn’t Faith. A lean man about six feet tall with a thin, aristocratic face and piercing gray eyes walked in, moving with the easy confidence of a natural born leader. Ryker. Mark tried not to let his disappointment show, but he must have given himself away. Ryker gave him a knowing smile.

“Don’t worry, Faith is out in the waiting room. I asked her to let me speak to you alone first.” Ryker set a digital voice recorder down on the bedside table and turned it on.

“Vincente Tonelli was trouble,” Jamieson’s voice said coldly.

Mark glanced at Ryker in surprise. He’d never mentioned that Jamieson had arranged his father’s death. How had Ryker known?

“It was only a minor case,” Jamieson’s voice continued. “A former soldier, listed as dead, had been found unconscious in a ditch and been brought to the local VA hospital. When the man awoke he went crazy, killing everyone within reach before the security team tranquilized him.” Jamieson’s voice dripped with scorn.

“It should have been a simple case. The man was guilty. He should have been convicted and locked up. Then we would have been able to arrange for a quiet assassination away from the public eye. But Tonelli believed the man’s story of a secret government program and drugs that made him insane with rage. Tonelli started his own investigation. We couldn’t allow that. So we arranged for him to be killed by Don Marrone’s men, and set it up so that all evidence pointed back to a mob case Tonelli had recently presided over.”

Mark closed his eyes. He’d known Jamieson was guilty, but hearing the details that led to his father’s death hurt more than he’d expected.

Jamieson’s voice continued, explaining how he’d kept an eye on Mark and eventually decided to use his desire for retribution against him. Finally, just when Mark couldn’t stand listening any more, Ryker shut off the recorder and returned it to his pocket.

“What’s going to happen to Jamieson?” Mark asked.

“He’s in federal custody,” Ryker said. “Once we’re satisfied that we’ve rounded up all of his spies and put an end to Kerberos, he’ll go on trial.”

“And President MacAdam?”

A touch of regret or sadness passed across Ryker’s face. “His attorney was pushing for him to be declared insane, but MacAdam took offense and fired him. He’s still insisting it was his right as Commander In Chief to attack the terrorists in the manner he saw fit.”

“Mass murder.” The phrase made Mark slightly ill. He’d worked for Kerberos. Enjoyed the freedom it had allowed him. He’d had no qualms about the selective killing of individuals who threatened his country. The murder of thousands of innocents was another story. He hated to think how close he’d come to being an unknowing accomplice.

Ryker nodded. “Thank you for helping us stop them. I believe we’re square now.”

Mark felt some of the tension ease out of him. Ryker might suspect he’d killed Marrone, but he wasn’t going to pursue it. And Ryker was apparently willing to forget about the harm he’d caused the SSU.

“You’re welcome,” Mark said.

Ryker glanced toward the door and smiled. “I’d better leave now, before your lady has me thrown out. Good luck.”

“One more thing.”

Ryker raised one brow.

“I want to tell Faith everything,” Mark said. “She deserves to know.”

“She’s a reporter. For the protection of everyone involved, I’ll need a statement in writing promising that she won’t take the classified material she’s been exposed to and make it public without receiving authorization from myself and the various agencies involved.”

From Ryker’s quick response, Mark knew that the SSU director had already anticipated his request. “I’ll tell her that.”

“Very well.”

Mark watched Ryker leave with a twinge of regret. If his life had gone differently, if he hadn’t been warped by his need for justice and his sense of entitlement, he would have liked to work for a man as honest and trustworthy as Ryker. Rafe Andros and the others at the SSU were very lucky people.

Mark sighed and closed his eyes. Truth was, he was finished with this spying business. He wanted peace. To settle down with Faith. Maybe start an import business, bringing in luxury goods from Russia and the former Soviet bloc. He still had plenty of contacts.

He gave a rueful smile. Or maybe not. Too many of those contacts skirted the edge of the law. He was done with that. He didn’t want danger. He wanted a quiet life with the woman he loved.

Two Months Later

SSU Laboratories

Georgia

F
aith stood alone in the small, unfurnished room, waiting anxiously for Toby to be brought in. Since his rescue, she’d only been allowed to see Toby that one time on the tarmac. But Dr. Montague, now back to work and in charge of Toby’s care, had just contacted Faith to let her know that Toby was stable enough to meet his sister again.

Faith’s stomach danced nervously. How would her brother have changed? Would he be angry that she’d left him alone with the SSU? Did he realize the scope of the attack that had almost taken place?

A part of Faith still couldn’t believe what she’d learned. The President of the United States had been prepared to decimate an entire population in an attempt to ease his pain over the murder of his five-year-old son. If the attack had succeeded, Toby would have been an accomplice, no matter how unwilling.

Thank God for the SSU. Knowing her brother was almost back to normal eased the sting of having to promise in writing not to reveal any of the details of the attack, Kerberos, or Kaufmann’s program. To the rest of the country, the President had resigned due to sudden health reasons, and his undisclosed diagnosis was also blamed for his recent death. Beyond Siobahn’s initial article, there’d been no additional mention in the press of the missing service personnel or any hint of the experiments being run.

Because Ryker believed that not all the guilty parties had been discovered, Faith had warned Siobahn to keep her head down and to stay away from anything remotely related to the situation. Perhaps someday they’d be allowed to write the story. Just not now.

For Toby’s sake, Faith didn’t mind putting a temporary cap on it.

A knock sounded on the door, then one of the guards stepped into the room. He raised an eyebrow at Faith. She nodded, while her stomach turned cartwheels.

Toby entered a second later. As a precaution, the two guards stayed just inside the door. But Faith didn’t care. All her attention was on her brother.

He was slightly more muscular than she’d remembered. Lines of strain on his face made him look older and she hoped that the haunted edge to his eyes would eventually go away.

What mattered most, though, was his smile. It lit up his face and chased away the shadows. “Faith!” He held open his arms and she rushed into his embrace.

“Oh, God, Toby, I’ve missed you so much. How are you? Are you in any pain? Can you—”

“Hush,” Toby ordered. He held her tightly and his cheek pressed against the top of her head. “I’m okay, sis. Not quite fully normal, but almost. Dr. Montague and her team are miracle workers.”

Faith smiled up at him through tears of joy and relief. “I was so afraid…”

He nodded and she saw his eyes dampen. “I was, too. But everything is going to be okay. So,” he cleared his throat. “Tell me about you.”

“Oh Toby, it’s the most amazing thing. I’m in love…”

Six Weeks Later

Maryland

“T
his is stupid.” Faith paced back and forth in the living room of the temporary apartment she and Mark had rented not far from the Maryland schools where Faith had resumed teaching.

“I love you. You love me. Toby’s my brother, not some sort of feudal lord who gets to decide who I marry.” She threw a glare at Mark as she passed him. To her great annoyance, he looked completely unruffled. Normally when he was in fully polished GQ mode she wanted nothing more than to mess him up. Today, though, it pissed her off that he could remain so calm when he was about to meet Toby for the first time since her brother had regained his faculties.

God, she owed so much to Dr. Montague and her team. Toby’s recovery had taken longer than Faith expected, but she’d been in frequent contact with him these past few weeks as he finished the last of his treatments and prepared to reenter the real world. He was back to being the overbearing, always-got-your-back brother she remembered.

She had to keep reminding herself that today was only Toby’s third day after being released from the SSU. He was bound to be as nervous over resettling into ordinary life as she was about him meeting and accepting Mark.

“Relax, Faith,” Mark soothed. “I’m not going to abandon you if Toby decides he doesn’t like me. But he is the head of your family. It’s only polite to ask him for your hand in marriage.”