Contingencies, page 12
“Let’s see, Charlie had, what, maybe forty years of experience, in and out of the field? How many have you had?”
Dani’s face flushed. She choked back her tears and held up four fingers.
“That many, huh? Wow, I’d say you were evenly matched, wouldn’t you?” Reilly let her stew on his comments for a few moments and took a drag from his water bottle. It was a nasty thing to do but necessary to put things back in perspective.
“Thanks, I feel so much better,” she responded curtly. “No one invited you to this party you know.”
Reilly simply smiled and spread peanut butter on a cracker before popping it in his mouth. Dani sighed and played with the crumbs on her plate. “You make this look so easy.”
“I’ve had years to cope with O’Donnell. You’ve only had days. I’m not saying you can’t have your pity party. God knows you are more than entitled, but have it and be done with it. Then, move on and find a solution.”
“There is no solution and you know it.”
“For the past, you’re right. But for the future, there should be. No, make that there will be.”
“God, are you always this confident?” she asked.
“Pretty much.”
“It borders on arrogance, you know.”
“So I’ve been told,” he said. His deep-seeded hatred for O’Donnell made it easy to stay determined and now, with a killer like Mariner in the mix, more fixated on what needed to be done.
“It’s really annoying.”
Reilly turned serious. “Acceptance doesn’t mean surrender, Dani.”
“But how can I help you and Dmitri if I can’t get past this? I don’t understand why I am here. It’s like I’m paralyzed. I can’t move, I can’t think, and all I want to do is go home.” She froze when she said it. “Ah, that’s a joke now, isn’t it? It’s not my home, it’s his. I don’t want it or anything to do with him. I can’t ever go back there.”
Reilly leaned his shoulder into hers and whispered in her ear. “Then go where you want to go.”
Dani winced at the statement and looked away. Charlie had betrayed Reilly, too, but his tone was even and unemotional. He’s a trained soldier, a warrior, and you are just a stupid girl. It’s another day at the office for him.
Reilly moved back. “It should only be another day, right?”
Dani considered what she would do. She had another place to go but that was her business, no one else’s. Not even Dmitri’s. His loyalty resided with Trinity, his daughter, and his men of war. Nothing here included her and not only was she in the way, she had divided Dmitri’s house. Viktor and Reilly had avoided each other as ordered but tension filled each room. “You have all the answers, don’t you?”
Reilly shrugged.
Dani took a deep breath, blew it out and ate a plain cracker. She would do one more day and leave whether they were done or not. There would be no point in staying if she had nothing to add. Reilly could finish with Dmitri and do whatever they decided. It’d been their mission for years so surely she could suck it up for twenty-four more hours. She breathed out again, slowly, and Reilly glanced at her sideways.
“The vodka?” he asked.
“That?” She flicked her fingers toward the bottle. “That’s nothing. Don’t forget, I lived here for six months. I quickly learned to keep up in order to fit in.”
Reilly watched a sly grin cross her lips. “Why are you smiling?”
Dani wasn’t sure why, but she leaned her shoulder into his as the buzz danced inside her head. “The last time I was here, I threw a bottle like that at Viktor’s head. Empty of course. It would have been a waste of perfectly good vodka.”
Reilly snorted out a laugh. “I would’ve loved to have seen that.”
Dani’s grin disappeared with the image. She had thrown it in response to finding Irina in Viktor’s bed. “Too bad I missed.”
Reilly’s laughter muffled the sound of approaching footsteps.
“Well, is this a party for two or might anyone attend?” Irina asked. She opened the refrigerator door and grabbed a bottle of water.
Dani cringed. Keeping up appearances with Dmitri had been as difficult as avoiding Irina who always seemed to be lurking. Like now. Dani eyed the bottle then reconsidered. She couldn’t fight it. She knew what Irina was doing and that it would work like it had with Viktor and any of the countless men Her Highness set in her sight. She had never told Dmitri the real truth as to why she needed to leave. That she’d been betrayed by his daughter, the sister he thought they were. And by the man he trusted with his organization and legacy.
The light over the sink glowed off Irina’s long blond hair and shimmered off her silk robe while she floated across the room like Venus rising from the sea. The short black lace slip she wore beneath it skimmed the top of her long, thin thighs so that Reilly had a full view of everything she had to offer.
Dani wrapped her short, knit sweater tighter and sunk a little in her chair. She felt like a troll in cotton pajamas, half buzzed, feeling stupid and sorry for herself. It was no competition and the way Irina moved tonight, sexy and half-naked, she might as well have given Reilly a lap dance. Apparently, the ring on her finger did nothing to stifle her insatiable hunger for men or attention.
“You can join us if you like,” Dani said without hiding her indifference.
Irina scanned the table with notable distaste and raised an eyebrow at the open bottle of vodka. She leaned across the table to grab a branch of grapes purposely rubbing her warm, soft hip against Reilly’s arm. “No thanks,” she mused, “three’s a crowd.” She seductively walked back the way she came, playfully wiggling her fingers goodbye.
Dani relaxed after Irina disappeared around the corner.
“Okay, what the hell was that?” Reilly asked.
Dani chewed on her lip and broke another cracker on her plate. She looked toward the door and then at Reilly before eyeing the mess she made. The people she had loved once had abandoned her and could no longer be trusted. It seemed to be her life’s theme. The sooner she left Russia the better. She chose her words carefully in case Reilly was interested in following Irina. His love life wasn’t her business but she wouldn’t offend him either. “I’m in her way.”
“Ah, and her little show was more for you than it was for me.”
Her chair scraped the floor but Reilly covered her right hand with his before she could rise and gently rubbed it with his thumb. His touch flooded her with warmth, like a roaming light within her veins, searching for something. It returned to its origin but not before hammering her chest and breaking the pain. When he made no move to leave, she found the courage to explain.
“It’s her way of saying she’s in charge. Her house, her father, and all the men who work for him.”
“Ah, sorry, not even remotely interested.”
Dani raised an eyebrow. Maybe he forgot that she read his file. “That so?”
Reilly let go of her hand and blithely popped another cracker in his mouth. “Talk about high maintenance. Did you see those nails? That diamond? It’s so ridiculously big I’m surprised she doesn’t have someone carry it for her. No thanks.”
Dani smirked at the visual image of some ugly, hairy beast with huge feet shadowing Irina with her ring on a velvet pillow. An evil grin crossed her face as it played out in her head so that she didn’t care if Reilly was telling the truth. As uninvited as he was, he was still sitting with her. I can do one more day.
“Maybe I should have thrown the bottle at her?” she said. “I’m a better shot now.”
Reilly snorted again as he pictured the scene. He totally enjoyed her wicked sense of humor. Maybe it was from the liquor but somehow it bubbled up through her grief and made him wish they had met under different circumstances. The fact that she’d be gone in a day or so, possibly forever, suddenly made the bottom fall from his stomach. It pitched and rolled as if he had drunk the entire bottle himself.
Leaning into her again, he snuck a deep breath of her softness. “Nah, it’s not empty and would be a waste of perfectly good vodka.” Dani smiled for a brief moment before Reilly noticed the dark thoughts returning. “Irina is not in charge of you, or me, so let her think what she wants,” he said. “We’ll be gone soon and she can boss or tease whomever she chooses.”
He paused only for a moment. “Does Dmitri know about this?” Dani turned to him with pleading eyes and placed her hand on his arm. Her touch caused an instant connection as if he were impaled by the need to have her as well as protect her. He would gladly give her both but settled for his role as bodyguard. Irina had nothing on her.
“No, and don’t tell him okay?” she said. “He wants things to be the way they were, but they aren’t. They can’t be.” She turned back around on the chair and broke another cracker. Sadly, they hadn’t been from the start but neither Reilly nor Dmitri needed to know those truths. Reilly already had his doubts about her ability to help which admittedly were true. She hadn’t helped at all. And Dmitri, as sincere and as faithful as he tried to be, didn’t want to see the truth, personally or professionally. It was blatantly obvious she didn’t belong here.
“Like you said,” Dani added, “we’ll be gone soon enough and she can go back to being queen bee around here.”
Reilly patted her hand again to settle himself more than her. “Good attitude.”
*****
Dani showed no effects from her private party when she met Reilly at daybreak. After a run and quick breakfast, she entered the library with him to find Dmitri speaking with one of his computer technicians.
“Look at this,” Dmitri said pointing to the information on O’Donnell’s laptop screen.
Dani held back any comment and was simply stoic next to Reilly. Her plans to leave fueled her will to get through the next twenty-four hours.
“So?” Reilly said. “I thought we determined days ago that there was nothing of value in those few folders.”
The technician spoke up. “We found something more last night. Without getting into technicalities, O’Donnell was sloppy on his last session and we found evidence of an encrypted header meaning there is a hidden drive partition buried within the parameters.”
“Seriously? Since when did O’Donnell become a computer expert?” Reilly asked remembering his surprise at the automatic erase of the recording. “It’s why he documented everything.”
“He’d been taking courses online,” Dani offered. “At home, at night. He had a hard time grasping concepts so he spent hours at it.”
“We went back and looked at all the other electronic formats and flash drives just to be sure we didn’t miss anything,” said the technician, “but this computer seems to have something more. They may be images or documents, or both. Either way, it’s expertly protected.”
Dmitri turned to Dani. “Does any of this look familiar to you?”
She sat beside Dmitri who opened the first folder as Reilly pulled up another chair. “I was in Paris several weeks ago, like I told you. That one,” she waited as Dmitri opened the second folder. “I was in New York several months ago. There’s nothing here except hotel information and bus schedules. I remember waiting for further instructions but he simply told me to come home.”
“I do not have anyone here who can break a cipher like this,” Dmitri said. “I called Director McNeal but because he would need to involve other departments he cannot help. Do either of you know someone you could trust with this who would keep it confidential? There are eyes everywhere and we do not know who may still be on O’Donnell’s payroll.”
“Michél Charon,” Dani said as Reilly’s voice echoed hers. She touched his arm. “You know Michél, too?
“Let’s just say we’ve worked together in the past,” he grinned as he soaked in the glow that matched her touch. “I trust the man with my life.”
“And again, somehow we never crossed paths.”
“I guess it’s one of those timing things,” he teased.
Dani nudged his shoulder as her own words came back to her.
Dmitri frowned. “Reilly, this should be a priority. Daniella and I will work out what we can with Commander Charon but I need you to discuss the items we found yesterday with Viktor. He will be in charge of the combat squads if we need them. We can make the final determination after his assessment.”
Reilly and Dani were no longer amused.
Reilly was furious when he returned to the library. Dani was sure his discussion with Viktor was more confrontation than conversation.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“Nothing. What did Michél say?”
Dani sat at the keyboard looking at the visual icons that seemed to hold nothing in their folders. While he was gone, she tried several passwords she knew, others she guessed, without success. While the technician was pleased there was no limit on their attempts, he had given up.
“Dmitri is taking care of it,” she said. “I thought he’d be done by now.” She jumped with Reilly when the French doors flew open. He grabbed her immediately and put her behind him.
Viktor stood in its wake with four men beside him. The elite squad was dressed for battle, their guns presented and at the ready.
“What the hell’s wrong with you?” Reilly yelled.
“You reckless idiot!”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“Your incompetence has brought your personal war here,” Viktor said. “It takes you days to bring me two pieces of garbage you call possible targets. I’ve considered them. They are nothing and I will not waste my time or my men on something so useless. You’ve surrounded yourself with incompetents.”
Reilly clenched his fist as Viktor leered at Dani. “Get over yourself already. You’re an even bigger asshole than I thought if you think you could do any better.”
Viktor stepped forward and stood within inches of Reilly’s face. “What did you say?”
Reilly held Viktor’s stare with the same intensity he had that night on the porch. “You heard me,” he said.
“You have not changed a bit,” Viktor sneered. “Always with the better ideas, the better plans. You are a reckless American cowboy. I do not know why Dmitri trusts you.”
“And you’re still an egotistical son-of-a-bitch holding a grudge,” Reilly blasted. “Those were Dmitri’s orders, not mine, but it all comes back to that doesn’t it? You just can’t seem to follow them. From the day we met to today. If anyone is reckless, you are, and I don’t understand how Dmitri trusts you with this job or his daughter.”
Viktor’s red-hot temper flared like fire released from hell. “In another place, you and the useless child behind you would be taught proper respect.”
Dmitri entered the room from the hall. “Viktor! Stand down!”
Viktor’s laser glare remained pointed at Reilly. “There are two men in town asking questions about an American arriving on a Gulfstream. They have been to every bar and club. They saw you in Amsterdam.”
“No one saw me,” Reilly snarled. “I never left the plane when we refueled.”
“Some gas monkey saw your face.”
Reilly was now on overload. O’Donnell had taunted him and Dmitri had warned him. “Who were they?” he asked.
“What does it matter?” Viktor said. “You brought danger to my house. This is my family, not yours. You need to leave.”
“I give the orders, Viktor,” Dmitri interrupted. “Not you. Not yet.”
Viktor stepped away from Reilly then turned toward Dmitri. “I will not allow anyone to put your organization or your daughter in danger. We have worked too hard to let some American destroy in less than a week what we have taken years to build. No wonder his government tossed him out.”
Dmitri scoffed. “You are acting like the Homestead is a church. We have a fully prepared army to protect us, like the men behind you.” Dmitri looked to the man in charge. “I want eyes and ears everywhere immediately and a report by midnight. Elimination is permitted only after you find out who they are and who they work for. Do what you must to get that information.”
The men moved only after Viktor gave a slight nod. His anger was directed back to Dmitri. “I told you it was a mistake to put him in charge.” He then turned toward Reilly to continue his tirade. “You need to leave the way you came. And I hope they shoot down your plane.”
Dmitri stepped between them. “Nyet, I have a better idea.”
Chapter 16
Dani did a mental check as she gathered her things. She should’ve been packing to leave and was more nervous than she wished to admit. She was confident of her skills but training and doing are two different things and no matter the reason she found to argue, Dmitri insisted her help was still needed. She just didn’t know how that was possible. Deeply distressed, she questioned why Reilly couldn’t finish with Michél and his men.
Dmitri had set the pieces in place. With eyes everywhere, the slightest misstep could tip off Mariner or whomever was looking for Reilly. A decoy unit was already in the air on the Gulfstream. Viktor and his team were on Dmitri’s private jet. Both would rendezvous in Paris in a few hours where Viktor would be responsible for the direct delivery of O’Donnell’s computer to Michél Charon who would have time to decode the encryption before Dani and Reilly would join him. Dani prayed Michél would be successful in determining what was in play and where. She needed reclaim her life.
Two days to travel more than fifteen hundred miles would be a push. They were going by motorcycle and although they’d be on their own, without backup, Reilly was certain it was the best way to blind those looking for him. He was handling the route alone so there would be no chance of a leak even within the walls of Trinity. The terrain would most likely be hard and crossing the borders would be tricky. Because of the embedded electronic devices in their passports, Viktor would hand-deliver them as well. Dani had to trust Viktor would follow Dmitri’s orders this time. He appeared to be happy he was somewhat in charge. Pacified was maybe a better word. She had never seen Viktor truly happy.
