Dark Cover (The DARK Files #2) Read online

  Remembering yesterday’s success, she smiled. She and Nick had worked together like longtime partners who knew each other’s minds. He’d been prepared to defend her physically, but sat back and let her work. He even played along. Like a pro, in fact. Between them, they maneuvered Emil into his corner. If only the little man’s information could lead DARK to New Dawn’s leader.

  When she finished her shower, from her window she saw Nick standing out on the terrace. The scuffed leather jacket he wore emphasized the width of his shoulders and the narrowness of his hips. He’d jammed his hands in the rear pockets of his jeans, and he was staring pensively into the chilly November darkness. She knew firsthand the tensile firmness of those shoulders and hips, the gentleness of his strong hands. She knew the body beneath the layers. If looking at him clothed was enough to turn her on, good thing she’d finished on the treadmill. Humpty Dumpty might’ve had another fall. She slipped on a heavy sweater and traipsed down to the sunroom.

  “May I join you, or is this star-gazing for one?” she said as she stepped onto the terrace.

  He beckoned to her. “Not many stars. Rain clouds like it here.” He scrubbed a hand across his five-o’clock shadow. “I need fresh air after that phone session.”

  “You don’t like being a long-distance boss.” No more than he’d be a long-distance dad. The thought blindsided her, and her heart thudded an extra beat. She blinked the notion away. If he were ever a dad, she’d never know about it, would she? “Is N.D.M. chugging uphill or downhill without you?”

  He held one hand out level. “On the straightaway. Not downhill. Reports were good. Problem with the Hong Kong supplier’s ironed out. New York has the other glitches in hand.”

  Clouds played peek-a-boo with the stars and the waxing moon. Now that fall’s advance was denuding the yard’s surrounding shrubbery, traffic noises drifted to her ears. She caught a whiff of fragrant wood smoke from a fireplace in the posh neighborhood. Designer firewood, she guessed, from the Chevy Chase Supermarket.

  Her heartbeat tripped as Nick tucked her beneath one arm. Her mind temporarily snagged on his familiar scent, one she would always associate with autumn leaves and wood smoke. “So delegating responsibility’s not all bad.”

  “Thanks for reminding me I could delegate,” he said. “And thank you for your generous words about Alexei. I tend to forget his good qualities.”

  She tilted her head for his kiss. The thrill sang through her body and curled around her heart. He was strong and honorable. Byrne was off base.

  When they finally separated and her brain worked again, she said, “My generous words? What did I say? When?”

  “I must be good if my kisses short-circuit that quick brain of yours.” He grinned, a lethal curve that mesmerized her again. “At the funeral, you praised Alexei’s expertise to the playboy prince. I meant to mention it then, but events blew it from my mind.”

  Events like the car bombing. “You’re welcome. I meant it. He was the expert. Emil Alfieris is cocky about his knowledge, but wrong about the Ming vase. According to DARK’s consultant, it is a later copy. Your brother’s valuation on it was correct.”

  He laughed, a hearty rumble that seduced as much as his smile. “I don’t mind putting a lower price on the vase. It’s worth it. Does our banty rooster know?”

  Now it was her turn to grin. “Not yet.”

  “Has he crowed?”

  She wagged her head. “Emil clucked a bit, but I think his crowing is done. He did agree to look at pictures to find the New Dawn agent he met. So far he hasn’t identified any of their people we know about or anyone in the museum reception pictures.”

  “Frustrating. They get the breaks, and we get dead ends.”

  “You must be pleased that neither Lise nor her boyfriend sold us out.”

  “Relieved. For Janine’s sake, more than mine. But we still don’t know what Ray’s game is.”

  “Ah, but we do. Or I do. You know those papers you saw Ray stuff in his backpack?”

  He turned to face her. Dark shadows drenched the angles and planes of his strong features. The sheer intensity of his heavy-lidded gaze bounced her pulse. “Someone looked in his pack?”

  She shrugged. “I can’t give away all of DARK’s methods. His papers are a map of this property all right. But of the grounds, not the house.”

  His brows drew together in a thoughtful caterpillar.

  He’d figure it out soon, but no sense prolonging the mystery. “DARK has learned that Ray is taking a landscaping course.”

  “Landscaping.” As the idea and its ramifications sank in, he began to nod. His understanding earned her a quick buss on the nose. “So the street tough is a student with a goal. Was he designing improvements to the backyard?”

  She wrapped her arms around his waist. “A class assignment. That’s why he kept skulking around outside the house. He didn’t want anyone to know. I’m not sure why.”

  “I’ll bet his street pals laughed at him. He probably figured we would too. Does that course of his involve garden walls and stonework?”

  “I don’t know, but I can find out. What—”

  The telephone inside slammed them apart. In two strides Nick entered and grasped the phone.

  Chapter 19

  VANESSA CLICKED ON her mic. “Byrne, do you copy?”

  “Affirmative. Stay with him.”

  She closed the atrium door behind her with a quiet click as Nick picked up the receiver.

  “How many demonstrations do you need, Mr. Markos, before you see things our way?” said the smooth, accented voice.

  “That’s enough. I knew you were murdering slime, but now I’ve seen it for myself.”

  “Time is growing short,” continued the voice as if he hadn’t been insulted. “We want our money.”

  “I’ll pay you, dammit,” Nick said. “Just tell me when and where.”

  Vanessa’s heart stopped, then stumbled into a frantic pace. Simon Byrne’s curse nearly burst her eardrum. “No, Nick, what are you doing?”

  He covered the mouthpiece with one hand. “Ending this charade, that’s what. No more waiting for a shot or a bomb to explode or thugs to snatch you.”

  “I am gratified you see things our way,” said the voice. “Leave the money in—”

  “Forget that. I’m not leaving ten million dollars in cash somewhere for your goons to pick up. You, and only you, meet me for the exchange, or no deal.” His voice serrated with fury and his jaw rigid with uncompromising resolve, he glowered at the phone as though he could see through it to the caller’s smug face.

  She held her breath while silence indicated the man on the other end pondered the demand. What did Nick mean to do? Would he give them his own money? Or had he found Alexei’s stash and not told her? He wouldn’t really pay them, would he? Her chest ached.

  “Very well. Here is what you must do. Put the ten million in a leather laptop case. Take it to the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery. Leave your bodyguard at home.”

  “I can have the money by tomorrow. What time?”

  Again a long pause. Ye gods, what the hell’s going on? She bit her lip in consternation.

  “Not tomorrow. Sunday. At four forty-five precisely.”

  “Why so long?” Nick demanded. “I want this over with.”

  “One more thing,” the terrorist said. “Bring Ms. Le Bec with you. As a gesture of good faith.”

  “Negative. I won’t endanger her any further. I’ll come alone.”

  “Bring the woman or the deal is off.” The confident sneer in the voice stung her nerves like salt water on sunburn.

  Nick growled. “How will I know you?”

  “That will be no problem. We know you.” A soft click terminated the connection.

  Nick lowered the receiver into the phone cradle.

  “Please, you didn’t have to do that. I don’t understand.” She rushed to him and gripped his arms, more t
o support herself than to shake sense into him.

  He hugged her to him. “It’s the only way. Don’t you see? I won’t put you in more danger because of my brother. When it’s over, we can figure out what’s real and what isn’t between the two of us.”

  The band around her chest cranked in another notch. Real? Oh, my love, is anything in our relationship real? She was afraid that what wasn’t real was genuine illusion.

  Simon Byrne and Gabe Harris marched into the sunroom. “What the blazing hell are you up to, Markos?”

  Nick had to convince the DARK officer his plan would work. He folded his arms and prepared to do battle.

  Byrne stood rigid with anger in the middle of the room while the other officer took up a position at the doorway. Was he guarding Nick from danger or preventing him from leaving?

  Nick glared at the CO. “You’re worried I’ll really pay them off. I’m not that stupid.”

  “Then why bite?”

  He’d worked it out while waiting for the New Dawn man to call. “Catching small fish on our hooks has fed you no information. You’re no closer to capturing Husam Al-Din now than you were when his agent killed my brother.”

  At his side, Vanessa dropped her gaze to the floor, clearly pondering his assertions.

  A scowl pleated Byrne’s forehead. “We’re getting closer.”

  “Not close enough or fast enough. A waiting game is futile. And dangerous. Each time they escalate the violence. We have to force the issue.” Before Vanessa is hurt or killed. He cared too much to allow her to continue to be the bait. Even if she was willing.

  “What makes you think Husam Al-Din will meet you in person? Or that it was him on the phone, for that matter?” said Harris, the other officer.

  “If it’s not the leader, it has to be a lieutenant in the New Dawn organization. Someone Al-Din would trust with ten million dollars. Someone who can give us what we want to know.” Nick left it at that, hoping that was enough for the DARK officer to make the leap.

  “Your crazy offer won’t work. Might get you killed.” Byrne paced the room. “And it’s unnecessary.”

  “Unnecessary?” Nick raked fingers through his hair. “Time is winding down. Five days until November 11. If we get Al-Din now, you can avert their attack and prevent deaths.”

  The control officer leaned against the back of the sofa. His assessing gaze drifted from Nick to Vanessa and back. “We can avert the attack anyway.”

  “What do you mean?” She stalked toward her colleague. She stopped halfway there, as if weighing her loyalties. Nick crossed mental fingers.

  The man lifted one shoulder and tipped his head apologetically. “I just found out this afternoon. Intelligence has scoped out what New Dawn plans for Veterans Day. The president always lays a wreath at the—”

  “Tomb of the Unknowns,” Nick interjected. “Exactly where the voice directed me to deliver the money. Doesn’t that seem too coincidental, too pat?”

  Byrne shook his head. “Not from what we know about New Dawn. Relentless but not subtle. They probably see the dual use of that location as symbolic. An ironic joke.”

  Vanessa spun toward Nick. Her green eyes pleaded with him. “So you see, you don’t have to endanger yourself after all. When he calls again, you can say you changed your mind.”

  God knew Nick would rather skydive without a parachute than be responsible for an op. His instincts and planning had resulted in disaster before. This time he wouldn’t direct the op. Others would. But he wouldn’t hunker safely in the background either. Pretending to pay off Al-Din or his agent would set him square in the sights of a potential crossfire. And Vanessa had to be by his side.

  He might have the shakes. Or another flashback. He might freeze. His insides churned. He had to do this. He could do it. Not only for his honor, but for Vanessa.

  His gut warned him the Arlington Cemetery location and time were deliberate and calculated. Byrne was wrong about why. Nick just had to work out the connection. Instead of deterring him, the oddity of the so-called coincidence chiseled his decision in stone. “I’m going through with the fake payoff. Will you cover my back or not?”

  He watched Byrne’s eyes. At first they shone as hard as the diamond stud in one ear. Then the corners softened as he glanced toward the ceiling. He was waffling.

  Vanessa returned to Nick, linked an arm with his. “Consider the possibilities, Byrne.”

  “You taking his side now?” But his tone seemed more banter than challenge.

  She shook off the question. “We could shut this terrorist threat down early with no threat to the president or anybody else. At the very least, we’d have another of the terrorists in custody, a higher-up who may really lead to Husam Al-Din.”

  “I have the feeling there’s another possibility,” her colleague said.

  “What if you’re wrong? What if New Dawn’s plans are for some other venue? For instance, the big parade with dozens of dignitaries. What would General Nolan say if he thought we passed up a chance to head them off at the pass?”

  Byrne’s jaw worked on her words as if chewing and digesting them. His expression slid the rest of the way from intransigence to speculation. Finally he tugged at his studded earlobe. His mouth flirted with a grin. “Wade, I’m damned proud. You’ve picked up my annoying habit of questioning the agency line. Hell of a thing to be in charge for a change and on the other side.”

  Her shoulders relaxed. “So what do you think?” Hope edged her voice.

  He folded his arms. “They’ve chosen the timing carefully. Fifteen minutes before sunset blurs the landscape. Surveillance in such a wide-open spot as Arlington National Cemetery means more personnel than I’ve been assigned. They’ve given us three days lead. We’ll have to hustle. If I can get the director’s authorization, it’s a go.”

  Her cheeks flushed, she turned to Nick with triumph brightening her eyes.

  Before she could speak, he said to Byrne, “I know you don’t trust me. I’ll wear a mic, do whatever’s necessary for springing the trap.”

  “Tomorrow’s Friday. Banks are closed on Saturday,” Vanessa pointed out. “Nick, they’ll be expecting you to go to the bank for the money.”

  “Count on it.” Byrne levered away from the sofa. “We’ll hammer out the details after I talk to the director.”

  After they left, Vanessa said, “Bringing in Husam Al-Din, ending this operation, isn’t your responsibility. You take too much on yourself.”

  “What do you mean? Someone had to do something. Time’s running out.”

  “First Somalia. Then your brother. Now this. You shoulder responsibility for problems that aren’t yours, for more than any man should.”

  Doubt gripped him. “You think I won’t follow through?”

  She shook her head wildly, slapping her braid back and forth. “No, that’s not what I meant at all. I trust you. But I worry about you too.”

  He said, “Thank you for that. I hope I can come through. Your trust means more than anything to me.”

  The pulse in her throat throbbed, and her eyes darkened. “And your trust means everything to me.”

  ***

  To Vanessa’s surprise, General Nolan agreed to the fake payoff. The director trusted Nick no more than Byrne did, so the time crunch was the deciding factor.

  Veterans Day was Tuesday, only four days away.

  Byrne quickly arranged for the bank’s cooperation. In the afternoon, accompanied by McNair and Harris as his “security,” Nick sauntered into his bank on Connecticut Avenue with his empty laptop case. A half hour later, the three of them marched out with the case packed with bundles of newsprint topped with a bundled layer of real hundred-dollar bills.

  To an interested observer, the bulge was all cash.

  In the afternoon, Vanessa left the rest of the team to craft the net to be spread over the cemetery. They had to knit up any holes their fish might swim through and yet keep the net invisible. Office
rs had to blend in with tourists and staff while taking positions around the Tomb of the Unknowns.

  Timing would be key. The cemetery closed at five o’clock, only fifteen minutes after the rendezvous. Darkness would close in rapidly after that.

  She liked planning operations. Strategy intrigued her — tossing ideas back and forth. Mostly she liked working with the team. But her job was to be with Nick. When the strategy session ended, she left. As she slipped through the fence to the house, she remembered the scene on the terrace that afternoon.

  Nick had hired young Ray Lincoln to finish building the terrace stone wall. As an apprentice, the boy had no tools for the job, so Nick financed the purchase. He salvaged Ray’s pride by arranging to deduct payments from his salary.

  As they shook hands to seal the bargain, Ray said with his chin raised, “Deal. I do good work. You won’t be sorry.”

  Nick wasn’t the shark she’d originally expected weeks ago when the director ordered her undercover. He dealt always with honor, respect and fairness. And he handled Ray with a sensitivity that impressed her.

  How could she not love the man? How could she not wish with every fiber of her being for things to be different? For an end to the mandate to spy on him so she wouldn’t feel this burden of guilt.

  For him to love her back. She wrapped her arms around herself as if that could ease the constant ache in her chest.

  ***

  Nick trudged into the master suite late Saturday night and kicked off his loafers. He heard the shower running and smiled at how natural having Vanessa there felt.

  She no longer bothered with the other bathroom. This one was designed for two. The tiled shower boasted dual heads, a shampoo dispenser and enough room to dance the tango.

  He yanked off his shirt and unzipped his trousers.

  The pretense of sleeping with him while keeping her belongings in the other bedroom was now the norm. An arrangement he wanted to make permanent. After tomorrow’s trap for New Dawn, they could dispense with the damn Danielle charade. The entire mess created by Alexei had taken over his life. Worse, it had reincarnated his old guilt and pain.