Corbin Wallace entered his hotel room, worn out and ready for some rest, after the successful end to his recent op with Hatch.
He read the message from Hatch on his phone, telling Corbin to stay on his side of the adjoining rooms, and he laughed out loud. “Well, Hatch, you called it, and Millie’s all yours, but, dammit, I want the next one.” With all the pressure of the last few days now resolved, Corbin crashed and slept through the night.
When he got up the next morning, he found more messages from Jonas at MI6, and Corbin knew that the next few days would be crazy busy.
He saw Millie and Hatch a couple times, but they were clearly in a world of their own, and Corbin was so happy for them. By the time he was done with MI6 and had a chance to catch up with the happy couple, Corbin looked over at Hatch and asked, “So, will you stay here for now?”
“Yeah, I will,” he confirmed. “How are you doing? Is your arm okay?”
“Yeah, the bullet went a little deeper than I realized, but I’m good. Just worn out, but a few days of rest will be good for me.”
“Well, hopefully that is something you get,” Hatch noted, “but, as usual, there are never any guarantees.”
“I know. Apparently the next job is just around the corner.”
“It is,” Hatch confirmed. “Sounds like I’ll be your handler. Although I’m not sure how long the Mavericks’ department will function. The focus is changing I believe, the brass being what they are.”
Corbin smiled. “In the meantime, I presume you’ll be handling it from here?”
“Absolutely, since I have a reason to stay close.” He watched as Millie neared, and, when he held out his hand, Millie immediately grabbed on to it and smiled back.
“I’ll help MI6 go through all the contents of the warehouse.” She looked over at Corbin. “I suspect it’ll take a few weeks.”
He laughed. “Are you kidding? That’ll take a few months.” But he turned to Hatch and added, “Just give me a couple days to recuperate, if you can.”
“If I can. And then we’ll figure out where you’re going.”
“Maybe nowhere,” Corbin suggested. “Maybe it’ll be nice and calm, and we’ll just stay here in England.”
“Hey, it’s possible,” Hatch admitted, “and I’m not against that at all.”
“Good,” Corbin murmured. “Give me a couple days, and then we’ll talk.”
But it wasn’t a couple days; it was only a day and a half. Just as Corbin stepped out of the shower, his phone rang.
When Corbin answered, Hatch asked, “Are you ready?”
“Yeah, sure I am. Where am I going?”
“You’re staying in England after all. A nice local job they want cleaned up fast. Seems Jonas is busy, so, with any luck, you won’t even see him.”
“So MI6 knows I’m here, with an active case, and will leave me alone? I’ll believe it when I see it. So what’s the case?”
“We’re not exactly sure yet, but a woman and two children have been kidnapped. They’ve been gone for two weeks, and now another woman with two children was kidnapped as well.”
“I’m sure MI6 doesn’t want me involved in that.”
“Maybe not, but, as of now, a third woman has been taken—at least that’s the ones we know of. We Mavericks wouldn’t normally be involved with something like this either, but as we’re on their turf …”
“Well, great,” Corbin noted. “Does this third woman have kids too?”
“No,” Hatch replied. “However, she is pregnant.”
“How on earth is that a good deal, … even for a kidnapper?”
“It isn’t, and the body of the first mother just showed up, and unfortunately her kids remain missing.”
“Shit.” Corbin’s heart sank. “You know how I feel about kids.”
“I know it, and, if you want to pass on this one, just tell me.”
“No, I’m not passing on anything,” he snapped. “I’ll go in there. I can’t stand any rat bastard who preys on kids. I’ll take him down. Don’t you worry.”
“Oh, I believe you will.” Hatch laughed. “Say hi to Nellie for me.”
“Who is Nellie?” Corbin asked suspiciously.
“The daughter of one of the members of parliament. She’s the latest woman who’s gone missing.”
“And do you know her?”
“Nope,” he replied. “But obviously it’s your turn at saving the damsel in distress, so chances are she’ll become a good friend during this investigation. In which case I’ll say hi in advance.”
Corbin laughed. “Oh, Jesus, that’s all I need. Well, I’ll believe it when I see it. You look after Millie while I’m gone.”
“Count on it,” Hatch said quietly. “And you watch your back. I don’t like that I won’t be there to watch it for you. You will have a partner though. He’s on his way, but, considering he’s stateside, he’ll be a day or two getting here, I understand.”
And, with that, Corbin hung up and turned to pack. He knew this op would be hard, given the kids’ element. It also needed to go down fast, and he needed to do it right. But, as always, he was ready.
“Well, Nellie, for better or for worse, here I come.”