Damian’s knowledge of the city had proved invaluable when the men had discussed their exit strategy. Using Paige’s phone, Damian had given Amy a secluded spot thirty minutes outside of Maracaibo for the navy helicopter to pick them up.
Brent’s decision to leave Andrea’s body behind had simplified the process. Terrance Gunning had remained unconscious until they were nearly out of the city. When he had awoken to find several Navy SEALs staring at him, he had wisely cooperated. Thankfully, this time, the night extraction had gone off without a hitch.
They had also passed off the information to the CIA and DEA about the new drug traffic lanes through Maracaibo, and the Saint Squad was happy to be free of that burden. Now they were aboard the USS Harry S. Truman in a boardroom, discussing their next move.
“Gunning isn’t talking,” Brent said. “Without his confirmation, we have no way of knowing who else might be involved.”
“From what I got from Andrea, she tricked Morenta into paying to have the Saint Squad stranded in Canaima,” Vanessa said. “He’s the one who tried to kill you, partially as revenge for crossing him a few years ago and partially to send a message to Americans that we shouldn’t mess with him.”
“They still had to have someone from CIA helping them find you in Maracaibo,” Amy said. “We know Andrea stayed in South America after faking her death, and Terrance Gunning didn’t have access to the information. Plus, he had already dropped off the grid before Vanessa left.”
“I know it sounds impossible, but it has to be Warren behind all of this,” Vanessa said. “No one else knew when I would be at the airport, and no one else knew Damian went to Canaima to look for you.”
“How do you want to approach him?” Seth asked. “We can’t accuse him without proof.”
“The lack of access by anyone else may be proof enough,” Paige offered.
“I agree,” Vanessa began, “but I would like to have something more substantial. He could always claim someone managed to tag me before I left for Maracaibo.”
“But you said you swapped out your clothes when you got there,” Paige reminded her. “We screened everything you had with us in Venezuela and checked to make sure you hadn’t been tagged with a marking spray. Everything was clean.”
“Then we need to prove no one else had access,” Vanessa concluded.
Amy motioned to a bank of three computers on one side of the room. “I could use some help with the search.”
“Amy and Vanessa, divide up what you want us to analyze,” Brent said.
“You know, for Navy SEALs, it sure seems like we do a lot of desk work.” Damian took a seat at the work table in the middle of the room.
“It’s not all sneaking up on bad guys,” Jay agreed.
“But there’ll be plenty of that,” Quinn promised.
“You can all speculate on future missions later,” Brent said. “For now, let’s get to the bottom of this.”
* * *
The complete picture was falling into place. A deeper look into Andrea Kemper’s file provided an angle Vanessa hadn’t before considered. Now only one piece of the puzzle was missing, and Vanessa knew she was the only person who could find it.
She would have preferred to meet Warren at CIA headquarters, where she could be assured that no one would have a weapon besides the security police. In fact, she would have been happy to have even arranged this meeting in the United States. Unfortunately, the money was the key, and there was only one way to prove her suspicions.
With the information retrieved from Andrea Kemper’s belongings, Vanessa had already confirmed the existence of the bank account in the Cayman Islands. Now, here she was, standing on the sidewalk two hours after the bank opened.
She looked over at Paige. “You know, you don’t have to do this.”
“We both know I’m the only person who can do this. If you have anyone else with you, you’ll raise suspicions.”
“I can go in alone.”
“That’s not going to happen.” Paige adjusted the strap on her purse and shifted it more firmly onto her shoulder. “You need someone to watch the door, and no one would believe you would come here without some kind of support.”
She was right. Rule number one was to cover all your bases. She would never go into an undercover operation alone without already having her support system in place.
“If there’s any sign of trouble, you call for help,” Vanessa said.
“I will.” Paige lowered her voice and added, “But I doubt the guys will wait for a phone call. They’ll be here before I finish dialing.”
“True.” Vanessa resisted the urge to look for the Saint Squad. As the newest and least recognizable member, Damian had been assigned a spot inside the bank. Besides being armed with a concealed handgun, he was also wearing a comm unit disguised as a Bluetooth. Quinn had taken a position on the roof while the others were scattered around the area, covering the various entrances to the bank.
Paige reached into her purse and glanced at a message on her phone. “Looks like someone’s heading for us.”
Vanessa turned to see Warren’s secretary, Maryanne Pennington, walking down the sidewalk.
“Maryanne, I didn’t expect to see you here.” Vanessa stepped forward and gave her a quick hug. “Where’s Warren?”
“He couldn’t make it. Some big meeting up on Capitol Hill.” She reached into a purse-like briefcase and slipped a sheet of paper from it. “He sent me with the information you asked for.”
Vanessa took the paper from her and glanced down at the account numbers and percentages that were to be transferred to each one. Suspicions raced through her mind. She had initially thought Warren was the only person to have access to the information that had leaked. When she discovered his secretary had gone through her initial CIA training with Andrea Kemper, new possibilities surfaced. As Warren’s secretary, Maryanne was trusted implicitly and could just as easily have been the leak.
Drawing on all of her acting abilities, Vanessa said, “Thanks. I guess it’s time to see if this will work.” She took a step toward the door, and Maryanne moved forward as well. “You don’t have to come in. I can take it from here,” Vanessa said.
“Sorry, Vanessa, but you know it’s procedure. You have to have a witness when transferring seized funds to make sure the money is going where it’s supposed to.”
“I know. That’s why I brought my assistant.” Vanessa waved in Paige’s direction.
“Yes, but she’s in your chain of command. I’m afraid it will have to be me.”
“Okay. If you insist.” Her suspicions heightened. Vanessa turned to Paige. “I guess you can just wait here.”
“I’ll come inside with you.” She pointed at a cluster of chairs visible through the window. “It looks like there’s a waiting area in there.”
Vanessa nodded her agreement. The three women walked inside, Paige taking a seat near the door. A man behind the counter greeted them. “May I help you?”
“Yes, I need to transfer some funds out of an account,” Vanessa said.
“Do you have the account number?”
“Yes.” Vanessa retrieved the account number she had written on a piece of paper and handed it to him.
He punched the account number into a computer. “Your name?”
“Lina Ramir.”
“And your ID, please.”
Vanessa handed him the passport that identified her as Lina. The man verified the information and waved her forward. “Right this way.”
Vanessa and Maryanne followed him past two desks, including the one where Damian was currently sitting under the pretense of asking about different account types. At the third desk, the man stopped and indicated for them to sit down.
“Mario will be able to help you.” The man handed Mario the paper with the account number before returning to the welcome desk.
“What can I help you with today?”
“I need to transfer the money out of this account and close it. Here is where the funds need to go.” Vanessa passed him the paper Maryanne had given her.
“I’m sorry to hear we will be losing your business.” He pulled up her account on his screen, and his eyebrows drew together. He typed the string of numbers in a second time. Now he looked up. “Are you sure this is the correct account number? My system shows it was closed yesterday.”
“What?” Maryanne asked before Vanessa could respond. “That can’t be. I checked the balances yesterday morning.”
Vanessa looked over at her inquisitively. Maryanne had just confirmed her suspicions. Maryanne had accessed every piece of information that had leaked, and now she had fallen into the trap Vanessa and the Saint Squad had laid. Vanessa’s voice remained calm. “How did you do that?”
“That’s my job as your assistant—to make sure everything is in order before we travel.” The assistant story was clearly for the benefit of the bank clerk, but Vanessa decided to pound the last piece of the puzzle firmly into place.
“Yes, but I didn’t give you the account number.”
Maryanne’s face paled slightly. “You must have had Warren give it to me.”
“No. I didn’t give it to anyone. The only person who would have it would be the person who was working with Andrea Kemper,” Vanessa said. “I have to say, I was surprised to find out that you were the one who recommended Andrea for the Morenta assignment.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Maryanne’s voice took on a higher pitch than usual. “I’m just a secretary.”
“Oh, no. We both know better than that. As the trusted assistant to Warren, you have access to all sorts of classified information, including the intel about Ramir’s bank account,” Vanessa said. “And imagine my surprise when I found out you and Andrea were roommates during training when you started with the agency.”
Maryanne clenched her teeth, color flooding into her cheeks.
Vanessa stood and spoke to the bank employee. “Thank you for your cooperation.” She then reached for Maryanne’s arm and pulled her to a stand. “You and I have a lot to talk about.”
In the act of rising, Maryanne dropped her purse. She jerked free of Vanessa’s grip and leaned down. When she straightened, she had a gun in her hand.
“Where’s my money?” she demanded frantically. Keeping the weapon trained on Vanessa, she nodded to the man behind the desk. “Make him give it back.”
“And to think I once thought of you as a friend,” Vanessa said with disgust. She saw the movement behind Maryanne but deliberately kept her focus on the woman.
“That was your mistake.” Before Maryanne could continue, Damian struck from behind, grabbing around her so her arm was forced down and the gun along with it.
Maryanne cried out and struggled against the sudden assault. Vanessa rushed forward, prying the gun from her hand. It fell to the ground as Maryanne leaned back against Damian and kicked her feet out, forcing Vanessa to jump back.
As Damian tightened his grip to subdue her, Vanessa moved forward again with the intent of securing Maryanne’s weapon. To her surprise, Paige was standing beside her, the gun in her hand, the magazine of bullets already free of the chamber.