If I don’t get a handle on this, I’m a dead man.
Joseph Brinkley paced the confines of the dilapidated room. His salt-and-pepper hair was buzzed short, but that didn’t stop him from running an impatient hand through it. He was waiting for Derek Falconi to come in and explain the debacle that had occurred in Medellín. Javier Palacios expected his weapons to be delivered, but the exchange hadn’t happened thanks to Coulter and his team’s interference. As a result, the guns were destroyed, and Brinkley had a serious life-and-death problem.
Not one to believe in coincidences, Javier had accused Brinkley of setting him up.
Brinkley had done all he could to diffuse the situation before it escalated. However, he had no intention of providing a refund. Instead, he promised that he’d find a new supply to replace Javier’s investment with interest, and that was precisely what he would do.
The only thing that appeased Palacios was Brinkley’s news that he had secured him a seat at the table when the bidding started for Silent Night.
There was a brief rap at the door, and then it opened. A few men filed into the room, along with Falconi. He got straight to the point.
“Status?”
One of his men stepped forward.
“Colonel McKendrick’s men have disappeared, sir.”
“Disappeared? Of course, they’ve disappeared, you bonehead. That’s what they’re trained to do.”
He turned to Derek. “Why wasn’t I told about this?” he said with deadly calm.
“I just returned to base myself. I was about to—”
“I don’t want excuses, Falconi,” Brinkley interrupted. “What I want is the blasted game plan for finding them and what we’re doing to keep Javier Palacios happy and off our backs until Silent Night is sold.”
Just then, another man stepped forward. “We’ve been searching for the last forty-eight hours, sir. If Coulter’s men are anywhere in the area, we’ll find them.”
Brinkley pinched the bridge of his nose. “How many times do I have to say it? His team won’t be in the area. They’re trained to disappear, and we don’t have time to search the globe for Coulter’s men,” he snapped. “Forget them. I want McKendrick. I want to know what they were doing at that meeting. Who tipped them off, and what, if anything, does he have on us?”
“What if it was just about the arms deal with Señor Palacios?” one of the men asked.
Brinkley stared at the man like he was crazy. “If you think I believe for one second that a group of former Special Forces soldiers just happened to be in a Medellín jungle and matter-of-factly sabotaged our meeting and destroyed some guns, you’re delusional. Coulter always has something up his sleeve. We need to bring him in and find out what that is. If I go down, we all go down, and I’m not about to land first. You got that?”
“Yes, sir,” the group replied.
He turned to Derek. “Your team screwed this up, and now Palacios is suspicious. We need those guns, Derek. Do I have to spell out what’s going to happen if this deal goes south?”
One of Derek’s men shifted uncomfortably. Brinkley zeroed in on the motion.
He turned to Falconi. “What aren’t you telling me?”
More silence ensued.
Brinkley scanned the room. “I’m not going to ask again.”
One make spoke up. “Uh, the scientist that had the thumb drive with the decryption key is missing, sir.”
“What? How is that possible? The one guy responsible for keeping it on his person at all times has just up and disappeared? What about his security detail?”
“They’re missing, too, sir—we presume dead in the explosion.”
The vein in Brinkley’s forehead looked ready to burst. Roaring in anger, he picked up a chair and threw it, not caring how many people had to duck to keep from being hit. “How in the world did this happen? If they’re dead, where are the bodies?”
“We’re still searching, Mr. Brinkley.”
“There is no auction without those codes, and now you tell me that not only are they missing, but the guy carrying them is missing, too? How do we know he didn’t just take the codes and run?”
“I handpicked him,” Derek replied. “He would die before betraying us.”
“So you say.”
“Excuse me, Mr. Brinkley?” another man asked.
Brinkley spun on a dime, ready to do battle. “Say the wrong thing,” he warned.
“We have a second problem, sir,” he said reluctantly. “One of the men shot McKendrick with Silent Night. He may be dead by the time we locate him.”
The color drained from Brinkley’s face. His expression turned apoplectic.
“What did you say?”
“Colonel McKendrick was injected with—”
“How?” he roared. “How is that even possible?”
“We’re sorry, sir,” the man behind Derek said quickly. “It was a mistake.”
Brinkley turned to face him. His eyes narrowed on the unlucky bearer of bad news before advancing until he was almost nose-to-nose with Derek. The man didn’t take a step back but held his ground.
“Are you telling me that some screwup injected the one man I need alive with poison? Is that what you’re telling me? And before you say it was an accident, you have to freaking use the activation code to use Silent Night.”
“You ordered us to take out his team. We followed your orders to the letter, Mr. Brinkley.”
“I said his team, you idiot,” Brinkley spat. His skin turned a mottled red. “Did any of you hear me say, McKendrick? He was never to be harmed. He’s my partner’s grandson. That makes him untouchable.”
The room was silent.
“And let’s be clear,” Brinkley snapped, turning to Falconi. “You all didn’t take out his team, and you let them get away.”
“If McKendrick is alive, there are only a handful of places he can go for medical treatment. So why not begin the search there?”
Brinkley was thoughtful. A minute later, a smile stretched across his taut face.
“You may be on to something.” He turned to Derek. “Your gross incompetence in this matter is shocking. But there may be time to fix this mess. If we can’t find the scientist and that thumb drive, I want anyone at Beecham who has any connection to Silent Night tracked down. We need another activation key. That will allow us to continue with the auction as planned and buy us time to find Coulter. If he’s alive, I guarantee he’s not on his own. He’s got help—and I want to know who. So follow the trail, Falconi,” he instructed.
“The sale is in two weeks, Mr. Brinkley. Coulter doesn’t have that long. He may have four or five days left at best. Is it worth going after him?”
“I want to hedge my bets. I don’t believe for a second that the scientist possessing priceless codes just disappeared into thin air or died in a fire. My hunch is telling me that Coulter had something to do with it. We need the thumb drive with the codes back or a new one in its place. Without them, we can’t initiate the transfer protocol, which means we don’t have a sale. And I have no intention of returning one hundred million dollars to our bidders. Am I clear?”
“Yes, sir,” everyone in the room replied, almost in unison.
“I’m sure the people that made this thing at Beecham have prepared for every contingency in the event of something like this happening. And if Coulter dies before I get another key in my hand, I guarantee that none of your jobs are safe—or your lives.”
Brinkley turned and stormed out of the room. He missed the slight smile on Falconi’s face.
I don’t know what happened or why he’s back, but you can’t let him die.
Coulter may have broken her heart, but he was sick and needed her help regardless of their turbulent past. Luckily, it was early, and there wasn’t much traffic, so the ride-sharing service Marena called made it to the health clinic in record time. Deactivating the alarm before going inside, she moved past the brightly decorated waiting area and went straight to the supply room.
Retrieving a large bin from a closet, she sifted through drawers, carts, and boxes to get everything she needed. Finally, Marena reactivated the alarm and left.
On the way home, myriad thoughts raced around in her mind. What was Coulter doing back after three years of silence between them? Why had he come to her, of all people? And most importantly, how was she going to keep her emotions in check while treating him?
Marena had plenty of things to get off her chest but now wasn’t the time. She had to focus. Luckily, her driver wasn’t in a talkative mood, and for that, she was grateful. The deafening quiet was soothing. She’d almost drifted off for a nap when her cell phone played a familiar tune. She answered without looking up.
“What are you doing out and about this early?”
“What are you doing calling me this early?”
“Hey, I asked you first,” her best friend, Vivica Greenley, replied.
“I had to pick up some supplies from the clinic.”
“I know you were at the clinic. Locator app, remember? So, was Dr. John there with you? Hallelujah,” Vivica said excitedly. “You finally took my advice and went out on a date?”
“No,” Marena said flatly. “I’ve told you a million times that I’m not dating Dr. John. We’re colleagues and friends, and that’s it.”
“You do realize that my mother has gone on more dates than you—and she’s sixty-five.”
Marena chuckled at that. “Dating is the last thing on my mind right now. But I, uh, have an unexpected situation that I’m dealing with.”
“You can’t keep hiding behind work, you know. Sooner or later, you’ll have to move on. All you’ve done since I met you is pine after Carlton. The only thing getting your attention is to-go boxes from your favorite restaurants.”
“I’m not pining, thank you very much, and it’s Coulter—which you well know. And speaking of—”
“Sweetie, he’s gone,” Vivica interrupted. “The love story is over, and it’s time for a new man. Preferably one that doesn’t shatter your heart into a million pieces.”
“Vivi, I know you mean well, but you’re not helping right now.”
“Why not?”
“Because he’s here.”
“Excuse me?”
“Coulter is at my house.”
There was a long silence before Vivica spoke up.
“Well, I hope you gave him a piece of your mind.”
“Not yet. He’s sick. Some bronchial thing,” Marena hedged. “Anyway, our unfinished business will have to wait.”
“What unfinished business?” Vivica scoffed. “Marena, he left you. What’s left to finish about that?”
“I guess nothing,” she said softly. The problem was Marena didn’t believe it for a second.
“Vivi, I just got home. I’m going to have to run.”
“Okay, but as your best friend, I’m recommending that you send him to urgent care and then tell him to say whatever he came to say, and then hit the road.”
“I hear you.” Marena felt terrible about not telling her friend the truth. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.”
“You’d better be,” Vivica warned. “Or I’ll come over there and kick his butt for you.”