| |
Aggie
They left the next morning under mostly cloudy skies and the threat of rain. Typically, she felt mentally prepared and eager to be embarking on a new adventure. This time, however, uncertainty hovered around the edges of their departure from the chalet. She wasn’t going alone. She had to consider someone else in her decisions, which was both comforting and worrisome.
She’d booked them flights—under assumed names and with professional-quality fake IDs, of course—to cover the bulk of the distance as quickly as possible, then procured a vehicle to take them the rest of the way.
“Why are we heading north?” he asked when Aggie directed him toward the interstate turnoff.
“You said a real-time, detailed satellite map of the mountains around Parryville would be helpful.”
“Yes. So?”
“So, we’re going to get one.” When he opened his mouth to protest, she said, “Trust me, okay?”
He didn’t look happy about it, but he nodded. They drove through lush farmlands amid rolling hills, working their way up into the mountains of Pennsylvania to a town called Pine Ridge. He looked really confused when she directed him to a local garage there.
“What are we doing here?”
“Trust me.”
He grunted and exhaled, not entirely pleased with the situation but willing to give her the benefit of the doubt.
Aggie got out of the rental and walked toward one of the open bays, where a large, muscular man with close-cropped black hair worked on a classic Chevelle. He looked up and tracked her approach.
Aggie heard the car door close behind her and knew that Zeke had spotted the guy, too, and decided to follow. The guy working on the Chevelle straightened slowly, assessing them both with the skill and experience of the operative he was.
She’d heard so much about Sean Callaghan from her brother. Mostly complaints. Though T respected the hell out of his former SEAL teammate, Sean was the one who had “compromised”—T’s word, not hers—one of his best agents.
“Can I help you?”
“I hope so. I’m looking for Nix.”
Outwardly, the man didn’t change, but the air around them seemed to cool about twenty degrees. His eyes went to Zeke, then back to her.
“Sorry, can’t help you.”
Rather than be deterred, she smiled. “Yeah, Taser said you’d say that.”
Sean’s intense blue eyes narrowed. “Taser? Is that supposed to mean something to me?”
Aggie continued as if he hadn’t spoken. “Taser also said if you did say that, I should respond with, Honduras.”
His eyes widened almost imperceptibly.
“Sean, what’s going on?”
A woman came out from the bay and went up to the man’s side, slipping her hand into his back pocket. She was a little older than she had been the last time Aggie saw her, but she was still beautifully striking. Long jet-black hair. Lithe and toned. But it was her eyes, nearly colorless, like diamonds, that Aggie remembered most.
“Robin?” Nicki Callaghan—known to Aggie by her Chameleon name, Nix—said. “Is that really you?”
“Hey, Nix. Been a while, huh?”
“I’ll say! What are you doing here?”
“We could use some help.”
Aggie felt Zeke shift beside her, momentarily drawing Nix’s attention. Nix took in his hair, his piercings, his visible tatts, and then she looked back to Aggie and raised an eyebrow.
“He’s with you?”
“He is.”
“I approve,” Nix murmured. “Come on in. Let’s talk.” She looked back to Zeke. “You, stay here. Sean, baby, why don’t you take him down to the pub while Robin and I have a chat, will you?”
Without waiting for an answer, Nix turned and walked around the side of the garage.
Zeke reached out and touched her arm. “What the hell?”
“Go have a beer with Sean, okay? I got this.”
“I don’t think so.”
“Look, I know you have questions, but you’re just going to have to trust me.” Neither her brother’s nor Nix’s secrets were hers to share.
"I don’t like this.”
“I know, and I’m sorry. But I’m asking you to trust me. Please.”
It was the third time she’d made that request since they’d arrived, and hopefully, it would be the last. There was only so much blind faith she could ask of him.
He studied her face, looking deep into her eyes, then nodded reluctantly.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
Aggie left an unhappy-looking Zeke with Sean and followed Nix into the spacious living quarters above the garage.
“All right, first things first,” Nix said. “Who’s the stud?”
“His name’s Zeke. He’s helping me out with something.”
Nix’s eyebrow rose again. “I thought you worked alone.”
“I do, usually, but I made an exception in this case. I mean, look at him. Pretty hot, right?” Aggie grinned mischievously.
“He is,” Nix agreed. “But he’s got badass written all over him.”
“Like your husband doesn’t.”
“Fair point.” Nix’s eyes widened. “Wait. This is about more than a mission, isn’t it? You really like this guy.”
Aggie shrugged. “He’s got skills.”
“Skills, huh? So ... you’re not that into him?”
“Fine! Just the opposite, okay? I’m too into him. The only time I feel whole is when I’m with him. That’s crazy, right? I mean, I’ve only known him for a short while and what we have ... it’s so intense. So powerful. So ...” Aggie clamped her lips together, shocked by her sudden and uncharacteristic bout of word vomit, but damn it, Nix was the closest thing to a friend she had.
“Unsustainable?” Nix finished.
“Yes! Exactly.”
Nix’s lips curled. “Maybe he’s your croie.”
“My what?”
“Your soul mate. Your perfect match.”
Aggie started shaking her head, but Nix wasn’t finished. “I know. It seems impossible, but everything you described sounds exactly like the way I felt when I met Sean. And let me tell you, if he is your croie, then that connection you’re feeling will not only endure, but it’ll grow even stronger over time.”
“I’m not sure I can handle anything stronger,” Aggie admitted.
“You can handle a lot more than you think you can, especially when you don’t have to do it alone. Now, tell me what you need.”
Aggie gave her a brief rundown of the Parryville situation as well as what she hoped to accomplish.
“A live, detailed satellite feed. That’s all you want?”
“For now.”
“Shouldn’t be a problem. It might take a bit to get it into optimal position though.”
“How much time?”
“Depends. A satellite can orbit the earth in ninety minutes, but it might be otherwise engaged. I’d say no more than twenty-four hours on the outside.”
Aggie had expected as much. “Can you send me a link?”
“That might be a problem,” Nix admitted, tapping her finger against her lip. “These guys, they’re very protective of their toys, especially private satellites that technically don’t exist. I might have a solution though. Let me make a few calls.”
“Thanks. I really appreciate it.”
“Anything for you.”
Nix moved into the other room and spoke quietly into her phone. Aggie took the time to look around, smiling when she saw the wall of pictures. It was strange, seeing a Chameleon actually living a semi-normal life.
There were lots of photos of men with dark hair and blue eyes, many of similar size and features, plus wives and kids. Aggie recognized Nix’s husband in many of them but had to blink when she saw a few where he seemed to be standing next to himself.
“No, you’re not seeing double. That’s Sean’s twin,” Nix told her, coming to stand beside her.
“Are all of these guys his brothers?”
“Most of them, yeah.”
“There sure are a lot of them.”
“Seven.”
Aggie nodded. She’d always wondered what it was like to have a big family. She only had her brother, and they rarely got to see each other.
“Here. It’s all set.” Nix handed her a piece of paper with the word Sanctuary on it and an address.
“What’s this?”
“A place where you can get the information you need. It’s less than an hour up the road. They know you’re coming.”
“Thanks, Nix. I knew I could count on you.”
“Us girls have to stick together, right?”
“Right.”
“Not that it matters, but if Taser asks, were you here?”
“He knows.”
“Sean will be disappointed,” Nix said with a grin. “He loves pissing Taser off.”
Aggie smiled too. “Speaking of, do you have any idea what happened in Honduras?”
“No, Sean won’t say, but whatever it was, it must be one hell of a story.”