CHAPTER
EIGHT
Zane picked up his cell when he saw it was Hunter calling. “What’s up?”
“There’s been another incident.”
Zane looked over at Cass, who sat on the sofa beside him. They had just finished lunch at her apartment and were planning their next move. He put the call on speaker as Hunter recounted a harrowing tale.
“That’s brazen, man,” Zane said.
“My thoughts too. This is a move right out of the revenge playbook,” Hunter said. “Bold, reckless, and with little regard for getting caught.”
“Well, cartel hit men don’t have a choice. If they’re given an order, they have to follow it or be killed on the spot. Where are you now?” Zane asked.
“We’re at my place. Layla’s upstairs in the guest room, resting per doctor’s orders. I’m trying to figure out the best way to help. I’m worried about her safety, but the CIA is stationing a security detail at her condo that will be ready by tonight. I’m not letting her leave here until that’s in place.”
Zane looked at Cass, who was frowning. “That’s good news. I’m glad she let Langley know. Given the threat level, I wouldn’t say no to any offer of security.”
“She isn’t exactly trusting them right now, and I can’t blame her, but she felt she had no choice in the matter.”
“I’m going to let the DEA know. This was our op. I want Mason to be fully in the loop on this.”
“All right. I’ll stay in touch.”
“Roger that.” Zane ended the call. “What’s up, Cass? I can see those wheels turning.”
She rubbed her bloodshot eyes. “Why not try to kill us all?”
“What, do you have some sort of death wish?”
Cass shook her head. “Of course not, but the guy at my place didn’t even make an attempt on my life. You haven’t been targeted at all. Why?”
He bristled. “You can’t possibly be insinuating that I’m somehow involved in this.”
She laughed. “I know better than that.”
“All right.” He didn’t really think it was a laughing matter, but she didn’t appear to be accusing him of anything.
Cass shifted on the couch to face him. “Think this through. Why focus on Diaz and Layla? Maybe if we figure that out, we’re closer to breaking this thing open.”
He could only hope. “Could the cartel believe that the two of them are responsible for Roberto’s death? Maybe holding them specifically accountable. It could be that they don’t know I was there but determined that you three were. And maybe they had some reason to believe you or Diaz had some of the cash or drugs at your place. That’s my best working theory.”
“Not that much of a stretch to think one of us could be dirty.”
She sighed. “Yeah. I guess there’s no reason to feign surprise at that. But why target me?”
He couldn’t hold back his smile. “Maybe they think you’re the most likely candidate of the group.”
She punched his arm. “It would definitely be you before me.”
He’d worked with Cass for years and trusted her completely. “But it’s a good question. Why did they think it was you? Rack your brain. Is there anything that could give the cartel even the smallest indication that you might be a dirty agent?”
Cass sat quietly for a minute. “No secrets, right?”
“I sure hope not.” He wondered what bomb she was about to drop.
“I haven’t been intentionally hiding this from you. There just hasn’t been a reason to bring it up.”
“Go on.”
“My little brother has a gambling problem. So much so that he got on the wrong side of some really bad guys.”
“Uh-oh.” He hated to think about the implications.
Her dark eyes softened. “I had to protect him.”
His gut clenched. “What did you do?”
“I emptied my savings and took out some loans to pay off his debts. If someone were to do a profile on my financials, they’d see all of that, and it wouldn’t be a stretch to assume I could be vulnerable.”
“Cass, your brother is lucky to have you.” Zane paused, considering his words carefully. “I’m guessing Mason doesn’t know about this.”
She shook her head. “And you can understand why.”
DEA agents were supposed to immediately report to their boss anything that could be used as leverage against them. “I do. But now, what are we going to do about it?”
She rubbed her temples. “You want to go to Mason.”
“Not necessarily,” he shot back. “We should think this through. We don’t want to have you sidelined.”
She put her hand on his arm. “Thank you for having my back, Zane.”
He placed his hand on top of hers. “We’re a team, Cass. Partners don’t cut and run, and neither do Marines.”
She smiled. “Once a Marine, always a Marine.”
“Oorah!”
“All right. So we keep this information to ourselves for now.” Her phone started beeping, and she picked it up. “Looks like we’re being summoned to a meeting with Mason.”
Zane stood. “Maybe he’s finally got some intel to help us.”
“I hope so, but I’m not holding my breath.”
He started walking to the door, but she caught his arm. “We’re good, right?”
“Yes. Don’t worry about it. We need to focus on the immediate threat.” He just hoped there weren’t more surprises yet to come.
Izzy knew Aiden was slowing his jogging pace so she could keep up on their evening run, but he wouldn’t admit it. That was just the type of guy he was. She shouldn’t put him on a pedestal, but he hadn’t given her any reason to do otherwise.
When her phone started vibrating in her shorts pocket, she pulled it out and stopped. “Your dad’s calling.”
Aiden frowned. “That’s strange.”
She placed the call on speaker. “Hi, Jay, I’m out jogging with Aiden.”
“I’m sorry to interrupt, but there’s something you need to know right away.”
Fear struck her as she started to imagine worst-case scenarios. Had something happened to one of her friends? “What?”
“He’s been murdered,” Jay said flatly.
“Who?” She had no idea what he was talking about.
Jay sighed loudly. “Him.”
Izzy dropped the phone, and it bounced into the grass.
Aiden picked it up. “Dad, we’re still here. I’m lost. Is this a case you’re working?”
Izzy felt flushed as a swirl of emotions bubbled up inside her. She was certain Jay was talking about the man they’d agreed never to name again, but she had to be one-hundred-percent sure. “The sergeant?” she whispered.
“Yes,” Jay responded.
“But how? When?” Her mind raced.
“Two days ago. And, Izzy, I’m not going to tell you any more than that.”
“Why?” A moment ticked by. A moment too long. “What aren’t you telling me?”
“The less you think about him, the better. I just wanted you to know that he can never hurt you again.”
Deep inside her, she felt a mix of relief and fear, because there was more to the story. As her feelings swirled, she wasn’t sure whether she wanted to cry or celebrate. But that was something she would keep to herself for now.
“Dad, we’ll talk to you later. I’m going to get Izzy home.”
“Thanks, son.”
The call ended, and Izzy stood as still as a statue.
Aiden pulled her into a tight hug. She took a minute just to try to steady her breathing.
“I’ve got you,” he whispered into her ear.
Those words were all it took to break her. The tears started flowing down her face, and her whole body shook as sobs threatened to overtake her. The man who had done so much to damage to her—both physically and emotionally—could never hurt her or anyone else again.
After what seemed like an eternity, she willed herself to let go of Aiden.
“Do you want me to go back and get the car to pick you up?” he asked.
“No. I’d rather run. I just need a second.” She needed a lot more than that, but for now that was all she’d take.
She’d thought about putting a bullet through the sergeant’s brain on countless occasions, but she also realized that doing so wouldn’t take her pain away. But someone had killed him, and she couldn’t help but wonder who.
They ran in silence, and she pushed herself as hard as she could, flying faster than she ever had before. The pure adrenaline burst from the unexpected news propelled her all the way back to her apartment complex.
When they walked up to her building, her stomach dropped. The doors of a dark sedan parked out front opened, and two Arlington PD detectives stepped out to greet her.
Layla had been called to an offsite DEA meeting at Mason’s condo. With each passing minute, she was becoming more convinced that they were caught up in something bigger than the one op they’d performed in Honduras.
Hunter was even more on edge than usual as they walked up to Mason’s front door. “I know you probably don’t want to hear this, but I’m wondering if there’s a possibility that the Honduras op was unsanctioned. Why not meet at HQ in Pentagon City?”
“An off-book op?” That thought hadn’t even occurred to her.
“Yeah, as in someone wanted it to happen, but it didn’t go through the proper chain of command.”
“I guess that’s one thing to put on the table.”
She rang the doorbell, and Mason opened the door. The tall, brown-haired supervisory agent greeted her warmly. “Come on in, both of you. The whole gang is here. We need to talk.”
“Why meet here?” she asked, unable to help herself.
“I’ll explain.” He turned to her. “And I’m glad you’re okay.”
“Thanks.”
They were led into Mason’s large living room, where Zane and Cass sat in two navy blue chairs.
“All right.” Mason remained standing as Layla and Hunter took seats on the couch. “It’s time to read everyone into the bigger picture here.”
“There’s a bigger picture? I don’t like the sound of that,” Zane said.
Mason nodded. “I have kept you all in the dark, but I had my reasons. The Honduras op was only one small piece of a larger DEA covert operation to try to take down the Mejía cartel.”
“And why didn’t we know about the rest of the plan?” Cass asked. “We all risked our lives down there.”
Mason lifted his hands. “If I need to leave for a minute and let all of you trash-talk me so we can get down to business, let me know.”
There wasn’t an ounce of humor in Mason’s suggestion. Layla kept her mouth shut, but Zane didn’t.
“We have a right to be angry, but we also need to get to the information, since we are the targets here. So please continue.”
Mason crossed his arms. “The plan against Mejía is totally need-to-know. We have multiple operations running, and no one on those assignments knows about the bigger picture. Leadership made that decision to decrease the chances of leaks and to give ourselves the best chance of disrupting and ultimately destroying the network.”
Layla still felt unclear. “How does this fit together with the current threat assessment?”
“We’ve believed for some time that someone at the DEA is working with Mejía, but because of the larger plan, we have to be extremely careful about how we handle the insider. If we can continue to keep things compartmentalized, then we can feed information to each team and determine who might be the traitor. Also, a new development I want everyone to be aware of is that we haven’t determined for certain but believe one surveillance camera got missed in the chaos at the Mejía safe house, and that’s how you all got identified.”
Layla was quickly processing everything he was saying. “And maybe Zane wasn’t caught on that footage?”
“That’s our current theory,” Mason said. “We also don’t know why Cass’s situation was a break-in instead of a hit job, but we have to assume all of you are in danger.” He looked away and then made direct eye contact with Layla. “And, unfortunately, there’s more bad news.”
“What?” she asked.
“The Agency is being cagey about you, Layla. I couldn’t get a word out of them on this supposed investigation they’re conducting, and I’m going to be totally frank here. I got the sense that they’re trying to disassociate themselves from you.”
She’d had the same feeling. “I know, but I have no idea why. I guess the cartel could be linked to that, too, but then again, if they’re trying to kill me, why go through the trouble of cooking up something with the IG’s office?”
Hunter cleared his throat. “Regardless, Layla is a prime target here. I hope the DEA isn’t going to throw her to the curb like CIA has.”
“No. At least not if I have anything to do with it,” Mason answered. “Layla was a key part of this entire operation and the success we had. I don’t know what kind of games Langley is playing, but we want no part in it. However we can help, we will, and that includes you, Hunter, providing her with personal protection.”
Hunter laughed.
“What’s so funny?” Mason asked.
Hunter looked at her. “Layla’s the one who saved me from getting shot, but yes, I’m here to do whatever I can.”
Layla was thankful again that her training had kicked in yesterday, and as a result, they both got away relatively unscathed. “You know that the Agency stripped me of my passport and wants me to stay in town.”
“You could defy them,” Cass suggested. “Go off the grid. We could help you.”
“To what end? I can’t hide forever.” Frustration was building up inside her. “And I’ve got Agency security detail posted at my condo, watching my coming and going. Feels more like surveillance than security, but at least it’s something.”
Mason finally took a seat. “I get that this situation is far from ideal, but all we can do is take it one step at a time. We’re investigating Diaz’s death as hard as we can. We’re putting resources behind this thing. If anyone wants a DEA safe house, just say the word. All options are on the table. But I do ask that you not reveal to anyone the larger plan for Mejía, because that investigation is critical to being able to determine who is dirty on the inside.”
That statement got some affirmative murmurs from the group.
“And, Layla, I can’t tell you what to do about the Agency, but it wouldn’t surprise me if they have you under surveillance that goes beyond the security detail at your condo, so just keep that in mind.”
As Mason said those words, she wondered immediately if the tail she’d suspected from the past few weeks was CIA and had absolutely nothing to do with the cartel. She wasn’t going to verbalize that concern to the whole group, but a sick feeling formed in the pit of her stomach. If she was being watched as a result of this IG investigation, then the subject matter was even more serious than she had previously considered. Someone was really out to get her.
Mason had requested a one-on-one meeting with Hunter after the group meeting, so Layla was waiting for him in the living room. He wasn’t sure what Mason wanted, but he was open-minded as he followed Mason into the kitchen.
Mason took a quick drink of coffee. “I need you to add another project to your plate.”
“What is it?” Hunter asked.
“For now, I’m going to ask you to keep this aspect of your work to yourself. No one else, understood?”
He didn’t like the direction this conversation was going. “What is it?” he repeated. He needed more information before he made any decisions.
Mason ran his hand through his hair. “More bad news. We’ve discovered that we’re missing five hundred thousand dollars from the money seized on the op.”
Hunter felt his mouth drop open. He hadn’t been expecting that. “Are you sure?”
“Positive.”
“And you want me to investigate the team to see if any of them took it?” Hunter assumed that would be the task.
Mason nodded. “Yes. Everyone on the op has to be investigated. That means a deep dive on financials and the money trails. Hopefully you’ll be able to exonerate the core team, and we can move on to everyone else who made the trip, but I have a bad feeling about this.”
Hunter did too. One thing he knew in his gut was that Layla was no thief. He doubted any of the team was, but his emotional reactions wouldn’t satisfy the DEA. They wanted cold, hard facts. The problem was that he was concerned this could end badly once Layla realized he was trying to dig up dirt on her—and the others. But he didn’t really have a choice in the matter. This was his job and his reputation. “I’m on it.”
“Good. We’ll have to talk to everyone about this, but first I wanted you to dig in and see what you can find. Then, after you get some investigating done, we’ll start questioning everyone.”
“That sounds like a plan.”
“Any updates on the mole investigation?” Mason asked.
“Everyone is a suspect until they’re not.” Well, almost everyone.
“Even me?” Mason quirked an eyebrow.
Mason nodded. “I can handle that.”
“What about Layla’s involvement in this?”
“She’s not the insider. One, she doesn’t fit the profile, and even more importantly, she has only worked one op with us. There’s no way she has the connections and background to be useful to the cartel. It has to be someone who has experience working this stuff.”
Hunter wanted to make sure this was crystal clear. “So you’re okay if she provides me with input on the investigation?”
Mason nodded. “As long as you don’t bring up the money, yes. And I know she has her hands full right now with all the op fallout and the IG investigation.”
That was an understatement. “Tell me about it.”
“Anything you can share?”
“I think she’s being set up. I guess there’s a possibility the cartel is behind it, but that doesn’t sit well with me. I believe it’s something else, but we haven’t figured out what it could be yet. But I plan to keep pushing.”
“The cartel’s style is more direct. Unfortunately, we don’t have to look further than Diaz’s death to show us that. And that’s on top of all the other threats and attacks.”
“Yeah.”
“I hope you’re considering the possibility that Layla has crossed someone at the CIA—and they are seeking revenge. Agency types can be pretty brutal once you pull back the spy exterior.”
Hunter knew that fact all too well. “Yeah. We’re looking at all angles, but it’s slow going.”
“Seems like you’ll have time to work on this, and since there is a tie to Layla, I know you’ll want to get to the bottom of things.” Mason paused. “I may be overstepping my bounds here, but were the two of you a thing?”
Hunter sighed. “We used to be together years ago. It ended badly. Very badly.”
“And now?” Mason raised an eyebrow.
“We’re just trying to get through this mess, but we’re on good terms. At least I feel like we are. Who knows where things could go after all this is over. Assuming it’s ever over.”
Mason patted him on the shoulder. “It’s going to be. We’re going to take down the Mejía cartel. I can feel it. We’ve been close before, but they’re getting sloppy because Diego is acting emotionally, not as a shrewd leader. That will be their downfall.”
“I hope so. I’ll do my part.”
Mason slid a USB drive across the table. “This has everything that has been accumulated so far on both investigations, including bank records and a possible suspects list within the DEA. You’re not bound by anything on here, but use it as you see fit.”
“Thanks. I’ll start reviewing this right away and then let you know what else I might need access to.” Hunter could only hope that he wouldn’t find a traitor in their midst.