Chapter 35 Wesley #2
I move far enough into the room that I can see them.
Todd is duct taped around the ankles and—I assume, since I can’t see them behind his back—wrists, sitting in the center of a bed with no covers or pillows, and Madison is on the other side of the room, her gun pointed lazily in his direction.
Her computer lies on the floor between them, missing several key pieces that indicate someone has begun disassembling it.
The floor creaks under my foot, and I remove my helmet.
She whirls, her eyes widening at the unexpected interruption as she hides the gun behind her back. She realizes it’s me and relaxes—then realizes what my being here means, and tenses all over again.
She swallows. “Hey, buddy…”
“Madison,” I reply calmly.
She’s not hurt. She has the situation under control. If I seem upset or worried or angry, I’ll take her credibility away from her, and that might make Todd stupid or brave. I’ve seen it before.
But fuck, I’m practically shaking with anger and fear…
“Would you step out here with me for a moment?” I say, forcing an evenness into my voice.
Todd senses an opportunity and leaps in. Perhaps he doesn’t recognize me. “Dude, help me! She’s crazy! She came in here with a gun and tied me up—”
I hold up my hand. “Shut the fuck up,” I tell him, then crook my finger at her.
She presses her lips together and spins back around to Todd, flashing him a saccharine smile. “Would you excuse us for a moment? And remember, if you scream, I will shoot your dick off.”
“She will,” I echo seriously.
She follows me into the main room, closing Todd into his bedroom amidst the sound of his soft sobbing. “Wesley!” she whispers excitedly, barely containing herself. “You’ll never believe what I found out—”
Letting my helmet fall, I grab both of her upper arms in my hands. “Madison, what the fuck were you thinking?!” I whisper back.
The excitement in her eyes dims, realizing I wasn’t actually fine with what I walked in on. “I… I’m sorry, but you’ve got to hear this—”
“I don’t. We’re going. Now.”
Suddenly outraged, she fights against me, twisting until I’m forced to let go or risk hurting her. “Stop! Listen to me!”
“No, you’ll listen to me,” I fire back, livid.
“This was unbelievably stupid, Madison. You put yourself in so much danger, I’m shocked I didn’t find you dead on the ground.
You want me to think you’re smart and capable?
Well, fucking act like it! Every second we spend here is another second you’re at risk of being discovered. Of being murdered.”
She scowls back, matching my fire. “Todd confessed to me,” she hisses. “He told me that my old boss, Fred, told him I was dead and bribed him to steal my computer by offering him a promotion. That means Fred is part of this—he knows something, or maybe he’s even the General.”
I grind my jaw. “Or maybe he was just acting on orders, unaware of what’s really going on.”
She shakes her head. “No! He thought I was dead. But I haven’t been declared dead—someone on the outside of this would think I was just missing. Fred knows about the hit. He knows someone took credit for my death. Todd said he had specific details, like that I’d been shot. Pictures.”
I pull back. “That…” That’s actually a good point.
She sees my hesitation, and the excitement sparks back in her eyes. “He told Todd to steal my hard drive and bring it to SmarTech. And I was thinking, what if we let him?”
“He’ll tell Fred you’re still alive,” I argue.
“He’s already seen me,” she fires back. “What are you going to do, kill him to keep it a secret?”
I sigh harshly. “If Fred is the General, or knows him, we’ll be back where we started with a $10 million price on your head.
Probably more. Not to mention, it will get Felix’s contact removed from the system if it’s discovered he faked that hit.
The General might even put out a hit on him in retribution. ”
“Oh,” she says, shoulders dropping. “I didn’t think of that.”
I watch as she pulls out her phone and starts tapping out a message to—presumably—Felix.
She waits a few seconds, then scans his reply.
“Tío says it’s fine,” she assures me, tucking her phone back in the pocket of her—my?
—sweatpants. “His guy who faked it can just get back in if he’s kicked out, and he used an alias so they won’t be able to track him to put a hit out on him. ”
I sigh. I really need to find out how Felix knows all this shit. “So you want to let Todd tell Fred?”
“I want to let him bring my hard drive to Fred with a listening device attached to it,” she suggests, eyes bright, pleased with her own cleverness. “You’ve got some in that van, right?”
“Mac’s bringing them,” I say, realizing I’ve just lost. It’s a good idea—even I can see that.
It doesn’t make what she did any better, though, and the only thing that mollifies me is that she clearly realizes this discussion isn’t over. But she smiles at me with grim resolve and opens Todd’s door.
He straightens immediately, pretending like he wasn’t just trying to saw through the tape on his feet with the blunt edge of his bedframe. Rookie move—always start with the hands.
“Good news, T-bone. We’re gonna get you that promotion.”
Todd looks baffled, and a bit terrified by the news. “W-what?”
Madison grins. “We’re giving you the hard drive.”
The fear shifts to utter and complete confusion. “What?”