14. Delfino
14
DELFINO
“ I said I wouldn’t do this, but I think it’s better coming from me than Typhon,” Hornet said as he closed the door to our private room.
I raised my head.
“He wants us to go dark.”
I set down my coffee. “What are you talking about?”
Hornet ran a hand through his hair, looking exhausted. “I spoke with Typhon a few minutes ago. He thinks Jekyll was waiting for him to arrive in Athens before making any real moves.”
“I guess that makes sense,” I admitted. “The bad blood is between them. My mom and I were essentially innocent bystanders.” Who’d had our hearts ripped out, not that Hornet needed to hear that story again.
“There’s more.” Hornet sat beside me on the edge of the bed. “Typhon believes Jekyll orchestrated Reaper’s capture.”
“What? Why would he—Wait. You were supposed to be the target.”
“As you know, I was supposed to go to that meeting at the Basilica. Reaper went in my place.”
I rubbed my temples with my index fingers. “What does he fucking want?” I cried.
“He wants to make contact with you. Typhon believes it, and so do I.”
“You’ve lost me.”
“The one thing that remains true is that when Jekyll lay dying, he asked Typhon to look out for you and your mother. Regardless of his reasons for faking his death, he wanted that reassurance. I’d be willing to wager he’s found ways to make sure that happened.”
“Keep talking.”
“Let’s say Jekyll is dying. That he’s sick. He wants to see you. Make amends. Something. But he’s worried about how that news will impact you. Even if he isn’t dying, coming face-to-face with him after all these years will affect you, Kima.”
“So you’re saying Jekyll suddenly cares about how I’ll feel? That’s rich.” I didn’t want to hear any of this. It was more manipulation.
“I get your skepticism. Truly. But let’s, for a moment, consider what I’m saying may be true.”
“Okay. I’m listening.”
“Jekyll reveals himself to Typhon, knowing that you’ll find out he’s not really dead. Then, let’s say he has been keeping tabs on you all these years. He also knows you won’t be able to resist finding him, confronting him.”
“And he wants this?”
“Yes,” said Hornet. “We may not know exactly why yet, but he does want it. So, what’s his first supposition?”
“That Typhon will come after me.”
“Exactly. But he didn’t. So then, what? He pulls the plug on the ‘meeting’ or whatever you want to call it. Because he needs Typhon to be there, and he isn’t.”
I was catching on, not that I definitely bought it all. At least I knew the point Hornet was trying to make.
“Then, he tries again. Still no Typhon.”
“But you’re here. If he’s really been paying attention, wouldn’t he have known I would need you with me more than I’d need him?”
“Maybe. But for whatever reason, he’s waiting for Typhon. So he figures out a way he knows will work. He abducts me.”
I rolled my eyes. Not at Hornet. At Jekyll and what was beginning to feel ridiculous to me. If he wanted to see me and talk to me, he could’ve done so days ago.
“Still with me?” he asked.
“I’m not convinced, but I am paying attention.”
“Typhon thinks he’s making the best of it,” Hornet finished. “Using Reaper as bait to draw you out, knowing you’ll mount a rescue.”
I stood, pacing the small confines of our room. “And Typhon’s solution is for us to hide while he plays hero?”
“Not hide,” Hornet clarified. “Redirect. Jekyll expects certain moves from you. If Typhon is the visible player instead, it changes the entire game.”
“And hopefully, the FSB’s calculations as well,” I added, already seeing the strategic value.
I nodded slowly, understanding the strategy. “You think Jekyll deliberately revealed the transport plans so we’d follow.”
“That’s exactly what I think,” said Typhon, who I hadn’t realized was standing in the doorway. “Whether to protect you or manipulate you is the question.”
I threw my hands up, reacting to him in the same way a teenager would, not as a grown woman who also happened to be the commander of this particular mission. “ Argh , I hate it when you do that. Can’t you knock like a normal person? You know, show some manners?”
When Typhon’s cheeks turned pink, Hornet covered his mouth to hide his grin.
“Look, I’m sorry, but I don’t appreciate it when you do that.”
“My apologies. But, err, there’s an update. That’s actually what I came to tell you.”
Both Hornet and I followed him out of the room and to the other suite.
When we arrived, Greenwich approached with his tablet. “The villa security has changed shifts. Three vehicles are being prepped in the garage—standard convoy setup.”
“Are you suggesting they’ve adjusted their timeline?” I asked. “Rather than at twenty-two hundred, they’re planning on moving him in the morning?”
“I believe so,” Greenwich responded.
“That gives us less than two hours to be in position,” I said, checking my watch.
“It’s not enough time to set up properly on all routes,” Blackjack said, pacing near the window.
“Then, we divide our resources,” I decided. “Surveillance on all routes, but we position our main rescue teams along the coastal road. The intel points most strongly in that direction.”
“Hold up,” said Typhon. His presence alone was commanding; when he spoke, it was as though everyone in the room froze. It certainly wasn’t the kind of response I could garner. When I scowled in his direction, he raised a brow.
“Go ahead,” I said, motioning with my hand. “Tell them your plan.”
“I don’t believe what we’re facing is as much about Reaper as it is about Jekyll wanting an audience with Delfino. And, to that end, I believe he’s been waiting for me to get here in order to do so.”
Blackjack’s head shot up. “Are you fucking kidding me? You’re going to risk my brother’s life because you think Jekyll wants to talk to you?”
“Hear him out,” said Atticus, who was standing next to him. When he put his hand on Blackjack’s arm, he jerked away.
“No. You can play whatever game you think this is, but I’m here to rescue my brother.”
“The two things are not mutually exclusive,” said Typhon, using a lower tone of voice. “We proceed as planned but maintain the possibility that there may be something else at play.”
“If that’s the case, I don’t have time to stand around and listen to you talk.”
Gunner, who I hadn’t heard utter a word, stepped forward. “We split into two units. One moves forward with the rescue op. The other crafts a plan to intercept Jekyll if it becomes apparent that is his plan.” Similarly to Typhon, no one in the room said a word while Gunner spoke. “Okay?” he finally asked when he didn’t get a response.
“Copy that,” Razor responded. “Blackjack, who else do you want on team Reaper?”
He glanced around the room. “You, Gunner, and Atticus.”
“I’ll help,” I said.
“Me too,” said Hornet.
“I’d prefer to assist with the rescue,” said Amaryllis, raising her hand.
“Roger that,” said Blackjack.
“Greenwich, you’re with us,” said Gunner. “The rest of you can find somewhere else to work.”
This time, it was me who covered my mouth to hide my smirk, especially after Typhon told Regent, the only person left beside the team he’d brought from Unit 23, to come with him. “Remember,” he said, looking at me before leaving the suite. “You and Hornet must remain dark once we deploy. For two reasons. If I’m wrong, you’re primary targets. And if I’m right, your presence won’t draw Jekyll out the way we need to.”
“Copy that,” both Hornet and I responded.
“We’ll be right back,” Hornet said once the door of the suite closed. He took my hand and led me outside. “How are you doing with all this?” he asked softly.
“A bit lost, if I’m honest. I’m trying not to think about what happens if we fail.”
His hand found mine. “We won’t.”
“You don’t know that.”
“Let’s focus on Reaper for now.”
“I agree.”
“We intercepted communications about Reaper,” Amaryllis was saying when we walked back inside. “They’re calling him ‘the American asset’ and preparing transport documents.”
I read through the translated text. “They mention a ‘sea delivery’ scheduled for tonight.”
“The coastal route, then,” Hornet concluded. “They’re taking him to the port.”
“Not necessarily,” I cautioned. “Could be misdirection. We need to be prepared to intercept this morning. We can’t afford to wait.”
“Either way, we need to be aware of all possible routes,” Amaryllis insisted.
“Set it up,” I agreed. “Greenwich, work on positioning.”
While waiting, I took another look at the brief Amaryllis had shared about Dr. Suzanne Henning, her missing mentor. The connection to Jekyll was still unclear, besides similar circumstances in their disappearance. However, something else about it nagged at me, and I couldn’t pinpoint what it was.
“Any questions I can answer for you?” she asked, noticing what I was reading.
I hesitated since it felt off topic, but that it was, was an issue in itself. “Do you believe there’s a connection between Dr. Henning and Jekyll? Other than the similarities, I mean.”
She hesitated as well, which raised another red flag.
“Amaryllis, if there’s something else at play here, you need to share it with the team. We cannot proceed if we’re operating with different agendas, or if you’re not forthcoming with information we need to know.”
“I believe they may have known each other,” she said quietly enough I almost hadn’t heard her.
“Come again?”
“There may be another connection between Jekyll and Dr. Henning.”
“Elaborate.”
“I found something that led me to believe they worked together several years ago. Actually, closer to thirty years ago.”
“What, specifically?”
She swiped the screen of her tablet and handed it to me. The article that appeared was dated early in 1994 and was accompanied by a photo of the two together taken at an intelligence symposium. There was something about their body language that seemed familiar. “Worked together or were in a relationship?” I asked, perhaps more pointedly than I intended. However, this was something she should’ve shared initially.
“I’m not certain,” she responded.
I turned the tablet toward her. “Are you saying someone at your level in the field of intelligence cannot read the most basic body language?”
Hornet approached from behind her and looked over her shoulder at the image. “Is that Jekyll?” he asked.
“And Dr. Henning,” I clarified.
He came around and sat in the chair next to mine. “So, they knew each other?”
Amaryllis’ reaction reinforced my belief that she’d picked up on their closeness in the photo.
“It was a long time before he met your mother,” she said, also in a quiet tone of voice.
My fists clenched, and I bit the inside of my cheek to stop myself from blurting something I might regret. After more than one deep breath, I cleared my throat. “The issue, Agent Beaudoin, has nothing to do with the timeline of his marriage to my mother. Rather, it is in regard to the information you withheld. What else have you neglected to share?”
I could feel Hornet tense beside me, but that he didn’t speak or attempt to ameliorate my tone made me love him all the more.
“There isn’t anything else,” she said, taking the tablet from my hand, then standing and returning to where Greenwich was going over routes and team positions.
Less than five minutes later, Gunner announced they were ready to move out. It felt wrong, staying behind, but I had to agree that both Hornet and I were primary targets. Our presence would further endanger Reaper, not aid in this rescue.
Hornet and I monitored progress on several screens as the teams’ movements appeared. A few minutes later, Typhon’s arrival at the villa pinged. I leaned forward, watching everything play out as if in slow motion.
Something was off. I could feel it in my gut. “We’re missing something,” I said under my breath.
“We are.”
“What, though?” I asked.
I pulled up the overhead images, zoomed in, and gasped. “There’s a fourth access road.”
“It’s overgrown, but a four-wheel vehicle could navigate it.”
“We need to reach Typhon on a separate channel.”
“On it,” said Hornet, taking out his mobile. At the same time, I pulled up the GPS coordinates.
“Typhon, over,” I heard him say.
“We missed something,” I said. “Fourth route. I’m sending the overhead images and coordinates.”
“Roger that. Transmission received. Team four moving into position.”
“Hurry,” I whispered.