Chapter 28
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Asher was still crouched behind the tree, watching for Gagnon’s men.
Not only had they not found him, he saw no movement anywhere. As if they’d given up, or Gagnon had called them back.
Even if the man did expect him to march right up to the gate, they’d be there, wouldn’t they? Watching? They should be.
Asher held the enemy’s comm unit to his ear, desperate to learn what they were doing. He’d heard nothing but low static until a voice cracked over it.
“Status of the second team?” Gagnon barked.
A second team? How many more men had Gagnon called in? When? And why?
“Surveying the perimeter,” a man answered, “then moving in.”
Another voice cut through the transmission. “Switch channels. We might be compromised.”
The static cut off, leaving silence.
Heart pounding, Asher tapped his own comm, understanding now why Gagnon’s men weren’t looking for him. Gagnon must’ve thought that, if Asher didn’t march up to the front gate as promised, this second team would find him.
“Grant, we’ve got a problem.”
“Go,” Grant said.
“There’s a second team. They’re closing in from the perimeter.”
“What? Where?” That was Callan, and he sounded furious. “Alyssa, report.”
She’d been providing regular reports with information she got from the drone she flew overhead, another gadget Bartlett had pulled from his trunk.
Seconds ticked by, but she didn’t answer.
“Alyssa!”
Grant said, “Don’t jump to—”
“I told you it wasn’t safe!” Callan’s voice exploded through the channel, drowning out the rest of Grant’s response. The raw panic in his tone made Asher’s stomach drop.
In trying to save Cici, had he put her sister in harm’s way?
“Check on her,” Grant said. “Alyssa’s probably finding cover and keeping quiet. Stay out of sight. They don’t know we know they’re coming. Keep it that way.”
The comm went quiet for a heartbeat before Grant’s voice came back, steady and controlled. “Asher, with you in possession of the SD card, what do you think Gagnon’s play is, bringing more men?”
“He’s lost a couple,” Bartlett said.
Asher had taken out two, getting their numbers closer to even.
“There was that gunshot earlier,” Bartlett said. “Whiteman reported it. So maybe they’re down three.”
“Best case scenario, that leaves nine,” Grant said. “Maybe he thinks he can capture you? Torture you until you give it up?”
“No reason to capture me. I just agreed to go to him.”
“But he didn’t know you’d do that.”
True.
Asher hadn’t stopped scanning the forest, but there was no movement anywhere.
His mind raced through possibilities. Did they plan to torture him? Maybe Gagnon thought he could break Asher.
Or maybe he planned to torture Cici and force Asher to give up the SD card to protect her.
That scenario made Asher’s blood run cold. He didn’t bother asking himself what he’d do. He could think of no solution that would get them out of that situation alive.
Not without Grant and company. Thank God Asher wasn’t alone.
But even if Gagnon did try torture, did he really think he could get the information before the dead-man’s switch activated? Not that there was a dead-man’s switch, but Gagnon didn’t know that. He believed he still had a shot to keep his secrets from going public.
Or did he?
The pieces clicked into place. That “contingency plan” remark Asher had dismissed as bluster… Was that exactly what was happening now?
He considered every angle, and the longer he thought about it, the more his gut told him he’d stumbled on the answer.
“He’s flipping the board.” The truth tasted like poison in Asher’s mouth. “He’s not trying to get the SD card back. He’s spilling gasoline on his operation and lighting a match on his way out.”
Nobody replied to that, not Grant or Bartlett or the other team members who listened in. Not Callan, still looking for Alyssa.
“Think about it.” Asher’s pulse hammered as the implications crystallized.
“Gagnon’s whole operation depends on information and leverage.
But I have the SD card now. If the information on it releases, he’s finished.
Prison’s his best option, but even there, his enemies could get to him. I told him I uploaded it…”
Meaning, Asher had pushed Gagnon to this. Asher had caused this.
If he couldn’t save Cici, he’d live with the implications of all his mistakes for the rest of his life.
“What are you saying?” Grant’s voice was tight.
“He’s planning to escape. But first, he’s going to clean house.
Take out Souza—whose boss will be fingered when that information goes public.
Same might be true for these commandos. Who knows that they’re not on loan from some criminal organization.
” Asher’s throat went dry. “And he’ll take out Cici just for spite. Me too, if he can get his hands on me.”
Gagnon wasn’t negotiating. He was buying time. He was going scorched earth. “He’s going to kill her.”
“Then why the second team?” Bartlett asked, bringing the question back where they’d begun.
“To make sure he takes out anyone who tries to stop him. You heard me. I told him I had people en route—my people and Cici’s. He’s expecting an army to come against him. This second team is here to make sure they don’t get to him before he escapes. Are you two in position?”
“Inside the fence,” Grant said. “It’s your move.”
If he walked up to the front gate, he’d be shot. He started working his way toward the chain-link fence. “We’ve got to get her. Now.”
Bartlett said, “Without Callan—”
“We’re out of time.” Asher scanned for enemies as he jogged closer to the factory grounds. “Tell me where to go in.”
Grant said, “Get right back to you.”
One way or another, Asher was getting inside that factory. No more games.
He had to rescue Cici before it was too late.