Chapter 14 #2
Liam plopped himself behind the wheel. “The rental place had this sweet, candy apple red Lamborghini.” His dark eyes met Jagger’s.
“You know…the kind of car Allison will never let me buy? Anyway, I wanted to get it so damn bad, but I knew this would blend in better, so”—He swept a dramatic hand out in front of him—“here we are.”
After a few seconds’ worth of feigned pondering, he looked at his friend with a nod. “Fair enough.” He grinned. Switching the topic as Liam pulled away from the curb, he asked, “Did the others go back?”
“The guys are still here, but we sent the women back.” Liam’s throat worked a hard swallow. “I needed Allison and Maddie out of the city.”
Jagger didn’t have to ask the man why he’d sent his fiancée and her daughter back to Chicago with the other Delta Team women. Memories of the explosion were explanation enough.
If the bastard who’d tried killing Talia knew who Jagger was, and that he worked as a Delta Team operator, it could put any one of his friends in danger. One thing the men of R.I.S.C. all had in common was their primal need to protect the ones they loved.
Jagger had borne witness to it time and again. With his Delta brothers and, before them, the members of Alpha, Bravo, and Charlie. They would lay down their lives for the women who owned their hearts. Some of his fellow R.I.S.C. men had even come damn close a time or two, but not Jagger.
That’s because I never let it be me.
His entire adult life had been spent walking the wire. Always diving headfirst into danger. Jagger thrived on adrenaline and the rush that came later, but a life like that wasn’t meant to be shared.
It was risky. Dangerous. Anyone close to him would automatically become a possible target. In this particular case, Talia was already in danger. As far as he knew, it had nothing to do with him.
Regardless, the person responsible had stirred up a shitstorm of epic proportions. And Jagger wouldn’t stop searching for them until he’d made the son of a bitch pay.
“Okay, so I know you said you were good to go, but are you recovered enough to go up against the CIA?”
“Sinclair is former CIA.” Jagger turned and looked at his friend. “And is that really even a question?”
“I’m just saying, this little plan of yours goes sideways, we need to be ready. I come home all shot to hell and back, Allison’s going to have my ass.”
Something about the way Liam said his fiancée’s name created a funny feeling somewhere deep inside Jagger’s gut. “You know, that’s like the third time you’ve mentioned your fiancée in, what…two minutes?” He frowned. “Is everything okay on the home front?”
“Everything’s fine,” Liam answered a bit too quickly. “We’re totally…fine.”
There it was. That tiny pause revealed a world of trepidation. His friend was hiding something, all right. And he intended to find out what that something was.
“Spill it, Cutler.” Jagger waited for the other man to look his way.
When he did, Liam’s rugged face had twisted, and his eyes had widened with obvious surprise. “Spill what?”
“Whatever it is you’re tryin’ like hell not to say.”
The unexpected comment left the man blinking. “I-I don’t know what you’re—”
“Spare us both the bullshit, would you?” Jagger cut his friend’s lie short.
“You know how this is going to play out. I’m gonna keep asking and you’ll keep denying until you finally get sick of my shit and give in.
So just skip to the good part and tell me what it is so we have more time to talk about it before we get to where we’re going. ”
The enclosed space grew silent as Liam stared back at him with a guarded expression. A beat later, one corner of his lips curved into a grin, and the man started to shake his head.
“You’re so annoying, you know that?”
“And yet, you still love me.”
Liam laughed. “Unfortunately for me, yeah,” he teased. “I do.”
“Seriously, man. Talk to me. What’s going on with you and Al?”
“It’s nothing bad, it’s just…” His friend’s focus returned to the D.C. traffic up ahead. “And we haven’t told anyone yet, so you can’t go blabbing your mouth.”
“Just tell me, Liam,” he prodded.
His friend’s gaze slid his way once more before he finally revealed, “Allison’s pregnant.”
It took a few seconds for the news to fully sink in because he’d expected Liam to say something about how he’d royally fucked things up. When the realization of his friend’s news finally hit, Jagger’s mouth spread into a wide, toothy grin.
“Seriously?” His fingers curled around Liam’s bicep with a friendly shake. “Congrats, dude! That’s awesome!”
“Yeah?”
Jagger frowned. “Well, yeah. I mean…unless it’s not?”
Liam loved Allison more than his very own life, and her little girl was already the apple of the man’s eye. So thinking he’d be over the moon at the exciting news was a natural assumption to make.
Or so I thought.
“No, of course it’s great news.” Liam’s chuckle was thick with nervous tension. “It’s just…”
“Scary as hell?” Jagger assumed.
“I’m fucking terrified, Jag,” the other man finally admitted. “What if I’m a shitty dad?”
“That’s what you’re worried about?” He couldn’t help but snort at his friend’s insecurities. “Brother, I’ve seen the way you are with Maddie, remember? That little girl absolutely worships you.”
“Yeah, but that’s only because her bio dad was a piece of shit.”
“You know that’s not the only reason.”
“I don’t know, maybe.”
“There’s no maybe to it,” Jagger countered. “I know it. Allison knows it. And I’m pretty sure, deep down, you know it, too.”
A moment of thick silence passed before Liam finally spoke up again. “You’d better be right, you know? ’Cause you’re my best friend, which means if I screw this up, you’re also gonna fucked where she’s concerned.”
Jagger threw up his hands and vehemently shook his head.
“Oh, no, brother.” His deep chuckle filled the car’s interior.
“What happens inside your marriage, stays inside your marriage. You do somethin’ stupid to piss off that sweet woman of yours, that shit’s all on you.
Besides…” He gave a shoulder a shrug. “Allison loves me.”
The two men shared a much-needed laugh, and for the first time ever, Jagger began to see himself having the kind of life his friend was starting to build. A woman who loved him standing right by his side. A sweet little girl the spitting image of her mom.
His mind was instantly filled with visions of a little girl with long, brown hair. Her big, round, golden eyes were an exact match to Talia’s. And when she smiled, despite the fact that she was a figment of his imagination, Jagger felt as though his heart would overflow with a sense of joy.
Get a grip on yourself, Brooks. Stop daydreaming about a family you don’t have and focus on the problem that actually exists.
With a blink and a self-induced, hard, mental slap, he forced all thoughts of Talia—and their imaginary child—out of his head. Joining in on the laughter, Jagger recognized that Liam’s nerves about becoming a biological father were natural but completely unnecessary.
The couple were two of the happiest people he knew, and their growing family was a testament to the love Liam and Allison shared. Maybe, someday, he’d find that same sort of happiness, too.
Until then…
Jagger glanced at the GPS map displayed on the rental car’s dash. “Hey, it looks like we need to take this next exit.”
“I’m on it.” Liam switched lanes like a boss.
Before long, they’d entered into a maze of three-story, brick buildings and narrow, paved roads. The Applewood Apartment Complex was a middle-income housing structure located on the east side of the Potomac, twelve miles from Alexandria.
“Sure hope Sinclair’s home,” his friend spoke up again. “Otherwise, this will go down as the shortest and most uneventful road trip we’ve ever had.”
“He’s home,” Jagger responded with absolute confidence. Before Liam could ask, he added, “Ryker’s had eyes on him since he was released from Homeland this morning.”
“I can’t believe they let him go, just like that.”
“Ryker said everything in Sinclair’s statement panned out.
Phone records back up his claim that his buddy called him last-minute to fill in for the job.
Bank records show he’s been living paycheck-to-paycheck for the last couple of years.
And, aside from him being at the port the night of the op, there’s no way to connect him to Sanchez or any of his other known associates. ”
Liam appeared to process the information as he maneuvered them through the expansive complex toward Sinclair’s building. “I take it you don’t buy his story of not being in bed with Sanchez? I mean, obviously. Otherwise, we wouldn’t be coming to his place.”
“This isn’t about Sanchez.”
Or maybe it was, but it was also about a whole lot more.
“So if this isn’t about the drug-smuggling asshole, why—”
“I need to know if he had anything to do with setting that bomb.”
“Wait.” Confusion filled his friend’s gaze as it bounced between him and the speedbump up ahead. “Are you saying the explosion isn’t connected to Talia’s case?”
“I’m saying the explosion is connected to her,” Jagger clarified. “But I think it was personal.”
“Doesn’t get much more personal than attempted murder,” Liam quipped. “Okay, so you think Sinclair somehow went after Talia…while in Homeland’s custody, mind you…not because of Sanchez but for something from their CIA past?”
“Maybe.” Jagger shrugged. “That’s what we’re here to find out.”
On cue, they pulled into an empty spot in front of the building labeled G. A moment later, Jagger was standing with Liam outside Sinclair’s door.
“Whatever you’re selling, you’re wasting your time.” Keith Sinclair groused before the door was even fully opened.
“Good thing we aren’t salesmen.” Jagger stared the man down.
Keith’s dark brows turned inward just before he barked out, “Who the hell are you?”
“We’re friends of Natalia Foster’s.”