Yankee
I t was long past sunset when Tessman drove out of the warehouse with Becca in the passenger seat beside him.
They were getting her out before the federal authorities arrived that they’d hand the three men off to.
She was quiet and looked exhausted.
He knew what happened in the warehouse had disturbed her.
How couldn’t it?
“Are you hungry?” he asked her.
It was way past dinnertime.
“No, I couldn’t eat a thing.”
“Yeah, I know. Me neither. I wish you hadn’t seen all that.”
“I’m glad I did,” she said.
“What are you thinking?” he asked.
“Talk to me, Becca.”
She shook her head and didn’t answer.
Her head was turned, so she gazed out the window.
He couldn’t see the expression on her face.
They drove in silence.
He pulled into the parking garage and passed through the gate and two garage doors.
“Becca, you need to talk to me,” Tessman said after he’d put the car in park.
“I can’t,” she said.
She hadn’t moved to get out of the car yet.
“Are you okay?” Tessman asked.
“Okay? No I’m not okay, Carter. That had to be the most horrific thing I’ve ever seen, and I’m left with a really big question that I don’t know the answer to. Do the ends justify the means?”
“How do you not know the answer to that?” Tessman asked.
“That man was waterboarded, fucking nearly drowned. He could have been killed,” she charged.
“Better him than you,” he said.
“And he wasn’t killed. The team knew what they were doing.”
“That room was set up for that,” she charged.
“The supplies were there to do that.”
“Yes,” Carter confirmed.
“Was there no other way?” she demanded.
“You were there. No, Becca, there was no other way. Neither him nor the other scumbag were going to give anything up, but we now have answers we didn’t have.”
“Well, I guess when you put it that way, it’s all well and good, and we’re all happy,” she shot back sarcastically.
“Do you think anyone liked what went down in that warehouse today?” Tessman demanded.
“Is anyone happy?”
“No one seemed to mind it,” she shot back.
“Really? Why do you think that? Because every single one of us did our jobs without whining about it? I’ll tell you, Becca, if you think that’s who I am, who any of us are, you are dead wrong. Sometimes tough actions have to be taken, and we have to step up and take those actions no matter how much we hate doing it. We got answers. And now with those answers, we can get justice for your sister and her family.”
“What will happen to the three of them?”
“The CIA will take them into custody, as well as Jude Ross, and clean up their mess,” Tessman said.
“Shepherd will have more info for us tomorrow morning at the debrief.”
“I just want to get upstairs and take a hot shower,” she said.
She was still chilled to the bone.
She held her hands together in front of her chest like she was praying, but it was an attempt to warm up.
Tessman reached over and took hold of her hands.
“You need to talk to Lassiter if you won’t talk to me. Mentally and emotionally, you have a lot to deal with, finding out exactly what happened and why. Are you still taking it in?” he said with the most gentle, kind voice he could muster.
Becca locked eyes with him.
He was the same calm, kind Carter who’d been there for her time and time again over the past week.
She shook her head. “I’m not okay,” she confessed.
“You’re still cold,” he said, rubbing his hands over hers.
“Let’s get you upstairs and into a hot shower. That’ll help. Then I’ll tuck you into bed and put an extra blanket on you.”
“Will you stay with me?”
“If you want me to. I kind of thought you’d want me to be far away from you after what you saw at the warehouse.”
“I thought so too, but now, no, I want you to hold me tonight. I don’t want to be alone.”
“You got it,” he promised.
***
Becca jolted awake.
Sunlight flooded into the room through the window.
They hadn’t bothered to close the curtains the night before.
Her back was pressed against Carter and his arms were around her.
She liked to wake up next to him.
She wondered what would happen now that the case was solved.
How soon would they arrest everyone involved so she would be deemed as safe?
“You okay?” Tessman asked.
He lay on his side and held her in his arms. He’d been awake but hadn’t moved, as he didn’t want to disturb her sleep.
Becca relaxed back into him.
“Yeah, I’m fine. What time is it?”
“Just before seven hundred,” he answered.
“Thank you for staying with me last night.”
A grin curved on his face.
It was almost laughable that she thanked him.
He loved to hold her as he drifted to sleep, and he loved to wake with her there as well.
“Can I make you a cup of coffee?”
She grasped his arm to keep it in place.
“Not yet. Can you just hold me a while longer?”
He tightened his grip on her.
“Baby, I’ll hold you as long as you’d like.” He pressed a kiss to the back of her head.
“I like waking this way. It’ll probably be safe for you to go home in a couple of days. And with this case over, I’ll probably be assigned to a new one on Monday.” He didn’t like that thought.
“Will you deploy for it?” she asked.
“Maybe,” he said, though he was sure it was the case.
He knew several of the teams had returned from their missions the night before.
Next week’s assignments should be coming out soon.
Delta Team plus Sebastian ‘Crash’ Roth and Bravo Team’s Kenny ‘Ducky’ Gallup would be back to HQ, completing their DEA Partner Mission within the next few hours.
He wanted to touch bases with Delta Team member Brian ‘the Birdman’ Sherman to see how Brielle, his wife, was really doing after this case.
This case had gotten to him, and he didn’t even have children.
He’d known it had been rough on Jackson, so he assumed with Brielle being a woman, it was harder for her.
“But I think Shepherd will want you here a few more days, just to be sure there are no threats against you.”
“How will he know?”
Tessman laughed.
“He just will.”
“I still feel there is something left unresolved in all this,” she said.
Or was it that she wanted there to be, so she’d remain with Carter longer?
“Like what?”
“I don’t know. But I still think there was something time sensitive about them getting that proof from me that I didn’t even know existed. Honestly, with the volume of stuff from Nicole’s house, I would never have gotten through it anytime soon. They could have waited until things settled down and then either burglarized my house or burned it down, thus burning down the proof if they didn’t know if it was in paper or electronic form. Their persistence at trying to find it is suspicious to me, Carter.”
“I could have Brielle take another look to see if there is something more there, something else hidden.”
“Yeah, maybe that wouldn’t be a bad idea.”
***
Tessman left Becca to get dressed after they had coffee and ate muffins and yogurt, both stocked in the apartment by Angel.
He’d offered to get a hot breakfast for them from a local diner, but she declined.
He caught up with Delta Team in the Team Room.
They’d just debriefed with Shepherd after a successful mission.
They were all looking forward to a few days off.
“This last case was a hard one. I just wanted to see if you’ve talked with Brielle,” Tessman said to Sherman after he’d greeted the team.
“Yeah, it was rough on her,” Sherman said.
“Brielle and I talked every night. She brought Bastian in bed with her most nights.” He paused and chuckled.
“So now I’ll have our baby between us and have to wrangle with my wife to get him back in his crib so I can make love to her.”
“Sorry,” Tessman said with a grin.
“You’ll understand one day,” Sherman said.
“Rumor has it you slept in the apartment with the client.”
“Where’d you hear that rumor?” Tessman asked.
“Yeah, where did I?” Sherman teased.
“You’re not denying it.”
“No reason to,” Tessman said with a grin.
“Anyway, I just wanted to be sure Brielle was ok. I know this case bothered Jackson, two dead kids, so I knew it had to bother Brielle,” Tessman said.
“You got the bastards that did it, that’s all that matters,” Sherman said.
“We did. I’m sure all involved will be buried in some hole, never to see the light of day again. We have our debrief at zero nine hundred and I hope Shepherd will confirm that they’re all rounded up.”
“Yeah, Brielle left Bastian with Dahlia to come in for the debrief. I can’t wait to get home to him. I hear you helped with the drunk beating on Dahlia’s door the other night.”
“Yes, a fucking seven-foot mountain.”
Sherman laughed.
“Had Bubbles been home, he probably would have just shot the motherfucker.”
Tessman chuckled with him.
“I’m not sure we would have subdued him if Kegger hadn’t tased him.”
“Kegger does like his taser,” Sherman said.
He offered his hand.
“Anyway, thanks for checking on Brielle.”
“I’ll catch you later,” Tessman said after shaking Sherman’s hand.
***
Shepherd already sat at his conference table with Brielle when Tessman and Becca entered his office.
Jackson rushed in moments later.
Flores, Winston, and Robinson were the last to arrive.
“Thank you for being on time ladies, and gentlemen. I have a packed day,” Shepherd began.
“Mason asserts that Jude Ross went rogue and the development of the two drugs, and all that followed was not an approved CIA mission. They scooped Ross up at his residence last night and are still interrogating him. Mason has promised that if anyone else was involved, they will be found and dealt with.”
“Do you believe him?” Flores asked.
“As of now, I have no reason not to. He knows that we have copies of the interrogation tapes from last night, and I’ll burn him if he lies to me,” Shepherd said.
“One of his people was responsible for the deaths of six innocents, including children. That will not be taken lightly by any agency. I think we can expect that Mason and the CIA will be on their best behavior for the foreseeable future.”
“What about Well-Life and whoever is working on those drugs now?” Winston asked.
“It’s been shut down. The FDA and its Office of Criminal Investigations are all over that place this morning. Nick DeSoto’s boss, Neil Eddy, took over the research when Nick died. It’s being looked into if Eddy knew the extent of the fraud and cover-up. They’ll proceed appropriately, depending on what they find.”
“But it’s stopped, right? The research has been stopped?” Becca asked.
“Affirmative. The FDA’s OCI is working the case, will make arrests, and prosecute those guilty of any wrongdoing,” Shepherd answered.
“They may be in contact with you, Becca. I would remind you of the NDA in answering any of their questions.”
“I understand,” she said.
“One last thing,” Shepherd said.
His gaze went to Brielle.
“I finally got access to the contents of the package the driver was delivering when he saw Nick DeSoto’s body in the house,” Brielle began.
“It was a letter from Senator Mark Henshaw, thanking Nick for meeting him the previous day and referring the issue to him. He promised to follow up on it and stop the drug from any further development.”
“Holy shit, damn, fucking A,” several of the team members cursed, their voices overlapping.
“Senator Henshaw sat on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. They have jurisdiction over the FDA and are responsible for oversight of the drug approval process,” Brielle said.
She paused and gave Becca a small smile as she reached over and laid her hand on top of Becca’s.
“Your brother-in-law was a whistle blower. He was a hero.”
Becca teared up.
“Thank you, Brielle.” Then it occurred to her.
That was the urgency.
Getting that letter.
It was the link that suggested they had motive and that they killed the Senator too.
“So, they killed Henshaw too?” Jackson summed up.
“Davis, with the Schaumburg P.D. has us to thank for the closure of another one of his homicide cases.”
Shepherd nodded.
“He was appreciative when I contacted him last night.” He scanned the table.
“Anything else?”
“No, sir,” several team members said, coming to their feet.
“Becca, please stay. Everyone else is dismissed. Enjoy your long weekend. Next week’s assignments will be emailed to you tomorrow morning.” After the last person left, and the door was closed, Shepherd spoke to her.
“It’s safe for you to go home, but I’d prefer you have one of my people with you the next few days, just to be sure.”
She smiled and nodded.
“I’m sure Carter wouldn’t mind being my babysitter a few days longer.” And the truth was, she wanted the extra time with him, especially if he potentially would be deployed the following Monday.
“What’s next for you?” Shepherd asked.
“I’m not sure,” she answered honestly.
“We could use you on the team with the domestic violence cases and to provide legal advice on other cases,” Shepherd said.
“Thank you, Shepherd. I will definitely consider it.”
“That’s if you can stomach the work we do. I purposefully let you see what happened at the warehouse last night so you could make a fair evaluation of possibly working for us.”
Shepherd truly impressed her.
Carter had said once that Shepherd was calculated, played 3-D chess while everyone else was playing Chinese checkers.
She believed that was true.
“Can I take some time and think about it? I think first, before I commit to anything, I need a little time away to deal with everything that happened in the last month.”
“Of course. Reach out to Joe Lassiter if you need to,” Shepherd said.
“The offer stands whenever you might want to take me up on it.”
“Thank you.”
Shepherd came to his feet and presented his hand across the conference table to her.
She also stood as she shook his hand.
When she left Shepherd’s office, she went looking for Carter and Angel.
She wandered down the hallway towards Angel’s desk.
She found both Angel and Michaela in the kitchenette.
“Hi,” she greeted, entering the room.
“I’m not interrupting anything, am I?”
“Not at all,” Angel said.
“How are you? I heard what happened last night.”
She wondered if Angel truly knew all that had happened.
“I’m fine, thank you. It’s over and I get to go home today,” she said.
“But I wanted to thank you again for everything you did for me.”
Angel embraced her.
“You’re welcome. So, are you going to stick around and help on more of Briana’s domestic violence cases?”
“Probably,” Becca confirmed.
“I’ll, of course, stay in contact with Simone Hoch and make sure her case proceeds, but I need to take a little time away before I dive into anything.”
“Completely understandable,” Michaela said.
“Wow, Michaela, you are carrying so low, much lower than when I saw you last, a few days ago,” Becca said.
Michaela flashed her a weary smile.
“I am aware. Angel and I were just discussing that. I was at the OB this morning and he said the baby could come at any time. He seconded your medical opinion on the location of the baby,” she said with a chuckle.
“I’m already dilated to three and one hundred percent effaced.”
“Looks like I might win the baby pool,” Angel said with a smile.
“Why are you in? You should be at home.”
“I’m just wrapping up a few things in the lab and getting it ready for me to be out for an extended period. I had so much energy the last few days, but today I am just zapped.”
“Oh, you are close to having her. That is so typical,” Angel said with excitement.
“Don’t you remember the day I had Johanna? It was Memorial Day, and we were all at Madison and Cooper’s house for a cookout. I felt absolutely drained, and that was after two days of having so much energy.”
“Diana timed your contractions. Yes, now I remember,” Michaela said.
“Are you having any contractions?” Angel asked.
Becca watched the two women and listened to their conversation, recalling when her sister had both her nieces.
She’d been with Nicole the day she went into labor with Riley.
She remembered it similarly to what these two ladies described.
The memory caused tears to fill her eyes.
“Are you okay?” Angel asked, pulling Becca from her memories.
She assumed Angel was talking to Michaela.
“Becca, are you okay?” she repeated.
“Yes, sorry. I was just remembering when my sister went into labor with my niece, Riley. I was with her at her house.”
Both Angel and Michaela embraced her.
“It’s okay, sweetie,” Angel said.
“Cry, grieve, you’re going to have these days. Don’t try to hold back the tears.”
Becca swiped at her cheeks.
“I know, but my sadness shouldn’t be making an appearance on your exciting day, knowing you’re so close to bringing your baby girl into the world.”
“You can’t control it,” Michaela assured her.
“I am a little sad, myself, missing my parents during this time. My mother died when I was a child, but my father just died last year.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Becca said.
“Thank you. We’d been estranged for many years. I’m just glad we reunited before he died,” Michaela said.
Then the expression on her face changed to surprise, and she glanced down at her leggings, which were suddenly saturated with liquid.
“I think my water just broke!”
Angel calmly pulled her phone from her pocket.
She dialed and waited for a beat.
“Hi Lambchop, I’m in the kitchen on five with Michaela and her water just broke. It’s showtime, Daddy.”
Becca grabbed the paper towels from the counter.
She tore several off and spread them over the floor near and under Michaela.
They instantly soaked up the water that was beneath her.
Shortly thereafter, a tall, muscled, bald man entered the room.
He scooped Michaela up in an embrace that didn’t leave Becca wondering if this was Landon, or Lambchop, as some called him, Michaela’s husband.
He was euphoric and fussing over Michaela and her baby bump.
Becca hung back and watched, impressed by his gentle nature, a complete departure from what she’d expect based on his rough appearance.
“They make a cute couple and with their coloring, I bet that is going to be a beautiful baby they made,” Becca said to Angel after he’d whisked Michaela from the room.
They’d make a quick stop in her lab to grab her things and then they’d leave for the hospital.
“His appearance doesn’t match his personality, though. He was so cute, fussing over her.”
“Lambchop was a SEAL, one of the best,” Angel told her.
“He’s also our team pastor. But don’t let that fool you. He’s as tough as they come and he’s also a total marshmallow when it comes to people he loves. That little girl of theirs is going to have two amazing parents.”
“And the rest of you in her life, too. From what I’ve seen so far, this is an amazing community of people.”