10. Daisy
Chapter ten
Daisy
Suffice it to say, I didn’t sleep last night knowing that Kenneth Johnson is on the CIA’s radar.
At a minimum, he’s a person of interest to them.
That’s more than enough for me to know we are looking in the right place.
Having run into him twice since my abduction and now here at Crater Lake before the next abduction occurs makes him a person of interest to me as well as my prime suspect.
However, the lack of sleep has me running on fumes, caffeine, and a prayer that I don’t do anything stupid the next time I see him.
“Stupid is as stupid does,” I murmur.
“What was that?” Angel asks when he rolls over on the sofa bed and cracks open one eye to peer at me.
“Nothing,” I tell him. I’m not ready to admit that I might have been in the wrong yesterday.
He was right. Chasing after someone who was armed and dangerous without a plan other than paralyzing the guy with a simunition round wasn’t my finest moment.
As a sharpshooter, staying calm and being patient are a must for me.
Yet, when Kenneth shot down Vinny’s drone and took off, all sense of reason flew from my brain.
I couldn’t let him get away. I needed answers.
Instead of telling Angel all of that and reopening that can of worms, I walk over to him on the bed and show him my phone.
“Owen and Scott texted that they are on their way here. Your sister, Jaxon, Jeremy, and Jack will arrive within the next couple of days, while Roger is heading to D.C. to meet with Director Finnegan. They’re going to put pressure on Ludlow to share information. ”
“He’s not going to share anything,” Angel says as he wipes the sleep from his eyes and sits up. At least this time he’s wearing a shirt.
My lips turn downward. “He might. Ludlow gave the FBI the green light in Colombia and allowed Vinny to share about the CIA’s plan to put the cartel into power.”
Angel gives a humorless laugh. “He didn’t have a choice. The cartel leader kidnapped my sister. Since Faith was an American citizen, Ludlow didn’t have a leg to stand on. All he could do was try to contain the fallout.”
I point at him and shout, “That’s exactly why he’ll share now! These girls that are being taken are American citizens too!”
Cringing from my volume, Angel gets up and heads toward the coffeemaker to pour himself a cup from the pot that just finished brewing. He takes a sip and leans against the counter. “While I think it’s too early to have this conversation, you’ve been up for hours and seem raring to go.”
“I haven’t slept a wink. I’m on day two without any shuteye. Hey, did you know that you purr when you sleep?”
“Men do not purr. We roar.”
“You roar like a kitten,” I tease.
“Anywaays,” he drawls. “National security trumps domestic kidnapping. That’s how Ludlow will see it.”
Before I can argue further, he raises his hand to stop me. “I’m not saying I agree. It’s just how the CIA operates.”
“Shysters!”
“Sometimes,” Angel agrees. “They aren’t afraid to crack a few eggs to make an omelet, which is why the CIA has a bad rap. That’s only because their failures become public spectacles while their successes never make the front page. They’ve done plenty of good, too.”
“Like what?” I ask.
“That’s classified.”
I snort. “That’s a copout and you know it, but I’ll let it go for now because it doesn’t matter what Ludlow says or if he’s willing to cooperate.
The FBI has the right to investigate the kidnappings, and this time, they’re going to be the ones cracking some eggs.
Ludlow can get on board or get out of the way. ”
Angel huffs. “There will be collateral damage, Daisy. Take Vinny, for instance. As of right now, he hasn’t been given any orders not to pursue this, but only because no one knows he’s here.
Guaranteed, it will happen since it was his credentials that were used to log in and run the search on Kenneth Johnson.
When his involvement is discovered, Vinny will have two choices: obey an order to cease and desist, making it through the next few months until retirement, or ignore the order and be brought up on charges of obstruction.
He could lose everything he’s worked his whole life for. ”
“You didn’t get thrown in jail for disobeying an order,” I tell him.
“Close enough,” Angel retorts. “Then again, I was never a station chief with secrets that could further ruin the reputation of the CIA. Did you know that Vinny was one of the select few who was in line to become the next Directorate of Operations? He gave up any chance of that by helping the Southern Knights rescue my sister. He sacrificed that chance for family. All I ask is that you don’t take his sacrifice lightly.
His retirement isn’t by choice, regardless of what he said. There are always exceptions.”
“I had no idea,” I tell him. “Why would he risk everything to help me? Why did you give up your career for me?”
Angel sets down his coffee before walking over to me. He lifts my chin so that our eyes lock. “Because I care about you.”
“Which question are you answering?”
He smiles at me. “Both.”
I roll up on my tiptoes and kiss the corner of his mouth because his cheek would be “friend” territory, while his lips would be an invitation.
My feelings are somewhere in the middle, torn between what I want and what is for the best right now.
“Thank you,” I whisper. “I may not be able to promise that I won’t go off the rails and run toward danger, but I can promise that I won’t take either of your sacrifices lightly. ”
Angel wraps his arms around me, pulling me into a more-than-friendly embrace that I don’t shy away from. Resting his forehead against mine, he says, “You’re worth it.”
Our moment is interrupted when my phone dings with an intruder alert.
I grab it from the nightstand next to the bed to check the camera feeds.
Last night, Vinny connected the security system to the laptop at his cabin since Angel’s has been rendered useless until Owen fixes it.
Angel and Vinny also destroyed their phones to prevent the CIA from accessing them remotely and turning them into listening devices.
“It’s Vinny.”
Angel opens the door and waits for his friend, who doesn’t greet us when he enters the cabin. “Get dressed. Kenneth Johnson arrived at the diner five minutes ago.”
I don’t have to be told twice.
Ten minutes later, my hair thrown up into a messy bun and wearing wrinkled clothes from my luggage, I barge through the door of the diner. All eyes turn in my direction, including Kenneth’s.
Angel is close on my heels and touches my right shoulder to ground me. “Stay calm and let Vinny ask the questions, Daisy. He’s a skilled interrogator.”
Trying my best not to smile, I look at his hand, then up at him. “I never thought there would be a literal Angel on my shoulder talking sense to me.”
He smiles at that.
As difficult as it is for me to do so, I step aside and let Vinny take the lead. Angel and I follow him to the booth against the far wall.
Kenneth already knows what’s coming when he grabs his plate and makes room for me to sit next to him. Angel and Vinny take the more intimidating route by teaming up and sitting on the opposite side.
“I figured you’d come,” Kenneth says. “I thought I’d at least have time to eat my hash browns before your arrival.”
Vinny gestures toward the meal. “Don’t let us stop you. This is just going to be a friendly conversation.”
Holding up a piece of bacon and using it to point at Vinny, Kenneth grunts. “Sure it is. Why don’t we start with why you’re following me?”
I scoff. “You have it backwards.”
Angel and Vinny both narrow their eyes, a silent warning that I should keep my mouth shut.
Vinny doesn’t take Kenneth’s bait. “Do you realize that it’s a federal offense to shoot down a drone?”
“That’s what you’re going to lead with?” Kenneth retorts. “A threat? You CIA guys are all the same. Are you going to torture me if I don’t give you what you want? Throw me into a dark hole? Guess what? I’m already there.”
“And what is it you believe we want, Mr. Johnson?” Vinny asks.
“Thank you for confirming my assumption. The fact that you know my name is quite telling, especially since I never gave it to you. You guys think laws don’t apply to you and you can do whatever suits your fancy—including spying on American citizens.”
Vinny smiles, neither confirming nor denying the accusation. “Why are you really here?”
“Maybe you aren’t CIA if you don’t know the answer to that question. Are you FBI? If you are, then you’ve dropped the ball.”
Angel leans forward. “Just answer the question. We have proof of you shooting the drone; the penalty for which is up to 20 years in prison.”
Kenneth continues to eat his breakfast, not seeming the least bit worried about the crime.
“I guess that’s one way to get me to talk,” he says after swallowing his bite of eggs.
“Except, if you arrest me, I’ll go public with everything I know.
You see, I’m still alive because of that insurance policy. ”
Unable to control myself, I ask, “And what is it that you know?”
Kenneth turns to me, and there’s a melancholy behind his eyes I didn’t expect to see. Yet, his answer contradicts the sorrow I can almost feel emanating from him. “Arrest me and find out.”
“We’re not here to arrest you, but with one phone call, we can make that happen,” Vinny warns. Out of the three of us, no one has the power to arrest him anyway.
Pushing away his plate and holding out his wrists, Kenneth says, “Your intimidation tactics won’t work, so do your worst. There’s nothing you can take away from me that I haven’t already lost. I’m surprised that I haven’t been ‘disposed’ of yet after the first time your ‘friend’ questioned me.”
Vinny and Angel both frown while I stare at him in confusion. No one moves or says anything until Kenneth breaks the silence. “If you aren’t going to follow through on your threats, then don’t make them. It shows weakness. Please, excuse me as I believe we’re done here.”
I slide out of the booth to give Kenneth room to leave. Before he does, he looks at each of us as though he’s searching our souls. I’m not sure what he expects to find, but whatever it is, he finds it with me.
His next words send a cold chill down my spine. “You’re his type, but I think you already know that. You’re playing a very dangerous game.”
With that, he drops a twenty-dollar bill on the table, leaving me standing there with a vacant stare, a trembling body, and a memory of a dark cave I’ll never forget.
Angel is on his feet in time to catch me before my legs give out, urging me to sit back down. He slides in next to me and takes my hand in his.
“Breathe with me, Daisy. I’ve got you.”
It takes a few moments for me to come back to the present and catch on that Angel is inhaling and exhaling deep breaths for me to follow along to. After several minutes, my body relaxes.
“Are you okay?” he asks.
I glance out the window of the restaurant and look for Kenneth. When he’s nowhere to be found, I nod. “Yeah. Sorry about that.”
“No need to be sorry,” Vinny tells me. “PTSD happens to the best of us.”
Angel places his arm around my shoulder in a gesture that provides a great deal of comfort that I didn’t know I needed. He turns toward Vinny and says, “Vin, that was the worst interrogation ever. Kenneth worked you more than you did him.”
“We’re in a diner, Angel, which is a very public place that limited my options.
What did you expect me to do? Haul him into the bathroom and waterboard him?
Despite your misgivings, I gleaned a great deal of information.
For starters, he is well acquainted with the CIA.
His lack of fear suggests positional power; that he has an insurance policy the CIA is aware of.
It’s why he’s still alive. As he said, he’s surprised that he hasn’t been ‘disposed’ of. ”
“And?” I ask. “Why is that important?”
Vinny reaches for a menu and peruses it before answering me. “It means he’s valuable, Daisy. My guess—and this is speculation—is that he has knowledge that the CIA wants to keep secret.”
Angel’s grip tightens on my shoulder. “Do you think he could be a whistleblower?”
Vinny shrugs. “Maybe.”
I ball my fists in frustration and keep my voice low. “He knew I’d been abducted, Vinny. How could he know that?”
“All he said was that you were ‘his type.’ He wasn’t referring to himself.”
I shake out my hands to get the blood flowing back into my fingers. “That’s because he was referring to the man he sells the girls to.”
“Possibly,” Vinny says. “What I deduced from the conversation is that Kenneth is a threat. To what end? That’s what we need to figure out.”