Raina’s knees weaken as flashbacks attack her. All of the beatings her father gave her, screaming at her the entire time he was hitting her and yelling that it was her fault that her mother was dead, that everything was her fault and how it should’ve been her that died instead, slam into her.
Kas’ hand is on her arm, his fingers tilting her chin to meet his worried gaze, “You alright, Rain?”
Softly nodding, she looks away.
“Take Senator Wakely into interrogation,” Kas tells Frank, “I’ll be there in a minute.”
“Sure, boss,” Frank responds quietly as he motions for Austin, Jake, and Russo to follow him, giving Kas and Raina some privacy.
“I’m sorry, Rain,” Kas whispers, his voice full of remorse. He says nothing else, there is nothing he can say, so he just holds her.
“Why did he blame me?” she asks, her eyes tearless but full of heartbreaking affliction.
“Why did he do anything that he did to you, Rain?” Kas takes her chin in his hand, softly rubbing his thumb across her cheek, “He’s just a cruel man, sweetheart, there’s nothing you could have ever done to change that. Like I said before, none of anything that ever happened to you is your fault.”
“Go, Kas, I’m fine,” she tells him, forcing a smile and pulling away.
“Come into interrogation with me. You can learn some questioning techniques,” he suggests, taking her hand.
Realizing that he’s making excuses so she won’t have to be alone, she nods, not wanting to be alone with her current thoughts either.
The handcuffs are off the Senator when they step into the room, and Jake looks between Kas and Raina, unsure if he should put the cuffs back on Wakely or not. Knowing Kas prefers them to be off when he’s talking with suspects so he can read the emotions in their eyes, which is harder to do when they are staring down at the cuffs every few seconds, he’s not sure if Kas would hold the same preference with Raina in the room.
Kas nods discreetly, and Jake leaves the room with the cuffs put away. Pulling a chair from the table to the far corner, he motions for Raina to take a seat. Turning his attention to Senator Wakely, he spends a few seconds studying his demeanor, noting that guilt is not part of his current mental state,
Interesting
. Taking a seat directly in front of the Senator, Kas pays attention to how the man immediately meets and holds his steady gaze.
“Tell me about Sam Collings and Terry Landreth,” Kas states calmly.
Wakely’s gaze doesn’t shift, “I’ve never met them. Tonight would be the first time I would’ve ever seen them in person,” he offers quietly. “I know they were affiliated with a branch of one of the toughest gangs in D.C. years ago, but I only know of one illegal act they have committed,” his steady gaze turns cold, hard. His jaw clenches before continuing, “I’m assuming by you bringing me here, that they are involved in other criminal activities, and you think I’m involved somehow.”
“What illegal act are you referring to?” Kas asks, keeping his tone level and calm, resting his arms casually on the table.
“Rape.”
Kas watches how Wakely’s eyes turn to steel and drift, momentarily lost in virulent thought. “Are you involved?” he asks, carefully gauging his reaction.
The way the Senator’s eyes immediately snap back to him speaks louder than most words. “No! I’ve never raped anyone or even pressured a woman to do something she didn’t want to do.”
“Who do you think they raped?”
Wakely clenches his fists on top of the table, “My mother.”
Kas sits back in his chair. Raina’s lips part at the unexpected accusation, and her distressed expression pains Frank as he watches from the next room.
“You think these men sexually assaulted your mother?” Kas asks, his voice empathetic as his gut tells him that Wakely isn’t lying.
“I know they did, and I can prove it. I share the same DNA as one of them,” Senator Wakely states, his voice breaking. Taking a moment to regain his composure, his gaze falls to his hands, and his lips are pressed into a tight, thin line.
Giving the Senator all the time needed, Kas patiently waits for further explanation. When it comes, Kas shakes his head at the injustice, a part of him understanding the vigilante actions Wakely was ready to administer. He knows that the Senator is fully aware that the current laws can’t touch the men who brutally raped his mother, not with the longest statute of limitation for rape being only fifteen years in Washington.
“My mother was engaged to my father,” Wakely continues, his expression heart-wrenching, “she had just graduated high school a few weeks prior. She was walking home from a babysitting job when they pulled up beside her and dragged her inside the car. She became pregnant with me that night.”
The room is quiet. Raina wipes a tear off her cheek, her heart aching at the pain tormenting Senator Wakely. Feeling Kas’ gaze, she raises her eyes to the mirror. The concern darkening his eyes isn’t diluted by the reflection, and with as much reassurance she can manage in a look, she tries to let him know that she can handle this.
Reluctantly pulling his gaze away from Raina, Kas returns his focus back to the Senator, “I presume you haven’t known about this for long.”
“I just found all of this out last month. When I told my father that I was trying to push new legislation to help crack down on human trafficking, he told me, even though he said my mother made him swear to never tell me. He said I needed to know, then he cried. That’s the only time I ever saw him cry, except on the day my mother died.”
Senator Wakely’s lips tremble as he fights to keep his own tears from falling, “He told me that I needed to know the sickness of people like the men who hurt my mother so I can do everything I can to help stop what she went through.”
Quickly doing the math, Kas now understands the Senator’s out of character expressions at his speech against human trafficking. His words are soft, not even close to accusatory, as he asks, “She never reported the attack?”
“Back then, the woman was blamed even more than she is now. My father said she was terrified of what people would think, not only of her but of what they would think of him when they married. He had told her it didn’t matter what people thought, he begged her to go to the police, but she refused. When she found out she was pregnant, they married immediately to keep people from questioning her integrity.”
“I will have Collings and Landreth investigated,” Kas states, his gaze shifting to the mirror, giving a silent cue to his team. “I know that doesn’t mean much in terms of what they did to your mother, but if there is anything found that we can prosecute, I will push for the harshest punishment the law will allow.”
Wakely remains quiet for a moment before he softly nods and questions, “Why am I here, Agent Pierce?”
“An unrelated matter,” Kas offers calmly. “Have you heard of a Prizrak or Jefferson?”
Wakely shakes his head, his eyes never leaving Kas’.
“If either of those names come up, please give me a call,” Kas requests, handing the Senator his card. “If there’s anything else I can do for you, don’t hesitate to ask.”
“Am I free to go?”
“Yes. Go home, Senator,” Kas states pointedly, “we need your help out there. It will be hard to push legislation through if you are behind bars.” Smiling knowingly at Wakely, Kas shakes his hand, “I will keep you updated on the investigation. My men have already made the call to keep diligent tabs on Collings and Landreth.”
“Thank you, Agent Pierce.” The Senator stops in front of Raina, “Your mother was a very special woman, she loved you very much.”
“Thank you.” Raina takes his hand in hers, “Sounds like your mom was a very special woman and loved you very much as well.”
Tears brim his eyes as his lips curve with gratitude. He squeezes her hand before walking out of the room, and Raina says a silent prayer for him as he leaves. The feel of Kas’ arms slipping around her is her answered prayer. It doesn’t matter why her father did what he did; it can’t be changed now. Turning, her eyes shine with love as she looks at the man who gives her more than enough happiness and strength to overcome the pain of her past. She smiles, knowing that, although she can’t change her father, she can forgive him and move on.
The rain has slowed to a steady drizzle by morning, and Raina drags Kas out of bed so they can get to the agency early for him to get her the needed equipment.
“Aren’t we going to make breakfast?” Kas asks as Raina is rushing him to get his shoes on and out the door.
“Can’t we pick something up on the way? I really want to get started.”
“Dry your hair at least, Rain, it’s freezing outside,” Kas calls to her when he notices how she is throwing her just washed hair into a bun.
“It’s fine,” she fusses, eager to leave.
“It’s thirty degrees outside, dry your hair.”
Not wanting to argue the point when she knows she will only lose anyway, she doesn’t waste time. Grabbing the hair dryer, she quickly dries her long hair until it’s only slightly damp. Dropping the dryer on the bed, she grabs his hand, “Happy now? Let’s go.”
“You’re going to be an impossible, impatient little brat today, huh?” Kas teases.
“You haven’t seen brat yet, Pierce, move your butt,” she banters, winking at him as she rushes out the front door.
The road doesn’t seem to appreciate Raina’s impatience as they move at a crawl in the middle of a large traffic jam. Kas can’t help but laugh at the annoyed looks making the most adorable expressions on his wife’s usually friendly face. Turning on the radio, he plays with the stations until he hears Daughtry. Knowing one of her favorite bands will calm her impending tirade, he smiles when she starts to softly sing along to
Losing
My
Mind
. Listening to the words, he takes her hand in his, caressing the back with his thumb, bemused at how she has no idea how he has lost his mind to her . . . his mind, heart, and his soul.
When they finally arrive at the agency, Kas authorizes the release of the equipment recovered in the raids related to Parker. It takes several trips to get it all to Erik’s office. Once the last computer is set up on the third long table they placed in the room, Kas gives Raina a kiss, rubbing his hands up and down her arms reassuringly, “It’ll work, darlin’, I have complete faith in you.”
Her nerves won’t hold out a second longer, and she decides to work in order from the first piece of equipment recovered to the last as she fires up the laptop, hoping to reveal all of its malignant secrets they may have missed. Holding her breath, her fingers begin their magic.
An hour later, her faith in herself is on very shaky ground when nothing new is discovered. Kas rubs her shoulders, tensing himself when he feels the tight knots. Erik begins on another laptop as Raina works on a desktop that was removed from El Diablo’s home. Kas feels helpless as he watches the light in his wife’s hopeful eyes fade a little more as she pushes each machine aside, her being left feeling just as empty as its contents.
Her deflated emotions are evident in her slumped shoulders and pursed lips, and he’s about to pull her away, give her a break for a little while so she can regroup, when her eyes burn bright jade. Sitting up straight, she presses her fingers against her lips, anxiously watching the screen as previously lost data is coming to life.
Kas leans over Raina’s shoulder, intently reading dates, names, and places they weren’t privy to prior, “Great job, Rain!” Dialing Frank, he tells him to gather the team for a meeting in half an hour.
“All hail the alpha geek,” Erik praises, playfully bowing to Raina, “I think she needs a chaise lounge, grapes, and a scantily clad man to fan her. On second thought, can we make that a scantily clad woman doing the fanning?”
“Shut up, Erik,” Raina laughs, before feverishly working on the next hard drive.
Shaking his head at Erik, Kas holds up his phone, “Send me all the information you get.” His proud grin spreads across his handsome face, and his intense pride beams in his chocolate eyes when he tilts her chin so she’s looking at him, “I am absolutely taking you out to wherever you want to go after this, darlin’.”
The morning quickly passes to late afternoon as Kas’ team joins Derrick’s team, splitting up to look for Joel, the pimp mentioned in several e-mails responsible for tipping off Prizrak’s handlers when he finds a girl meeting the Ghost’s criteria. It’s early evening when Mack calls, informing Kas they found him, and they have an address of one of the handlers. Kas closes his phone, not liking that he didn’t get a chance to speak with Joel before he was taken into custody but, from the information received, they don’t have the time to waste.
Derrick has called Grant and Lawson, requesting their help in assisting Kas’ team since he is in interrogation. The teams are convening a few blocks away in twenty minutes. The sun’s rays give the illusion of summer, not the cold months of the impending winter when Kas parks the jeep at the designated area. The wind is calm, but the air has barely made it to a cold forty degrees. Making sure each agent knows the task at hand, Kas says a quick prayer before giving the order to go in.
“What the hell?” Austin quips, stepping into the room behind Kas.
The entire back wall is a sophisticated workstation lined with everything from compact laptops to industrial computers. Kas hesitates, not liking his deep gut foreboding sensation screaming at him that something isn’t right, and he holds his hand up, telling his men to stand down.
“What’s wrong, boss?” Frank asks, waiting on his next command.
“I don’t know yet, everything just seems too easy.”
“Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth, Pierce,” Grant quips, nodding his team forward. “Careful with the equipment,” he continues before turning to back to Kas, “looks like the geek sheiks are going to have a long-”
The sound from the explosion is like nothing Kas has ever experienced. The feel of his body becoming projectile goes almost unnoticed due to the sheer speed of his flight, but the intensity of his painful impact against the metal cabinets is acutely perceived. The floor is unforgiving as he crashes against the cold tile. Despite the burning pain, he wastes no time scrambling to his feet, frantically looking for his men and the other teams.
The thick, pungent smell of burnt plastic, hot metal, and charred wood slams into Kas’ senses as he tries to blink the haze from his eyes. Wiping away the smoke induced tears with the back of his bleeding hand, he surveys his surroundings. Ashes and filthy gray smoke form a pervading fog, preventing any clear view and choking him. Time seems frozen as Kas struggles to focus, fighting the terror of not knowing the condition of his men, his friends. When his eyes begin to adjust to the haze, Kas continues desperately searching the room that is unrecognizable from its previous state. Pieces of the walls are scattered across the floor, steel is bent and twisted like it had been made from clay. The seconds tick by cruelly, tauntingly, as Kas tries to find his team.
A small movement from Kas’ front left catches his attention. Frank lifts himself unsteadily, rocking forward on his knees, then stumbles, falling back to the ground. Kas reaches him and can barely tell that Jake is yelling at him from behind Frank, the only noise he can hear is a deafening graveling sound ringing in his ears. Once Frank is upright, Kas searches for Russo as Jake rolls a limp Austin onto his back. The amount of blood covering Austin is a stark difference to Jake’s blanched face. A wave of renewed, sickening dread crashes into Kas as he rushes to Austin, checking for a pulse, throwing his head back in relief when he feels proof of life. “Get him out of here!” Kas commands Jake and Frank before looking around the room for Russo.
The thick, black smoke burns his lungs like acid, making it a chore to take a simple breath. “Russo?” he manages to rasp.
Lawson’s bloodshot eyes meet his, and Kas can almost taste the barely repressed panic. “We’ve got to get everyone out of here!” Kas calls to Lawson, who is already throwing a desk off Scott’s motionless body. When Kas sees the severe damage to Scott, he doesn’t waste time to check for a pulse; he knows he’s gone. A seething shot of fury burns inside, and he angrily grits his teeth, wanting Parker dead and wanting to offer some form of solace to Lawson, who has dropped to his knees, but not having the luxury of time.
Grant is kneeling, coughing up blood, and Kas grabs his arm, hauling him to his feet. Thinking of some of the horror stories his dad has shared of war, Kas isn’t sure if the scene in front of him compares to a war zone, but it definitely looks like hell on earth. Acid burns his nose and lungs as he calls for Russo again. The air is tangible with the heavy mixture of smoke and dust from the debris, and Kas doubles over in a harsh fit of coughing that feels more like a slow strangulation.
He sheds his vest and ignores his protesting muscles as he rips his top shirt over his head, using the filthy cotton as a mask. When he sees Jake entering the building again, he points to the left as he goes right. Lawson is helping Dalton, one of his men, towards the door. The void in Lawson’s eyes is disturbing, but Kas can’t take the time to focus on that now. A black boot is peeking out from underneath a pile of rubble, and Kas removes the convoluted covering off one of Grant’s men. Taylor’s pulse is weak, but Kas is just thankful he’s alive at the moment as he hoists him over his shoulder, carrying him to the salvation of clean air and divine light.
Sirens are roaring in the background when Kas rushes back inside, calling loudly for Russo. He passes Jake, who has shed his vest and has his arm wrapped around Steven, and he can’t tell where Jake’s blood begins and Steven’s ends when Jake stumbles under the extra weight, his shirt drenched in the dark liquid. “Stay outside, Jake.”
“I’m good,” Jake replies, his voice alarmingly weak.
“That’s an order!” Kas demands.
Frank’s limp is pronounced as he takes Steven’s arm and wraps it over his shoulder to help Jake with the added stress of Steven.
Grant is still sputtering blood as he staggers towards Jason, ripping off part of his sleeve and pressing it to the gash on his agent’s head.
“Russo?” Kas bellows, his own panic rising from not being able to find his friend. Climbing over a heap of concrete and twisted metal, he finally spots Russo leaning over Agent Garren, trying to move a large chunk of steel off her leg. Kas grabs the side, pushing as Russo pulls. “Is she alive?” he asks, not seeing any movement from Angie.
Russo nods curtly, and Kas doesn’t ask any more questions as he continues to help free Grant’s agent. Russo grunts with pain when he lifts Angie into his arms, carrying her limp body through the haze. The bright sunlight is blinding, but Kas welcomes every ray greedily. Police officers have begun securing the area and firefighters are covering the building, backing everyone up a few more yards. The adrenaline that was keeping Kas going is waning. The pain from his own wounds is taking a toll, slicing into him with every movement.
As more sirens become louder, he steps back inside, kneeling next to Lawson. Both are silent as they lift Scott’s burnt, bloodied body, carrying him outside. Kas has never seen Lawson anywhere close to tears before today, and the unshed pool swimming in Lawson’s dark eyes causes Kas’ throat to burn from his own repressed tears and sorrow. Carefully, they lay Agent Scott Hamlin on the cold ground. Lawson roughly swipes away a tear as he closes his agent’s lifeless eyes before removing his over shirt and placing it gently over Scott’s head. Kas nods at Lawson and places his hand on his arm before leaving him alone to grieve.
Austin is still unconscious, and Jake’s looking like he could drop at any second. Kas assesses everyone’s injuries quickly while the ambulances arrive.
“Lie down, Jake,” Kas helps lower the agent to the ground as his gaze shifts between Austin and Jake, noting his friend’s pained expression creasing his youthful features.
Please,
they’re
too
young
to
die
. Giving Jake’s shoulder a reassuring squeeze, he turns to Austin and removes his shirt, revealing a nasty linear cut that is bleeding profusely. Kas presses his hands hard against the wound as he yells for a medic.
The pounding pain radiating through his head is piercing to the point of numbing as Kas takes in all the chaos around him. He’s barking orders, moving from agent to agent, holding his breath with each one that is motionless until he feels a pulse.
Frank grabs Jake, helping him roll over as he vomits. “I think he’s got a concussion, boss,” he calls to Kas who is checking on Russo.
The hand of the spunky agent looks so small and fragile in Russo’s hand, and Kas pats his friend on his shoulder encouragingly. “Hang in there, man,” he whispers before returning to Jake.
Jake gives a weak smile, “Don’t look at me like that, Kas, I’m not going anywhere yet, I’ve gotta prove to Frank that I’m not a rookie anymore.”
Kas and Frank let out a matching stressed laugh. A hard lump forms in Kas’ throat as he watches the medic working on Austin. The nightmare of the reality in front of him is overwhelming, causing him to want to sit back and weep. His body is working on exhausted reserves and the pain drains him further.
“Kas!”
Just hearing her voice eases him. When he looks up from Austin’s comatose frame, actually seeing her redeems him.
Raina stops in front of Kas, her ragged breaths showing just how afraid she is even though she does her best to remain calm for him. When she sees the blood on his hands, he slowly shakes his head, telling her that it isn’t his. Her widened eyes quickly give his wrecked body a cursory glance, and a strong shot of relief sparks when his injuries don’t appear life threatening. She places her palm on his cheek, her jade eyes burning more intense than he’s ever seen. “I love you,” she practically chokes, sinking into his arms before composing herself again.