Authors: Carol Lynne
heart betrayed him and he fel in love.
* * * *
After seeing Luke off at the airport, Priest headed
towards Washington DC. The guilt he felt over his refusal to
answer Luke’s question continued to eat at him. The truth
was, Priest had no idea what life had in store for him. He
was a trained assassin. It wasn’t like he could just pick up
another line of work.
While gassing up his car in Alexandria, Virginia,
Priest pul ed out his agency phone and final y checked his
messages.
“It’s imperative you check in with me,” the message
from Jeffries said.
Priest rol ed his eyes and deleted the message
before being directed to the next. “You’re making it harder
on yourself. I can’t keep the bosses out of this forever,”
Jeffries warned.
Each message was similar, ordering Priest to cal
with his location or asking for a meeting at a determined
location. Priest was glad he hadn’t listened to them earlier
because hearing them in succession gave him a real sense
that something was definitely wrong. The last message
wasn’t from Jeffries. A deep voice spoke a series of
numbers into the phone. It had been years since Priest had
received a strictly binary communication.
He began to search the front seat for a sheet of
paper, eventual y coming up with a sales receipt. Replaying
the message, he wrote down the digits as they were
spoken. Making sure he’d written the numbers down
correctly, he deleted the message and turned off the phone.
Priest put the minivan in gear and drove around
Alexandria until he found a twenty-four hour Walmart
Supercenter. After shoving the slip of paper into his back
pocket, Priest locked the van and headed towards the
store. He went straight to the magazine rack and chose the
latest copy of Field and Stream.
Every agent was taught the same process for
decoding sensitive messages, but they were each given a
different sourcebook. Priest’s happened to be Field and
Stream. With the magazine tucked under his arm, he took
the opportunity to pick up three premade sandwiches from
the deli section as wel as a two-litre of pop.
Getting back into the van, Priest set his purchases in
the passenger seat as he pul ed out of the parking lot. He
knew from experience he would have to continual y move
around as wel as stay vigilant if he hoped to survive long
enough to decipher the message. He’d taken a chance
checking his messages, but he was damn glad he had.
Something was definitely going on with Jeffries.
After a quick glance at the clock, Priest left Alexandria
and headed Northwest. Half-way between Alexandria and
McLean, he turned into a residential neighbourhood.
Typical of wel -built housing developments, he easily found
a smal park and turned off the engine.
Using the glow from a nearby street lamp, Priest
pul ed out the magazine he’d purchased earlier. Using the
series of numbers he’d been given, he slowly worked his
way through the code.
way through the code.
Once he’d finished, he stared at the sheet of paper.
Danger. Jeffries AWOL , fol owed by an out-of-area phone
number. Priest dug a new prepaid phone out of the glove
box and dial ed the number.
“Constantine Pizza.”
“Is Jeffries working tonight?” Priest asked.
There was a series of clicks as the cal was secured.
“I’ve been waiting for your cal ,” came the reply.
Priest recognised the deep voice immediately.
Midnight. None of the agents actual y knew what Midnight’s
purpose was at the agency, but Priest had a feeling he was
about to find out. “I’ve been laying low. Am I wrong in
believing something wasn’t right with my last assignment?”
“According to our records, your last assignment was
over four months ago. Accounting noticed a discrepancy in
your duty roster versus your expense account. Can you
explain that?”
“Before last week, I’ve worked nonstop for the last
eight years. What the hel is going on down there?” Priest
asked. He started the van and pul ed away from the park,
suddenly feeling exposed.
“That’s what we were afraid of. Can you come in?”
Midnight asked.
With the phone cradled between his shoulder and ear,
Priest gripped the steering wheel. “Look, I don’t know what
the hel is going on there, but I’ve done absolutely nothing
that I wasn’t hired to do. Al my orders came from my
handler.”
“We’re beginning to understand that.” There was a
dramatic sigh on the other end of the phone. “We believe
Jeffries has been taking independent contracts, but you’re
the only one who can prove it. We know it and he knows it. It
would be in your best interest to cooperate with us on this.”
“What guarantee do I have that I’l live to walk out of a
meeting with you?”
“None. But I can guarantee you won’t see Christmas
unless you give us the information we need to take down
Jeffries.”
“I’l be label ed a traitor by the other agents.”
“No you won’t. No one but myself and the Director
know anything about Jeffries’ side jobs.”
“I’l agree to meet you, but it has to be somewhere
away from headquarters,” Priest offered. He knew he
wasn’t in a position to make demands, but he had a better
chance of survival in public.
“Where?”
“Flanagan’s in Bethesda, two o’clock tomorrow.”
Priest waited for several moments. “Deal?”
“We’l be there.”
The cal ended abruptly, leaving Priest to wonder
whether or not he was making the right decision. He was
glad he’d put Luke on the plane. The way it sounded, the
agency was in the midst of a major shake-up in personnel,
a dangerous position to be in when dealing with a company
ful of paid assassins.
Although he knew Luke didn’t have his phone turned
on, Priest couldn’t help himself. He used the same prepaid
phone he’d used to cal the mystery man and punched in
Luke’s number. The recording of Luke’s cheerful voice was
enough to lower Priest’s blood pressure.
“Hey, it’s Luke. If you’re lookin’ for trouble, you’ve
come to the right place. Leave a message, and I’l get back
to you.”
“It’s me. Just wanted to apologise for the way things
went down. I’m sure you’re thinking I don’t care, but I do,
maybe too much.” Priest hung up before he said something
he’d end up regretting. He turned the phone off and set it on
the console between the seats along with the agency
phone.
He’d need to hand in his agency phone with Jeffries’
messages stil intact to prove the two hadn’t been in
contact. Otherwise Priest would have happily thrown the
damn thing into the Potomac River.
* * * *
final y landed in Sheridan. He was both happy and
embarrassed to see Kenny waiting for him. “Hey,” he
greeted his best friend.
Kenny gave Luke a lopsided grin before pul ing him
into a hug. Luke had always loved Kenny’s hugs. There was
something so accepting about his friendship. Luke knew
that Kenny, more than anyone, was responsible for anything
good within him.
“Sorry things didn’t work out,” Kenny said, drawing
back.
Luke shrugged and shouldered his bag. “Does it
ever?”
Kenny wrapped an arm around Luke’s neck and
steered him towards the parking lot. “It wil someday when
the time’s right.”
Luke was dying to tel Kenny what Priest did for a
living, but he knew it wasn’t a good idea. Not only would
Kenny flip out, but Priest had trusted him with the
information in the first place. Stil , Luke needed to talk to
someone. He wished he were closer to Jessup. Sure, he
knew the guy, but mostly on a professional level.
After stowing his duffle, Luke climbed in and buckled
up. “Looks like snow.”
“They’re predicting some this afternoon. You got in
just in time.” Kenny reached over and turned off the radio.
“You can leave it on.”
“I thought you might want to talk,” Kenny said.
“Not much to say, real y. We get along great. The sex
is fucking unbelievable, and I can’t imagine finding a more
perfect fit for myself.”
“So why am I picking you up?”
“Priest was cal ed into work.” Luke could tel by the
expression on Kenny’s face that he didn’t buy it. “Okay, I
think I pushed him too far too soon. He said he needed
some time to work a few things out.”
“Hel , Luke, he just came back to town a week ago.
You can’t honestly tel me you’ve fal en in love with him.”
Luke turned his head to stare out the passenger
window. It was hard to explain his connection to Priest.
Sure, he’d only real y known the man for a week, but they’d
spent almost every moment together. “I know him better
than I knew Stretch. Believe me, you learn a lot about a
person when you’re trapped in a car with them for almost
two days.”
Kenny shook his head, but held his tongue. Luke gave
him high marks for his self-restraint, something Kenny
wasn’t known for. As tired as Luke had been when his
plane landed, the closer they were to Cattle Val ey, the
more keyed up Luke became. “I think I’l go for a run before
the snow fal s.”
“What about your knee?”
“It’s fine. I’l wrap it, but it shouldn’t cause me any
trouble.” The important thing was clearing his head,
something only running provided.
Halfway home, Luke began to ache for Priest. He
should beg Kenny to turn around and take him back to the
airport. How pathetic. When Priest had dropped him off at
the ticket counter in Virginia, it had felt like goodbye.
Neither of them had said it, but the sombre expression on
Priest’s face when he’d kissed Luke for the last time
seemed to say what neither of them had been able to. “I
love him. I know it’s too soon, and you probably think I’m
pretty damn pathetic, but I can’t help the way I feel.”
“I’m not going to judge you,” Kenny said. “It’s just that I
remember how hurt you were when things fel apart with
Stretch. I don’t wanna watch you go through that again.”
“Priest said he’d be back. Hel , he has a house and
eighty acres outside of town. I’m not saying everything’s
going to work out for us, but I’m not ready to give up on
him.” As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Luke
began to feel better. If Priest needed time, Luke would give
him as much as he could. He just prayed he wouldn’t be
waiting in vain.
* * * *
His knee felt a little stiff, but so far it was holding up nicely.
Snow had already begun to fal , but Luke embraced the
fluffy flakes instead of cutting his run short. He felt more
alive than he ever had before as he ran behind the
downtown businesses.
His peripheral vision caught movement a split second
before a man stepped in front of him. Gun raised and
pointed in his direction, Luke skidded to a stop.
“Nice to final y meet you face to face,” the man said,
pressing the gun against Luke’s forehead.
Luke tried to look around without moving his head. He
had a sinking feeling he knew who the man was and
sticking around wouldn’t turn out wel . “Jeffries?”
Jeffries grinned. “Good to know my reputation
precedes me.” He slid the gun around Luke’s head until it
rested against the base of his skul . “Now walk towards that
car at the end of the al ey.”
Luke had always been told never to get into a car with
someone you knew was out to harm you. It was better to get
hurt surrounded by people than to suffer at the hands of an
attacker alone. One problem, not only was he already
alone, but he doubted seriously that he’d survive a gunshot
to his head.
With little choice, Luke walked. He kept glancing up at
the apartments, hoping against hope that someone would
see him. Last time he’d been in need of rescuing, Deacon
had helped, but Deacon’s apartment was stil dark. Shit.
Never had Luke felt so alone.
Once they reached the sedan, Luke knew his time for
escape had almost ended. He stood beside the trunk as
Jeffries fished the keys out of his pocket.
“Don’t move,” Jeffries warned.