Redeem My Heart (29 page)

“People?” Quaid asked, opening the door for Fallon and then finally eyeing Townes a little speculatively. “Mr. Calvert, I’m aware of the business you have at my office, but this is going to be a private meeting.”

“Ms. Canna and I also have confidential matters to discuss, so I’ll wait for her in her office, if you don’t mind,” Townes replied smoothly in a manner Fallon had never witnessed. It was as if he were multiple personalities in one body. That was probably a bad analogy, considering Ryland’s current predicament. She and Quaid entered the elevator. “I’ll take the stairs to give you two some privacy.”

With that, the elevator doors slowly closed. Quaid proceeded to remove his gloves and shove them in his right pocket, before unbuttoning his coat. He was staring at the number bank above the elevator doors.

“How did your meeting go with Special Agent Utley?” Fallon asked, testing the waters. She watched Quaid’s reaction very closely, but saw nothing that would indicate he was aware of what she was doing. “I didn’t see you return to the office, so I figured the two of you were going over the budget to see if we could find ourselves another consultant.”

“Utley had to cut short our meeting, but he did bring your name up before I left.” The ding signaled they’d finally reached their floor. Fallon tensed and waited to hear the reason they had been discussing her. “He’s very happy with your work for the department. He is considering asking you to teach a class over at Quantico for the ASAC career progression training track. I told him I would discuss it with you.”

Fallon exhaled a little too fast and allowed vertigo to set in. She didn’t immediately follow him out of the elevator, taking a moment to gather her composure. She moved just in time before the doors closed her in.

“I appreciate the vote of confidence, but I’d obviously have to give that a lot of thought. Not to mention taking some type of refresher course on the Bureau’s courseware development methods, unless we’d just be talking about a short lecture of some sort.”

They continued walking down the corridor to Quaid’s office, which was located on the opposite side of the building. Fallon looked behind them, wondering where Townes was and doubting that he’d wanted to give them much privacy. He probably took the time to call Crest and inform him of their change in plans, as well as to scour the area for wherever Ryland might have a vantage point. She was so sure she’d been right, but maybe Crest had another idea that would pan out. Fallon walked into Quaid’s office and came to an abrupt stop. Speak of the proverbial devil.

“Mr. Crest, this is a surprise,” Quaid said, stepping forward and offering his hand. “What can I do for you? Before you say anything, let me go on record that Fallon is needed here in light of some developing events. You’ll have to look elsewhere for an expert profiler.”

“I wish it were that simple,” Crest replied with a small smile of regret. “Schultz Jessalyn will be joining us shortly, but I thought it best to talk to you privately based on our past relationship.”

“That doesn’t sound good. Are you going to leverage my personnel against my wishes?” Quaid took off his coat and hung it up on the coat rack just inside the door. Fallon kept hers on, a chill invading her bones at the thought of what Crest was about to do. He wasn’t a man who set things in motion without first having an idea of the outcome. Quaid walked around his desk before addressing her. “Fallon? If you’ll excuse us?”

“She can stay. This involves her.” Crest held up a file and then carefully set it in the middle of Quaid’s desk. “What can you tell me about this?”

Quaid withdrew reading glasses from his suit jacket, sliding them on before opening up the file. Fallon remained by the door, watching things unfold while her mind spun with thoughts of Ryland. Where was he? What plan was he executing that might end in his death? There were so many multifaceted inquiries before them that only resulted in more unanswered questions.

“E.D.A.?” Quaid’s tone was cautious, his gaze flickering from whatever he was reading to Fallon. “Fallon, I’m disappointed. This is classified information that—”

“This part has nothing to do with Fallon,” Crest interjected, motioning toward the file. “You’ll see if you read on that this goes as high as the National Security Advisor. You might say
I
am
their
outside consultant.”

Quaid didn’t appear angry, upset, or even panicked in any way. Did that mean he wasn’t the person they wanted? Is that why Ryland had yet to make a go for him? Had Ryland known all along that it was Utley? Fallon was about to turn and walk out of the office with every intention of finding Ryland before he did something he couldn’t take back. Crest and the others might laugh at that, but Ryland was no longer an empty vessel that didn’t feel emotions. Taking a life at this point would do more damage than anyone knew. It was Quaid’s response that stopped her from leaving.

“You think my father had something to do with this abhorrent experimental program?” The disbelief in Quaid’s voice was most believable. He slapped the folder down hard on his desk. “My father loved this country and made many sacrifices to conduct himself in the most honorable fashion. He was a patriot until his last breath and I won’t stand here while you smear his name. You can tell Jessalyn that no half-ass Senate Oversight Committee investigation will lead him to my family.”

Fallon could hear a tremor of anger in Quaid’s voice. It was clear that he loved and respected his father, but it was just as evident he had yet to grasp what Crest was really accusing him of. It didn’t take long and Fallon was relieved when Jessalyn actually arrived to prevent things from getting out of hand.

“That’s good to know, Special Agent Quaid,” Schultz said from his position in the doorway. Fallon stepped to the right to make room for his entrance. He was very secure in his position and she’d only ever witnessed inherent power like that in few other men. “What would be useful to us now is if you’ll tell us what you know about Special Agent Utley—specifically his current location. It appears he’s gone missing and the last person to see him was you. We do have it on good authority that he might have given you pertinent information and it’s imperative we find him immediately. His life might very well depend upon it.”

Fallon caught the unease that settled in the aged lines around Quaid’s mouth, as well as the loss of superiority he normally felt entitled to. She’d apparently been wrong in assuming Ryland would go after Quaid, but it didn’t appear that Utley was Ryland’s target either. She looked over Schultz’s shoulder to see Townes standing in the hallway with his phone to his ear, most likely relaying this latest report to Taryn. Just what was Ryland up to?

Chapter Twenty-Four

“A
gents Clark, White, and Scherer.” Ryland walked around all three men, who were currently bound to three chairs in the middle of an empty warehouse in Anacostia, part of Southeast D.C.—an area that wouldn’t be the first place searched once word got out that these three agents were missing. They appeared a little worse for wear courtesy of Cy, but all three were still breathing. “I have no doubt you remember exactly who we are, considering you were working quite closely with our handler. For you to maintain that you have no knowledge of our existence is a bit insulting. We’ve been here for almost two hours and we have no immediate plans to be anywhere anytime soon. Cy is just warming up, so unless you give me something that I can use…this looks to be an all-nighter. Who wants to be the first volunteer to eat some Sterno? Once it burns through the lining of your stomach and you start to bleed out, it won’t matter how much water we give you to drink. The thing is…you’ll still beg for it. In fact, you’ll do anything for a drink of cool water near the end.”

“I have to say, I’m beginning to think you’ve lost your edge,” Cy stated from his position in the corner. He hadn’t been too pleased when Ryland took the lead, but Cy hadn’t pressed the issue. “You would have resorted to more painful methods by this point. We don’t have all night. I’d like to see this over and done with come morning.”

Ryland maintained eye contact with Agent White, who appeared to be sweating more than the others. It wasn’t due to the wounds Cy had inflicted upon him so much as he seemed to be keeping secrets. That was quite unfair after all Ryland had done for him in preventing Cy from using extreme methods of interrogation.

“Evolved is a better choice word,” Ryland countered, not skipping a beat in the conversation as he took his time walking around the room. He wasn’t about to get into a psychological discussion with an assassin, even if he was a colleague. Any weakness shown at this point would equate to a swift death. Cy should understand firsthand how difficult it was to accept what E.D.A. had done to them. They were both still varying mixtures of the creations that were the objectives of the program. “I wouldn’t underestimate my abilities if I were you, though. After all, I was created to kill. You know that to be the truth. Moving on…Agent White, is there something in particular that you would like to share with the group?”

Ryland continued speaking after delivering a rather timid threat to Cy. Risks came from everywhere, including those standing at your side during tense situations like these. The ante rose with every move they made and in the end…it was player against player.

Ryland hadn’t had the time to stop and think just how Fallon had altered his perception on life. These memories that were returning, her unwavering devotion, and uncovering the truth had flipped a switch inside of him…yet he remained who he was, at least in part. How could he have a future when neither man, through nature or nurture, could ever truly be free?

“We’ve told you over and over that we have no idea what you’re talking about.” Agent White’s voice sounded a bit coarse and pulled Ryland’s attention back at the situation before him. Was White’s throat sore from lack of water or from his screams from when Cy had physically worked him over? “We’ve never heard of this E.D.A., this handler you keep talking about, and we have no idea who you are.”

“I truly despise liars,” Ryland explained slowly, completing his walk and stopping in front of the three detainees once more. It was time to show them what was at stake. “Cy, I’m surprised you haven’t learned by now that there are other ways besides physical pain to extort the answers you need. Shall I show you? Agent Scherer, you have children, correct?”

“Please, no,” Agent Scherer pleaded, hanging his head in defeat at what must be the horrible images floating through his head. Ryland experienced a ping of remorse for having to take it this far when he had no intention of carrying out such a threat—not that he would allow the men in this room to know that. He couldn’t explain in words the reasoning behind his decision, not even to take the easy way out and say it was for Fallon. Some…
thing
…held him back from taking things too far this time, which was why he’d accepted he might not live through this night. He was not the man he used to be and it put him at a disadvantage. “They’re innocent. They have nothing to do with this. I’ve already told you I know nothing. I don’t remember you.”

“Do you remember a Travis Bowers?” Ryland asked softly, kneeling in front of Agent Scherer. He’d waited to bring up his former name. These men should remember whom they had fucked over…name provided or not. They should recall the agency or officer they had taken orders from. “Do you remember a young man who got in over his head with a drug cartel running a black market operation out of Saigon?”

“No, I—wait. Yes, I do,” Agent Scherer finally admitted with a semblance of relief, looking over at Agent White through the swollen slit of what was his right eye. He immediately tensed and started to shake his head. “I remember the name. We were given an assignment. We completed it and then left.”

“And what would that assignment have been?”

“Cam,” Agent White said in warning, struggling against his restraints. “Don’t.”

“Do you know something else?” Scherer asked desperately, turning on his own colleague. And this was why Ryland worked alone. As he thought that, it dawned on him that the other subjects E.D.A. had programmed had kept their real names and Travis Bowers was given another. Why? What was the significance behind that? It was something he would have an answer to by the time this was finished. “Nick, tell him whatever the fuck he wants.”