Authors: Kelly Abell
Warren Walters was staring at him. “Chuck are you alright? You look a little green around the gills. Perhaps you should sit down.”
Chuck was starting to sweat and his stomach was beginning to hurt. He grabbed at his midsection and stumbled over to the leather chair he recently vacated. He flopped in it just before a searing pain tore through his belly. “Christ, my stomach hurts.”
“
Really,” the Senator said seeming concerned. “Ron, what do you think is wrong with him?”
The big man shrugged. “Don’t know Senator. Maybe he ate something that didn’t agree with him. Want me to get him to a doctor?”
“
What do you think, Chuck. Should you see a doctor?”
Chuck was moaning profusely. Bolts of pain were shooting from his belly up into his throat. He looked at the Senator and caught just the slightest hint of a smile playing around the corners of his lips. Realization dawned as bright as the mid-day sun. The Senator had poisoned him. He should have known not to trust this bastard. He had come here scared to death that his secret would be revealed, but he never expected to die.
“
You poisoned me didn’t you?” Chuck looked into Warren’s crystal blue eyes. What he saw there chilled him to the marrow.
“
You’re not as dense as you look, Chuck.” Senator Walters walked over, placed a hand on Chuck’s shoulder, and squeezed hard. Chuck winced. “Now you know I couldn’t have you uncover all this information and not do something that would insure you kept your mouth shut.”
“
You Bastard,” In his own mind Chuck screamed the words but they came out in a tiny squeak. He was seeing black spots dancing in front of his eyes now and the pain was so intense that he just wanted it to be over.
“
Now Chuck, that is not a flattering term. The way I look at it, I have done the world a favor. I have rid the world of a gross, disgusting child molester. I should be praised for saving millions of little boys in our glorious Capital City. You sick fuck.”
Chuck heard those last words before his world went dark.
“
Get rid of that scum,” Warren said to Ron. “He’s served his purpose.”
Once Ron had removed Chuck’s body, Warren turned back to the screen that held the very data he was searching for. He needed a link to Jack Weaver and Chuck had provided that for him. Warren knew that Jack had a sister but he didn’t know she was an FBI agent. That was an interesting tidbit of news. How would Jack react if his sister were suddenly in danger? Would he come out of hiding and try to save her? He might, but Warren thought that too risky a proposition.
The little worm Chuck was right about the house in Florida. He would bet an entire campaign budget that Jack and Caroline were hiding out there. It made all the sense in the world. If they weren’t there now, they would end up there at some point. Jack thought no one knew about the place but his sister and him. “Not any longer, old buddy.” Warren said aloud.
The plan began to form in his head immediately. He would travel to Florida and surprise them one evening. He could take care of two birds with one stone. What was better is he didn’t have to wait for that pompous ass, the Emperor to do it. He could handle this himself and be back before the week was up. Warren printed the map Chuck has so thoughtfully provided and closed down the computer. He whistled softly as he headed to his bedroom to pack.
Chapter 39
Jack arrived in Big Pine Key long before he told Hutch he would be there. It gave him enough time to ask around town and locate Hutch’s fishing cabin on the south side of the island. He parked at the convenience store in the center of town and walked the few miles it took to get to Hutch’s cabin. He spent an hour just watching from the end of the long driveway. It was quiet. No one drove in or out while he crouched behind the Chinese Fan Palms that grew densely along the sandy driveway.
Not satisfied that all was safe, Jack worked his way through the pines, palms and scrub brush to within 100 yards of the fishing cabin. It was a small ramshackle place, sitting on pylons among the mangroves. Each side of the cabin had one window with shutters firmly attached to each side. It looked to Jack that the cabin had been painted a forest green at one time but so much of the paint had flaked off that it was indistinguishable from the graying wood beneath. A small motorboat was moored directly beneath the cabin and it rocked gently on the incoming tide.
Jack squinted as he scanned the surrounding woods. All appeared quiet and safe. There were no reflections winking off of gun sites in the bright sunlight and no rustling of brush where snipers might be hidden. He walked completely around the cabin and the only evidence he saw that led him to believe anyone was there at all was a Lexus SUV parked under an aluminum shelter about 50 yards from the front door.
Satisfied, Jack made his way back to the convenience store in town. When he got back to his car he was sweating profusely, in spite of the mild winter season. He grabbed his cell phone from the cup holder in the car and dialed Hutch’s number.
“
Hey, I’m here. I’m at the convenience store at the center of town. Want to give me directions?”
Hutch chuckled on the other end of the phone. “Are you sure you need them? You just left here not more than an hour ago.”
Jack had to laugh. “You dirty bastard. You let me walk all the way back here and didn’t even invite me in for a drink before I left?”
“
Figured you’d need your car. Come on back, I’ve got some cold ones in the fridge with your name on ‘em.”
“
I’m on my way.” Jack snapped the phone shut and jumped into the station wagon. He cursed himself on the drive back out to Hutch’s cabin. It was easy to forget who Hutch was. Jack chastised himself for being careless. Hutch was as skilled in the spy game as he was. He should have thought about surveillance equipment with the type of work Hutch did for a living. He wondered where the equipment was hidden. He surely didn’t see it and he looked for it.
Jack pulled the old Taurus wagon directly behind the Lexus SUV in what passed for a driveway. It was really more of a weedy sandy path with two ruts for the wheels and Jack wondered if he would have enough traction to get out again. The wagon did not have all wheel drive and it spun as he tried to get parked.
Hutch came out the front door of the cabin and held out his hand to Jack. Jack took it and pulled Hutch into a quick back slapping embrace.
“
Good to see you, Hutch, you look no worse for wear.”
“
Wish I could say the same for you old Buddy. You look like shit.”
“
Yeah, it’s been a rough couple of days to say the least. Let me get my laptop out of the back of the car and we can get started. I don’t want to stay away from Caroline too long.”
“
She’s not with you?” Hutch looked expectantly in the car and around the driveway.
“
No, I left her behind. It’s too dangerous. I have her tucked away safe and sound and she’ll be okay for a day or two but I don’t want to waste too much time.” Jack opened the hatch on the back of the station wagon and pulled his laptop and some discs out of the duffel bag.
“
I see. Well, come on in and we’ll see what we’ve got.”
Jack preceded Hutch into the cabin, but not before he caught Hutch giving the surrounding area a quick surveying glance. It unnerved him. Jack wanted to get out of here as soon as possible. He was getting that prickly sensation at the back of his neck. This was not good. Something didn’t smell right and it had nothing to do with the marshy odor of the sea.
Hutch pulled open the screen door and held it for Jack. Out of instinct Jack hesitated an instant before he stepped in and gave the room a cursory glance. The cabin was nicer inside than it was outside. The floor was wood, polished and clean, unlike the dilapidated siding outside. It consisted of two rooms with the kitchen and sitting area in one room and a small bedroom in the other. There was no traditional furniture to speak of. Several long tables lined the walls and they were covered with electronic equipment. Jack hadn’t seen so many gadgets since he left Special Forces. He spotted a monitor with the screen split four ways and each section showed a different view of the yard surrounding the cabin. That was how Hutch knew he was there earlier.
“
Where’s the camera hidden? I didn’t see one when I scoped out the cabin earlier.” Jack was curious.
“
There are four of them. Three are hidden in coconuts at the top of the palm trees. I run the cables down the trunk and underground. I paint the cables the same color as the trunk and no one knows they’re there. There’s one more in the eave of the house concealed by guttering. I can see anyone approach long before they get to the start of the driveway.” Hutch went to the fridge and pulled out two cold beers. He twisted the top off one and handed it to Jack.
Jack accepted it and took a long swallow. “Man, that tastes good. It’s hot out there for November.”
“
Yeah, we’ve had a bit of a heat wave here lately, been hotter than normal.” Hutch wandered over to one of the computers and sat in a leather chair equipped with wheels. It had a short back and a thickly padded seat. He could easily roll from one machine to another across the finished wood floor. He twisted the cap off his beer and set the bottle on a coaster beside his keyboard.
Jack walked over to another table, pulled a chair over next to Hutch, and sat down. He reached into the duffel and pulled out the discs he wanted Hutch to decode. He handed them to his friend. “Here are the discs I found in Warren’s office. I hope you can get something out of them because I surely couldn’t.”
Hutch accepted the discs and placed one into the drive on a sophisticated laptop. He began tapping keys on the keyboard. Jack got up from his chair and wandered around the room while Hutch worked. Only a few minutes passed and Hutch swung around in his chair. “Got it,” he said.
“
No way.” Jack said walking back over to the computer where Hutch sat. “You couldn’t have done it that fast.”
“
What can I say, I’m good.” Hutch’s voice sounded strange, almost regretful.
Jack looked at the screen over his friend’s shoulder and he couldn’t believe what he saw. The entire plan was laid out from start to finish. There were dates, names, locations, times, and the method that would be used. Jack was moving the mouse and scanning the page when suddenly he froze. There in the middle of the page was the answer he so desperately wanted to find. The entry read:
Sunday November 21-Met with Mohammed Rabin. Codename: Emperor.
Why did that name sound so familiar? Jack took a few steps back from the computer. He had the Emperor’s name. The illusive prize that he was searching for was right in front of his eyes. He walked absently over to a table next to the one where Hutch sat. A picture sitting in a cheap plastic frame caught his eye. He stopped and nearly gasped aloud. He stopped the reaction just in time. There in the photograph was the woman of his nightmares. Along the bottom of the photograph Jack could make out words written by a delicate hand. It said:
I love you Hutch. Ileana.
“
Ileana,” Jack whispered. “Ileana Rabin.”
“
What?” Hutch turned from the computer and saw Jack holding the picture.
“
Hutch, you’re involved in this, aren’t you?” Jack sat the photograph down. He didn’t reach for his weapon right away. His instinct told him to wait.
“
Your memory has returned, then?”
“
Some of it. It’s not completely clear, but I think I can put the pieces together pretty quickly.” Jack paused and picked the picture up again. “You were in love with her, Hutch?”
“
Yeah. Talk about your stupid moves.” Hutch dropped his gaze from Jack to the floor. His shoulders slumped and Jack swore Hutch aged ten years in that one moment.
“
I’m really sorry, man. All this stuff was not supposed to go down this way. It wasn’t supposed to go so wrong. You weren’t supposed to remember, Jack.” Hutch looked up at him with soulful eyes. “Then you took Warren’s wife and it just got worse.”
Jack placed a hand on his old friend’s shoulder. “Tell me all of it Hutch. Start at the beginning.”
Hutch sighed, took a long swallow of beer and spoke, “She was a student doing some research for her thesis. She had worked her way into an admin job for one of the generals in Saddam Hussein’s army. She was researching military life during the war and the effects it had on soldiers’ lives. I met her during one of the recon missions I was on. We fell in love. I didn’t mean for it to happen but sometimes it just takes over, you know?”
Jack nodded, he did know. His thoughts immediately rushed to Caroline. He felt the same way about her. Was he in love with her? He believed he was, just being separated from her for this short amount of time left an ache in his chest. The timing couldn’t be worse but the heart has no sense of time or place. He waited silently for Hutch to continue.