Betrayal (51 page)

“What did she say?”

“She said she would think about it.” Alex nodded and sighed again. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“No. Not really. What is there to say?” Alex hung her head.

“Probably a lot.”

“He said I never cared about family.” Cassidy clenched her jaw. “He was right. I didn’t. Not until I met you.” The teacher smiled. “I am sorry, Cassidy.”

“You have nothing to be sorry for, Alex.” The kettle began to whistle and Cassidy made her way back across the kitchen.

“Cass…There’s….well, there’s some things I need to tell you, before we leave. I…I don’t know if it will change….what I mean is…you might….” Cassidy lifted a large manila envelope from the far side of the counter. She picked up the mug of tea and handed both to the agent. “What is this?” Alex asked.

“Stephanie dropped that by on her way back to school. Said it was for you from Jane.” Alex’s gaze narrowed. “I suspect that has something to do with your rambling,” Cassidy raised an eyebrow.

“I don’t want to keep secrets from you…I don’t want you to ever feel you can’t trust me and…”

Cassidy raised her hand and knelt in front of the agent. “Your mother told me that she never had been more proud of you.” Alex swallowed hard. “That you…you were so confident even though she knew your heart was breaking.” Alex fought back the tears that were beginning to well in her eyes. “She said….she said that if anyone understood family, if anyone loved their family…well, she wanted me to know it was you.”

“Cass…there are things…”

Again Cassidy raised her hand to stop the agent. “I do trust you, Alex. Whatever it is, whatever you need to do,” she hesitated. “I can’t promise you that I will never be afraid.”

“I know.”

“I can promise you that there is no one else for me. This is it, wherever it leads. This is it. This is my family too. You are my…” The teacher’s declaration was cut short by a gentle kiss. Cassidy wiped away a stray tear from the agent’s cheek.

“You know, Cassidy….everything, all of it; it is about our family…it’s…”

“I know.” Alex nodded and pulled Cassidy to her. “You are not getting out of that vanilla cake that easily, Alfred.”

Alex laughed. “No?”

“Nope. You are stuck with me and doomed for vanilla cake.”

“I like everything you make.”

“I told you, I am not baking it,” Cassidy quipped. “You’re the butler.”

“Yeah without any culinary skills.” Cassidy laughed. “When we get back,” Alex said.

“Yes.”

“Where?” Alex asked curiously.

“Actually, I was thinking maybe Nick’s restaurant.”

Alex’s eyes twinkled. “Really?” Cassidy nodded. “Any particular reason why?”

“Yes.”

“Care to share?” Alex asked, sporting a broad smile of anticipation.

“Well,” Cassidy began looking deeply into Alex’s eyes. “That’s where I fell in love.”

“Is that so?”

“It is. There was this beautiful woman. The firelight seemed to dance in her eyes. I remember that I couldn’t seem to breathe.”

Alex tucked Cassidy’s hair behind her ears and smiled. “Lucky woman.”

“Yes, I am.”

“No…Cassidy, you really do have that backwards.” Alex kissed the woman in her arms.

“I think we should get some sleep,” Cassidy offered as she made her way to her feet.

Alex took the hand stretched out to her and pulled Cassidy back. “Thank you.”

“For?” Cassidy asked. The agent was ready to make a playful remark but the gravity of the day seemed to suddenly hit her and she stopped. Cassidy noted the change of expression. “Alex?”

“For my family.”

Cassidy nodded her understanding and kissed the agent’s cheek. “You know, Agent Toles,” she said as she led the woman up the stairs. “I really do think you have that backwards.”

Thursday, May 15th

ane…”

        
“Jon, listen to me. She is in.” Krause smiled. He had little doubt that Alex Toles would feel the need to immerse herself in the task of infiltrating The Collaborative. He also knew that there were things he needed to disclose to the agent. He sensed her apprehension regarding his motives. It was an odd reality that the world of espionage by its nature incited suspicion and at the same time mandated trust between partners. Alex Toles would soon become his unlikely partner. They shared many things in common. This he understood as well. Intellect, a call toward service, and a need for challenge both physically and mentally were attributes that made them both ideal candidates for the work that lay ahead. Moreover, their hearts, while not cold, were not easily commanded by another. His eyes flickered in amusement as their common realities passed through his mind. “Jon?” Jane called to him.

Krause mentally slapped himself for allowing his musings to wander so far. “I understand.”

Jane’s eyes narrowed. She crossed the room and retrieved an envelope, placing it in his hands. “What is this?” he asked.

She shrugged. “I don’t know. Matt gave it to me. He also gave me one for Alex. I had Stephanie drop Alex’s off on her way back to school.” The CIA agent opened the envelope and studied its contents without expression. “Well?” Jane urged.

He replaced the paper into its shelter and looked at her. “I need to see Toles.”

“Well, you will at the…”

“No. I need to see her before the dinner.”

“Jon?” Jane inquired, concern coloring her voice.

“Trust is imperative, Jane.”

“I do trust you.”

“Yes,
you
do, but that is not enough, so does Agent Toles. She is not…” He placed the envelope on a table and considered how to proceed. “Daniels,” he paused and took a breath. “We need to retrieve something form him.” Jane studied him closely as he continued. “There is something else. Matt thinks there is more information there. Maybe on Daniels’ computer.”

Jane understood the implication. “You are not going to tell me; are you?” Krause’s expression remained resolved and unchanged. “I see,” she continued. “Daniels is not a diplomat. That I know. What about Russ?”

Krause allowed a slight sigh to escape his lips. “There are things that are best kept in a very tight circle, Jane. Especially now with what we,” he stopped momentarily. “I don’t know what Ambassador Matthews knows and what he doesn’t. He is no diplomat. No more than John was a politician. We all take our orders from someone. What Matthews’ agenda is, what his role is; who his directives come from; I don’t have that answer. That is where Alex comes in. No matter, we have a mission and that just got a bit more complicated.”

“Is this what John was…”

The handsome agent took hold of both of his friend’s arms. “John did what he felt he had to do. It was never about any one exchange, Jane. You know that. I need you to do two things for me.” She tugged at her lip with her teeth and waited for his request. “I need you to take something to Alex and I need you to get her to your room tomorrow before the dinner.”

“Jon...”

Jon Krause broke into a smile. “You can’t protect her from this. Not this. You know as well as I do this is part of who she is.”

Jane knew he was right but she wished that Alex would turn away. That had never been Alex’s nature, not from the moment the former first lady met the young Army lieutenant. Alex had a fierce determination and loyalty, but also an insatiable curiosity that drove her. She thrived on challenge. It seemed some people were built for this life. Unlike her husband, Alex was one of them. John Merrow was as capable as any man either she or Jon Krause had ever met, but the life he had led was never his calling. President Merrow would have preferred a life flying through the clouds and imagining distant places. Alex Toles was different. She shared the former president’s deep compassion, but she possessed a need to search and a need to understand her world that Jane Merrow had seen present in men like the one standing before her. “I know. It’s just…”

“If anyone can survive this business, Jane, trust me it is Alex Toles.”

The woman laughed lightly and allowed her head to rest against her friend’s chest. “I’ll make the calls.”

“You want me to go where?” Claire Brackett asked for confirmation.

“This is not a request, Claire.”

“Forgive me, I thought you were less than pleased with my interactions with Dimitri.”

The admiral nodded. “You miss the point. You called yourself a cobra. Did you read the story I told you to?” His daughter rolled her eyes. “That’s what I thought. The mongoose kills the cobra, Claire. It looks like a cuddly little creature, but when it strikes it strikes without warning and it is lethal.
I
need you in Moscow. This is my directive, not Dimitri’s or his uncle’s. And,
perhaps, just perhaps, sending you will quiet Viktor’s need to call in whatever
favor
you owe him now.”

Claire Brackett avoided her father’s gaze. “What is it you need?”

“I need you to ensure the delivery of a package.”

“Call Fed Ex,” she mocked.

“You are not as witty or amusing as you think, Claire.”

“Fine. What is it?”

Her father just smiled. “The contents are not of importance to you. Just get it into Dimitri’s hands. He has a meeting with Colonel Hadad on Wednesday. We are already overdue. Ambassador Matthews will have the package. All you need to do is retrieve it from him in London on Sunday and deliver it to Dimitri in Moscow on Monday. He will, in turn give you a package to deliver to Ambassador Daniels before returning home. That is it.”

“And, how exactly will that cancel my debt?”

“It may not. It does put you back in play on
my
terms. It does put you in the middle of a sensitive exchange. Tensions are high. This has been shelved too long and our assets are beginning to grow restless.”

“Worried?” she sneered.

“Let’s just say I am aware of the consequences should this go awry.”

“And?”

“And even you don’t want to imagine what those might be. Trust me,” he assured her.

She stood and straightened her posture. “Whatever you need, Daddy,” she soothed sarcastically as she made her way to the door.

“And, Claire?” She turned with her hand on the door. “Distance yourself from the good congressman.” She smirked. “I’m giving you fair warning. He is not the belle of this ball anymore.” She nodded her understanding but her dismissal of her father’s stern caution was evident.