Deadly Force (29 page)

He tried to shake off the nagging doubt. Lugmeyer, betray them? Never.

But after a minute…”Stand down,” Cal told his men. He shook his head hoping for clarity. His guts churned. He always followed orders, but this time… “Abort.”

Silence from his superior. Then, “A good SEAL follows orders, Eagle. Your orders are to engage the enemy. Now!”

“Lieutenant?” Tank’s voice was solid in Cal’s ear. “We follow you.”

Damn. He couldn’t do it. He just couldn’t do—

Then from out of nowhere, the bullets started flying.

Shifting his shoulder, Cal tried to duck out from his superior’s hold, but Lugmeyer put him in a choke hold and tried to sweep his feet out from under him.

Cal didn’t hesitate. With anger rushing through his system, he threw the man over his shoulder and laid him out on the floor.

Lugmeyer looked stunned, his lungs struggling to draw air. Finally, he hissed. “You assaulted me.”

“You assaulted me first. And you ordered me and my men into a no-win situation. You knew it was a trap, didn’t you?”

Slowly, Lugmeyer sat up, then came to his knees, keeping a wary eye on Cal. “You’re suffering from PTSD.” He gained his feet, half bent over, and Cal took a step back in case he decided to rush him. “I’ll forgive it this time, but if it ever happens again…”

The anger was still working through his veins. “This? This isn’t fucking PTSD. This is me putting you on alert. When I get back to San Diego, I’m going to see the committee for my hearing and I’m telling them what you did. But right now, I’m going to find my wife. Don’t try to stop me again.”

Lugmeyer lunged as Cal suspected, but he was ready for him. He cold-cocked his senior chief in the jaw, sending the man down. Lugmeyer did a belly-flop to the floor and didn’t get up. Cal swallowed against the lump of acid in his throat, stepped over the man, and headed for the nearest exit.

The door led to a stairwell, the stairwell to the first floor and outside.

The hospital was a huge place with multiple exits so she could be anywhere, fighting her way through the crowds and looking for him. He couldn’t see over so many people so he scrambled up on an ambulance and searched the crowd, calling Bianca’s cell at the same time. The call went straight to voicemail.

The inside alarm ceased, leaving a ringing noise in his ears. In the distance, he heard sirens. The faces of his friends swam through this mind again and sweat trickled down the back of his neck.

How could you let this happen
?
How could you let her go?

They’d made it up a long tunnel and out into the sunshine. Outside, chaos ensued. Tephra’s hand was fisted in Bianca’s lab coat as he pulled her through the crowd. She thought he was simply helping her get clear of the throngs of people, but echoes of doubt kept looping through her head.

Everything he told me could be a lie.

He could still want to kill me…

…or Cal. I could be nothing more than bait
.

The endless chatter inside her head assailed her to the point she couldn’t think straight. She could be following Tephra right to her death.

A few feet from an alley, she pulled up short, knocking his hand loose from her jacket. “Enough,” she said. “We’re not going any farther until you tell me who hired you and why.”

While she was panting from the run, he wasn’t even breathing hard. His eyes darted around the area. His body was still primed for a fast getaway. “A third party. Someone the V.P. has at her beck and call.” His eyes met hers. “Someone who knew all the
ground
details of Operation Warfighter.”

Ground details. No one knew those except the men actually going in. In the Otto Grimes case, Command and Control gave the go-ahead and the parameters of the mission to a selected commander/officer-in-charge and his senior chief. They passed on the assignment to their elite squad and made the nitty-gritty details with the SEALs.

Bianca tried not to be shocked. “Lugmeyer?”

Tephra looked away. “He wants my job.”

Her brain refused to process the information. “He sacrificed his own men because he wants
your
job? And I thought I was abnormal.”

“Abnormal? You’re weird and I’m stupid, but we’re both loyal to our country. I went into black ops to serve. He wants my job because he’s sick. He entered the military and became a sniper because he likes killing people. Twenty years of shooting the enemy, but then he made senior chief. No more sniping. Taking out his own team was to prove to the V.P. he was cut out for wet work.”

“He killed his own men?”

He gave her that,
god, you’re naïve
look again.

“But Lugmeyer was injured in the gun fight.”

“He shot himself in the calf to make it look good. What better way to take suspicion off him if there was any?”

Sickness burned in her throat. “He let Cal live.”

“He didn’t intend to. Something went wrong with his plan.” Tephra tapped his temple. “And Cal probably saw or heard something that could prove his senior chief is guilty, but it’s buried. He was betrayed by the one man he trusts above everyone. It’s buried deep.”

Bianca knew all about burying the pain of betrayal. Suddenly, her brain snapped to attention. “The PTSD. Cal is suffering from the trauma of losing his men,
and
he’s dealing with Lugmeyer’s betrayal.”

“I’m not a psychiatrist, but I’d say that makes sense.”

“Is Lugmeyer the one who’s going to shoot the president tomorrow night?”

“That’s my guess.”

A ringing came from Bianca’s pocket. “It’s Cal.”

“I have to go find the senator.”

“Don’t move.” She hit the connect button, sensing Cal’s relief through the phone when she answered. “Cal, it’s me. I’m okay.”

“Where the hell are you?”

Shadows darkened this side of the building. Tephra was trying to slip off and she grabbed the back of his scrub top. “East side. Can you make it to the parking lot? Rory and I will meet you at the truck.”

“Rory?” Cal said at the same time Tephra said, “I’m not meeting anyone. I’m going to find Patrick.”

“Senator Halston’s gone,” Cal said. He must have heard Tephra. “I don’t know where. They took him off in an ambulance.”

Tephra could easily have knocked her on her butt, but she held onto the scrub shirt and gave him the evil eye as she shifted the phone from her mouth. “You need to trust Cal. He can help you.” Then she told Cal, “We’re on the opposite side of the building from the parking lot, so it’ll take us five minutes or so to get to the truck, but we’ll be there. We have a lot to tell you.”

“Don’t hang up. Keep talking to me as you walk.”

The connection was his lifeline. Hers as well. She released Tephra’s shirt and made sure he was going to follow. He gave her a reluctant nod, then they started jogging, staying close to the brick building.

Bianca led the way. “We’re heading for the southwest corner now. Near the cancer center.”

Sounds coming from Cal’s end suggested he was running as well. Fire truck sirens nearly drowned out his voice. “You’re sure you’re okay?”

“I’m fine.”
But you won’t be once we tell you the truth
. She tried not to think about how Lugmeyer’s betrayal would crush the last of Cal’s goodness. “Have you heard from Emit?”

“Negative. I’ll call him once we’re clear of the hospital.”

The parking lot, truck, and Maggie were only a hundred yards away. Bianca had just started around the corner when a woman coming from the other direction crashed into her.

Bianca flew back when she bumped into the solid wall of Tephra. He grabbed her shoulders and stood her back upright.

“Oh, I’m so sorry,” the woman said, also grabbing hold of Bianca’s arm as if trying not to lose her own balance. She wore a floral top, her face covered by a mask. Bianca caught sight of her badge…Katy Smitrelny. The CNA.

Her fingers dug into Bianca’s arm. She was still wearing her gloves. The latex felt sticky. Bianca knew she was only trying to make sure she hadn’t done any harm, but Bianca couldn’t stand the sensation of the gloves on her skin, the pressure of the woman’s fingers. Why was she wearing a mask and gloves out here? Was she helping move patients?

Bianca jerked back. “No problem. Excuse us.”

She skirted Katy and Tephra followed. When Bianca looked back, she saw Tephra slipping a handgun into the waist of his scrubs behind him.

“What was that?” Cal’s voice came from her phone. “What happened?”

She stopped, covered the mouthpiece, and said to Tephra. “You pulled a gun on a CNA?”

He shrugged. “I pull a gun on everyone. It’s second nature.”

The thought actually made her feel safer. She uncovered the mouthpiece. “Ran into someone,” she told Cal. “No big deal. Is Senator Halston safe?”

His voice sounded muffled, his breathing kicking up a notch. In the background, she heard fire trucks. “No idea. Where are you now?”

“Almost to Parking Lot B. There’s a lot of people by their cars. Should we take the sidewalk to get to Lot A, or try to be more discreet?”

“You trust Tephra?”

She glanced over her shoulder. The man’s intense gaze was analyzing everything in front of them as well as keeping tabs on the rear. If he was lying, he was the best she’d ever met. He’d been willing to shoot Katy to keep her safe. “Yes.”

“Let him decide the safest route.”

She fell back and gave Tephra a nod. “You lead. We’re heading to Lot A across that divider.”

The fire trucks surrounded the building, silencing their sirens. Bianca couldn’t see any smoke or fire, so it was probably a false alarm. Tephra slowed, once again focusing on the path ahead of them. “Watch our six,” he said to her.

“You got it.” She lowered her voice as he walked away and whispered to Cal. “What’s a six and how do I watch it?”

“Your backside. Keep an eye out for anyone coming up behind you.”

Was it necessary to speak like they were in an old western movie? She checked behind her. The path they’d run was clear. No sign of Katy or anyone else. “Got it.”

When she turned back around, Tephra was eyeing her. She saw police cars pulling up behind the fire engines. “We’re both dressed as hospital staff, although your black slacks and heels are out of character for the nurses here. We should be able to pass normal people without question, but if there’s an assassin in the area, you’ll stand out.” He pointed to the edge of the lot. “Hug that tree line and don’t draw attention.”

Bianca assented, then told Cal as she followed Tephra, “We’re taking a circuitous route along the back of the lot.”

He let out a heavy sigh. “Good.”

Good?
Cal never thought anything was good. “Are you okay?”

He was still running from the sounds of his hard exhales as he spoke. “Just never thought I’d be happy about you depending on him to keep you safe.”

She stepped over a curb, following Tephra around a flowerbed. The shadowy tree line was only a few feet away. She checked the crowd on their right. Everyone in the lot was either in their cars or standing in groups, looking at the hospital and the fire trucks. Police officers had cordoned off the entrances and were starting to take statements. “You and me both.”

Another curb hop and they made it. Bianca’s heels sunk in the soft grass. Keeping her eyes pinned on Tephra’s back, she stepped behind an oak tree, and kicked off her shoes. “We’re almost there.”

She ran to catch up with Tephra, which required her to hop over tangles of brambles and work her way through some tight bushes. They were passing by tall, skinny evergreens now, each tree nestled smack dab up against the other creating a wall. The branches prickled her skin but she had to keep grabbing them in order to keep her balance. The hospital needed a new landscaper. Of course, who saw any of this muck in the middle of the divider unless it was from the condo windows on the other side? “Twenty feet or so,” she said to Cal, “and I should be able to pop out from behind the hedge and see the truck.”

Tephra stopped suddenly, Bianca nearly plowing into his back. Her glasses slid to the end of her nose. “Hey.” She pushed them back up. “The truck is in the next lot over.”

“You won’t be needing it,” a man’s voice said.

The voice was familiar. Bianca stood on her tiptoes and peered over Tephra’s shoulder.

Justin Lugmeyer emerged from a second set of evergreens across from them and stared back at her. He held a cold-looking black gun in his hands and pointed it at Tephra’s chest. The barrel had an extension on it…a silencer.

“So you took up with the enemy, huh, Rory? What kind of soldier are you?” Lugmeyer was dressed in plain clothes. His eyes were hard and his jaw looked swollen on the left side. Or maybe that was only a shadow created by the trees. “Things will not go well for you or your mentor now. I suggest if you want him to live out the night, you move away.”

Bianca dropped down, shielding herself behind Tephra’s back. What the hell was Lugmeyer doing here?

Keeping tabs on Halston. Was he the one who poisoned him
?