Desert Dark (32 page)

For the first time, Nadia realized she was in serious danger. Her eyes met Jack's. She knew what he was thinking, because she was thinking the same thing.

Someone messed up. That bullet was meant for me
.

Nadia sits near the mouth of the cave, her gun drawn, Jack beside her. Damon and Libby huddle around Alan, try to keep him warm. They can't risk a fire; it would signal their position, and they don't know the location of the gunman.

“That bullet was meant for me, wasn't it?” Nadia whispers.

Jack shakes his head. “I really don't know. What I do know is you guys are my responsibility and I let you down. I'm sorry.”

“Nadia,” Damon calls from inside the cave. “Trade spots with me. You rest and I'll watch the door.”

“I'm good,” she calls back, as she stares out at the impending darkness. Quietly, to Jack, she says, “It's not your fault. You couldn't have predicted something like this.”

“Thanks for saying that.”

She realizes this is the nicest she's been to him in days. She averts her eyes. “So much for the Dean's promise of safety.”

“Wait here.” Jack steps out of the cave.

Nadia scrambles to her feet and grabs his arm. “Are you insane? You have no idea who's out there. You don't seriously intend to wander around in the dark.”

“I don't expect you to understand, but it's my job to ensure the safety of this group. The school won't realize we're missing for
at least another three, maybe four hours. I'm not gonna sit here and hope for the best.” Jack pulls his arm away.

“I'll come with you.”

“Absolutely not.” His expression tells her the discussion is over.

He slips from the cave and disappears into the moonless night. That's when she notices he's forgotten his gun.

“Jack!” Nadia whispers as loud as she dares. She picks up his weapon. It occurs to her: Jack appeared
after
Alan was shot.

Maybe it was Jack.

She releases the magazine. Tranquilizer darts. She exhales, relieved. The tiniest breeze brushes against her face. Before her, silent as smoke, stands Jack.

“Just making sure you were all set,” she whispers, barely able to speak. Nadia reengages the mag and racks the slide, then offers Jack his gun.

“Right.” He grabs her wrist and pulls her close. She feels his breath hot on her face. “If it
had
been me, don't you think I would've swapped out the bullets by now?” He presses his mouth against her ear and whispers, “I'm not incompetent, Nadia. I wouldn't have missed.” He pushes her away and recedes into the night.

He has no right to be offended. He's given me no reason to trust him
.

So why do I feel bad?

Nadia waits at the mouth of the cave for hours. She doesn't intend to fall asleep, but at some point, Damon wakes her to cover a shift. Grateful for the rest, she crawls deeper into the cave with Libby and Alan.

She knows she'll be safe with Damon standing guard.

Damon knows exactly what happened in the canyon. He's been double-crossed.

Nobody was shooting at Nadia—they tried to hit
him
instead. The bullet they told him would end her life got redirected. And he knows exactly who pulled the trigger, because only one agent could be that incompetent.

Professor Hayden. And the first chance he gets, Damon will end him.

Nadia was nowhere near the guys when they were attacked. They must've been ten feet apart.
Not even that idiot could've missed her by that much
. But he and Alan were within a foot of each other.

A competent sniper would've killed Damon with one shot.

He's underestimated the severity of his handlers' response. Damon needs to get the hell out of this canyon. And he needs to do it alone. But right now, he and Libby are wedged against Alan inside the cave. It's a tight fit—barely enough room for the three of them to lie down, and they're forced to curl up like a pile of kittens. Nadia's at the door, and she won't leave.

Damon has no choice but to wait. He wraps his arms around his roommate, tries to stop Alan's shivering.

He whispers in Alan's ear, “When this is all over, you remember how I took care of you.”

“What are you talking about?” Alan asks.

A few days ago, Damon discovered Alan's big secret. After hearing about the hit on Nadia, he'd suggested Alan as the fall guy instead. It wasn't personal, just convenient, what with them living together and all.

But Hayden had laughed at him. “Do you know who his grandfather is?”

“How would I know that?”

“He's
Mossad
.”

“Mossad? As in Israeli intelligence?”

“Yeah. We don't touch your roommate.”

“That can't be right. If his grandfather is Mossad, how did Alan get into a CIA training school?”

“His grandfather's cover is deep.”

“So how do you know about him?”

“Agent Roberts was the CIA liaison to Mossad while he was with the Agency. They met once, about thirty years ago.”

“No kidding. Does Alan know?”

“I'm sure he does.”

Damon couldn't believe Alan had kept it from him. He also wondered how deep and dangerous Alan's grandfather must be that no one in the CIA had record of him—or his association with their new trainee. It probably meant his grandfather was Kidon, an elite faction of Mossad whose sole responsibility was making people disappear. After learning the truth, Damon had to admit Hayden made a good point. He wasn't about to take out the grandson of an Israeli assassin.

Now, in the darkening cave, Damon pulls Alan closer. “You just remember how I had your back.”

“Yeah, whatever,” Alan mumbles. “I will be sure to send you a thank-you note.”

“No thanks necessary. You and me—we're like brothers.”

Time feels endless as Damon lies unmoving on the cold ground. Jack leaves; Nadia's breathing deepens. He forces himself to wait
another hour, and then another. Finally, he untangles himself from Libby and Alan.

Nadia's asleep against the wall. Seeing her like this, her face relaxed, eyes closed, reminds him of the solo when he found her camp. He'd liked moving through the desert at night, with the animals out. The land pulsed and breathed, unlike the day, when everything hid from the sun. In a strange way, the desert reminded him of Baltimore. His Baltimore—the city at night. It's a whole different town after dark.

He'd had no trouble finding her site. He knew she'd get out of the van right after him. And she'd left a trail like an elephant: crushed topsoil, broken plants. After he found her, he'd sat under a tree and watched her sleep. She'd looked so peaceful. Never in his life had he felt the way she'd looked. He'd erased his tracks and left long before sunrise, but he'd gotten what he went for. He took her knife, in case he ever needed it. Her prints were all over the handle. Damon could've used it a hundred times to frame her. Dipped the blade in blood, hidden it somewhere on campus. She would've been gone in a heartbeat. He never could bring himself to do it.

He shakes his head. This past week, ever since hearing about the hit, he's been shadowing her, trying to keep her out of harm's way. Turns out, being close to him was the biggest threat to her life.

He tells himself that forming an attachment right now isn't an option. But something about this girl gets to him. He never felt this way about Niyuri. Of course, that wasn't the plan. Niyuri was cover.

He holds his breath and tries to slip through the entrance. Nadia grabs the cuff of his pants.

“Where are you going?” she whispers, squinting at him.

“I gotta take a leak. Head on inside. You keep Alan warm and I'll take a shift at the door,” Damon says. He smoothes the hair away from her face. His hand rests on her cheek. He wants to lean down and kiss the top of her head.

“Thanks.” She nods and gently squeezes his hand.

“Nadia?”

“Yeah?”

He hesitates. “Nothing. Get some sleep.”

Damon waits for her to crawl inside before he begins scaling the rock. He moves slowly and steadily up the canyon, choosing each handhold with care. The low rumble of thunder rolls off the walls as he climbs, reverberating against the rock. The cool air smells like rain.

Leaving like this, alone, in the middle of the night—it's what he trained for. Funny how that worked out. The guys who taught him might have been a little too thorough. He suspects they'll regret teaching him to disappear.

When he reaches the top, he hoists himself over the ledge. He drops to his knees, exhausted. With no time to spare, Damon takes several deep breaths before heading toward the lights of Phoenix.

Whispers. Cold air wraps around her skin. The ground, colder still, pushes through her clothes.
Where am I?

“Saba.”

Nadia opens her eyes. She holds her breath, listening for the intruder.

“Khawan,”
he whispers. It's Alan.

Nadia exhales and pushes herself to a sitting position. She rubs her eyes.

“Saba, they found out.” He's talking in his sleep. “About me.”

Nadia leans toward Alan's lips. His words are barely audible. “I am a traitor.”

Her mouth opens as she stares into Alan's troubled face.
It's been him all along
.

She stands, carefully, and draws her gun. She circles Alan, her back toward the entrance. Libby lies beside him—if Nadia is forced to fire, she'll hit her best friend.
Why did his colleagues shoot at him?
She shakes her head.
Not him—they were shooting at me
.

“Hey!” She kicks his shoulder.

“Ow! What are you doing?” Then he sees the gun. “What is the matter with you? Put that down before you shoot me in the face.”

Libby sits up beside Alan and yawns. “Why are you pointing a gun at us?”

“These aren't tranqs. I'm loaded with live rounds,” Nadia tells Alan.

“Why are you carrying bullets?” Libby asks.

“Because I knew we had a traitor.” Nadia's eyes stay on Alan. “Libby, go outside and get Damon.”

“Take the gun off of me,” Alan says.

Libby moves slowly. “Nadia, what's going on?”

“Get out, Libby.”

“All right, I'm going. You just take it easy, okay? I don't know what this is, but I'm sure we can work it out.” She backs toward the entrance. “Why don't we all take a nice, deep—”

“Get out!” Nadia yells. Libby leaves the cave. “What have you done?” she asks Alan.

“What have I done?
You
are the one pointing a gun!”

“You were talking in your sleep. You said you were a traitor.
You confessed
.”

“What? This is complete bull—”

“I heard you!”

“Take it easy.” Alan holds his hands in front of his body. “What
exactly
did I say?”

“You said,
I am a traitor
! No ambiguity. Who is Saba?”

“Saba is my grandfather.”

“More information.” Nadia straightens her arms, sighting the gun between his eyes.

“Honey, I'm coming in, okay?” Libby says.

“Where's Damon?” Nadia asks over her shoulder.

“I don't know. He's not out here. Can I please come in?”

“Fine; stay behind me.” Then, to Alan, “Saba. Go.”

“It is what I call him. You call yours
giddo
, right?”

“You confessed to being a traitor, Alan. I heard you.”

“I just—I have not been completely honest about my family.” His eyes plead with her. “But if I tell you, I will be kicked out of school.”

“If you
don't
tell me, I'll probably shoot you now.”

“Nadia, for the love of God, please stop pointing that gun at him.”

“My saba—my grandfather—he is in our line of work. In Israel. I swear to you, I am not a traitor.”

Nadia narrows her eyes. “You're telling me that your grandfather is
Mossad
, and no one at Desert Mountain knows about it?”

“No one anywhere knows. He has changed his identity so many times
I
do not even know his real name. Well, this is a slight exaggeration. But no one can possibly connect us. I mean, unless they have worked with him or know him personally or something.” His eyes stay on her gun.

“Why did you say you were a traitor?”

“Because of him! He is Mossad; I wish to be CIA. Before my training at Desert Mountain commenced, he gave me his blessing—with the caveat I keep him informed of world events discussed by the CIA as they relate to the Middle East. The United States is not good about sharing with her allies, unless she gets something in return. Though I am not certain why he cares what happens in the CIA. He is constantly telling me how much better Mossad performs. He said I could choose, but I—”

“Alan!”

“Right. At first, I agreed. I love him very much, and I did not see the harm. We all want the same thing—a safe world in which to live. But I no longer feel comfortable with our arrangement. It makes me feel . . .”

“Like a traitor?” Nadia asks.

“Uneasy. I do not wish to quietly report to Mossad. If I cannot liaise openly, I will tell him our deal is finished. I swear.”

Nadia lowers her voice. “Do you understand what you've done? You've committed treason.”

“No! I have told him nothing! But if anyone finds out, I will be expelled.”

“If anyone finds out, you'll be sent to Guantanamo Bay!”