Learning to Stand (35 page)

“
And am I worth
it?”

She laughed and began another audio sex
performance. Smiling, he grunted in response.

“
I need a favor,” he
asked.

She nodded.

“
Would you… I mean, if it’s
not too much trouble, could you hold me?”

“
Of course.”

Standing, she led him to the bed. Stepping
out of her jeans, she slipped between the sheets and held an arm to
him. He lay with his head on her chest and his arms around her
waist. In her kind arms, his pain and despair came forward. With a
heavy breath, he began to weep. She stroked his hair and shoulders
until well after he fell asleep. She drifted off to sleep with him
lying against her shoulder.

She woke around midnight to find him
watching her. She smiled and retrieved more food and medication. He
drank the nutrition drink, took his meds then made a wobbly trip to
the restroom. He was sound asleep when she went through another
round of audio sex.

Waking at dawn, she moved from the bed and
he opened his eyes. He watched her walk to the bathroom. His eyes
remained on her while she dressed in her jeans and T-shirt. He
watched her pull pieces of a handgun from the lining of her
suitcase. With quick practiced motions, she assembled the handgun.
She was screwing a silencer onto her 9 MM Glock when there was a
brush against a connecting door.

Alex began an audio sex performance to cover
the sound of her cocking the gun. With her gun in her left hand,
she flipped open the lock to the adjoining door with her right.
While continuing her performance, she opened the door to a mocking
Jesse.

He carried a large duffle bag into the room
and took her suitcase to the other room. Before closing the door,
he held his hands out in a ‘show me’ gesture.

Alex screamed her Texas orgasm.

Shaking his head, Jesse closed the door.
Alex flipped the lock and set her handgun down. While the agent
watched, she retrieved more food and medications from the duffle
bag. She brought the food to the bed.

“
What is your name?” he
propped himself against the headboard.

“
It’s better if you don’t
know. People call me ‘Fey.’ That works.”

He nodded.

“
Promise me,” he said. “If I
don’t make it, promise me that you’ll remember me.”

“
Oh, I’ll remember
you.”

He laughed at her tone.

“
Sleep,” she
said.

“
Would you mind? Please…
don’t leave me. I cannot take being alone.”

“
You must eat.”

She gave him another nutrition drink and his
medication. He ate then made a less wobbly way to the bathroom.
Settling back in bed, he held the covers for her. When she lay down
next to him, he shifted to his side and kissed her lips.

“
Please don’t,” she
said.

She pressed him away from her with the palm
of her hand.

“
Married?” he
asked.

She nodded.

“
Happily?”

“
Very.”

“
I’m sorry about that,” he
said. He stroked her face. “I’d marry you too.”

“
Sleep,” she said. “We move
tonight.”

“
Stay with me?”

“
Yes,” she said.

He was already asleep. She got up to get her
books. Leaning against the headboard, she moved his head to her
lap. She woke him at noon for more food and meds. He seemed to want
to chat, but his eyes sagged within moments of eating. She took the
empty nutrition drink from his hand then settled in to study. When
the day moved to evening, she woke him by getting out of bed.

“
We need to get going,” she
whispered.

While he showered, she worked to get ready.
Taking the parachute from the duffle bag, she laid out his body
armor, jeans and long sleeved shirt then helped him dress. He was
almost dressed when there was a tap on the door.

“
It’s time to go,” she
whispered.

She pulled a parachute from the bag. He held
his arms out so she could strap the chute onto his back. He buckled
it tight. She put on her own parachute and tightened the
straps.

“
What are we doing?” he
asked in her ear.

Taking his hand, she led him to the window.
The ancient building clung to the edge of a deep tree lined canyon.
In the cover of twilight, they would jump from their tenth floor
balcony then parachute down the canyon to where her team was
waiting for them. Alex saw a flash of light, Tommy’s signal,
designating that the team could see her. Using American Sign
Language, she told Tommy they were on their way.

“
We jump to meet the team,”
she said in his ear. “You jump first. I’ll free fall. Follow me to
the team. We’re still at least two days to safety. Can you do
this?”

“
I’ll make it.”

“
We’ll split up when we
reach the team,” she said. “You’ll stay with the team while I
continue by rail. I’ll travel with one of the team to cover for
you.”

“
When will I see you
again?”

“
When we do,” she
said.

“
Then,” he said. Before she
could protest, he scooped her up in his arms and kissed her lips.
She pushed at him but he held her in place. “Thanks.”

“
Fucking MI-6,” she
said.

She followed him out the window.

F

CHAPTER twenty-nine

Sunday afternoon

March
30
–
4:05 P.M. MDT

Buckley Air Force Base Jail

James Kelly set Alex down to wipe the tears
from his eyes. As if to make certain she was real, his eyes
searched her smiling face. He hugged her again.

“
You okay, Alex?” Trece
asked.

“
This is John’s brother,
Trece.”

“
John? John Kelly?” James
asked Alex. “You found Johnny?”

“
I’ve been married to him
all this time,” Alex said.

James laughed his way through introductions
to Trece and White Boy.

“
Where’s Jesse?” James
asked.

“
I’m sure you know everyone
was killed. Joseph is here but Jesse didn’t make it,” Alex said.
She sat down on her bunk and tapped a spot next to her. James sat
down.

“
I talked to Sean Hudson,”
James said. “He said Jesse is a spirit. It doesn’t surprise me
much. You guys were inseparable.”

“
How would you know that?”
Alex asked.

“
I’m quite the Fey expert.
You’d be surprised. When they put up the Fey museum, I’m fairly
certain they will invite me to be curator.”

Alex laughed.

“
I’ve thought you were a
dream,” he said. “I was in the hospital for months… two or three. I
wasn’t fit to work for another four months. When I asked my command
what happened, they told me a US Special Forces team retrieved me.
I asked about the woman, my division chief shook his head. He made
like I was barking mad.”

Alex smiled.

“
You extracted that Irish
singer?”

She nodded.

“
I took the tabloid picture
to my command and told them you rescued me as well. They sent me to
medical. Barmy. What’s an industrious SIS agent to do? I started
researching. I’m telling you. I’m quite an expert on
you.”

“
How did you end up here?”
Alex asked.

“
I saw the vid. I will never
forget your tattoo. Never.” His hand touched her left arm as if to
trace her blue fairy tattoo through her long sleeved T-shirt. “It
even feels the same. And I’ve been looking for Robert Powell for
some time.”

“
Why?”

“
A Major Drayson?” He looked
at Alex.

“
Lieutenant Colonel, now,”
She nodded.

“
Lieutenant Colonel Drayson
sent an Interpol flag on a particular British diplomat. He’s
dead.”

“
Oh, I’m so sorry,” she
said. “He called to warn me about the hit on my life last year.
Fuck.”

“
Your flag said you have a
video message with Robert Powell in the background?”

“
From the map
phone.”

“
The map phone?”

“
I work on maps for the
Intelligence Center.”

“
The Fey series maps. I have
quite a few,” James smiled. “Saved my ass more than
once.”

“
Yes, those. They have a
phone number on the maps for people in the field to report changes,
missing details or inaccuracies. The map phone is also the best way
to make sure I get a message.”

“
We believe Robert Powell
killed the diplomat right after the video message was taken. Was
Robert Powell unaware of the video camera?”

“
Probably. The Intelligence
Center didn’t add video to the map phone until last year some time.
The Boy Scout isn’t the sharpest tack in the drawer.”

“
I have a warrant to arrest
him. I’ve spoken with the Denver Police. They’re working on
transitioning him to British custody.”

“
Why is Her Majesty’s Secret
Intelligence Service involved?”

“
We’ve a peripheral interest
in your problem – Joiner, Powell and… what do you call the
agent?”

“
The Weasel?”

“
Yes, the Weasel. I’m here,
in person, to assure you that neither Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth
II nor SIS were involved in any way in the murder of the Fey
Special Forces Team.”

“
What about Prince Phillip?”
Alex attempted a joke.

“
Yes, the octogenarian
consort to the Queen is the mastermind behind every
conspiracy.”

James rolled his eyes. Alex laughed

“
Don’t start,” James said.
“I have been asked to inform you that Her Majesty’s Secret
Intelligence Service would like to facilitate the creation of
another International extraction team.”

“
What does that
mean?”

“
Some of our boys have gone
missing.”

Nodding, Alex smiled.

“
I don’t feel like I
properly thanked you for saving me.” James kissed her cheek. “I
wouldn’t have lasted another day.”

“
I was lucky to find
you.”

“
Some day you’ll have to
tell me how you found me,” James nodded. “For the museum and
all.”

Alex laughed.

“
I’m here until the Denver
Police Department releases Mr. Powell. In the meantime, I’ve been
instructed to share our information on Joiner, Powell and the
rodent.”

“
The Weasel?” Alex
asked.

“
Yes.”

“
Can you get me out of
here?”

“
Sorry love, not until you
speak to the Denver Police Department,” James said. “They’re on
their way.”

Alex scowled.

“
What shall
we...”

Trece held a deck of cards through the bars.
Alex took the cards from him.

“
Cards?” Alex
asked.

“
I’ve heard you’re wicked
good at poker,” James said.

“
I’ve had two surgeries in
less than a week. How good can I be?”

Outside the cell, Trece and White Boy
laughed.

“
You have to shuffle,” Alex
said. “My hand’s too swollen.”

“
I’ll regret this,” James
said.

Alex smiled.

FFFFF

Two hours later

Sunday evening
March 30 – 6:30 P.M.

Buckley Air Force Base Jail Meeting Room

The nicest thing about her ‘visit’ with the
Denver Police was that her sister, Samantha, was sitting next to
her. Samantha had a gift for terrifying men. The Denver Police
Detectives had barely entered the room before she had them
cowering. Alex admired her skill.

The second nicest thing about her ‘visit’
with the Denver Police was that, at Sami’s insistence, they gave
Alex some pain medication. She should feel some relief from her arm
surgery soon. She hoped.

There was no third nice thing.

She was only counting nice things to keep
her mind off the fact that the entire thing sucked. Absolutely and
completely sucked. These Detectives dug up every detail of her
relationship with the Boy Scout. She was glad James was able to
provide the police with classified photographs of her after the
first time the Boy Scout attacked her at Cheyenne Mountain. James’s
laptop also provided the security video.

Nodding, she told herself that the third
nice thing was James and his laptop. ‘Cold as ice’ Sami clutched at
Alex’s hand when James played the video footage. Alex felt her
sister shake.

The first time, the Boy Scout stunned her
with a sap. And things went down hill from there. Alex only managed
to get away because Jesse came down the hall looking for her. It
took three men to get the Boy Scout off her.

Yeah, the video wasn’t so nice.

“
Why wasn’t this assault
reported to the local authorities, Ms. Hargreaves?” the thin police
detective asked.

“
Lieutenant Colonel,”
Samantha said.

“
Lieutenant Colonel
Hargreaves. There is no record of prosecution for this
incident.”

“
We received a call from the
President to attend to a matter of urgency,” Alex said. “In the
middle of attending to the President’s issue, we were called away
to rescue six United States soldiers. We spent a month with them in
the hospital. After the soldiers went home, we went back to work on
the President’s issue. It was four months before anyone had time to
fill out the paperwork. Mostly, we were certain we would be rid of
the Boy Scout in a month or so, so we didn’t sweat it.”