She had to go back and see what was happening to him, but she couldn’t do that either. He’d be angry that they wasted their efforts at escape only for her to come back.
It was time to talk to Vivian. It was time to set things right. Sarah’s life needed a save now so she could have one. A happy one.
Vivian owed her. Vivian owed her Drake. She owed her peace, but most of all, Vivian needed to save Sarah’s life as Sarah had made things right for Vivian.
And she knew exactly how to get Vivian to talk.
Sarah turned around and started back toward the restaurant and Hank Frommer.
It was time to stop the insanity and she intended to show the American government everything she was.
How powerful she could be.
It was time for the world to see Sarah Roberts and for Sarah Roberts to see the world.
She only hoped she was making the right decision.
Her hand went numb. Before passing out in the street, Sarah cried out, “Vivian?”
Chapter 38
Sarah opened her eyes. She jumped to her feet and looked up and down the street. No cars approached.
“What just happened to you? Are you okay?” a man asked from her right.
She spun in that direction and saw Hank. He held a weapon, aimed at the ground.
“I asked, what just happened to you?”
“If this is what it takes,” Sarah whispered under her breath. “Then let’s do this. But Vivian, don’t let me down here. I need you.”
“Who are you talking to?” Hank asked.
Sarah started toward him. As she drew closer, he raised his weapon.
“Be careful, Sarah,” he warned. “No more hero stuff. My jaw still aches, but it’s my patience that’s suffering.”
She stopped four feet in front of him and offered her wrists. “If you’re worried, then cuff me.”
He looked at her proffered arms and then back at her. “Why?”
“Why what?”
“Why fight and then come willingly?”
“Because you’ll never go away. If you people don’t understand me, I’ll give you a chance to, and then, maybe, you’ll go away and leave me alone.”
“You serious?” Hank lowered his weapon again.
Sarah nodded.
“Rod told me to be careful, that you never bluff. I was instructed to take you at your word, even if I find it dangerous.” He started walking and said over his shoulder, “Follow me.”
Sarah kept close. “What’s going to happen to Drake?”
“Nothing. We aren’t concerned in filing petty charges when a man wants to protect his woman. My men are prepared for violence. Drake got the better of us.”
“Some of your men were really hurt back there,” Sarah said, her tone one of disbelief.
“How secret do you think my organization would be if we legally pursued infractions on my men? Sitting in court, trying to explain our presence there and what caused Drake, or you, to attack us. We run things behind a veil, and that means everything.”
Hank approached a black H2 Hummer. A driver hopped out and opened the back door. Hank motioned for Sarah to get in.
She turned to look at the restaurant.
Sorry, Drake. I promise we’ll have dinner again soon.
The back seat of the Hummer was a virtual prison. The doors were thick and bars separated the front from the back. The driver must have driven a Hummer since he was a child the way he handled the wheel.
At first she couldn’t tell where they were headed, but figured the airport soon enough. After fifteen minutes, Sarah recognized the fence surrounding the airport. The driver pulled up to a guarded entrance and was waved through. Seconds later, the driver stopped beside a Lear jet.
“This is it,” Hank said. He turned in his seat to address Sarah. “Are we going to have a problem?”
“No.”
“Good. Let’s go.”
The door beside her clicked. She got out and walked up the steps into the airplane.
After taking a seat halfway down, she asked, “Where are we flying to?”
Hank had stepped in behind her and was talking to the pilots. He stopped talking and turned to her. “To a unique facility where we will talk. That’s it. You tell me what you do and how you do it.” He stepped closer and sat in a chair opposite hers. “I’ll need a demonstration. Then we’ll talk again. If what you do serves our aims, we will discuss the future. If it doesn’t, I’ll have these pilots fly you wherever you want to go and you’ll never hear from the Sophia Project again. Sound good to you?”
“I want to get this over with more than you, I’m sure. Also, I’m confident that what I do will be of no use to you.”
“How so?”
“Because my sister only gives me details that fit a specific situation. Like the news anchor woman five years ago. I was told to bring a hammer and wait under the bridge. Once I saw the car accident, I did what any other human being would do. I ran for the woman drowning in her car and tried to get in. Because I had a hammer, I was able to break the window and save the woman. That’s it. What I do will not solve wars or tell you where hidden nukes are. If this is a way to add me to the payroll of the war machine, you have the wrong girl. Trust me.”
Hank seemed to hear her. He appeared to digest what she’d said as he formulated a response.
The engines revved and the plane advanced forward. Sarah closed her eyes and waited until they took off before she opened them again.
“You’re missing one thing,” he said.
“What’s that?”
“You said it’s Vivian who gives you these messages, right?”
Sarah nodded.
“Would it be safe to assume that even though what you do is dangerous, Vivian would never knowingly send you into a situation where you would outright die? Evidently, since you’re sitting here before me, living, breathing, I already know the answer to that question.”
“Where are you going with this?”
“Vivian loves you. She adores you.”
“Agreed. Your point?”
“She would never let anything happen to you.”
“You’ve stated that. Stop going in circles.”
“Meaning, I could threaten to harm you, or even harm you on purpose and Vivian would start producing.” He turned in his seat to talk face-to-face with her. “Do you see where I’m going with this? I could force her hand. I could make her talk through you and tell me what I want to know once I have you hooked up to an electric chair where, depending on the voltage, I could cause you great harm, or even kill you if she didn’t comply.”
A rush of anger surged inside Sarah as she struggled to keep it under control. Her foot twitched with an overwhelming desire to kick the mouth that just threatened her.
“See, that’s where you’re wrong,” she said. “I would probably kill you first and Vivian would rather see me dead. Then we could be together on the Other Side. You have to be careful. Pick your battles wisely and monitor what you say to me. We need to be able to get along because I don’t see how this’ll work if you’re dead.”
There was a moment of silence. “Point taken,” Hank said and turned away from her.
She’d committed to see this thing through, so she sat back and avoided belting Hank upside the face. When
