“Let’s hope we’re not too late.”
Chapter 34
Nathan removed his tactical gear and face paint before reloading his Sig. In the unlikely event they got pulled over, they didn’t want to look like cat burglars. He steered from the passenger side as Harv did the same, except Harv didn’t need to reload his weapon. “We’ll start at the beginning of El Camino Real and head north up the hill. Ms. Dalton thought it was past the first stop sign, on the right side of the road. We’re looking for a property with white rail fence, an electric gate, and a big tree stump. There can’t be too many properties with those exact details.”
“Should we update Cantrell?”
“Yeah, probably, but screw finding a payphone. We’re done jumping through hoops.”
“She won’t like it.”
“Too bad.” He pulled his cell, made the call, and put it on speaker.
“Cantrell.”
“It’s echo five and I’m not on a payphone.”
“Say nothing and-”
He cut her off. “No time. Target location self destructed. Threat still loose.”
“Destination?”
“We have an alternate location.”
A long pause. He could almost hear Cantrell’s mind working. “Do not, I repeat,
“We’re already on our way.”
“Abort, echo five. Abor-”
He ended the call and turned off his phone.
“What the hell was
“We struck a nerve, that’s what.”
Cantrell heard the call end. She redialed but got thrown into voice mail. What the hell did they think they were doing? She picked up the hard line on her desk and hit a preset button.
Former CIA Director Samuel Kallstrom sounded awake but tired. “It’s oh-three-thirty in the morning, Rebecca.”
“Your boys have gone rogue. They’re on their way to your son’s West Coast house as we speak.”
“And that surprises you?”
“You assured me they were good soldiers. Team players who followed orders. We’re about to lose containment.”
She heard her former boss cough away from the receiver. “You lost containment the moment Montez attacked McBride. You’ve got the crime scene at Bullfrog Bay, the Long Beach warehouse, and several of Montez’s men in custody. That’s a hell of a lot more than you had several days ago. Give them a chance to complete the mission.”
“McBride’s got a personal vendetta against Montez. What if he kills him? You’re still on the hook for Operation Echo if Montez has a sleeper system in place. You testified before Congress.”
“I’ve got lung cancer. What’re they going to do? Throw me in jail? The president would never allow it.”
“So where does this leave us?
“Did you ask McBride not to kill Montez?”
“Yes.”
“Then he won’t.”
She needed to play an ace. The CIA was
He coughed again and she felt a pang of guilt.
“Rebecca, listen to me very carefully. Under no circumstances are you to do that.”
“With all due respect, I don’t report to you anymore. I report to the DNI.”
“I recommended you for the director’s chair, cashed in every favor I owned.”
She sighed, deliberately softening her voice. She’d lost the high ground. “You don’t need to call in any favors. I already told McBride I wouldn’t do it.”
“Thank you for that. Are any of our people watching Dalton?” he asked.
She looked at her computer clock. “No. He refused, said he didn’t need them. He thought involving us would compromise the operation. For what it’s worth, I agreed with him. He used his own men and assured me they were up to the task, but I haven’t heard from him in more than thirty-six hours. McBride and Fontana are on their way to your son’s house, but I doubt Dalton would go there. Especially if Nichole knew its location, which is likely. Montez would extract that from her easily.”
“If Montez has Dalton, it’s already too late. Dalton’s tough and smart, but he’ll never hold out very long against Montez, especially with his daughters at risk. It’s a good bet Montez knows everything.”
“Will he blow the whistle?”
“He kept Nicaragua a secret. At this point, I don’t know, but it’s a safe bet he’ll want more money. A lot more.”
“I’m not onboard with that.”
“We may have no choice.”
She waited.
“Our best hope of containment is already on the move.”
“They’re rusty at best, sloppy at worst. They’ve already made some serious mistakes. It was their screw-up that led Montez to McBride’s house.”
Kallstrom said nothing.
“Your boys have six more hours, but I’m putting my San Diego team on standby. That’s the best I can do.”
“You won’t regret it.”
“Make a pot of coffee, Sam.” She ended the call and leaned back in her chair.
Nathan and Harvey arrived on the outskirts of Lomas Santa Fe thirty minutes after leaving the safe house. At this hour, the streets of the neighborhood were deserted.
“There might be security guards watching the house, probably are. We could be facing a friendly fire situation.”
“I don’t consider anyone who shoots at us as
“You know what I mean.…”
They rode in silence for a few seconds.
“Let’s think about our plan,” Harv said. “Once again, we don’t have any intel on this house, or the surrounding area. Given the neighborhood, it’s a good bet it’ll have a state-of-the-art security system. Cameras. Infrared beams. Motion sensors. You name it.”
“Good thing we know how to beat them.”
“There could be tactical dogs.”
“If there are, let’s try not to kill them.”
“Last I looked, we’re fresh out of tranquilizer guns.”
“We’ll cross that bridge when we get there.” Nathan paused, thinking. “I wish Cantrell had told me what Duane Dalton’s role is.”
He turned left onto El Camino Real. “All we can be sure of is that Dalton’s a fairly major player, and he’s working in some way with the CIA.”
“He could’ve been in the safe house when it blew.” Nathan shook his head. “You realize that Montez set a
