“Violent?” Cross asked.
Bodie shook his head. “Never, unless threatened. But you put one foot the wrong side of Jack and he’d crush it. Literally. With a hammer. He taught me to be courteous, respectful, and as tough as a prison-yard brawler.” He reflected for a moment. “Couldn’t have been easy for him. Living two lives.”
“Sounds like my dad, or what I remember of him,” Gunn commented, looking at the ground. Like Bodie, Gunn was an orphan. Bodie’s own bereavements were markedly different — his parents were killed while he attended an eighth birthday party — but he was reminded of his own life both before and after their deaths.
Two existences. The first — real fun-filled glory days where legends were made. The other — a slide into obscurity and self-loathing. He didn’t have to ask how Gunn had fared; he never had — the answer was obvious. Sam Gunn had become a child of an imperfect system, placed with new parents who didn’t show love or care as only real parents can. Without love, he’d grown up hard. At least Bodie had old, perfect childhood stories to hang on to. Times of friendship and belonging.
“So, Jack?” he said. “Treat the dude with the utmost caution, if not respect. He did, after all, somehow land me in a Mexican hellhole.”
Jemma waited a moment, then eyed the crew. “We good to go?”
“What?” Gunn spluttered. “Now? But I haven’t finished my Lava Flow.”
“No, dummy.” Jemma sighed. “Tonight. We go tonight. When it’s dark.”
“Oh yeah, that’s what I thought you meant.”
Bodie saw their faces set, their eyes determined. Right here, right now, he knew he was among those who cared and looked out for him. There was nowhere he’d rather be and no one he’d rather be with. Cross, in particular, held his gaze and nodded slightly, reassuringly.
Tonight would be different. Tonight they would find out why one of their own had betrayed them.
Jemma broke a profound silence. “All right. Dark will be here soon. I have a few rough edges to smooth off. Maybe Gunn could help me with that. I don’t need the rest of you.”
Cassidy finished her mocktail in a single gulp. “Sounds great. Who’s up for cruising Kissimmee to see if they have any decent night spots?”
“And when would you hit them?” Cross asked. “Tonight’s out.”
Cassidy shook her head at his assumptions. “You kidding me, old-timer? First we hit Pantera, then we go clubbing.”
“The only clubbing I’ll be doing is in my dreams.” Cross smiled.
Bodie felt his phone vibrate against his thigh and fished it out. One look at the incoming caller ID and his heart sank. “Oh hell,” he said. “It’s Heidi.”
Cross plucked it out of his hand and answered, pressing the speaker button too. “Yeah?”
“That’s not Bodie. Who is this?”
“Well, hello to you too, Agent Moneymaker. This here is Eli Cross.”
“Is Bodie there?”
“Indisposed, I’m afraid.”
“Indis… what the hell does that mean?” Heidi sounded taut.
“Well, I guess it means he can’t come to the phone right now. What can I help you with?”
“You’d better not be covering for him, Eli.” Heidi took a deep breath before continuing. “I need the team. Right here, right now. We have an urgent job.”
Bodie mouthed “So do we.” Cross exhaled and scratched his head. “I gotta say, we’re close to moving on this op. Coupla hours is all we need.”
“You don’t have Pantera yet?” Heidi sounded appalled.
“Flawless jobs take meticulous planning. They don’t just happen.”
“It doesn’t matter. This new job eclipses everything. Forget Pantera and get back here now. I can’t tell you how important this is.”
“It can’t wait until morning?”
“It can’t wait until you get back. Time is an issue. Listen, there’s new, strong evidence that Atlantis actually existed. We have to get on top of it before anyone else does. I need you… right now.”
The team members stared at each other and then straight at Bodie. This was his call. It occurred to him that if ever there was a time to make a stand against the CIA, to lay down the ground rules, this was it. Blackmail or not, they weren’t broken enough that they would roll over at every command.
But Atlantis? That was huge. Yet he couldn’t let it take his attention away from Pantera.
He took the phone from Cross. “This is Bodie. We’re finishing here first, Agent, then we’ll head in.”
A long silence spoke of Heidi reining in the anger and calming herself down. “One more time… this is bigger than the last job. Do you get that? The Illuminati… they were a secret organization. This is a lost continent filled with potentially explosive knowledge. It’s top priority. I need the team.”
Bodie studied the middle distance. “You’ll get the team. Tomorrow.”
He hung up.
Cassidy whistled. “Phewee, I bet the air’s a bit blue around DC right now.”
Bodie didn’t smile. “I feel like a jerk,” he said. “We work for her. This will look bad on her. But… then there’s Pantera.”
The phone rang again. Bodie answered immediately. “I only need tonight.”
“Send someone. You gotta let me have someone. Jemma or Eli. Even Gunn.”
Bodie studied the team, seeing the compromise and wishing he’d thought of it before. “Actually,” he said, “you can have all three. I only need Cassidy.”
Cross tried not to look hurt. “Hey, I wanna see what this asshole has to say. Don’t you need me too?”
Bodie nodded, feeling guilt at having to send his best friend away. “I’m trying to be diplomatic here. I don’t trust Heidi. I don’t trust Jack. It works better if I have my team in both places. And I value your opinion on Heidi’s new job, Eli.”
“You don’t trust anyone,” Heidi complained.
Bodie ignored it, thinking, Duh.
No one liked it, but the decision had been made. Bodie and Cassidy would deal with Pantera while the rest of the team headed north to hook up with the CIA. The goodbyes were short, perfunctory. Tension was rising.
Bodie saw nothing but conflict ahead.
CHAPTER FOUR
Heidi Moneymaker sat in the middle of the highest tier of shallow steps that led up to the Lincoln Memorial at the western end of the National Mall, staring without seeing along the length of the Reflecting Pool. She didn’t realize she was shivering. The view, enhanced by spotlights and with the black vault above, was tremendous, the vastness awe-inspiring, but her heart was heavy.
Torn between her duty as a CIA agent and her life as a mother, she fought hard to tackle them both, but she was fighting a losing battle. First, she had been career-motivated all her life. She loved her job and the satisfaction of bringing hardened criminals to justice. Second, the harsh demands of her job had all but alienated her from the husband she was now trying to reconcile with after he left her. Thirty minutes ago, she’d managed to get through to Jessica.
“Hey, honey.”
“Hey.”
“How are you?”
Silence.
“What you up to?”
“Nothing.”
“I miss you so much.”
Silence.
Heidi felt the tears spring into her eyes, fought to keep control of her voice. “So, what’s new with you?”
“You don’t have to do this, Mom.”
“Do what?” She wondered if Jessica believed that this was a call borne out of duty.