“I’ve worked with her before.”
“Oh.”
The plane began to move back from the gate, and Alex instinctively grabbed for Teren’s hand.
“You sure you don’t want the window, Alex?”
“I’m sure. Why, does it bother you?”
“No, but you weren’t gripping quite so hard last time.”
Alex eased up the pressure of her hand on Teren’s.
Teren turned and winked at her. “Don’t worry, we’re still several minutes from take-off.”
“I know. Doesn’t make me feel any better, though.”
“Well, this won’t either.” Teren’s face turned serious. “I’ve been thinking about our mysterious friend.”
“CJ?”
“Yes. You agree with me that he’s probably FBI, right?”
“Yes.”
“Well, I’m going to throw a possibility at you, and I want you to think about, okay? Don’t just reject it.”
“O-kay.”
She took a deep breath. “What if CJ stands for Cliff Jackson?”
Alex’s mouth opened, and Teren put a finger up, reminding her she’d agreed to think it over.
“Teren, I realize the initials are the same, but you’re going to have to have more than that. I’ve known Cliff too long to believe he’s capable of this.”
Teren nodded. “Okay. Who chose the people going to Philly to protect Reginald Dabir?”
“Cliff did, it’s part of his duties as head of the task force.”
“I thought so, too. But he told me that the order came from higher up. One of his superiors had specifically chosen you and David and Ken. Two people who had great experience in hate crimes, but none in protection. A third who’s great with investigations, but again, never served in a security detail.”
Alex frowned. “It’s possible, I suppose.”
“Who chose the task force?”
“Well, Cliff was named to head it up and he was given Tom Jorgen and Rudy Wilkins. He chose everyone else.”
“Okay. So, he was given two agents with some experience in assassinations. Then he added the rest of the team, including you and David who had been investigating both hate crimes and serial killings, and several veterans who are very close to retirement. He added to them a few untried field agents, and nobody else who had any first hand knowledge of protection procedures, or assassinations in general. Only the two he was given. Doesn’t that sound a little strange to you?”
Alex didn’t say anything, merely leaned her head back.
“A third clue: who was it that brought Graves and me into this case? Cliff. He and Graves have known each other for years — Ron said his family and Cliff’s even saw each other socially. He could have found out from Graves that I was alive, and figured it would be a good idea to bring me in where he could keep an eye on me.”
“But —”
“Just wait, I’m not finished. Who did you send word to about the meeting with Brogan?”
Alex bit her lip and whispered the word. “Cliff … “
“Right. And who supposedly didn’t call the Philadelphia police department, even though the call came from his office?”
“Cliff.”
“And who made sure that I would know right where to find you, possibly setting me up to walk into the aftermath and either take the blame, or be killed myself?”
Closing her eyes, Alex let out a great sigh. “But he told you at the hospital to get me out of there. He warned you —”
“Yes, and less than 48 hours later he had you declared a rogue.”
“You don’t know it was him.”
“The order must be signed by your immediate supervisor, right?” She got a slight nod from her partner. “I’m sorry, Alex. I know you don’t want to hear this. I didn’t want to believe it, either. Still don’t. But we’ve got to be very careful about who we talk to and what we tell them. The best bet is to not trust anyone.”
“Then why do you trust Graves?”
“I don’t. I haven’t told him half the stuff we’ve learned, and I fully intend to keep him in the dark until the very last minute. Which is another reason I don’t want to take those pills. The headache I can live with — it’s being killed that I can’t.”
That got a small smile from Alex, but it didn’t last long.
“Want the good news, Alex?”
She sighed. “Sure, Ter, what’s the good news?”
“We’re off the ground.”
Alex looked at her, then peered through the window. There was nothing but clouds and dark skies. “Hey, you’re right. How’d that happen?”
“I thought a serious discussion might distract you.“Teren shrugged. “Looks like I was right.”
“Great, ” Alex chuckled. “Now, how are you going to distract me for the other five take-offs and landings?”
“Hmmmmm.” Teren’s eyes took on an evil glint. “You’d be surprised what you can do under an airline blanket.”
Alex laughed.
Chapter Thirty-six
As the plane taxied to the gate at Dulles International, Alex felt the knot in her stomach grow. When the plane finally halted, she found it to be so big she could barely swallow. Her fingers clutched convulsively at the armrests, and when a hand touched her, she jumped.
Teren gave her a soft smile. “It’s going to be fine, Alex.”
Her blonde companion nodded. “I know.” Then she released her seatbelt and stood, grabbing her briefcase from under the seat in front of her. “You ready?”
“Sure.”
“How’s your head?”
“Not great, but not bad, considering.”
They moved out into the aisle, heading towards the front of the plane, then through the door and into the long walkway.
Teren knew something was wrong when she saw airport security at the gate. Alex saw them too, and slowed her steps.
“Teren?”
“I don’t know, Alex.”
The uniformed guards moved forward.
“Alexia Reis? You’re under arrest. Turn around and put your hands over your head.”
Teren could feel her friend tense, as if to fight, and she quickly shook her head. They had a better chance of getting out of this if they followed along for the moment.
“No, Alex,” she said just loud enough for her friend to hear. “Play along. I’ll get you out of this, I swear I will.” She slipped her hand alongside Alex’s, gently removing her briefcase from her clutching grip. “I promise, Alex.”
With a defeated look, Alex turned, her hands on top of her head. A second later she felt the cold snap of a cuff circling her wrist.
Teren watched them cuff her friend, and begin moving her towards an office area. They had completely ignored her, and while she didn’t know why, it made her feel a little better that they had.
She started to follow, when Graves appeared out of the crowd, and held up a hand.
“No, Teren. It’s taken care of. Come on, we have a car waiting, and your bags will be picked up.” He motioned towards the mobile launch that would take them to the main terminal. “This way, please.”
The dark agent glared at him, and stepped up very close. “Anything happens to her, Mister Graves, and I will leave a grease spot in your place.” She bared her teeth and growled for affect.
Graves straightened his glasses, and adjusted his tie. “Aherm. Yes. Well, I suppose we should go then, don’t you?” He moved away on shaky legs, feeling a trickle of sweat snake its way down his back.
Alex was led through several doors, and then down a flight of stairs. Another door, and they were outside, obviously heading towards a dark blue sedan with government plates. At first she relaxed when she saw Cliff Jackson standing beside it, but a memory of her earlier conversation with Teren made her tense up all over again.
Cliff was wearing a gray suit, with a pair of sunglasses that blocked his eyes from Alex’s view. He didn’t speak to her, but nodded and opened the door as the men approached.
“Well done, gentlemen. We’ll take over from here.”
“No problem, Agent Jackson. We were glad to help out.”
They pushed Alex next to the car, pressing her head down. She resisted for a second, pinning Cliff with a glare. Then she allowed them to press her into the car. Cliff slid in after her, and closed the door.