Page 66 of No More Lies
“Want to watch something?” He clicked on the television.
“Sure.”
He flicked through and stopped on a home reno show he knew she liked. After about ten minutes, he was about to get back to their conversation when his phone rang. Dex.
Though he stifled a sigh, Steve moved to the kitchen to answer it.
“What happened?” He got straight to the point, assuming Dex had an update.
“Good news is we got Myers.”
“And the bad news?”
“He doesn't know where the case is.”
Fuck. Steve fought the urge to thump the refrigerator. “Did you get anything out of him?”
“He was spewing the New Dawning of Allah shit for a while until we made him see just how much trouble he is in. Then his loyalty to Allah quickly waned because he wants to save his own ass. Long story short, Myers smuggles it out of the airport and takes it to a prearranged drop point and handed it off to someone else. He claims he does not know who the man was. He received cash. The man checked the case, made a call, and then took off.”
“You get a description?”
“Yeah, but it’s pretty vague. We got the make and model of the car. Intel team are working on locating it.”
“How the fuck did he get it out of the airport?” Surely, it couldn’t be that easy for employees to walk out with a steel case in hand.
“I asked the same question. Myers confirmed this is not the first package he has smuggled out. He loads and unloads trucks and is told to look for a package with a specified tag. How that package gets there he does not know. It seems Volkov may have someone on the inside, too, and the handover of these packages happens right there at the airport.”
“Fuck. Are you telling me there could be more of this shit floating around?”
“Myers said he is not told what’s in the packages, but this is the first time he’s seen a steel locked case.”
“You get the feeling this is an ongoing arrangement between Reborn and Volkov?”
“Yeah, I do.”
“What about a target?” Steve glanced back at Diane. The home reno show had finished and she had switched channels to the news. He studied the photo on screen as Dex talked, recognizing the Admiral’s picture.
“Myers is a radicalized kid. Unlikely the Aziz brothers will share that with him. Trust me, if he knew he would have told us. However, he did tell us the timeline had changed. He was not supposed to hand it off until next week. His instructions got changed suddenly. Could indicate an attack is imminent.”
“If the trade is done, Volkov might already have his money, and will be looking to get out of the country before the attack.”
“That’s our assumption.”
“So, it looks like he’s just going to take his daughter, maybe Natasha, too? Diane is probably no longer needed.” That would be a relief.
“Maybe,” Dex said, but his tone told Steve he wasn't convinced.
“What are you thinking?” he asked, with apprehension. His team leader’s gut instincts were rarely wrong.
“As you said before: why go to all that trouble for a hearing if this was his plan? And why take the lawyer? Does he plan on taking her to Russia, too?”
“Diane also said his case was weak. If he’s worried, he’ll lose, this might be some kind of plan B. But, if the attack is due before the hearing, he would have to change his plans if he wants to be sure he’s out of the country. Could be either.”
“I agree. We just don't know yet. And if the attack is going to be before Monday that leaves us with very little time to stop it.”
Steve glanced between the television and Diane who had shifted forward on the couch to focus on the news. She was oblivious to the threat out there. He wanted to keep her protected. Wanted to shield her from the horrors of what went on in this world they lived in every Goddamn day. Except, after their earlier conversation, was that what she wanted? He hated there were things he didn't know about his wife after all these years together.
“Steve?”