Intersection Page 42

  “Cass, you don’t have to…”

  Before Alex could finish her thought, her sneakers were off and Cassidy was gently lifting Alex’s feet onto the couch and helping her move into a more comfortable position. The teacher grabbed a throw pillow, put it behind the agent’s head and helped her lie down. “Why didn’t you call me?” Cassidy asked, running her fingers through Alex’s hair.

  “I was okay until I got in the car.”

  “Alex…you need to be careful.”

  “I’m okay,” the agent smiled at her lover’s touch. “I’m just tired.”

  “Well,” Cassidy covered the agent with a blanket, “close your eyes and go to sleep.”

  “I don’t want to sleep without you,” Alex said almost like a small child.

  The teacher smiled and kissed Alex’s forehead. “Go to sleep.”

  “You…”

  Cassidy smiled. “I’m right here…go to sleep.” Alex struggled to stay awake. Her back was beginning to relax but it was sore and stiff and her eyelids would not cooperate. Cassidy watched as the strong, beautiful woman she loved gradually transformed into what looked like a peaceful sleeping child. “Je t’adore, my love,” she whispered placing a tender kiss on the woman’s cheek. “I never knew I could love anyone so much,” she said softly as she made her way to the far end of the couch and lifted the agent’s feet onto her lap. The truth was that Cassidy was still struggling with nightmares of her own and being close to Alex made her feel safe. “I couldn’t sleep without you if I tried,” she admitted aloud and stretched out to join her lover in sleep.

  “Admiral….I understand….but this situation…”

  “Jonathan… our friends in France are not wrong. I spoke to Edmond last night. I understand and this is not the course any of us wanted but Ivanov is spooked. And, I just heard from the British Prime Minister. We have to get control back…send a message.” Rear Admiral William Brackett was a large man with a commanding presence. At sixty-seven, he had spent the better part of his life in service to his country; much of that engineering delicate and intricate invasions and covert operations in Southeast Asia. He had served as an adviser to several presidents and was widely regarded within the intelligence community as a genius. When he spoke, people listened.

  Krause took a deep breath. He was not looking forward to this next question. “Admiral…your daughter…”

  “Yes, Jonathan?”

  “She provided Carl Fisher with FBI clearance…Where would she get that?”

  “From me.”

  This was the answer that Krause had expected and that he had hoped he would not get. “Why, Sir?”

  “It’s not always as simple as we would like, Jonathan. You know that. Edward Fisher was a good friend.”

  Krause stroked his jaw, “and so is John Merrow.”

  “That’s true. But this is not my choice and it’s not yours. I stalled this with O’Brien… made him the fall guy. That won’t work again.”

  Jonathan Krause sighed. “When?”

  “Saturday.”

  “Who?” Krause asked receiving silence at the other end.

  “It has to be believable,” the admiral answered.

  “Very well…I will make the call…. Sir?”

  “Yes, Jonathan?”

  “About your daughter….”

  William Brackett smiled. He adored his daughter but she frequently challenged his patience as well. Her affair with John Merrow had been ill advised as was her seduction of the FBI agent. “She’s been sent to O’Brien.”

  “Is that really….”

  The admiral nodded his agreement on the other end of the phone. “You take care of business…I will take care of Claire.”

  Krause hung up his phone and sat on the bench in the airport. He felt the spiral, a dangerous spiral. Nothing could go wrong now or everything would likely be lost, everything.

  Alex woke up and still felt a bit groggy. She looked around and realized she had never made it to bed. As the room came into focus she saw that Cassidy was sleeping sitting up at the far end of the couch. Carefully, Alex maneuvered her legs out from under the teacher’s grasp and got to her feet. Softly, Alex guided the smaller woman onto the couch and pulled the blanket over her. Cassidy grumbled slightly but then just shifted, never opening her eyes. “Je vais passer ma vie à vous rendre heureux (I will spend my life making you happy),” Alex whispered, planting a light kiss on her lover’s cheek. The agent quietly headed up the stairs and peeked in Cat’s room to see Dylan sprawled across the bed. She smiled. He was so much like his mother.

  “What are you doing?” A voice whispered.

  Alex turned to see the smiling face of her sister-in-law, “hey.”

  “You okay? Didn’t hear you come in,” Barb said shutting the boys’ door.

  “Yeah…Cass is on the couch.” Barb looked concerned. “No, no…I was a little stiff last night when I got home.”

  “I’ll bet,” Barb said. “You know she doesn’t expect…” Alex shrugged and smiled. “You are very lucky, Alex.”

  “I know,” the agent said. “She’s been through too much. They both have. I just… I want her to feel safe. To be happy.”

  “Well, I don’t think you have much to worry about there. I’m going to go start some coffee. Are you going back to…”

  “Yeah, can you keep her busy today?”

  “She’s going to be more than a little suspicious you know,” Barb warned the agent.

  “Fallon’s coming. You know he’s been in New York all week… so it’s perfect.”

  “So you’re meeting Brian?”

  “Yeah…he’s going to update me… and I have him bringing some things from the house in New York.”

  Barb shook her head. “You are too much, Alex. I think I can find something to occupy the Mrs.”

  “The what?”

  Barb was already at the top of the stairs. “Oh, you heard me Alexis… don’t even try to deny it.” Alex laughed. Being accused of having Cassidy as a wife was hardly an insult. ‘I should be so lucky,’ the agent thought.

  o, you’re driving down to meet Agent Toles?” Detective Ferro asked.

  “Yeah,” Fallon answered placing some pictures into a box.

  “About the case?” Brian Fallon looked at his friend and nodded. “What? Are you worried about telling her what we found?”

  “No…it’s not that. She wasn’t surprised at the two shooter theory,” Fallon admitted.

  “Well, I didn’t think she would be, but I didn’t think she’d be happy about it either.”

  Fallon shrugged. “Toles… well she sees things, you know?”

  “Yeah… she wasn’t always FBI, was she?” The detective guessed.

  “No…..but I don’t know much about that. She has connections, powerful ones. I have a feeling this visit is about something else…not ballistics,” Fallon said somewhat sadly.

  “It’s hard to lose a good partner,” Ferro said. He guessed the thoughts in his friend’s mind.

  “Yeah, well…I knew she was planning on a move when she came down Monday. I have a feeling it’s not just a change in field offices.”

  “Leaving the bureau, you think?”

  Fallon nodded. “I do. She doesn’t trust Tate.”

  “Why should she?”

  “I know…I just wonder what we are into here,” Fallon said.

  “Nothing good,” Pete Ferro chuckled soliciting a slight grin from his friend. “Look, Fallon… you’re probably better off out of it.”

  “Yeah.” Fallon continued gathering the things that Alex had asked him to bring. He grabbed the final box and walked out the front door, Pete Ferro following. “Thing is,” Fallon said opening his trunk, “I’m not sure I want to be out of it.”

  Ferro nodded his understanding. “You know this is…”

  “Yeah I do,” Fallon said. “That son of a bitch O’Brien has something to do with all of this.”

  “Well, you let me know if I can help.” Fallon sho
ok the detective’s hand. “You headed home after this? I mean not much left to wrap up here since we’ve had the lid shut on us.”

  “No, I’m actually taking next week off. Kate’s coming with the kids tomorrow for a long weekend. Alex asked me to go to Dylan’s birthday party on Saturday. Seems important to her…. Hell, least I can do. Plus, Kate loves Alex and she’s driving me nuts every night about Cassidy,” he laughed. Alex and Kate had become fairly close when Fallon was injured and his wife was more than a little bit curious about all the changes in his partner’s life. “Listen, Pete… thanks for calling in that favor. How did you know they would rig the ballistics?”

  “Well, I’d say call it a hunch, but truth is I’ve seen it before, a few times. You make connections,” the detective conceded. “Just be careful, Brian,” Ferro said as Fallon stepped into the driver’s seat of his sedan. “O’Brien’s a weasel… he’s not the wolf.”

  “I will.”

  “Tell Toles…”

  Fallon knew the sentiment his friend would share. Ferro liked Alex Toles and he respected her. Whatever she needed now, she had a friend in the NYPD. He smiled, “I will.”

  “I’m glad that Brian is coming to see Alex,” Cassidy said.

  Barb tried to suppress her grin, knowing that Agent Fallon was meeting Alex at the new house and not out for lunch somewhere. When Alex set her mind on something there was no deterring her. She wondered what Cassidy would think when Alex unveiled her surprise. The agent had already made all the arrangements she needed for her plan. Dylan would come to the party with Nick and Cat, and Barb and Rose would come over to the house early Saturday to help get ready. Tomorrow night would be all about Cassidy and Saturday all about Dylan. No amount of back pain or even the limited hours in a day were going to stop Alex. “I suppose it’s silly doing this now,” she said looking at a bedding set for a crib.

  “What’s that?” Cassidy asked.

  “Looking at baby things,” Barb admitted.

  “I don’t think so,” the teacher smiled.

  “It’s just nice to have someone to do it with, you know? When Cat was on the way…well with my mother being gone… and you know Nick and shopping, he basically said “you buy it; I’ll build it,’’ Barb laughed.

  “So can I ask? Are you hoping for a boy or a girl, or does it not matter?”

  Barb shrugged. “The politically correct answer or the truth?”

  “Truth, PLEASE…I have had enough political anything for one lifetime,” Cassidy rolled her eyes.

  “Well…truth, I would love a little girl…but either way. What about you?”

  “Me?”

  “Oh, come on….I see your eyes in here.”

  Cassidy smiled. It would be a lie to say she didn’t think about more children and it would be a lie to say Alex didn’t make her want that more. Having Barb was wonderful. Babies were not something she intended to discuss with Alex in such a new relationship. “Maybe someday,” she said softly.

  “I would think so,” Barb winked.

  Cassidy blushed. “Barb? I’d really like to get Alex something…you know for the house. She is turning herself inside out to make it perfect for Dylan and me. I know she’s up to something.”

  “Ummm… she loves you…. And don’t look at me, she’s only let me know a VERY little bit and she has Nick sworn in some crazy childhood oath to secrecy. She figures you’ll milk it outta’ me,” She was delighted to see Alex so happy and excited to have Alex and Cassidy moving closer. Family had been lacking and somehow it seemed that void was now closing for them all.

  “I know, but it isn’t my house, it’s our house… it’s just that she’s just not….”

  Barb understood. Alex was not a materialistic person. “Into things? No, she never has been.”

  Cassidy sighed. “I know…it’s one of the reasons I love her so much.”

  “I can see that,” Barb poked her friend. “Have anything in mind?”

  “Only one thing. She lights up whenever they are at that pool table. I thought maybe…”

  “She’ll love that… she’s a big kid, ya’ know?” Cassidy laughed. “But she’ll kill you,” Barb laughed.

  “Well, she’ll get over it. Do you think I could get one delivered Saturday afternoon during the party? She and Dylan would just flip.”

  Barb gloated. “Actually, one of Nick’s best friends owns a billiards store in Norwich. What do you say to lunch and a short drive?” Cassidy smiled and grasped Barb’s hand in thanks. She was all too aware that Alex was up to something and she wanted the move to be special for them all. Alex was not the only one who could maneuver a covert operation and Cassidy intended to prove it.

  “Thanks, Fallon,” Alex said taking a box from her friend’s hands.

  “Holy shit, Toles.” Fallon looked around the living room. “Does she know?” Alex shook her head. “You’re really doing it.”

  Alex nodded and motioned for Fallon to follow her into the kitchen. “First thing I bought, coffee maker…second thing I bought on my way here, Diet Coke… take your pick.”

  “Coke.”

  Alex grabbed a can from the refrigerator and leaned against the counter. “So… two shooters it is.” He nodded. “Shit. Damn spooks.”

  “You think so?” Fallon asked receiving a shrug in response. “Alex, what the hell is O’Brien into?”

  Alex let out a heavy breath. “I’m betting some kind of arms deals. What his role is…Well…he knows more than he says, but he’s not in any control. The accident proves that.”

  “So…”

  Alex nodded. “I told Taylor I’m coming back. I’m going to call Tate Monday.”

  “Did you tell Cassidy?”

  “I told her I was thinking about it. I hadn’t decided until this morning when Taylor called. He was cryptic, careful. Said that there were some things that concerned him, connections, but that they would hold until next week.”

  “What do you think that means?”

  “Don’t know. I’ll worry about it next week. This is way beyond the bureau, Fallon. Way beyond.”

  “Alex…what did…”

  The female agent sighed. “I’ve worked on a lot of things, Fallon, a lot. Mostly investigating connections between people in our government, foreign businesses and intelligence. That’s how I knew about your investigations into the laundering. I’ve worked with the Russians, the French, the Iraqis, the Israelis and MI6. It’s deeply imbedded. I suspect that’s what Taylor is afraid of… that it goes deeper than we once thought.”

  Fallon sighed. “Alex…I don’t want to let it go.”

  “I knew you’d say that,” she smiled. “Let’s talk next week…. there are options….but now, I need to get THIS finished.”

  “Looks pretty finished,” Fallon laughed. Alex smiled broader than Fallon could remember. He wondered how in a few days life could be transformed so radically. Just four days ago they were on a plane praying for Cassidy’s safety. It seemed a lifetime ago now. “What about the stuff in New York?”

  “Well, there’s still things to settle, like school and … Well, Cassidy has to tell O’Brien.”

  “That’ll go over well,” Fallon rolled his eyes.

  Alex shrugged. “He holds no cards. Let him do whatever he wants.”

  “Did you tell Dylan yet?” Alex shook her head. “Really?”

  “Gonna’ surprise him,” Alex winked.

  “Who are you?” Fallon laughed.

  “Well…actually, Fallon, I’ve been wondering who I was.”

  “I just hope you know what you are getting into,” he conceded. Alex looked at him with concern. “I don’t mean Cassidy,” he explained. “I mean this case.”

  “It’s what I do, Fallon.” He nodded. “I need to know,” Alex said. “And I can promise you I will find out and when I do…. The person or the people that hurt Cassidy; they will spend a lifetime wishing they never met me.”

  “Hey,” a voice called softly.

  “When did you ge
t home?” Cassidy turned to see the agent standing behind her looking tired but smiling.

  “Just now. Is Dylan still up?” Alex asked hopefully.

  A smile was followed by a shake of the head, “but I am sure he’s still awake.”

  “I don’t want to…”

  Cassidy looked at Alex and searched her eyes. “Go… he missed you.”

  “I missed you,” Alex confessed, kissing the teacher’s forehead.

  “Did you?” Cassidy asked sweetly. Alex sighed. “Go up and see him,” Cassidy encouraged the agent. “Did you eat?” Alex shook her head and received a slight roll of the teacher’s eyes. “Go see Dylan. I’ll fix you something.”

  Alex made her way up the stairs slowly. She was tired and the stress of the week had finally begun to show on her. After Fallon had left for the evening, Alex started putting up pictures of Dylan and Cassidy from the house in New York. She came across one picture of Cassidy alone at the beach. The wind was blowing the teacher’s hair back and she was squinting just slightly against the blowing sand. She held the picture for a long time, just looking at it. Cassidy was so beautiful. Alex suddenly realized how close she came to losing the woman she loved. It was a thought she had not allowed herself until that moment and she fell to the floor, tears pouring from her eyes and an agonizing stabbing sensation in her chest. The agent closed her eyes and tried to breathe, quieting her pain. She opened her eyes and looked again at the smiling face that she had placed in her lap and gradually felt love take hold again. The eyes looking at her from behind the glass seemed to be speaking silently to her. Alex finished a few remaining tasks and placed the rest of the boxes Fallon had brought aside in the garage. This would be home and there would be time. It would never be perfect. She could not erase the fear or the pain that Cassidy and Dylan had felt, or even her own, not with paint or property. It would help. It might even bring some real happiness, but to heal; that required them to be together, not apart. Home was wherever they were and that was not here, not yet. The agent made her way up the stairs and gently pulled the door to the boys’ room open. Cat waved and Dylan sat up and stared at her. “Hey Cat,” Alex called.