The Puppeteer

CHAPTER 24



“WHERE'S DANI?” DREW ASKED as he stepped through the door Ty held open.

“Shopping with Sam. Picking up some clothes for the kids, or so I'm told,” Ty answered, closing the door behind Drew and moving toward the kitchen. It was hard to miss how bad Drew looked, including the look of relief that crossed his face after finding out Dani wasn't home. His eyes were red with fatigue, his usually immaculate clothes were rumpled—his shirt was even untucked—and his facial hair was growing in, making him look almost scruffy.

“I'd offer you a beer,” Ty said, opening the fridge. “You look like you could use it, but you also look like it might put you to sleep.”

Drew eyed him as he pulled out a chair at the kitchen table and didn't answer. Ty pulled out a bottle for himself, popped the top, and leaned against the counter, knowing Drew would talk when he was good and ready.

A half a beer later, in which time they'd done nothing but sit in the quiet, Drew rubbed his hands over his face, swore, and asked for one himself. Ty handed him a bottle and then sat opposite him as Drew took a long pull.

“Robertson's done,” he said.

Ty blinked. “Excuse, me?”

“He's out.”

“Out, as in out of reach? Out of the dealings? Out of what?” Ty prompted, leaning forward, listening.

“Out of the election,” Drew said under his breath. Then, taking another deep breath, he spoke louder. “He's not going to run. He's withdrawing from the election.”

“It's four months away,” disbelief and shock clear in Ty's voice.

“I know. It's the only compromise we could come to,” Drew closed his eyes and let his head fall back. They remained quiet for a long time until Drew lifted his head and met Ty's gaze.

“This is the story and you're not hearing it from me,” he said with a pointed look. Ty nodded and Drew continued. “Robertson admitted to knowing Frey, admitted to helping him by giving him contacts in the extraction and industrial construction industries in the seventies. He told us everything he knew about what happened in Vietnam and it's about what we thought.”

“Frey set him up and then called in favors?”

Drew nodded. “Robertson says Frey had a video of that day. A video showing him cowering behind a tree as Frey took on the Vietcong. Robertson was hit and did get knocked out which is why he didn't remember any of it until Frey showed him the video—after he won his first election.”

“Hold on,” Ty held up a hand. “Frey had the whole ambush recorded? Who would do that—and for what purpose?”

“From what Robertson remembered, Peterson, one of the other officers involved, was the cameraman.”

“Only Peterson didn't make it out.”

“Robertson doesn't remember what happened, but he said he wouldn't put it past Frey to have killed Peterson too.”

“So we've got Robertson not remembering the ambush and Frey feeding him lies about how courageous he was. So, Robertson goes home, campaigns, wins, and then Frey presents him with the video and starts calling in favors?”

“That's about how it started, according to Robertson,” Drew added.

“Okay,” Ty nodded, soaking in the information, the confirmation that the sitting president was involved with a man like Frey. “So then what?”

“Robertson didn't hear from him for years, and then one day George Collier, a friend and major contributor to Robertson's campaign, mentions Frey in a conversation. Robertson says he was surprised to hear Frey's name after all the time that had passed, but not surprised to hear it in conjunction with some shady arms dealing that was going on in South America at the time. He claims it was Collier who suggested they use Frey to orchestrate the arming of a guerilla group interested in overthrowing a certain dictator that wasn't very friendly to the current US administration.”

“And thus started the slippery slope.” Ty sat back in his chair in disgust.

“Pretty much,” Drew admitted. “Frey kept his regular business going, but from then on out, he would do favors for Robertson and vice versa. Collier was always the intermediary, which is why we have no record of Robertson and Frey being in the same area since the seventies.”

“And Sonny? And Dani's parents?”

“Collier had a meeting with Frey a few days after Sonny's dad was killed. Robertson claims all he knew was that Collier was going to talk to Frey about doing something to increase his, Robertson's, approval ratings.”

“Like orchestrate a terrorist attack and blame the kid,” Ty provided, his voice flat.

Drew wagged his head. “Robertson claims he had no idea what Collier or Frey had in mind.”

“You believe him?”

Drew was silent for a minute. “Yeah, I do. I don't think he knew what Frey was planning. He all but got sick when we told him about the weapons Eagle's Wing was going to collect from Getz and that we'd found plans to the IRS headquarters in their compound.”

“He could be faking it,” Ty countered.

“He could be, but I don't think so. He didn't tell us anything until we fed him that piece of information. After he realized what Frey was capable of, he started talking.” Drew pressed his lips.

“And offered his resignation.”

“And offered his resignation,” Drew nodded.

“So, what else did you get? Anything on Frey?”

Drew let out a heavy breath. “We think it was just in the timing that he targeted Sonny. Sonny was on Frey's mind when Collier talked to him. Frey needed a scapegoat, and who better to manipulate than the grieving son of a former CIA informant. The man's a damn puppeteer, the way he manipulates people,” Drew swore for emphasis.

“But what about now? Did Robertson know where Frey might be now?”

Ty watched a muscle in Drew's jaw tick as he sat forward and began to pick at the label on the bottle. It had been a long couple of days for Drew and Ty felt for him.

“Africa,” Drew spoke. Ty glanced up and met his eyes. “He owns an island off the coast of Sierra Leone. He also owns islands in the Caribbean, the Mediterranean, and a few other places, in case you were wondering what he's done with the money he's collected over the years.”

Ty didn't, not really. What Frey did with his money was irrelevant at the moment. He studied the man across the table and absorbed what he wasn't saying. They were going after him. And by the looks of it, soon.

“When do we go?” Ty asked.

“Ty,” Drew warned, but more out of duty than anything else. “You don't need to go. You can stay here with Dani. The rest of the team is going.”

“I know,” he responded, not moving his gaze from Drew.

“Dani's not going to like it,” Drew tried again.

“I know,” he replied again. Drew swore and raked a hand through his hair.

“We leave in two days,” he said, resigned.

“We?”

“Me, a couple of folks from Cotter's team, Roddy, Fawkes, and Jay. Of course Cotter wanted to go, but, like Dani, he's out.”

“Roddy, Fawkes, and Jay?” Ty asked, not bothering to hide the surprise in his voice.

Drew nodded. “You were right, they took a liking to Dani,” he added with a tired smile.

Ty let the information sink in. Never in a million years did he think he'd be out on another mission with his former team. And he'd never been more grateful for their friendship. It was going to be a shitty operation and he was relieved beyond reason to know his friends would have his back when he went for Frey. And they'd all understand that Frey would be his, without question. Aside from wanting to deal with Frey for what he did to Dani, he also knew that Dani, once she accepted she wouldn't be going after Frey herself, wouldn't trust anyone but him to do it. If anyone else told Dani that Frey was taken care of, she wouldn't believe it, she'd always carry a little bit of doubt. But if it came from him, she would be able to close that chapter of her life and move on. And the only way it would truly come from him is if he took care of Frey himself.

Ty stood and dumped the rest of his beer down the sink. He didn't drink all that much and had only had a few glasses of wine with Dani since she'd come home from the hospital, but now, well, now he wasn't about to put anything that might impair his ability to function into his system until after the mission was complete.

“Where do I need to be?” he asked. Drew looked up and Ty could see the debate still warring in Drew. “It has to be me and you know it,” Ty said. “It can't be her and she won't trust anyone else.”

Drew closed his eyes and then gave a slight nod before pushing out of his chair. “Tonight we go to DC. We'll have a debrief there and then head out.”

Ty nodded.

“What about Dani?” Drew asked. “She's getting stronger, but I don't want…” he let his voice trail off.

“She'll have to face it sooner or later,” Ty replied with a regretful sigh. Frey hadn't killed her, but had taken a good agent out of commission.

“You'll tell her?”

“You chicken?” Ty offered a smile, trying to lighten the moment. Trying to pretend they weren't talking about the end of Dani's career.

Drew smiled back. “Hell, yes.”

Ty sobered as they moved toward the door. He reached for the knob and pulled the door open with a sigh. “Yeah, I'll tell her,” he replied, the weight of the information hanging heavy on his shoulders.

After Drew left, Ty sat in the armchair and waited for Dani to get home. His bag was packed, his flight was booked, and all that was left to do was talk to Dani. He didn't bother trying to suppress his anxiety about taking part in the mission. He was more in shape than he was a few weeks earlier, but nowhere near where he'd been when he was at the top of his game, when he was an active duty SEAL. Still, it wasn't this that made the thought of deploying so difficult. It was Dani.

He'd deployed so many times during his time as a SEAL, but this was different. It was even different than leaving Carrie because, while he didn't belittle what he and Carrie had once felt for each other, what he felt for Dani was different. Not only was he was older and more aware of what he wanted out of life, but he had a different appreciation for how unique and fragile life, and love, could be. And in those hours, as he waited for Dani to come home, he gained a whole new respect for the men and women of the armed forces who left their spouses and loved ones behind.

He heard the door fly open and slam shut. By the sounds of Dani's movements, by the way she kicked off her shoes and tossed her keys on the entry table, he knew she already knew something was going on. He stood and waited for her to enter the living room.

She rounded the corner and, when her eyes met his, he felt as if someone were ripping his heart out.

“You're going,” she said, so quietly it stopped his breath. He moved toward her, but she put her hand up to stop him.

“I heard on the radio that Robertson is withdrawing from the election. Some ‘private medical condition that may interfere with his presidential duties,’” she repeated what he assumed she'd heard. Ty hadn't bothered to watch or listen to the news, Robertson was now inconsequential to him.

“His party held an emergency meeting and has given the nomination to the vice president. He knew about Frey and knows where he is and you're going after him,” she rambled. Ty stayed where he was, wanting desperately to hold her, but knowing she needed some time.

“Don't go for me, Ty,” she pleaded. Her voice broke. “Please, don't go for me.”

“Oh, Ella,” he said, as he moved to her, unable to stay away any longer. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. She tucked her head against his shoulder and held on. He leaned his cheek against the top of her head and breathed in her scent—fresh and subtle with hints of honeysuckle that reminded him of his childhood. “I'm going for me,” he said. “I'm going for us,” he added, holding her tighter.

“But not for me,” she repeated. He shook his head. In truth, he was going in part for her, for all the reasons he'd talked about with Drew—mainly because she wouldn't trust anyone but him to give her a truthful account of what would take place on Frey's little island. But she didn't need to hear this and he didn't need to say it. And it was just as true that he was going for himself. He needed to know Frey was either dead or so under the control of Drew and his team that he wished he was dead. He wanted Frey out of their lives, without any doubt. Without any regrets.

“I wish I could go instead of you,” she stated. His heart felt like it was going to burst from his chest. The honesty of it was clear in her voice and her body as she leaned against him. She would take his place if meant keeping him safe.

But that wasn't possible.

“Honey, you know—” She placed two fingers over his lips and stopped him. Pulling back to look him in the eye, she spoke.

“I know,” she said with a calm acceptance. “You and Drew have been tiptoeing around it since I was in the hospital. Why you would think I wouldn't figure out that my days as a field agent were over, I don't know.” She gave him a sad smile.

“Maybe because we didn't want to accept it either,” Ty offered, running a finger across her cheek, pausing at her lips and then replacing his finger with a light brush of his lips against hers.

“So, when do you leave?” Her voice hesitated on the last word.

“My flight is in six hours.” She held him tighter for a moment and then, with a sigh, seemed to accept whatever the fates would bring them.

“Will you lie with me until you have to go?”

Ty cradled her against him as they walked toward the bedroom. “Anything, Dani. Anything you want.”