2 weeks later
Rushing to a last minute meeting early on a Monday morning didn’t exactly bode well for the rest of her week. Walking as fast as she could in her four inch heels, Claire was halfway from her car to the front door of the imposing black Fort Meade CIA headquarters building when her cell rang. It wasn’t even seven a.m., so whoever was calling probably didn’t have good news. With a mental curse she slowed enough to dig through her purse then continued hurrying to the entrance as she checked the screen.She bit back a groan when she saw her father’s number on display and answered anyway. “Hi, Dad. I’m just on my way into an important meeting and I’m in a rush, so I can’t talk right now.” Her boss’s call had woken her from a dead sleep at five thirty and she had less than ten minutes to get up to his office for the impromptu seven o’clock meeting. Whatever it was about, it had to be big. The nervous flutter in her belly intensified.
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Risen To The Top CHAPTER 80
The door opened. A dark-haired man probably in his mid thirties stood there dressed in a navy blue dress suit. He nodded at Luke as he entered. “Morning.”“Morning. Evers, this is Claire Oliver. Claire, Jake Evers, FBI.”Claire half rose to shake the hand he offered. “Hi.”“Hello.” Evers released her hand and glanced at Luke. “You tell her?”“Just did. She’s doing fine.”She didn’t feel fine, Claire thought as she sank back into her chair and Evers moved past her to another. Her hands were clammy and her insides were in knots.Luke turned his head and smiled at someone else in the doorway. “Hey.”Claire looked over in time to see a familiar face appear. Pam Webster, part owner and head of L.J Corp Security. Delighted, she smiled too and started to rise then spotted a second man behind her. For a second her heart stuttered but then he came into the light and she recognized Alexaner Kane
Risen To The Top CHAPTER 81
Stepping out of his apartment building into the late September sunshine, Paulo walked down to his favorite neighborhood coffee shop on the corner. The sunlight felt good on his face as it filtered through the scarlet and gold leaves of the trees he passed, transforming them into blazing pieces of jewel-toned stained glass. Though it was warm out now, the temperature overnight had been chilly and a lingering dampness hung in the air.The heady scent of freshly roasted coffee beans hit him when he opened the door to the shop and held it for a woman carrying a to-go cup in one hand and leading a toddler with the other. She smiled her thanks and he carried on to wait in line.At the counter, the barista smiled at him. “Morning, Paulo. Usual today?”“Two of them, please. To go.”“You bet.” She took his money and he walked around to wait by the side counter for his drinks. He filled the first one with a good amount of cream and laced
Risen To The Top CHAPTER 82
The cheap and slightly rundown apartment building where Robby lived was surrounded by blocks of others just like it. The wooden exterior’s paint was peeling and nothing had been remodelled since it was built in the 60s. Since he lived on government assistance and wouldn’t take any money from her or their father, this was all he could afford.Claire parked at the curb out front and climbed out as Marshall pulled up behind her. She offered him a wave of thanks and he raised his hand in acknowledgement. Then to her surprise, he cut the engine.She stopped on the sidewalk to look back at him. Was he seriously going to sit there while she checked on her brother and then follow her home afterward? She sighed and headed for the frosted glass door at the apartment’s entry. Yeah it felt nice to know he still cared, but she refused to let that sway her. It wasn’t fair to either of them. She couldn’t live the kind of life he wanted.Facing the prospect
Risen To The Top CHAPTER 83
At seven thirty the next morning Marshall pushed open the door of the team’s new office space the CIA had put them in. Alex was already there, along with the two other L.J Corp employees they’d worked with over in Cuba, all seated around a large rectangular table strewn with laptops and papers.Blake Sean looked up to nod at him, a former Marine Scout/Sniper with medium-toned brown skin and hazel eyes. Beside him sat Bob Duke, ex Force Recon NCO and resident computer genius. Aside from Claire, Duke was the best Marshall had seen with IT stuff. His collar-length black hair was already mussed from him shoving his fingers through it. Staring at the laptop screen in front of him, he muttered a quiet curse and typed something with a series of quick keystrokes.Marshall strode over to take a look at the screen. “Hit a snag already?”Duke typed something else in and responded without looking up. “Whoever the Connery and Cuban terrorists have as an
Risen To The Top CHAPTER 84
My God, had a work day ever gone so slowly before? She couldn’t remember one ever being longer.Claire rode down the elevator with Marshall and Alex, feeling caged in between their muscular builds in the confined space. Bad enough that she’d been paired with Marshall for at least part of this investigation, but she knew without a doubt that Luke had taken these two down to his office to talk about her and the possible threat against her. No one had said a word to her about the meeting since and it pissed her off. If she was in danger she had a right to know what was happening just as soon as new information came in. Except she knew Marshall would never hide something that important from her, no matter what. Didn’t mean she wasn’t curious as hell about what had been said in Luke’s office though.“I’m starved,” Alex said as the elevator passed the third floor. “You guys want to grab a bite together?”Marshall stole a sideways glance at her, pr
Risen To The Top CHAPTER 85
Marshall followed her next to Robby’s. At his door she knocked a few times but there was no answer. Berating herself for the jolt of fear that seized her, she set the groceries down and dug her spare key out of her pocket. Her hand shook as she turned the brass knob. Inside she found Robby passed out on the couch, vials of pills lined up next to him on the coffee table. Pausing in the kitchen doorway, she stared at his chest. It was moving up and down. Claire closed her eyes and let out a breath of relief. For a moment she’d thought—“Everything all right?”She whirled around to find Marshall standing in the apartment doorway. She’d been so focused on making sure Robby was okay she hadn’t realized she’d left it wide open. “He’s just sleeping,” she whispered, the flood of relief draining what little energy she had left. “I’ll unpack these and get going. He’s not going to wake up anytime soon.”Probably better that he didn’t until she was gone
Risen To The Top CHAPTER 86
Paulo couldn’t believe his luck. Considering who his target worked for, he’d assumed locating them would be much harder. Yet here he was, on the sidewalk across from the tidy brick two-story house in the quiet residential neighborhood of Columbia. All the lawns were manicured, the fallen leaves carefully raked up and placed into bags waiting at the curb for the city crews to take them away for composting. All except the house he was staring at.Its yard hadn’t been tidied up for a while, if the carpet of damp, decaying leaves was any indication. The lawn was in need of a mowing too. As if whoever lived here was either too busy to deal with it, or perhaps they didn’t care. Whatever the case, it made the property stand out in this well kept neighborhood. He cast another glance up and down the street. A jogger was headed away from him at the far end. Most of the driveways were empty, everyone off to work or to drop their kids off at school. This was too easy.
Risen To The Top CHAPTER 87
He was up and out of the chair heading for the quiet of the living room without conscious thought. Oliver had never called him before. Ever. “Hi there. How are you?”“I’m…not good. I didn’t know who else to call.” The man’s voice cracked, sending Marshall’s pulse up a notch.Claire was fine, still out with her friends, or Duke would’ve called. “What’s wrong?”A shaky sigh answered him. “I can’t get hold of Claire but she told me you were in town. Are you still?”“Yeah, what do you need?”“Just… Can you meet me at her place? I need to talk with her and it would help to have you here when I do.” He was near tears, the ragged edge to his voice making the hair on Marshall’s nape prickle. “I’ll tell you everything when you get here.”“I’ll be there in ten minutes.” Marshall hung up and raced back into the kitchen to grab his keys. Alex and Sean were on their feet.“What’s up? Do you need us?” Alex asked.He shook his head. “Not yet. That was Claire’s