Critical Doubt Read online

  "Your father was wrong about Mason, too. Didn't he get him the job at Spear? Didn't your dad put Mason in a position to steal from the company? From what I know, he talked Colonel Vance into giving Mason a shot."

  "That's right. Another check mark against him." She paused, frowning at the reminder that her father was involved with Spear. But there was no way he could have had anything to do with this. She forced that thought out of her head as the cab pulled up in front of the FBI office.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  After they were cleared to enter the offices, Ryker was escorted into an interrogation room where Todd was waiting, while Parisa took Savannah into the room next door where they could monitor the interview through the one-way mirror. Todd was handcuffed to the desk and he looked bad. His hair was wild. His eye was swelling from his fight with Ryker, but it was his nervous tension that was really noticeable. He was tapping his fingers on the desktop and his feet on the ground, shifting in his seat every other second.

  "I wonder if he's high," she muttered.

  "Seems like it," Parisa said. "He's been begging for a cigarette since he got here. But he wouldn't talk to any of us. Hasn't asked for a lawyer, though. That's something."

  "I don't know what he thinks Ryker can do for him."

  "Maybe he just needs to look into the eyes of someone he trusts."

  "Does he trust Ryker? Who knows? Their relationship has gotten very complicated." She paused as Ryker started to speak.

  "We found the road map," he told Todd. "This will all be over today. As soon as everyone else is rounded up, your opportunity to talk isn't going to be worth that much."

  "The map won't help you. You're seriously underestimating your former team."

  "Then talk to me."

  "They're listening, aren't they?"

  Ryker shrugged. "You've never been stupid. Look, Todd, the shipment left earlier. This plan is already being executed, and you're on the outs. Your team has moved on without you. They clearly consider you a liability. In fact, you should count yourself lucky that you're in custody, because you might be targeted if you weren't. You know too much. You're a loose end."

  "They're my team. You stepped away, I didn't."

  "Paul didn't abandon anyone, but he's in the hospital. Are you sure you know who you're working for?"

  Hearing the coldness in Ryker's voice made Savannah understand why he'd so often been called Stone Cold. He'd just never talked to her that way. But now his anger, his feeling of betrayal, was making him heartless. And Todd was getting nervous.

  "I'm working with my team—our team," Todd said.

  "It's not our team anymore."

  "We knew we couldn't count on you. That's why we didn't bring you in. You always thought you were better than us because you went to West Point."

  "Mason went to West Point, too."

  "Mason got there through a lot of hard work. You had family connections. And Mason has little support now. His medical expenses are beyond belief. You have no idea what it's like to have money problems. You've always had it easier than the rest of us. You don't know what it feels like to be desperate. But I do. And so do the others. We're doing this for the right reasons."

  "Is Ryker rich?" Parisa asked, drawing her attention away from the interview.

  "I don't know. I don't think so," she said. "He lives on a boat on the Chesapeake Bay. He drives a ten-year-old truck. If he has money, I don't know where it is." She frowned as she realized there was probably a lot about Ryker she still didn't know. She turned her attention back to him.

  "Once again," Ryker continued. "I have to remind you that Paul is in the hospital after he stopped someone from trying to kill me. The team is shattered. It's done."

  "I told you I don't know what happened there. You're trying to get me to turn on my team. I don't do that. You should know that about me."

  "Who else is involved besides Hank and Mason? Is Chief Tanner part of this plan? How did you get him involved?"

  "Paul knew some shit about him. Tanner cooperated to keep us quiet, but he only helped fake our deaths. He didn't know anything else." Todd paused. "But he got nervous when he realized you were staying at my house. He thought you might find the evidence we'd told him we had on his porn problems. I guess he decided to blow up the house, which was stupid. Mason was really pissed about that."

  "It made everything look suspicious," he agreed.

  "Yeah. The whole thing was harder than I thought it would be. I wish I'd died first. Having to see Abby's face, Tyler's tears…" Todd shook his head. "That was rough."

  "It's too bad Paul didn't get to see what he was putting his family through," he said sharply. "Did you tell him the pain his wife and child were in?"

  "I couldn't. He was having too many second thoughts. I had to tell him they were okay. I even said Colin was there. He thought Colin was better for Abby, so it made him more comfortable."

  "It made him comfortable to know another man was going to take care of his wife?"

  "He felt like a failure. He was trying to make it legitimately, but he couldn't find work."

  "He could have found work. He could have joined your company. Are they a part of this? Because after you left, they were grabbing up your files like there was some big secret in them."

  Todd had no reaction to that beyond a simple frown. "I don't know why they'd do that. They weren't a part of anything. Those jobs were stupid. I was a babysitter, and they didn't pay me well. Colton and Trent were raking it in, but not the rest of us."

  "How's it going down today? Who's working the intercept? Where are the guns going? How is the ransom going to happen?" The questions shot out of his mouth, one after the other.

  "Before I say anything more, you have to promise to help me."

  "I'm not FBI. I can't do anything to help you."

  "You seem tight with Savannah. Can you get her in here? She loves Paul. She'll want to help me."

  "Will she? After what you guys did to Abby?"

  "It was for her own good. And for Tyler, too."

  "Whatever you say to me, you're saying to the FBI. You know that. If you want a deal, show them you have something to sell. Give us information that we can use."

  There was a long moment of silence. Savannah watched as the two men stared at each other with so many emotions she couldn't begin to decipher them.

  Then Todd sat back in his chair. "I'm not talking until I get a promise in writing." He looked past Ryker to the mirror. "Do you hear that, Savannah? Make me a deal or get me a lawyer. That’s all I have to say."

  "You're a fool, Todd," Ryker said. "We carried you for years, covering up your mistakes, making excuses for your lack of abilities, for the way your nerves got in the way of executing your missions. I can't carry you anymore. I'm done."

  Ryker pushed back his chair and stood up, leaving the room without a backward glance.

  "That was cold," Parisa commented.

  "Yes," she said, feeling a chill in her bones. When Ryker didn't immediately enter the room where they were, she wondered if he'd left so abruptly because he was truly pissed at Todd or because the bells had started going off. "I thought he'd come in here when he was done. I should find him."

  "Give him a minute to cool off. And while you're doing that, you can tell me what's going on between you two," Parisa said, giving her a speculative look.

  "We're working together."

  "I'm not blind, Savannah. I've seen you work with plenty of men, but there is a hell of a lot of tension between you and Ryker. It feels like romantic, sexual tension to me."

  "Fine. We had a very brief fling a long time ago, and since we saw each other at the funeral, it got going again."

  "I knew it."

  "Yes, you're very insightful," she said dryly.

  "You should be careful, Savannah."

  "Why? Because hanging around with him almost got me killed?"

  "No. Because he looks like the kind of man who could break your heart."

 
She let out a sigh. "He probably is that kind of man. But as much as I tell myself that there is no future and I should keep my guard up, I can't do it. I can't seem to back away from him. It's like there's this invisible rope between us, always trying to pull us together."

  Parisa gave her an understanding smile. "You have it bad. And I know exactly what you mean."

  "It was that way with you and Jared?"

  "Yes, and like you and Ryker, we met under extreme circumstances. That only heightened everything."

  "But you guys made it last. That's impressive."

  "Do you see a future with Ryker?"

  "I don't know. Our lives are in very different places. He has issues he's dealing with that stem from the attack on his team. I think that's why he's having trouble handling Todd. He knows how much the guys have suffered since leaving the service, because he has suffered, too. And he appreciates their desire to take care of their families, even though he hates what they've chosen to do."

  "The road to hell is paved with good intentions. That's what my stepfather always says. We've both seen a lot of people do terrible things for what they think are good reasons. But you can't get caught up in their motivation, not with a multi-million-dollar cache of weapons on the line."

  "You don't have to worry. I won't compromise myself."

  "Not even for Ryker?"

  "He would never ask me to do that." Her gaze flew to the door as it opened, but it wasn't Ryker; it was the special agent in charge of the DC office, Lloyd Paxton, a fifty-something man, with twenty years of experience at the bureau. She'd met him briefly on her way into the office, and he hadn't seemed too thrilled with the fact that she'd delayed bringing them into the case until this point. He also didn't seem to like having Ryker in the mix, but so far, he had let Parisa run the show.

  "I have an update," he said. "Agents Ball and Lukowski found the Spear truck on the service road. However, the truck was empty."

  "The weapons were gone," she murmured, feeling a wave of disappointment.

  "Yes. Two members of Spear's security team were found unconscious in the truck. They appear to have been drugged. One was in the cab, the other in the back of the truck. The driver was not at the scene. Spear gave us the details on the driver: Roland Walker." Agent Paxton handed them a copy of a driver's license.

  Savannah took a quick breath. "That's not Roland Walker. That's Hank Morgan. He's part of Ryker's former ranger unit."

  "That makes sense. The address on the ID led to a car wash."

  "So, Hank Morgan was driving the truck. What about Mason Wrigley?"

  "I checked with the hospital earlier," Parisa answered. "He's expected to be in surgery for another hour at least."

  "He's really having surgery."

  "Yes, he is."

  "Get a warrant for his house," Agent Paxton said.

  "Already working on it," Parisa confirmed.

  "Good." His gaze moved to Savannah. "We appreciate your help, Agent Kane, and that of Mr. Stone. But we need you to step back now. We'll take it from here."

  "I'm not stepping back," she said quietly. "I'm going to see this through. I know the players better than anyone else in this office. You need me."

  "But I don't need Mr. Stone. He didn't get anywhere with Mr. Davis. Send him home. If you don't, I will."

  As Paxton left the room, she muttered, "Ass."

  Parisa smiled. "He's territorial. You know how it goes. Or maybe you've forgotten, because you have Flynn in your corner."

  "You could have Flynn as your boss, too. He'd love to have you on the team. We all would."

  "Right now, Jared needs to be here. But we are talking about making some changes in the next year, so we'll see."

  "Ryker is not going home."

  "I know, but he doesn't have to be here in the office."

  "He'd probably rather not be here," she admitted, wondering again where he was.

  Her phone buzzed and she pulled it out of her bag. "Oh, my God," she said.

  "Bad news?"

  "It usually is when my dad texts me. He says he needs to see me immediately, that it's urgent and has to do with Spear. Maybe he's found out something."

  "Do you want me to go with you?"

  "He specifically asked me to come alone."

  "Why would he do that?" Parisa asked. "Does he have something to hide? You don't think he's involved in this, do you?"

  "I can't imagine that he would be. He prides himself on his honesty, integrity, loyalty to country. He's so righteous in being right."

  "I've seen people who are very righteous and they're very wrong."

  "My dad is a lot of things that aren't wonderful. He's emotionless and hard. He can be ruthless and a little cruel. But he's not a traitor."

  "What are you going to do?"

  "My job. I'm going to talk to him. I'll take Ryker with me."

  "I thought you were supposed to go alone."

  "He can wait out front, but I want to get him out of Paxton's hair." They walked out of the room and down a short hall to the operations center. There were a dozen agents working on their computers but no sign of Ryker.

  Parisa stopped to ask one of the agents if they'd see him, and the woman pointed to the elevator.

  They went down to the lobby, stopping at the front desk. The security guard confirmed that Ryker had left ten minutes earlier.

  "I can't believe he just left," she said, feeling shockingly surprised and disappointed by his actions. "Why would he do that?"

  "Maybe he just went out to get some air, take a walk around the block," Parisa suggested.

  She pushed through the revolving door and walked into the afternoon sunshine. The street was crowded, and she scanned both directions with a sinking heart. "I don't see him anywhere."

  She pulled out her phone and texted him: Where are you?

  There was no immediate reply. "Damn him. Why does he have to be so stubborn and independent?"

  "Because he's a man," Parisa said with a soft smile. "Not that you aren't exactly the same, Savannah. You stood up to Paxton, and not many people in our office are willing to do that. It seems like Ryker is cut from the same cloth."

  "He was angry that I called you to the alley. He thought he could have gotten more out of Todd if you hadn't shown up."

  "It was the right play."

  "I know it was. And I thought we'd gotten past it. We'd agreed that we'd work off the same page in the future, but now he's gone, and I don't know where. Should I be worried? Could he be in trouble?" She wasn't normally a worrier. She didn't blow things out of proportion. She attacked problems one at a time. But now she found herself lost in a haze of concern. "What if the other guys have come after him? They tried to kill him last night."

  "He left the building under his own steam," Parisa reminded her. "Maybe he ran into Paxton, who told him thank-you for your service, and it made him angry."

  "That's possible."

  "You said he's been dealing with his own issues, and the betrayal of his friends has to be hitting him hard. Maybe he needed a minute."

  "I hope you're right. But I can't wait around here. I have to go to my dad's place. I really need a car."

  "You can have mine," Parisa said, pulling out her keys. "Let's go back inside. It's in the underground garage."

  She took one last look around and then headed to the garage. After hopping into Parisa's car, she texted Ryker again: Going to my dad's. He has information. Where are you? Text me.

  Once again there was no immediate reply, so she put the car in drive and pulled out of the garage.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  It was two o'clock in the afternoon when Savannah parked in front of a duplex about two miles from Spear Enterprises. She was still surprised that her dad had gone so far as to get a place in Bethesda to stay in. Before she got out of the car, she sent Ryker another text: I hope you're all right. Your silence is alarming. She sent the message and then added: If Agent Paxton said something to you about not needing your he
lp, don't worry about that. You're still in the loop. You and I are a team. Don't forget that.

  She sent the text and then got out of the car, not just feeling worried but also angry. She and Ryker had gotten so close. They'd been incredibly honest with each other, and he knew how important it was to her to be trusted, to be respected for who she was. Cutting her out now was making her feel like he didn't need her for anything. She couldn't stand that thought. But she might have to accept that he didn't need her, that whatever fantasy relationship future she'd been building in her head was just that—a fantasy.

  Ryker hadn't made her any promises, and she hadn't made him any. But there had been so much more between them than just sex. There'd been an emotional connection. Had it all been in her head?

  Damn him for making her doubt herself.

  She pushed him out of her head and pulled herself together, because she had another man to deal with who had always made her doubt herself. And the only reason she was dealing with him at all was because he might have knowledge that would help her figure out where the weapons were and who else was involved. Otherwise, she would have told him flat out that just because he said jump didn't mean she had to jump. She was done racing to see him whenever he wanted to throw her a crumb of attention.

  But this was work. And she was good at her job. She did what she had to do to be successful, even if that meant talking to him.

  She walked up the steps and rang the bell. Her father opened the door a moment later, waving her in with a somber expression on his face. He was dressed in uniform, as always. She couldn't remember the last time she'd seen him in casual clothes.

  The living room was sparsely furnished, with a couch and an armchair surrounding a coffee table laden with books. There was no television in the room. When her father wasn't working or keeping himself in impeccable shape, he read.

  There was a round table with two chairs next to the kitchen, and there appeared to be two bedrooms, accessed by a short hallway.