Effective immediately, p.17
Effective Immediately, page 17
part #3 of The Agency Files Series
When the third attempt to leave found her stalker still perusing granny sweaters at the corner of the women’s department, Sara tried another tactic. She beckoned the attendant over to her and pointed. “See that guy? He followed me out of the store and back in. I don’t know who he is. Is he an employee? Does he work for the store? Do they think I stole something? Can you like, get someone to come in here and search me or whatever because he’s totally creeping me out.”
The attendant picked up a phone and dialed a three-digit number. She relayed Sara’s message and listened. Sara tapped her nails on the wall and peered around the corner to see if the guy had moved. His eyes met hers. Sara shivered and ducked. “He totally just glared at me,” she hissed. “I didn’t do anything!”
The attendant pulled her back into the dressing area and murmured. “Security is on the way. They’re going to escort you out of the mall and to your car while the mall police take him in for questioning. I saw him watching you too—just now. He’s getting closer, so we’re going to make sure you’re safe.”
As the woman’s words registered, Sara felt the blood drain from her face. “No… you seriously don’t know him? He’s not one of your guys?”
“No.” The woman gave yet another peek around the corner and grew rigid. “That’s it. Stay here. Lock yourself in a room if you feel threatened.”
Sara listened from the first dressing room as the attendant confronted the man. “Sir, I am going to have to ask you to leave this department. You are making our customers uncomfortable.”
After that, the discussion grew heated but incomprehensible. Threats—that much was evident—flowed from both people as the man and woman argued. The moment security arrived, Sara knew it. Voices escalated as they led the man away. The attendant appeared with a female security guard. “This is Gayle. She and one of the guys will walk you to your car.”
A moment after she flung her arms around the woman, Sara stepped back, embarrassed. “I feel silly. I mean, for all I know, he thought I was cute and wanted my number, but man, he creeped me out.”
Gayle shook her head as Sara spoke. “People do not become volatile when they don’t get to ask a girl for her number. Something’s off with him, and I think you were smart to come in like that.”
“My boyfriend is kind of over-protective. He’s always imagining people out to get me, so he goes over these kinds of scenarios. I never thought it would actually happen!”
They began walking to the side exit, Sara flanked on each side by Gayle and the other guard—a young and cute one too. Gayle didn’t say anything for a moment and then asked. “So is he like the jealous type—your boyfriend? Or is he just one of those safety nuts who’ll bubble wrap his kids?”
“Yeah, it’s more like safety stuff. Guys flirt with me sometimes and it doesn’t get him all worked up. He says they have good taste and thanks me for not dumping him for them—especially the ones that are the fat old guys who probably have a wife and ten kids, y’know. That’s always funny. But even the cool ones that a lot of men would find intimidating, he’s just like, ‘I’m lucky you picked me.’”
“Sounds like what my mom always called ‘a keeper.’”
Sara smiled, and as she did, she could feel it was that slow smile that Ernie loved so much. I’ll have to tell him. He’d like that. “Yeah. Ernie’s definitely a keeper.”
At her car, the guy checked out the trunk and backseat before waving her on. “Have a great day.”
Gayle nodded. “If you feel threatened at all—ever—call for security like you did, and if you’re not here, go straight to the police.”
“Like they won’t think I’m nuts,” Sara muttered. “I’m just grateful that you didn’t.”
The woman walked away with a half-smile, but before Sara could back out of the parking space, a knock on the window made her jump. Gayle motioned for her to lower the window. “I just wanted to say something. It doesn’t matter if the police believe you. If you feel like you did today and are out and about, just go. It’ll freak out whoever is bothering you. And that’s all you need.”
Mark listened and thanked the caller. He slammed down the phone and called for Tyler. “I need you to get a message to Ernie.”
“Can’t you call—?”
“Don’t interrupt me. Just got a call from a contact in the Denver police. He says Sara came in claiming that someone was following her—turns out she called for mall security just an hour before that. He’s got her going through mug shots to keep her occupied, but we’ve got to get her out of there. Ernie’ll know how to convince her.”
Tyler’s eyes grew wide. “Out of there as in…”
“As in, they’re both headed for WITSEC if I have any pull left anywhere.”
“I thought you said she has a big Italian family. ‘More cousins than an orphanage’ were, I believe, your exact words.”
Yeah, I didn’t say it’d be easy but it’s that or she dies. Mark didn’t allow himself to consider her refusal. It simply wasn’t an option anymore. “Which is why we need Ernie’s help. I want his recommendation in an hour.”
“Okay… I’ll get right on that.”
Mark waited until the kid got to the door before calling out again. “Tyler?”
“Yeah?”
“Don’t ‘get right on that.’ Get it done.”
The scared rabbit look that bounded across Tyler’s face told him he’d made his point. Mark’s hand hovered over the phone again. To call or not—the wrong answer would kill any chance he had of convincing Keith to help with extraction. He reached once more, against his better instincts, and snatched back his hand again. Patience. If nothing else, he’ll hear your desperation when you say you haven’t heard from Ernie yet. That’ll make him run.
The analysts were researching the threat risks to no less than four potential clients—one of whom didn’t know he was a client. I need Keith for that case, too—the one case he can’t take even if he comes back today. Mark clenched his jaw and fought the rising temptation to break something. Admiral Stenge. I’ve got to meet with him. He knows what kind of people I’m looking for.
His hand hovered over the phone receiver again but he pulled out his cellphone instead. The call went to voicemail. Mark listened to the recording and left his usual cryptic message. “Call your brother. He’s in trouble.”
Tyler stepped in the door and pointed to Mark’s phone. “Ernie on line two and Erika Polowski on line one.”
“How’d she get this number!” Mark glared at the phone as if it would—if it could—answer him.
“It was rerouted twice. She informed me that it’s been a ten minute process and she’s working, so please hurry.”
Mark laughed as he picked up the phone and aimed his index finger at the one. “She didn’t say please, and we both know it.”
“Well…”
He punched the number and grinned as he said, “Erika. So nice to hear from you.”
If the string of profanity that began and cut off almost as quickly were any indication, Erika had been spending quite a bit of time with Keith lately. “—the—whatever is going on over there? Keith is lost, confused, doubting himself—even his faith. Don’t you have ways to fix this kind of thing?”
Despite knowing the answer, Mark was forced to ask the question. “Do you think he’s a danger to himself or anyone else?”
“Of course not, you idiot! C’mon! This is Keith here!”
“And Keith Auger is a man who takes his faith more seriously than anyone I’ve ever met. If he’s doubting, at all, then I have to assume he’s in a bad enough place to act out of character. I can’t risk him or anyone else just because I think I know him. Do I have to remind you of Corey?”
Silence—if her low growl and what he thought might be a pen clicking could be called “silence”—hovered between the two miles of airspace. “Okay. Fine. I just don’t know what to do with him. He took a job as a security guard—security guard, Mark!”
Of course, Mark knew that. He’d been instrumental in ensuring that Keith was hired instead of rejected as “overqualified” and “likely to quit when something better came along.” He just hoped Keith didn’t think of that. “It’ll be good for him—decompression. We’ve had an intense six months around here. Keith needs that. I worked him too hard.”
“Do you think he’ll come back?”
Knowing it would irritate her, Mark answered her question with a question. “Do you?”
“I—I don’t know. The day he told me, I would have given it a week—two at most—but now…” The catch in her voice—that he hadn’t expected.
“We’re keeping an eye on him. We have to make sure he isn’t a target, for one thing.”
“Target!”
Mark kicked himself for being so careless. It goes to show you’re too emotionally invested. You can’t afford those mistakes! He cleared his throat before trying to reassure her. “Anytime an agent comes face to face with the threat or disarms, disables, or harms that threat, we have to assume there may be repercussions. We’re watching the situation closely. If there’s even a whisper of anything, we’ll get him out—fast.”
Something in what he’d said calmed her. He heard a slow exhale and a sigh. “Sorry. You’re right. You’ve known him a lot longer than I have. You care about him too. I overreacted.”
“No. You came to me with a concern. It weighs into every decision we make. I appreciate it.” Though stepping over boundaries Mark rarely crossed, he heard himself add, “You’re good for him, Erika. I’m glad you’re there for him. Keith cares about you a lot more than he realizes, and when he does, I hope you’re ready for the fallout.”
“Fallout?”
“He’s a man of faith. You reject it. It’s going to be emotional carnage for him.”
With that, Mark said goodbye and disconnected the call.
The moment Mark’s voice came on the line, Ernie began the tirade he’d rehearsed while being on hold for the past ten minutes. “What is going on over there! This used to be an efficient organization. Now it’s like you’re running a clubhouse for junior agent wannabes!”
“Ca—”
“Don’t you dare tell me to calm down! That little snot Tyler said you need to talk to me about Sara. I told you. Keep Sara out of this!”
“We can’t, Ernie. She’s being targeted.” Mark waited a moment before adding, “We need your help.”
“My help? This is what you’re there for! I’m just a displaced mole—” Without regard for the fact that he was talking to his boss, Ernie cussed Mark out—thoroughly.
After a long pause, Mark continued as if Ernie hadn’t just asked to be fired and set adrift with no help at all. “We have to convince Sara to go into WITSEC with you.”
His heart sank. She’d never do it. She’d never leave her family, and the government wasn’t going to relocate and assign fifty people just for his testimony against the Kasimirs. He knew his value, and while high, it wasn’t millions of dollars high. Not when he could technically be indicted with the rest of them. “The cost of breaking the law to help it.”
“What?” The confusion in Mark’s voice changed to sympathy. “Sorry, Ernie. If I could avoid it, I would. But if we don’t convince her, we’re going to have to do an involuntary extraction. She’s looking at mug shots now, but they can’t keep her there forever.”
“I’ll call her. She’ll be upset. I’ll tell her to stay there until I get there. She will. I’ll just take my time getting there, obviously.”
“You can’t go back to Denver, Ernie.”
“I don’t have a—” Too many years with the Kasimirs meant that he had a fine repertoire of epithets that he used freely, and in semi-alphabetical order, with a finesse that would have made Jenk proud. “—choice! I’ve got to get her out of there, and she’s not coming if I’m not there!”
Mark’s sigh meant he’d won—something that both thrilled and terrified him. Him winning meant danger was the only option, and in Ernie’s opinion, danger should never be an option for a tech guy. “Where do I go?” he whined, hating himself for sounding like a petulant teenager.
“Claire can take you to the airport. We’re going to have Brian fly you in—Marty’s busy—and we’ll get you in through the yard instead of the front. That’ll minimize risk, but we have to assume they’ll have plants on the Denver force. They’ll be giving you a Middle Eastern look—goatee, business suit, nerdy glasses—”
“No! I did nerdy glasses in Fairbury. It’s too recent. They’ll recognize it. Give me one of those turban things instead. I’ll wear contacts and have a full beard and mustache.”
The pause on Mark’s end meant that pulling together the look would be harder than he’d thought. Ernie paced the room, guzzling down the last of his beer and inhaling a cold slice of pizza in case his next meal was a long time coming. In the helo, it’d be five hours or more before they touched down in Denver.
“Okay, we’ve got that in the works. Just get to the airport with Claire—the jet’s at Brunswick. Make sure she knows that.”
“Jet?”
“Yeah,” Mark said a bit absently. “I—sorry.” The focus was back as he continued. “A helo is too slow. Keeping her there for two or three hours is one thing. Keeping her there for five or six is impossible. They can’t hold her and they can’t let her go. So call and get it set up. Tell her to stay but that you’re in traffic that’s completely shutting down I-80.”
“Don’t need to. She thinks I had a conference this week, so flying in makes sense. I’ll tell her I board in a few and I’ll be there in a couple hours.”
The relief in Mark’s voice unnerved Ernie more than he cared to consider. “Got it.” It galled him to do it, but Ernie heard himself add, “Thanks, Mark.”
“No, Ernie. Thank you. What you’ve done for The Agency is invaluable. I can’t and won’t forget it. What you’ve done for this country is remarkable. This shouldn’t have happened. I’m sorry.”
His phone went dead. Ernie punched in Sara’s number and waited impatiently for her to answer. She didn’t. Alarm filled him and he turned panicked eyes toward the door as Claire rushed in. “She’s not answering!”
“She’s in the police station. Leave a message. We’ll destroy that phone in five minutes.”
Once more, he dialed the number and waited. She picked up first ring. “Hey, babe,” he murmured as he gave Claire a thumbs up.
“Ernie! Man, where the —” Off she went on a long rambling tirade about her recent and unnerving experiences. “—so creepy! Just standing out there looking at women’s clothes—picking at them. I swear he fingered more bras and panties than a guy with a serious underwear fetish!”
“Good one. So the mall cops got him?”
“Yeah. They walked me out to my car and everything. The woman was great. Told me I wasn’t paranoid or anything. Said if I felt even a little bothered, ever, just to go to the police. They might think I’m nuts but it’ll scare off the dude. Pretty smart, except for one thing.”
He knew the answer before he asked, but Ernie knew she was waiting for his question. “What’s that?”
“I can’t leave. I don’t know if he’s watching or what? How’d he get out so fast?”
“Dunno. Might not have had any evidence to hold him or he could be some kind of ambassador’s son with diplomatic immunity and great taste in women…”
“Seriously, Ernie, if you were here I’d kiss and kick you at the same time. I don’t know what to do! I’ve been sitting here with this stupid iPad staring at face after face and I can’t find anyone who looks right…”
The hesitation at the end of her declaration brought a smile to his lips. “And yet they all do too, right?”
“Yes! The cops here don’t get that!”
“They do… but if they tell you that, you’ll just give up, so they keep you going in case you actually do see him and recognize him. It keeps you there, safer, and it might help nab the guy too.” He waited for her to comment, but all he heard was a sniffle. “Look, babe. I’m about to board my plane. I’ll be back in just about two hours. What station are you at? I’ll drive straight there. Don’t leave, okay? You’ll feel better, and if there is some jerk out there trying to put a move on my girl, I want to be with you when he tries it—jerk.”
“You already said that, but thanks. Okay. Hold on.” Her muffled voice sounded pleading to him, but when she came back, Sara said, “I told them that my boyfriend is coming and I’m not leaving until you get here. They didn’t seem to like it, but I think they’re playing head games with me. I’ll be waiting.”
Just before he rang off, Ernie remembered the costume. “Look, I had to do a funky skit with a few guys and I’m dressed all weird. So, don’t freak out when I arrive looking crazy. And don’t tell anyone. I want to see their faces when they see your foreign boyfriend show up when they’re expecting a computer nerd from the city.”
“Ooookay.”
“Well, I can go home and change first,” he offered, knowing she’d never take it.
“No! It’s fine. I’m good. Just get here. Please!”
He kept his emotions and his relationship very separate from work. None of the Kasimirs or those from The Agency had ever heard him interact with her, and he liked it that way, but with Claire standing there, pointing to the door with a “let’s get out of here!” expression, he paused, murmured a few well-chosen promises, and ended the call with, “It’s going to be okay. I’m on my way. I love you, Sara.”
Chapter Twenty
Yawning, Keith stepped from the golf-cart-masquerading-as-a-cop-car for the Rockland Bank and Trust parking garage. “All clear—shocker.”
His instincts—too sharp for the job of making sure kids weren’t making out or doing drugs in the garage after hours—made every slight rustle send his nerves into overdrive. “Get a grip, Auger. Third night on the job. You should have adapted by now.”
He swiped his card key into the slot and typed his access code into the key pad. The door light glowed green. After a glance around him, he opened it and stepped inside, pulling it tight behind him. Next up: interior rounds. All doors—secure. All key panels—fine. Time for another hour of monitor surfing.
