Code name cowboy k19 sha.., p.11
Code Name: Cowboy (K19 Shadow Operations Team One Book 4), page 11
“Decker is being modest, as usual,” said Darrow. “The ranch’s security is hardly ‘pretty good.’ It’s the best in the world. And the company he ‘works’ for? He actually is a partner of, with Rebel’s husband.”
“Winslow doesn’t care about that crap,” Decker muttered, clearly as uncomfortable with being the center of attention as I usually was.
Unless an athlete had highly visible endorsement deals like Lindsey Vonn or Shaun White, most of us remained out of the spotlight, with the exception of when we landed on a medal podium. While I’d won my share of them, I’d never risen to celebrity status, nor did I aspire to.
“Anyway, as I said, anything you need, say the word.”
I looked at Garrison, then at Decker. “Um, my understanding was you might have a phone and computer for me?”
“Sure do, and once we’re done here, we’ll head over to the place where you’re staying, and I’ll get you set up.” Decker looked around the table. “We can do that now, unless anyone has anything else to discuss.”
“Dinner,” said Darrow. “At the main house. I hope everyone can join us.” She turned to me. “Don’t worry, Rebel and Quint will do most of the cooking. I’ll be relegated to table setting, or something of that order.”
“I’m happy to help,” I told her as we walked out with the guys and over to the SUV.
“Listen, apart from what Decker said, if you feel like having some female company, there’s Rebel, myself, and a few others who either work with the Invincibles or married into it.” She laughed.
“Is Casper one of them?”
Darrow looked over her shoulder. I assumed to make sure no one else was within earshot. “I heard she was on your detail. And to answer your question, she’s not around much. She does a lot of foreign work, like her husband did before he died.”
“I was just curious.”
Darrow leaned in closer to me. “The lot of us are far more fun than Casper, I can assure you.”
17
COWBOY
Before setting up Winslow’s phone and computer, Decker got us both “loaded into” the ranch’s security system.
As Darrow had said, from what I saw as he walked us through it, the system truly was the best in the world. It combined facial recognition, finger- and palm-print technology, along with an infrared body scan. There wasn’t a chance in the world a person who wasn’t “loaded in” could set foot on ranch property. I also doubted Decker had explained even half of what it really entailed.
While it shouldn’t have surprised me, Winslow was enthralled with every aspect of it and asked questions I wondered whether Decker would answer. He had, although how completely, we’d never know.
“As long as you don’t divulge your location specifically, there’s no way anyone can trace either your phone’s or your computer’s location, so if you’d like to contact your parents, you’re welcome to,” Decker told her when he handed both over. “However, I must impress upon you that your whereabouts are on a need-to-know basis even within our organization, the organization Cowboy works for, as well as the FBI and the CIA.”
She nodded solemnly. “Understood.”
Decker leaned back in his chair and studied her. “How are you doin’, Winslow?”
“I’ll admit to being overwhelmed. On the other hand, I’m better than I thought I’d be.”
“You’re a survivor.”
“I am.” She hesitated for a moment, then spoke again. “I want to help with the investigation.”
Decker nodded, pushed back from the table, and stood. “If there isn’t anything else either of you need at the moment, I’ll head out. I look forward to seeing you at dinner.”
Winslow thanked him, and I offered to walk him to his vehicle.
“What do you think?” he asked once we were outside.
“To be honest, I’m not sure.”
“How much does she know?”
“Besides her own experience, she’s aware there’s an investigation into the murder of four other victims. She also knows we presume Ferrone is dead, and based on something he said, she knows he wasn’t acting alone.”
“Anything else?”
“She asked about the threat. I didn’t go into detail, but I did tell her we had reason to believe Ferrone intentionally let her go and that her life remained in danger.”
“Is she aware of Wasp’s experience?”
“No, sir.”
“Bryar’s?”
“No.”
“Maybe it’s time she was.” He got in the SUV but didn’t shut the door. “Maybe it’s time she knew all of it.”
When I went inside, Winslow was seated on one of the stools at the kitchen counter. Her head rested on her propped-up hands, and while she was staring at her computer, the screen was black.
I sat beside her. “Isn’t it working?”
“It is.”
“What’s goin’ on, Winslow?”
“I don’t know what to do.”
She dropped her hands and turned her stool so she faced me. I did the same and spread my legs so hers were between mine.
“I told Decker I wanted to help with the investigation, and all he said was he’d see us at dinner.”
“It isn’t his case, which means the extent of your involvement isn’t up to him.”
“Who is it up to?”
“Ultimately? My boss.”
“Doc?”
I shook my head. “He’s my boss’ boss.” I traced a circle on her knee with my finger and watched chill bumps appear on her arms. She had the same effect on me, not that now was the time for us to explore the phenomenon. “Decker suggested it was time I shared some of the details of the investigation with you.”
“You seem hesitant.”
“I am,” I admitted.
“You said before you were investigating the deaths of four women.”
I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “That’s right.”
“But there’s a lot more to it.” When I didn’t immediately respond, Winslow tried to turn her stool, but I held her in place.
“Some of what we’ve recently learned is disturbing.” I shook my head. “Horrifying.”
“You don’t think I can handle it.”
“Can you?”
“I’m stronger than you think.”
I shook my head again. “You’re wrong. Your strength is limitless.” She turned away. “Look at me.” I stared into her eyes when she did. “Remember when I said I’d tell you about my background—maybe it was my training—one day?”
Winslow nodded.
“Some consider the unit I was with to be the best trained, most deadly team in the military. I served with them for three years.”
“What are you saying, Garrison?”
“When it comes to what’s inside”—I pointed to my chest—“there wasn’t a single person I trained or served with who is stronger than you are.”
“Thanks, but that’s utter bullshit.”
“Maybe it’s you who doubts your strength.”
When she spun her stool again, I didn’t try to stop her. She got up and walked over to the window. “What do you think you’re protecting me from?”
“Things that give me nightmares and make me sick to my stomach. Powerlessness. Guilt.”
“Because I survived?”
“In part.”
She stalked back over to me. “But what if I can help?”
“What if you can’t?”
Winslow put her hands on my knees and lifted herself onto the stool. “The guilt will be worse if I don’t try.”
“I didn’t use the word horrifying to scare you off. It’s accurate.”
“I survived, Garrison. I escaped. Maybe Ferrone let me go. We’ll never know. All that matters is, I got out. Four women didn’t. Don’t they deserve justice? Shouldn’t I do everything in my power to make sure no one else goes through what I did? Maybe it’s what I’m meant to do.”
“There are two other survivors.”
Her eyes scrunched. “There are?”
“Some things about their experiences were similar to yours. In both those cases, they overheard the person who kidnapped them talk on the phone to someone we believe was giving them orders.”
“Was Brock one of those kidnappers?”
“Yes.”
“You said he killed himself. What happened to the other one?”
“I killed her.”
“Her?”
“That’s right.”
I watched Winslow process what I’d told her. I expected she’d have questions, so I waited before continuing.
“Where are the other two survivors?”
“One is at an undisclosed location, like you are.”
“And the other?”
“You met him—Wasp.”
Again, there were several seconds of silence while she thought through what I’d said. “Why isn’t he at an ‘undisclosed location’?”
“It’s easier to explain why you and the other person are. In the first instance, we were able to keep the details of the kidnapper’s death and the fact the victim survived, a secret. We have reason to believe her life remains in danger. The same is true for you.”
When I first told her about the note, I never told her what the actual threat was, and she hadn’t asked. Then, her only question had been if Ferrone wrote it, and I’d told her we didn’t believe so. At the time, her realization that it meant there was another killer was all she could handle. I hadn’t been the one to decide that was the case. She had, by not asking anything more.
“You’re talking about the note, aren’t you? The one that said Ferrone let me go.” She thought about it for a minute. “That in itself wasn’t a threat.”
I shook my head. “No, it wasn’t.”
“What else did it say?”
Once I told her, Winslow’s reaction would show whether she was truly ready to hear the details that would allow her to help. I’d never been more unsure of what I was about to do. I had no choice, though. I couldn’t keep it from her, and I couldn’t lie.
I pulled out my phone, found the photo I’d asked Buster to send me, and read the note out loud. “He may have let you go, but you still belong to us. We will come for you.”
Winslow took several deep breaths in rapid succession. “Belong to us?”
“That’s what it said.”
“Belong to us,” she repeated. “Is that what the other victim—the woman—is that what she overheard?”
“No.” I couldn’t remember exactly what Bryar had heard Fasano say, and while I could easily find it in my notes, I wondered if there was a better way to answer.
“Would you like to talk to her?”
Winslow’s eyes opened wide. “The other victim?”
“Yes.”
“Do you think she’d be willing?”
“I do.”
“Then, yes. Absolutely.”
“Give me a few minutes to set it up.”
Winslow turned her stool, presumably so I could get up. Instead, I picked up my phone.
“Hello, Cowboy,” Bryar said, answering practically on the first ring.
“Bryar, how are you?”
“Do you really want me to answer, or do you want to tell me why you’re calling?”
I chuckled. “I was wondering if I could set up a video conference between you and Winslow Greer.”
“Of course. When?”
“Whenever you’re available.”
“Now?”
“I’ll do that and send an invite.”
“Copy that.”
I ended the call. “Ready?” I asked Winslow.
She took two deep breaths. “Yes. Well, wait. Should I make a list of questions first?”
“Why don’t the two of you just talk, instead?”
“Right. Good idea.”
I motioned to her computer. “Go ahead and log on.”
Once she had, I opened the messenger app Decker had installed. It was the same one K19 used—probably something they’d gotten from Ashford, now that I thought about it.
“Ready?” I asked again as I typed in the information to get started.
“Ready,” Winslow responded.
It took a few seconds, but once I saw Bryar on the screen and heard her say hello, I stood and went into the other room.
There were a couple of calls I wanted to make, but the first needed to be to Onyx.
“Hey, Cowboy. How’s Texas?” he asked when he picked up.
“Hot.”
“Damn, son, you gotta rub it in first thing?”
“You asked.”
“Not about the weather. How’s Winslow?”
“On a video call with Bryar.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
18
WINSLOW
“First of all, I’m so happy to see you, Winslow. Thankful would be a better word for it.”
It sounded as though Bryar knew more about me than I knew of her. “Thanks. I’m, um, happy to see you too.”
Her head cocked. “What has Cowboy told you about me?”
“Only that you also survived being kidnapped.”
“Perhaps I should start at the beginning. I’m FBI Special Agent Bryar Davies, former lead on the serial killer investigation as well as…a survivor.”
A man walked behind her, cleared his throat, and waved. “Hey, Winslow. I’m Bryar’s Neanderthal husband, Diesel Jacks, also a member of the K19 Shadow Ops team.”
“Actually, my name is Bryar Davies-Jacks.” She smiled when the man leaned down and kissed her cheek.
“I’ll let you two chat now.” He waved again before walking away.
“You were the lead investigator, and you were kidnapped?”
“That’s right. Given you don’t appear to know much, if anything, about my story, I’m wondering how much you know about the rest of the investigation.”
“Very little.”
Bryar tapped her cheek with her fingertip. “Would you like me to give you a rundown?” she asked.
“Very much.”
I watched as she picked up her cell phone, typed something on the screen, and stared at it as though she was waiting for a response. When it appeared one arrived, she read it, then looked up at me.
“I was assigned to the investigation when a woman we believed to be the fourth victim was kidnapped. Maisie Ann Jones. Have you met her?”
“I don’t think so, although her name sounds familiar.”
Bryar nodded. “As it turned out, she was the victim of a copycat crime, executed by a man who’d learned about the prior murders. However, he had no connection to the other victims, and his reason for kidnapping Maisie was personal. She was rescued, by the way.”
Garrison hadn’t mentioned a fourth survivor, but maybe because this woman had been kidnapped by someone else, he didn’t think it was pertinent.
Bryar talked briefly about the four women who were found dead but didn’t go into a lot of detail about any of them. Only one had been from Lake Placid, like I was.
“Garrison, err, Cowboy mentioned you overheard the woman who abducted you talk on the phone with someone.”
Bryar nodded. “She—Patricia Fasano—was pleading with someone to hurry up and get to the place where she was holding me. Based on everything else she said, we learned she was responsible for the death of the actual victim number four, a woman named Betsy, who was from Long Lake. She kept repeating she’d proven herself and that she wasn’t supposed to have to kill again.”
“What happened?”
“Diesel found me. Not just him. Cowboy was there too.”
“He said he killed her.”
I watched her eyes widen before she nodded. “That may be. However, several people shot at her to stop her from killing me.”
She was so calm while she talked about it. I wondered if I would be too when I eventually shared my experience. On the other hand, she was an FBI agent and had probably recounted her story several times at this point.
“Garrison also mentioned you were at an undisclosed location.”
“We are. While I’m sure whomever Fasano was working with has figured out she’s dead by now, he doesn’t know whether I am or not. From what I understand, a man who sometimes works with the same organization Cowboy does, may have managed to make it look as though I never existed at all.” She chuckled, probably at my shocked expression.
“You’ll come to find out they tend to do things their own way, which isn’t always by the book. It took me some time to get used to it.” She leaned forward and rested her arms on the desk in front of her. “What other questions do you have for me?”
“I want to help, although I’m not sure how. Earlier, before he contacted you, I think Garrison was trying to scare me off from doing that.”
Bryar rested her head in her hand. “That doesn’t sound like him to me. What makes you say that?”
“He said the details of the investigation weren’t just disturbing. They were horrifying.”
“Mm, yes. Well, certain new details have come to light that horrifying describes accurately.”
“You aren’t going to tell me what they are, are you?”
“While I could, I do think it would be better coming from him. Anyway, while I’ve read the brief regarding your escape, I would like to hear about it directly from you. Not just the escape, everything.”
Bryar appeared to be taking notes as I recounted my abduction from the time Ferrone put a gun to my head until I raced up the stairs to my freedom.
“Those were his exact words, ‘We’re not leaving today. I’ll kill you before I let him have you’?” she asked.
“Yes.”
“Then he said, ‘He thinks it’s his turn. It’s not. You’re mine.’”
“Yes,” I repeated.
“And the note the policeman found on the cruiser said, ‘He may have let you go, but you still belong to us. We will come for you’?”
“I believe so. I haven’t seen it.”
“This possessiveness wasn’t something I witnessed with Fasano. While I was drugged and only remember bits and pieces clearly, I don’t recall her saying anything like that. Wasp, on the other hand…”
