Lost target a travis bis.., p.24
Lost Target: A Travis Bishop Thriller, page 24
Travis reached down and rubbed the dog behind the ears. “He saved me from Leca.”
Ruby cocked her head to the side. “Actually, I did.”
Travis blinked, wiping dust from his face. “You both did. Thanks for that.” Travis looked around, his heart sinking. The last he’d seen of Jace, he was headed into the Capitol building, which was now demolished. Travis stood up and started staring at what was left of the building. “I lost Jace. I’ve gotta go try to find him.”
“Before you do that, you’d better figure out what to do with your new friend. Looks like he could use a new family.”
Travis reached for the dog, rubbing his sides. They were covered in mats and burrs, his ribs sticking out as if he hadn’t had enough to eat in a long time. But he had kind eyes, a thick dark brown coat with the soft, round eyes of a Rottweiler. Travis took off his belt and looped it around the dog’s neck, fashioning a quick leash out of it. Glancing down at the dog, he said, “I guess you’re coming home with me, pal.”
From around the side of the building, Jace came running. The dog sitting at Travis’s feet jumped up and started growling and barking. Travis looked at him. “Sit.”
Jace skidded to a stop and looked at Travis. “Where’d he come from?”
“He helped me get Leca.”
Travis looked at Jace. “You made it out. You okay?”
“Yeah. I’m okay. Ribs are the least of my worries now.”
“Did you get everyone out?” The words came out of Travis’s mouth slowly. He felt all of a sudden like he was wading through water. Then he felt his knees buckle.
55
The benefactor, as he liked to call himself, saw the news the moment it came out. It was hard to miss. The American Capitol building was now in ruins.
All he could do was smile.
The next morning, his staff wheeled a large television out onto the deck of the villa he was staying at in Monte Carlo. He arrived outside at half past eight, still in his burgundy satin robe, surrounded by a view of the crystal blue Mediterranean Sea on one side of him, the villa’s placid pool on the other. As he was taking his seat, one of the women who worked for him, Greta, brought him a silver pot filled with strong coffee and a plate with eggs, done sunny-side up, two strips of bacon, and a side of fruit. Taking a sip of coffee, he looked at her. “Greta, be a dear and turn that up, will you?”
Greta’s only answer was a nod.
A moment later, the reporter’s strained voice filled the perfect morning air around him. “Today is a grave day that will change the history of the United States. One of our most notable icons, the Capitol building, has been, for all intents and purposes, destroyed. At this moment, more than two dozen bodies have been pulled from the site. The rescue mission is continuing after a drone gone rogue crashed into the dome of one of the most famous buildings in the United States. While we await the response of the President, who is due to address the nation later this afternoon, all we can do is pray that more people will be found alive in the rubble. You can be sure that this disaster will create a firestorm of repercussions as we clearly need to do a better job containing our weapons to prevent something like this from never happening again.”
A man wearing a black suit and a starched white shirt came through the sliding glass doors to the villa and approached the breakfast table. The benefactor, setting his silverware on the side of his plate, looked up. “News, Ricardo?”
“Three of the men made it onto the boat. They arrived in Nova Scotia a few hours ago.”
“And Leca?”
“No sign of him.”
The benefactor looked down for a moment. “May God have mercy on him.” He picked up his silverware and took a bite of a grape. “Who do we have that can continue our mission?”
Ricardo’s face didn’t show any emotion. “I have a few names for you to consider.”
“Good. We aren’t done with our friends in America yet.”
56
The moment Chief of Staff Barry Pratt had made it to his car, he felt a small sense of relief. His car was parked in his space underneath the West Wing office building where he’d left it that morning. All he had to do was get in and drive away. No one would bother him once he was on the road. He’d stop at home, pack a small suitcase, grab a wad of cash from his safe, and disappear until things settled down. He’d leave his family in Washington and contact them later. That was the best way to handle the situation, he decided. Once he was away from the city, he could make a plan and figure out how to get his life back to normal. Things had gotten out of control. All he needed was a little time and space to figure things out.
A trickle of sweat ran down the side of his face.
As he pressed the fob for his sedan, his hands shaking, Barry heard a sound behind him. He turned around, his mouth drifting open, seeing half a dozen shadowed figures emerging from behind a set of black SUVs that were kept in the garage for visiting dignitaries. They moved slowly, each of them with their hands on the grips of their guns. In the lead was a tall figure wearing a Kevlar vest with the top of his tie visible as if it had been put on in a hurry. “Going somewhere, Barry?” Beckett Klein asked.
Barry blinked. “Just home for the evening. It’s been a long day.”
“It’s about to get longer.”
From behind Beckett emerged five blue-jacketed FBI agents who strode toward Barry, spun him around, and handcuffed his wrists without saying anything. Beckett walked up to him. “Barry Pratt, you are under arrest for treason.”
“What are you talking about, Beckett? This is crazy! You know me! I’ve worked for the President for years!”
Beckett stood in front of him, so close that Barry could feel Beckett’s breath on his face. “No more, Barry. You are hereby removed from your duties as Chief of Staff. You’re fired.”
As he was dragged to a waiting group of black FBI-owned SUVs, all Barry could do was look at the ground. He had nothing to say.
His life was over. Leca Islamov had ruined him.
57
As best as Travis could tell, he woke up a couple of hours later in a small field hospital that had been hastily erected somewhere outside of the disaster at the Capitol building. The dog he’d rescued was resting on the ground next to his bed, tied to the rail. There was an IV in Travis’s arm and an ice pack under the back of his neck. As he came to, he opened his eyes to find Anya sitting at the foot of his bed. She stood up and stared at him, crossing her arms in front of her chest, her expression serious. “You mean to give all of us a scare?”
“A scare?” Travis felt confused. “What happened?”
“Well, apparently, you found Leca right before the bomb went off. Jace found you with a woman and the dog.”
“That was Ruby.”
Anya sucked in a breath. “The assassin?”
Travis nodded, feeling his lips crack. “She shot him before he shot me, but I couldn’t stop the drone.”
Anya looked down, her expression sad. “It’s okay, Travis. You did what you could.”
It didn’t feel okay to Travis. “The codes? Is everyone safe?”
“After a big scare, yes. We managed to fight off the attack this time. Just when I thought Leca had them, the techs moved the codes at the last second to NORAD. It was a close call. If Leca had succeeded, he would have not only blown up the Capitol building but likely started World War III.”
Travis tried to shift his way up in the bed a little higher, but everything in his body ached. “You said this time? What does that mean?”
Anya wove her fingers together. “Cyber-attacks are on the rise. They’re getting worse by the day, so much so that every single branch of the military now has a cyber division. Those people work twenty-four-seven to keep our secrets protected. It’s worse than being on the battlefield.”
Travis shook his head. “Based on the way I’m feeling right now, I’m not sure about that.” He ran his fingers through his hair. Somewhere along the line, he’d lost his hat. “Did Islamov have the means to do this himself? I mean, this was a big undertaking when you add in the cyberattack. It would take cash and a lot of it.”
Looking away for a moment, Anya finally responded. “Someone is funding these attacks. We don’t know all the players, but someone new has entered the ring. We think that person is the one that funded Leca.”
“But you don’t know who.”
“That’s correct.” Anya reached down and reached for the dog that was tied to Travis’s bed. “Who’s this guy?”
“Not sure. He came out of nowhere and saved me. He sounded like a bear growling. Charged at Leca and bit him in the leg. Bought Ruby enough time to kill Leca.”
Anya tilted her head to the side. “You’re going to keep him?”
Travis hadn’t really thought about it until that moment. He looked at the dog, who looked back up at him with his brown eyes as if he was searching for the answer to the same question. “Yeah, I think so. He’s alone, just like I am. I’ll call him Bear. Sounds like it when he growls. Would be good to have a dog on the ranch.” Travis reached down and stroked the fur on Bear’s back. He looked at Anya. “What are you going to do now?”
Anya shrugged. “Me? Go back to work. As for you, they’re going to transfer you to Walter Reed for testing. Seems like you got one heck of a concussion.”
Travis pushed his way up to sitting, then swung his legs over the side of the bed. “No. I can’t. I’ve got Bear. I gotta go home.”
Anya stood up. “Sorry, soldier. Can’t fly with a concussion.”
Jace appeared out of nowhere. “She’s right, Bishop. Can’t exactly fly with a concussion. Might make your brain explode.” He looked at Anya. “I’m here to escort our valiant warrior to the car. I’m going to drive him to the hospital.”
“I’m not going. I have Bear now,” Travis complained.
Jace shook his head, then reached for Bear. All he got in return was a growl. “I hate to tell you this, man, but they aren’t going to let you take that dog into the hospital.”
“Good. I wasn’t planning on going anyway. I told you, I’m going home.”
Anya threw her hands in the air. “Well, unlike you two boys, I have work to do. Jace, if you make it to the hospital, while you’re there, get yourself checked out. You should probably get an X-ray for those broken ribs of yours.”
Jace put a hand on his chest, feigning innocence. “Me? I feel great. What do I need to get an X-ray for?”
Anya rolled her eyes. “Just do it, okay?”
With that, Anya stomped off, getting lost in the wash of people who were winding their way in and out of the makeshift field hospital that had been erected. Travis managed to pull the needle out of his arm without help from the nurse. He sat on the side of the bed for a second, waiting for his head to clear, and then stood up, keeping a tight grip on the belt that he was using as a leash for Bear. Jace offered him a hand. Travis accepted gratefully.
As they made their way out of the field hospital, Travis felt his legs strengthen underneath him. Walking made him feel better. He could see a black SUV waiting at the curb, next to a line of ambulances, firefighters and paramedics rolling people on stretchers to be triaged at the field hospital, others already treated that were being packed up into ambulances. Travis looked at Jace. “I tried to ask you earlier, but I think I passed out. Did everyone get out?”
Jace shook his head. “No, Travis. They didn’t all make it. The latest count is twenty-seven dead. But the most important thing is that our cybersecurity wasn’t breached. No one will ever know how close a call it was except for a handful of us. But as bad as the damage is to the Capitol building, it could have been much worse. The nuke didn’t detonate. The fireball was from the fuel onboard the drone. There’s a team headed inside to retrieve it now.”
Travis glanced at Jace. “And the President?”
“Safely on his way back from Colorado, where the Secret Service stashed him.”
That was good to hear.
As they got to the curb, heading for the black SUV, a woman slipped out of a vehicle that was parked in front of the one Jace drove. “Can I give you a lift?”
Travis smiled in surprise. Ruby. She had a lot of guts hanging around, given the fact the U.S. government was looking for her. Then again, everyone was more focused on the Capitol than what Ruby was up to. “Depends on where you’re going.”
“I was thinking about Texas. Have you been there?”
“It’s nice. Maybe you’ve got room for two?”
Jace looked at Travis and pointed. “Is this?”
“It is.”
“I’m supposed to get you to the hospital —”
“Sorry, pal. I already said no.”
EPILOGUE
Two days later, after a lot of driving, three stops at pet stores along the way to get Bear a proper collar, leash, food, and toys, Travis pointed Ruby down the long driveway that led to Travis Bishop Performance Horses, helping her navigate the potholes that were designed to slow people down as they came onto his property. He groaned when she missed one, the ache in his body only slightly better than when he’d left D.C. two days before. Anya had called twice, once to chastise him for not going to the hospital and the second time to ask him if he knew where Ruby was.
He ignored both of her messages. Ruby had saved his life. That’s all there was to know.
Jace had also called wondering when he could come down to visit Travis with Robin and Jenny. He wanted to know if they could come in a month or so after his ribs had healed. Turned out two of them were broken completely through. Though Travis was glad for the update on Jace and his family, it was clear Jace was wondering if Travis was still with Ruby. Travis wondered if Anya had put him up to it.
Travis answered anytime to the first question and ignored the second.
When they arrived at the ranch in a cloud of dust, only two cars were parked out front. Travis knew who they were. One was Ellie's, and the other was the blacksmith. He eased his way out of Ruby’s SUV to find Ellie striding out of the barn to meet him in the parking lot. He opened the back door letting Bear out, holding on to the edge of his leash. Ellie blinked, her blonde hair tucked under a baseball cap. She wore a pair of worn jeans, a T-shirt, and an old pair of boots. Her hands were on her hips. “Where the heck have you been? I expected you here three days ago.” She narrowed her eyes, noticing the slow way Travis was moving and the cuts on his face. “Oh. It’s been one of those weeks.”
Travis nodded. “But I brought back a friend.”
Ellie had apparently not noticed the big brown dog staring at her. She squealed in delight. “Oh my gosh!” She clapped her hands together. “He’s adorable!” She stared at Travis. “What’s his name?”
“Bear.”
Ellie squatted down, waiting for Bear. He wandered toward her, his pink tongue hanging out. Within seconds, they had made friends, Bear flopping over on his side, sticking his paws up in the air, and getting a belly rub. “Oh my gosh, Travis, he stinks. Where’s he been?”
“I don’t know, but he saved my life.”
Ellie stood up. She had grabbed the end of the leash. “Well, lucky for you, I just finished my chores. I’ll go get this big boy a bath. You aren’t going to want to let him in your house smelling like he does now. By the way, I was just about to text you. We got a deposit for fifty thousand dollars, but no contract attached.”
The CIA had paid up. Travis waved Ellie off. “I’ll take care of it.”
Just, Ruby slipped out of the car. Ellie waved. “Hi, I’m Ellie.”
“Ruby.”
There was a tense pause for a second, as if she had questions but decided against asking them. It was a smart move. Ellie turned on her heel, clicking to Bear. “Come on, Bear. Let’s go get you cleaned up. I’ll give you a tour of the place. You’re gonna love it here.”
Travis watched Ellie walk away with Bear. He already looked at home. He turned to Ruby. “I’d invite you in, but…”
Ruby held her hand up. “No need for Southern hospitality, Travis. Just glad to see you made it home in one piece.”
From out of her pocket, Ruby handed him a business card with an email address on it. It was nothing more than a series of letters and numbers. “In case you ever need anything, you can send an email to this address. It’ll get to me wherever I am.”
As Ruby turned on her heel and walked back to the SUV, she turned back to Travis. “Thanks for helping me settle the debt.”
“And thanks for saving my life.”
Ruby winked as she got back in the SUV. Travis watched as the dust gathered behind her vehicle as she drove away.
It was good to be home.
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Kalis, KJ, Lost Target: A Travis Bishop Thriller
