“Can I count on you or what?” she said, getting irritated. “Believe it or not, I came here to speak with Leo, not all of you. When I found Colonel Rutherford, I’m ashamed to say I took his personal phone, and I found a map in his pocket. I believe he didn’t want anyone snooping in his barracks to find it and kept iton his person. I did a sweep of his office and found the listening device.”
“Where’s the map now?” Shadow asked.
She stared at Leo as if waiting for him to make up his mind.
“My men and I don’t keep secrets. We analyze information together and work together. You can tell us what you know,” Leo assured her.
“What about my safety?” she asked, licking her lips. “If anyone discovers I’m working with you, I’ll end up like the Colonel.”
“You have our assurances we’ll keep you safe. I doubt you’ll need it if your skills continue like tonight. You mentioned you have a couple of months. Will you be transferred?” Leo asked, glancing at his men.
“I’m one of twelve women here. Two work in supply requisitions. The others work in the infirmary. I keep to myself most of the time. The men don’t like me here. Mainly because Colonel Rutherford caught a group of them picking on me. It won’t be much loss if someone finds me dead if you get my meaning.”
“When will Rutherford’s replacement arrive?” Knight asked.
“He’s due in two days. It seems awfully convenient he’ll arrive in time for the next task force deployment,” she said, staring down at her feet.
“You make a good point, Sergeant. Why don’t we sit and you tell us everything you know?” Leo said, inviting her to take one of the metal chairs. She sat, peering uneasily around the room.
“General Kingston will arrive by 0600. I saw the flight schedule. The first task force leaves at 0830. It’ll go west, stop at three posts, and return. The following day, the second task force will go east. Colonel Rutherford delayed the last two task forces. I hacked into his computer, and he made a list of the teams with K-9’s.”
“You know how to hack?” Patch said, surprised.
“Don’t you?” she shot back.
Leo sent an angry glance at Patch. “Stow it and let her tell us what she knows.”
“May I see the list?” Cole asked, stepping forward. “I used to work with the K-9’s. I might recognize some of the handlers.”
“I know who you are,” she turned to face Cole. “Sergeant Ford got into some heat for fraternizing with someone. Word has it, his wife left him.”
“What does it have to do with me?” he asked.
“It doesn’t take much to connect the dots. You left with one of the dogs, and a few weeks later, he got in trouble. Of course, he blamed you for setting him up.”
Cole glanced at Leo before speaking to her. “I disliked the man, but my tour finished. There’s no reason to set him up. I got what I wanted when Colonel Rutherford made some calls to allow me to take Brody home.”
Sergeant Taylor shrugged. “I didn’t say I believed him. He’s an asshole.”
“What about the list?” Leo prompted her.
“I don’t have it on me. I’d have to explain having all this information if someone caught me with it,” she said.
“All right,” Leo sighed. “Tell me why you came here. You haven’t produced any documents, no cell phones, or maps. It boils down to hearsay at this point.”
“When the General arrives, I suspect I won’t have the same job anymore. I wanted to check you out first and make sure you’re on the up-and-up. They may transfer me, and I need to know I can count on you to have someone watch my six until I leave or as long as you’re here.”
Shaking his head, Leo said, “My men come with me. We don’t split up.”
“I figured you might say that. When the General comes, he’ll want to know what you’re doing. Almost every private contractor has someone who knows the area,” she explained.
“Sparky came along to help us with the locals,” he replied, dashing her hopes.
“I don’t want this to come off rude, but she’s blind. She can speak the languages and knows the territories, but this place changes every day.”
“What do you propose?” Leo said, leaning forward.
“You’ll need someone from the base who knows the routes. The general won’t know about Sparky’s language skills or eidetic memory. You’ll insist he send someone along. He’ll want me out of his hair and will volunteer me.”
