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He shrugged. “About a month. I don’t know.”
“You shouldn’t cancel at the last minute. If she’s got you in her schedule, then she’s counting on your money that week. As someone who has been living on whatever is lower than paycheck-to-paycheck, it’s really crummy when you’re counting on money that never shows up.”
Tank cracked his knuckles and she squirmed uncomfortably. The sound had always made her squeamish. “I just want to go home tomorrow and sleep in my own bed. And if she’s there, then I can’t.”
Hannah felt sorry for him. Tank was obviously trying to do the right thing.
“Could I just pay her anyway, even if I tell her not to come? Like a vacation day?”
Hannah straightened in surprise. “Umm, yeah. I guess you could do that.”
He nodded curtly. “Good. Thanks.” With that decided, Tank stood up and started typing on his phone. She briefly wondered if it was frustrating to type on the tiny keyboard with his big fingers. She had enough trouble with it using her tiny hands.
Will and Ryder came out of the back room of the jet. Will walked right past her, his eyes focused on the front of the plane. Shamelessly, she turned her head to point her ear toward him.
She could only make out murmurs as he talked to the pilots. “Emergency landing….” “Prisoner to another airport… Security breach…”
Hannah held her breath as Will came back and took the seat Tank had vacated. His mouth was drawn in a tight line and his shoulders were rigid. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and his hands clasped between them.
“Everything okay?” she asked, wishing she could take some of the burden off him. He carried a heavy load of responsibility and classified information.
He shook his head. “There’s a bit of a problem,” he began. “There was a security breach at Ronald Reagan, which is our normal airport since it is so close to HQ. Instead, we’re going to land at a smaller regional airport. The runway is a little short for this plane, but Captain Jeff assured me he could do it.”
“And then what?” she asked, wondering how else this changed their plans.
“We’re supposed to take him to Black Tower until the president can get things arranged with the FBI to take custody. He’s uncovering Syndicate ties that we never expected.”
“Syndicate ties?” she asked, confused.
Will’s eyes widened and he ran a hand over his face. “We think they’re the ones behind the assassination. We don’t know why yet, but the more we know about them, the scarier it gets. I can’t really tell you more, I’m sorry.”
She shook her head. “No, that’s okay. I just hadn’t heard you mention that. Them,” she corrected.
“It’s almost over, okay? As soon as we get to BTS, we can relax. That place is a fortress.” He squeezed her fingers. “And then we have a lot more to talk about and we can take as long as we need.”
She nodded. “Yeah, okay. I’ll quote you on that.”
“It’s on the record,” he confirmed.
CHAPTERTHIRTY-FIVE
Will tookgreat pleasure in escorting Kuznetsov down the stairs of the private Black Tower jet. The landing had been easy, though Hannah gripped his fingers so hard he thought she might break one.
Still, they were only a quick thirty-minute drive from Black Tower HQ, and with their plans changing, no one would expect them to be coming from Maryland. Ronald Reagan hadn’t diverted them, but after hearing about the security breach, Will had made the decision to have them land at the Maryland airport.
Captain Jeff requested it as an emergency landing and was on the ground twenty minutes later. Not long enough for anyone to set up an ambush here.
Which is why he stood tall and shoved Yuri in front of him, toward the waiting SUVs, courtesy of Miranda, who always anticipated the team’s every move. It was a good thing she didn’t work for the adversary. She tipped the scales in the favor of whatever side she was on—just like Joey did.
Will glanced back and saw Hannah being helped off the jet stairs by Pierce. They were just a few steps behind. Tank was on the other side of Yuri, ready to knock some sense into the man if he got any dumb ideas about escaping.
Will had briefly removed the gag and let the man have a drink of water and use the restroom on the plane. He had begged them to protect him. The man seemed terrified of Saltykova, whoever she was.
Not to worry. Will would make sure Yuri never saw the light of day again. He’d be nice and safe at The Bunker. He’d heard the black site was somewhere in Ohio, but it was only speculation.
Of course, Darkshade’s existence had only been speculation until about two days ago.
“You heard of The Bunker, Tank?”
