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Cross was a tall man, lean, and well-groomed. She guessed he was in his mid-thirties. With his athletic good looks and easy smile, he must have been popular in high school and college. He wore pinstripe navy suit pants with a snowy-white shirt, sleeves rolled up halfway. That was his concession to being casual. He was like herself, a civilian, but unlike her, he was a total politician. He was warm with the Guardsman but made it seem like he was in awe of them. He projected the attitude ofwe’re all in this togetherwith the civilian staff, like herself, and most of the other Special Agents.
Hovering behind him was Neil Ainsley. She couldn’t remember Ainsley’s exact title, but everyone knew he was Cross’s right-hand man. Cross didn’t move without Ainsley in tow. In contrast to Cross, Ainsley was on the short side of average, with thinning medium-brown hair and a growing paunch. She guessed his age in the mid-forties, and always looked rumpled, like his clothes just didn’t quite fit.
He and Cross were polar opposites in presentation and almost everything else. Ainsley did not do well speaking in public, nor did he inspire the kind of confidence Cross did, but he was aces at organization, or so she was told. The perfect working relationship. Except for tech. Neither one of them knew anything about technology. She’d heard that Cross kept deleting things accidentally, and Ainsley had no clue how to get them back, so he had IT on speed dial. The techs were in her shared office space and one of them was always going upstairs to fix whatever Cross and Ainsley had screwed up. She’d never spoken directly to either one of them other than to say good morning, and she wanted to keep it that way.
Cross stepped forward. “Thanks everyone for coming. Sorry to drag you up here,” he said toward her and the other agents that had come up from downstairs. There were only about seven agents downstairs, and the rest of the staff on that floor were in the IT department. She’d discovered having the computer techs so nearby had its advantages when her laptop had decided to stop working the other day.
The group settled down. She and the others from downstairs stood against the side wall and waited.
Cross began, “I know this is a little bit odd. We normally do everything through email and the like, but there’s something I need to communicate to you, and I need to be clear about it. No gray area. No wiggle room.” He stood straight and made eye contact with as many agents as possible.
She glanced at Rutledge who was next to her. “Sounds pretty serious,” she murmured.
He nodded but didn’t take his eyes off Cross. Rutledge actually looked like Cross. Same tall, athletic build and classic good looks, but his eyes were green and showed a hell of a lot more depth. He was a bit too serious in nature for Mac but otherwise a good partner.
She focused on what Cross was saying.
“What I’m about to tell you must be kept in the strictest confidence. And again, it seems odd I am telling all of you together in a large space, but believe it or not, this is safer than email. I had the room swept this morning, and your cell phones are on a lower floor. I could have spoken to small groups of you, but that would take more time than was necessary.”
Mac crossed her arms over her chest. She knew from her time chatting with Manu, the tech who’d fixed her laptop, that they had very tight security on their email system, and everything was encrypted. If Cross wanted to, he could have sent an email, which meant this was all about grandstanding.
“I don’t want you discussing this outside these walls. As a matter of fact, I don’t want you to discuss it at all. Do not send any emails about it. Don’t put anything in writing unless I tell you.” He paused again for dramatic effect.
Despite herself, she was intrigued. He was a great showman. This was just a stepping stone for him. Someday, she’d be watching him cross the Senate floor, or perhaps even in the White House. Nothing would surprise her.
“The Navy has informed me that some weapons and… other military equipment have been stolen from Naval Base San Diego. They have reason to believe it might be heading in our direction. Needless to say, the Navy wants its weapons back, but it also wants the perpetrators caught. And, of course, they want it done quickly and quietly. They do not want word to get out about this.” He cracked a quick grin. “They’re a tad embarrassed, as you can imagine.”
The assembled agents all chuckled.
But then he spoke again in a somber tone. “I need all of you to see what you can find out about this, but I need you to do it leaving as small a footprint as possible. Don’t ask your sources about weapons, ask about any contraband coming in. Don’t reference the Navy. Ask if there’s anything big coming down the pike. I won’t tell you how to do your jobs.”
He just did.
“I will ask, however, that if you get the slightest whiff of anything, you come directly to me. Don’t write a report. Don’t send an email. Don’t talk on the phone. Come see me in person. My door will be open. I will put everything aside for this.
“I know we have a slightly fractious relationship with the Navy at times. They treat us like their annoying little sibling, but in this case, they need our help. They’re going to be searching themselves. Stay out of their way, but”—he held up a finger—“also come see me first if you find out anything. Do not go to them. This is on a need-to-know basis, and I’m unsure who needs to know.”
“In other words,” Rutledge said in a quiet voice, “this is a competition. Find the missing weapons, make me look good.”
It was her turn to nod. That was exactly what Cross had said. Now Oahu was going to turn into the wild west, a free-for-all to see who could come up with a lead first.No, thank you.She had no interest in being caught up in that mess. Inevitably, something bad would happen and someone would have to take the blame. A lowly new Special Agent like herself would be a prime candidate. She understood political games, and she was having none of it. Let the glory-seekers go for it. She’d just plunk her ass at her desk and eat her muffin.
After the meeting broke up, it took ten minutes to get her cell phone back. She was heading for the stairs when she heard her name being called. Turning, she was surprised to see Ainsley approaching. She hadn’t done more than nod in passing at him before this.
“Sorry to hold you up.” He offered her a smile.
A wave of cologne hit her, and she started to cough. Did he bathe in the stuff? “No problem. What’s up?” She tried to appear relaxed and friendly even though she was freaking out. She’d been through way too much back in Minneapolis to find dealing with the bosses anything but stressful.
Ainsley touched her on the arm in sort of a weird, jerky motion and then pulled his hand back.
Her first instinct was to move back, but she held her ground and kept a smile pasted on her face.What the hell did he want?
“No cause for alarm. I just wanted to let you know that you’re through your probationary period. I’m sure Casper would’ve told you eventually, but he’s tied up now with this Navy mess.” He gestured over his shoulder.
Casper was in with Cross, which wasn’t remotely surprising. Casper knew everyone, but he was very cognizant of which side his bread was buttered on. It was just one of the many things she didn’t like about her boss.
“Well, thanks for telling me. It was nice of you.”
Ainsley smiled again. “I just thought I would share the good news. HR will be in touch next week to finalize the paperwork, but we’re happy to have you with us permanently. Keep up the great work.”
