Page 51 of Extraction
She followed me out to the living room where the guys had Frank on speaker phone getting the same story from him.
“It seems it stopped tracking him once his shoulder impacted with the chopper,” Frank explained, and by the look on Cole’s face, the news had shaken him as much as the rest of us. “We won’t know much more until the boys here in Washington work their magic. For now, we just sit tight. Cole, make damn sure Nicole isn’t chipped.”
“She’s not,” I replied. “I just checked her out. Not that I can be positive, but I don’t see any marks on her.”
“Copy that.” Frank sighed heavily. “I don’t have to tell you boys how serious this is. We need to change the way we handle things from now on, especially after you cross a border. Maybe check Nicole again just to be sure.”
“Agreed.” Cole cleared his throat. “Thanks, Frank. We’ll be in touch.”
Keith whistled. “That’s way too close for me. I think it’s time we beefed up security at the house as well.”
“Mike,” Cole looked at him, “maybe get Trigger and Grim on the phone, ask them to check for any Cartel trackers on their men as well. They should know about the threat.”
“On it.” Mike dipped into the next room, and I glanced at Nicole. She looked pale and uncomfortable.
“Nicole, do you mind if I give you a once-over? We need to be sure.”
“Of course, Cole. I’m not shy, and I sure as hell don’t like the idea of being chipped like a damn dog.” They went into the bedroom, and John followed out of respect for Savannah and Nicole.
“You should get some sleep. We’ve got a big night tonight,” I said once they were done.
She rubbed her head and nodded then disappeared into the bedroom again. I was wired, so I stayed up with Mark and John, who were on shift. I leaned back in the chair and rested my tired head. All I could think about was where my son was and if he was all right.
“How is she?” John broke my thoughts.
“Jumpy but focused. I think.”
“You think she’ll be able to handle the party?”
“I do. She’s used to working solo, minus her cameraman and protective team, but I think they follow her lead to a point, so this will be an adjustment for her.” I looked at the ground and thought about her other phone calls.
“What?” John read my mind.
“I’m not sure yet. Something’s bothering me about her. She’s had a few private phone calls, and they’re never more than a minute long.”
Mark rubbed his hands together. “Well, she’s got one of our phones, so we can track the number if you feel it’s needed.”
I didn’t like the idea of spying on her, but if it came down to it, I would. “Not yet, but the thought’s crossed my mind.”
“All right, guys.” Cole sat down and rubbed his face. “Paul, when you guys are at the party, we’ll take a sweep of Selena’s house. See what we can discover. It’s not far from where you will be, so if any trouble or any leads come in, we’ll meet up.”
“Sounds good.” I let that sink in.
We all went silent after that, and not long afterward, I passed out.
I stood in front of the mirror, and if I didn’t know it was me, I’d never have recognized myself. The bright blue contacts concealed my dark green eyes, and the tribal tattoo that showed below my t-shirt made me laugh. I knew I could never pull off a neck tattoo; that one, I was happy to leave to Grim Gates. My cheeks were puffy, and my hair went from short to shaggy with a slight gray to it. I still looked my age, but I no longer screamed intense army, as Savannah so lovingly described me.
“Not bad, John,” I turned and held out my arms to show him how impressed I was, “not bad at all. There’s not a chance they’d recognize me.”
“Well,” he whispered, “Eric’s supposed to be dead, so we have to make sure I did a good enough job.” He nodded toward the bedroom where Nicole was getting ready. “Activate your vocal box and see if she recognizes you.” I pressed the tiny button under the prosthetic and tested out my voice. It was low and raspy. “You made me a stage four smoker?” I glared.
“I had to get creative.”
“Right.” I gave myself one last once-over in the mirror and brushed my hands down the fine material of the tux. I crossed the room and knocked on the door.
“Come in.”
My stomach clenched as I took in how stunning she looked in that black halter dress. The damn thing hugged her body in all the right places, and I blinked hard when she turned, and I saw once again how low the rectangular cutout sat on her pelvis. Her hair was up in a low French twist, and a few pieces fell out to soften the look. Her sparkly heels peeked out from below, and a glimmering see-through skirt showed a chain wrapped around her upper thigh. I’d never seen anything so sexy in my life. The memory of how she felt under my fingers as I checked her for the tracker made my head swim.
