Chapter 3
Ever since Sam disappeared with his friends, trying to outrun that evil Riley woman, the CIA kept close watch on Elsa. They browbeat her in an attempt to get information, but she was smart and Sam instructed her well. At first she tried to deny that they were a couple, that she didn't know him anymore. That's what Sam told her to say. The agents didn't believe her, and they pressed on. With warrants in hand, agents scoured the hotel and took away all the things Sam left behind, scaring her customers in the process and bringing bad publicity down on the hotel. It would take a lot of spin from her marketing department to recover from it.
An agent followed her everywhere, so if she wasn't at home, she was at the hotel. It was easier than going places and suffering having a tail. At odd times, Riley or another agent came and interrogated her, but she had nothing to offer. Sam didn't tell her where they were going, so she had no clue.
As the days and weeks turned into months, the agents laid off somewhat. Elsa always felt a shadow behind her, but at least they stopped asking useless questions. One day, she knew when it was all over: on the internet she found a report of a CIA operation that turned into a bloodbath in the upper peninsula of Michigan. The illicit news source showed photos of an older man being airlifted to a hospital, but the report didn't say which one. Elsa recognized Sam, even with all the blood.
"Now that you've captured everyone, will you and your people stop bothering me," Elsa asked the agent who took up his watch outside her office as she passed him on her way to the restaurant for lunch.
"I have no idea what you're talking about, ma'am." He replied as he fell into step with her.
In an alcove away from the lobby, she stopped, turned on the ball of her foot and confronted him. In her heels, she was as tall as the agent, so he had no mistaking the anger in her eyes when she leveled them at him.
"Don't you lie to me! I saw the pictures. I saw Sam being carted off somewhere. Is he alright? Michael and Fiona, are they okay? I deserve to know!" She pushed an index finger into his chest. "If you don't tell me, I promise you I will contact friends in high places in major news sources, and they will blow this thing all over the airwaves. Then the CIA will have to run and hide."
The agent swallowed and straightened his tie. "Ma'am, I can neither confirm nor deny that anything happened in Michigan. If something happened to Mr. Axe, I can assure you that he is in good hands and is being well taken care of."
So it was true! She never said anything about Michigan, and he played right into her hand. "What about Michael, Fiona, and Jesse?"
In all her years in business, she knew when someone was lying and when the truth was too painful for them to reveal. His silence gave her the answer she needed.
Elsa shook her head in disgust. "I don't know how you can sleep at night and continue to do your job," she muttered and pushed away from him. Her heels clattered on the marble floor as she returned to her office. On the way past her secretary, she said, "Make sure that cretin from the CIA stays out of my office this afternoon. I need to be alone." The door slammed behind her, and she locked it.
"Shall I hold your calls, ma'am?" The secretary spoke through the closed door.
"Yes! I just want everyone to leave me alone for awhile."
"Yes, ma'am." The secretary went back to her desk and kept the wolf at bay.
Elsa spent three hours tearing apart her office looking for a bug. Sam had taught her well, and she found four of them. Each one she lined up on the floor and ground her heel into them until the devices were nothing more than ground up wire and plastic. She checked her phone and found it was clean. Then she used it.
The phone number belonged to a burn phone that Elsa had delivered to Maddie's house at Sam's request if he and his friends were gone for more than a month. It was hidden well, but in a way that Maddie would know how to find it. Elsa hoped she did and that she would pick up.
Maddie answered with a cautious voice. "Hello?"
Elsa said, "May I ask who this is?"
"You may. Who is this?"
Elsa had almost forgotten the last part, the key that would open up the communication between her and Madeline Westen. "There's a sale at the boutique."
Madeline sighed. "I found the red dress."
Elsa closed her eyes and sat back in her chair. "Mrs. Westen, this is Elsa. Don't talk, just listen. I heard about Sam being injured in a shootout with the CIA somewhere in Michigan. I don't know where he is now or if he's even alive. I don't know about Michael or Fiona."
"Elsa, that happened almost two months ago. You only heard about it now?"
"Months? I... I saw something on an internet news feed." Her mouth hung open, dumbstruck.
"I couldn't tell you why it's only coming to light now. I just know that it happened, and the CIA returned... returned Michael and Fiona's bodies to me." Her voice ended in a high pitched squeak. "They were so mangled, I could barely tell them apart."
"Mrs. Westen, I'm so sorry," Elsa said, her throat constricting. "I hope that nothing Sam did brought this on them."
"No, it wasn't his fault. They couldn't keep running forever. You know that."
"I know, but I'd hoped that they could at least clear their names." Elsa sniffed. "Well, since you already know, I'm sorry to have reopened the wounds, Mrs. Westen."
"It's okay. You just do what you have to do to find Sam." Maddie hung up before Elsa could say anything.
"How am I going to do that?" Her cell phone beeped and an envelope icon appeared on the screen. It came from a number she didn't recognize. Cautious, she took a chance and opened it.
Smile, it's me. Remember the rainbow. Laid up in Milwaukee, moving any time. Love you, beautiful. Myams.
Tears sprung to Elsa's eyes as she responded. Msg here. Love you. There was no doubt it was from Sam. Only the two of them knew about the rainbow reference, and he garbled his name Sammy. That was an easy one to decipher, but the rainbow... Elsa smiled.
She set the phone on her desk, not expecting to get another message. Pearce, Mumbai. Find and return to States. Our only hope.
Pearce. Elsa mumbled the name so low, she almost didn't hear herself speak it. Who is... Elsa took a deep breath, rising from her seat and hurrying to the wall where a secret panel was well hidden. When the CIA came with a warrant to search her office, she neglected to tell them about the safe or the secret panel. She had two safes in the office. One for the general secure papers, and another for the ultra secret things that Sam asked her to store and keep away from everyone except his friends and himself.
The safe opened and she sifted through the folders inside. A ragged breath escaped her when she found what she sought. Danielle Pearce was sent to Mumbai by Tom Card after she supposedly screwed up a mission, the one that resulted in Nate's death. From the intel Sam and Michael gave her, it appeared that Pearce was onto Card and would have exposed him, so he sent her far away.
"It's time for you to come home, Agent Pearce. And I'm going to make sure you get here safe and sound." Elsa shoved everything back into the safe, locked it, and closed the panel. She exited her office and found the night shift agent waiting for her. "Oh shove off, why don't you? Can't a girl go upstairs to her suite and enjoy a nice hot bubble bath without you vultures ogling her?"
"Ma'am, I'm not allowed in your bathroom..."
She shot over her shoulder as she pushed the elevator button. "Damn right, you're not. And tonight I want some peace and quiet so you're not allowed in my suite either. If your boss doesn't like that, tough luck." The door opened, Elsa stepped back to let a couple exit, smiling at them in a friendly manner. They returned the smile as they passed. Elsa got into the elevator and pushed the penthouse button, not caring whether the agent attempted to get in or not. He did.
Elsa wouldn't look at him. She was too busy running scenarios in her head, things that Sam taught her. At the time it all seemed so overwhelming, but he loved her enough to prepare her for something like this. Everything hinged on getting rid of her shadow. The elevator stopped, the door opened, and she got off with the agent trailing behind.
Smiling at the doorman, Elsa said, "Gregory, I don't want to be disturbed tonight. He's staying out here with you."
"Yes, Madame." Gregory gave the agent an eye, threatening him not to go further than the suite's door. He complied and sat in a chair nearby, glaring at the man.
Elsa locked the door and leaned against it, sighing out a lungful of air. She kicked off her shoes and took them to the bedroom. Picking up the phone, she said, "I would like a bowl of soup and a grilled turkey panini brought up to the penthouse suite. Thank you."
While she waited for the meal, Elsa set her plan in motion. She pulled out a small suitcase and filled it with enough clothing for a couple of days. Then she called the airport. "I'd like my plane to be ready. I need to make an emergency trip to India tonight. Yes, tonight." The way she said it, the person on the other end knew there was no arguing with her. "Thank you."
A knock on the door signaled that her food arrived. She smiled, met the young man at the door, and escorted him inside. She gave him a generous tip and waved as he waited for the elevator. Elsa noted the longing expression on the agent's face.
"Smells good, huh? If you're nice, maybe I'll order something for you."
"I promise, ma'am, I won't bother you all night."
"Of course you won't." She slammed the door. Her hands were shaking because this was where things could get really dicey if she didn't do this right.
Elsa ran to the bathroom and her hands bumped and shuffled the bottles in the medicine cabinet until she found the one at the back, the one she kept for an emergency when she couldn't sleep. There were six pills inside. Too many. She grabbed three, put one more back, and ground up the two in her hand. Then she sprinkled the powder onto the soup, stirred it until the grit was mixed well, and she wiped off the spoon and set it beside the bowl. Then she unlocked the door and pushed the cart out to the lobby.
"Madame, is the meal not to your liking," Gregory asked.
"I'm sorry, I decided I'm not hungry after all." With a hand on her hip, she turned to the agent. "If you want it, it's all yours. Otherwise I'll call the busboy and have him pick it up."
The agent smiled at the attractive meal. "Ma'am, no need to waste it. Thank you for your kindness."
"You're welcome." She smiled. "Look, I know you're human too, and you've got to eat like everybody else. I should have ordered something for you too, and I feel bad about that. I shouldn't let my anger make me into a rude host."
"No problem, ma'am. This is really great!" The agent pushed the cart to the chair where he seated himself and dug into the soup.
That was too easy. Sammy, I can't believe these agents are that dumb! She finished preparing for her trip, and after a half hour, went to check on the agent. She found him slumped over, his head in the soup, and Gregory tsking and shaking his head.
"Madame, I don't know what happened! One second he was enjoying the soup and panini, and then he was... out!"
"Don't worry about him. Why don't you put him in my room?" Elsa smiled, a sly expression on her face. "I have an idea."
By the time she left, Elsa had some very compromising photographs on her cell phone, ready to upload to the CIA if necessary. "Now, Gregory, don't tell anyone about this. When he wakes up, make up some story about him being ill and we put him to bed. Okay?" She smiled wide.
"Yes, Madame." Gregory's smile was conspiratorial as he nodded. "If this helps get these people out of our hotel, I'll be happy to assist."
"I'm hoping this will help me bring Sam home," Elsa said as she wheeled her suitcase to the elevator. "Wish me luck, Gregory."
"Blessings on your endeavor, Madame."
The elevator doors closed on Elsa. She got off before the lobby, taking the stairs to the parking garage. She hurried to the car she bought for Sam and his friends in case they needed a ride to escape town. They never used it, but it would help her get to the airport without detection. She started it up, put it in reverse, and stopped herself.
Don't forget to check under the car, and under the dash, when you're looking for bugs and trackers.
Sam's words came back to her, and she turned off the engine. She wouldn't go anywhere until she was certain the car was clean. Her breath caught when she found a small rectangular device under the back bumper that was wired to the license plate lights. It took almost all her strength, but she ripped it off and threw it away under the car next to hers. Then she got in and drove to the airport, hoping that the agency didn't discover that the tracker moved a short distance and investigate. If they did, hopefully Elsa and her airplane would be long gone by then.