Chapter 23

They four of them sat absentmindedly watching the movie that Parker had chosen, they were not really interested, but none of them wanted to leave Nate alone. Suddenly Hardison's computer started making a noise and he moved quickly to see what had come up on his searches that he was running.

"Ok guys, Nate's name was given to the police." Eliot said as he read the report he had managed to dig up from the police tip lines. "Here…" He said then press play.

"Lord Barrington was killed by Nathan Ford." The voice said. "There was an eyewitness…" Then the phone hung up.

"Ok so somebody did tip them off then they went there and showed Nate's picture around randomly until finally one of the junkies ID's him." Sophie said summing everything up as she saw it. "But who would have done that?"

"Well the accent is British." Parker said. "Elton Peterson…?"

"Could be." Eliot responded and if that were true then this was not over. He sighed and looked towards Nate's bedroom. The man could not take much more, and neither could they.

"Maybe Eliot but I have facial recognition running from the passport you found, and he has not entered the country, not that I can find."

"Hardison you can't track every plane in and out, especially not the private ones." Parker told him she knew the man was good but not that good.

"Ok…ok well let's assume that it was Elton, now that Nate has been cleared what is his next move?"

"Why would he want Nate arrested in the first place, I mean if he wanted revenge he would have come after him to kill him wouldn't he?" Hardison asked in response.

"McBride." Eliot said closing his eyes and cursing himself, why had he not seen it before.

"What?"

"McBride, they guy who shanked Nate…"

"Yeah Eliot we know who he is." Hardison said rolling his eyes at the man.

"Well the altercation with the young guy was over right." He paused and they nodded. "Then the guard said something to Nate and then McBride just went for him."

"You think he was sent by Elton?" Parker asked thinking about what had happened.

"Yeah Parker I do." Eliot confirmed.

"Man to do that you must have some kind of influence. Get a prisoner transferred to the facility they were keeping Nate at the right time…that is a lot of coordination." Hardison said.

"Yeah Hardison you are right."

"Ok but it could be done. Greace the right pockets and you can get anything done in the system." Sophie reminded them. "But he must have been watching, been following the events, and he must have worked quickly to get McBride moved at the right time."

"Yeah, the man killed the two guards and the other inmate on the day that Nate was arrested. His lawyer insisted he get sent to the facility they were taking him too because of his history in other facilities and because he was being taken there, it entailed a stop over here. That was well organised man and well executed." Hardison said. They were not dealing with some amateur here, the man could plan and he executed well.

"So he and Bertram worked together, he helped Bertram get is kicks, he probably planned everything and then just watched." Eliot said. "He handed Bertram's victims to him."

"He was the Mastermind." Parker said softly.

"Yes and now he is after our Mastermind." Eliot replied looking at Sophie. "This could get tricky."

"Especially because we don't know where he is or what he is planning. He did not take part in any of the crimes right?"

"No, that was Bertram's thing as far as I can tell." Hardison confirmed.

"So we can bet he is planning something, and he won't come at Nate himself, just like he used McBride."

"That is going to make it even more difficult." Sophie said as she listened to Eliot. "But he will want to see the results of that I am sure."

"Do you think he has figured this all out already?" Hardison asked and they knew he meant Nate and not Elton.

"Yes I do Hardison." Sophie replied with a heavy voice. That was the feeling she had, that was why Nate was not behaving as if this was all over, he knew it wasn't and he had chosen to keep that from them.

"The hell Sophie." Eliot hissed. She was probably right, and he had not said a thing, the man was a menace to himself and he was going to get himself killed.

"So what do we do?" Hardison asked, he knew what he wanted to do, walk up those stairs and confront Nate there and then, but he couldn't do that, he knew the man to well and the reaction would be…well not good he thought.

"I don't know Hardison. I don't know what he is thinking, what he is planning." Sophie replied. "I don't know why he decided to keep this from us, I don't know anything right now." She said and they could all hear the disappointment in her voice.

They had seen the way she and Nate had somehow become closer, may accepted what they meant to each other and they had all be happy about that, but now, what the man was doing, well that was not good for any of them, and especially not his relationship with Sophie.

"I was going to tell you all." Nate's voice drifted down from the top of the stairs.

"Nate…"

"Yes Sophie, I figured it out and yes I did not say anything, I needed to think first, I needed to get it all straight in my head." He said as he walked slowly down the stairs and then took a seat on them as he neared the bottom. He had woken earlier and had heard their conversation. He did not need to tell them, they had figured it out for themselves, now he needed to limit the damage done by his silence.

"When did you know?"

"McBride." Nate said confirming Eliot's thoughts. "He told me Elton sent his regards before he…well tried to kill me." Nate smiled at the Hitter.

"And you didn't think that worth mentioning?" Hardison asked incredulity showing in his tone.

"Well there was nothing you could do just then, nothing I could do either." Nate said.

"And now?"

"Well now Sophie there is still nothing we can do. I don't know where he is, nor do any of you. I don't know what his next move is and that is all we can wait for." Nate said his voice tired and his tone one of despondency.

"Nate…"

"Sophie really there is nothing we can do." Nate said. "Not until we know where he is and what he is planning. Hardison is right, he is the planner, he doesn't like getting his hands dirty that was why they set up in jail."

"So he will come at you through a third party and not directly." Parker said her mind twisting and turning the information she had at her disposal.

"Yes Parker that is exactly what he will do."

"Like a sniper?" Hardison said moving to the windows and dropping the blinds.

"No Hardison I don't think so."

"Why not?" Sophie asked, it was a logical assumption.

"Because he wants it to be personal."

"You just said…"

"Not as in him committing the deed Hardison." Nate said standing up and walking the rest of the way down the stairs and into the kitchen to get himself a drink. "No, like McBride, he wants me to know who is responsible, that's why McBride told me with compliments from him. No he wants me to know it is him when it happens, so I doubt it would be long distance like a sniper."

"So what now?" Sophie asked raising her eyebrows at him as he sat at the kitchen table looking at all of them as he sipped his whiskey.

"Now we wait."