***
Chapter 4
***
Washington, D.C.
Saturday, 2:54 PM EST
"Will you sit down already?" Sam nagged as he watched Josh pace in front of him for the sixteenth time. "You're making me nervous." Sam glanced around the almost empty reception area. The lack of people in the J. Edgar Hoover Building wasn't surprising for a Saturday afternoon.
"I'm already nervous," Josh replied. He couldn't stay in one spot for too long. If he didn't keep moving, he would have to think about where Donna might be. And if he thought about that too long, it might drive him insane. "This doesn't make any sense," he said, finally taking a seat next to Sam.
"I know. Why would anyone take Donna?"
Josh just sighed. He couldn't bring himself to say what he was thinking.
"You know this has nothing to do with you, right?" Sam tried to sound reassuring, but it did nothing to comfort Josh.
"Josh. Sam. Sorry to make you wait," Special Agent Mike Casper called as he walked in from the hallway.
"That's okay, Mike. Thanks so much for making the time to see us," Josh said, taking the FBI agent's outstretched hand.
"Come on back to my office. I haven't been over at the White House lately, but I guess that's a good thing," Agent Casper said as he led the way down the corridor.
"Listen, Mike, there's a reason we came by," Josh began.
"Gee, and I thought this was just a social visit," Casper replied dryly, offering them seats once they reached his office.
"Donna's missing." Josh didn't wait for a reaction. "I called her last night and got her machine, and this morning she never came into work. We went by her apartment and her landlady told us she saw armed men leading Donna into a van. We've already been to the police station - several, in fact - and they had no reports of anyone matching Donna's description coming in since last night. So now I'm coming to you." Josh was surprised how calm his voice sounded.
"Josh," Casper said, throwing up his hands, "what do you expect me to do?"
"You can start by showing some concern. This is Donna we're talking about."
"I'm aware of that, but I'm unsure of my footing here. Are you saying that you believe Donna was arrested?"
"We're not sure what we believe right now," Sam answered. "We're just trying to make sense of this whole thing. We have a license plate number if that helps."
Casper shrugged. "Again, I really don't know what you --"
"You're the FBI, dammit. Investigate!" Josh exclaimed. It took him a few seconds before he even realized he was shouting. Agent Casper's ringing phone spared them from having to continue their conversation just at that moment.
As Casper took the call, Sam leaned over to the other chair, "Josh..."
"I know," he nodded slowly. He hadn't meant to yell. After all, this was an old friend. Josh quickly turned his attention back to Casper behind the desk, observing how the agent's face had turned noticeably grim as he hung up the receiver.
His tone was more serious as well. "Guys, I'm afraid I'm going to have to cut this short."
"Mike, if my behavior just then...it's just, you know, with everything...look, I'm sorry."
.
Standing and gesturing them toward the door, Agent Casper appeared more professional than Josh had ever seen him in all the instances he had previously acted as the FBI's White House Liaison. "Don't apologize. I understand." He looked like he wanted to say more but didn't.
Josh hung his head as he left. This wasn't the way he had wanted the meeting to end. He wasn't sure what he had expected to happen, but he was sure it wasn't this.
Sam waited till they were both in the hallway before speaking. "What do we do now?"
"Now," Josh said, exhaling deeply, "now we wait."
***
Fredericksburg, Virginia
Saturday, 4:10 PM EST
"I can't take this waiting," Sydney said softly as she peered through the blinds of the back office of the rental car agency that acted as a CIA front.
"I know this is frustrating, Syd," Vaughn agreed, "but there's not a lot we can do."
"Why not? Why can't we do something?"
From Vaughn's tone Sydney could tell that he knew what she was about to say. "What are you suggesting?"
"It's not like we've never done this before. Look, Vaughn, I want to help this woman. It's my fault she's been sucked into this mess in the first place."
"I understand that, but there's protocol to follow. We can tell the FBI it was you once we know that you're safe on the other side of the world."
"I'm tired of running," Sydney said. "If the FBI wants to hold me then fine, so be it."
"What about SD-6? You can't bring them down if you're stuck behind bars serving twenty years to life for treason."
"I can't let her take the fall for me. I can't let this person I've only met once have her life destroyed because of me. Imagine if I went missing one night. Can you even begin to fathom what you'd be going through to try and find me?" Sydney stopped herself before she said too much. She became very aware at how red her cheeks were growing.
Vaughn shifting slightly in his seat interrupted the silence between them. He slowly raised his head to meet her eyes. "Where do we start?"
***
Washington, D.C.
Saturday, 6:18 PM EST
Josh quietly turned his key into the door of his apartment with Sam close behind. Neither had said anything since leaving the J. Edgar Hoover Building. Sam didn't know what to say, and Josh couldn't bring himself to say anything.
"You got any beer?" Sam asked, hoping something-anything could lighten the decidedly dark mood that now followed them.
"In the fridge," Josh nodded toward the kitchen before loosening his tie and collapsing on the couch.
Sam came back with two bottles and handed one to Josh. They sipped their beer in silence for a few moments longer.
"So are we still just waiting?" Sam asked. "We could call Leo, you know."
"What can Leo do from the trade conference in India? Air Force One won't be back till Monday." Josh's resigned demeanor quickly changed as his cell phone began to ring. He scrambled to answer it. "Donna?" he cried, half in anguish and half in ecstasy.
"Josh? This is Mike Casper," came the voice on the other end of the line. "Listen, I'm sorry about how we left things before."
"It's okay, Mike, really. I didn't mean to put you in that situation..." Josh's voice trailed off.
"I don't know how to tell you this, Josh."
"You have news about Donna?"
"Officially, I can't tell you anything. Unofficially, I will say that the van was tracked as far as West Virginia."
"Thank you, Mike. I mean it," he said quickly before ending the call. He turned to Sam. "We're going to West Virginia."
***
Undisclosed Location
Saturday, time unknown
Donna was staring at the ceiling again. She had dozed on and off for a while before, which surprised her since she had no idea what time it was, but now she was wide awake. She tried not thinking about the chains that kept her fixed to the cot, about the chilling air that made her shiver, about the lingering ache she felt above her eye.
Her body tensed up when she heard the muffled echo of footsteps coming from the hallway beyond the wall. There was an urgency in the sound that frightened her. Donna didn't want to think about what might happen if that door opened again. She wasn't sure how many ways she could say, "I don't know," before they believed her.
Before she could relax her muscles, the steel door blew off in a deafening blast, filling the room with smoke and sending Donna to the floor with the cot awkwardly positioned behind her. Her eyes stung and her lungs quickly gasped for oxygen. She felt her wrists being freed from their metal restraints and found herself being pulled up from the ground and led out of the room by someone.
She couldn't really hear except for the constant buzzing in her ears. And she could only make out blurry dark shapes in front of her. For some inane reason, this was the time her mind decided to act rationally: she shouldn't be following this person who was breaking her out of her cell; she shouldn't become a fugitive of the law.
As they moved further down the corridor, her eyes started to clear somewhat. She stopped short though when she got a good look at who had just busted her out of her cell.
Standing in front of her was a woman with brown hair down to her shoulders. Her face was obscured by protective goggles, but from what Donna could tell, they seemed to be close in age. She was decked out in black cargo pants and a dark jacket and hanging from her side was a large automatic rifle.
The stranger motioned for her to follow through an open grating in the wall. Donna froze in a moment of indecision before she complied. She used to have such a simple life, she thought.
o
***
tbc...
Chapter 4
***
Washington, D.C.
Saturday, 2:54 PM EST
"Will you sit down already?" Sam nagged as he watched Josh pace in front of him for the sixteenth time. "You're making me nervous." Sam glanced around the almost empty reception area. The lack of people in the J. Edgar Hoover Building wasn't surprising for a Saturday afternoon.
"I'm already nervous," Josh replied. He couldn't stay in one spot for too long. If he didn't keep moving, he would have to think about where Donna might be. And if he thought about that too long, it might drive him insane. "This doesn't make any sense," he said, finally taking a seat next to Sam.
"I know. Why would anyone take Donna?"
Josh just sighed. He couldn't bring himself to say what he was thinking.
"You know this has nothing to do with you, right?" Sam tried to sound reassuring, but it did nothing to comfort Josh.
"Josh. Sam. Sorry to make you wait," Special Agent Mike Casper called as he walked in from the hallway.
"That's okay, Mike. Thanks so much for making the time to see us," Josh said, taking the FBI agent's outstretched hand.
"Come on back to my office. I haven't been over at the White House lately, but I guess that's a good thing," Agent Casper said as he led the way down the corridor.
"Listen, Mike, there's a reason we came by," Josh began.
"Gee, and I thought this was just a social visit," Casper replied dryly, offering them seats once they reached his office.
"Donna's missing." Josh didn't wait for a reaction. "I called her last night and got her machine, and this morning she never came into work. We went by her apartment and her landlady told us she saw armed men leading Donna into a van. We've already been to the police station - several, in fact - and they had no reports of anyone matching Donna's description coming in since last night. So now I'm coming to you." Josh was surprised how calm his voice sounded.
"Josh," Casper said, throwing up his hands, "what do you expect me to do?"
"You can start by showing some concern. This is Donna we're talking about."
"I'm aware of that, but I'm unsure of my footing here. Are you saying that you believe Donna was arrested?"
"We're not sure what we believe right now," Sam answered. "We're just trying to make sense of this whole thing. We have a license plate number if that helps."
Casper shrugged. "Again, I really don't know what you --"
"You're the FBI, dammit. Investigate!" Josh exclaimed. It took him a few seconds before he even realized he was shouting. Agent Casper's ringing phone spared them from having to continue their conversation just at that moment.
As Casper took the call, Sam leaned over to the other chair, "Josh..."
"I know," he nodded slowly. He hadn't meant to yell. After all, this was an old friend. Josh quickly turned his attention back to Casper behind the desk, observing how the agent's face had turned noticeably grim as he hung up the receiver.
His tone was more serious as well. "Guys, I'm afraid I'm going to have to cut this short."
"Mike, if my behavior just then...it's just, you know, with everything...look, I'm sorry."
.
Standing and gesturing them toward the door, Agent Casper appeared more professional than Josh had ever seen him in all the instances he had previously acted as the FBI's White House Liaison. "Don't apologize. I understand." He looked like he wanted to say more but didn't.
Josh hung his head as he left. This wasn't the way he had wanted the meeting to end. He wasn't sure what he had expected to happen, but he was sure it wasn't this.
Sam waited till they were both in the hallway before speaking. "What do we do now?"
"Now," Josh said, exhaling deeply, "now we wait."
***
Fredericksburg, Virginia
Saturday, 4:10 PM EST
"I can't take this waiting," Sydney said softly as she peered through the blinds of the back office of the rental car agency that acted as a CIA front.
"I know this is frustrating, Syd," Vaughn agreed, "but there's not a lot we can do."
"Why not? Why can't we do something?"
From Vaughn's tone Sydney could tell that he knew what she was about to say. "What are you suggesting?"
"It's not like we've never done this before. Look, Vaughn, I want to help this woman. It's my fault she's been sucked into this mess in the first place."
"I understand that, but there's protocol to follow. We can tell the FBI it was you once we know that you're safe on the other side of the world."
"I'm tired of running," Sydney said. "If the FBI wants to hold me then fine, so be it."
"What about SD-6? You can't bring them down if you're stuck behind bars serving twenty years to life for treason."
"I can't let her take the fall for me. I can't let this person I've only met once have her life destroyed because of me. Imagine if I went missing one night. Can you even begin to fathom what you'd be going through to try and find me?" Sydney stopped herself before she said too much. She became very aware at how red her cheeks were growing.
Vaughn shifting slightly in his seat interrupted the silence between them. He slowly raised his head to meet her eyes. "Where do we start?"
***
Washington, D.C.
Saturday, 6:18 PM EST
Josh quietly turned his key into the door of his apartment with Sam close behind. Neither had said anything since leaving the J. Edgar Hoover Building. Sam didn't know what to say, and Josh couldn't bring himself to say anything.
"You got any beer?" Sam asked, hoping something-anything could lighten the decidedly dark mood that now followed them.
"In the fridge," Josh nodded toward the kitchen before loosening his tie and collapsing on the couch.
Sam came back with two bottles and handed one to Josh. They sipped their beer in silence for a few moments longer.
"So are we still just waiting?" Sam asked. "We could call Leo, you know."
"What can Leo do from the trade conference in India? Air Force One won't be back till Monday." Josh's resigned demeanor quickly changed as his cell phone began to ring. He scrambled to answer it. "Donna?" he cried, half in anguish and half in ecstasy.
"Josh? This is Mike Casper," came the voice on the other end of the line. "Listen, I'm sorry about how we left things before."
"It's okay, Mike, really. I didn't mean to put you in that situation..." Josh's voice trailed off.
"I don't know how to tell you this, Josh."
"You have news about Donna?"
"Officially, I can't tell you anything. Unofficially, I will say that the van was tracked as far as West Virginia."
"Thank you, Mike. I mean it," he said quickly before ending the call. He turned to Sam. "We're going to West Virginia."
***
Undisclosed Location
Saturday, time unknown
Donna was staring at the ceiling again. She had dozed on and off for a while before, which surprised her since she had no idea what time it was, but now she was wide awake. She tried not thinking about the chains that kept her fixed to the cot, about the chilling air that made her shiver, about the lingering ache she felt above her eye.
Her body tensed up when she heard the muffled echo of footsteps coming from the hallway beyond the wall. There was an urgency in the sound that frightened her. Donna didn't want to think about what might happen if that door opened again. She wasn't sure how many ways she could say, "I don't know," before they believed her.
Before she could relax her muscles, the steel door blew off in a deafening blast, filling the room with smoke and sending Donna to the floor with the cot awkwardly positioned behind her. Her eyes stung and her lungs quickly gasped for oxygen. She felt her wrists being freed from their metal restraints and found herself being pulled up from the ground and led out of the room by someone.
She couldn't really hear except for the constant buzzing in her ears. And she could only make out blurry dark shapes in front of her. For some inane reason, this was the time her mind decided to act rationally: she shouldn't be following this person who was breaking her out of her cell; she shouldn't become a fugitive of the law.
As they moved further down the corridor, her eyes started to clear somewhat. She stopped short though when she got a good look at who had just busted her out of her cell.
Standing in front of her was a woman with brown hair down to her shoulders. Her face was obscured by protective goggles, but from what Donna could tell, they seemed to be close in age. She was decked out in black cargo pants and a dark jacket and hanging from her side was a large automatic rifle.
The stranger motioned for her to follow through an open grating in the wall. Donna froze in a moment of indecision before she complied. She used to have such a simple life, she thought.
o
***
tbc...