by: iluvaqt@hotmail.com
QT's notes: Trice, this chapter is for you. And me of course ;) Thanks for your continued interest in this story.
Chapter 8: Hard Knocks
Tash sat at her desk, impatiently drumming her fingers on the polished wood. She glanced at the phone, willing it to ring. Since Original Cindy's call yesterday, she'd been debating as to whether she should tell Alec.
"So what time..." He watched Tash almost jump out of her chair. "Are you all right?"
"Just a little nervous about tonight. First big function and all…" she lied.
"Hey, from what I hear it's not the first. Jones says you're a natural at these things." Alec leaned against the doorframe and looked at his best friend. There was something else she was concerned about, and from her expression, it didn't look like she planned on sharing. "You need a hand with anything, you know where to find me."
Tash smiled. "I know."
He was about to leave when he remembered why he'd stopped by. "So yeah, what time do I pick you up?"
"I think I'm gonna be tied up here until the last second. I'll have Fiona pick up my stuff from home. Meet me in the lobby at 6?"
"Sure thing. I'll catch ya then." He gave her cheeky grin as he left.
Just as he disappeared around the corner, her computer beeped. You have new mail. Would you like to read it now? She accepted and the screen changed. What she saw made her heart skip a beat and the blood drain from her face.
"Natasha, what's wrong?"
The second she heard Jones' voice she immediately closed her e-mail. She couldn't let him see it. It would only re-ignite his suspicions that someone was after them. He'd probably tighten security and she wouldn't be able to go anywhere without four guys following her around. Not that she minded entirely, at this point.
"I thought we promised, no more secrets. It's not about Alec is it?"
"No, Alec's fine."
Jones moved around the desk and leaned over her shoulder. He waited a moment and when she didn't protest, he reopened the message screen.
They both looked back at the picture. It was of Max, and she was chained in a cage. There was no one else in the picture, and it looked like it was taken from inside an industrial warehouse.
"It's him, isn't it?"
Tash nodded and bit her lip. He wasn't covering his tracks anymore, or trying to play anonymous. The sender could never be mistaken, Ames White a.white@op_nsa.gov. She knew that she had to tell Alec now. If something happened to Max and he found out that she'd known he'd never forgive her, or himself. "I'm going to Seattle."
"You think that's where he has her?"
Tash was already getting ready to go. "Has to be, she only went missing yesterday."
"Why didn't you say anything?" Jones asked accusingly.
"Because I had no idea what was going on," she said defensively. "It's only just occurred to me that she's been kidnapped. Yesterday when I got a call from OC, I just thought that maybe Max had taken some time out."
"I'll get Kristen to organize the jet. Take Alec, I don't want to you go alone."
She shook her head. Here we go, Jones in protective mode. "No, you need him here. For all we know this could be a trap. I'm keeping you well out of it."
Jones frowned at her obvious defiance. "Which is why I don't even like the idea of you going."
"I have to. She's my friend. My little sister." Tash softened a little, understanding her brother's concern. "If it'll make you feel any better, I'll call first. See if they've figure out what's going on."
"That idea sounds good." He looked down at her for a moment before starting to move away. She'd inherited her father's stubborn streak all right. One much like his own. He couldn't stop her from going, neither could he force her to see things his way. "If you decide to go, please come and see me first."
Tash nodded as she picked up the phone, and Jones left without another word.
Logan sat at his desk, pencil tapping incessantly on the scribbled pad in front of him. He'd made various notes. Things to do, people waiting to hear from and locations in Seattle and elsewhere Max might be.
He was beginning to doubt very much that she'd managed to give her abductor the slip. Acquiring a list of all the registered Mercedes E-Class vehicles in the metropolitan area. He'd slowly gone through all 54 of the owners that had come up. It was down to two that had been in the area around the hospital about the time Max disappeared. One only had a home address listed, no contact number. And the other owner was out of town. Calling the last listed number, Logan crossed him off on the basis that the wife said he was an art dealer, regularly traveling around the city. There was just no connection. It had to be the unlisted owner.
Earlier that morning, after wearing out his welcome on 16th Avenue, he'd gone straight to Metro Med. The sight that confronted him when he'd started down the hall to Sam's office was unbelievable.
The hall was blackened with smoke and ash. Glass, charred bits of wood and plaster were strewn everywhere. The inside of Dr. Sam Carr's office and exam room, was just a jungle of unidentifiable bits of rubble. It was like a bombsite. All this was from two metres away. Black and yellow Police tape sectioned off the area.
It'd had happened early yesterday morning. Just after the late shifts were packing up to go home. He'd asked a nurse about what had happened.
Sam had been working late. Police still didn't know the cause of the blast but luckily his friend hadn't been in his office at the time. Sam had been walking down the hall when the rooms had exploded. He'd been thrown clear, but suffered severe injuries. He was in a critical condition, with broken ribs, a fractured wrist and serious head trauma. He was still unconscious but the doctors said he'd make it.
Something gave him a bad inkling that these occurrences were all linked and that someone was out for revenge. But who would be next? He could only figure out one connection so far and that wasn't proving very positive. Eyes Only. He'd gotten his friends hurt before over his single-minded drive for his work. He'd thought he'd been more careful.
An on-coming communication request blinked on his screen. He accepted the transmission and was relieved to hear Matt's voice on the line.
"Logan. I got that video feed you wanted. The hospitals security is pretty good, expect for their back-up and filing system. It's taken too long to get yesterday's surveillance. Not to mention how many people I've been through to get it."
Logan mused at the irritation in his friend's voice. "I appreciate the favor Matt and believe me, I knew it wasn't going to be easy."
"Yeah, thanks for the warning. I hope it helps."
"Thanks, Matt. I'll keep you posted."
"No problem."
His friend cut the call and Logan opened the file that had just been sent to him. 062421am.dat Fast-forwarding to 8:40.00, he slowed it to watch. Right on 8:46.12, a black motorcycle entered the underground car park. At 8:46.51, Max appeared on camera 2, the camera watching the entrance doors. A split second later, a man dressed in a long coat and dark clothing, stuck a pulse stick to her back and kept shocking until she slumped to the ground unconscious. He's face was hidden from view most of the footage, until he reached down to pick Max up.
Logan paled as he watched the man on the video. He was supposed to be in jail, or at least confined to the State of Washington D.C., pending trial. How the hell did he get to Seattle?
Pushing rewind, he played the feed again. The whole time the tension knotting in his stomach was getting tighter and tighter. Suddenly, he felt sick. Rolling away from the desk, he threw down his headset and picked up the phone. Who could he call, where to start?
As the receiver came alive in his palm, he knew God had to have been watching.
"Hi, Logan? It's Tash." After hearing nothing but silence, she asked again, "Logan?"
"Yeah, I'm here."
"I hate to be the one baring bad news but Max hasn't disappeared. She's been kidnapped."
"I got the tape just a second ago. How do you know?" he asked surprised. He listened as Tash told him about the e-mail and the sick feeling rose again. His palms were beginning to sweat. He had to keep it together.
She sent him the e-mail and a few seconds later Logan was staring at the same picture that Tash and Jones had seen earlier. "So what are we going to do?"
"Nothing, you keep away from White. You, running headlong into this could be just what he wants. If you can get me a contact from the NSA, that's all the help I need." His brain went into gear and having something to work on was taking his attention from the feelings trying to gnaw a hole in his gut. Already furiously typing away at his computer, he sent the picture through a photo enhancer. He'd come every pixel for a clue as to where White might be holding her. Who knew how long he'd stay there, or if he hadn't already moved her? Time was everything now.
Tash gripped the receiver tight, she hated the helpless feeling she had right at that moment. She used to have an NSA contact, a really close one, till she blew it. Even if the break up wasn't her fault at all. She hated being miles away with no control over the situation. She hated the fact that it was her sister in that cage, held by a mad man and it was herself that he really wanted. "Logan, I'll get you that contact, and I can be there in a couple hours. You won't be able to do this alone. White's crazy, he'll do anything."
"Don't worry about me, I've got someone here. Just get me a lead, okay?"
"I will. I'll call you back."
White sat in his office, extremely satisfied with himself. Everything was going according to plan. He'd sent one of his guys to a net café to send his message. Those administration guys were always buried under a mountain of paperwork, to his advantage this time.
After his arrest, it seemed that they neglected to shut down his remote access. Sure they'd suspended his security passes, taken his ID, his gun and requisitioned all his case files, but nobody had thought to checklist his status.
All covert op agents had remote access cards. The access card had minute-changed passwords. Without the user name, the card was useless, and without the card, no remote access. He knew once the e-mail was sent, he'd probably only have access for a few more hours before NSA security caught on. But he'd had plenty of time to acquire his notes regarding, certain contacts - with deep pockets - craving a superior genetic code.