Perfect Extraction Ethan Jones by Ethan Jones

Author:Ethan Jones [Jones, Ethan]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: General Fiction
Publisher: Knightsville Books
Published: 2022-07-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty

At The Target House

Honey Gables

Ottawa, Canada

The police didn’t ask a lot of questions, especially after Jack and Riley flashed them their CIS-issued IDs. The paramedics gurneyed the wounded operatives to the ambulances and whisked them off to the nearest hospital. In a matter of minutes, Jack and Riley stepped to the side to find a quiet place for their phone call with their boss.

“Are you ready for this?” Riley asked, when they were a few dozen steps from the nearest police officers securing the scene.

“Not really, but we’ve got to do it.” He was standing near the trees at the end of the green lawn. He drew in a deep breath, and the smell of pines filled his nostrils.

“Do you think our cover story is solid?”

“As solid as it will get. We heard from the asset about the imminent attack on al-Zahiri’s house on our way back from the airport. We called Ayrton to let the team know. Obviously, we were late in our intervention.”

“Gilson might want to check your phone,” Riley pointed out in a nervous voice.

“He has no reason to doubt me. If he asks about the phone, I don’t have it anymore. Burner phone, tossed it after so many uses.” Jack smirked.

Riley offered a tentative nod. “Might work; might not.”

“Well, let’s hope it does. And the asset is one of the dead Saudis we’ve identified.”

“Yeah. Dead men tell no tales, right?”

“You’ve got it.” Jack pointed at Riley with his index finger and smiled. “Now, let’s get on with it.”

Gilson answered after the third ring. “Jack, where have you been?” he asked in an exasperated tone.

“Busy cleaning up the guesthouse mess, sir,” Jack replied in a calm voice with feigned regret. He tapped the speakerphone button, then added, “We could have called you earlier, but we’d have had cops interrupting us.”

“Actually, that would have been preferred, so I wouldn’t have had to learn about this from outside sources.”

“Outside? Can you clarify that?”

“That’s irrelevant to this matter, Storm.” Gilson’s voice turned tense. “What’s important is what happens next. But before we get there, explain to me how you ended up at the center of this firestorm…”

Jack glanced at Riley and briefed their boss on the course of events. He left out those details that would call his behavior into question and offered the cover story he had created along with Riley. Their boss seemed to hesitate to accept such a straightforward and linear explanation. Usually, the CIS operatives’ involvement was much more complicated.

At some point, Gilson asked, “If your conversation with Watson didn’t go as expected, why didn’t you call me, or someone at the agency?” His voice had an accusatory tone to it.

Jack had already anticipated his boss’s question and had thought of a reply. He spoke slowly and thoughtfully, so as not to give the impression his answer had been rehearsed, “I could have… and probably should have done that, sir. But I thought… I assumed Watson and the security detail had the situation under control. I, uh… at that time, I couldn’t have imagined the extent of the Saudi attack.

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