Soldier's Night Mission by Cindy Dees

Author:Cindy Dees [Dees, Cindy]
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Suspense
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2011-03-04T06:00:00+00:00

Chapter 8

Lily was really starting to miss sleeping in a real bed. She woke up with that special stiff neck she got only from sleeping in airplane seats. Her mouth was cotton-dry, too. Dawn streaked the sky as their plane descended into Washington, D.C. The Washington Monument and the Capitol dome were awash in pink light, and a layer of haze hung low over the city.

The plane landed and taxied past the big passenger terminals to a smaller, unmarked hangar. She was startled when the plane continued right into the hangar. As its engines spooled down, the hangar doors slid shut behind them.

“Oooh, how spooky and spylike,” she joked.

Carter nodded grimly. “That’s the idea. Because you are, in point of fact, entering the country illegally, we thought it best to make your arrival low-key.”

“Illegally?” she squeaked.

“We’re going to be bypassing Customs today, which is just as well because you don’t have your passport with you nor do you have any proof of where you just were.”

“Couldn’t you vouch for me?”

He replied, “I could, but it would take hours to go up the Customs chain of command and back down mine to sort it out. It’s easier to just do it this way.”

She saw the logic of it, but felt hinky breaking the law like this. The steps were duly lowered, and as she ducked out of the Learjet, Carter offered her a hand. Out of habit, she grabbed it.

So much for her never-touching-him-again promise. He’d had a pretty convincing explanation of the massacre, but she hesitated to just buy his story hook, line and sinker. She needed to think about it a little more. Listen to her gut when it decided to tell her something. Which left them in limbo.

She hated limbo. She hated both the dance of that name where drunks staggered under a pole, and she hated the state of being unsure of something and being caught in between knowing and not knowing.

A dark SUV with blacked-out windows was parked not far from the jet. Carter led her to it and she climbed into the surprisingly plush vehicle. “Nice wheels,” she murmured.

The hangar doors opened enough for the SUV to drive through them, and Carter muttered back, “It’s a Secret Service vehicle. Used in presidential motorcades. It’s armored, and the driver is a Secret Service agent. We’re not taking any chances with your safety until this thing’s over.”

Wow. They thought she was this important? Lily grinned. “If only Bill Kaplan could see me now. He’d have an aneurysm.”

Carter gave her a small, tentative smile. “Maybe you’ll be able to tell him about it someday. But truthfully, I wouldn’t expect this mission to be declassified until your grandchildren are adults. And if you tell them the tale then, they’ll think granny’s gone off her medications again.”

“I’m already batty, or so I’m told,” she retorted.

“I dunno. I haven’t seen any sign of it yet.” Then he added drily, “But I’ll let you know if I do.”

“Gee, thanks.”

The morning rush hour

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