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Theo’s gaze glided down the table and his attention went to her. It was no secret he didn’t like Charlie Michaels. At one time that dislike extended to Nebraska. It hadn’t mattered to him that neither of them had posed an actual threat to his woman. Charlie had made Bridget feel unsafe and that was enough for Theo. Seeing as I was now where he was I couldn’t blame him. Viable or perceived—a threat was a threat and that wouldn’t stand. Not a threat to Nebraska physically or mentally. So, shit yeah, I understood Theo. I just hoped he could get past it with Nebraska.
“He’s got nothing other than what we knew. Maddon spun up a GB team, spent thirty-six hours in Egypt before the team went back to Yemen, and he flew back to the US.”
Nebraska nodded. I had her in profile but still I saw it—her mind was in hyperdrive, her body still, but her eyes darted around the table.
“Need to let us in on what you’re thinking, darlin’,” Jonas noted.
Something all of us had to relearn after working alone for ten years. Teamwork. It had taken a minute for us to fall back into the swing of it, remembering to rely on your team to help you work through your thoughts and strategize. Something I wasn’t sure Nebraska had any experience with.
“Maddon doesn’t waste time or an opportunity. The phone call I had with him prior to coming to Maryland, I had a feeling he knew something was amiss. I’d caught on, or was close. Charlie assured me Maddon was just being impatient. Obviously I was right. My approach was his suggestion. At the time, I thought his play was to jerk Zane’s chain and corner him into having to reveal Black—”
“How does Maddon know about Black?” Theo stopped her to ask.
A question I hadn’t thought about.
Nebraska blew out a breath and shifted in her chair before her gaze went to Zane.
“I should’ve told Dutch Maddon had figured it out. I didn’t and part of why I didn’t was at Maddon and Charlie’s counsel the other reason, I admit, I wanted that information in my back pocket in case Dutch screwed me over. But, as the years slid by I got to know Dutch I should’ve told him sooner.” She took another breath and went on, ignoring Zane’s glare. “Maddon had always suspected Zane was behind Black Team. He knew the connection to Dutch. He knew Badger had done some work with Zane in the early days with Red Team. He didn’t have proof until…” She paused again and frowned, looking more uncomfortable by the second.
“Until what?” Theo pushed.
“Ghost Town,” Zane ground out.
“Ghost Town,” Nebraska confirmed but didn’t explain.
My boss’s demeanor changed. Not his normal warning shit was about to red-line. It was a look of disgust with a healthy dose of ominous.
“The only job I personally saw to.”
“What was the job?” I asked.
Zane didn’t hesitate.
“Gangs are rampant in Cape Town. There were neighborhoods emergency vehicles couldn’t enter without a police escort. There were other neighborhoods the police wouldn’t enter.”
Zane was giving us a history lesson we were all very aware of. I’d spent time in South Africa. I’d witnessed the beauty of Cape Town with my own eyes, contrary to that I’d seen the devastation. The slums, the no-go areas that reeked of devastation and despair. Evil that overshadowed the good people who couldn’t escape.
“The job was personal. Badger had a friend, the only one from his childhood he’d kept in contact with. This friend’s daughter went with a church group to George on a mission. The area’s safe, high quality of life, friendly to foreigners. Bad luck, the girl got nabbed. This friend calls Badger, he goes all out tracking his friend’s daughter. He finds her but he can’t go in alone. Dutch calls, he’s spinning up, taking Bishop with him, but he needs me. Red had just gotten back from an op, they’re on R&R, Blue is out in the middle of the North Pacific on a cargo ship. Brooks, Kyle, Thad, and Max are in Washington playing babysitter. No one to miss me, so I roll out. Five days later the girl’s back with her family and I’m home, no one the wiser I was gone.”
“Except Maddon, he saw you there,” Nebraska put in. “I’ve spent time thinking about this. Why Maddon was all for me taking Dutch’s offer, meaning I’d have less time to give to him. He pushed hard, said it’d make him feel better if I had men like Dutch and Badger at my back. At the time I figured he thought me working with Dutch meant he’d have access, specifically to Badger. But now, I’m seeing the long game. Me in with Black connected me to Zane. When the time came, he needed leverage. He needed Zane in a corner having to expose his secret, he needed me to be the tool he used to push that, and he held my mother’s secret close, waiting to use it when he needed. Dutch never trusted Maddon, but Dutch doesn’t trust many people so that wasn’t surprising. But he still kept Maddon on a string, did jobs for him. I’m seeing that clear now too. He wanted Maddon close to watch him, especially after I told him Maddon knew you were involved.”
That last statement had Zane’s eyes getting flinty.
Flinty was never a good look on Zane.
“Dutch and I already had words about that when he told me you’ve been collecting a paycheck.”
Nebraska didn’t know or didn’t care that when Zane got steely, it was time to back off.
“Anyway, the point of all of that was to say, Maddon knew I was in Egypt to warn Amani. I’m sure of it. His appearance was nothing more than a setup since he’d know Amani would take precautions and he’d never get to him. He used my meeting as a way to send false information to the CIA. I’m sure he knew Charlie would plead my case and get Zane to send someone to back me up. Charlie’s smart but predictable. With Zane now involved Maddon had everything he needed to set his play in motion. But Maddon didn’t come straight back to the US after we left, something we didn’t hide. Maddon doesn’t waste time. He has a woman there; I’m thinking he stopped and had a visit.”
“You think he stayed in Egypt to get laid?” Cash tossed out.
“This woman has money and connections. She’s a widow. A Brit who married a wealthy Egyptian and stayed in Egypt after his death. I’ve never been able to get a lock on what she does for him, just that he visits her. Not frequently but regularly. If he’s on that side of the world he makes time for her.”
“What’s her name?” Kira asked with her laptop already open.
“Patricia Sawiris, formerly Summorville. She was married to Yasseen Sawiris. His family owns the largest distribution company of construction equipment in Egypt. Her family is also wealthy but the Sawiris money trumps the Summorvilles.”
