to speak to the security staff while I got ready for bed. I was
so exhausted by the time I crawled under the sheets that I fell asleep within a
matter of minutes.
I
woke briefly when Michael joined me. He wrapped his arms around me as he tucked
me into his warm chest. He kissed my neck before whispering in my ear. “ Bonne
nuit, mon amour. ”
I
tensed at first. He didn’t feel, sound, or even smell like Kadyn. His presence
in that bed felt all wrong. Eventually, I relaxed enough to fall back to sleep.
When I did, I was still wrapped tightly in his arms.
Chapter 8 – Broken
Kadyn’s
arms ached to hold Kri. His arms ached… his heart ached… even his head ached;
but none of that really mattered. He still had to return to work. The Secretary
of Defense was planning a trip to Israel, and he was responsible for ensuring his
travel communications were secure. Kadyn set his concerns for Kri aside long
enough to review the travel plans, identify the equipment and protocols needed,
and brief the SecDef’s security team. Once they were square, he called Phil to invite
him to lunch.
They
met at Panda Express in the Pentagon’s underground mall. Kadyn waited to ask
Phil about his efforts to find Kri until they were seated at a table with their
food. He unwrapped his chopsticks and snapped them apart. “Any news?”
Phil
scowled as he dug into his Kung Pao Chicken. “No. I’ve run his name through a
number of Interpol’s criminal databases, but I haven’t been able to identify a Michael
Garcia connected to an Eastern European terrorist organization. I’ve had plenty
of hits on a Michael Garcia who’s connected to a drug cartel in Mexico. There’s
another Michael Garcia in Colombia who’s linked to FARC. There’s a Michael
Garcia who’s linked to money laundering in Panama, and there are a number of men
named Michael Garcia in South America who are linked to gun trafficking. I’m
sure you can see the problem. This guy’s name is too common. There are over a
hundred thousand men named Michael Garcia in North America alone. It’s like
searching for a needle in a haystack.”
Kadyn
nodded as he processed the news. He took a few bites of shrimp fried rice while
he worked through strategies for narrowing the search.
Phil
continued. “I’m running into the same problem with the passenger lists on all of
the major airlines. There were a number of men with the name Michael Garcia who
flew out of Reagan National, BWI, and Dulles Airport yesterday. I’m operating
under the assumption that he didn’t drive somewhere else, like Pennsylvania or
New York, and fly out of there; although, that is a possibility we should
consider. I have just over seventy people I need to look into from the
passenger lists on commercial flights out of Virginia and Maryland alone, and I
haven’t even looked into any private or corporate jets. We need a passport
number, or a driver’s license, and some idea where he might have gone. We need
to narrow the search.”
Kadyn
rubbed the heel of his hand across his forehead. He had been fighting a
headache all morning. “Let’s narrow the search by focusing on the men who are
tied to money laundering or other white collar crimes. We can’t be certain that
Garcia is tied to a terrorist organization. That could be pure speculation. You
know how the media gets. Still, what are the odds there would be car bombs at the
Pentagon the same day he took her?”
Phil
nodded thoughtfully. “I don’t know. It’s possible the two incidents are
connected, but you said this guy has been stalking her for some time. Maybe he heard
the news break on the Pentagon and saw an opportunity to force her hand. Any
number of terrorist organizations could have pulled this off; although I do
find it odd that no one is claiming responsibility. Terrorist acts are typically
pursued to make a point or to further a political agenda. The explosive devices
were rudimentary, and none of them appeared capable of detonation.
so exhausted by the time I crawled under the sheets that I fell asleep within a
matter of minutes.
I
woke briefly when Michael joined me. He wrapped his arms around me as he tucked
me into his warm chest. He kissed my neck before whispering in my ear. “ Bonne
nuit, mon amour. ”
I
tensed at first. He didn’t feel, sound, or even smell like Kadyn. His presence
in that bed felt all wrong. Eventually, I relaxed enough to fall back to sleep.
When I did, I was still wrapped tightly in his arms.
Chapter 8 – Broken
Kadyn’s
arms ached to hold Kri. His arms ached… his heart ached… even his head ached;
but none of that really mattered. He still had to return to work. The Secretary
of Defense was planning a trip to Israel, and he was responsible for ensuring his
travel communications were secure. Kadyn set his concerns for Kri aside long
enough to review the travel plans, identify the equipment and protocols needed,
and brief the SecDef’s security team. Once they were square, he called Phil to invite
him to lunch.
They
met at Panda Express in the Pentagon’s underground mall. Kadyn waited to ask
Phil about his efforts to find Kri until they were seated at a table with their
food. He unwrapped his chopsticks and snapped them apart. “Any news?”
Phil
scowled as he dug into his Kung Pao Chicken. “No. I’ve run his name through a
number of Interpol’s criminal databases, but I haven’t been able to identify a Michael
Garcia connected to an Eastern European terrorist organization. I’ve had plenty
of hits on a Michael Garcia who’s connected to a drug cartel in Mexico. There’s
another Michael Garcia in Colombia who’s linked to FARC. There’s a Michael
Garcia who’s linked to money laundering in Panama, and there are a number of men
named Michael Garcia in South America who are linked to gun trafficking. I’m
sure you can see the problem. This guy’s name is too common. There are over a
hundred thousand men named Michael Garcia in North America alone. It’s like
searching for a needle in a haystack.”
Kadyn
nodded as he processed the news. He took a few bites of shrimp fried rice while
he worked through strategies for narrowing the search.
Phil
continued. “I’m running into the same problem with the passenger lists on all of
the major airlines. There were a number of men with the name Michael Garcia who
flew out of Reagan National, BWI, and Dulles Airport yesterday. I’m operating
under the assumption that he didn’t drive somewhere else, like Pennsylvania or
New York, and fly out of there; although, that is a possibility we should
consider. I have just over seventy people I need to look into from the
passenger lists on commercial flights out of Virginia and Maryland alone, and I
haven’t even looked into any private or corporate jets. We need a passport
number, or a driver’s license, and some idea where he might have gone. We need
to narrow the search.”
Kadyn
rubbed the heel of his hand across his forehead. He had been fighting a
headache all morning. “Let’s narrow the search by focusing on the men who are
tied to money laundering or other white collar crimes. We can’t be certain that
Garcia is tied to a terrorist organization. That could be pure speculation. You
know how the media gets. Still, what are the odds there would be car bombs at the
Pentagon the same day he took her?”
Phil
nodded thoughtfully. “I don’t know. It’s possible the two incidents are
connected, but you said this guy has been stalking her for some time. Maybe he heard
the news break on the Pentagon and saw an opportunity to force her hand. Any
number of terrorist organizations could have pulled this off; although I do
find it odd that no one is claiming responsibility. Terrorist acts are typically
pursued to make a point or to further a political agenda. The explosive devices
were rudimentary, and none of them appeared capable of detonation.
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