That “Dalton” guy was Dalton Tepper, who, like Kat, was an Army Ranger back when they served in Afghanistan.When an IED took out their vehicle, it killed three other Rangers, leaving Kat and Tepp as the only survivors.
She had her facial scars from the incident as permanent reminders.Tepp lost three fingers on his left hand and had his spleen removed.They were the lucky ones.After leaving active service, Tepp transitioned from the Rangers to military intelligence and eventually to civilian intelligence.He was currently the CIA station chief in Argentina.
It was in that capacity that Kat had called on him for help.When she’d discovered that Ash Pierce was hiding out in Guayaquil, Ecuador after escaping police custody in L.A., she’d turned to him to try to retrieve the woman.Ecuador had a sometimes-complicated relationship with the United States when it came to extraditions, so other, less “official” measures had to be used to reclaim her.Unfortunately, by the time they got to the hostel where she was staying, Pierce had left.
But that didn’t stop Kat and Tepp from chatting occasionally.Hannah had been in the office for one of those conversations and had apparently drawn conclusions about the nature of their relationship.That realization made Kat squirm.She’d enjoyed their casual discussions, but apparently, to Hannah, they seemed like more than just chit-chat.
The thought made Kat slightly sick to her stomach.She was less than nine months removed from the murder of her fiancé’, Mitch Connor, whom she was still mourning.Was she giving off coy vibes to Tepp?Apparently, Hannah had gotten that impression.Guilt washed over her.
“We’re just army buddies,” she said sharply.“Let’s go talk to Jamil and Beth.”
Hannah looked surprised by the tartness of her tone but said nothing.They stepped into the research department.Jamil and Beth looked over at them simultaneously.
“Tell me you guys found something useful,” Kat said.“All I want is to hear is a bit of good news, like maybe that facial recognition identified Pierce at a motel somewhere between here and Lake Tahoe and officers are on their way there now to arrest her.Can you tell me that?”
The researchers exchanged an anxious look that gave her the answer before either of them spoke.
“I’m afraid not, Ms.Gentry,” Jamil said.“We’ve been reviewing every resource at our disposal.And so far, we haven’t found any sign of Ash Pierce.”
“But we’ve only culled through about 65% of the available data,” Beth added quickly, clearly not wanting to disappoint her.“There’s still a chance that we might find something.It’s just going to take some time.”
Kat didn’t say it out loud because she didn’t want to make the researchers feel bad, but they didn’t have time.The woman found in the forest outside Lake Tahoe had been dead for at least three days.That was an eternity for Pierce to prep whatever malevolence she had planned.
Unless they figured out who the victim was or lucked out on facial recognition somewhere, and soon, Kat feared that Pierce would get to them before they got to her.
CHAPTER TWENTY TWO
Nicole Thorington was beyond furious and nothing seemed to be helping.
She’d been tossing Jason’s stuff off the bedroom balcony for several minutes now.Most of his clothes were strewn about on the lawn below.Same for his toiletries.But nothing seemed to assuage her anger.
It occurred to her that maybe part of the problem was that there wasn’t all that much to throw.Perhaps that should have been a sign that something was off with her marriage.Her husband had barely enough items to fill a suitcase at the house.Everything else was hers.
She did find a clock radio, which shattered satisfyingly when it hit the walkway near the front door.She noticed that Officer Daniel Herrera, who had been assigned to “protect” her, winced at that one.But he said nothing as he stood just off to the side of the porch.
He’d apparently decided that his job didn’t include stopping her from littering.It was a smart move.She appreciated his presence but if he’d tried to rein her in, she would have bitten his head off.He must have known that, because instead of saying anything, he simply sighed.Maybe he hoped that letting her vent like this for a while would calm her down.He would be mistaken.
“If he had a car, I’d set in on fire!”she shouted down to Officer Herrera.“But of course he doesn’t have one because he was never around long enough to need it!Instead, I served as his personal chauffeur.I can’t believe what a sucker I was!”
“Yes, ma’am,” Herrera responded noncommittally from down below.
She was briefly annoyed that he didn’t try to make her feel better, tell her that there was no way she could have known.But then she let it go.He was there to keep her safe, not offer emotional support.
Nicole turned around and surveyed the bedroom, looking for anything more that she could toss out.There was nothing else in there.She was about to check the closet again when she heard Herrera’s phone ring.She looked down at him as he answered it, speaking softly.
“What’s that all about?”she demanded.
He looked up at her.“It’s my supervisor, ma’am.He’s going to give me some logistical details about the state officials flying in to speak with you, as well as your protection details for the night.Do you mind if I step inside the house for a moment?”
“Whatever,” she said with a dismissive wave.“I’ve got more crap to toss.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he replied, disappearing from sight as he stepped through the front door.
Nicole returned her attention to the job at hand, marching to the walk-in closet.She rifled through her collection of tops, hoping that one of Jason’s shirts might have accidentally gotten mixed in.But she couldn’t find a thing.
Then she glanced down and her heart leapt with joy.There was a ratty pair of old sneakers in the corner of the closet, staring sadly back at her.She grabbed them and returned to the balcony.Officer Herrera wasn’t back outside yet so she didn’t have to worry about hitting him.She threw the shoes as far as she could.One fell softly on the grass but the other made it to the street, landing with a satisfying thud.
The idea that the shoe might get run over gave her a little thrill.With that done, she suddenly realized that all this destruction had left her parched.She needed a glass of water.Truthfully, she needed something much stronger.But as it was only 12:22 P.M., water would have to do for now.
