“Explain what?” Hugh asked, his mind spinning. What could he say? Things were too up in the air right now.
“About Gregor. There wasn’t just one picture with you and him. And all of those couldn’t have been doctored. Tell us about an FBI file that shows you working with him. With helping a terrorist organization,” Ellie said, her voice soft. “You have to explain.”
He lifted an eyebrow. “You think I’m innocent.”
She slowly nodded. “I do.”
Ah, the sweetheart. Man, how was he lucky enough to have found her again when he was such a dumbass for letting her go in the first place? “You’re a doll, Ellie Mae.”
The doll’s eyes flared, hot and bright with temper. “Then explain, dickhead. Come on. You’re two seconds away from being shot in the head. Work with me here.”
He tried really hard not to smile. She was right in that he was probably in deep shit. But she was so damn cute when riled. But he’d taken an oath, and he wasn’t going to break it at twenty-thousand feet. Not even for her. “You say we all have top clearance, but I haven’t seen it. Prove that you all have the clearance you’ve claimed, and I’ll answer any question you have.”
“Did the tire stores have financial troubles?” Ellie asked.
Hugh paused. “Well, yeah. But the economy declined for everyone.”
Her brow wrinkled again. Hell, he was worrying her. Would they be able to access his real files? Maybe not. Too many people were out or dead at all the federal agencies. He could tell the truth. But that might not be enough. He sobered. If Deke McDougall decided to shoot him in the head, there really wasn’t anybody who could stop him.
Well, shit.
* * * *
Ellie barely kept from smacking Hugh in the nose as he sat at the conference table, looking all calm and reasonable. If the guy had half a brain, he’d be scrambling to make an explanation. Connor and Ivan flanked him while they waited for Deke to arrive.
“It’s okay, Ellie Mae,” Hugh said, kicking back in the chair.
She sat at the head of the table and gave him a look. “I’ve been reading the files on you for the entire ride here, and I can’t find a loophole. Any sign that you’re anything but a crook.” It couldn’t be true. It just couldn’t.
Deke strode into the room. “Well? Are we shooting the bastard?” He yanked out a chair next to Ellie and faced Hugh.
Ellie glanced toward the door. “Where’s Nora?”
“On the phone with Lynne Harmony at the CDC. Or rather, at the hospital where Lynne is being treated.” Deke didn’t look away from Hugh. “Has he explained?”
“Nope,” Connor said, almost cheerfully. “After I shoot him, where are we gonna leave the body?”
Hugh sighed and crossed his arms.
Deke cocked his head to the side. “You’re a cool one, aren’t you?”
“I’m not.” Ellie slapped her hand on the conference table. “Give him your clearance so we can figure this out.” She was so finished with the tough guy acts from all the morons at the table and couldn’t care less that they were most possibly the most dangerous men in the country right now. “I can’t believe the future might hinge on you dorks.”
Connor leaned forward enough to see Ivan on the other side of Hugh. “She called us dorks.” He sounded slightly hurt.
Deke merely grasped the remote control and brought up several documents on the screen. “Top clearance—for all of us. Even you, Hugh. Because I asked for it, and Homeland gave it to me without checking out your FBI file. Apparently the government is breaking down faster than any of us had anticipated.”
Hugh read the documents on the screen. “They look real.”
“And since the government is breaking down, nobody is garna come looking for you if you disappear.” Deke clicked a button, and the screen went black. “Now’s your chance. Talk or Connor is going to start target practice early this week.”
Hugh rolled his neck. “When the tire stores started having financial difficulties, I was approached by Gregor Valentino with an offer of a whole lot of money. All I had to do was give him the schematics and maybe a computer code or two for certain nuclear plants in the country.”
Ellie closed her laptop to watch his face. Calm. Honest. True. But what the hell was he saying? “And you said no?” she asked.
“I said yes,” he said softly, his tone the one he only seemed to use with her. “Before you ask, the Arizona and Pennsylvania plants were included in his list. They’re weak, like I told you.”
What was he saying? “Hugh,” she said, her mind spinning. “You didn’t work with terrorists.”
