Cassidy should have felt a modicum of vindication in having her theory confirmed by another member of law enforcement, but at this juncture, she doubted anything was going to make her feel better. “I don’t want anyone else to get hurt, Jake.”
“No one wants anyone to get hurt, but we all know the risks when we sign up for this job.”
“I don’t want my past to be the reason someone has their future stolen from them,” she insisted, a visceral need to voice her deepest, darkest fear pushing the words out of her.
Jake scowled then gave a tight nod. “I’m going to check in with Aronson. Then I think the three of us need to put our heads together to figure out next steps.”
* * *
Twenty minutes later, the two men sat on the bench across from her, Max stretched out at their feet.
“I think we’re agreed.” Colonel Aronson sat back, his expression grim. “I’ll speak to the other team leads, and we’ll prioritize locating the remaining devices, but hold off on disarming.”
Cassidy leaned in. “But you’ll hold your people back and let three o’clock go, right?”
They exchanged uneasy glances. Letting a bomb blow went against everything they worked for, but Aronson agreed. They needed to let the perp think they were still flailing. Because they were.
“As long as your people can live with the collateral damage,” the commander said, his tone resigned.
“I’ll make sure it’s okay,” she assured him. “We need to buy some time.”
Aronson stood. “I’ll make sure we pull back to a neutral site from ten minutes to the hour to ten after. If nothing blows, we’ll reevaluate the window.”
The phone Bud Thompson provided lit up with an incoming call. The on-screen ID showed the call to be coming from the Little Rock Air Force Base.
“It’s the base.” She swiped to connect the call.
Aronson turned to Jake. “I’m hopping off. Keep me in the loop.”
“Hello?” Cassidy watched as Aronson jumped down, then put the call on speakerphone so Jake could listen in.
“This is Colonel Vesta Linton. Commander, 19th Mission Support Group. Is thistheCassidy Walker?” The caller’s question carried a teasing note.
Cassidy couldn’t help but smile as she put the pieces together. “Vesta? Holy cow.” She laughed. “Who let you be in charge?”
“Shh. They haven’t figured it out.” Colonel Linton sounded as warm and friendly as Cass remembered. She was also a woman who didn’t waste much time on pleasantries. “I would say I’m surprised to hear from you after so long, but not nearly as surprised as I was to hear from Governor Beauford’s office. Girl, what have you gotten yourself into?”
Her smile stretched wide, but then she caught Jake’s quizzical expression, and it quickly faded. “Vesta, I’ve got Jake Donovan from the State Police here with me, and we have you on speaker.”
“Understood.”
Cassidy glanced at Jake, then dove in. “We have a nasty situation here, and we need your help.”
Vesta Linton shifted into business mode without hesitation. “Fill me in.”
“There’s a person claiming to have planted multiple explosive devices around the state fairgrounds.”
“The fairgrounds? Didn’t the fair open this week?” she responded without missing a beat.
“Tomorrow.” Cassidy forced the bile rising in her throat down, then continued. “Possibly.”
Vesta didn’t miss a beat. “What can I do for you?”
Blowing out a breath that ruffled her hair, she elaborated. “We think this may be someone with a vendetta. One maybe connected to my time on the base.”
“They’re coming after you personally?”
“Sounds like it.” Cassidy’s tone was grim.
