Monster (83 page)

McDaniels nodded affirmatively before scooping Reskova up in his arms and heading toward the bedroom.

“We don’t have time for this before work,” Reskova whispered.

“That’s what you think.”

* * *

As Reskova drove, McDaniels sat with his head back, dozing off.

“Hey, Cold, anything I should know before we get into work?”

McDaniels jerked awake, hearing the question but having to remember where he was.

“I don’t think it would be a good idea for you to hear about the loose ends we took care of. How long were you tied up over at Hamdan’s?”

“I left around midnight. Forensics probably pulled an all-nighter. Don’t worry, Jen dogged them until she made sure everything of any substance would be processed right.”

“I’m not worried about what they get from his place.”

“Meaning Hamdan was one of the loose ends you tied up. You didn’t really have to come in this morning. Tom will have everyone working on the stuff you don’t like doing.”

“It’s best I’m at work today right on time.”

“Uh oh. Will you need an alibi for last night?”

“I’ll get back to you on that. If things work out the way I hope, we may be able to get warrants to go into a few places we wouldn’t have been able to go into before. Want to get married next weekend. I think we’ll have another weekend off.”

Reskova glanced at McDaniels with an almost frightened look. “You aren’t shipping out on me are you?”

“No. I think we should do it simple and quick. I love you and I want to marry you. Period.”

“Then, I love the idea.” Reskova gripped McDaniels’ left hand with her right as she drove. “What brought this on so fast?”

“Those loose ends getting tied up. Plus, I didn’t want you to change your mind.”

“Fat chance.”

* * *

In the parking lot, Barrington and Rutledge were waiting near Reskova’s parking spot. They waved when they saw McDaniels with Reskova.

“What’s with the greeting party?” Reskova stepped out of her Honda. “Every time you two greet me unexpectedly, it’s bad news.”

“We thought you’d want us to meet you.” Barrington shook hands with McDaniels. “Didn’t Aginson call you?”

“I don’t… hold on…” Reskova fumbled around in her purse for a moment before pulling out her cell-phone. “Shit! The battery’s dead.”

“He only called about ten minutes ago while we were on our way in,” Rutledge added. “There’s been a major happening between the Russians and Syrians. It just happened a few hours ago. Hey… here come the Bowery Boys.”

Reskova looked where Rutledge pointed to see Donaldson, Rasheed, and Mehmed walking toward them. She risked a glance at McDaniels who smiled back noncommittally.

“We just received word on our way in,” Donaldson explained. “How were the girls?”

“Other than marred for life,” Barrington answered, “they were as well as could be expected. Do I want to know where you guys were yesterday?”

“No,” McDaniels said simply.

“We’re supposed to go look over the scene of a new wipeout in order to assist or take over from the locals,” Rutledge explained. “It seems there was some type of missile involved. I have a hunch we could just stand here and get all the details without ever moving from this spot. M, you have to work on your poker face if you’re going to hang around with these other troublemakers.”

Mehmed straightened, brushing a hand through his hair guiltily as the others laughed at his discomfiture. Rasheed slapped him lightly on the back of his head with a stern reproachful look.

“Have I not warned you about letting your face betray anything in front of this harpy?” Rasheed rebuked him, causing more laughter.

“We’ll take the operations van to the scene,” Reskova said after a moment. “Let’s hear what the locals have to say before we dive in. They probably have a few conclusions they want to lay on us.”

“There are multiple scenes, Diane,” Barrington told her. “Aginson told me a black Mercedes was checked out by a state patrol car outside the city. Three men were found dead inside. One of them was Mikhail Kojovich.”

“Maybe instead of checking out crime scenes we should take these four to Dulles and see about getting them on a flight to some country without an extradition treaty. Tom, would you and Jen handle the rocket launcher scene? Take
Shaun of the Dead
with you and our young lamb, Mehmed. I’ll take Dumb and Dumber with me in my Honda.”

“I’ll take the operations van,” Barrington agreed. Rutledge held a hand over her mouth to muffle her enjoyment of Rasheed’s obvious distaste at being held up to ridicule, even jokingly.

“I protest this undeserved treatment.” Rasheed saw Rutledge had not taken her eyes off him. She continued to shake in silent amusement.

“Shut up, Kay, and get in the Honda,” Reskova ordered, opening her driver’s side door again.

“As you wish, Boss,” Rasheed relented, trading uneasy looks with Donaldson.

“You can ride shotgun, Dumber.” Donaldson slipped into the rear of the Accord.

“Why you…” Rasheed reached for Donaldson but he had already closed and locked the back door.

Rutledge walked over to Mehmed. She pulled him gently toward where they could check out an operations van. “You come along with me, little lamb, while I rip every last detail of your night on the outlaw trail from you.”

Mehmed looked back at McDaniels in panic. McDaniels smiled at him reassuringly.

“Just keep your mouth shut, my young friend,” McDaniels told Mehmed. “If little Sculley doesn’t want to end up in the spooky old woods with only a sleeping bag and a camp shovel she’ll leave you alone.”

Barrington and McDaniels laughed as Rutledge’s body went visibly rigid for a moment before walking on. She glanced over her shoulder at McDaniels accusingly.

“Not funny again, Cold.”

“Not meant to be, little Sculley.”

* * *

Barrington stopped at two checkpoints as he drove the last mile to the crime scene on Chain Bridge Road. The officers manning the first checkpoint examined all four occupants individually, with McDaniels and Mehmed drawing the most scrutiny. The last checkpoint was manned by an operations team from their own division. Although the agents there actually greeted Barrington, Rutledge, and McDaniels by name, they still checked their identification anyway.

“Wow, I don’t know what you guys did but I can’t wait to find out.” Rutledge patted Mehmed’s hand from where she sat next to him in the backseat of the van.

Barrington led the way over from where they parked the van to the still smoking hulks alongside the road. The ruined vehicles were surrounded by Homeland Security teams marking and taking pictures of everything within the blast radius. Rutledge watched McDaniels and Mehmed carefully as they approached the scene. While McDaniels looked around with professional interest, Rutledge noticed Mehmed glancing up at a hilltop which bordered the road. An agent with a harried look on his face broke away from the group he was with to intercept Barrington. The man’s face was flushed. His demeanor gave off an aura of stunned impatience. He shook hands with Barrington and nodded at Rutledge.

“God, Tom, am I glad to see you. I was told to leave the vehicles untouched until your team arrived.”

“It’s good to see you, Jim. You know Jen and probably Colonel McDaniels. Our new man is Mehmed Ahmadi. Mehmed, this is Special Agent Jim Bristol.”

“Hi, Colonel, I heard you were back.” Bristol shook hands with McDaniels and then Mehmed. “Good to meet you, Agent Ahmadi.”

“Yes, Sir,” Mehmed replied. “It is very good to meet you also.”

“Give me the Reader’s Digest version, Jim,” Barrington said.

“The Mercedes in front here was hit dead center by some kind of missile as yet to be determined. The shrapnel from the blast made the BMW behind the first vehicle into a flaming sieve. Five dead in the first vehicle - that’s a guess, determined from pieces and burned husks of bodies inside. Two dead in the second vehicle perforated by the blast from the first vehicle and burned beyond recognition. We’re wondering if this was a strike from possibly a helicopter.”

Barrington peered into the first vehicle. He straightened, glanced up the hillside opposite the road and then at Rutledge.

“I think the missile theory is accurate but I doubt it was a strike from the air. What do you think, Jen?”

“I agree,” Rutledge examined the blast pattern carefully. She stepped back, pointing up the hillside across the road. “I’d say this hit came from a rocket launcher, probably from the top of that hillside.”

“I concur,” Barrington smiled slightly at Rutledge, having noticed the same looks Mehmed had cast upwards. “Have you sent any agents up the hillside, Jim?”

“No… I thought…” Bristol began, and then backed away, looking at the blast radius, emanating from where the missile had obviously struck. He looked up the hillside Rutledge had pointed to. “Shit! Sorry, I should have had people up the surrounding hills as a matter of course. Missile strikes are a little out of my expertise.”

“Let’s hope it stays like that, Jim,” Barrington replied. “Director Aginson mentioned Russians and Syrians. Was there enough of the license plates to give you that idea?”

“The BMW in the rear is registered to the Syrian Embassy,” Bristol answered. “We ran the plate for the Mercedes in the front. It belongs to a suspected Russian mafia member’s name: Serge Romanko.”

“Good work. Get a team up the hillside and scour the area carefully. Send another crime scene group over to work under Jen here.”

“Will do, Tom, thanks,” Bristol acknowledged with obvious relief in his voice.

“That was pretty intuitive, Tom,” McDaniels complimented Barrington as Bristol hurried away. “You and Jen took two seconds to look at this vehicle and come up with a theory on what and where. I’m impressed.”

“We owe it all to M here.” Rutledge put an arm around Mehmed’s shoulders. “He looked up the hillside so many times since we left the van I thought maybe he had relatives up there.”

“I’m afraid Kay was right about honing your deception skills, M,” Barrington smiled in agreement.

“I have no idea what you and Agent Rutledge are talking about, Sir,” Mehmed stated with a suddenly bewildered look on his face.

“Better, but a little late,” McDaniels commented, his arms folded over his chest. “What would you like us to do, Tom?”

“Jen will take over the scene down here. You stay with her and observe, M. As soon as Jim’s team discovers whatever’s at the top of the hill, I’d like you to go up with me to look it over, Colonel.”

“All this and another crime scene too?” Rutledge scowled at McDaniels. “You didn’t do two missile strikes, I hope. This is going to be one long nasty day. Thanks, Cold.”

“If I knew what you were thanking me for, little Sculley, I’d say you’re welcome. You okay with this, young Mehmed?”

“I have seen much worse, Sir,” Mehmed replied quietly as he turned toward the wrecks.

“Let’s get the kits, M.” Rutledge pulled Mehmed toward the van. “I’ll make a first class crime scene investigator out of you. Maybe Cold will let me keep you out of the psycho branch of our outfit.”

Chapter 59

Final Addition

Nearly ten hours later with the second shift of investigators taking over the procedural details, Barrington and McDaniels helped Mehmed put away the gathered evidence. Rutledge continued briefing their relief team. While they waited for Rutledge to finish the briefing, Mehmed put away the last of the equipment.

“How did it look, Tom?” McDaniels asked when the two men were alone.

“With everything we found out about Hamdan the scenario I think you want to sell should go without a hitch. Diane says Kojovich and his two buddies died from an undetermined drug. If the unknown drug from that crime scene matches what killed Hamdan, we… do you think Hamdan left any prints in Kojovich’s car?”

“I’m certain of it.”

“Excellent. That should wrap everything up into a tidy package. Where the heck did you get a rocket… ah… never mind. We should be able to get the okay after this to close down the Russians as well as the Syrians. Diane already called ahead to have teams hit the Russians’ holdings. She’s waiting on word from the State Department as to how they wish to proceed with the Syrians. No matter what the State Department wants, we’ll grab up every Syrian on our list who steps out of the embassy.”

“I’m sorry this…”

“Don’t be sorry for anything, Colonel,” Barrington interrupted. “These assholes are using every law we have on the books against us and we keep letting them. If somehow a bunch of them end up dead in a very convenient manner, well that’s just too damn bad.”

“Things will calm down now. That stunt the Russians instigated with kidnapping Diane was way out over the edge. Their hooking up with the Syrians could have been catastrophic.”

“I think you’re right. Both sides will be more than a little suspicious of the other after this and we know a hell of a lot more about them than we ever did before. You don’t have any more surprises coming soon, do you, Colonel?”