Sealed In Lies (13 page)

“
I see,” Warren replied. “You left the grounds without explicit permission and went home to your charming little wife, all snug and warm, while mine is kidnapped right out from under your partner’s nose!” The Senator was shouting now, his attempt at self-control shattering. “I can’t believe I pay you clowns money to work for me. How in hell’s name did he even get in the goddamn gate?” Warren stalked over to the small cart that held several crystal liquor decanters. A sharp ping echoed across the room as he banged one of the decanters against a glass.

Swirling the amber liquid in the glass, he gulped it down and poured another. “It would take a professional to get past that gate. It is state of the art. How did he know how many guards I had on the premises? How did the son of a bitch even know where I lived?” he mused. He walked back over to where the guards were sitting. “Did you get a good look at him?”

Bill answered, “No sir, he had a ski mask on.”

Warren’s hand jerked with his attempt to suppress the urge to hurl the glass at the two guards, and bourbon spilled out onto the carpet. Controlling his anger was something Warren was not good at. Once he lost control, it took a physical effort to regain it. He could feel the twinges of a headache starting at the base of his skull. He was going to have to calm down if he was going to get any useful information at all out of these two clowns.

“
What about the tapes?” he asked suddenly. “If he came through the gate you would have caught him on tape.”

Deek spoke next. “He must have erased them. When I went back over them, I found a loop was set in the recorder. It just played the same scene of the back yard over and over. It never caught his face or anything. Do you know who did this Senator? Whoever it is, he’s a pro. He’d have to be to get by us.”

Warren’s sneer wiped the look of confidence from Deek’s face. Oh, he knew who had done this all right. That trouble-making bastard Jack Weaver had taken her. He crossed over to his desk and stared at the note on the small white board.

Warren,

I’ve got your wife. Don’t try to find me or I’ll kill her. We’ll talk when I’m ready.

J

“
Yes, I know who did it, but if you two imbeciles were paying attention like you are supposed to do, this never would have happened. Do you realize what you have done by letting him get in here and take her? Do you two fools have any idea what you have done?” Warren raged at them.

Bill and Deek looked at each other and then back to Warren. Deek was the one who was brave enough to speak first. “Uh…no, Senator, what have we done?”

Warren drew back his hand and was ready to strike the stupid man. Both men ducked in a reflexive action. If he’d been armed, he would shoot the idiot. Instead he would have someone else do it for him. Gathering all his control, Warren forced his arm to drop by his side. He took a deep breath and spoke very quietly, but menacingly. “You two get out of my house and off these grounds. I never want to see either of your faces in this town again. If I do, I am sure I will not be responsible for my actions.”

The guards scurried out the door and closed it behind them. Warren picked up his cell phone and dialed two numbers. The cell phone beeped and a voice came on the speaker, “Yes sir?”

“
There are two guards leaving my office and headed back your way. I want you to take care of them for me. They know too much and are a danger to my office and me. You know what to do.”

“
Yes sir.”

With those two simple words, the fate of the guards was sealed. Warren nodding satisfactorily, left his downstairs office and proceeded upstairs to his room. The Emperor was right. He needed to check the safe. What if Weaver had found it and the classified items inside? He knew Caroline did not know the combination, but she did know where the safe was located, and she is weak enough to have told him. Caroline never could maintain her composure under pressure.

Warren also knew Jack Weaver. He knew what that man was capable of and right now if he had what Warren suspected he had, Warren’s life was over unless he located Weaver and his wife. He needed to do it quickly before Weaver was able to put the pieces together.

Warren strode purposefully over the to wall that held the bookcase. He moved the bookcase and opened the wall safe, peering inside. He took out the box that held the contents of the safe. The discs were gone. “Damn it!” Warren shouted out loud. He was not surprised Jack had found the safe but hoped he hadn’t been able to crack the combination. Obviously he had. Warren knew how good Jack was, but he thought he had designed an unbreakable code. Weaver was too smart for his own good, and it was going to get him killed. It was time to take the Emperor’s advice and track them down.

Warren walked from his suite of rooms to the guest room across the hall. Opening the door he crossed the thick cream-colored carpet to the north wall of the room. It appeared to match perfectly with the rest of the room. The pattern of tiny pastel roses that covered the rest of the walls matched exactly on this wall. It wasn’t until Warren knelt down and pressed a small section of the baseboard that anything changed. With an audible click, a section of the wall moved inward slightly and then slid to the right revealing a doorway to a smaller concrete reinforced room. It was designed as a panic room, at least that was what Warren had told Caroline. She had used it once against him when he was a little rough with her, but he had easily gotten in and removed her.

He smiled to himself remembering that night. How clever of her to run in here, reveal the panel, and close the solid steel door against him. Sometimes he underestimated her ingenuity, but as always he was thinking ahead of her. He simply called the guards downstairs, had them terminate the phone service in the room, and activate the door from their workstation downstairs. When he walked in minutes later he found her cowering in a corner with the dead phone in her hand.

“
Who were you going to call, Caroline? The police?” He had asked her stepping into the room and pulling the door up behind him.

Her eyes blazed up at him, “Just because you cut the phone line, Warren, don’t think this won’t get out. I will call the police and my lawyer. I’m through with you.” She rose shakily to her feet. “I’ve had enough of your abuse and I am sure the entire state of Virginia would be quite surprised to hear what a bastard their great senator is.”

“
Caroline, my dear,” Warren’s voice was menacing as he approached her. He grabbed her by the upper arm and squeezed hard. “You will tell no one,” he snarled. “You are my wife and that is who you will remain. What happens in our home will be our little secret. If you ever,” he gripped her arm even tighter, and she cried out, “and I mean ever, tell anyone about what goes on here, or if you ever try to leave me, I promise you I will hunt you down and kill you like the frightened rabbit you are. Is that understood?”

Tears leaked out of Caroline’s eyes and Warren assumed he’d gotten through to her. He just didn’t see why she always insisted on fighting him whenever he wanted his husbandly rights satisfied, or when he wanted to have a little fun. What a drama queen he’d married, and though he was disappointed in her, he would be patient and remind her of her position as many times as he had to. Eventually it would sink in. He couldn’t have her running amuck and proclaiming terrible lies about him. That just would not do. As if to emphasize the point he’d made in his head, he squeezed her arm again and felt the bone bend. “I said is that understood.”

She sucked in her breath, but to her credit she simply nodded and he abruptly released her arm, sending her sprawling backward. Warren pushed open the heavy door and waited for her to regain her footing and step out in front him. She stood up and Warren was amused at the way she stuck out her chin and tried to muster some dignity as she preceded him out the door.

Warren stepped into the room and closed the door. He went to a desk that was positioned in the center of the room and opened the lap drawer, where he withdrew a small Dell laptop. He opened the lid and powered up the machine. It was high time he found out where that son of a bitch, Jack Weaver, had taken his wife. The program booted up on the screen in front of him and a grin split his face. A map of the United was displayed in front of him and as he began tapping keys, the map grew larger and more detailed. The state of Virginia appeared, then the city of Washington D.C., and finally a map of Danville, a small city located in southwestern Virginia. In the center of this map was a blinking red light. Above the red light were the initials CW, Caroline Walters. With each blink it moved further west on route 58.

Warren picked up the phone tied to the only secure line in the house. He dialed a number, waiting for a voice on the other end to answer.

“
Yes?”

“
Warren Walters here.”

“
Yes, Senator Walters?”

“
This is of the utmost importance. You understand?”

“
Yes Sir.”

“
My wife has been kidnapped and I am currently tracking her on a global positioning system I have in my house. I need you to go and get her. She is with a very dangerous man named Jack Weaver. He is currently a wanted fugitive for crimes committed against the US Government. I need you to go and get her and bring her safely back to me as quickly as possible.”

“
What is the tracking code of her chip, Senator?”

“
Sparrow3452354”

“
Yes, sir, I’ve got her. I will notify the team immediately.”

“
When you find them, make sure she is unharmed and bring Weaver in alive, got that? Alive.”

“
Yes, Sir, We’ve got it.”

“
Contact me once you have her.”

“
Yes, Sir.”

Warren sat down behind the desk and watched the red light continue to move west on the map on the screen. The weather map, showing in the right hand corner of the screen, revealed a heavy snowstorm moving into the area. Warren knew within hours the roads would be treacherous and Weaver would have to stop. He stared at the screen, his fingers steepled under his chin. “I’ve got you, Jack, old buddy. You’re first mistake was killing Larsen, your second mistake and your most fatal, was fucking with me.”

Chapter 15

Jack was making good time, in spite of the snow. He had made it as far as Danville and his total time on the road had only been 3 hours. He yawned and glanced at Caroline. She was asleep, her head lolling back and forth across the headrest, her mouth slightly open. The fear creasing her forehead earlier was gone and she looked totally relaxed in sleep. He knew this was only temporary. As soon as she opened her eyes and her memory kicked in, she would be terrified all over again.

He wished he could ease her mind some and put her fears to rest, but it was too soon. She was unpredictable at best. He had to stay alert and on his toes. He yawned again. That was not going to happen if he didn’t get some sleep. He watched for the next exit sign. He would stop in a local motel overnight and then resume his journey in the morning. The temperature was rising just enough to turn the snow into sleet and even the Pathfinder, as reliable as it was, couldn’t hold it’s own against a few inches of ice.

Through the heavily falling precipitation, he could just make out a large green sign in the distance. It read, Danville 2 miles. That was as good a place as any to stop. He could then continue west, pick up Route 11 to head south, and stay off the major highways. It was doubtful that anyone knew what he was driving and could track his progress, but it never hurt to be cautious. He watched some of Carlos’ men find a man in Colombia once when all they had to go on was the color of his shirt. He wouldn’t be surprised if they turned up in a few days. Jack was very clever at covering his tracks but Carlos’ people were ex-FBI and they knew some of his tricks. They would be able to narrow their search quickly, which is why Jack needed to keep moving. He just needed a few hours sleep and then he could get back on the road.

He took the exit and slowed the car down so he could manage the slight decline off of the highway. He spotted another sign that pointed out a Motel 8 to the right. He made the turn slowly, but the roads here were so slick with ice, he lost control of the heavy SUV. Turning into the skid he gripped the wheel and fought to get the car back under control. He managed to straighten it out just inches before he sideswiped the guardrail. Beads of sweat formed on his forehead and he swiped at them with the back of his sleeve. Boy, that was a close one. All he needed was an accident. With accidents came police reports.

The sudden swerving woke Caroline, who with eyes wide, watched as Jack wrestled with the car. She sucked in her breath and pushed against the floorboard with her feet, locating the imaginary brake on her side of the car. As soon as Jack had the car under control she relaxed her rigid body, but her green eyes were still wide with fear.