Page 9 of Sebastian

“Superheroes? Like Superman, Batman?” asked Garr.

“Exactly. We’ve scanned street and traffic cameras, but it appears they disrupt those just long enough to take off the masks and move on. There have been no big spends with cash. No one is trying to buy luxury vehicles, watches, or jewelry in cash. It’s making me crazy!”

“It’s a tough one, Em, but I know you’ll figure it out,” said Ellie.

“I can tell you that suspects tend to be the last people you might think,” said Major. Emelia looked up at him, tilting her head sideways.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, the usual suspects aren’t usual at all. My experience tells me that while everyone might be looking at an inside job or experienced robbers, it could be someone that we would never think of.”

“That’s actually really good,” smiled Emelia. Major laughed, shaking his head.

“Gee, thanks for having confidence in me.”

“I didn’t mean it like that! I just mean, maybe I’ve been looking at all the wrong people. I’ll have to think about that.”

For the next couple of days, Em rolled all the ideas through her mind while spending as much time in Sebastian’s arms as she could. When she left at the end of the week, she was sad but also hopeful.

“I’ll be home soon,” she said, kissing Sebastian goodbye.

“I know. I’ll miss you, baby. You’ll find me right here, waiting to make you my wife.” He held her for a long moment, something in his gut saying, ‘don’t let go.’ When he waved goodbye, his friends slapped his back, smiling.

“She’ll be back, brother,” laughed Brix. In his most unconvincing voice ever, Sebastian replied.

“Yeah. Yeah. She’ll be back.”

CHAPTER FIVE

“Did you enjoy your break, Ms. Stanton?” asked Helen. An older woman with short, beautifully silver hair and sparkling blue eyes, she’d been the administrative assistant for her division at the bureau for almost more years than Emelia had been alive.

“I did, Helen. It was wonderful to be with my family. We even had a new baby join the family.”

“Oh, a baby,” she smiled, clasping her hands. “That’s so wonderful! All my kids and grandkids live so far away now. Tom and his wife live in Ireland near her family. Alison and her husband live in California.”

“That’s not so far,” smiled Em.

“I guess not, but they’re so busy I only get an invite about once a year.” Emelia frowned at that. She would be lost if she could only see her family once a year.

“I’m sorry, Helen. Maybe you should come home with me sometime and visit my family.” The older woman laughed, shaking her head.

“Oh, Emelia, you are a lovely young woman. Your parents should be very proud of you. I’m just fine, sweetie. I have a good group of friends here in Virginia now. We do all our holidays together, even share a house.”

“Now, that sounds wonderful. Is Frank in?”

“Oh, yes. He came growling in around 0600,” she frowned.

“Helen, that means you were here at 0600,” she smirked. “Alright. I’ll get ready for the usual ass-chewing. Wish me luck!”

Helen laughed at the young woman as she walked toward the offices at the back of the floor. She liked Emelia more than any of the other agents. She always stopped to speak with her, always asked about her weekend or holiday. If her instincts were right, Frank was going to lose a great agent, and Helen would say that it served him right.

“Morning, Tara. Morning, Cord.”

“Morning, Emelia. Glad to have you back,” said Cord. “Frank wants to…”

“Get your asses in here!” came the yell from the huddle room.

“Let me guess,” she whispered. “He wants to see us.” The others chuckled, shaking their heads. Emelia didn’t care. She was going to finish this and be on her way. The love of her life had proposed, and she was going home where she belonged.

---