Page 11 of Elusive Promise

Gary shook his head. "I don't know. All of the party guests will be interviewed, but there were over a hundred people at the consulate and evacuation took priority over getting statements. It will take some time to get to everyone. What's your next play?"

"I'm not sure. This kidnapping has changed everything. I don't know if it's related to Paris, but I need to find out. I need more access to the investigation."

"You can't have it. You've been ordered to stand down."

"I'm aware of my orders," he said, anger running through him at the reminder. "But I'm on leave, so no one needs to know what I'm doing."

"That will be permanent leave if you don't behave. And there's only so much I can do without drawing attention. Look, I know April was important to you—"

"She was important to all of us," he said quickly. "Or she should have been. I just need to find another way in."

"How?"

He had one idea, and it was probably a bad one…

* * *

It was almost one o'clock in the morning on Saturday when Parisa was finally released from the hospital. Damon escorted her to a black SUV parked just outside the hospital door, and she was relieved to have him by her side. She also wasn't going to complain about staying the night in a safe house. While she normally had every confidence in her ability to take care of herself, after the night she'd had, she was still feeling a little wobbly and off her game.

"I guess your vacation isn't going the way you thought it would," Damon said, as he started the car.

"Definitely not. This was actually the first party I've been to in a long time where I was just going as myself and not working an angle. And then I end up in the middle of a kidnapping. Thanks again for not blowing my cover."

"No problem. I just followed your lead."

"I was very happy to see you at the hospital. It made things a lot easier." She looked out the window at the city lights, wondering where Jasmine could possibly be right now. Turning back to Damon, she said, "I'm surprised there hasn't been some word from the kidnappers yet. Unless you heard something while I was getting my treatment?"

"There has been no word from anyone," he said tersely.

"Was anyone else taken ill by the toxins?"

"No. The third floor was on its own ventilation system."

"But how did the kidnappers know Jasmine would go to the third floor during the middle of her party?"

"Perhaps their plan was meant to occur later in the evening when she went to bed, but when she showed up earlier, they took the opportunity to act."

"Seems a little risky, considering the house was full of people. I don't understand how Jasmine could have been taken out of the building without anyone seeing her. I know they went down the back stairs and through the basement, but why wasn't there a guard there? And how did they make it into the basement without anyone in the kitchen seeing them?"

"The guard who was posted to the back stairwell has disappeared."

"So, it was an inside job."

"Looks like it."

"I wish the kidnappers hadn't left me behind. If I was with Jasmine now, I might be able to help her escape."

"If she's still alive," he said darkly, then immediately added, "Sorry, I forgot she's a friend of yours."

"Believe me, I'm aware of the odds."

"Did you happen to speak to Vincent Rowland at the party? He called me a half hour ago and said he was there, that he's Westley's godfather, and he wants to do whatever he can to help our investigation."

"I did speak to Vincent. I have to admit I was startled to see him there, especially in light of the warnings Bree and Wyatt sent us a few weeks ago." Two fellow FBI agents and close friends of hers had suggested that Vincent could be tied to some of the dangerous situations they'd recently been finding themselves in, and she should watch her back. "But when Vincent explained his relationship to Westley, it made sense." She paused. "What do you think of Bree's theory about Vincent wanting to get revenge on us?"

"I'm keeping an open mind. Each case, taken on its own, doesn't mean anything. But when you look at what happened to me, to Bree and Wyatt, it looks like there could be a pattern. Someone could be targeting our Quantico team. And the fact that our mentor and teacher, Alan Parker, is also dead, and Alan could have been held responsible for Jamie's death, it makes me wonder if someone—possibly Vincent—could be seeking revenge against the people who let his son die."

"But it has been four years. Why would Vincent keep inviting us to Jamie's memorials if he blames us for his son's death? And why would he wait so long to get revenge?"

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