Page 46 of Over the Top

Chapter Twelve

CHAS LOOKEDaround in dismay as they got out of the car. They’d driven down back roads to get to this isolated place on the outskirts of the outskirts of Washington, DC, to see some apparently top-flight security types who were friends of Gunner’s.

When they’d passed through a tall iron security gate, he hadn’t been surprised. But then they’d followed a long driveway winding through what appeared to be nothing more than a farm, with a pasture, a few cows grazing, a big old barn, and a rambling old farmhouse that somebody was doing some work on.

“This is it?” he asked skeptically.

Gunner shrugged. “It’s not the place but the people we’ve come to see.”

“I hope they’re as good as you say they are.”

One corner of Gunner’s mouth turned up in amusement, but that was his only response. They jogged up the front steps onto a broad covered porch that was begging for a swing to be hung at one end of it.

“This could be a pretty place when it’s finished,” Chas commented. “A little landscaping, maybe some antique roses, some old-fashioned flower beds. I’d plant tomatoes at that end of the porch—”

He broke off as the front door opened. A dark-haired man who looked to be of Mediterranean heritage finished the sentence for him. “Tomatoes along with some peppers, both sweet ones and hot ones. Where the sun is strong. That’s the plan next spring, actually. Hi. I’m Drago Thorpe. You must be Gunner. And Chasten, right?”

Gunner stuck out his hand. “Gunner Vance. And this is Chasten Reed. And this little cutie is Poppy. At least, that’s what we’re calling her.”

Drago looked at Poppy like she was an alien creature, and Chas grinned. “Right there. That’s exactly how Gunner looked at her a few days ago too. But now he can give her a bath and feed her and dress her and yes, even change her diaper. If you’d like, we can leave her with you for a few days so you get over your terror of children, Mr. Thorpe.”

“Call me Drago. Or Dray. And that’s okay. I’ll go ahead and hang on to my terror.”

Someone laughed behind him, a rich, warm laugh. “Let our guests come inside, why don’t you, Dray?”

They stepped into a big living room with gracious proportions. The furniture looked as old as the house and just as comfortable. In one corner of the large room, a very good-looking man sat at a desk in front of a computer.

“Hi. I’m Spencer. Welcome, Chas. Gunner.”

“Hey, boss,” Gunner said.

“I’m not your boss anymore. I’m just Spencer.”

“That’s going to take a little getting used to,” Gunner replied.

Spencer shrugged. “You could always come to work for Drago and me. Then you could call me boss again.”

“One crisis at a time,” Gunner muttered. But Chas noted sharply that he didn’t turn down the job offer outright.

Chas put Poppy down on the faded but thick carpet to play and pulled out several of her favorite toys to occupy her.

Carrying his laptop, Spencer came over to sit on one of the matching sofas while Chas and Gunner took the other. Drago disappeared into the kitchen and came back with four glasses of iced tea. He set the tray down on the coffee table with a flourish. “See? I can be all civilized and polite when I try!”

Spencer laughed, and Gunner grinned. Chas wasn’t sure what the joke was, but he liked the easy camaraderie between these special operators. It was the most relaxed he’d seen Gunner around anyone else since he’d shown up in Misty Falls.

Spencer took a sip of his iced tea and then said, “So, you two appear to have gotten yourselves mixed up in quite a mess. Drago and I went to Langley this morning and were all but bodily dragged to the Japanese embassy for a command appearance.”

“What?” Gunner squawked. “So she is Japanese after all?”

They all stared at Poppy, who froze and stared back. Chas picked up her stuffed elephant and made a silly trumpeting sound that made her laugh and grab for the toy.

“Maybe,” Drago answered. “There is a high-profile girl about her age missing in Japan, but we have no confirmation that your kid is that kid.”

“Who is she?” Chas asked more reluctantly than he’d expected. He actually kind of hated the idea of giving her back to her real family. He knew they would eventually have to give her up, but he’d fallen a little in love with her over these past several days. The stricken look on Gunner’s face indicated that he was in the same boat.

“It’s possible she’s the daughter of a man named Kenji Tanaka,” Drago answered.

“Who’s he?” Chas and Gunner asked simultaneously.

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