Page 53 of Trust No One

He glanced at Johnson and finished his beer, setting the glass down too hard on the bar. Was this howhewas going to end up? Would he be that lonely guy on a bar stool, reliving his glory days as a SEAL?

Suddenly ashamed of himself, Dev stood up and slapped Johnson on the back. “Gotta get back to my friend. Good catching up with you, man. Take care of yourself. Maybe I’ll see you again if I stop by the Anchor before I leave town.”

“I’m here most nights,” Johnson said with a wave, then returned his attention to the beer the bartender had just placed in front of him and the ball game playing on the television above the bar.

Dev slid onto the bench beside Mel. Glanced at her.Was I a total shit to you, Mel? Somewhere deep inside, he knew the answer was yes. She’d tried to give him everything, and he’d thrown her away.

“How’d it go with your friend?” she asked him.

Eye-opening.Depressing as hell. He shrugged. “He misses being a SEAL. Didn’t come out and say it, but it was plain as day.” He wanted to reach for his beer to wet his suddenly dry throat, but there wasn’t a beer on the table. Swallowing, he said, “A damn lonely life.”

He felt Mel’s gaze on him but couldn’t look at her. Finally she said, “A shame.”

“Yeah. He’s a nice guy. Just can’t let go of the SEAL lifestyle.”

“Which is?”

He shrugged. “Hanging out in bars when you’re not on an op. Picking up women. One night stands.”

She didn’t say anything. When he looked at her, she lifted one eyebrow.

“That was not me,” he said. “I didn’t have one-night stands.”

“So the difference between you and that guy was that you have several-night stands?” Mel said.

“Let it go, Mel. I’m not in the mood to rehash my failings. Okay?” He swallowed the bile that burned his throat. “We need to focus on Simon and his problems. And what to do about our friend.”

“You’re right,” Mel said. “I’m sorry. I promised myself I wouldn’t let anything get personal on this trip.” She touched his hand. “I already slipped once. It won’t happen again.”

Yeah, she’d let it get pretty damn personal this afternoon. What would she say if he told her he wanted to make it personal again?

He was shit out of luck. Because he’d rejected all the personal connections between them.

Before either of them could say anything else, Simon stepped into view and guided his pretty, blond, pregnant wife into the booth, then slid in after her. “Hey, Dev. Mel.” He put his arm around the woman. “My wife, Caroline.”

They both reached to shake Caroline’s hand and murmured hellos. Then Mel leaned across the table to her. “I’m so sorry we got Simon involved in this mess,” she said. “More sorry than I can say. I’m hoping, after we tell you both what happened, you can direct us to the right person to talk to. We want both of you out of it. You’re desk jockeys, not field operatives. We don’t want you taking any chances.”

“Simon told me about Kingsley, and I can’t say I’m surprised.” Caroline shook her head. “If I had to pick one guy who’d be dirty at the Company, it would be him.”

“Doesn’t anyone else see that?” Dev asked.

Simon shook his head. “Not as far as we can tell. Kingsley’s extraordinarily careful. Covers his tracks really well. He glides along under the radar, making sure he stays out of the way of the smartest people in the CIA.”

“Well, he’s not going to be able to stay out of the way of them anymore,” Mel said. She pushed the flash drive across the table and didn’t take her hand off it until Simon put his hand over it. He slid it into his pocket immediately.

Dev looked at Mel. “You want to tell them?”

Mel shuddered. “No, go ahead.”

Before Dev could start, the waitress appeared at their table. Simon ordered a beer, and Caroline a sparkling water.

When she walked away, Dev glanced around the bar and leaned closer to Simon. “Kingsley and a Marine captain met in Rock Creek Park today to discuss some business. We overheard their plans and managed to get there ahead of them, and we were in place when they showed up. On that drive are the videos we took. Bottom line? Kingsley shot and killed the Marine captain. Left the body where it dropped. I’m pretty confident our friend will go back tonight or tomorrow, load the body in the trunk of the victim’s car, then dump it somewhere.”

“Oh, my God,” Caroline breathed.

“It’s all on that drive?” Simon asked.

“Yeah. Start to finish.”

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