Page 83 of Vaquero
Walker nodded as he tucked the hypo inside his jacket pocket. “Where’s the plutonium?”
Julio shrugged. “As far as I know, in the four crates she brought on board.”
“Did you check? Are you sure?”
“No, I’ve been a little busy making certain we didn’t land in the ocean. You’re welcome to check.”
Walker shook that suggestion off. “Nah. I don’t care. Not like anyone would believe me. My word’s worthless.”
As hard as that was to hear, Julio agreed. Walker’s word wouldn’t stand up in a court of law, not since he’d escaped his guards on his way to Leavenworth. But none of what happened in the past mattered now. To make sure Hazelton was still out cold, Julio double-checked her cuffs, then thumbed one of her eyelids up and open. The whites of her eyes were red, and her pupils were dilated, nearly all black. Only when he was certain Hazelton wasn’t going anywhere, did he follow Walker Judge outside.
Sliding the helo’s door closed behind him, Julio stepped far enough from the helo that Hazelton couldn’t hear them if she was, somehow, not as unconscious as she looked. He wouldn’t put anything past her.
The wind had died down, and the sun had set an hour ago. There were no stars or moon in the sky, and the only light within miles was the dim overhead lamp in the helo. But this conversation had better be quick. The sub, or whatever that GPS blip was, was less than ten miles off shore. Julio had no way of knowing whether they were the Matryoshka Dolls, some poor fisherman who’d gotten lost, or if those Dolls had a man in a skiff headed his way.
“It was a set-up,” Walker bit out. “God damn, I’m tired of running, but they won’t let me be!”
“How can you be working for the Army if you’re a convicted felon? Why are you even here?”
“Your buddy Sullivan. He knows people. He made it happen. And I’m here for the same reason you are. To assist Meg Duncan. Sullivan had to work a lot of damage control once she reached out for her buddy, Charlie Brown, and involved Army Rangers. Which is why he activated me, to keep a lid on CB. But I’m not worried about CB. He and I go way back. Until now, I’ve been flying mostly reconnaissance, easy-ins and easy-outs. Hot exfils. You know what I’m talking about.”
Julio nodded. “The kind where no one cares or notices who’s flying the helo, as long as they get in and out without being shot down. No one questions the man behind a helmet. But the press is laying for you. Surely someone has identified you. People talk.”
“Yeah, well, you know as well as I do the best place to hide is in plain sight. I changed my name, and Sullivan inserted me at Fort Campbell with the Nightstalkers. Who’d ever think to look for me there? So what if Ilook” —he bracketed that word with air quotes— “like somebody else? Everyone’s got a doppelgänger. People ask. They tell me I look just like, well, me. But so far I’ve been able to laugh it off and go on with what I’m doing.”
“You also wear dark glasses. Helmets with visors. You cut your hair. You shaved.”
“Yeah. That.” Walker ran that same hand over his head yet again. Here in the dark, he radiated enough angst to power a small country. He looked thinner than Julio remembered. Now that he wasn’t hiding behind dark glasses, the black circles under his eyes were more prominent. He licked his lips. This guy was running on empty. It showed. “To be honest, this was supposed to be my last job. Charlie knows how to pilot a Blackhawk. He’s been training. He would’ve brought Meg and you back, but when we got wind of Hazelton’s con—”
“Are you positive you can trust him?”
Walker nodded. “Charlie makes three. Only others are Sullivan and you.”
“Captain Dooley doesn’t know?”
“Not yet.”
“You were going to stay in Brazil, weren’t you? You weren’t going back to the States.”
Another nod. Another sweep of his palm over his head, his frustration boiling over. “The plan was for Charlie to fly back and tell everyone he’d recognized me, that we fought, that I tried to kill him, but he killed me first. But when he saw the size of that fire, the plan changed. He radioed me while I was back at the helo with Meg. Thought it’d be more final if everyone believed I went down in that fire, that I’d been burned alive. He figured a gruesome death would make NCIS happy, that they’d stop looking for me. I can’t live like this anymore, Juarez. I served my country with honor for twenty Goddamned years. Don’t you get it? I’m not going to prison for something I didn’t do!”
“I do get it, Walker. I do,” Julio replied quietly. “But you need to know that you’re not alone, Chief. There are many of us military and former military who are on your side. We believe you. Many patriotic civilians believe in you, too. We never trusted the press. They’re all liars spewing political propaganda that will eventually destroy our country and every good man who stands for it. They’re out for nothing but greed and power.”
“Great,” Walker hissed. “All that adoration and a quarter won’t buy me a fuckin’ cup of coffee, much less keep me out of Leavenworth.”
“But you have no familia? No one who’d cry for you if they thought you’d died?”
Walker shook his head. “I wouldn’t have gone along with this cop-out if I did.”
That was beyond sad. It was tragic, and it made Julio’s decision easy. “Then we will prove they’re liars. Eventually, we’ll find a way to clear your name. We’ll set you free. But Hazelton wasn’t running a con, Walker. She’s part of a subversive Russian mob known as the Matryoshka Dolls. She stole the plutonium for them. Most likely, she has a buyer, and I believe that buyer is headed to this island right now. Chief Warrant Officer Trevor Duncan has sent assistance, but they’re late. They were supposed to have been here thirty minutes ago.”
“Who?” Walker’s head nearly canted onto his shoulder. “Trevor’s on his way? He’s coming here? Great! God, I mean, shit! That’s the best news I’ve heard all year!” His cocky smile was back. “Trevor’s always late. Trust me, if he said he’d send help, then he’s on his way. He’ll be here.”
“That would be nice,” Julio admitted even as he drew both pistols, his gaze now intent on the dark, roiling surf beyond Walker. Without making eye contact, he tossed one handgun, grip first, to his only ally. “Because we have company,amigo.”
