Page 60 of Fearless
The doors to the ambulance fly open, and the medics pull meout. Before they can wheel me inside, I yell and point to the sky. “It’s not your blessing we need, Robert. It’s His.”
Chapter thirty-one
Harper
My mom grabs my hand and holds it as we watch the door to the ambulance close. My body shakes with silent laughter when Roger yells, “Bye, Baby! I love you!” Who knew that he would be so uninhibited all hopped up on oxycodone?
She gives me a gentle squeeze before letting go. “I was wondering when God would bring the two of you together,” she says lovingly, not a hint of disappointment or disapproval to be found.
A bit surprised, I ask, “You approve?”
“I do now,” she says, laughing. “When you were all moony over him a decade ago, not so much. You still had your whole life ahead of you and some growing up to do. I disagreed with your decision to switch career paths, but it was your life to lead.”
“When did you know, and when did it become acceptable to you?”
My mom gives me a pitying smile. “I’ve known since you were 18, Sweetheart. Your eyes began twinkling when you looked at Roger, and there was a wistfulness that couldn’t be missed. As awoman and a mother, it was easy to recognize. Be grateful that your father was clueless until he listened to your conversations in the cabana and that he wasn’t in a position to do anything about it.”
My lips curl downward, and I fiddle with the hem of my shirt. I feel like a small child who has disappointed her father. “Dad doesn’t approve,” I say flatly.
“I wouldn’t say he disapproves. Shocked is more like it. We figured that you would seek out Roger and the rest of Shining Knight for protection, but we had no idea what lengths you would go to find us. Of course, I wasn’t nearly as surprised as your father, which is why I’ve been in your corner and trying to convince him for the past week,” she winks.
The ambulance is out of sight, and I sigh. “I should have gone with them. I need to be there for Roger.”
“You will be, but let’s wrap up a few things first. Your father needs the time alone with his friend, and Roger will be heading straight into surgery.” My mom puts her arm around my shoulders and turns me toward a large group of men and the Shining Knight team.
Jessie walks up to us and grins at my mom. “I’m not sure if I should call you Mrs. Finnegan, Agent Finnegan, or Eloise.” she teases.
“Eloise is just fine. I’m not technically an agent any longer,” my mom says as we continue walking. “I’m more of a specialist for hire, just like all of you.”
“Harper, are you going to be one of us, or are you planning on staying with the FBI?” Jessie asks, putting me on the spot. The entire Shining Knight team stops what they’re doing andfocuses their attention on me. Jessie smiles sweetly, fully aware of what she’s done.
“We’ll see,” is all I get out.
Simms, Monroe, Zurkowski, Ackerman, and a few others join us while I stare blankly at Director Whitman, Agent Smith, and Agent Jones, who are handcuffed and lying unconscious on the ground.
“Well done, everyone! Our plan survived first contact, which is a miracle,” Simms announces.
“What did you just say?” I remember praying to God using those exact words, and my eyes fill with grateful tears that He heard me.Thank you, Jesus, for allowing us to all come out of this alive.
“I said, ‘Our plan survived first contact,’” Simms reiterates. “I can’t recall a single time in my career that has ever happened. Something always goes wrong, and we have to reassess, regroup, and reattack.”
“Speaking of attack, how is it that no one was injured? I heard a lot of gunfire, yet there isn’t a drop of blood on any of you. Clearly, you have kept a few key details from me, Agent Simms.”
Zurkowski and Ackerman burst out in laughter, both pointing at my mother, who blushes profusely. “It was your mother’s idea,” Zurkowski says once he gets control of himself. “Soon-to-be ex-Director Whitman didn’t know that everyone who was working for him—with the exception of Smith and Jones—was loyal to Finnegan. The fight you heard outside was planned and had originally included the use of live ammunition. Granted, we weren’t going to shoot anyone, but the risk for someone to get seriously hurt was still there.”
Ackerman continues the story. “Then Eloise was watching Christmas movies, includingDie HardandDie Hard 2, and loved the plot twist in the second movie. There is one scene where Bruce Willis is at the church near the airport, and the Army shows up ‘guns blazing.’ Only they were using blanks because they were aligned with the bad guys and needed to make the conflict look real. Eloise thought that was brilliant and suggested we do the same.”
“When you changed out magazines, you replaced the blanks with real ammo. Nice!” Savannah exclaims.
Simms gives her an appreciative glare. “What’s ‘nice’ is your quick and accurate shots that took down Smith and Jones. I’ve heard about your enhanced ‘simunition’ rounds with the sedatives in the tips, but seeing them in action was something else entirely. It’s way better than the tranquilizer darts we use and would be a nice addition to the FBI’s arsenal.”
Ethan laughs. “Depending on who the next Director is going to be, we might be able to work out some kind of deal.” He waves his thumb toward his partner. “My partner, Ben, is the point man for anything logistical or contract-related. He’ll be the one you want to talk to.”
After a few more minutes of discussion, Jerry asks a question that’s been lingering in the back of my mind. “Where did Jordan and the rest of his crew go? Where is Sergio Alvarez?”
“The crew of the charter boat is currently being detained at the Naval Air Station for questioning. They are all cooperating with us and offering their testimonies in exchange for reduced charges. The only person that’s missing is Carlos,” Monroe says, pointedly looking at Ethan.
Ethan shrugs. “If you find him, let us know.”
