Page 38 of Secrets Beneath the Waves (Beach Read Thrillers #2)

CHAPTER

SIXTEEN

The next day

Cayman Island CIA office

Ellie folded her hands on the conference table, keeping her expression neutral as the station chief, Tom Whitaker, addressed the employees at this hastily called meeting. His voice was measured, but she sensed the undercurrent of concern beneath his words.

“The Cayman authorities have reached out to me,” Whitaker said, adjusting his reading glasses while looking down at his notes. He didn’t look like a typical CIA boss. Most wore a suit and tie. He sported slacks, a beach shirt, and a deep tan.

“They have questions about an execution-style killing near the marina,” he continued. “Middle Eastern male, no ID, single gunshot to the head. Sound familiar to anyone?”

Ellie kept her breathing steady. She figured the authorities would sniff around their office. The murder was all over the news. It made sense they’d contact the CIA looking for answers.

They wouldn’t get them. The body had been left behind, yes, but everything else—the man’s phone, wallet, passport were already in her father’s hands. Nothing tied back to her.

Silence stretched in the room. She let her gaze drift across the table, scanning the faces of her colleagues.

Actually, one thing could tie it back to her.

Luke, seated two chairs to her right, shifted in his seat, his knee bounced under the table. His lips were pressed together in a tight line, and the slight sheen of sweat on his brow told Ellie everything she needed to know.

He was barely holding it together.

Whitaker scanned the room and frowned slightly for effect before he continued.

“That’s not all. Two Middle Eastern men rented a boat from the marina two days ago, using fake passports. That boat never returned. It vanished without a trace. Authorities aren’t sure if the boat was stolen, or if those men were victims of foul play.”

Ellie wouldn’t call it foul play. That insinuated something unfair happened to them. Those men got exactly what they deserved.

“As you know, Cayman averages four murders a year. Almost all of those are related to domestic violence or some kind of dispute.”

Whitaker looked up from his notes. “I think all the men are dead. Three on the same day seems connected to me.”

Three, they thought. Four actually. Ellie felt a twinge of satisfaction that she had equaled the island’s annual murder rate in the span of a week.

When she killed the first man, she felt deep regret.

Her mother said that would pass. It had.

While she still didn’t want to kill anyone, knowing the four men could never hurt anyone again sent bursts of exhilaration through her and made her want to find more of them to kill.

This mission has helped her realize what drove her parents all those years.

“So, let’s speculate,” Whitaker said. “The execution at the marina? The work of a professional lying in wait in my opinion. The kind of thing the CIA might want to do.”

It warmed Ellie’s heart that he called her a professional.

Elementary spycraft in her mind. She figured the man would go back to the marina, desperately searching for his friends.

She had hidden in the shadows as she watched him, patient, calculating.

When the marina emptied out and the sun set, she hadn’t hesitated.

Whitaker scanned the room, locking eyes with each person.

Searching for clues. He wouldn’t consider her.

Even though she was new in the office and none of this happened until she arrived on the scene, in his mind, she was wet behind the ears.

Incapable of such a feat. As far as she knew, he had no idea she was Jamie Austen’s daughter.

Unless of course he was the mole.

Her dad had dismissed that possibility after looking into it. He didn’t suspect anyone in the office. She looked around at them once again and had to agree. They looked like nothing more than staffers doing a job.

The CIA didn’t send their best field operatives to the Cayman Islands. Those in that room were folks who drew a nice paycheck and thanked their lucky stars every day they weren’t in Beirut, Lebanon, or infiltrating terrorist organizations in Syria.

Still, she wasn’t going to rule out anyone until she had the mole identified. If Whitaker were the mole, he’d play it like this, calm, curious, but not too curious.

“Whoever did this,” Whitaker said, “has the police on edge. They want to know if we have any knowledge of these incidents. I already told them that no one in our office knows anything about it. I’ll ask again. Has anyone here made me out to be a liar?”

The silence stretched uncomfortably. Luke’s tension was noticeable. She wondered if Whitaker would pick up on it.

Luke wouldn’t meet her gaze. He could barely keep his hands still. She could practically feel the pressure building in him, his uncertainty gnawing at the edges of his restraint.

Would he cave? Would he make a mistake? A single wrong word could unravel everything. Ellie needed him to keep quiet a little while longer. Maintaining anonymity was critical until she could complete her mission.

While four dead terrorists were a win as far as her parents were concerned, they were after the big prize. The mole. And Ellie intended to flush him out.

Finally, Whitaker exhaled noticeably, clearly frustrated. “All right,” he said. “If anyone learns anything, I expect to be the first to know. Dismissed.”

Chairs scraped against the floor as everyone rose and exited the conference room. Ellie took her time, gathered her notepad and pen, and kept her movements measured so as not to draw attention to herself. She was on her way to her car when Luke fell in step beside her.

“We need to talk,” he said.

Ellie stopped, crossed her arms, and faced him. “Say what you need to say.”

Luke glanced over his shoulder before stepping in closer, voice low but accusing. “I know what you did.”

Ellie tilted her head, feigning confusion. “You’re going to have to be more specific.”

His jaw was tighter than a vise. “The marina. Did you kill that man?” His voice shook, and he ran a hand through his hair with nervous anticipation.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“It has to be the man you saw at the marina a few hours before. That’s not a coincidence, Ellie.”

She held his gaze, unflinching. “That doesn’t mean I killed him.”

“Don’t be coy with me. You and I both know what happened to the men on the boat. Whitaker is going to find out that I was there as well. If the authorities connect this back to the Agency?—”

“They won’t.” Her voice was smooth, certain.

His eyes flashed. “How can you be so sure?”

“No one can tie it back to you,” she said, stepping forward, so she was in his face. “There are no witnesses. No evidence. No one is looking at us.”

“You don’t know that,” Luke shot back.

She cut him off, her voice dropping to a dangerous whisper. “You’re the only one who knows anything, and you don’t know everything.”

Luke swallowed hard. He kept looking up, scanning for anyone who might hear the conversation. Ellie had purposefully positioned herself, so she’d see anyone coming.

“That’s the point. I need to know everything. I’m knee deep in this thing. What is your mission? Why are those men trying to kill you?”

She studied him for a long moment. “You don’t want me to answer that.”

He shook his head. “You’re playing a dangerous game.”

“It’s not a game,” she said. “It’s a mission. And it’s bigger than either of us.”

“If Whitaker asks, I’m not going to lie for you.”

In reality, if Whitaker wasn’t the mole, then he wasn’t a problem. Even if he found out about her involvement, her parents could handle the fallout on their end. If he were the mole, she didn’t want Luke blowing her cover.

She leaned in, voice razor-sharp. “Listen to me, Luke. If you so much as breathe the wrong way about this, you’ll be interfering in something far beyond your clearance. You have no idea how high this goes. If you don’t want to ruin your career, then I suggest you keep your mouth shut.”

He looked away. “I’m not going to jail over this. I won’t cover this up.”

“Who do you think you’re working for? This is the CIA.

Secrets are our business. Don’t forget that those men tried to kill you as well.

What we did out there was self-defense. Those were bad guys.

They are our enemy. America is safer today because those men are dead.

That’s the oath you took. To defend the United States of America from all threats, foreign and domestic. ”

Luke rubbed his face roughly. He didn’t like it. He didn’t trust it. But she could see the resignation setting in. He had no choice.

“Do I need to remind you of the oath of secrecy?” she said, then quoted it, although not word for word.

“I swear not to discuss with or disclose to any person any information related to intelligence or the source of that intelligence unless authorized. I am not authorizing you to disclose this information. Is that clear?”

“Not even to my superior?”

“I can assure you that Whitaker’s superiors already know all about it.”

“How do I know you’re telling me the truth?”

She kept her eyes locked on his, steady, unwavering. “Trust me. You don’t want to buck me on this. Those men were a threat. Now they aren’t. End of story.”

He opened his mouth to say something, but didn’t. He wouldn’t cave—not yet, at least. But Ellie knew this kind of knowledge could crush a man if he wasn’t strong enough to bear it.

“This is bad, Ellie. If this spirals, we’re both done.”

She studied him for a long moment before responding.

“Then make sure it doesn’t spiral. Cause you’re wrong about one thing.

If it spirals, you’re finished. Not me. I’ll be fine either way.

I’m protected. If you screw up this mission, you’ll be the one in trouble.

I’m trying to protect you now. If you tell anyone, then I won’t be able to anymore. ”

Luke nodded reluctantly.

She almost felt sorry for him. He honestly thought he was in a lot of trouble either way. All she cared about right now was finding the mole. If Luke said the wrong thing, the mole could slither deeper into hiding, and she might never find him. Then he’d get blamed.

“Go home, Luke. Get some rest. Pretend you never met me. I’ll be out of here soon.”

She abruptly turned and walked away, leaving him standing alone in the parking lot, with the words lingering over him.

In a moment of reflection, she realized she wasn’t happy about being so direct with him.

While the romantic connection between them was nothing more than a flicker on a candle in her mind, she had fanned that flame to get close to him.

To find out if he was the mole. Never expecting him to get caught up in the mission.

He had feelings for her and she had hurt him. Led him on. And she regretted that. Maybe in some ways, it was a game, and this was how the game was played. She just hoped he was smart enough to play it.

Luke got in his car and she watched as he drove away.

As soon as he was out of sight, an unexpected idea popped into her head. A lightbulb moment. She took out her phone and dialed her parents.

“I have an idea,” she said when they answered. “A way to find the mole once and for all.”