Puppeteer Read online

  “As much as I can. My brother lives in Seattle. He's a tech guy but he runs his own security company.”

  “As in personal security?”

  “No, as in testing the reliability of security systems, which may or may not include people, machines, robots, computers, phones, and a whole host of things I can't even begin to imagine.”

  “Hunley,” Dani said, making the connection.

  Ty nodded as they passed through the quiet neighborhoods heading from the south point of the bay to the north.

  “And your sister?” she asked.

  He took a tricky curve before answering. “She's a social worker. She lives in Taos, New Mexico, where my parents are.”

  “I thought you were from here?”

  “We moved here when I was twelve. My dad got a job, and my mom thought we'd get a better education here. We loved it, but after I moved out and my dad retired they decided they missed New Mexico, so they moved back.” They were clipping along the coastal road, the ocean to their side, the breeze against their bodies. Almost like a real date with real conversation.

  “Do you see them often?”

  “They come in the spring and then again for a couple months in the fall, and I make it out as often as I can. It usually ends up being a couple of times a year,” he answered.

  “Sounds nice.”

  “It is. What about you? Do you see your sister often?”

  “Like you, as much as I can, which isn't as often as I would like. We're close though, we talk at least once a day when I'm not on assignment.”

  “Once a day?” Ty asked with mild incredulity. In his mind the phone was pretty much good for making business calls or ordering food for dinner, beyond that, it was a nuisance.

  Dani laughed. “We're identical twins, we've got that twin connection thing. I talked to her yesterday when I landed in Portland and I'll probably call her tonight, even though I'm working and she knows it. With my work schedule and her travel and family schedule, we can't always talk, but we try.”

  This little insight hit Ty from way out of left field. “Wow,” he managed. “You have a twin.” He couldn't imagine another woman looking like Dani and had an image of them wreaking havoc on teenage boys everywhere in their younger years. But what was just as interesting was how much Dani's voice changed when she talked about her sister.

  “Other than looks, are you two alike?” he asked.

  Dani laughed again. “Don't worry she isn't a thing like me. She's sweet and naïve and almost always content with life. I think I've heard her complain about twice in the last year and one of those was when she was dilated ten centimeters with her third baby and the doctor refused to give her an epidural. He claimed it was too late. I think he wanted to hear my sweet baby sister cuss a blue streak.”

  He knew she wasn't as cool as she seemed at the briefing, and Ty liked these revelations and glimpses into Dani's life. They made her seem more real, more her. “So you are an aunt? Three times over?”

  “Two girls and a boy. Sammy and Jason, Drew's brother, decided at the ripe old age of six and eight that they would get married. It stuck. They are about as in love with each other now as they were then. The kids are adorable but a handful. My sister has the patience of a saint.”

  “She sounds great,” Ty commented.

  “She is,” Dani responded. “She's nothing like me.”

  Ty thought about asking Dani what she meant about that ambiguous statement. Did she think she wasn't a good person? Or did she think her sister was great and recognized the differences for what they were, just differences? He was pretty sure Dani wouldn't be interested in hearing his opinion of her, interested in hearing that he thought she was pretty great too. Not to mention that he'd come off sounding like a seventh grader. She was smart and capable and confident and sexier than a woman had a right to be. But she wouldn't want to hear that from him, so he decided to change the subject.

  “So what about your parents? Do you see them often?” He felt Dani stiffen on the seat behind him and, though his rational mind knew it wasn't possible, he had a very tactile sense of her pulling away from him.

  “They're both dead,” she said. Her voice was rote and flat. “They died about twenty years ago.”

  And just like that, the conversation died, too.

  In silence, they pulled up to an empty parking lot that hosted a beautiful view of the Atlantic Ocean. A short distance from the lot was a fence that protected the tourists and sightseers from the sheer cliff that plunged into the sea below. Other than that, it was about as exposed as it could get.

  “Maybe if we dressed in bright orange or sent up a flare, they could see us better,” Dani commented the minute their helmets were off. Her jaw was tight and her arms crossed rigid over her middle.

  Ty held her gaze for a brief second before turning to the saddlebags on his bike. He pulled out two pairs of fingerless gloves, a blanket, and the glasses. No way would he push her further. The mention of her parents had not only brought back her professional wall, but also seemed to make her edgier and more aggressive. It was there—in the way she moved, in the tone of her voice. He'd go back to the professional playing field, but he wasn't about to cater to anything else.

  “Have you rock climbed before?” he asked tossing her a pair of gloves as he moved toward the fence. She managed to peel her arms off her middle in time to catch them.

  When she didn't answer, he turned back. Her eyes were going from him to the ocean behind his back. She met his gaze. “Of course I've rocked climbed, but I'm not climbing over a hundred foot cliff without gear. And no, these gloves,” she said holding them up to make her point, “do not constitute gear.”

  Ty smiled. He had to admit he loved that she didn't bat an eye at scaling a cliff. It was only at the lack of equipment that she protested. He winked once and then swung himself over the fence.

  “Ty,” her voice raised in reluctant concern as he approached the ledge. He turned back again and damn, if she didn't look a little pale. He walked back to the fence but stayed on the other side as he motioned her forward. She paused for a second then moved closer. He studied her face as she watched him.

  “Heights?” he asked.

  “Not my favorite, but I'll get over it,” she replied taking a few deep breaths.

  Ty slipped a hand behind her neck, tugged her toward him, and leaned forward. Her mouth opened in surprise and he moved in, covering it with his. And she kissed him back. It was a brief, sweet moment and just long enough that, when he pulled away, her face was full of color again.

  “What the hell was that for?” she demanded, sounding more astonished than mad.

  Ty shrugged and turned back to the cliff. “I figured it would give you something to occupy your mind rather than thinking about the height. And it's only about fifteen feet,” he added with a nod down the cliff side.

  “Come, take a look,” he said, holding out his hand to her. She searched his face for a minute and then put her hand in his and climbed over the fence. The only sign of her discomfort was her hold on his hand. Her color was good; her breathing was fine. Her grip was strong, but not terrified.

  “Holy shit,” she said looking over the edge. “There's some kind of shelf there. And is that a cave I see?” she asked, her voice taking on an excited pitch.

  Just what Ty had hoped.

  “It's a tunnel, and you're going to love the view from the other side,” he said, tugging on his gloves. “I'll go down first. I was here earlier today and found some good footholds on my climb. Once I'm down, you come over and I'll direct you.”

  Before Dani could answer, he'd lowered himself over the edge and was down, back on solid footing in less than three minutes. He called out for her to come down. She took one more look down the cliff side and then lowered her body over the edge. He guided her down and, in no time, they were standing on a ledge, about five feet deep, staring out at the ocean again.

  “Here,” Ty directed as they made their way toward the
tunnel. It was an odd piece of land he and his buddies had found in high school one crazy night. He wasn't sure how it happened, but once they found it, it had become the place where they ‘got away from it all’ in their years of teenage angst. He hadn't been back in years, but when he and Cotter had gone over the maps of the location, his brain had stirred with the memory of the place.

  Years had reduced the fallen stones to gravel and what was left was a wall that ascended from the floor of the shelf to the top of the cave entrance. From the ocean, it looked like just another jag in the ragged coast of southern Maine.

  “Cozy,” Dani spoke.

  “Wait until you get into the tunnel,” he said, handing her a pair of binoculars. “Not that you're squeamish, but I did clean it out a little bit when I was here earlier.”

  That earned him a smile. “I'm never one to look a gift horse in the mouth, especially when it involves cleaning.”

  “Go on through,” he nodded to the tunnel. He was looking forward to hearing her reaction. She took one last look at him before getting down on her belly and crawling into the tunnel. It was big enough to move in but not big enough to stand in, but Ty was pretty sure the view would far outweigh the discomfort.

  Chapter 9

  DANI ELBOWED HER WAY through the tunnel. She could see the light at the far end; it wasn't more than twenty feet away. Still, twenty feet on your belly wasn't as fun as it sounded. It took a few minutes longer than she thought; she was out of practice. But when she reached the end, pulled out the glasses, and had a look, it almost took her breath away.

  She laughed at herself. Most women needed gold or diamonds to gasp in delight—all she needed was a clean, unobstructed view of her target's private domain.

  “Happy?” Ty called from the opening of the tunnel.

  “Very.”

  She couldn't have had a better view without being on the property. The house was more exposed on the north side than the south. Getz hadn't bothered with the mirrored windows, he must have figured the trees and foliage protected him enough. There weren't as many windows on this side, but those she could see gave her a clean view into the house. Even without the equipment, she could see people moving around. Once Cotter and his folks got up here it would be like having a video camera inside.

  After a long look at the house, she moved her focus to the boathouse. Surveillance of the boathouse wasn't going to make the case for them. And with the two new recon positions, if the drugs were going to come in by boat, they'd have plenty of advance warning. But the boathouse was the Achilles' heel of the compound. She had no doubt it was well protected, that Getz knew it was a vulnerable point, but no matter what he did, the fact remained, the boathouse would never be as fortified as the house or the land. And if the transfer were to take place out at sea, having a view of the boathouse would give them a heads-up to any activity that might indicate movement.

  “Enjoying yourself?” Ty's amused voice echoed through the tunnel.

  Dani glanced at her watch; she'd been in the tunnel for over twenty minutes already. “Immensely, now be quiet, I'm focusing.”

  “Fine,” Ty laughed. “I'm going up to my bike to grab something, I'll be right back.” A few seconds later Dani heard the sound of his feet on the rock and then silence. Her eyes stayed focused on the house, even as she wondered what he was getting from his bike.

  She felt bad for snapping at him earlier. She knew her attitude was out of line, he'd done nothing but help her and her team since she'd dropped the bombshell on his department that morning. In fact, he'd gone above and beyond the call of duty. She had a fleeting thought that his actions were because of her, but she dismissed it just as fast. Ty would have done it anyway, he would have gone out of his way to help because that was the kind of guy he was. When he saw a job that needed to be done, that he knew he could do, he went ahead and did it.

  He was different than other men who had passed in and out of her life. In the few hours she'd spent with Ty, she realized that not only could she like the man, she might even respect him. Not that she'd disrespected the others, but nothing in those relationships had ever inspired her to offer anything more than the basic respect a person should hold for another human being. But with Ty, it was more.

  He went about his job with quiet confidence and she got the sense he was a team player—as long as the team was doing the right thing. But even as Dani acknowledged this aspect of Ty's character, she knew it wasn't the only, or even the main reason, she found herself wanting to really talk to Ty. That she'd asked about his family, or, even more startling, that she'd told him about hers, was as much of a surprise to her as she knew it was to Ty.

  It was a strange tug inside her. On the one hand, she wanted to ask, she wanted to hear about his life and his family. But she was out of practice and it felt awkward. Then again, if she was being honest with herself, which seemed to be a growing trend in the last twelve hours, it wasn't the talking that was awkward, it was the wanting. The wanting to know more, to hear more. And the more she thought about it, the more she knew her discomfort wasn't because she was out of practice, it was because the wanting was a new thing all together.

  “You didn't pass out or anything?” Ty's voice filled the cave. Startled, Dani bumped her head on the low ceiling of the tunnel.

  “Christ, that hurt,” she complained, rubbing her head. “Give me a minute,” she grumbled.

  “A real minute or are you going to spend another twenty minutes?” he chided. Dani looked at her watch and chastised herself. She'd been in the tunnel for over forty minutes and over half of that had been spent thinking about Ty and her confusing reaction to him. Yes, the time had come to admit that she was pathetic; she grimaced.

  She wiggled back out of the tunnel, stood, stretched, and turned. “Whoa, hey,” she all but sputtered and then frowned. “Please tell me I didn't just sound like an extra out of Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure?” she asked, her hand pressed to her chest in concern.

  Ty laughed, and handed her a glass of wine. Well, it wasn't a real glass but a little plastic cup. It went with the little picnic he must have set up while she was hiding from him in the tunnel. Dani glanced at the blanket, now spread out and covered with various foods. Nothing heavy, but Ty had managed to bring down a few cheeses, some bread, some fruit, and a few of what Dani suspected were lobster rolls, though it had been years since she'd had one.

  “Wow,” she said, taking the cup from Ty's outstretched hand. He was sitting with his back against the cliff wall, legs outstretched and ankles crossed.

  “It's just dinner, Dani,” Ty said when she didn't move to sit. “Everyone has to eat some time. And drink. I assume one glass won't get you any demerits with Drew?” he teased.

  It was so obviously not ‘just dinner’ that Dani took a long moment to search Ty's face. He didn't seem concerned with her scrutiny. He sat back, closed his eyes against the fading light, and enjoyed a sip of wine. He didn't look like he had any plans other than to sit and enjoy the coming evening and the food. He didn't look like he expected anything else from her other than to join him. So, she brushed herself off, sat, and took a sip of her own wine. Unlike the military, the CIA was way more lax in its drinking policy. In fact, whatever an agent needed to do to get the job done was actively encouraged—not always beneficial to the agent, but encouraged nonetheless.

  They ate in companionable silence for a while, until Dani's guilt got to her.

  “I apologize for the attitude earlier,” she said.

  Ty glanced at her and shrugged. “Apology accepted. Why does Drew think I can kick his ass?”

  Dani laughed. “He thinks you want to kick his ass. I'm the one who thinks you could.”

  “Thanks for the vote of confidence, but those tall wiry guys are quicker than they look.”

  “Yeah,” Dani gave him a rueful grin. “Tell me about it.”

  Ty shook his head. “You've sparred with him haven't you?” He didn't wait for her to answer. “Of course you have. H
ave you ever won?”

  “Yeah, but it took me a while to get there,” she grinned.

  “So what did he say to piss you off earlier?” Ty asked.

  Dani's first reaction was to answer the question with a glib ‘nothing’ but she bit her tongue and took a few deep breaths before deciding how to answer. That she was going to answer at all surprised her, but her conversation with Drew earlier, and the subsequent revelations about herself were lurking in her mind. Nausea roiled in her stomach. Fear. Fear of maybe offering a little bit more of herself. She took another breath and looked at Ty. And even more powerful than her fear was her desire to overcome it. Maybe it was a control issue, or maybe it was Ty. Either way, she answered.

  “He figured out something had happened between the two of us. He was concerned.”

  Ty's eyebrows shot up. “Don't tell me he thought you might let it compromise the investigation?”

  Dani shrugged, still not comfortable having this conversation, but wanting to have it anyway. “Something like that.”

  Ty's eyes narrowed. “Something like that?” he repeated and then paused in thought. “I can't believe he would think you would let anything interfere with an investigation. I've known you less than twenty-four hours and even I know you wouldn't do that. Wait,” he paused. And then his eyes narrowed. “Is he afraid I'm going to do something to screw it up?” he asked in dawning recognition.

  Dani glanced up and shook her head. “I don't know what brought it on. I have some ideas but I'm just…” she paused, thinking. There was more than one reason Drew might be concerned, although, at this point, she was pretty sure it was because he was worried she would hurt Ty and Ty would retaliate by becoming difficult. By now she knew this wasn't a fair assessment of Ty so she didn't want to share it with him.

  “He's like a big brother to me. And kind of like a father figure, too. I'm sure he has his reasons, and I'm sure none of them are based on his professional knowledge of you or me,” she said.

  “Father figure?” A hint of a teasing grin curled his mouth. “He's what, three years older than you?”