Total pages in book: 165
Estimated words: 154925 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 775(@200wpm)___ 620(@250wpm)___ 516(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 154925 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 775(@200wpm)___ 620(@250wpm)___ 516(@300wpm)
“Where did it go?” Ian asked evenly.
“According to the records it flew to Upstate New York. Chelsea didn’t believe the official record,” Adam explained. “They had to have filed one or they wouldn’t have been allowed to land, but they can go back in and hack records. Chelsea believes the plane landed at Winchester Regional Airport in Northern Virginia.”
“One of the places Joseph told us to look was in Winchester,” MaeBe pointed out. “It’s an hour and a half out of DC.”
“My father’s family had a house out there. He sold it after his mom died. I’ll get you the address,” Drake replied. “I wouldn’t be surprised if my father found a way to fake the sale and use it as a safe house. If he put it under an alias, it would be hard to track who actually owns the place, and my mother wouldn’t have asked questions. It had some interesting architectural features that no one talked about.”
“Why?” Charlotte asked.
“Because they’re historical and could potentially caused the whole estate to have been declared a historical landmark and then it would be worth less money because it would be so much harder to redevelop it,” Drake replied. “No one wants to live in a house they can’t renovate without going through a historical society. If I remember we made a couple million off it, but my father apparently kept large sums of cash hidden. This could have been his way to ensure he had a completely hidden safe house. She wouldn’t have cared about anything but the cash. She was in a tight race at the time. I argued that I wanted the place, but I was fourteen and she wouldn’t listen to me.”
“What made it historical?” Ian asked.
“Tunnels.” Drake sat back. “Several well-kept tunnels that moved in and out of the property. The estate was a stop on the Underground Railroad, and later my relatives used it to move booze during Prohibition.”
“And you know these tunnels well?” MaeBe could already see the wheels turning in her bosses’ heads.
“There’s no formal map of the tunnels, but I remember them,” Drake replied. “I can get us in and out. Once Kala’s safe, we can attack her from there. But we need to do some recon. It’s been years. There’s likely some security. I know my father wouldn’t have closed the tunnels. He would have wanted a way in and out. If this is where she is.”
“It’s far too much of a coincidence.” Ian reached for his cell. “She’s gone to someplace familiar, someplace where she feels like she’s in control. The fact that she likely doesn’t know Drake has any idea his father had control of it would make her even more likely. She would enjoy putting one over on her brother and mother. Adam, start checking records to see if we can verify who owns the house. I’ve got someone who can do some recon on the place.”
“He’ll have to be careful,” Drake said. “My father was a tricky man.”
“Yes, Ten is aware of how dangerous your father could be. He worked for the man for years,” Ian explained. “Not directly under him, but he and Ten’s foster dad were not on the best of terms. He knew to watch out for Radcliffe. And despite me calling the man soft, he hasn’t lost a beat. He’s already on his way to DC. I called him last night, and he’s working on getting back to the States. His first flight was this morning. He should be on the ground in DC sometime tomorrow.”
Tennessee Smith was a legend at the Agency. He’d left many years before to work with McKay-Taggart around the world. Ten often got the roughest of assignments, and he never failed. He split his time between Dallas and his wife’s clinic in Sierra Leone. If anyone could get in and out of those tunnels without tripping Julia’s security, it was Ten. He would get them everything they needed to move in when they could.
“We leave tonight. I’ve got the plane ready. I need you to do everything you have to do in order to make this look good,” Ian continued. “I’ve got to think she’s going to have eyes on us. It won’t be a surprise Charlotte and I go with Mae, Drake, and Taylor, but we have to keep this team tight.”
“I think we should send a second team to New York and have them drive to Virginia,” Charlotte added. “Sean’s getting a car. Theo and Erin are meeting them there tomorrow morning. It’s a six-hour drive, but we think it’s the best way to avoid anyone who’s watching. We want all eyes on this team. Not on Ian’s brothers or Ten.”
“I can give her a good show,” Drake promised. “I’ll call my mother. We can meet in public, and then there’s zero reason for us to go to that bank quietly. We can march right in. I can assure you if Taylor and I meet my mother at her country club, Julia will know everything we say.”