Travis Starnes
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Election Day (John Taylor #6) - Chapter 8
🕑 Added 2021-03-17 15:54:44 +0000 UTCIt took more than an hour for the fire department to okay anyone returning into the building. The fire damage was actually very limited and easily put out. The longest part of the delay was getting an engineer to confirm the building was still structurally safe. Several of their neighbors were also going to be homeless for a while, which Taylor felt bad about. While it was almost unheard of for law enforcement to be retaliated against at home by a criminal they were chasing, they had accepted some risk when they signed up. Their neighbors hadn’t.
The explosion had completely gutted their apartment. They would have to wait until the arson report came back, but looking it over, Taylor could work out the gist of what happened. Taylor couldn’t help but think that when the arson investigator did start snooping around, he was going to be in for some surprises. The fact that only their apartment had been destroyed was going to be unusual, mostly because it was clear Hubbard had wanted it that way. He’d shut off the gas to the building before setting off the explosive to keep the fire and damage localized.
Taylor wasn’t an expert, but he was also pretty sure from the blast patterns that the explosives had been laid out and designed in such a way as to push the force of the blast towards the outside wall of their apartment. That explained the fireball and concussive blast that shot out of the windows. Hubbard had purposefully set the explosives to limited collateral damage. That made sense. Hubbard was willing to kill bystanders if he had to, but he wasn’t just wantonly destroying everything to get at his target.
Eventually, most of the building was given the okay to go inside. Taylor and Whitaker, along with the upstairs and downstairs neighbors, were the exception because of damage to the floor and ceiling. Having spent a good part of his adult life untethered to any single location, always moving from one base to another, Taylor wasn’t particularly sentimental about the things he owned. He could replace pretty much everything he’d had.
Whitaker, however, had lived a more traditional life and had keepsakes and mementos that were surely lost. She maintained her composure but Taylor could tell she was upset. Eventually, they had to stop watching their devastated apartment and move on to the next thing. Taylor guessed it would be several days before they could get back inside and start looking around for anything salvageable, and they still had a deranged bomber on the loose to deal with. Luckily, they’d had some stuff on them, like cell phones, and Taylor still had his wallet, so they weren’t completely untethered. Taylor was just looking for a local hotel on his phone when it rang.
“John, I just heard. Are you and Loretta alright?” Caldwell’s voice said when he picked up.
“Yes, ma’am. We managed to clear the building before the bombing, so no one was hurt other than some cuts and small injuries from falling debris.”
“They said your apartment was bombed. Was it him?”
“We think so. He called me when we were in Rochester and knew who I was, although no one actually saw him.”
“I feel responsible for this. If I hadn’t asked you and Loretta to look into him, none of this would have happened. I’m so sorry John.”
“Ma’am, we’ve only been on this case for two days. For him to have as much information on me as he had, he would have had to start looking into me earlier than that. This guy’s obsessed with you and thinks you’re building forces to bring about the end of the world. He’s done his research into you and everyone around you. He might have eventually tried this even if we weren’t chasing him, since Whitaker and I would be the easiest people he could connect to his fantasies.”
“Still, if it wasn’t for me, you wouldn’t be in danger.”
“Maybe not from him, but we’d still be in danger. It comes with our jobs and we’ve accepted the risk to do what we do. This is no different.”
“I still feel bad about this.”
“I appreciate that ma’am. I’m more worried about him escalating, branching out to go after the people around you. I think it’s best if you have Mary Jane come stay with you for now. I know she has her own detail, but they’re small.”
“Do you think he’s going to try and hurt Mary Jane?”
“No, I don’t think he’ll go after her, since she doesn’t present a danger to him, but he’s unstable. It’s impossible to tell what he’ll actually do and his delusions extend out to the people around you. I’m just suggesting it as a precaution.”
“Okay, I’ll have her and Kara come stay with me until this is over. What about you? Your apartment is gone. Where are you going to stay?”
“We’ll get a hotel, probably.”
“No, I won’t have that. You and Loretta will also come and stay with me until we figure something out.”
“Ma’am, we can’t …”
“John, I’m not taking no for an answer. Think of it like this, I’ll have both Kara and Mary Jane here. I know how you are. If they’re going to stay here as a precaution, then I know you’d prefer to keep an eye on them, even if I have Secret Service protection. If you stay here too, it’ll be easier to do that.”
Taylor sighed and looked back at the hole in the side of the building, “Fine. We’ll have to make a stop to buy some basic supplies since everything we owned is charcoal now, then we’ll be by.”
“Good, I’m glad you decided to see things my way.”
Taylor got off the phone to find Whitaker looking at him questioningly.
“The Senator has offered us a place to stay until we find a new place to live. I tried to say no, but you know how insistent she can be.”
“Good, that’ll be better than staying at a hotel.”
“Good? Won’t it be weird staying in someone else’s house?”
“First, you’ve seen her house. By D.C. standards, it’s massive. We won’t be underfoot, I promise. Second, and more importantly, we got lucky this time. I don’t know if that package was an attempt to get everyone outside or just a distraction, but we could have easily been back upstairs when that explosion went off. I’m not sure he won’t try again, and I’d prefer to have the Secret Service watching our backs, just in case.”
“I guess. Let’s finish up here then and get going. We still have to stop somewhere and buy clothes and essentials and it’s starting to get late.”
Georgetown, Washington D.C.
As much as Taylor was ready to get to Caldwell’s and put this day behind them, it took another thirty minutes at the apartment clearing up questions from the arson investigator and local police. Whitaker had put in a call to their homeowner’s insurance, who had informed them that, since this happened as a result of their job, it wasn’t covered, meaning they had more headaches scheduled for them tomorrow.
Shopping, even as rushed as they’d done it, took a while longer making it almost two hours since his call from Caldwell when they showed up at her door. She was, of course, gracious as always, welcoming them inside. She directed them to a spare bedroom that was apparently next to the room Kara was staying in.
They both took showers, cleaning off the remnants of their home that had showered over them and the rest of the crowd after it exploded. By the time they made it downstairs, they could hear raised voices.
“Ma’am, I’m telling you this is a problem.”
“I understand your concern Edward, but I’m not budging. These are my friends and I will not throw them out into the cold, politics be damned.”
“I …” Packer started to say before noticing Taylor and Whitaker.
“You two look much better, now. The miracle of a nice shower, right?” Caldwell said, smiling at them.
“I do feel so much better,” Whitaker said. “Ma’am, I know Taylor already said it, but I really appreciate you putting us up while we figure out what we’re going to do.”
“Don’t even mention it, sweetie.”
“Mr. Taylor, can I speak to you outside, please?” Packer said as Whitaker and Caldwell continued their conversation.
While Taylor didn’t want anything to do with Packer, especially after their last run-in, he knew Packer’s type and knew the man wouldn’t leave him alone until he got to say what he wanted to say.
Packer walked out of the front door, Taylor behind him, and stopped on the porch. Taylor took a moment to look around. While this house was probably worth several million, knowing how expensive homes in Georgetown could be, it wasn’t what he’d expect. He’d been to Caldwell’s mansion in South Carolina which sat on enough land that you couldn’t see the road from the main house. The entire property was surrounded by a large fence and high-tech monitoring. By comparison, Caldwell’s D.C. home was right on the street, as was pretty much everything in D.C. It boasted an impressive fence, but that was about it.
From a security perspective, it didn’t seem as secure as the Secret Service would usually prefer. Of course, this was a private neighborhood that allowed for controlled access to the streets themselves, but that didn’t mean much. Enough other people lived in the neighborhood that agents couldn’t just patrol the streets, stopping anyone they encountered. Even if they had records for everyone who lived here, they’d still end up regularly questioning Caldwell’s neighbors’ visitors, which would lead to discontent. He knew Caldwell well enough to know that she would have put her foot down about that. Even without the need to appeal to rich voters like these, she was the type of person who didn’t want to upset those around her without a good reason, which her own safety was almost certainly not.
“What can I do for you?” Taylor said, turning back to Packer.
“I know we got off on the wrong foot, and I wanted to apologize for that …”
“Great. Apology accepted. Let’s get back inside,” Taylor said, knowing there was a ‘but’ coming and hoping to avoid it.
“Wait. While I apologize for how I presented my concerns to you, I think we still need to deal with the situation. I’ve spoken to Agent Cole and he’s not happy to be distracted by more protectees.”
“He doesn’t have to worry about us, we can protect ourselves.”
“Apparently not, since you’re staying here after your own apartment blew up. You have a target on you, and you’re bringing additional danger to the Senator. It would be best if you and your partner found someplace else to stay, for the Senator’s safety, of course.”
“You’re joking, right? The person who blew up our apartment and who’s trying to get to the Senator? Why would us being here make it more dangerous for her or not? She’s his goal; we just got in the way.”
“We don’t actually know that, Mr. Taylor. As I understand it, there hasn’t been any official finding as to why your apartment blew up. I give you it’s probably not an accident, but remember I’ve looked into you and Agent Whitaker. The two of you have made a fair number of enemies over the last several years. It’s highly possible that the person who blew up your apartment is not the same person after the Senator. If that’s true, then you’re making the Senator a target for multiple madmen.”
“That’s bullshit and you know it. Besides the fact that we received a call from Hubbard directly threatening Whitaker and me, you’re trying to tell me you think it was someone other than the trained explosive expert that set an explosion that destroyed only our apartment? Get real.”
“I’m saying you have to consider the chances. That’s also not the only issue at hand. While I may have been a bit abrasive about it yesterday, I still think you need to step out of this investigation. I’ve spoken with Agent Cole and there are concerns with you and Agent Whitaker operating outside of his task force. They’ve got officers from most of the other agencies involved now, even from the FBI. Hell, by FBI rules, you’re not even supposed to be assigned to this case, since you’re close with one of the participants.”
“Let me guess, you’ve called Joe Solomon and reminded him of that point, didn’t you?”
“I …”
“Come on, of course you did. It’s exactly the kind of behind-the-back play you’re so good at. Why deal with something head-on when you can call the manager.”
“Look,” Packer said, pushing past Taylor’s insult. “I get it, you’re invested now. You’re mad that your apartment was blown up. Don’t you see that makes you less of an asset here, not more of one? If the Senator’s your friend, you should recognize this and realize anything that makes the task force trying to catch this madman makes her less safe. Do the right thing. Call your boss and tell him you’re off the case and go work on something else.”
“You’re joking, right? If Whitaker and I weren’t on this, we wouldn’t even know Hubbard’s name. Hell, we’re the only ones making actual progress here.”
“Yeah, I heard about that. You basically blundered into him by accident, so let’s not pretend it was some kind of detective work on your part. We both know that one of Agent Cole’s teams would have found that information soon, and they might have been better prepared instead of just jumping from one clue to the next. Hubbard got away from you, remember, and was able to put the people around you in danger. The last thing the Senator needs is someone like you near her with this lunatic on the lose.”
“Maybe he did get away and Cole probably would have found him eventually, but how long would it have taken. A day? A week? They didn’t know what he looked like, who he was, anything. Cole could have walked up to that gate over there and no one would have known who he was. So yeah, he got away, but now we know who we’re looking for. That’s a lot further ahead than where we were. As for making things more dangerous for her, that’s ridiculous. Whitaker and I are obstacles, that’s it. Caldwell is his actual target. Our being here isn’t making it any more dangerous, and having two additional armed agents in the house with her adds an extra layer of protection. Now, you can feel free to tell the Senator how bad of an idea it is for me to stay here all you want, but for now, we’re staying. You don’t like it? Tough shit.”
Taylor went back inside, closing the door in Packer’s face, resisting the urge to slam it closed. While he was annoyed at Packer for being such an idiot, the only one Taylor was actually angry at was himself. Packer had scored a hit when he pointed out Taylor blundered into Hubbard and hadn’t been prepared to catch him, although he’d never tell the massive prick that.
Taylor's entire training had been about preparation and methodical action. It was one of the things he prided himself on. Looking back, it was clear he’d been getting sloppy over the last several years. Numerous times on cases, he’d followed his gut, chasing clues without spending the time to really research and plan out his moves. If his old team leader had seen the shit he’d been pulling, he would’ve had Taylor’s ass.
Thankfully, Packer left after their confrontation. Taylor guessed it was because he was worried Taylor would say something to the Senator about their confrontation. It was clear she’d told him to leave it alone and weasels like Packer were always too gutless to confront someone of a higher status. It was people like him that made up the yes men in every poorly run outfit. He was so sure he was smarter than everyone around him and yet he hadn’t figured out that wasn’t the kind of person Taylor was. If Taylor had a problem with someone, he’d deal with it himself. He wasn’t the kind of person to run and tattle on someone.
Taylor took a moment to collect himself and push Packer out of his head before going off to find Caldwell and Whitaker, who were still in conversation. Taylor just sat and listened to them for a few minutes before the front door opened. At first, he thought Packer had returned until he heard the sound of giggling, followed shortly by the appearance of Mary Jane and Kara.
“Hey,” Kara said, flopping down on the couch beside him. “What are you two doing here? Checking out on me?”
“Up on me,” Mary Jane corrected.
Kara looked thoughtful for a moment and nodded, clearly making a mental note of the word choice. That was one of the big reasons she’d improved so fast. Beyond just being immersed in English, Mary Jane had been making it a point to help her along by correcting word choices or understand English idioms.
“There was an incident at the apartment,” Whitaker said. “The Senator was nice enough to offer us a place to stay while we figure out how to deal with it.”
“What kind of incident?” Kara said, sounding concerned.
Whitaker gave a side glance at Taylor. She had always been the more diplomatic of the two, believing there was a right way and time to present information. Taylor knew that he’d want to hear the unvarnished truth if he was in the other persons’ shoes. The truth always came out at some point, and sugar-coating it or hiding the worst parts only delayed the inevitable.
“There was an explosion at the apartment. We got everyone out of the building safely and no one was hurt, but the place is a complete loss.”
“What caused the explosion?” Kara asked, looking at Taylor intently.
He knew before he answered that she’d already worked out it was more than just an accident. People underestimated Kara because of her accent and youthful looks and didn’t often realize how quick-witted and shrewd she really was.
“Let’s not get into all that,” Caldwell said.
“Senator, I know you don’t want to upset them, but I think they have a right to know what’s going on,” Taylor said before turning his attention back to Kara. “The man who’s after the Senator set a bomb in our apartment. We discovered who he is and had a run-in with him yesterday. He clearly saw us as an obstacle to getting at the Senator. Before you get worried, I want you both to know we’re fine. The only thing we lost is stuff, and stuff can be replaced. He’s scared of us, and that’s good. It means he thinks we’re getting too close.”
“Will he come here?” Mary Jane asked.
“Your house is watched over by the best bodyguards in the world. He can’t do the same thing to you that he did to us.”
“It’s why they added more agents to your detail, sweetie, and why we wanted you and Kara to stay here with me until this is over. Trust me, you’re perfectly safe,” Caldwell said.
Taylor couldn’t hold back a grimace at that. He smothered it before the Senator could see it, but Kara noticed. Thankfully she didn’t say anything, probably to keep from worrying her friend. Ever since she’d been kidnapped several years ago, Mary Jane had suffered from anxiety and was quick to panic. In that regard, Kara, who was almost always unfazed no matter what happened around her, was good company for the older girl.
“Let’s put all that business behind us and have a pleasant evening. I haven’t had guests in quite a while, and I’m not going to miss out on this opportunity.”
Taylor knew she was trying to put a pleasant spin on things, although she was probably happy to have visitors, despite the reasons for it. Someone of Caldwell’s status didn’t make friends easily, since she had to be wary because of her position and money.
They spent the next several hours just catching up with the girls, talking about their school, and the campaign. Whitaker and Caldwell were on the same page and steered the conversation away from any upsetting topics like the maniac currently gunning for the Senator or the fact that Whitaker and Taylor were, for all intents and purposes, currently homeless.
Eventually, things started to wind down. Despite the situation, and against Taylor and the Secret Service’s advice, Caldwell was still actively campaigning and had an early event. Whitaker and Taylor still had some leads to follow up on and there was a task force briefing in the morning that Whitaker wanted to go to. Taylor would have preferred to just do their own thing since they weren’t going to be consulted on anything connected to the case. Since Cole was only following the letter of his directive, giving them access to any information the task force came across, and not doing one inch beyond that, she was concerned they might miss something.
An FBI agent to the core, she had always been big on the idea of shared intel. While Taylor agreed that any information would be important, he knew how these groups ended up working. Even though they were all obstinately assigned to the same case, everyone was still looking out for their own self-interest, and it wasn’t uncommon for one team or another to hold back information for a day or two to give their people a head start. What mattered to most of them was who got the public recognition for a successful case and pushing off anything negative or scandalous onto one of the other groups.
The room that Caldwell had put them in was nicer than the room they shared in their apartment, or had shared when it still existed.
“I want to go talk to Kara about some stuff. I’ll be back by the time you’re done.”
Whitaker had a routine she went through every night. Taylor didn’t really understand it, but he’d been involved with enough women to understand it was something they needed to do.
“Do you want me to go with you?” Whitaker asked, pausing rubbing a small cleaning cloth over her face, wiping away the makeup she’d put on early that morning before the last task force briefing.
“No. She had some questions but had held back, probably to keep from worrying Mary Jane. I’m just going to make sure she’s okay with everything and doesn’t worry.”
Whitaker gave him the look she did when she knew he was being less than honest, “You know Kara; she might be concerned for our safety, but she doesn’t need, or probably even want, anyone holding her hand. She’s too much like you, always wanting to charge headfirst at every problem. So why are you really going to talk to her?”
“Do you want to know? I’ll tell you if you want me to, but this is one of those things you’d honestly be happier not knowing about.”
Whitaker heaved a sigh and turned back to the mirror, “I swear to God you’re going to be the death of me. Fine, go conspire, but don’t expect me to come running to help if whatever you have planned goes sideways.”
“I never do, but we both know you’ll be there if I screw up.”
Whitaker just shook her head as he left the room. Things had changed between them. It hadn’t been that many months ago that Whitaker had left him, calling off their engagement because he’d shot a terrorist who was supposedly surrendering. Their time in Germany, where she’d ended up on the other side of the law had changed her slightly. Not in any major way, she still had her principles and firm belief, but she understood things weren’t always as black and white as they would seem, and sometimes rules needed to be bent to navigate through the real world.
She still got exasperated with Taylor when he blew right past protocol, but she didn’t let it drive her crazy. Taylor, for one, was happy for the change. He did value her point of view and belief in the system. There were times it was helpful to have someone with that mindset he could bounce ideas off, and her warnings had occasionally kept him out of trouble. She still offered her opinion and still believed in following the rules, but he knew Whitaker didn’t let those disagreements devolve into heated arguments anymore. They were still finding their balance, but Taylor was fairly certain they’d work it out.
It was probably a good thing that she wasn’t joining him to talk to Kara, though; at least, not for what he had planned.
When the Senator had shown them their rooms, she’d also pointed out the room she’d put Kara in, which was next door to Mary Jane’s room. While her daughter didn’t live here anymore, Caldwell had enough rooms to keep one permanently set up for when Mary Jane visited.
Taylor was a little concerned that Kara would be in Mary Jane’s room, or vice versa, and he’d have to come back later. A second trip would give Whitaker another chance to change her mind, which was something he didn’t need. Thankfully, Kara was in her room by herself.
“Hey,” he said, knocking on the open door, although still standing out in the hallway.
“You were being all …” she paused, searching for the word, “sketchy, earlier. Are you now going to say what you didn’t want to tell, I mean, say then?”
“I just didn’t want to upset Mary Jane, and the Senator was set on trying to put a positive spin on everything. I think you already worked out that the situation is worse than she made it seem. I’m concerned about you going to school on your own.”
“Mary Jane thought of that. She walks me to school and then comes by and gets me when I’m done, which means so do her security people. The school has its own guards, so I wait inside until she calls me.”
“Good. I was going to suggest something along those lines. That takes care of one thing, but there’s something else,” he said, stepping into the room and closing the door behind him.
Reaching into the small of his back, he pulled out a small gun, checked it to make sure there wasn’t a round chambered and the safety was engaged, and extended it.
“Do you remember the safety rules we went over at the range?”
“Yes,” she said, looking at the gun and then at him, confused.
“While I meant what I said about you guys having the best bodyguards in the world, at least while you’re staying here, that isn’t the same as being able to protect yourself. You can’t take this to school with you, but otherwise, I want you to keep this on you at all times, just in case. Don’t let anyone see it and don’t pull it out unless you mean to use it.”
“I won’t,” she said, reaching out and taking the weapon. “I will be careful. I know you could be in large trouble if someone found out you gave me this. What about you. Don’t you need it?”
“That’s my backup. I’m serious, this is only for if your life is in danger.”
“I promise to be good.”
“I know you will be. I trust you. You have a good head on your shoulders and I know you can handle yourself when you need to. Just be careful. Unless you’re in a secure location, keep your head on a swivel. Pay attention to the people around you. Even when you’re in a safe place, keep an eye out. I don’t want to leave you anxious or worry you, but this guy is no joke. He is extremely dangerous and a serious threat.”
“As dangerous as you?”
“Yes. He has the same training as me, plus some extras I never did, and almost the same amount of experience. He will not hesitate to hurt someone if he thinks that’s what he needs to do. I don’t think he’ll come for you, but be careful. As the Senator's daughter, Mary Jane is definitely on his list, and if you’re with her, you’re in just as much danger.”
“I won’t let anything happen to her.”
“Or happen to you either.”
She set the gun down on her nightstand and walked over, wrapping her arms around him in a bear hug. Taylor returned the hug and rested his chin on the top of her head.
“I love you, kiddo. I couldn’t take it if anything happened to you.”
“I know.”
“All right, get some sleep. I’ll probably see you in the morning before we have to head out, but if not be good and stay in touch.”
“Will do.”
Taylor kissed the top of her head and then left her room, closing the door behind him. While he hoped she’d never need it, he knew she’d take the weapon seriously and felt better that she’d be able to protect herself now.
