“Well first we have to warn the center of the imminent attack and get someone from Homeland Security on this. I have to get to Scott and get in contact with our liaison with the CIA. Grab the guys and let them know we may be making a trip.”
She went into the locker room and changed before heading down to see Phillips, knocking before entering she noticed his office light was out and it appeared as though he hadn’t been in all evening.
She turned to exit and ran into another agent. “Excuse me…” Yve said trying to move around her.
“Special Agent Evans?” she asked with a smile.
“Yes, and you are?”
“Special Agent Kate Griffin, I was looking for Director Phillips.”
“He isn’t in.”
“I realized. I know you know him well and I need a little help.”
“What can I do for you?”
“I’ve been reassigned from the Long Bay Federal branch, it’s my first night here but I’ve already received a case. I’m not real familiar with this area yet and I was hoping for a little guidance.”
“I’m sorry,” Yvette started. “I don’t have time for a tour; I’m in the middle of something.” Yvette stepped around her to head up the stairs and back to the unit room.
“I apologize,” Agent Griffin said gripping her arm. “You misunderstood. I wasn’t asking for a tour, I’m trying to locate this man,” she said brandishing a photo. “I just need an address or a point in the right direction, if it’s not too much trouble.”
Yvette glanced at the photo before redirecting her eyes to Griffin recognizing the man in the picture. “What’s the case?”
Griffin smiled. “You know I can’t disclose those details.”
“This man is currently being held on charges stemming from a previous case assigned to this office. He isn’t available for whatever it is you need him for,” she explained.
“A previous case?”
Yve smirked. “‘You know I can’t disclose those details’,” she repeated the Agent’s words to her crossing her arms..
“Then it appears we are at a standstill.”
“It appears. If you’d like, take your concerns up with the Director once he returns. If your case takes precedence I’m sure you’ll receive clearance to conduct your investigation. Otherwise, I’d speak with the person that assigned you this case and inform them of this little snag.”
“Thank you, I’ll do that.”
Yvette looked again at the woman’s badge before rushing back to the unit room.
“Brett filled us in, Yve, what’s the word?”
“Not sure, Scott wasn’t in.” She took a seat at Dustin’s computer again and ran Special Agent Kate Griffin through the database to get more information.
“Find something?” Brett asked stepping around behind her again.
“Great question. I went to speak with Scott and ran into a new agent. She was assigned to a case that involves one of our arrests.”
“Who?”
“Franklin Mead, the same man Dustin said he was having trouble locating information on. Damn it!” she yelled in frustration. “I need him back.” She frowned at the minimal results her search produced.
“Visitation starts again in an hour, maybe he’ll be up by then,” Ryan suggested.
She nodded. “In the meantime we work on gathering as much as we can from what we have to go on.” She pulled out her cell phone and punched in a number.
“Gabriel Tasker,” Yve said when the operator came on the line.
…“May I say who’s calling…?”
“Tell him it’s the Raven on his shoulder, he’ll understand.”
…“Tasker,” the soft, raspy voice of the agent came on the line. “Yve…?”
“Hey Gabe I have a favor to ask of you.”
…“Yes, I’ll marry you and run away to a deserted island…”
She laughed. “Before you book the tickets, would you be a dear and look up information about a Franklin Mead and send me whatever you find? Also we have reason to believe the Bioweapons facility in Pleasant Cove is going to be burglarized. I don’t have a date but that's your neck of the woods, thought I'd give you a heads up.”
…“I’ll get security detail on it. How accurate is this information…?”
“Come on handsome, do you really have to ask? There was a burglary here that led us to the Intel. We stopped them in time but it appears they’d made plans to hit that center as well as a few other places. I don’t know the amount of people involved in this but we are working on it.”
…“It shouldn’t be a problem looking over the place. Keep me updated, Yve…”
“You know I will Sparrow.”
…“And in the meantime I’ll get to work on this Mead character, I’ll let you know what I find out. Later Beautiful…” he disconnected the line and she turned to the others.
She sat on the edge of the desk thinking.
“I need a laptop and Dustin keeps his under lock and key.”
“The IT room downstairs. I’m sure you can borrow one,” Ryan said.
“Good. I need to put Dustin to work.”
She headed down to IT and signed out a laptop, ensuring the battery was completely charged before heading back upstairs. As she passed Scott’s office she found his light on and entered the hall, knocking gingerly before entering.
“Yvette, Sweetheart, come in,” he smiled standing. He hugged her tight before offering her a seat.
“What can I do for you my dear?”
“I was just curious if you spoke with Agent Griffin today.”
“Who?” he asked rubbing his chin curiously.
“That answers that question. I met her outside your office. She was looking for you. I guess she went back to her handler like I told her.”
He smiled. “I’m cooking dinner tonight. Why don’t you stop by and we can talk about you’re being here. I wanted to give you time to adjust and settle in before asking. I hated that you lived so far away but since you’re home again, perhaps we can spend more time together.”
“I’d love that Scott.” She leaned back in her seat and engaged him in a conversation.
Two hours had passed before she returned back up the stairs.
“Get lost?” Brett asked brushing her arm lightly.
“No,” she smiled. “I stopped off to talk to Scott. I only came back up to see if any of you guys wanted to tag along, I’m heading to see Dustin.”
“Of course!” they said in perfect unison.
She turned back towards the door.
“Gabe!” she said in surprise as he stood in the doorway. “You didn’t have to come, you could have emailed or fa…”
“I had to,” he said pushing her back inside the room. He looked around and saw the other members of the team and frowned. “Is there some place we can talk in private?”
“This is private,” she smiled. “Gabe, this is my new Unit: Ryan and Brett and you know Victor,” she said making quiet introductions.
“Hi,” Gabe smiled politely. “Seriously black bird, you and I need some alone time. Let me buy you lunch.”
She nodded and grabbed her keys. “I’ll be back in an hour or so.”
“Who was that?” Brett asked approaching Vic.
“The CIA liaison, unofficially that is,” Victor replied. “He and Yvette are old friends, graduated Quantico and the Farm together and joined the CIA around the same time. She branched off, went into the physical end of things while he stayed an office rat climbing the official channels. Works out for both of them though, they always have a ‘go-to’ person depending on what’s needed.”
Gabe drove to a small café downtown. They took seats on the patio; she ordered an Olive Platter while he opted for Hot Wings and Celery with Ranch. He waited for the waitress to remove herself from the table before he began.
“Sorry to spring up on you like this, Yve, but I needed to tell you this face-to-face.”
“It’s ok, I understand.” She took a bite of her Bruschetta and he smiled as he watched her.
“How is it?” he asked hearing her soft moans with each bite.
“Delicious, are you not eating?”
“Not really hungry, I am enjoying watching you though,” he smiled.
She wiped her mouth and sat up. “So what did you come to tell me?”
“I went through all the information I could; different law enforcement databases, cross referenced with past cases, profile reports, sit reps on anything that may have involved him. Hell I even searched old Quantico files and I got nothing except another name: Black Veil.
“What is that?”
“It’s a case from our counterintelligence department. All I know is this was a covert operation that went really bad really quick. It involved highly sophisticated gunrunners who created a company only to smuggle their weapons throughout the country. When Intelligence picked up on this we went on red alert, the company was in dealings with a lot of enemy countries and sought an audience with each countries’ officials to gain political standing. Basically they sold their weapons to rival countries or services to terminate a president let’s say and in doing so were handsomely rewarded.”
The wind picked up and Gabe looked around. “We should probably get inside somewhere.”
“I have a better idea,” she said leading him to the car. She gave him directions to a small park near a waterfall and they walked near the railings as they continued their conversation.
“This is similar to something we had been working on. We heard about a gunrunner operation, that’s how this whole thing started; looks like the entire thing was just window dressing for their real plans though.”
“Either way, I’m sure there’s more to this story. I’ll keep digging, but it’s best if we only speak about this in person from here on out. I’m not sure who we can trust on this.”
She nodded her head in agreement. “Secret meetings with my CIA pal? Oh how the water cooler will burn!”
“Yeah but I’m sure you can handle the silent whispers. And don’t you owe me an elopement?”
She laughed. “Do I?”
“You do. I was told I’d have a deserted island and a ring by the end of the night!”
“Wow you’re that easy? Kind of selling yourself short aren’t you?”
“Like you when you went the way of field agent?”
She smiled bitterly thinking about the missed opportunity. The smell of the small flower garden caught on the breeze and sent a nauseatingly sweet aroma towards her. “Yeah. But I was never cut out for the politics. I like beating people to a bloody pulp instead.”
He laughed. “Or seducing their pants off Miss Femme Fatale. The Agency really lost a great asset in you.” He glanced down at his watch and back at her. “I better get you back.”
He dropped her off in the parking lot and she hopped into her car and headed to Scott’s for dinner.
She knocked once before opening the door and walking towards the kitchen. She could hear the sizzle from his favorite skillet as she neared the counter.
“Yvette! There you are,” he smiled stepping around the island and kissing her cheek. “How’s my favorite daughter?”
“Favorite daughter? I’m your only daughter,” she grinned sitting at the bar. “Unless there’s something you’re not telling me?”
“I could never keep secrets from you Sweetheart."
“The place looks great! I’m surprised. I’d expected a really crazy bachelor thing going,” she grinned looking around.
“‘Bachelor thing’? Do I look like that kind of man to you Angel? I haven’t really dated since your Mother. She was a one of a kind woman.”
“Pop, you shouldn’t be afraid of trying you know. Sure there are some crazies but you’ll never find another unless you get out there.”
“Right, do you mind setting the table for me?”
“Sure Dad,” she said stepping into the dining room. “What are we having?”
“Your favorite: Spaghetti and Meatballs with extra oregano, a side of homemade garlic bread, red wine and for dessert Ambrosia.”
“Wow, you really know how to make a girl feel at home.”
He prepared the plates and joined her in the dining room. “So let’s get reacquainted,” he smiled sitting next to her. “There have been pretty dramatic changes in your life lately and I’m curious as to how you’ve adjusted.”
“Dramatic changes? Such as?”
“Well for one, you left the CIA to come and work for me at the FBI. That’s a BIG difference considering you were an…”
“Assassin, it’s ok to say the word out loud Pop, no one’s around.”
“Right. I just never really liked that part of your job. It never seemed like the little girl I raised.”
“I know, you made that very clear whenever we spoke. But it’s not like I went out and killed innocent people. These guys were all threats to our country and I was just doing my part to keep everyone I loved safe.”
He sighed. “Are you going crazy with the cases you’ve been assigned here?”
“No, not really. I mean they deal with pretty much the same threat to national security. I have to say though I don’t like answering to the Agency for certain things I think the Bureau is more than equipped to handle themselves. I feel it’s just a huge waste of time; time that’s vital in cases as such.”
“I couldn’t agree more, but there are certain things I’d rather not involve my department in and others that I want to ensure you stay away from, Yve. I promised your Mother I would take care of you. I wouldn’t call what you did for the Agency ‘taking care’. You risked your life way too much and took too many unnecessary risks.”
“Nothing I did was unnecessary, Scott. And Mom was an agent, she’d completely understand. I’m sure when she asked you that she didn’t mean hold my hand every second of the day. You can’t possibly expect that I won’t still be in danger, that’s just part of the job. Wait…is that why you wanted me reassigned?”
He stood and retrieved her plate. “I’ll grab dessert,” he said without answering her.
She followed him into the kitchen. “Scott? That’s it? You had me transfer here so that you could watch over me? Decide what cases I handle and keep the real gritty stuff out of my reach?”
“Yvette, you chose too much danger selecting field agent as your branch. I pushed you through Langley’s and through Quantico’s intelligence departments because I was hoping you’d want to stay inside and help solve the cases from the evidence other agents collected; you know use your head rather than…everything else,” he said finishing the last dish.
“You know if you had that big of a problem with what I did you could have just said something. You didn’t have to sugar coat it and mask it under the guise of wanting me closer to ‘home’!” She started towards the door.
“Yvette stop!” he said rushing after her. “It wasn’t a guise. I DO want you here. After your mother died I felt lost, scared that I would lose you too. I knew it was your goal to follow in her footsteps and I knew I’d have to face this someday. I’m sorry I wasn’t 100% honest Yvette, but I love you and I want you safe. I don’t want to risk losing you too and the Black Ops team was exactly the job that would have done just that! You were heading down the same dangerous path as Katrina.”
“Except I had a team of handpicked agents that were behind me, watching my back every step; Mom preferred the solo route. I was not in as much danger, Scott.”
“I never meant for this to upset you, Yve. I was only doing what I thought was best.”
“I’m not mad,” she smiled. “I’m thrilled that you care that much about me. You’ve always treated me like yours from the day you met me and for that I’ve loved you as my Dad. I can respect your decisions as my Father but you have to understand, I'm not a little girl and I am capable of looking out for myself.” She kissed his cheek.
He smiled. “You are mine, the daughter I would have wished for had I started a family of my own. And I'll continue to look out for you no matter how old you get.” He took her hand and started back towards the kitchen. “Now how about that dessert?”
“I’d like to but I want to get to the hospital and check on Dustin before visiting hours are over. Can we have it for breakfast?”
“Ambrosia for breakfast?”
She nodded.
“I’ll keep it cold for you then.” He hugged her goodnight and she made the trip to the hospital.
“Hey Dustin!” she said entering into his room.
“I already know and you can forget it! I’m an injured man here!”
“But I brought you something to take the edge off!” she said showing him the laptop.
“I can’t be bought, Boss Lady!”
“Oh really? Come on, Dust, I know you’re feening for some net time!” she said teasing him. “How long has it been? 24 hours with no computer? Yikes…you’re not looking very well. You’re shaking! But if you want, I'm sure there's a nice geek outside that would love to get their hands on this little baby instead!”
He grinned before reaching for the notebook. “What do you need?”
“Any information you can find about Special Agent Kate Griffin.”
“The guys came by earlier. I missed you,” he said as he began tapping away on the keys.
“Sorry about that. Gabe’s in town, I think he took a Jet. He got here within the hour we spoke. Though Pleasant Cove isn’t too far from here.”
“What did the suit want?”
“To discuss Mead.”
He gave her a quizzical look.
“What? I missed my nerd and had to use another resource,” she answered to his frown.
“I forgive you, but don’t let it happen again, Yve.”
“Hey! You’re the one that went and got himself shot! What did you expect from me?”
"Did he get you anything? The guy is seriously a ghost; it's what I was coming to tell you. There are only 3 reasons for no information like that. One of them we know very well. I see you and the guys discovered that other bit of information too about Pleasant Cove."
"Yeah, we got Tasker on it. He stuck a security detail out there on the center, it'll keep us from having to make the trip. You didn't have to come down for that though Dusty. You should have saved yourself the hospital stay," she smiled.
She sat with him until visitation hours were over and promised to check on him tomorrow. Brett had left several messages on her phone to call him back but she’d had it turned off while with Dustin. Instead of calling back, she drove over to his place, knocked on the door and waited.
“Yvette?” he asked looking around behind her. “What’s going on? Are you ok?”
“I’m fine Brett; you called me like 6 times. What’s going on with you?”
“I was just checking on you, that’s all. 6 times really?” he cringed and rubbed the back of his head.
“Yeah and 4 voice messages.”
“Sorry about that.”
“So that was all you wanted?” she asked stepping back.
“Yeah I…d-d-do you want to come in?” he asked quickly noticing her backing away preparing to leave.
She looked at the wall clock behind him and nodded. “Just for a little,” she said stepping into the foyer.
“Can I get you anything?” he asked leading her to the living room. He moved a few Chinese fast food and empty pizza boxes away from the couch as she came into the room.
“I’m fine thank you. So what happened in here? Did you fire your cleaning lady?”
“Sorry I know it’s a bit messy in here.”
She smiled and turned her gaze to the small table near the wall and something caught her eye. She neared it and picked up the picture. “What’s this?” she asked showing him a photo of herself.
“Uh…that’s…”
She continued going through the items on the table cycling through printed web searches of her identity “Mya Fletcher”, more photos, some enhanced of her in the hotel lobby and a thumb print from a glass at the bar.
“What the hell is this Brett?”
“I can explain.”
“Well I hope so!” she said folding her arms across her chest.
“I was looking for you.”
“That much I can see, why?”
“Well it’s not every day a woman I take to my bed kicks my ass and then holds me at gunpoint. I had to know who you were and why you thought I was after you! I mean I am a FED.”
She narrowed her gaze at him. “And that’s it? Your motives weren’t based off the sex?”
“I like you Yve. If I haven’t made that obvious then…”
Their phones went off at the same time and they stopped the conversation to answer, hanging up shortly after responding to different members of the team, Ryan speaking with Brett and Vic having called her.
The mood in the room changed significantly as he looked at her.
“How…”
“I don’t know there has to be a leak. This is what Gabe was trying to tell me.”
“But they can’t do anything without the other piece and we stopped them from getting that.”
“They have the weapon, just not the remote or the power source but what they took isn’t exactly powerless Brett,” she said as she began thinking over the possibilities that weapon held in the hands of its buyer.
“We’ll find them and we’ll get it back,” he assured her.
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