The Deaths of Tao (14 page)

“I looked you up,” Louis said finally around sundown. They were building the last pile of dirt.

“You did what?”

Louis wiped his brow and looked him straight in the eye. “After Jill told me about you being gone for months on end, I got suspicious and looked you up. Thought maybe you were with the mob or running from bad debt. Hired an ex-IRS agent and a federal investigator.”

“I didn’t know you cared enough to hire a snoop,” Roen said.

“I do when it’s my baby girl involved.”

“What did they find?”

Louis scratched the crown of his head. “That’s the thing. They didn’t find anything. All the records about you were a bunch of crap.”

Remember the time I said Louis was a genius? I rest my case.
 

“How do you know it’s a bunch of crap?”

Louis chuckled as he finished spreading the dirt around. “I was a corporate raider for thirty years. You think we just looked at financial statements and forked over a hundred million? I knew if a CEO liked heroin with his eggs, or if the trustees preferred domestic or imported hookers. We sicced guys on the entire board of companies for months. And that’s what I saw in your records.”

“I don’t like imported hookers,” Roen stammered.

You are obtuse to the point of stupidity.
 

“It’s too clean,” Louis drawled. “Like someone typed it all out and made sure every piece fits just like it’s supposed to. Done well, I might add, but not passing this sniff test.” Louis tapped his long schnoz for emphasis.

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

A little too late for that.
 

“Tao, our cleaning teams suck.”

All they care about is preventing the Genjix from tracing you, not inquisitive father-in-laws.
 

“So what are you? FBI? ATF? You don’t seem smart enough to be CIA.”

“I didn’t know you had to be a genius to be in the CIA,” Roen muttered.

Louis shook his head. “Don’t matter. You won’t tell me anyway. Is this why you had to leave Jill alone for so long? You doing something for our country?”

“Yes.” There was no hesitation in Roen’s voice. It was close enough to the truth, though in his eyes, he was doing this for the entire world. In any case, if it got Louis off his back, a little half lie was acceptable.

Louis paused. “Does Jill know?”

Roen nodded.

“I see, and you flew all the way here to see your son for a few hours. You’re heading somewhere, aren’t you? Somewhere you might not come back from.”

Brilliant man. If I had only found him forty years ago.
 

Roen nodded again. It was close enough to the truth. He didn’t actually think this mission was any more dangerous than any other, but today made him reevaluate his life. He needed to be around for his son.

Louis finally softened. “Alright. Sun’s setting. Cameron goes to bed at eight. You have until we tuck him in.”

Roen thanked him and took off into the house. He spent the rest of the night with Cameron, reading a story, playing building blocks, racing toy cars. He tried to memorize every detail about of his boy, from how he smiled to what his new favorite toy was. And for a few hours, he was just a guy playing with his son.

When 9.30 rolled around, Lee Ann stopped by Cameron’s room and knocked on the door. “It’s past his bedtime,” she said softly.

Roen nodded and helped put Cameron to bed. “You be good to your grandpa and grandma, alright, buddy?” he murmured.

“Will you keep watch so Eva doesn’t eat Poopsie?” Cameron said, his large round eyes imploring Roen.

Roen’s heart broke for the tenth time in so many hours. “Sure buddy,” he choked.

Cameron sniffled and reached out to him. Roen sat on the bed and held onto his son for another half hour until he finally fell asleep. When he was sure Cameron was out, Roen pulled the blanket over him and just stood there trying to memorize the picture.

I have it for you whenever you need, my friend.
 

Would he ever see his son again? This could be the last time. Roen fought the tears that began to roll down his face. Lee Ann came into the room and put her arm around his shoulder, and together, they just watched Cameron sleep.

There is a red eye flight at two. If you do not make this flight, you will have to wait until tomorrow afternoon. We have to leave right now.
 

Roen looked at her. “Thanks for the few extra hours.”

“Just make sure you’re in his life, regardless of what happens between you and Jill,” Lee Ann said.

He nodded, giving her one last hug. On the drive back up north to Los Angeles, Roen kept the mental video of Cameron playing with Eva running over and over in his head. He was determined to watch his son grow up to be a man. This wouldn’t be the last time he saw his boy.

Are you ready? Is your mind clear?
 

“Damn straight. It’s exactly what I needed. Now, let’s get this job done. I have my son’s future to fight for and a wife to win back.”

 

TWELVE

MARCO

Our escape from the prison in Valencia was typical of Tao’s hosts, even today. He cut a swathe of death through the prison guards’ ranks, utilizing a style never seen on this side of the planet. It wasn’t until later that I learned that it was Tao’s own invention, the Grand Supreme Fist. The carnage was spectacular, and he captured two Genjix Quasing, forcing them into two rats. Then he caged the rats and took them with him.
 

By then, the Genjix had spread their Inquisition, and the situation had deteriorated into a civil war. For the next few years I assisted the Prophus in capturing dozens of Genjix and trapping them in small animals. Thus, the Chest of the Menagerie was born.
 

Baji

 

It was a small victory that Wilks grudgingly pushed his meeting with Hogan back, but only after Jill had promised him the moon, stars, and six solar systems’ worth of concessions. It was a tall order, but she made the promises, so now she had to deliver.

Jill had just returned from a meeting with Senator Young of California. She had assumed he would be the easiest of the on-the-fence senators to sway since he didn’t care either way about the sanctions. However, he was a sneaky one and resisted all her offers. It wasn’t until she reminded him of the explosion at the Port of Los Angeles
–
courtesy of a firefight between the Prophus and Genjix over nine tons of biological weapon agents
–
that he saw the profit in supporting her. Even then, he extracted concessions, including a tax break for solar panels in the richest homes in Hollywood, and an endowment for the Young Museum of Lithuanian Arts. Boy, did that guy love to talk. They had wrapped up the solids of their deal an hour in, but he kept going for another thirty minutes just because he enjoyed the sound of his own voice.

Afterward, she met with nine aides of six senators whose votes she already had. It was important to make sure no one jumped ship. She knew that Simon was working his ranks as well, and it would only be a matter of time before he realized that she was playing him. By the time she got out of that meeting, it was already well into the afternoon.

“Lunch at 2 in the afternoon. Must be a light day.”

You need to take better care of yourself.
 

“No one said running the country offered a healthy lifestyle. Not to mention the pay is comparable to my first job scooping ice cream.”

You are pulling a double paycheck from the Prophus.
 

“Oh yeah, that pitiful thing. It’s even less than this one. Between my two checks and what Roen sends me, that’s almost half of what I made at my old job before hitting the jackpot with my own Quasing.”

Tammy practically ran up to her as she returned to her office. “There’s someone in the office for you. Where did you find him?”

“What?” she said, puzzled.

“He’s really good looking and charming. And he brought you a present. It must be serious. How did you hide him from us?”

I see Marco is here.
 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Jill replied. Instinctively, she checked her suit for wrinkles and calmly walked in. Between Paula’s description and Tammy’s gushing, she was definitely curious about this Marco.

Standing next to her desk was a tall man in a charcoal pin-striped suit. He turned toward her as she walked in and smiled. Tammy was right. Jill wasn’t sure what to gape at first: his Ken-doll peppered hair, the high cheekbones, or those kissable dimples. The guy also had a smile that had popped out of a dental brochure. He held a small gift-wrapped box in his left hand and extended his right.

“Jill,” he said, his voice a low pleasant rumble that tickled the bottom of her chest. “Marco. It’s a pleasure. I believe you’re expecting me.”

“I was expecting someone,” she said, suddenly very self-conscious. If Paula had exaggerated, it wasn’t by much.

Marco was tall and lean, yet she could tell he was in very good shape, built proportionally like an athlete without looking like a bodybuilder. His face was tan and weathered, but the age lines only made him look distinguished. And Paula wasn’t kidding. Those deep hazel eyes were whispering sweet nothings just by looking at her.

“Well,” he smiled. “I hope I exceed the expectation of just someone.”

Someone inhaled behind her. She turned to see Tammy jittering like a nervous fool, the pad and pen in her hand a pitiful excuse to eavesdrop.

“I’m good here,” she said, giving her assistant a get-out-of-here look.

Tammy had the audacity to look disappointed. “I’ll be at my desk, if you need anything. Just... call.” She turned to Marco. “It was nice meeting you.”

He tilted his head toward her in a way that with any other man would seem condescending. “Pleasure is all mine.” After Tammy left, he asked Jill. “There’s much to cover. Can your employer survive without you for the rest of the day?”

Jill shook her head. “Congress is in the middle of session. My hours are pretty much...”

“Nonsense,” Wilks said, walking into the room. “Marco here says he wants to kidnap you for the rest of the day. I say kidnap away.”

“Do you two know each other?” Jill looked perplexed.

Marco smiled. “The senator was good enough to entertain me while I was waiting for you. We seem to have a shared interest in golf and the European commodities market.”

“Marco here tells me he once swung a sixty-eight at Augusta. I told him if that’s the case, he’s in the wrong line of work. You still up for a game next weekend?”

“Why, but of course. Tee time at six?”

Jill’s mouth dropped open. “Senator, you’re going golfing with a man you met five minutes ago?”

Wilks laughed jovially. “I can tell Marco here is one of the good ones.” He leaned in close. “Make sure you do a background check before next weekend. Can’t be seen golfing with a serial killer or a gossip columnist, right?” He nudged her playfully.

Marco is not only a ladykiller but a man’s man as well.
 

“Great, that’s all I need. Bromance between my boss and my bodyguard.”

Marco handed her the small box. “Excellent. It’s settled then. I’ll see you later today, dear Jill. Something to remember me by until then. Adieu.”

He tried to kiss her hand; Jill would have none of that and kept her arms glued to the sides of her body. She tried very hard to not let her eyes roll. She and Wilks just stood there and watched as Marco left the room. She wasn’t sure what had just happened.

He leaves quite an impression, right? A host but not a doctor. In his case, I will make an exception.
 

“What a pompous ass!”

But you are still attracted to him?
 

Jill caught herself nodding unintentionally. There wasn’t much she could hide from Baji.

Wilks chuckled almost gleefully as he pat her on the back. “What a charming fella. I say, you do recover well with your men. That Marco guy is really something. You should keep this one. Anyway, break’s over. Do you have Beckman’s whip count? We need to get moving while the momentum is on our side.”

Jill gave the door one last look before getting back to running the country.

 

Jill walked out of the Hart Building after work and found Marco waiting. He was leaning on what she could only presume was his car, a sporty and impeccably shiny Tesla Roadster. She made a mental note to give her little Ford a bath the next chance she got.

“Rental?” she asked.

He shrugged. “Well, the cars the Prophus had available just wouldn’t do. Dreadful choices really, and I didn’t have time to arrange to have my Aston shipped over, so I did the next best thing. Fun little bugger.”

Jill couldn’t help but smile as she shook her head. “You’re an awful spy; you know that?”

“Why do you say that?” he asked.

“Because you look the international superspy with your flashy car and demeanor. You stick out like a sore thumb. Supermodels are supposed to be kept in New York City or cages.”

His smile brightened when he saw his gift wrapped around her wrist. She had to consciously tell herself to not touch it. It was a beautiful silver bangle bracelet with a single diamond in the center and several intricate grooves running along its edges. It was overwhelming, and she felt more than a bit uncomfortable wearing it.

“Do you like it?” Marco asked, opening the passenger side door, which made her feel warm and fuzzy inside. She appreciated a man with manners.

Roen has not opened the door for you since your first month together.
 

“I’m not going to play that game, Baji.”

You should, then maybe you will know what you are missing.