Page 34 of Code Name: Tank
“Well, who is it?” he asked.
“Brenna Austen.”
Atticus paled, then recovered and walked away.
“Hey, wait. What was that all about?” I called after him.
“Nothing,” he muttered and left the command center. That was twice in less than twenty-four hours that someone had had a similar reaction. Granted, Dragon’s was due to coming face-to-face with a man she clearly had a past with. The look on Atticus’ face at the mention of the woman’s name seemed almost worse.
When I walked over to the table where Dragon and Flint sat, she looked up at me. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah. Hartwell had some financial intel to share.”
From the corner of my eye, I saw what I swore was a sneer on Flint’s face. While I might care what his presence meant for Dragon, and about Atticus’ weird reaction to the name of our DOJ contact, I didn’t give a shit if Flint had beef with Hartwell.
“Is there anything you need from me right now?” I asked Dragon.
“Nothing specific. Why?”
“I’m gonna take a quick break. Go down to the lake for a minute.”
I was stunned when she stood. “Mind if I join you?”
“We need to discuss Prague recruitment patterns,” said Flint as we were walking away. “The files I have show the specific methodologies they use to identify and compromise targets.”
“No, we don’t,” Dragon replied, not even stopping to look over her shoulder at him.
12
DRAGON
The walk toward the lake should have been peaceful. Instead, my mind churned with the reality of what the next few days would bring. After a couple of hours working with both Tank and Flint, I could already feel my hard-won peace of mind slipping away.
Even during the briefing in the command center, I’d caught the subtle tension between them. The way Tank had straightened when Flint complimented my expertise. How Flint had moved his chair closer to mine than necessary. Two alpha males circling each other with a stilted politeness that fooled no one.
Now, as we took the trail that led to the dock, Tank walked beside me without saying anything, giving me space to think. It was as though he knew when to push and when to back off, which only made him more attractive.
My phone buzzed against my hip, and the name on the screen when I looked made me stop walking.
“Sorry, I need to take this,” I said.
He nodded and continued toward the dock, his hands tucked into his jacket pockets.
“James,” I answered, stepping off the path toward a cluster of pine trees.
“Piper, I understand Agent Pierce has joined your investigation.”
“It came as quite a shock,” I confessed. “He arrived yesterday while I was in DC, briefing Director McTiernan.”
“I wasn’t made aware until this morning, when Agent Abrams informed me. How are you handling it?”
“Better than I expected. The information he’s providing about this group correlates with our technical findings. Whatever personal history we have, I concede that the investigation benefits from his expertise. However, we’re now focusing on embedded operatives within the defense contractors, based on his intelligence.”
“Good to hear the team is working effectively. Keep me posted on any significant developments.”
“Of course. We’ll keep you briefed.”
“Excellent. Talk soon.”
