Page 61 of The B-Team

It was a weak attempt at a topic change, and Dimitri grasped it with both hands. “What do you think the gang’s doing to try and rescue us?”

Joe groaned. “Rachel’s probably threatened at least half a dozen people by now.”

“Isobel and Claire will have come up with a million plans. All of them inspired by cartoon plots.”

Joe barked out a laugh. “Bet Julia made her sister set up whiteboards in our bedroom.”

“Sarah’s probably got a graph detailing the statistical chances of our long-term incarceration.”

“Beast will be standing on the edge of everything, watching and waiting to see what he can do, while Belinda gets more and more dramatic with every passing minute.”

“Yeah, and Harvard will be too busy watching Rachel to be of any use to anyone.”

Joe laughed harder before groaning. “You know what that means, don’t you?”

“Hell yeah. Ryan’s in charge by default. I almost feel sorry for him. For once, he gets to experience what it’s like to run a mission staffed with people who are hard to keep under control.”

Their laughter bounced off the cold tile walls and echoed around them.

“At least Megan’s in here with us,” Dimitri said through his laughter. “Her out therehelpingwould be like someone trying to kill a fly with a cannon.”

“You don’t think she’s doing anythinghelpfulin here, do you? Because there’s no way that’s good.”

“I can’t even begin to imagine what she’s doing in here,” Dimitri said with another chuckle.

He adored his wife, but sometimes their relationship was more like a lion with its tamer than a standard marriage. There was no telling what Megan would do next or who’d be injured in the process. He grinned at the ceiling. Damn, she wasfine.

As their laughter died down, Joe spoke again. “Do you think they’ve figured out this whole thing’s personal yet?”

“You mean the grudge against Lake? I’m certain the lawyers will have filled them in by now.”

“No.” Joe sounded thoughtful. “This doesn’t feel like a grudge. It seems more organized than that. Plus, a man like Commander Fitzwater doesn’t put his reputation on the line out of bitterness. You saw how he was dressed; not a single loose thread, not a button out of place. His shoes were polished until you could see your reflection in them. A guy who takes that much pride in his uniform cares about what it stands for and the power it gives him. A guy like that doesn’t risk his career for a decades old grudge. No,” he said again. “There’s something else going on here. And taking Lake down is just the cherry on top.”

Joe had a point. “If I was outside, I’d have a quiet word with DI Singh. I get the impression she isn’t too pleased with how things are going. And her rep as a cop is solid. Bet she knows more than the commander thinks she does.”

“Yeah, she didn’t look happy at the raid this morning.”

“None of us were.” There was silence for a moment while Dimitri thought about the commander’s actions when theystormed the Benson Security building that morning. “He singled Elle out,” he said. “That seemed weird.”

“Yeah,” Joe said slowly. “It was strange he didn’t give the triplets a pass too. They made a deal with MI5, and what cop wants to start an interagency war?”

“But he let Ryan go,” Dimitri said thoughtfully. “I know he isn’t officially on the team now, but he was for years. Which means he’s a part of everything Fitzwater’s investigating. Why let Ryan go? If he has evidence of our crimes as a team, Ryan should be charged along with the rest of us.”

“Maybe it was accidental. There was a lot going on. Ryan probably got overlooked.”

“I don’t buy it. His face was all over the news for weeks. He’s the most famous member of Benson Security, which makes him pretty damn hard to overlook.”

“This doesn’t make any sense,” Joe said, sounding frustrated. “He took the triplets, who’ve only been with us six months, but left Ryan?”

“Elle and the triplets.” Dimitri mulled that over.

“No, Elle and Evan,” Joe said suddenly.

“Crap.” Dimitri sat up in the middle of the poor excuse for a mattress and found Joe staring at him from the platform. “He wanted our computer specialists.”

“He wanted clear and unrestricted access to our files, that’s what he wanted. Which is a helluva lot easier when you take out the gatekeepers.”

Dimitri ran a hand down his face. “But he can’t get access. The files are locked up tight, right?”