No Rules(28)
Donovan’s mind skidded to a halt. Themes. Spices. Scary bullies lying in wait at the school. Something nagged at his memory. He tapped the mouse pad, skimming through the story. Authorities who didn’t take the threats seriously. A plan made by Gordon and his friends to handle it themselves. A bird friend who conducts aerial surveillance. Donovan flew through the story, no longer noticing the artistry as names and places began to align in his mind.
“Evan.” The sharpness in his tone silenced the laughter from Avery, Kyle, and Mitch. “Remember that very first mission you and Wally coordinated? He told me you used code names for everyone involved.”
Evan smiled. “That was his idea. On that first one, we were all named for spices. Pepper, ginger, stuff like that.”
“Nutmeg and cinnamon.”
Evan raised an eyebrow. “Yeah, I think so.”
“And you rescued a couple of oil-company engineers who were being held in an abandoned school building.”
“Right, in Rwanda.”
“And your CIA connection was able to give you information from satellite surveillance.”
Evan nodded slowly. “So?”
Triumph zinged through him like electricity, the thrill of cracking a code. “So Wally turned it into a story. And Jess turned your team into cute little animals and made a children’s book out of it.” He turned the laptop around so the rest of them could see the screen. “The Omega Group’s first mission has been immortalized as Gordon Groundhog and the Mossy Log Meadow Safety Patrol.” He couldn’t stop the smile that tugged at the side of his mouth. “Evan, I believe you’re Gordon.”
“Let me see that.” Mitch was out of his chair, crowding between Evan and Avery to see the laptop. Kyle leaned in from the side as Evan began skimming through the virtual pages of Jess’s book. Smirks slipped away, replaced by raised eyebrows and openmouthed stares.
“Son of a bitch,” Evan murmured. His finger stopped tapping. One by one, they raised their heads to stare at Jess.
She chewed her lower lip, looking nervous. “I told you my father helped with the story. I changed a few things, but basically he came up with the plot.” She looked between them. “Did I give out classified information or something? Is it bad?”
“No. It’s good.” Donovan reached for her hand, because it was a good opportunity, and hell, why not? It was as smooth and soft as he’d expected, and she didn’t even pull away, caught by the earnest look on his face. “Jess, I think that story Wally told you, the one that was inappropriate for your series, is a blueprint for our mission. It’s what we’ve been trying to find. We simply need to figure out who’s who and what’s what.”
“But…” She frowned in confusion. “How can a story about going to some beavers’ housewarming party relate to your hostages? They don’t even have beavers in Egypt.” Her eyebrows scrunched together. “Do they?”
“No. It’s a metaphor, just like the first one, which is why he mentioned that first book. He wanted us to realize the new story had meaning. We have to figure out what or who each animal represents. And you need to help us with the geography. Did Wally describe the places he talked about? Where the beavers built their new home, and how the animals were supposed to get there?”
“Yes, that’s exactly what the story is about, because it’s hard to get to and the rabbit is afraid of water…” She blinked, looked from him to Evan, and he knew she was already making connections in her mind. “We’ll need a map of Luxor.”
“No problem.” Donovan shot a glance at Mitch, who was already heading for the door.
Avery looked doubtful. “Are you sure we’re not grasping at straws, Tyler? You weren’t here for that first mission.”
“But I was,” Evan said. “And he’s right. This story…” He waved a hand at the computer screen, shaking his head with a look of disbelief. “There are too many similarities to the real mission to be an accident. Right down to the bullies being skunks.” He smiled at Jess. “Was that part Wally’s idea?”
She shrugged. “I don’t remember. It could have been.”
“It would be appropriate. The group holding the hostages had a stockpile of chemical weapons, mostly tear gas,” Evan said. “That’s about equally unpleasant.”
Donovan chuckled, suffused with a sense of victory. They’d found the key. They were going to figure this out.
“I don’t get it,” Avery grumbled. “Why did Wally have to disguise it as a story that only Jess could figure out? I thought he didn’t want her involved in this part of his life.”