Before He Covets

Twenty minutes into this mind-numbing task, she heard a small knock at the entrance to her cubicle. When she turned around and saw McGrath standing there, she froze for a moment.

McGrath smiled at her in the same way he had approached her following graduation. Something in that smile told her that he honestly had no idea that she might feel demeaned by being stuck in a cubicle.

“Sorry it’s taken me so long to get to you,” McGrath said. “But I just wanted to come by and see how you’re getting along.”

She bit back the first several responses that came to mind. She gave a half-hearted shrug and said: “I’m doing fine. Just…well, I’m just a little confused.”

“How so?”

“Well, on a few separate occasions, you told me that you couldn’t wait to have me as an active agent. I guess I just didn’t think that would involve sitting behind a desk and printing green card documents.”

“Ah, I know, I know. But trust me. There’s a rhyme and a reason to it all. Just stick your head down and forge head. Your time will come, White.”

In her head, she heard Ellington’s voice again. The man is really smart with how he utilizes new agents.

If you say so, she thought.

“We’ll touch base soon,” McGrath said. “Until then, take care.”

Like Hasbrook the day before, McGrath seemed to be in a huge hurry to get away from the cubicles. She watched him go, wondering what sort of lesson or skills she was supposed to be picking up. She hated to feel entitled, but God…

What Ellington had said about McGrath…was she really supposed to believe that? Thinking of Ellington, she wondered if he knew what sort of detail she was on. She then thought of Harry and felt guilty for not calling him over the last few days. Harry had stayed quiet because he knew that she hated to feel pressured. It was one of the reasons she continued to see him. No man had ever really been this patient with her. Even Zack had his breaking point and the only reason they had lasted as long as they had was because they had gotten comfortable with one another and didn’t want to be bothered with the inconvenience of change.

Mackenzie made the final stack of papers just as noon came around. Before diving into the madness waiting for her in the forms and notes, she figured she’d go out to grab lunch and a very large coffee.

She made her way down the hall and to the elevators. When the elevator arrived and the doors slid open, she was surprised to find Bryers on the other side. He seemed surprised to see her but smiled widely.

“What are you up to?” she asked.

“I was actually coming to see you. I thought you might want to grab lunch.”

“That’s where I was headed. Sounds great.”

They took the elevator down together and grabbed a table at a little delicatessen a block down the street. When they were sitting down with their sandwiches, Bryers asked a very loaded question.

“How’s it going?” he asked.

“It’s…well, it’s going. Stuck behind a desk, trapped in a cubicle, and reading over endless reams of paper isn’t exactly what I had in mind.”

“Coming from any other brand new agent, that might come off as sounding spoiled,” Bryers said. “But, as it just so happens, I agree. You’re being wasted. That’s why I’m here: I’ve come to rescue you.”

She looked up at him, wondering.

“What sort of rescue?”

“Another case,” Bryers answered. “I mean, now, if you want to stay on your current workload and keep studying up on immigration fraud, I understand. But I think I’ve got something that is more within your interests.”

She felt her heart start to beat faster.

“You can just pull me off of this?” she asked, suspicious.

“Indeed I can. Unlike last time, you have everyone’s full support. I got the call from McGrath half an hour ago. He’s not a huge fan of you jumping right into the action, but I twisted his arm a bit.”

“Really?” she asked, feeling relieved and, as Bryers had indicated, just a little spoiled.

“I can show you my call history if you want. He was going to call and tell you himself but I asked for the favor of being the one to tell you. I think he knew ever since yesterday that you’d end up on this but we wanted to make sure we had a solid case.”

“And you do?” she asked. A small ball of excitement started to grow in the pit of her stomach.

“Yes, we do. We found a body in a park in Strasburg, Virginia. It very closely resembles a body we found around the same area close to two years ago.”

“You think they’re linked?”

He waved off her question and took a mouthful of sandwich.

“I’ll tell you about it on the way. For now, let’s just eat. Enjoy the silence while you can.”

She nodded and nibbled at her sandwich, although she was suddenly not very hungry at all.

She felt excitement, but also dread, and sadness. Someone had been murdered.

And it was going to be up to her to make things right.

CHAPTER FOUR

They left Quantico immediately after lunch. As Bryers drove, headed southwest, Mackenzie felt like she was being rescued from boredom, only to be brought to certain danger.

“So what can you tell me about this case?” she finally asked.

“A body has been discovered in Strasburg, Virginia. The body was found in a state park, in a condition that resembled a body that was discovered very close to the same area about two years ago.”

“You think they’re linked?”

“Has to be, if you want my opinion. Same location, same brutal style of murder. The files are in my bag in the back seat if you want to have a look.”

She reached into the back seat and grabbed the portfolio-style case Bryers usually carried with him when there was going to be research involved. She slid a single folder out of it, continuing to ask questions as she did.

“When was this second body discovered?” she asked.

“Sunday. So far we haven’t a trace of anything to point us in any direction. This is not a trail, like last time. We need you.”

“Why me?” she asked, curious.

He looked back, curious himself.

“You’re an agent now – and a damned good one at that,” he said. “People are already whispering about you, people that didn’t quite know who you were when you first came to Quantico. While it’s atypical for a new agent to land a case like this, well, you aren’t exactly a typical agent, now are you?”

“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?” Mackenzie asked.