Operation Proof of Life by Misty Evans

relief, he realized the only emotion inside him was a vague regret. He might not always understand the workings of the human mind, but he’d accepted his loss and moved on.
    Tamping the regret into the mental place he reserved for all things Julia, he ignored her question in favor of his own. While no one had permission to be in his office if he wasn’t in attendance, Julia had never let rules or locks stop her before. “How did you get in here?”
    She pointed a slender finger at the door on his left. “Elevator.”
    Michael’s appointment to Deputy Director of the CIA came with a host of job perks as well as endless meetings and stupid people. He had his own personal bevy of assistants, a private bathroom and a luxurious sleeper sofa, which these days saw as little action as his bed at home. If it weren’t for Pongo, he’d live in this office suite without hesitation. “You evaded the cameras, violated all the security codes and rode in my personal elevator from my private garage.”
    He waved off the mischievous look in her eyes. Her covert skills were the best he’d ever seen. Next to Flynn anyway. “I don’t want to know how you did it, just don’t do it again. It will get you in trouble. Capiche ?”
    “Waltzing through the front doors and past Con would get me in trouble too,” she countered. “I’m actually not here on a social call, but before I get into that, anything new on Ella?”
    Michael sat in his leather chair and rubbed his forehead where a headache was kick-starting. “I spoke to the agent in charge about an hour ago. There’s been nothing more since the last call. They couldn’t trace it. Ruth’s close to a nervous breakdown, and Thad’s seriously considering pulling the plug on his run for president.”
    Julia took a seat in one of the chairs across from him. “I’m so sorry, Michael. The FBI is doing everything we can.”
    “Yeah, I know.” He let out a sigh. “So what brings you here?”
    Shoving her hand in the pocket of her dark blue FBI jacket, she bit her lip before speaking. “I was working on an unofficial case last night and caught something interesting on video. I can’t bring it to my bosses or pretty much anyone else because they’ll ask questions I don’t want to answer, so I’m bringing it to you instead.”
    She leaned forward and tossed a flash drive onto his desk. He eyed it with curiosity. Julia was one of the few people on the planet who was not stupid, her choice as a husband not withstanding. “Involving what?”
    “Terrorists and a DHS employee. I’m not sure what’s going on, but I was hoping you could look into it and pass it on if necessary without involving me.”
    Michael took the flash drive and stuck it in a USB port on the laptop in front of him. There was no point in chastising Julia for running outside the parameters of her job description. He was no longer her boss. Or her lover.
    And if there was one thing he knew about her, besides the intimate details of their past relationship, it was never to ignore her gut instincts.
    She came around the desk to his side as the seal of the CIA disappeared from the screen and a media program opened. A few seconds later, Michael watched a hostage exchange unfold on the screen. Julia’s nearness made the scar on his chest tighten like he’d just bench-pressed a hundred pound weight, but he forgot it the moment the green Ford entered the picture.
    When Brigit Kent emerged and pointed a gun at the rusty Volvo, he tightened his grip on the mouse. Her mouth moved but no sound came out. He clicked on the volume button. Silence continued to emanate from his speaker. “Why’d you mute the video?”
    “I wasn’t working alone,” Julia said. “It’s important my partner not get in trouble either so I stripped the audio.”
    Was Flynn the partner she was protecting? After all, Michael had put Flynn on Brigit’s trail. But then why was Julia bringing this video to him? Why was she avoiding her husband