“What the hell is this with this emissary thing?” Jake could feel the tone of the conversation changing. “Why me? What about Gregg? Or Isabella?”
Bentley glanced away. “Ms Hunt is no longer with the Agency.”
“What?”
“She resigned yesterday, but I tore up her resignation letter. Told her she could take a leave of absence for now in case she changes her mind. She’s a good agent and I don’t want to lose her.”
“Why did she leave?”
“Jake, you know I’m not at liberty to discuss her personal details.”
“Does Gregg know?” Jake asked.
Bentley said nothing.
“Does Gregg know?” Jake repeated.
“I don’t know. I haven’t said anything to him. Nor will I.”
“As far as Mr. Kaplan is concerned.” Wiley spoke up. “He’s very good at what he does, but he’s a military man to the core. He’s by the book and in my world his cover would be blown in an instant. Then he’d be dead. I’m looking for people who don’t look like what they are, who are quick on their feet, and can think outside the box. They have to bend the rules, possibly break them, in order to succeed in their missions. You proved that in Paris, in Spain, and then again in New York…even if you did piss off a senator…and the director.”
Jake’s head was in a whirlwind. Had he heard Bentley right? Did the director just say he wasn’t right for the Clandestine Service? And Isabella? “Director, what are you telling me?”
“I’m telling you I think you should consider working for Mr. Wiley and the Fellowship.” Bentley said.
“Fellowship?”
“Jake.” Bentley again. “The CIA has become just like every other federal agency, too politically correct. We are rapidly being neutered by those in Washington like Senator Boden and our current administration. But the last decade has seen the demise of our power. My budget keeps getting sliced off in chunks and my funding for covert ops nearly eliminated. So a long time ago, those of us who could see the path this country was taking established ways of getting around the bureaucracy. The Fellowship was born.”
Wiley did his familiar hair swipe and stepped closer to Jake. “Myself and a few others started the Greenbrier Fellowship back when President Jimmy Carter outlawed political assassinations. The new path this country was taking would eventually lead us to where we are now, and several of us foresaw the future. Our country began to believe we can have freedom without a price and that’s where the Fellowship comes in.”
Jake looked at Bentley.
Bentley nodded. “You should consider Mr. Wiley’s offer.”
“I’m sure it’s a great offer but I’ve known you for a long time…and you’ve known me for a long time.”
“You should reconsider.”
“What if I still want to work for you?” Jake asked.
“You can’t.”
“What are you saying, Admiral?”
Bentley said nothing.
He looked at Wiley and saw no expression. He looked back at Bentley. “Admiral?”
“I’m letting you go, Jake.” Bentley said. “Effective immediately, you’re fired.”
Words he’d never expected to hear, especially from Bentley, but for some strange reason they didn’t bother him. All the years he’d worked for Bentley as a Naval Intelligence officer — both on the USS Mount Whitney and in the Pentagon when Bentley was Chairman of the Joint Chiefs — then again as a covert agent with the Clandestine Service after his former career as an aircraft accident investigator came to a rapid end on St. Patrick’s Day in Savannah, Georgia. Just over seven months ago he felt like his world was falling down around him. And now, it didn’t seem to matter.
Something still bothered him. The two old men never answered his questions. Jake stared at Wiley. “Why were you at Beth’s funeral?
The older men looked at each other. Wiley spoke first. “What makes you think that?”
“It took me a while to figure out where I'd seen you before and now I know. You were there.” Jake stuck his hands in his pockets and looked at Bentley. “When you walked away from me, you walked across the lawn to Mr. Wiley. So my question is,” Jake looked back to Wiley. “Why were you there?”
“Scott wanted me to look into a suspicion he had." Wiley glanced at Bentley. “His suspicion was correct.”
Jake studied the two men. Deep in the recesses of his mind, he’d always suspected. Too much left unexplained. He glared at Bentley. “You knew all along Collins killed Beth, didn’t you?”
Nothing.
“Why didn’t you tell me? Didn’t think I could handle it?”
“Maybe I should have. All I had were hunches, nothing conclusive.” Bentley explained. “I had our men sweep the room and they found a shamrock…but it was Savannah and St. Patrick’s Day after all. The nurse said she found it on the floor. I pulled a toxicology screen and found she’d been poisoned.”
“Why the hell did you keep this from me? A shamrock? That’s the bastard’s calling card.” Jake’s face flushed.
“This is why I didn’t tell you. I knew you’d go off half-cocked in search of Collins.” Bentley said.
“That decision was mine to make.” Jake’s voice grew louder. “Dammit, you should have told me. Maybe I could have done something about it. My parents might still be alive.”
“You’re right, Jake. I should have told you, I’m sorry.” Bentley exchanged glances with Wiley. “There’s something else I haven’t told you. About your parents.”
“What about my parents?” Jake's voice cracked.
“They’re not dead.” Bentley shifted his weight from one to another. “I have them in protective custody. They’re living in one of my safe houses in D.C.”
“But, the funeral?” Jake’s brow furrowed. “The caskets?”
“All a ruse to keep them safe until we find Collins. I’m sorry I kept this from you but I needed it to look real. For their sake, your reaction needed to be genuine.”
"You son of a bitch." Jake clenched his fists. "First you don't tell me Collins killed Beth and now you tell me my parents have been alive all along. You let Collins burn down my parents' house."
“I’ve had a guard living with your parents since Beth’s funeral. We located Collins after he killed Beth and sent a team to take him out.” Bentley glanced at Wiley, then to Jake. “Somehow Collins got the drop on my men, got them to reveal your father was involved and had pressured me into sanctioning the hit on him. Then he killed them. During the operation, one of Mr. Wiley’s emissaries was injured, the other survived unscathed. But ultimately, Collins got away.”
Jake turned to Wiley.
“Remember your blind date?” Wiley asked.
Jake nodded.
“Collins put that scar on her face. It will serve as a permanent reminder of her failure on that mission.” Wiley touched his cheek.
"That’s why I had your parents under protection detail. I knew, sooner or later, Collins would try to kill your father." Bentley moved closer to Jake. "If it weren't for my guard, they'd be dead."
"That doesn't excuse you from not telling me." Jake's voice grew louder.
Wiley grabbed Jake’s arm. “Come work for me, Jake, and you’ll have an understanding of a world beyond anything you’ve ever imagined.” Wiley reached into his briefcase and pulled out a folder. “This will be your first assignment.”
“What is it?”
“Come to work for the Fellowship and you can have it. Trust me, you want this assignment. Right now, more than anything else in this world. Accept, and I’ll explain everything.”
He thought about it for a few seconds. Bentley had just dropped two bombs on him, both betrayals in Jake’s eyes. Even if the director hadn’t fired him, he knew he could never work for the man or the agency again…not after covering up his parents’ deaths.