Shattered Lies (Web of Lies #3)(71)
Birch rubbed his hand over her shoulder as he kept her pressed tight against him. “How are you feeling?”
“Anxious. What happens if—?”
“Shhh. We don’t talk about what-ifs. We’re prepared, and they will handle anything that comes their way.”
“I don’t think I could stand another flag being handed to us.” Tate looked to where Jason’s flag had been placed in a shadow frame and hung on the wall.
“I know. Right now we must simply have faith that good people doing hard work will win. It’s never easy to stand up against the hate and the division that a group like Mollia Domini thrives on achieving. They want to pit us against each other to tear our country and democracy apart so we don’t see what they’re doing in the shadows. We’ll be doing their job for them. Chaos creates opportunity for the ambitious. It’s exactly what they want to happen to us. It’s easier to overtake half the people than a united country demanding their leaders check their power and do what’s right for their citizens. No, Mollia Domini wants that division so they can tell their oblivious victims what they want to hear. Give me your freedoms and I’ll make the others pay. That was their plan. To kill the strong leaders, to tear the country apart by having them pitted against each other, and then swoop in as the savior. It’s the dictatorship playbook.” Birch kissed the top of her head reassuringly.
“But they’ve already lost. They lost the second your speech was given. The second people started questioning the bias. They lost the second people took a hard look at who was screaming hate, and instead looked past it to all to the quiet goodness of the people trying to do what was right. That was when Mollia Domini lost. They saw our field team even though they never laid eyes on them. Good will always win. Because I have faith that, at our core, we all want to not only be good, but do good.”
Tate lifted her face to his. “I hope so. I almost lost you to the hate once. I won’t be able to stand it if they come after you again.”
“Even if they don’t, they’ll never succeed. Will you come with me?” Birch asked as he sat up straighter.
Tate nodded and took hold of her crutches to stand.
“Where are you two going?” Crew asked sleepily when Birch grunted as he stood. His ribs were still tender, but improving each day.
“We’ll be right back. Don’t worry, we’re not leaving the residence.”
Crew nodded before lying back against the cushion of the chair. His feet were propped on the matching ottoman as he drifted back to sleep.
Tate used her crutches to maneuver out of the room, Birch held the door, and then walked side by side with her down the hall. They made their way to the solarium and then out the door onto the promenade. She breathed in the heaviness of the night air. The dew that came about before the sun made everything seem fresh and clean as they walked to the baluster and looked out over the fountain on the South Lawn and at the Washington Monument, lit up against the dark sky.
“Soon we’re going to be caught up in the whirlwind of the mission. Once again, Mollia Domini will be all we’re talking about, either in victory or defeat. Right now, right here, I have you beside me.” Birch stepped up behind Tate and set aside her crutches.
Tate leaned against the baluster and smiled. “I’m glad we have a moment together alone. I love you, Birch. I’ve missed not being at your side more, but with all this craziness—” Tate took a deep breath and let some of the tension go. She felt powerless as her friends headed straight into danger.
Birch leaned forward and brushed his lips against hers before taking them fully in his. Tate sighed. She was home in Birch’s embrace. “Thank you for loving me despite me being president. We’ll never have a normal relationship.”
“You’re worth it, Birch. It’s not the amount of time we have together but what we do with it. And I know one thing I can’t wait to get back to doing,” Tate leaned up and kissed the man she loved.
* * *
Grant smiled down at Valeria. She was asleep in the plane but had slumped over in her seat and curled into his side. She was snoring softly and drooling on him, but it was the best feeling in the world.
This woman who had shot her way into his life was suddenly at the center of it. He pulled her closer to him and shut his eyes. They were almost to their destination, but his mind was on Valeria instead of the jump they would have to make. The thought of Valeria being injured caused his heart to seize. How could he tell her he loved her? How could he explain it when he didn’t understand it himself? It had hit hard and fast, but he wouldn’t change it for anything. It motivated every move he made. Tonight he could end Mollia Domini and tomorrow he could ask Valeria to marry him. But until Mollia Domini was caught, there was no point saying things that might distract them from the mission at hand.
“Ten minutes to jump,” the pilot called over the speaker.
Valeria shot up and wiped her mouth. Then she looked at his black shirt and squinted. “Sorry about that,” she said, wiping at the wet spot. She looked at all the agents Kirby had brought with them to Quantico. They’d taken off from the Quantico MCAF, a small airstrip on the base, in a small cargo plane. There was a wall cutting the plane in half. The front half was crammed with seats and through the airtight door was the cargo area.
Grant grabbed her hand and brought it to his lips. “Be safe tonight. I’m depending on you to have my six.”