“If your mother asks, you were helping me nail the new posts together for the upper field.”

Dante nodded with a grimace. Downcast and worried, he followed his father back to the house.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Fall descended on Nebraska. The days grew crisp. The leaves in the orchard turned a brilliant yellow and began to fall. The world turned to cracking at every turn, from the dried corn stalks underfoot, discarded after the harvest, to the wind whipping the bare branches of the trees.

Laurie and Dante settled into a comfortable life on the farm. They rose right after the sun, ate breakfast with Emma and Albert, and went over to the orchard. They harvested apples and pears all day, then came home for dinner. In the evenings, they would watch TV for a little while. Dante would often use his parent’s computer to surf the internet. Ultimately, they would fall in bed together at the end of the day exhausted.

Dante would have been at peace, but at the end of the week, Dante and Albert heard nothing from the CIA. Nothing at all. The silence stretched into another week.

Finally, Albert pulled Dante aside one Saturday while Emma taught Laurie how to can applesauce. They went out to the barn.

“What did they say?” Dante closed the door, his breath steaming the chilly air.

“The raid came up empty. They’re not done sifting through all of the information yet, but they’re not even sure Kaimi was ever there.”

“Great, perfect.” Dante ran his hands through his hair as he began to pace the cement floor of the barn.

“Patience, son. You have to—” Albert started.

“I know, Dad. I know. But it’s not your job that’s on the line.”

Albert, leaning over the table, looked up at his son. His expression was stern, his eyes impatient. Dante clenched his jaw. Then he heaved a sigh of frustration. He came back to the worktable and Albert continued.

“The agency has two other leads on Kaimi. An agent identified him here, in a house outside Honolulu. It seems Kaimi is still able to check-in on some of his business associates. They didn’t overhear where he is staying. They couldn’t get information out before he left. A citizen called in a tip that he may be here in Maui.”

Albert pointed to Kahului, at the neck of the island’s west end.

“With a boat at his disposal, he can get back and forth between Maui and Honolulu. It would only be a few hours between the two.” Dante frowned.

Albert scribbled a note in shorthand beside Maui. Then he shaded in the areas where Kaimi was spotted.

“Who was this business associate Kaimi met with?”

“Classified.” Albert continued to make notes on the map.

“Dad, I have a level three security clearance. I’ve had it for years.” Dante put his hands on his hips.

Albert smiled.

“I’m sure you do, but that doesn’t even begin to touch this.”

“If it’s relevant to Kaimi’s whereabouts—” Dante started.

“Then I’ll tell you, but as of right now, I’m not sure that it is.”

Dante’s face tensed. His jaw ached. Anger settled in the pit of his stomach, making it burn. He left the table and went back to pacing.

“When is the FBI going to move on the Kaimi tip?” he asked over his shoulder.

“Their putting surveillance in place now. They’ve had no real evidence he’s there, so they’re looking at all additional known associates in case he’s checking in on them.”

Dante nodded.

“Anything else?”

Albert shook his head.

“Not yet.”

Albert put the map back into the hidden safe. Dante went back to pacing. He tried to choke back his disappointment. There was nothing he could do to find Kaimi from here, and he knew it.

“Who are your contacts at the agency?”

Albert turned around from replacing the fake panel. He looked surprised.

“You know I won’t tell you. It’s classified.” Albert’s brow furrowed.

“Can they be trusted?” Dante stopped pacing to stare at him. “Are they working the Kaimi case now?”

“Of course they can be trusted. They wouldn’t be at the agency if they couldn’t. The second is irrelevant. They have access to the information we need.”

“They’re not going to have the best information if they’re not working on the Kaimi case. Can you talk to the agents working the Kaimi case?”

“What should I tell them? That my son, who’s suspected of being a mole in the Marshals Service, wanted to inquire after Kaimi?” Albert planted his feet on the floor and crossed his arms over his chest.

“Well, maybe I should just call some contacts if you’re not willing to get the job done.”

Albert took several quick strides to close the gap between them.

Dante saw his jaw tense, and his brown eyes shot sparks. Dante’s system flooded with adrenaline. Every muscle tensed as he prepared for battle.

“I’ve been getting this job done since long before you were born, young man. How dare you suggest anything else.” His father pointed one long boned finger at him.

Dante pulled himself up to his tallest height. His face screwed up in anger. He was nose to nose with his father. He could feel his hot breath fanning his cheek. Dante wouldn’t retreat one step—not one.

“Really? Did you get the job done the last time you went after Kaimi?”

Albert curled up his fists, as he stared into his son’s eyes. His lips contorted into a sneer, as his cheek muscle jumped with barely controlled anger.

“You were always a stubborn child. Arrogant, even. Talking about things you know nothing about.”

“How would you even know? You weren’t there. You wouldn’t know anything about my childhood.”

A flicker of remorse and pain crossed Albert’s face. It was brief, but Dante saw it before Albert regained his composure. Albert looked down at the cement floor of the barn.

Dante felt ashamed. His dad was trying to help him. Here he was, throwing a tantrum because it wasn’t the information he wanted to hear.

Dante took a step back. He ran his hands through his hair, cursing.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. It was a low blow.”

Albert nodded. He paused for a few minutes, thinking. Then he put his hands on his hips, and gave a rueful smile, still looking at the floor.

“You were always fiery as a kid. Every time I came home, there were sparks flying. I thought you would just outgrow it. When you got older…well, I just started to guess it was because I couldn’t be there for you and your mom. As if you were perpetually angry at me.” Albert spoke softly, and let out a breath.

Dante closed his eyes. Never in his whole life had he imagined his father as vulnerable. Here it was before him, exposed and hungry for his attention. It felt good for a brief second that his father finally broke, but now Dante just felt like a bully.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be a pain-in-the-ass kid. I don’t mean to be a jerk now. I’m just frustrated. I need Kaimi to be caught so I can go back to my job. So I can take care of Laurie.”

Albert nodded. His fingers twitched as he stared at the floor. Then he looked up at Dante.

Dante felt like he was ten again, standing around, waiting for his father to notice he was there.

“We’ll get him, son.” Albert’s voice took on a tone of newfound determination. “We’ll bring him in. We’ll get your job straightened out.”

Dante nodded back. After a few moments of staring at each other, Albert broke away to lead the way to the door. Gratefully, Dante followed.

***

Laurie

“They’ll find him, Dante,” Laurie said to him as he drove. “They will. It just takes time.”

“They should have found him by now. It’s been months. Something’s not right.”

They were in the truck, driving back from Fremont. They had gone into the small town to shop for winter clothes with the money they earned from the apple and pear harvest. The fall had melded into the holidays, and Thanksgiving was at the end of the week. They both knew buying winter clothes couldn’t wait anymore. They were already freezing half the time as it was, and they didn’t fit into the heavy coats his mom insisted they wear.