“I actually believe you, Kathy. I don’t think he did it either. But others do. And those others can harm him and Tyler. I’m here to prevent that.”
“No you’re not!” she snapped. “You want to hurt them.”
“I’m going to take your blindfold off and show you something, okay?”
Grant nodded to the other man, who turned and left the room. Grant moved behind Kathy.
“Do not turn your head around, Kathy. Stare straight ahead. What you’ll see hopefully will convince you of my good intentions.”
He held something out in front of her and with his other hand removed the blindfold. Kathy blinked her eyes rapidly and then focused on what was in front of her.
“You’re with the CIA?” she exclaimed breathlessly as she stared at the cred pack held in front of her.
“Yes. Undercover, which is why I can’t let you see my face. What Sam Wingo is involved in is very serious. We believe he was set up, but we have no proof. Wingo is not going to trust anyone, including us. But we have to communicate with him somehow. Make him come in and work with us.”
“But why do you need me to do that?”
“We tried to reach out to him, but like I said, he’s not trusting anyone. I think he’ll trust you, Kathy.”
“What do you want me to do?”
“Can you contact Tyler and let him know that you want to meet with him? You pick the place. Make it very public so you’ll both feel safe.”
“But what do you want me to tell him?”
“That his father needs to contact us. That he needs to come into Langley. You know about Langley, right?”
“It’s your headquarters.”
“That’s right, Kathy. There are people there who care about what happens to Sam Wingo. They want to make this right. But the longer he’s out there, the worse it’s going to get. You can see that, right?”
She slowly nodded, still staring at the CIA badge he kept holding in front of her. This was a very deliberate action by Grant. He needed her to believe he really was with the CIA and a “good guy.”
“So you’ll do it? You’ll call him?”
“I guess I can. But I can’t guarantee that he’ll meet with me.”
“I know that. But I think he will. I think he likes you and trusts you. I know he wants the best for his father, and so do we. And his father will trust Tyler. I’m sure of it.”
Grant held up her phone, which had been taken from her previously.
“I’m going to hit Tyler’s number.”
“I could just text him.”
“I think he needs to hear your voice. If you text him he can’t be sure it’s from you.”
“Oh, right. I forgot about that. But where should we meet?”
“How about Tysons mall? There’s a Starbucks there, right? I know it’s not that close to where you both live, but it’s a central place with lots of people.”
“Yeah, we’ve actually gone there sometimes.”
“We’ll take you to the mall and drop you there. You meet with him. Deliver the message. And then you go home. And we’ll take it from there. How’s that sound?”
“That sounds really good,” she said, relief in her voice.
Grant smiled. “I thought it would. And your country really appreciates your help.”