Dangerous Heat (Aegis Group, #8)

by Sidney Bristol

  Mia didn’t have long. Cane’s receptionist was an older woman who ran the office according to her master schedule. Any interruption, including Mia showing up unannounced, was a major infraction. As soon as the woman learned Mia had slipped in, she’d be detained and penciled in accordingly.

  She was desperate.

  For months she’d played this role, flirting with Cane, drawing his interest. When Luke had offered her this as a means to pay her debt to him it had sounded so easy. After all, politicians were one and the same. They were dirty, corrupt and using their power for personal gain.

  And then she’d met Cane.

  Part of her wanted this fantasy life with him where she was on the way to becoming his wife. But he didn’t really know her. This life they had was a lie. He didn’t even know she had children. Their lives were what kept her pushing forward and why she was here today.

  She pulled file folders out of drawers, flipping them open and snapping pictures. Luke was after something specific, but he wasn’t confiding the details. At this rate she’d take whatever she could find. Deep down she knew she was doomed. Cane was one of the last decent humans on the planet, and she was going to screw him over to save her own skin.

  That knowledge sucked, and if it were just her, she might be willing to pay the price. But she had to think about her children. Other than Mia and her mother, they had no one. If Mia died, or worse happened to her, she didn’t think they’d survive without her.

  The true crime in all of this was that Cane believed Mia was everything she said she was. Someday he’d learn the truth. She didn’t know what would be worse, his forgives or hate. Knowing him he’d still try to help her, even after she broke the man’s heart.

  What had he said last night?

  It was a slip of the tongue. He’d mentioned kids. Their baby.

  God, she was a terrible person.

  Voices drifted closer.

  Mia shoved the desk drawer shut, jostling one of the framed pictures on the corner. She snatched at the photograph before it toppled over.

  Cane stood with an arm around a petite, pretty woman with dark, umber skin that glowed almost as bright as her smile. A woman with Cane’s face stood on the other side, both her arms around their mother.

  It was striking how much Cane and his sister looked alike.

  Mia studied their mother, Naomi. With Cane on the outs with his sister, Naomi should be Mia’s target. But she couldn’t bring herself to point Luke in that direction either. Naomi was a good, warm woman. Much like her son.

  Maybe Mia could aim Luke at Cane’s other family, the white half? But what would he do to Cane’s little brothers?

  What would Luke do to Mia if she kept failing?

  The office door opened.

  Mia gasped and whirled to face the person.

  She stared into the tawny golden eyes of the man she was deceiving.

  “Mia,” Cane said, recovering first. “Babe, what a nice surprise.”

  He set his briefcase down by the door and crossed the room, drawing her into a hug so tight. Whatever meeting he’d come from hadn’t gone well. She’d learned to dissect everything about Cane.

  “How’s your day?” she whispered.

  “Better now that you’re here.” He leaned back and smiled down at her.

  Damn if her heart didn’t flutter a bit.

  A life with him would be beautiful, but it wasn’t in the cards for her.

  “What are you doing here?” he asked.

  “Well...” She reached over and picked up the picture. “I was going to surprise you for lunch, then I saw this. What if we gave them a call? See if they’d join us?”

  A bit of the brightness dimmed from Cane’s eyes. His twin was, and always had been, a sore topic. He cared about Coco, though he hadn’t seen her in years.

  Maybe that was his weakness? Could Mia exploit his sister? Would it be easier, since she’d never met the woman?

  10.

  Monday. Unknown, South Africa.

  The swish of the grass as they moved forward had Paxton cringing. It was too much noise. This was all wrong. They had to go back.

  He was glad to have his rifle cradled in his arms. Talking Coco into pausing long enough for him and Silas to gear up properly had nearly been a fight. If it weren’t for the other guys being on their side Paxton would be out here with nothing more than a pair of SIG Sauers in hand. The sun was beginning to dip toward the horizon. There were only a few hours of daylight left and so far they hadn’t seen anything other than tire tracks.

  It had been a long day spent in the sun trekking over rough terrain. Paxton was impressed with Coco. She’d set the pace and kept it going even through the worst of the heat, only slowing down a little.

  Silas drifted closer until they were walking shoulder to shoulder following Coco.

  He glanced at Paxton, speaking softly. “We’ve walked at least ten miles in a straight line with tracks a blind person could follow.”

  Paxton couldn’t unclench his jaw enough to respond. He’d been thinking as much ever since they crossed off the Mlilo property.

  “Either these guys are the biggest idiots or we’re walking into an ambush. I know you like this girl, but you’ll like her a whole lot better if she’s alive.”

  “Yeah.” Paxton didn’t volunteer that he’d already tried to talk Coco into turning back twice with no luck.

  He heaved a sigh and picked up the pace, leaving Silas behind him.

  Coco’s shirt was darker and drenched with sweat. She’d bound her curls up into a bun. A few had slipped the elastic and bounced at the nape of her neck with each step she took.

  “Hey, hold up one second, will you?” Paxton figured it was better to announce himself this time.

  “I’m not going back. Not until I know something.”

  “Coco. Hey.” He caught her hand and gave it a tug.

  Stopping her was asking for a fight, but she did slow her pace.

  He peered down at her mouth set in a determined line. She kept staring straight ahead. Yeah, she was prepared to dig in her heels again and fight him on whether going back was a good idea or not.

  “What’s the point in me and Silas being here if you won’t listen to our professional advice?” he asked.

  She huffed. “You think you know everything?”

  “No, but I know combat. I’ve seen enemy traps. I’ve set them.” He glanced around. The terrain was different, but he’d been here before. “I was in a convoy once through some mountains. We set off a couple IEDs ahead of us, but it caused a rock slide. Our vehicles took too much damage and we couldn’t fit everyone in the trucks we had. So we sent the injured back and the rest of us set a trap. We knew we had very little time to work with, so we laid tracks, brought them right to us in a straight line with no cover. It was us or them.”

  His mind skipped over the next details. It was a blur of numbness.

  Coco glanced up at him, lips parted. He couldn’t read her expression, but he didn’t see a change to that stubbornness of hers.

  “I’m not going back.” She pulled her hand from his.

  “Damn it, Coco.”

  Paxton grit his teeth. He was close to a line. Coco was playing with her life and he wasn’t going to let her get caught in a trap if he could stop it. If he couldn’t get through to her why this was dangerous, he was going to pick her up and carry her back to Mlilo himself.

  “Go,” she waved him off and stalked toward the trees.

  Paxton glanced over his shoulder at Silas, who hung back with Daluxolo and the others. Silas shook his head.

  Everything in Paxton said to shadow her, stay close, but maybe that was wrong?

  There were no rules for a hunt like this. They were out here chasing something he was growing more certain didn’t exist.

  He came to a stop and swallowed, watching Coco draw ever farther away.

  Footsteps came closer as Silas and the others joined him.

  “Well?” Silas asked.r />
  “The longer we follow her the more determined she is to keep going.” Paxton hated what he had to say. “If we’re going to put a stop to this madness, we let her go alone.”

  Daluxolo shook his head. “That won’t work. She’ll keep going.”

  Paxton closed his eyes. “Fuck.”

  Silas lifted his binoculars to his face and peered at the trees. “D, where are we? Anyone live around here?”

  Daluxolo gestured to their left. “There’s a village due west of here, but all of this? No. No one is here.”

  Paxton reached over and took Silas’ binoculars.

  “Hey,” he barked.

  Paxton looked through the lenses, focused on a bit of darker space in the shadow of a tree up close to some rocks. The hair on the back of his neck rose.

  How far was that?

  “Coco!” He tossed the binoculars at Silas and sprinted forward, churning up the ground, his entire focus on that little bit of space above her right shoulder in the distance.

  She turned, walking backward and spread her arms. “What else is there to talk about?”

  Metal glinted off the late afternoon sunlight.

  Unnatural light flared in the shadows.

  Paxton launched himself through the air, grabbed Coco around the waist and the both went down into the long grass. Coco grunted and her arms flailed. Paxton hugged her to him and rolled, doing his best to protect her as bullets hit the ground only a few feet away.

  They came to a stop, his whole left side throbbing, but they were both okay.

  Coco stared at him, her eyes wide with fear, body frozen.

  Now she got it.

  A familiar sound ripped through the air overhead. He’d know Silas’ gun any day, anywhere.

  “Pax?” Silas called out, still some distance away.

  “Yeah?”

  “This is bad shit, man.”

  The rest of Silas’ words were drowned out by more gunfire hitting the ground between where Paxton lay and Silas returned fire.

  Coco clutched Paxton’s arm. He could feel her trembling.

  This was the trap. It had been set, primed and ready for them to walk into it. They would be outnumbered. Anyone who went to these lengths wouldn’t leave anything to chance. Now Paxton had to figure out how to get them out of this alive, and that meant no retreat. The only cover for them to hide in was ahead, in those trees and up in those rocks.

  Coco flinched as a bullet fell closer than the others.

  “Listen to me.” He cupped her cheek even as the numbness settled in. “Stay low, stay out of sight, I’ll get you out of this, understand?”

  He had to even the numbers out. Only then could he make a break for it with her.

  Engines revved to life in the distance.

  Shit.

  “Pax, buddy, you got to move,” Silas bellowed.

  “Stay right here. Stay low, understand?” Paxton cupped Coco’s face.

  She nodded.

  He committed everything about her to memory. The stained shirt. The scratches on her arms. That bit of grass in her hair. The wide eyes. She was the objective, the target to keep safe, and he’d bring her through this or he’d die protecting her and trust his best friend would finish the job.

  Paxton let go of her and crawled on hands and knees for several yards until he couldn’t see her.

  Headlights moved overhead in the fading light.

  He crouched and pulled his rifle up, fitting it against his shoulder and into the familiar position. Ahead of him, in the trees, men yelled. Some fired. There were at least two vehicles. He had to take at least one out or they’d never get away.

  Paxton rose to his knees, taking in the lay of the land.

  Silas and the others had fallen back and to the east. A Land Rover bore down on them while a second hung back, three men hanging out of the windows, searching the grass. But they were looking in the wrong direction. They were watching the other group.

  When they’d set out today, it had been with the understanding that they were gathering information. If the tracks led them somewhere, they’d regroup and figure out what happened then.

  The rules had changed.

  Someone had opened fire on them, and Paxton would respond in kind. He didn’t want to. He took no enjoyment from this.

  Paxton bolted forward while he had surprise on his side. He lifted his gun and fired once, then again. A body fell out of the passenger side of the Land Rover. Another passenger jerked around, the man’s eyes wide. Paxton adjusted his aim, going for the big, black tires. The hiss of air was drowned out by the roar of the engine as the vehicle swung around.

  He stood his ground and waited.

  The second shooter hadn’t learned. He leaned out of the window.

  Paxton squeezed the trigger.

  Another mark on his soul.

  The Land Rover jerked around and its headlights aimed right for Paxton. He dodged left, the vehicle following him toward the trees and away from Coco. The driver shot the truck past him, as if to cut Paxton off, but all it did was give him a straight shot through the driver’s side door.

  He stopped and pulled the trigger again, holding his breath as the Land Rover swerved. The vehicle lurched and the sound of an impact preceded the truck pitching sideways and rolling.

  This was it. Their window. The chaos would hide them.

  “Coco? Come on,” he called out.

  Her head popped up over the grass.

  “Come on.” He waved to her, staring at the trees.

  The others were gone, out of sight to the east, hidden by the trees and failing light. He could trust Silas to make it through this. The bastard wouldn’t die. He was too stubborn for that.

  Paxton grabbed Coco’s hand and pulled her forward, trusting that the darkness would hide them.

  MONDAY. UNKNOWN, SOUTH Africa.

  Coco stared at the back of the den where she and Paxton had taken refuge. The tiny cave, if it could be called that, had a very narrow entrance that a human could barely squeeze through. It was the perfect hideaway for any number of animals to birth young. In fact she could smell fresh musk in the air. There weren’t babies here, but it was clear to her a mother—their luck, a predator—was preparing this site.

  “Pax? Paxton?”

  “Sh,” he whispered.

  “We have to go.”

  “It’s not safe out there yet,” he said over his shoulder.

  “It’s not safe in here.” She didn’t want to be squatting when the residents came back.

  Best-case scenario this was a serval den. The cats were predators but not much of a threat to humans. Worst-case scenario they were standing in a leopard’s den. On a normal day Coco wouldn’t be terribly concerned about a leopard, but a pregnant mother about to give birth? That was a creature Coco didn’t want to run into.

  Coco pushed at Paxton’s shoulders. “Now.”

  “Fine.” He glanced over his shoulder. “I go first. You wait until I tell you to come out. Understand?”

  “Okay.”

  “We keep low and move west. D said there was a village out that way. Hopefully that’s where the others went and we can call for a pickup.”

  “Fine.”

  Whatever got them out of this den.

  He inched out of the space, moving with no hurry whatsoever, all the while Coco practically danced in place.

  Paxton held his rifle out then squeezed through the space. His gear caught on the rocks and several times he had to wiggle this way and that, but he finally cleared the rocks and went to a knee. She breathed a slight sigh of relief. Except they weren’t out of danger yet.

  The sun was almost gone, making him harder to pick out in his molted green clothes. It was his blond hair that stuck out, glinting under all those stars.

  God, they’d almost died because she’d stubbornly refused to give up. He’d told her what he saw, that he’d done this exact same trap, but she’d refused to listen.

  Paxton had nearly died for her.<
br />
  What about the others?

  He lifted his left hand and waved at her, to follow.

  She shoved that fear deep down. It was for later. Right now they had to keep going.

  Coco shimmied out from between the rocks and crouched, keeping close to him. She peered into the growing shadows, searching for the glint of feline eyes or the figure of a human. In the distance she heard a throaty growl that had the hair on the back of her neck rising.

  “They circled back, I think. If we keep moving this way, I’m hoping we move out of their search perimeter,” Paxton said softly. He reached for her with his left hand, his right keeping the muzzle of his rifle pointed at the ground. “Let’s go. Keep close.”

  She griped his hand tight between hers. Her heart pounded in her throat and it was hard to breathe. Her mind was a buzz with all the things that had just happened, but she couldn’t think about them now. If she paused to really take in the fact that she’d been shot at she didn’t know what she’d do, but it wouldn’t be moving forward.

  Paxton pulled her forward, still crouched.

  The growls erupted into snarls.

  “Keep going. Come on.” Paxton urged her into a jog.

  Coco should have paid more attention to where they were. The whole day she’d just put one foot in front of the other, Utata’s still form burned into her mind. When Paxton had tried to deter her from going on, she’d known he was right. His reasoning was solid, but she’d been leading with her heart and fleeing from her problems. It was easier to focus on Utata than why she’d avoided Lacey the last few days.

  The sound of the large cat faded the farther they went. She kept straining to hear a scream or a gunshot. Instead the song of the insects rose to a swell around them.

  Paxton and Coco picked their way through the brush. It was slower going without the sun and in the overgrown area. Her limbs felt too heavy and her mouth was dry. She was paying the price for pushing them too hard.

  And where were the others?

  “Coco, what’s wrong?” Paxton turned around so fast she walked straight into him. He gripped her by the shoulders and stared down at her.

  She covered her mouth with her hands to keep the fear from bubbling out of her.