She could feel his gaze on her back until she reached the French doors.
As she opened the door, she heard him give a low whistle. “Holy shit…”
CHAPTER
7
She stood there on the other side of the door, trying to get her breath. Fine, bold words, but how was she going to translate them into action? Worry about that later, it had to be done, so she’d think and plan and find a way. She’d made a decision, and she’d do what she had to do.
She pushed away from the door, crossed the room, and slipped into bed. Relax. Clear her mind. Try to let the answers come to her instead of frantically searching for them. It was not as if she wouldn’t have help. She had Hu Chang and Catherine, and Brandon would be there when she needed him. He had made her a priority because he needed her to bring Huber to him.
But there were moments when she’d be on her own. Her principal value might be as a target. That would place her in the most vulnerable of positions. In the end, she couldn’t really count on anyone but herself. She couldn’t depend on luck or the kindness or self-interest of the people surrounding her. She had to be ready for those times that almost certainly would come.
And she wasn’t ready. She was a healer, not a warrior. It was all very well for her father to tell her that someday she’d have to choose to go after the bad guys because there was nothing else to do. It was another thing to find a way to do it. It was like Hu Chang telling her how to make a poison or medicine without giving her a list of ingredients.
But Hu Chang might very well do that if he wanted to challenge her, she thought suddenly. He always liked to make her think and come up with her own answers. Was that what her father was doing?
Not likely. He had been dying and probably had just been forced to throw her headlong into the situation because, as usual, he was trying to do his job and keep disaster at bay. But maybe somehow he’d known she’d never do what she had to do in the same way he’d do it. He had come to know her very well in those last months when they had been friends as well as father and daughter.
She could feel the tears stinging, and she blinked them back.
No more tears, Daddy. And I can’t second-guess you. But I promise I’ll get the job done my way.
She closed her eyes. Okay, I can’t think about you right now. It hurts too much. I need to know what questions to ask and decide where I need to go from here …
4:40 A.M.
Rachel hesitated, then knocked firmly on Brandon’s door. “It’s me. I’m coming in. I’d appreciate it if you didn’t do anything lethal.” She threw open the door. “I’m not up to that nonsense at the moment.”
“Then you should pick your time and place more carefully,” he said dryly from the darkness of the bed across the room. “You’re lucky I heard you coming down the hall and recognized your step.”
“I don’t feel lucky at the moment.” She came into the room and dropped down in a chair against the wall. “And how did you recognize my step?”
“It’s lithe, strong, a certain rhythm, you carry your weight close to the balls of your feet. We were together in the rain forest for a long time.” He leaned over and turned on the bedside lamp. “What do you want, Rachel? I don’t believe it’s anything near what I’d like it to be.”
“No.” She firmly kept her gaze off his body and on his face. He was naked, and his body was lean and tough and masculine beneath the sheet that only covered his hips. “I couldn’t sleep, and I had no intention of letting you. You can go back to sleep after I finish with you.”
His lips turned up at the corners. “I’d be delighted to have you finish me.” He held up his hand as she opened her lips. “True, but you’re not in the mood, and so you’ll think me out of line. But what can you expect when you barge in here in that scrap of a nightshirt?” He sat up in bed. “But by all means, state your business, so I can concentrate on that instead of the very obvious.” He met her eyes. “I wasn’t sleeping very well myself after your explosion on the veranda. I was going over all kinds of scenarios I could use to keep you under control and not have to watch Huber kill you.”
“You’re not going to keep me under control,” she said. “But you can work with me if you’ll cooperate instead of trying to dominate the situation. I need answers, and you seem to be able to supply them.”
“I told you that I’d told you all I know. You persist in thinking I’m keeping secrets from you.”
“I believe you told me all you know about my father’s death and this Nemesis. But you worked with him for two years, so you probably know almost as much as he did about Max Huber.”
“You said Venable told you quite a bit himself.”
“Only about things that would keep me apprised about whether or not Huber had discovered anything about his father’s death. Other than that, I didn’t want to know anything about Red Star.”
He nodded. “Understood. That’s how I felt about you. I didn’t want to deal with you. Now it appears that neither of us has a choice. Ask your questions, Rachel.”
“Do you have any idea which compound Huber is using in Canada right now?”
“There are several possibles. We don’t know all the locations Red Star uses. You were right, he tends to move from place to place. Every time we thought we’d zeroed in, Huber disappeared from the area and moved on. That’s why we couldn’t touch him. The one outside Calgary seemed the most likely. Venable had satellite surveillance, and it showed movement in that area recently. That’s where Venable was supposed to meet with Nemesis. But it proved to have been a false trail. I sent men to check it out after Venable’s death, and the compound was deserted.”
“So we don’t really know,” she said, frustrated. “We’ll be acting blind.”
He nodded. “Just as we have for the past years. And he might not even be in Canada. He might want to be hands-on for his grand celebration here in San Francisco.”
“Is that your guess?”
“No, I believe he’ll have Kraus set up everything here and stay in palatial comfort until the last moment. Then he’ll fly in to accept all the drama and glory. Huber Junior is very fond of being thought a chip off the old block. That’s why he was so upset about your killing his father. He took it as a personal affront.”
“I wonder how the relatives of all the people Conrad Huber murdered felt about it,” she said bitterly. It was obvious Brandon did have a grasp on how Huber thought and felt. Why not? He admitted it had been an obsession of years’ standing. But she was intrigued in what he’d said about Kraus. “He’d trust Adolf Kraus to take care of arranging for his great event? I don’t remember my father talking about Kraus. It was always about the Hubers.”
“He’d trust him,” Brandon said flatly. “Max Huber grew up in Adolf Kraus’s shadow. Kraus was his father’s right-hand man and advisor. If Conrad wanted a hotel blown or a premier assassinated, he was right there for him. They’d been best friends since they were in their teens and met when they’d both joined a neo-Nazi group in Berlin. Both of them were fanatics about selective breeding and their Aryan heritage. They would have been right at home in Hitler’s hierarchy. When Conrad left the party and created Red Star, Kraus helped make it work for him.”
“And Kraus is just as loyal to Max Huber?”
“Presumably.” He paused. “I’ve wondered that myself. Max Huber doesn’t have the same dedication to the Aryan state as his father and Kraus. He believes he’s one of the master race but has no problem using the Taliban groups when it suits him. He even convinced Conrad to do it on a limited basis before his death. Kraus would hate giving up the philosophies of a lifetime. He stays in the background, but there’s no question that he might be the power behind the throne. Max Huber calls the shots, but Kraus might control the weapons.”
“Could we use him? Threats? Bribery?”
“Perhaps. It depends on how he feels about Max Huber and if he’s as much of an egomaniac as Conrad was. I’m looking into it.”
Sh
e was silent. “Can I contact him?”
“We might be able to do it. You don’t do anything by yourself. Monty’s managed to locate a Silicon Valley genius who’s found a way to hack into Max Huber’s telecommunications. It’s only another step to find the link to Kraus.” He added grimly, “But we hack them, and we also open ourselves for them to find you. Good-bye safe house.”
“We could find a way. I told you I wasn’t going to hide out if it’s time to go after Huber.”
“And I could see that this was exactly what you meant,” he said grimly. “No, Rachel.”
“We’ll have to consider it.” She got to her feet. “It might be a bit aggressive, but that might work for us. Otherwise, I’ll have to wait for Huber or Kraus to contact me. And they will, Brandon, my phone shouldn’t be that hard for them to hack.”
“I’m going to furnish you with a burner phone.”
She shook her head. “No, don’t do that, I want them to be able to reach out to me. Though it would help if they couldn’t get a trace.” She grimaced. “Because they’d probably just try to come and get me. I’d be that tethered goat we talked about. I’d prefer to be in control of the situation at that point.” She headed for the door. “But I have a few things to prepare before that happens. So I figure we probably have a day or so to come to an understanding.”
“What things to prepare?”
“I’m not like you and Catherine,” she said simply. “You were right about my not having the background for dealing with all this. I’ve got to try to remedy that as much as possible.”
“And how are you going to do that in the next day or so?”
“I won’t, but I can make a start. I’m not my father, and I’m not like you or anyone but myself. I’ll have to make that work for me.” She looked back over her shoulder. He was lying there, angry, naked, sleek, and totally sexual, and the sight of him was arousing all kinds of primitive emotions.
Ignore it.
“Find me a way to reach Kraus, and we’ll see if he’s the way we should go.” She opened the door. “Good night, Brandon.”
“Stay.”
She went still. His voice was soft and rough at the same time and infinitely seductive. She looked back at him. She inhaled sharply as she saw his expression. Intensity. Desire. Heat. It struck her like a bolt of electricity. She moistened her lips. “No way.”
“You’d like it.” He met her eyes. “I promise.”
She knew that she would. Her body was readying just looking at him. “But I couldn’t trust you not to use it against me. You like control entirely too much.”
“Dammit, I wouldn’t—”
But she had closed the door and was moving quickly down the hall. Close him out the way she had shut that door, she told herself. Her reaction to him was too strong. Sex was natural and a part of life, and Hu Chang and Catherine had taught her that she must not cheat herself because of what had happened in that prison. It had taken her a long time, but she had won that battle. She enjoyed sex, but she had never before felt this fever of intensity. It made her wary. She could feel the heat, the tension, the tautness of her breasts. One moment, a few words, and she had been very close.
But she had stepped away from him, and it would be okay now.
Maybe. Her heart was beating so hard …
Concentrate on what was important.
She closed her bedroom door and went over to the small cherry desk against the far wall. She had placed her computer on it earlier and now flipped open the top.
She sat down and brought up her email page.
Blank except for the messages from One World.
She didn’t read them. Later.
She sat looking at the screen for a long moment. There had to be a way to communicate with Nemesis. He was taking far too long reaching out to her. Perhaps he didn’t even know her father was dead. Langley had not told Catherine. But she had no address. She had to wait for him.
Or maybe not. He must have been constantly in touch with her father because of the wariness and lack of trust between them. It would be reasonable that he would monitor Venable’s computer.
Give it a shot.
Then she sent a text to her father’s computer.
NEMESIS
MY FATHER IS DEAD.
I’M WAITING.
* * *
Move swiftly, Rachel thought, as she circled Catherine. Catherine was always lightning fast herself and so precise that unless you caught her off guard, you ended up hitting the deck.
“Come on,” Catherine murmured. “Come and get me. Do it again. You’re too cautious.”
“Because you’re so damn good,” Rachel said. “I’m not stupid, Catherine. I don’t want any broken ribs when you—” She suddenly feinted to the left, and her toe came around to hit Catherine in the midsection.
Catherine immediately dove to the ground and swung her legs in a scissor move to Rachel’s hips. But Rachel had expected it and was no longer there. She moved forward, but Catherine kicked the back of her knee, and her leg buckled.
But the moment she hit the tiles of the veranda she bounced up, and her right leg moved in a roundhouse kick that only clipped Catherine. She was already moving in for the counter.
“I hate to disturb you ladies.” Brandon was at the French doors, leaning on the doorjamb. “Since I’ve been enjoying watching you try to kill each other. It was very entertaining, but you’ve had a delivery, Rachel. I was wondering where you wanted me to put it.” His voice was not pleased. “And why the hell you risked placing an order. It wasn’t COD. Which means credit card and very traceable indeed.”
Rachel was trying to get her breath. “I needed it.” She grabbed her hand towel from the back of the rattan chair and tossed Catherine’s to her. “And it won’t be traced to me.” She wiped her face and neck. “I would have told you, but I didn’t think they’d get it to me until later today.”
He looked at her, then at Catherine. “And you were busy, you said you had preparations to make. Hello, Catherine. I didn’t know you were paying us a visit today.”
“I didn’t either,” Catherine said. “Rachel called and said she needed me.” She grinned. “She did, but not as much as she thought. She was a little rusty, but when you’re as good as she is, it comes back fast.”
“Yeah, with a few kicks to jar it into me,” Rachel said dryly. “You’d have broken my ribs if we hadn’t been wearing padding.”
“Likewise.” She wiped her forehead. “Are we done for the day?”
“No, I need at least another two hours. And maybe another four tomorrow if you can make it. It won’t be enough, but it will have to do. I have to iron out all the kinks.” She smiled. “You know how I hate to feel helpless.”
“Yes,” Catherine said quietly. “But you know I’ll be here for you.”
Rachel nodded. “Always.”
“Very touching,” Brandon said as he straightened away from the door. “It’s good that you trust someone, Rachel.”
There was a distinct edge to his tone, and Rachel’s gaze flew to his face. No expression, but she could sense the leashed tension. Hell, she was feeling the same tension after this morning. Confront it. She refused to walk around on eggs while she was with him. “Do you have a problem, Brandon?”
Silence. “A small one. I find it upsets me to see you being kicked and beaten. Even when you regard it as a favor.” He met her eyes. “And you didn’t tell me where you wanted me to put your package.”
She finally managed to pull her gaze away. “In my bedroom. I’ll deal with it later.”
“As you command.” His lips twisted. “Actually, I usually approve of bedrooms as a destination. I’ll let you get back to your workout. Enjoy.”
The next minute, he was gone.
“Whew,” Catherine said softly. “You didn’t tell me you were sleeping with him. Recent development?”
She should have known Catherine would have caught all the nuances of those few moments. “No.” She took her
bottle of water from the table and opened it. “I’m not sleeping with him.” She took a swallow of water. “That would be a mistake.”
“Mistake or not. He wants it to happen. And I don’t know many women who would say no to him.” She took a swallow of her own water. “Particularly when there’s that much electricity crackling around between the two of you.” She added quietly, “Your attitude worries me a bit. I thought you were handling what happened to you really well. Do you want to talk about it again?”
“No.” She grinned. “Therapy according to Catherine Ling? I’m handling what happened in that prison just fine. Do the nightmares come? Yes, but then I’m the one who chases the bad guys away. And when I can’t, I just wake up. I know that no one can hurt me but myself. You taught me that, Catherine.”
“You already knew it, I just let you see that you weren’t alone. Rape is probably the hardest thing a woman can deal with if she can’t talk to someone who’s been through it.” She took another drink of water. “That’s why Hu Chang asked me to talk to you. I faced it on the streets of Hong Kong when I was even younger than you were.” She shrugged. “But in a way, I was luckier than you. You told me that there were four guards involved in your assault one night every week during those last two months. I had only one man who used me as his toy and tried to break my spirit. I could zero in and concentrate only on him.”
Rachel shook her head. “The violation is the same. Why were you luckier?”
“I found a way to kill him,” Catherine said simply. “And that put a period to that time in my life. You never had that release.” She smiled. “At least you didn’t realize you did.”
Rachel frowned. “What do you mean?”
“I imagine if you went back to Afghanistan, you’d find out that those guards at Sazkar Prison all had untimely demises in the next couple years after your release.”
“What are you saying?”
“Hu Chang wasn’t pleased. He always makes his displeasure known. He cares about you. He would take his time, but he would get the job done.”
Vendetta Page 15
