by Lexi Blake
“Oh, come on, Nick.” Kay was shaking her head in clear appreciation. “Those were some slick Weekend at Bernie’s moves. No one even knows the dude is dead. He looks like he’s passed out drunk. There’s barely any blood.”
Because Fain had been smart enough to leave the knife in, hidden by the jacket the assassin was wearing.
The smooth operative hadn’t even gotten his hands bloody. It had been a smart play, a sleight of hand. Like a brilliant cheat with an ace up his sleeve no one ever saw him retrieving.
An ace.
Nick turned, catching sight of the man in the Speedo. He was walking now, but he seemed to be moving toward the street.
“Watch them,” he told Kayla. It was obvious Fain had this party covered. “I’m going after our bathing beauty. I know him. He’s aged and gained some weight, but that’s Hayley’s father.”
Desiree’s partner, the one man who would know where all the secrets were buried. The one man who might be able to get Hayley out of this mess.
He didn’t look back, trusted Kay to handle things. She was an excellent partner and beyond that, she was a member of his team and he could count on her.
It gave him the freedom to go after his prey.
He pushed through the crowd, looking for the edge. In the mere moments since they’d joined the concert, the mass of revelers seemed to have swelled. The band onstage was finishing up their first song and speaking to the crowd. Bodies bounced and danced around him, thickening the air and making it hard to move.
He caught a glimpse of Dalton. He’d pulled a red robe around his body and now walked with purpose toward Joana Angélica Street.
Nick had to be cautious. If he spooked the man, he could run, and Nick was too far away at this point if he managed to get into a cab.
Nick pushed his way through until he got to the edge of the crowd.
Where had he gone?
He caught sight of the red robe to his right, but the crowd was between them now. Dalton was moving in a way that would take him far out of sight of his daughter and Fain. He stopped and looked back as though trying to catch another glimpse.
Nick ran, his feet sinking in the sand. Why sand? He was used to running across any manner of horrific man-made material. Cobblestones. He was used to fucking cobblestones because he’d grown up in Europe. When people tried to chase a man down in Europe, he better be fast on his feet when it came to uneven roads.
There wasn’t much sand in Moscow.
He worked his way parallel, trying to keep sight of the man through the dancing pit of humanity.
His heart racing, lungs starting to burn, he jogged up to the street. Even here the crowd was steady and Kayla was right. The pedestrians were aggressive in getting to where they wanted to go. He jumped back as a kid on rollerblades nearly mowed him down.
Where had Dalton gone?
He glanced to his right and there he was, moving toward the row of hotels that faced the beach. His hand was up, as though calling to someone.
That was when Nick felt the press of metal at his back.
“Nice and easy, Mr. Markovic,” a deep voice said. The man behind him had a thick New Jersey accent. “I was told if I could find you, I would find the girl. My partner’s down there taking care of her right now. We’ll have her in custody and you can be the means to show her how things will go if she doesn’t give us the box.”
Ah, he didn’t realize his partner had been taken care of. Nor did he realize how poorly this was going to go for him. Unfortunately, he didn’t have a handy concert around him. He could hardly take the man down here. “Are you completely mad? There’s a cop six feet away. If you shoot me out here, your game is going to be over. Move with me toward that alley to the left. Do you see it?”
He could feel the hesitation coming off the other man. “Why would you willingly come with me?”
“If you knew to follow me, then you know I love the girl. I’ll do whatever it takes to keep her alive. If you have her, I want to be with her. But if you call attention to us, that police officer will not only arrest you, he’ll find out I’m here illegally and then I can’t stay with her.”
“Fine.” His voice had gone tight, but he started to move the way Nick wanted him to.
“You want to tell me who you’re working for? As a professional courtesy?” Nick walked toward the alleyway between the hotel Hayley was staying at and a small strip of restaurants. It was narrow and looked perfectly empty, but they had to make their way across the street first. He might as well build a rapport with the man before he killed him.
“It’s a contract, nothing more. Absolutely nothing personal. Your girl apparently pissed off some bigwig. He wants something she stole from him and he’s willing to pay big to get it.”
“Yes, I heard he’s upped the payment to two million.” That was the amount Damon had finally gotten out of the Ukrainian before giving him up to MI6. He simply hadn’t known anything about the man who was willing to pay. Whoever was coming for Hayley was careful and only acted through agents.
They made their way up the slight hill.
“Two million and all we have to do is find some box and hand it over.”
“That simple? How will you know you’ve got the right box?”
“What do you mean? I assume your girl knows what she stole.”
“Hayley had nothing to do with any of this. You’re looking for her cousin, Desiree.” He wasn’t going to take the time to explain the myriad of lies surrounding that particular relationship. “She died. You’re only after Hayley because Desiree left her some things in her will. She has no idea what you want of her. She’s completely innocent.”
Perhaps if the man could be made to see reason, he wouldn’t end up like his friend.
“I doubt that. Anyway, we’ll find out soon, won’t we? Don’t move. I’m going to text my partner and he’ll bring the girl here.” He pushed Nick into the quiet of the alley. “I think we’re going to have some fun with her. See how innocent she is.”
Or not. The moment he felt his adversary shift, he kicked back, not bothering to turn around. He caught the other man in his midsection, pivoted, and managed to bring his arm up, throwing off the shot that came from his Ruger.
It pinged against the wall and Nick brought his fist up, the impact jarring through him. Hardheaded bastard. The other man slammed back against the brick and his gun clattered to the pavement.
Before he could reach for it, Nick pulled his own and fired just as the man aimed. A neat hole formed in his forehead and he slumped back.
Nick moved fast, checking the man’s jacket. He lifted the wallet and cell phone and then hefted him into the rubbish bin, letting the lid slam down on him.
Fain wasn’t the only one who could take out the trash.
He hurried out as a red pedicab blew past him.
Dalton rode in the seat, his eyes toward the beach.
Nick stared after it as it pedaled down the sidewalk, making its way through the throng.
Beaten by a kid on a bike. It had been that kind of day.
“Where the hell did you go?” Kayla stalked up to him. “Hayley and Fain passed that guy they were talking to an envelope and then made their way back to the hotel. I think it was cash. What are you doing all the way over here?”
“I had to kill a guy,” he admitted. “But now we have the cell phone and wallet of one of the assassins. And his hotel key. I think we’ll probably find a laptop and a way to communicate with whoever’s stalking Hayley.”
Her mouth dropped open. “You got to kill a dude. No fair. You’ve gotten to do all the fun stuff. I’m ordering a bottle of tequila and a shit ton of carbs.”
She was complaining as she strode up to the hotel door.
Nick smiled because the fun stuff was about to begin.
* * * *
Hayley wished Ezra Fain believed in one-piece swimsuits. “You couldn’t buy something that wasn’t a thong? When we get into that poker room, I am going to be wearin
g something that covers my ass. If we get into that poker room.”
She sipped her caipirinha and let her feet sink into the sand as they walked back toward the swanky hotel she’d been living in for days. She turned and glanced one last time, trying to memorize it. Ipanema Beach was stunning, with mountain views to the west and ridiculously clear blue water. She wanted it burned into her brain, and yet she still felt restless. The whole place was like something out of a dream, but she wasn’t here with the one person she wanted to see.
She was basking in the sun while Nicky was somewhere in the chill of Moscow.
Still, she had to admit the day had gone off without a single hitch. There had been a weird moment when she’d thought Ezra had disappeared, but everything had turned out fine.
“I wanted you to fit in.” Ezra slipped in beside her, his hand sliding along hers and tangling their fingers together as they walked past the pool. “You need to look like the trophy wife of a high-rolling player. We agreed you should look like you’re comfortable being here.”
“That was what I agreed to when I thought I would fit in by wearing a bathing suit. I don’t think this covers enough. It’s a thong and pasties,” she complained. Though even as she said the words, she could look around the pool and see far more flesh on display. Women and men were soaking up the sun in super-skimpy swimwear, and no one seemed to be giving it a second thought. There were no scandalized gasps as she walked by.
“It’s stunning and every man on that beach was looking at you and thinking how much he wants you. No one wondered what we were doing and absolutely no one saw me give that man the money to try to bribe our way in,” Fain replied with a gracious smile. He glanced back at the beach as though trying to find something that had gone missing. “I don’t think you realize how far we’ve gotten because you’re a charming, attractive woman.”
A waiter strode up to her, offering her another drink. She smiled and thanked him, gave him her glass, but didn’t pick up a second drink. She was too nervous to relax. They would know in an hour or so if the bribe had been enough to get in.
They’d found two underground games so far. Ezra had lost a total of ten thousand dollars and they still weren’t any closer to finding her father.
She had to believe that he would be at The Palace. That was the name given the underground game she’d learned about at one of the small venues they’d been to. Everyone who was anyone played at The Palace. It was rumored to be run by a European gangster who killed players who couldn’t pay their bill at the end of the night. Not that she would be playing poker. She would be Ezra’s arm candy as he played. She would be the one watching for any hint of her father.
She stopped and settled her cover-up around her waist. “Can we do room service tonight? I need to take a shower and do my hair before the game if you want me to be as charming as possible. I’m trying to be optimistic. Are you looking for someone?”
He was standing at the railing, his hands wound tight around the wrought iron as he stared across the street. “Yes, I’m almost certain we weren’t alone out there. Someone was following us.”
“Is that why you disappeared?”
He turned and gave her that ingratiating smile of his. He’d been working on her for days and she hadn’t been fooled by a second of it.
If she wasn’t still heartsick about Nick, she might have taken him up on his silent but continual offers to make their cover a bit more pleasurable. It was there in the way he held her hand, the way he took care of her even when the doors had closed and they no longer needed to keep up the cover.
But she couldn’t. She knew one day she would have to with someone, but it wouldn’t be Ezra Fain. She would have to do exactly what she’d told Nick she would—move on. It was simply too soon. How could she move on when she could still feel his hands on her body, still hear him whispering in her ear?
“I told you what happened. Poor guy had way too much to drink,” Ezra explained, offering her his arm. “I had to help him find a place to sit down. Don’t worry about that. I’m talking about something else entirely. I swear I saw a woman who looked a bit like Kayla in the crowd.”
Her heart did a flip-floppy thing at the sound of the name. “Kayla from London?”
“Come on. Let’s get up to our room so I can run a quick check to see if we’ve been found. And absolutely we can order room service. Anything you like. Make me a list and I’ll have it brought up. Starting with champagne. We should celebrate because getting this far is a miracle that wouldn’t have happened without you. I have no idea how you found that game.”
He was also quick with the compliments. Of course, sometimes those compliments were actually distractions. She let him lead her toward the elevator. “Why would Kayla be in town?”
“Because that is a nosy group of busybodies who don’t know when to let a man do his job,” he muttered under his breath. He pushed the button for the elevator and escorted her inside. “Also, Taggart was serious. He feels like he owes Desiree and he’ll want to know that you’re all right. It’s my mistake that I didn’t contact him. I need to suck it up and take the extremely sarcastic lecture I have coming to me. I’ll deal with it. I was going to run some checks to see if I could verify that Kayla left London, but I think I’ll act like an adult and call Taggart. Once he knows you’re fine, he should let up. I’ll explain the job to him.”
She shook her head as the elevator began its ascent. “Why didn’t you do that in the first place?”
“Because you never know how that group is going to react,” he replied. “Taggart can be frustrating. Knight only seems less frustrating because he says all the same things with a British accent, and that makes him sound smarter than everyone else. Do you want me to ask him about Nikolai?”
Desperately. She wanted to know if he’d made it on his plane, if he’d found a place to stay in Moscow, if he was safe. If he missed her half as much as she missed him. But he’d made his choice and she had to follow through with hers. “No. I’m sure he’s fine. Please let Mr. Taggart and Mr. Knight know that I’m perfectly safe and that we’ve had no complications at all. Which is surprising since I got a nice talking to by the concierge this morning.”
The elevator opened and he exited. She knew what to do. Normally he would have held the door open for her, but Ezra had explained how they were going to work. He went in first. It might make him look impolite, but he was assessing threats and didn’t want to make her a target, even in an empty hallway.
“What did he warn you about?” Ezra asked, pulling the key from the pocket of his very reasonable board shorts.
“Apparently there have been several bodies found in the last few days.” The concierge had been horrified, explaining that this part of Rio was normally safe and the polícia were distressed at the idea of a killer on the streets. All the victims had been foreigners, though there seemed to be problems with identifying them. “One of them was even found outside that restaurant we went to a few days ago. So we’ve been lucky we haven’t gotten caught in that murder spree.”
He smiled her way as he opened the door. “You know I would never let anything happen to you. Don’t worry about it. We’re perfectly safe here. And the room is undisturbed, so feel free to take your shower.”
He had various ways to tell if someone had entered the room. Even after the maids did their jobs, he would run a check for bugs and carefully inspect every inch of the room, but if his markers were undisturbed, she could enter quickly.
“Tell the London group hello for me and that I apologize for leaving like I did,” she said as she made her way to the bathroom. “I was under the impression that they would be upset, or maybe I was hoping Nick would come after me. It was immature of me and very ungrateful.”
“Hey, it’s his loss, you know.” Ezra stood in the large living area, his phone in hand. “You’re an amazing woman.”
She was going to try to be. “Thank you, but I have to earn that. Starting tonight. We find my father, figure ou
t what Desiree left us, and solve the puzzle. I’m ready to get my life back. And could you order something light, please? Unless the dress you got me tonight isn’t tight.”
One muscled shoulder shrugged. “It’s Prada and it’s perfect, and you like it when I order for you.”
Only because she didn’t read Portuguese and he seemed to know all the most decadent things to eat. “A salad with lean protein please.”
If he had his way, he would stuff her with picanha and pão de queijo. The round cheesy bread things were going to be the death of her. And the quindim, a type of custard/cake that she was obsessed with now.
She would have to hit the gym when she got home.
Ezra pulled out his phone and his face fell.
“What?”
“The Palace is full tonight.” He seemed to force a smile back on his face. “We’ll try again next week. I’m sorry it’s moving so slowly. We’ll go back out tonight and perhaps if I lose another couple of thousand in one of the smaller games, I’ll get a reputation as easy prey and we’ll get in.”
Her heart fell, but she forced herself to smile back. “All right, then.”
She started the shower and shed her nearly not-there clothing and bit back a groan of frustration. She had to believe that Ezra was right and they were simply making them wait so they could get more cash out of them when the time came. Games like this were highly exclusive and the players would be vetted. Ezra promised her that their paperwork would hold up, it was simply a matter of time before they got into the game and before she could go home.
She could be home in a few weeks, but she wasn’t sure what that word meant anymore. All the things she’d worked so hard for now seemed silly. Her job? She was tired of the constant competition, the backbiting.
Once this was done, what would she be going home to?
She stepped into the shower, the hot water hitting her skin and making her sigh. Maybe she would take some time off and get back to her first love. Research. She loved losing herself in a subject. It might be fun to study the history of the Agency and find the hidden stories behind the world’s greatest spies. Ezra talked about how no one would ever know his story, but there were certainly things that had become declassified, interesting points of history that could say things about the world she lived in today.
