by Merry Farmer
“We’ll catch up later,” Mack called back to her.
Johan marched on, a little jealous that things seemed so easy between Mack and his girlfriend when everything was such a mess between him and Tracy. He swore to himself that as soon as things were wrapped up with Marina and the royal scandals, he would make things up to her.
Before he could follow Mack to get the keys to the Marex, Viggo stopped him with a hand to his shoulder. “What are you doing, bro?”
Johan turned back into the kitchen, blinking at him. “What do you mean? I’m trying to get to the bottom of things.”
“Why are you, Mr. Cautious, suddenly trying to handle this oil rig thing by yourself?”
Johan frowned. “I’m not taking you with me. I won’t let you put yourself in danger like that. Not when things are finally working out for you and your family.”
Viggo crossed his arms in a mirror image of Johan. “I never asked to go with you. I asked why you’re trying to take on the world by yourself all of a sudden.”
“I’m not—” But there was no point in denying it. Johan blew out a breath, letting his arms drop. “Our family is on the line here. I don’t want anyone else getting hurt.”
“Anyone else?” Viggo narrowed his eyes as he studied Johan. “Who got hurt in the first place?”
A sudden rush of self-consciousness had heat rising up Johan’s neck. “I hate seeing our family suffering.”
Viggo shifted his weight, continuing to study him. “Is this about me somehow?”
Johan opened his mouth to deny it, but couldn’t bring himself to say anything.
“It is.” Viggo’s stance changed, loosened up as he inched closer to Johan. “Are you doing this to protect me?”
“You don’t need protection,” Johan said, though he couldn’t quite look Viggo in the eye as he did.
“No, I don’t.” Viggo nodded. “But that’s what you’ve been doing for, what, our entire lives?”
“I care about you,” Johan admitted. Maybe it was the lack of sleep, but he felt way more emotional than he wanted to as he spoke. “You’re my brother, my twin, my other half, and I love you. I hate seeing you go through all the pain you’ve gone through in the last several years.”
“Because of Stefan?” Viggo asked, defensive.
“No. Stefan is a great kid, and I’m glad he’s fully in your life now.” He paused. “It’s the way you had to stay away from him for so long, the way you’ve always sort of…drifted.”
Viggo rested a hand on his arm. “I’m okay, bro. Things haven’t always been easy, but they’re about to get so much better. And honestly, I don’t think I could have gone through everything I did without you by my side.”
Yep, it was definitely the lack of sleep that was making his throat close up and his eyes sting. “I don’t want anything like the last few years to happen ever again, but with Aunt Marina….” He clenched his jaw and glanced to the side.
“You don’t have to take Mack’s boat and go out there in search of her on your own just to keep the rest of us safe,” Viggo said. “Take Tracy with you. She’s your rock.”
Johan met his brother’s eyes with surprise. “I don’t want her to get hurt either. She takes too many risks.”
“Like you aren’t taking a risk by doing all this to begin with.” Viggo crossed his arms and sent him a flat look.
“That’s different. I’m doing this for all of you.”
“And who do you think Tracy is risking everything for?” When Johan didn’t answer, Viggo went on. “She loves you, Johan. And as you definitely know, people take risks for those they love.” He paused, studying Johan hard. “You risked your own happiness by being such a stick-in-the-mud for so long because you thought it would help me, didn’t you?”
“I was looking out for you,” Johan insisted.
“And I’m grateful. More than you could ever know. But we all have to stand on our own at some point.” He gave Johan a quick, manly hug. “We’re all gonna be okay. And we’re all looking out for you too, bro, Tracy included. Don’t do this alone, not when we’re all ready to stand right behind you.”
Viggo’s words hit home, but the stubborn part of Johan couldn’t let go of what he felt was his responsibility toward those he loved so easily. “I can’t wait until this whole thing is over,” he said with a sigh, crossing the room to grab one more cup of coffee.
The intensity between him and Viggo was broken, but Viggo followed Johan to thump his back with brotherly affection. “Do what you’ve gotta do, but seriously. You don’t have to do it alone. You’re too important to all of us, and we all want to back you up.”
“I’ve got it,” Johan nodded. He understood, but he still couldn’t shake the feeling that this was his battle to fight.
Tracy downed her second cup of coffee and raced back to her dining room. In the hour or so since Johan had left, she’d gathered up all the information she had about Princess Marina, Earl Herman Lindqvist, and Storm Holdings and spread it out across the table. She’d jotted down notes for everything she’d seen but didn’t have documentation for, including a few choice tidbits she’d gleaned from calls to friends in the press who owed her favors.
It all added up. Individual people had been noticing for years that both Marina and Lindqvist seemed to have more money than they should, though no one had ever spoken those thoughts aloud or pooled their knowledge to look for trends. There had been business trips to unknown destinations for both of them too. And while very few people had even a rudimentary knowledge of Storm Holdings, one of her contacts who worked for Aegiria’s famously discreet banking system whispered that he’d seen the name once—in connection with a massive bank account.
The proof of just how guilty Marina and Lindqvist were was spread out in front of her. All she had to do was to figure out how it all connected to the royal wedding, and then how to nail them for it.
In the middle of her thoughts, her phone rang. She pulled it out of her pocket, figuring it was another of her contacts with more information. She was surprised to find Gloria’s name pop up on the caller ID.
“Hey,” she answered. “What’s up?”
“I just thought you should know that Johan is about to leave here to head down to the marina and take Mack’s boat out to an oil rig,” Gloria said in a hushed voice.
“What?” Tracy snapped. She left the dining room, heading straight for her apartment door and grabbing her car keys as she went. “Why an oil rig?”
“Long story, but there’s a chance Marina and Lindqvist could be holed up on an old oil rig that Mack and I saw from the air several weeks ago. There’s a good chance they snuck out of Solrighavn by sea, although nothing has been proved yet.”
“It makes sense,” Tracy said, unlocking her car and climbing in. “They can’t stay in Aegiria, and I can’t think of where else they’d be able to go.”
“Exactly,” Gloria said.
“But how dare Johan take this on without me?”
Gloria made a triumphant sound. “That’s exactly why I called you. Viggo tried to convince him to take you, but apparently Johan’s got the idea in his head that he has to be the champion by himself to keep the rest of us safe. Something told me you would have something to say about that.”
“I absolutely do. Thanks.”
She said a quick goodbye and ended the call before starting her car and peeling out of her apartment’s parking lot. Her building was close to the marina, and it took her less than five minutes to drive there. The parking lot was crowded with people coming in from an evening out on the water, but she managed to dodge through them to make it to the VIP section of the marina.
She was just starting to formulate a plan to get past the guards and out to where Mack’s boat was kept when she spotted Johan marching swiftly up from the VIP parking lot.
“Hey!” she shouted, turning her steps toward him. “What the hell do you think you’re doing, taking this on without me?”
Johan’s head snapped
up from what looked like deep thought. He was just close enough for her to see his eyes widen in the light of the lampposts lining the marina’s edge. And for one heart-stopping moment, it looked as though he was glad to see her.
That gladness was quick to disappear, though.
“What are you doing here?” he hissed, rushing to meet her near the marina’s gate. “You should be at home in bed.”
“Not unless you want to come with me,” she said, so happy to see him that the joke popped out before she could hold it back.
His lips flickered into a hint of a smile, and heat shone in his eyes. At least until he shook his head to dismiss it. “I don’t need your help with this,” he said.
“I think you do,” she countered. “Gloria called me to say you’re taking Mack’s boat out to an oil rig somewhere, and that you’re doing it by yourself because you think that will keep the rest of us safe.”
Surprise flashed across Johan’s face before his brow knit in a frown. “She shouldn’t have called you.”
“I’m glad she did. It’ll save me the trouble of wrangling a boat to go after you.”
Johan let out an impatient breath. “What did I say about you taking unnecessary risks and putting yourself in danger?”
“That you are against it because you love me,” she snapped back. An incongruous burst of joy filled her. “And I love you too much to watch you acting like a total hypocrite in the risk department by trying to handle something like this on your own.”
“Tracy—”
“You need me,” she interrupted before he could form another argument. “We work better together than either of us do alone. I don’t want you to be a martyr for my safety, and I’m sure your family doesn’t want that either. And how do you know that I won’t do something rash and risky here on land while you’re out there at sea? Seems to me like you need to keep a sharp eye on me if you want me to stay out of trouble,” she finished in a rush before he could protest.
Johan let out a breath and dropped his shoulders. He fixed her with a hard stare, but there was excitement in his eyes, and an affection that warmed her to her toes. “I’m never going to be able to let you out of my sight again, am I.”
“Nope,” she answered without apology.
He rubbed his face and let out a half-groan. “All right, then. Come on.” He took her hand and headed out to the dock with her.
8
Tracy didn’t know nearly enough about boats, considering she’d just relocated her life to an island nation whose economy was driven by the sea. Navigating through a harbor filled with other boats on their way back from partying at sea in the dark kept her heart in her throat until they were well away from shore. She was grateful that Johan was such a good seaman.
“You’re a natural at this,” she complimented him once they were speeding along open water.
It was the first time either of them had spoken since he’d taken her hand and led her out to the private dock where Mack’s boat was kept. Even in the near pitch blackness, Tracy could see the tension in Johan’s face. The scant light from the dashboard behind the ship’s wheel gave his face an eerie glow.
“I’d rather not have to investigate my aunt’s criminal activity at all,” he said at last in a sullen grumble.
Tracy’s mouth twitched. “No, I mean you’re a natural at boating. Although you are kind of a natural at investigations too.”
He glanced sideways at her, and his tension softened a bit. “We all spent a ton of time out on the water as kids, and now whenever we can as adults.” He let out a breath, squinted forward into the dark, checked the marine satellite navigation device on the dashboard, then said, “Sometimes I think Mack and Kristoff are the smart ones, spending as much time out here as they do. It sure beats being cooped up in a government office all day.”
Tracy shrugged. “I thought you liked your job.” She scooted forward on the bench where she sat across from the captain’s seat.
“I do like my job,” he insisted. “But a life spent behind a desk doesn’t hold a candle to a life on the water.”
“Ah.” Tracy nodded, then glanced out into the darkness ahead of them. It felt only right that she couldn’t see anything in front of them. Even the thin line of lights running along the southern coast of Sweden had disappeared behind them. She wasn’t sure how long they’d been zipping through the darkness. It was already way past her bedtime, and time seemed to have stopped.
“I should have noticed something sooner,” Johan said without warning. “I should have detected illegal activity, bank accounts that weren’t what they should be. I should have noticed Marina acting suspiciously all this time.”
“Because of your job?” she ventured a guess.
“Yes, but also because Marina is family.” He paused. “She was always so involved with family business. She was always there. You think some of us would have noticed things weren’t right.”
Tracy let out an ironic laugh. His thoughts mirrored everything she’d dealt with over a decade ago. “Deceptive people who have reasons to hide what they’re doing get really good at manipulating others into believing they’re innocent.”
Johan glanced to her, understanding and sympathy in his expression. “Sorry. You’ve been through that too, I guess.”
She nodded in response, then narrowed her eyes to study him. “Is that what this is about? Do you feel guilty because you didn’t catch on to your aunt’s schemes sooner?”
Johan frowned, keeping his eyes on the water ahead of them.
“It is,” Tracy said, full of sympathy. “This isn’t you taking a risk or trying to protect the rest of us, it’s penance. You think this is your fault.”
“No, I don’t.”
He was lying, but she didn’t have the heart to call him on it. Why else would someone so risk-averse put themselves in danger? Oddly enough, knowing how hard Johan was beating up on himself and how far he was willing to go to take responsibility for something that wasn’t his fault made her love him all the more. And it made her beyond glad she’d muscled her way onto the boat to go with him. He needed her in so many ways.
She turned her heartfelt smile out at the black water. Several silent minutes went by before she said, “How far out is this oil rig anyhow?”
Johan checked the sat nav again before saying, “It’s pretty far out there. Even at the speed we’re going, it’ll take another hour to get there.”
Tracy let out a disbelieving breath, then tilted her head to the side. “I guess if you’re going to attempt to conceal an illegal oil rig in the middle of the ocean, you wouldn’t put it smack up against civilization.”
“No,” Johan answered with a sideways smirk.
Tracy let out a breath. His one-syllable answer had far less tension in it than anything he’d said since they’d set out. Maybe if they kept talking, they could break through all the things that had gotten in the way of all the good stuff they had going on.
“Hey,” she said after a few more minutes had ticked by, getting up to inch close enough to squeeze his arm. “Everything will be all right, you’ll see.”
He sent her another sideways glance. “Will it?”
“Yeah. Take it from me. I’ve been there.” She gave him a weak smile. “Everything will suck for a short time when the news gets out and people react, but I guarantee that the heart of your family will come out of this stronger than ever.”
“Did yours?” he asked.
“Absolutely. Me, Mom, and my siblings are closer now than we would have been. You’ll see when they all manage to find time in their busy schedules to come over here for a visit.”
He smiled, his shoulders relaxing a little more.
Tracy moved back to her seat. There wasn’t much to see as far out on the water as they were, so rather than squint into the darkness, she lay down on the cushioned bench and closed her eyes. The drone of the boat’s engine and the rocking motion as they cut across waves quickly lulled her into a stupor of half-sleep. She onl
y came to sometime later when Johan cut the engine and the boat glided to a stop. She heard him talking softly on the phone to someone—probably Viggo—telling him where they were and that all was well as she shook herself awake.
“Are we there?” she asked groggily, sitting up.
“I think so.”
Johan stared straight forward. Tracy followed his line of sight to what looked like a strange, sci-fi-like structure that glowed with low-level lights. She’d seen pictures of oil rigs, but she’d never seen one in person. It was a lot smaller than she imagined a rig would be. She’d imagined a massive, floating skyscraper on the water, like pictures of some of the rigs in the Gulf of Mexico she’d seen. This one looked like a three-story industrial office building on stilts, as far as she could tell. Though it was hard to tell for sure in the dark.
“So what do we do now?” she asked, standing at Johan’s side as he stood from the captain’s chair.
He rubbed his face, eyes narrowed at the structure. “It’s not safe to go charging in right now, in the dark, without any sort of reconnaissance. We don’t have a clue what we’ll find there.”
“But we did manage to find it in the first place,” she said. “That’s a step in the right direction.”
He hummed in agreement, still studying the structure. “We’ve got no way to tell if Marina and Lindqvist are there.”
“Someone has to be there,” Tracy figured. “They left the lights on.”
Johan turned to her. “Unlike whoever sabotaged the arena during the concert?”
The reminder of their first meeting sent a warm shiver through Tracy’s chest. She smiled at him. “I guess they aren’t being as careful this time.”
“If they’re even there.”
They turned back to study the outline of the rig in the darkness. As hard as she squinted, Tracy couldn’t see more than the basics of size and shape. “If someone else is there, wouldn’t there be another boat docked around it somewhere?”
“That’s just what I was thinking,” he said. “But we won’t be able to see that until morning.”
