“Armed men touched her.” Connor heard her panicked screams every time he closed his eyes. The sound of her terror would replay in his head until the day he died. Maybe he needed the reminder of how close he came to losing her. Or maybe he deserved the punishment for not guaranteeing her safety, no matter what.
“What do you mean?” Marcel came up off the couch in a rush.
Shane held out a hand, suggesting he was plenty close enough. “You’re unclear of the definition of touch?”
“You mean—”
Enough playing around and circling for the right position. Connor went in for the kill. “When she needed someone to help her, she called me. She will always call me.”
“If you think you can threaten me—”
“Oh, I definitely can.” Can and would.
“Gentlemen. Sorry I’m late.”
Connor sensed her before he heard her. Soft footsteps fell on the hardwood floor. He closed his eyes at the sound of her voice and when he opened them again, she stood beside him. With her hair in a ponytail and her face scrubbed clean she looked fresh, younger than she was. The slim blue jeans and light blue polo top helped.
He shifted to include her in their informal circle. “No worries. We were just talking.”
Shane shrugged. “Men hanging out. The usual stuff.”
“Where’s Holt?” Connor asked, even though he could guess the answer.
She smiled. “Keeping watch on the front porch.”
Marcel stayed quiet. He stood there staring at Jana. His gaze swept over her and some of the tension left his face.
Connor gauged the distance away from Marcel and thought he could land a punch without much trouble. “Actually, we’ve been coming to an understanding.”
“About?” She stepped closer until her arm touched his.
Connor loved the way she leaned into him. No distance or pretending. “The charity. Marcel agreed to open up all his books and let us pore through everything.”
Shane nodded. “He’s very helpful.”
“I bet.” Jana dragged out the words. “Certainly looks like you’ve come to an understanding.”
They all stared at Marcel now. Three sets of eyes focused on him as the blood ran out of his face.
He cleared his voice and returned the glaring then he focused on Jana. “You know I can’t do that. There are privacy concerns.”
Last thing Connor wanted was Marcel working directly on Jana. She felt bad for the guy and didn’t buy into his seediness. If that meant Connor had to keep dragging the conversation back to him, he would. “I’m not going to tell anyone anything.”
“That’s not the point. I can’t just—”
“Yes.” She looped her hand through Connor’s arm as she backed her former boss down. “You can.”
Score one for Jana.
“Excuse me?” Marcel’s usual cool demeanor abandoned him as he stuttered out the question.
“I’m not a charity employee, not technically, not anymore, and I’ve been going through the records. You never complained.”
“I thought you were working on outreach. You took on the paperwork issue without telling me.”
“Well, reality is I did take it on and have been all over the files and you didn’t stop me. If needed I can vouch for my husband.” She squeezed Connor’s arm. “He has a security clearance and is the most trustworthy man you’ll ever meet.”
Connor was pretty sure she’d never been hotter. “Thank you, honey.”
“I’m sorry, but your word is not good enough. There are liability issues at work here. You know that.”
“Then there’s the part where Connor has a gun,” Shane said.
“They need the information to provide the proper level of protection. This is not about getting access to credit card numbers or scamming anyone.” She dropped her hand. “More importantly, the task will go faster with Connor’s help. We can all agree that everyone suffers if the charity isn’t up and operational. The sooner we get through this, the better.”
Connor had the exact same thought. “In other words, she wants to be done so she can come home. With me.”
“That is not what she said.”
The words didn’t matter. Not to Connor. “It’s what’s happening.”
“That’s her decision.” Marcel practically screamed his comment.
Connor let it float there. If Marcel wanted to prove he viewed himself as a friend only, he’d come pretty close to blowing it. Even Jana frowned at him now. She didn’t ruffle. She stood there, soaking it all in and looking as if she was fighting off a men-are-so-ridiculous eyeroll.
“If it’s my decision, we’re going. Get whatever you need and we’ll head over to the charity.” When Marcel started to talk over her, she cut him off. “Please, Marcel.”
Connor almost felt bad for the guy. Ignoring her when she asked like that proved impossible for Connor. Her eyes grew big and soft and he got dragged under. Looked like Marcel suffered from the same reaction.
His shoulders fell. “I’ll meet you there.”
Shane dropped down on the arm of Marcel’s couch. “I’ll wait here and drive you.”
“That’s not necessary,” Marcel said through clenched teeth.
So much for Marcel’s carefully crafted calm. The guy folded and his anger raged. This act differed from the one he usually tried to sell. Connor thought it was about time. “There are killers on the loose.”
Shane smiled. “We’d hate to see anything happen to you.”
“Jana, may I speak to you for a second?” Marcel took a step toward Jana.
She backed up before he could touch her. “We’ll talk at the office.”
* * *
Luc didn’t bother with niceties and introductions. He’d been waiting in his secure space under the house and heard the entire pathetic conversation. Connor roped Marcel in and ran him around in circles until he cracked. Then Jana stepped in and smacked the final nail in the coffin.
It was embarrassing, really. The whole scene made Luc wonder how Marcel had run this operation for as long as he had. It also convinced him that today was it. They had to run the final plan and get out.
With the decision made, Luc contacted the men. Now he had to explain to Marcel. Luc went back and forth and decided limited information was the answer. Let Marcel think he was in charge. He had set up the entire vaccines-as-cover scheme to begin with, but he’d long ago been shifted out of top management and used for his contacts only. Not that he understood the change in the balance of power.
The second Connor and the gang left, Luc stepped into the hallway. He had only a few minutes since Shane made it clear he’d be coming back and even now was talking with Connor on the front porch. Probably planning some military incursion, knowing those two.
Marcel dropped his mug in the kitchen sink. With the force of the thud, Luc half expected it to shatter. Instead, it thudded and spun as Marcel balanced his hands on the edge of the counter. He didn’t turn around and Luc didn’t signal his arrival.
Marcel’s shoulders stiffened as a slicing sound whizzed through the air. When he spun around he had a knife in his hand. He blew out a hard breath as he set the blade on the counter with a shaking hand.
Marcel’s harsh intake of breath cut off. “What’s wrong with you?”
“Keep your voice down.” Having Shane and Connor come in with guns blazing would not go well for any of them. Luc could open fire but he predicted Marcel would be a hindrance in any stress-filled situation.
“You can’t just come in and out of my house.”
“You knew I was here.” He had been in and out of the house. Part of him liked the thrill and the danger. Proving over and over that he could walk in right under the Corcoran Team’s noses was a side benefit.
&
nbsp; “I thought you snuck out.” Marcel leaned against the counter. “Where’s Bruce?”
Luc was getting pretty sick of everyone acting like Bruce had the tactical lead on this operation. The guy came on board for this one job. Being handpicked by the boss had its perks but Luc was ready for him to leave. “Handling some of the details for later.”
As usual, Marcel didn’t ask what those were. He wanted things done and didn’t care how they were done so long as he didn’t have to hear about them. That lack of commitment only made Luc outline every detail to torture Marcel. He’d been about to do just that before they heard the heavy footsteps on the porch and Connor walked in.
Pushing this guy off his high pedestal was the only decent part of this job so far. So Luc intended to keep doing it.
“This time you need to be successful.”
“About that.” There was no way Luc would take the fall for any failure in this operation. Not when the blame fell so easily on other shoulders. “Seems like you forgot to mention an important fact.”
Marcel waved him off. “I can handle Connor Bowen.”
“Really?” Luc had had a front-row seat and watched a professional toying with a novice. At another time, in another situation, preferably one that couldn’t trace back to him and land him in prison, Luc may have enjoyed watching Marcel get wrapped up in his obsession and lies. Not this time.
Marcel might view himself as some sort of international power player but no one else did. Until recently he’d been married and in a constant state of panic over being caught using his charity as a cover. He whined and lost focus. He provided the basis, the shipments perfect for the crates and merchandise they really needed to move. But that was the only pro in his column.
“I’m playing a role as a director of a charity,” Marcel said. “Being what Connor expects.”
Not that Luc saw. To the extent Marcel ever had a convincing cover it appeared to be blown now. And that made him a liability.
Luc decided to lay it out. “You’re in love with his wife and he knows it.”
“That’s not true.”
“It’s clear what you want to do to her and it’s nasty.”
“You’re out of line.” Marcel’s voice rose and shook as he talked.
“Keep it down.” Luc struggled to maintain a whisper over his growing frustration.
“Then stop talking about Jana.”
As far as Luc was concerned, the lack of communication about her was the problem. “Don’t you think I needed to know what was happening between you two before we started this operation?”
That was the one thing Luc could not tolerate. He’d put his reputation, not to mention his life, on the line. All for some lovesick idiot who couldn’t keep his focus long enough to finish a job.
Marcel pushed off from the counter. “You had the facts you needed. You’re the one who’s failed to accomplish even the most simple of tasks in this operation.”
“Because I wasn’t permitted to cut through this and hurt Jana. Now I know why.” The calculation struck Luc as obvious. He just needed to talk fast enough when the time came to keep the spotlight on Marcel and prevent it from shifting.
A creak had them both turning toward the front of the house. Luc reached for his gun and Marcel grabbed a pot. So long as the noise didn’t lead to footsteps they’d be fine. For a few more seconds they stayed quiet and unmoving. Nothing happened. Whatever drew their attention sounded like it hadn’t breached the door.
Marcel stepped forward and looked down the hall to the front door. “Probably the porch.”
“Fix that before it causes trouble.”
“Right, I’ll get to it in my spare time since I have so much of that.” Marcel looked out the window to the side of the kitchen area.
“You’re welcome to join us on the front lines outside. Just make sure you duck when the bullets start flying.” Luc did not want to hear about how hard the work was from the guy who sat at a desk all day.
“You shouldn’t be in here.”
Luc wasn’t ready to let this go. This was too important and impacted too many people. Some who knew who to shoot and tended to get blinded by anger. “Does everyone know about your crush on Jana but me?”
“That’s enough.” Marcel’s voice dropped back to a soft whisper. “We’re done talking about this.”
This guy still didn’t get it. This wasn’t a game. “I’ve lost a lot of men out here.”
“Which says something about the people you hire.”
They’d suffered real losses that would set back their operation. That sort of thing destroyed morale. It also made busywork that Luc didn’t need. Searching through lists of mercenaries to find qualified people amounted to a waste of time. He’d do it because he had to, but he’d much rather blame someone else.
“What about your choices? You bring your girlfriend here and she uncovers everything.” The level of stupidity involved in that socked Luc. He decided right there he needed new partners on the next job.
This time Marcel didn’t deny his dream relationship with Jana. “Not everything. She thinks there’s a math error in the paperwork. No big deal.”
If that were true they wouldn’t have a stack of bodies outside and undercover operatives swarming the place. Luc didn’t know why Marcel couldn’t see that. “I disagree.”
“I can convince her.”
The man continued to wallow in cluelessness. “She’s not stupid.”
“I’ll direct her where I need her to go.” Marcel gave another sneak peek at the front of the house. “I’ve done it before.”
As far as Luc could see, Marcel ignored one very important factor in all of this. What he’d come to see as the biggest factor. “Even if that’s true, you can’t control her husband.”
“His time is almost over.”
Sounded as if Marcel planned to beak protocol and remove Connor. Luc wanted to be there to see that because he couldn’t imagine it. “That’s what this has all been about. All the planning and the hiring of muscle to help out. You came up with this elaborate scheme to lure him here, get rid of the competition and become the hero.”
“All of this has been about tying up loose ends. Connor is the ultimate loose end. Trust me.”
“No.” Killing Connor would bring down the wrath of his men. Luc didn’t want that much attention and he knew he would not be alone on that.
“You have one final chance to do your job.”
Threats. Those qualified as Luc’s least favorite things. “Or?”
“You think the paperwork won’t lead back to you? That I don’t have this all figured out?” Marcel’s hubris snapped back into place. He delivered his speech in a voice filled with satisfaction. “I’ve been doing this a long time.”
“I thought you were retiring.” That was part of the plan. Marcel planned to walk away with his reputation intact and a lot of money in his pocket.
So did Luc. That was the piece that kept him from unloading. Marcel thought he had his ticket out, but Luc had a contingency in place. One where he would not be implicated. Others would pay and he would walk away. With the money.
The man made one threat too many. Threw around big words and acted like he could dictate what happened from here on out. As if Luc could let him live now.
“I am getting out and will not be looking over my shoulder for Connor Bowen. The only way to ensure that doesn’t happen is to eliminate him.”
It was the way Marcel said it. So sure with an almost stupid dreamy expression. He’d clearly spun some strange romantic fantasy that included a woman who worked for him and appeared to think of him as nothing more than a mentor.
Luc had to hold back a laugh at the other man’s expense. “But you plan to take his wife with you. You actually think she’ll walk away from her husband a
nd her life and be with you?”
“She already did.”
The signs were so obvious yet he kept missing them. “You’re not paying attention because that woman is not on the verge of leaving her husband. Not even close.”
“She’s not your concern.”
Luc didn’t understand it. It was as if this one woman choked off all common sense and cost them more bodies on this mission. “Fine, but you need to know this is about to go down.”
“Good.”
Luc talked right over Marcel. “The plan is now in play and can’t be pulled back.”
“So?”
“If it comes down to killing her or getting out of this without trouble, I will put a bullet right in the middle of that pretty forehead.”
Marcel straightened. “No one touches her.”
Luc was done agreeing to nonsense. “You heard what I said.”
Chapter Sixteen
Jana’s head pounded hard enough to block her hearing. She’d wanted to yell at Connor during the short drive to the charity office. He’d waltzed into Marcel’s house and did the macho-guy thing. Flexed muscles and threw around phrases like my woman, or maybe he hadn’t, but it sure sounded like it from where she listened in on the porch.
But one thing had changed. She could no longer pretend Marcel looked on her as if they were in some sort of mentor relationship. He hadn’t come right out and admitted his feelings for her, but she picked up on the clues. His voice changed and he grew stern. An emotion she couldn’t name had washed over him, stripping away the charming facade she knew.
The way he looked at her when she walked into the room. The suggestion she had shared her feelings about her marriage, which she absolutely had not. The things he’d said about Connor making a huge mistake in letting her go. Marcel had started dropping those comments a few weeks ago.
It all made sense now. Marcel wanted something more. Something she would never give him.
After pulling up to the charity and putting the car in Park, Connor got out and slammed the driver’s-side door. Instead of going into the building he folded an arm on the top of the car and stared at her over the roof. “Are you not talking to me?”
TRACELESS Page 16
