“Why would I be mad?” She didn’t know what she was other than confused and frustrated.
“Well, there’s the thing where you just used the word mad.”
She’d put her marriage on hold and went searching. A man she trusted to give her shelter had ulterior motives. It looked like her husband’s jealousy had some foundation. Every way she could mess up and get things wrong, she had. The enormity of it made her dizzy. She reached out for the car to regain her balance.
“You promised not to attack Marcel.” She heard the slap of the accusation in her voice. She hadn’t meant to say anything.
“He’s still alive, isn’t he?”
She couldn’t handle this. Not now. Thoughts and regret spun in her head. She doubted every decision she’d made over the past few months and questioned her judgment. If Marcel really was using the charity to do something illegal, she might just strangle him and let Connor watch.
She had to know and the only way to do that was to step back into that building. The same one where men had chased her and dragged her off.
Pulling up a well of strength she wasn’t sure she had, she stood up straight and headed for the front door. “Let’s just do this.”
Connor met her on the bottom stair and matched his step to hers. “I would point out I didn’t make up his feelings for you. This was not just about me losing my temper or being unreasonable, though I admit I have been that at times. You want me to say you made me jealous? Fine, you did.”
She hated that. She was not that kind of woman. She didn’t get any joy out of making Connor miserable. That for a second he believed she cheated or would play games to have it look that way made her sick for him.
It also made her a little angry. She would never do that and at least that he should know. “I told you I don’t view him that way.”
The wind carried her hair and Connor reached out and tucked it behind her ear. The touch was so gentle and loving that tears pushed against the backs of her eyes.
“But he thinks of you as his girlfriend.” Connor said the words in a soft voice, as if it hurt to mutter them.
She caught his hand and held it. “I’m not.”
“I’m not the one you need to convince.”
She sensed that was true. After all of her denials to Connor, she now had to sit Marcel down and tell him the score. She’d assumed he knew the truth, but now she was sure that wasn’t true.
She kissed his hand then dropped it. “Let’s just focus on the charity issues right now. One problem at a time.”
“Am I the problem or is Marcel?”
It looked like Connor wasn’t ready to move on and handle something else. Her chest ached at the thought. “You’re both being difficult right now.”
He came to a stop and his shoes scraped against the rough ground. “Tell me again. What exactly did I do in the last half hour that’s the problem?”
She took in the frown and the square shoulders. He looked ready for battle and ten seconds from launching into a new litany of anti-Marcel information. She didn’t want to listen. Disappointment already weighed down her muscles and exhausted her.
Still, Connor deserved to know one truth. “You were right about him.”
“What?”
“You heard me. I’m not repeating it.”
Connor’s head shot forward and his eyes went to tiny slits. Then it all changed. A smile pushed up one side of his mouth and those sexy eyes went wide. “Ahh.”
Yeah, now he got it. She admitted it. He was right and she was wrong. And... “I hate that.”
That smile went to full wattage. “I’d apologize—”
“We can add this to all the mistakes I’ve made lately. The pile is getting pretty huge.” She couldn’t even think about the long list without wanting to sit down.
His mouth fell flat again. He reached for her as she went up the two steps to the door. “Jana, that’s not—”
With her hand on the knob, she turned around and faced him again. Her back touched the door but she didn’t bolt. Even though she really wanted to. “You have every right to rub it in.”
A few thuds of his footsteps and he stood in front of her. “I’d rather kiss you.”
The pressure behind her gave and the door opened. She would have flown backward but a firm hand caught her shoulder and Connor grabbed her arms. For a second, fear flashed through her. The memories of the kidnapping flooded back. Then a strong arm wrapped around her.
Cam squeezed her close to his side. “I get a hug first.”
“For what?” She looked him over, admiring every impressive inch. Brown hair and that cute dimple in his cheek. The ladies took one look at the former black ops expert and started fixing their hair and applying lipstick. Not that he noticed.
He smiled down at her. “Surviving the jeep explosion and run through the desert.”
“Sounds like a normal day for you guys, but I’m happy you’re all okay.” And she was because she loved every last alpha, demanding one of them.
Cam looked from her to Connor and back again. “Does that mean you’re coming home?”
“Feel free to answer the man so long as the answer is yes,” Connor said.
If they could get through this and find time to sit down and talk through all the things they’d skimmed over in the past, she was. She hated being away from the house and Connor. She wanted her life back. She needed him to understand she was a wife and not a client who needed protecting.
For months she thought she needed time away. She’d been wrong and she had to own that. What she really needed was Connor. Turned out loving him was easy. Living with him was not but they could make rules and loosen the string. At least she hoped that was true.
“I am not having a conversation about my personal life until whatever is happening here is resolved.” She relaxed all of her other dealing-with-the-husband rules over the past few days. She was determined to hold firm on this one.
Cam made a face. Even threw in a hissing sound as his arm dropped away from her. “About that.”
“What?” Connor asked.
“Let’s head in.” Cam opened the door and ushered them inside. “Drake and I found some paperwork in the safe.”
The inside looked like a windstorm passed through. There were papers everywhere and boxes and smashed bits of...she wasn’t even sure what. A wall, maybe? Anxiety whirred to life inside her. The men. The chase. The call to Connor. She wanted to forget it all.
“How did you get it open?” Not that she got an answer. She got staring and a bit of an are-you-kidding-me look. “Right, forget I asked.”
Cam walked over to a table with neat stacks of files and papers on it. He grabbed a few off the top. “Looks like Marcel is using the shipments to carry something other than vaccines overseas—”
“No.” It was a reflex response. She said it but while she studied the paper in Connor’s hand she realized she’d never seen it before. It looked different from the other invoices and included Marcel’s handwriting and specifically referenced the unaccounted-for additional boxes.
Connor handed the document to her. His stern expression and the way his skin pulled tight across his mouth showed his inner turmoil. “I know this is difficult to take in, but he’s dirty.”
She understood this looked bad and she guessed Marcel was doing something secretive and likely pretty awful. She couldn’t really deal with that idea so she locked it away in another part of her brain. Later she’d take all the information out and assess it. If this was like the last time when the charity was being used or if anything else was happening under her nose, she’d wrestle with that guilt and her failings later.
Now she needed focus to get at the thought that kept nibbling at her. “You told me your friend has been watching over the shipments. How would Marcel be mo
ving extra boxes of anything from here, directing and hiding, with the oversight you set up?”
“What are you talking about?” Cam asked.
Connor stared at her for an extra second before breaking off to glance at Cam. “You know this charity has had issues before, right?”
“Sure. That was your last job before starting Corcoran. The one where you met Jana.”
“After that, since Jana still did work for the charity even from afar, I called in some favors and Drake agreed to act like a watchdog. The distribution chains tend to be in the rough areas where he works.”
“For the CIA.” She filled in the blank in case Cam didn’t know. But when he didn’t so much as blink, she guessed Cam might have more inside information on Connor’s past than she did.
“Sort of.” Connor waved a hand in front of his face. “That doesn’t matter now.”
“Wait a second.” Cam shifted his weight. “Why didn’t Drake tell me that when we were going through all of the documents and coming up with potential scenarios?”
That was exactly Jana’s question. This guy had all these skills but missed potential drug running or illegal distribution of some type happening right in front of him? That didn’t make any sense to her.
“He probably thought he was keeping my confidence.” Connor’s expression didn’t change but something in his voice did. “Where is he?”
“Holt got here before you and they went out checking for tracks and evidence.”
Connor nodded at the satphone. “Call them in.”
* * *
Luc pushed down the excitement welling inside him as he lined up the gunsight. They’d rotated through so many plans that he’d lost count by this point. He wasn’t even sure what the end goal was. On one hand they wanted Jana to stop snooping and Connor stopped before he picked up the trail she’d found. On the other, they wanted Connor. For what, Luc didn’t really know.
Regardless of the final solution, they’d all failed. But this one would work. Separate and destroy. It was so simple. Don’t let the Corcoran Team members gather or get too close. Pick them off one by one.
And this was the first domino. From here they’d give the okay for the next attack. When the smoke cleared only Connor would be standing and only long enough to see his wife go down.
It was a shame, really. A beautiful woman like that deserved a chance to change sides, but the boss wanted her gone now. Too much had happened. Too much time had been lost and too many men had been killed.
He stood at the bedroom window and looked through his sight again. He had a clear shot of this guy Shane’s back as he walked the grounds of Marcel’s property with his head down. At this distance with this rifle it would only take one shot.
Shane stopped, facing away. The man almost made it too easy.
“I’ll take him.” One shot. No wasted ammunition and certainly no opportunity for Shane to return fire.
Marcel hovered too close. For a guy who wanted clean hands he was almost cheering for this putdown. “Quick and clean. We need to get over to the charity office.”
Luc knew the plan. Hell, he’d created the plan. He didn’t need either a cheerleader or someone pretending to be in charge when he wasn’t. “No problem.”
“He took his vest off.” Marcel shook his head. “Stupid.”
The desert heat started burning and Shane had stripped it off. Luc stood right there and watched. Now the vest rested on a chair only a few feet away from him. Not that it would help him there. “I guess these Corcoran guys aren’t as smart as everyone says.”
Luc got into shooting position. He ran through the checklist in his mind.
Marcel’s hand darted over and he lowered the weapon. “What are you doing?”
“Like I just said, taking a shot.” It took every ounce of control Luc possessed not to shoot Marcel. “And never touch my gun.”
“From here?”
From the way Marcel looked around his bedroom, Luc guessed the other man didn’t like the choice of shooting position right near his pillow. That was tough because this room gave Luc the best angle. “You wanted quick.”
Before Marcel could whine or do something to draw attention to them, Luc aimed and fired. There was a crack and the man dropped. The broad shoulders tipped forward and the rest of his body followed. A whoosh and he went boneless.
Satisfaction surged through Luc. He’d missed that sensation on this job. So many steps had gone wrong. But not this one. This time he could enjoy the win.
He looked at the still form crumpled on the red land for a few seconds. “Done.”
“That’s not what I expected.”
“Get used to it since he’s just the first.” Luc ignored Marcel and lowered the weapon. “Now it’s time for Phase Two.”
Chapter Seventeen
Holt called in and said he was on the way in with Drake. They’d tracked the men who held Jana through the canyon then lost the trail. Not a surprise. The weather and the attackers’ training made finding any evidence in that direction a longshot. But since they were turning over everything and Drake’s tracking skills qualified as the best Connor had even known, Connor gave it a try.
With everyone checking in, he stood by the charity’s front door and did a visual sweep of the area. A few cars littered the driveway, including an extra one Jana said Marcel kept at the office for the workers’ use. The heat swirled around them, more intense than usual for this time of year, and blurred the air.
The vast openness stretched out in front of them. After a few seconds, Holt and Drake appeared in the distance. They walked across a boulder and through a patch of pure sand. Their strides matched and both had that lethal “don’t mess with me” look.
Jana shaded her eyes with her hand as she watched. “That’s Drake?”
“Yes.” Seeing his former colleague usually worked to ease some of Connor’s anxiety. Not this time.
He didn’t understand the lapse of surveillance or possible missteps that let Marcel get away with whatever he was doing. Having the charity cheat and steal was bad enough but this time Jana got sucked in.
After all those years working outside the country and sleeping in a series of rotating safe houses, it was possible the nomadic, no-commitments life had taken its toll. Connor couldn’t believe Drake stayed in this long. Could be it was time for him to get out.
“You haven’t met him?” Cam called out the question from behind them inside the office.
She shook her head as the men moved closer. “Never.”
They drew within fifteen feet when Drake turned around. Connor followed his gaze to the sedan driving down the dirt road. They went hours in this area without seeing a car. Now someone headed their way right as they were meeting up. He didn’t like coincidences and this struck him as a serious one.
“It’s Marcel,” Jana said, for once not sounding too excited about his arrival.
The time in Utah basically sucked. But if getting Jana out and home and clear of Marcel happened, it would all be worth it. Connor just wanted the job done. He wouldn’t be able to relax until he put the pieces together and figured out who wanted him and Jana, and why.
“I did tell him to get here.” Connor tried to make out who was inside and cursed his decision to leave the binoculars back in the room. “Cam, call Shane and see if he’s with Marcel.”
“Will do.”
They all watched the approaching car. When a roaring sound echoed off to Connor’s left it took him a second to realize it was an engine. It revved and thundered, but this didn’t come from the approaching car. Wrong direction and wrong noise.
No, this came from the vehicle parked in front of them. The one without a driver.
Before Connor could blink it came barreling right toward them. Jana screamed but her body seemed frozen.
He heard banging and smelled something hot and metallic. None of the sights and sounds made sense.
Instinct took over. The car careened and he lunged for Jana. He pulled her toward him and momentum took them flying off to the side. They dove and took flight before slamming into the ground.
Rolling, he heard a ground-shaking crash. With her body tucked under his, they both looked up. Drake and Holt fired on the racing vehicle but it was too late. It crashed into the front of the office.
The roof caved and rafters fell. The bangs rang out over the gunfire. It took a few seconds before the crunch of the wheels against the gravel and debris finally stopped. The building creaked and moaned then a boom knocked Connor down.
The sound, the force of the air and wall of heat rocked him. He tucked Jana’s head under his and ignored her squirming. Chunks of the building and parts of the car rained down on them. When one piece got close enough to burn his pants, he rolled them farther out of the way.
The shower of debris finally stopped. The heat and thick air remained. He looked up again to see flames shooting into the sky as they devoured the office’s roof. A bomb, an explosion... None of it made sense.
The boom knocked out his hearing. The world came to him muffled now. He heard Holt shouting but couldn’t make out the words. He was forgetting something.
“Cam!” Jana screamed the name as she clawed to get out from under Connor.
Until that moment Connor thought they’d all gotten out. Now he conducted a quick mental roll call and scanned the area. They were one down. Smoke started to billow and Holt ran toward the consuming fire.
Somehow in the fall of rafters and spray of sparks, Marcel’s car registered. It pulled close and stopped. Connor expected to see Shane in the driver’s seat but it wasn’t him. There was no urgency or frantic run into the building. Just two men, neither of them Corcoran men.
“That’s the leader.” Jana tugged on Connor’s arm as she said the words. She scooted back, dragging her butt in the dirt and trying to take Connor with her.
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