Deadly Testimony

by Piper J. Drake

  “Yup.” Not much explanation required. “Shooter was Edict, but not our old friend.”

  A pause. Then Diaz responded, “Good to know. I’m also curious as to why the US Marshals aren’t asking me where you are.”

  She lifted a shoulder delicately instead of shrugging. Victoria would be so proud. “I met with Nguyen once before the shit hit the fan, once after. He’s trusting me to handle things for now.”

  “Okay,” Diaz said slowly. “I should be happy to hear it but I’m wondering why.”

  “A question for another day.” She meant for it to come out lightly, but it really was something to worry about later. They had more urgent tasks. “We’ve got an appointment at oh-two-hundred hours and I’d appreciate help.”

  “Where?” Diaz asked.

  She told him, plus the rest of what had been on the microSD card. It took a split second for that bit of information to sink in, even for Diaz. They’d all seen a lot and this kind of thing, innocent victims, hit hard. It wasn’t more than a moment, but it was still there, because they were still human.

  Kyle, for his part, remained silent during the exchange. He listened and idly sipped champagne. Once in a while he smiled as if in response to something said.

  He would be a better spy than she would be.

  “This is a tough scenario but it can work out.” Diaz said finally. “You’ll need to get to the area as soon as possible and pick your position.”

  Her sniper opponent might’ve already gotten there. She’d need to find a vantage point without running into him. Or take him out if she did.

  “Marc and Victoria will make sure Mr. Yeun arrives safely, ostensibly alone,” Diaz continued. “And they will oversee extraction. I will provide cover at the ground level. Keep your comm with you and turn it on at the meeting time.”

  It was a plan, elegant in its simplicity. Straightforward. Diaz would flesh out and handle the details on the ground. If she needed audibles, he’d make sure to call them out when the time came. “Copy.”

  “Huh?” Kyle asked.

  “We have a plan.” She smiled at him. “You’ll be in good hands.”

  The best, as far as she was concerned. And she’d worked with a lot of professionals over the past several years. This, the confidence she experienced with the barest of discussion required, was what she wanted as she continued to work. Puzzle pieces came together and fit when she coordinated with Diaz and their fire team.

  “Where do you want Victoria and Marc to meet you?” Diaz paused as a few couples walked by. “Or do you want to just check in here?”

  “Might be best.” Now that they were planning, she figured it would be perfect.

  “Victoria will meet you.”

  “Okay. Once Kyle is secure here, I’ll need to head back to get my gear.”

  Diaz raised an eyebrow when she referred to Kyle by name but didn’t comment. Instead, he turned to Kyle. “Once your family is out of harm’s way, we’ll arrange for a safe house for them until the trial is over. It will have to be separate from you.”

  Kyle raised an eyebrow and glanced at Lizzy. She shrugged. It’d ripped Diaz to shreds a few months ago when they’d wanted to take action to rescue Maylin’s younger sister and had to stand by. The two full squadrons of resources, weapons and ammunition plus communications and technical support it required was more than any single person could fund. When it came to a temporary sanctuary, they could provide that and work out the budget later.

  There would always be tough decisions to make, when doing the right thing wouldn’t be this doable. Diaz, and all of them, tended to help where they could and when they could.

  “All right.” She slipped her hand into the bend of Kyle’s arm. “Let’s get through this.”

  Tonight’s outcome was going determine whether or not he’d have the chance to build the life he’d been planning for his family, and for himself. He’d made the past couple of days...fun, more than fun. He’d become someone important to her.

  She wanted him to have his future.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  “That’s it?” Kyle was almost making her drag him across the ballroom. At least he was keeping his voice down.

  “That’s what we needed.” Lizzy exchanged smiles and nods with a few of the people they’d chatted with earlier.

  Nothing to see here, moving along. Yeah, hello. Smile and nod.

  She waited until she could speak to him again without anyone overhearing. “Diaz will set up the key details with the rest of the fire team. I’ll go ahead to scout. We’ll make necessary adjustments at go time.”

  “I thought there would be a lot more planning.” Kyle sounded unsure.

  She didn’t blame him. “Regardless of whether our former colleague is directly involved, Edict as an organization knows the Centurion Corporation and Safeguard in particular. They’ve had time to research personnel profiles and get to know strategy and tactics used in the past. Now that they know we’re at least tangentially involved, they’ll be looking to encounter us again even if they don’t exactly know when. One of the most effective ways to remain unpredictable is if we ourselves don’t all know the entire plan.”

  It required relying heavily on each team member as an individual with a key task. Not all fire teams could manage it. But theirs could.

  “You’ve done this before, then, so it’s not necessarily unpredictable.” He was reaching for arguments now.

  She wanted to reassure him but this entire job had all the aspects of having gone down the rabbit hole. “We’ve never done it to this extreme, no. But we can still make it work.”

  Kyle choked back a panicked laugh and picked up his pace until they were comfortably walking together, rather than her pulling him by the arm. “And we’re headed where now?”

  “A leisurely walk.” She fluttered her eyelashes at him. “Ending at the front desk to reserve a room.”

  He gave her a long look. “This is a fairly large charity event.”

  “Yes.”

  He cleared his throat. “You’re trying for a last-minute reservation.”

  “If I have to coax somebody into checking out, I will.” Not the nicest thing she’d ever done, but hell, it’d happened in the past.

  He rolled his eyes. “You could always offer to share a room with someone. I think we encountered at least two different couples who’d be interested.”

  “Unnecessary exposure for innocent bystanders.” He was teasing, she knew. Though, looking at the smile playing around his lips, he might not be joking about the interested couples.

  Hey, to each their own.

  “Are you the type to...have fun in groups?” Fine. She was distracted. Momentarily. But she did want to know the answer.

  He leaned over her. “Are you?”

  She shrugged. “Never occurred to me. I like my fun intense and personal.”

  He chuckled. “I’ve had the pleasure of entertaining a few close friends in the past, I’ll admit. It can be an experience of a lifetime with skilled partners. But for the most part, I’ve satisfied my curiosity on the possibilities. I’m inclined to agree with you.”

  “Huh.” No idea what to say to that. She took the time to scan the room again, noting familiar faces in contrast to new ones. Mostly, it was to buy her time. Unfortunately, he seemed to be waiting for a response. “Okay, I asked because I was wondering about your history again. I don’t know why I keep asking. It’s not like I think you having an active lifestyle is wrong or anything.”

  He pressed his elbow tighter against his side, squeezing her hand briefly without being obvious. “I am delighted when you ask anything about me. Your interest is flattering and your lack of jealousy to accompany it is a relief. I wish I could return the favor, but to be frank, the idea of someone else touching you brings out a ver
y ugly side of me.”

  She was caught without an immediate comeback. Hell, she almost stopped in her tracks.

  Kyle cleared his throat. “I realize I don’t have the right to the sentiment, but it’s there.”

  Her stomach flip-flopped and a tightness unwound in her chest. “Since we’re being honest, I have to admit that I don’t mind. It actually makes me feel wanted.”

  She was alternately appalled and amused by her own reaction. This was definitely headed into relationship territory, something she’d avoided for as long as she could remember. Relationships were like missions. The more complicated they got, the more likely they were to end badly.

  “And I’m also not immune to being jealous.” She tipped her head so she could look up at him. “I don’t get my panties in a twist over your past adventures because it’s done and before you ever met me. Random flirting is what it is. But the minute you’re seriously tempted by someone else, we’re going to find out how well I actually handle jealousy. It’ll be a new adventure for both of us.”

  And wouldn’t that be fun.

  No, it wouldn’t. Her stomach churned.

  He blinked, then chuckled. “Your thought process is singularly unique.”

  He stopped and stepped around to face her, right there in the middle of the hallway. “Here and now, I am singularly captivated by you. I am very glad I haven’t had to share you with anyone for the past few days and I hope very much to keep this going.” He placed his hands on her shoulders and leaned in for a kiss.

  She gave it to him, and along with it, a piece of herself.

  “I don’t even know what to ask for,” he murmured. “So I’ll enjoy this. Time with you.”

  His lips were hot against hers, his breath mixed with her own in a dizzying combination. With effort, she stepped back and took in enough air to clear her head. Stepping forward to take his arm again, she pulled them back into a stroll.

  Time was about the only thing definable in this whole situation. They had a very little bit and there was no way to know what would happen in it.

  “Glad you’re enjoying it.” She made a quiet, rude noise.

  He outright laughed. “Thank you for sharing it with me.”

  And she was sharing with him. Not her usual behavior with any man, either on a mission or casually on a date. Communicating any more than the bare minimum was usually an awkward, conscious effort. But Kyle Yeun had a way of inviting her to confide in him by offering himself. He’d been open with her about his lifestyle, his wrongs, his intentions to make a better life, his family. All of it.

  They did make their way to the front desk, after a pause in an alcove off the main hallway for some judicious kissing. She let him request the room, then coax the desk manager to find one for them when the initial response had been disappointing. Kyle not only turned on his charm, but also took on a sharp business edge too. In a few minutes, the desk manager was handing over hotel room keys with assurances of a late checkout noted on the room.

  Nice touch.

  But Kyle withdrew as they got in the elevator and farther away from people watching them. By the time they stepped out into the hallway, he was passive and thoughtful.

  She led him down the hall and to the room, using the key to gain entrance and clearing the hotel room as she’d done with him in the past.

  “You should be pretty comfortable here.” It was a spacious room, decorated with a modern touch. “No Frederick to keep you company, but Victoria and Marc should be here in a few minutes.”

  “They watched us check in.” Kyle was undoing his tie as he walked around the room. His words were given in a distracted, halfhearted attempt to keep up his side of the conversation.

  She narrowed her eyes and waited until he stopped and met her gaze. “Is there a reason we should stop right now?”

  “No!” Anger, temper, something flashed in his eyes. “This is...damn! I need my family safe. And I need to testify. You and your people are helping me. I’m thinking about all of that.”

  “Yeah? What’s with you now? You’re not you.”

  “Do you know me? Really? Why do this for me?” He sat on the edge of the bed, shoulders slumped.

  It was a good question.

  “Because you’re doing a good thing.” There’d been a lot of answers she could give him but some, having to do with her personal feelings, were too tangled up to say yet. Instead, she gave him the simple ones. The ones she’d have even if she didn’t feel so much. “And your family doesn’t deserve to suffer in order to hide the wrongs in all of this. Because this isn’t a difficult decision to make. I can help, so I will.”

  Her fire team, Diaz in particular, had been faced with harder decisions and challenges to overcome to do the right thing. In this, her path forward was clear.

  “Do you always do what needs to be done?” His question was laced with a hint of annoyance but the sharpness was hiding a more vulnerable note of hope.

  Isabelle kept her gaze steady on his. “It doesn’t matter if a thing is scary or dangerous, disgusting or boring. No matter how onerous a task is, it still remains to be done by somebody.”

  His scowl deepened as he listened to her but he didn’t offer one of his usual teasing comments. He was having trouble holding on to the humor he used to keep his uglier emotions at bay.

  Damn it, she wanted to give it back to him. As annoying as he was, rage-inducing sometimes, he was funny. He had a way of pulling a smile from her when she least wanted to give it to him. She ached for it a little, and for him.

  So she gave him a small smile and imagined it was a sad offering as compared to the happiness he could spark in people, in her. “When I was young, my mother said it was often best to let those who are good at doing a thing complete the tasks. Because it will be done quickly and well, and hopefully not need to be redone.”

  It was about time for Victoria to check in with them. Lizzy stepped to the door and opened it, scanning the hallway. Victoria stood waiting at the far end. Her teammate gave her a nod and disappeared around the corner. She’d wait until Lizzy left, then come to the room.

  Anyone who took notice would think Kyle was just having a lucky night.

  “And this thing, the man who needs killing. You will do it.” It wasn’t a question. And the hope was there, shining through more clearly in his tone.

  “I am very good at killing.” A light inside her, the tiny flame he’d lit, died. And again, she was the cold, simple, clean killer she’d taught herself to be. It was part of why she was very, very good.

  He was a civilian. There was a pretty high chance it’d sink in after all this was done and he’d try to get as far away from her as possible.

  “Thank you.” The words came from him as the corners of his mouth turned up. “For saving my family. No one else would’ve helped us.”

  Isabelle swallowed past the lump in her throat. She hadn’t looked at it that way. Hadn’t even tried.

  She wasn’t special. She didn’t want to believe there weren’t other people in the world who would do this. There had to be. It was faith in human nature and all that. For all the truly despicable things humans had done to each other through history, there had to be people to inspire the happy endings.

  Legends and all that shit.

  She wasn’t a legend. She was a person trying to do something because she cared.

  “Victoria and Marc will be ready with a car. Make sure you get to the car.”

  “Your instructions are burned into my brain.” He tugged at the pristine white cuffs peeking from beneath the dark fabric of his suit sleeves.

  She shook her head. “Every plan goes to hell. Plan A, plan B, whatever. Things never go as planned. Keep the objective in mind and just do what it takes to get there.”

  He was silent for a moment, absorbing what she’d
implied. “I’ll get my family to the car.”

  She nodded, accepting his prioritization. “All of you would be best case. Go for best case. You’re wearing your Kevlar vest?”

  “Yes.” Kyle tapped two fingers against his chest. The sound confirmed the presence of a layer beneath the fine fabric of his suit still.

  She’d checked before they’d started this evening. It wasn’t like he would’ve taken it off. But it felt better to check again.

  Victoria and Marc would be at the ready to pick up Kyle, his sister and her son. They’d get the Yeuns to safety. Her teammates were very good at what they did too.

  “What about you?” Kyle’s gaze had become more intense.

  Truth? She didn’t have a spotter. The person who could murmur observations and distance measurements. Wind direction and speed. Their help increased the chance of an accurate shot exponentially. But she’d done very well without a spotter in the past. No. She wasn’t worried about making her planned shots. She was more concerned about the other sniper.

  She’d have to find him before he found her.

  A spotter would’ve also been watching her six. They’d have been able to warn her of any direct attackers and given her cover as she scrambled into a position to defend herself.

  She’d be vulnerable in her shooting position. From what she’d scouted using satellite images earlier in the day, there was no alternative. She’d know better once she was actually there.

  “I’ll make the best of what I’ve got to work with out there.”

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  The moon was hidden beyond a low ceiling of clouds but it wasn’t unusual for the Seattle area. It wasn’t even going to be much of a problem. Live in or near a city of any decent size and there was always going to be a certain amount of ambient light no matter how late at night.

  Lizzy was dropped off by the cab at the Harbor Island Marina. Theoretically, she worked there and had left her car in the parking lot. So the nice cabdriver, who’d kindly offered to wait for her, drove away with a wave once she’d jingled some keys at him and assured him she would get home just fine.