Finally, he was back on top of her, covering her with his heat. He pushed inside her, panting, and stopped, looking perplexed. “So what happens to them? Do they drown, or get chomped by sharks, or what?”
Raine jerked beneath him in protest. “God, no! How could you even say such a thing?”
“Sorry. I'm a cynical realist So sue me.”
She thought for a moment, and looked straight into his eyes. “They wash up in a tropical paradise, and live in primeval splendor on coconuts and mangos and barbecued fish,” she said. “They spend the rest of their lives frolicking in the surf, playing on the beach and making passionate love in a ten-room hut made of palm fronds.”
“Oh, yeah?” There was an anxious frown line between his eyes.
She pulled his face down to hers and kissed it gently. “Oh, yeah,” she said softly. “He spends his time spearing fish, garnering fruit and making garlands of tropical flowers for her.”
He looked doubtful. “Garlands of flowers? Come on, Raine.”
“Keep in mind he's not the only one who gives excellent head.”
He grinned. “OK. Garlands of flowers. You want 'em, you got 'em. Big, smelly piles of them.”
“They sit beneath the swaying palms in the evening, watching the sun set” Raine said softly. “They leave the violence and ugliness of the world behind. They let go of the pain and betrayal in their past, and give themselves to each other, body, heart and soul. No more power games, no more lies, no more manipulation. Just passion and truth and tenderness. He gives it all to her, and she gives everything to him.”
Emotion vibrated between them like a taut silver wire.
“That's a good ending,” he whispered. “That ending works for me.”
“It's not an ending, Seth.” She covered his face with tiny kisses. “It's a beginning.”
They stared into each others’ eyes. Both lost, both terrified. Only he could save her, only she could save him. She was swimming with sharks, a dagger between her teeth. Tears sprang into her eyes.
His arms tightened. “No,” he pleaded. “Please, sweetheart. Have mercy. I'm too far out to sea tonight. You cry on me, and I'll lose it.”
She pressed her face against his neck, burying her tears where he couldn't see them. “I wouldn't mind if you lost it,” she whispered. “You're safe with me, Seth. I'll hold you together.”
“Please, don't.” He hid his face against her hair. “Not here. Not in this house. Not so close to him.”
Seth was right. There was a loaded gun lying next to their bed. This was not the time or place to make that fearless dive into the infinite.
“Distract me, then,” she ordered him. “Quick.”
He cradled her face and kissed her. “OK. Ah, sunsets on the beach. Garlands of flowers. I give it all to you, you give it all to me.” His hand trembled as he stroked her hair. “No more games.”
She kissed him back, holding him as close as she could. “All right. Give it all to me, Seth,” she whispered. “I want all of you.”
They pulled away from the perilous brink of the unknown. They gave themselves up to wild, soaring pleasure instead. And it was enough for now, surging and melting together into the swirling red heart of their own private tropical sunset.
Chapter 18
The monitor that should have shown four different camera angles of the tower room was blank and dark.
Victor turned away with a chuckle. He wasn't disappointed that he would not witness the intimacy between his niece and her lover. It would have been inappropriate anyway, though the thought made him laugh at himself. Such scruples, all of a sudden. How odd.
On the contrary, he was quietly pleased that the young man was astute enough to protect his privacy, and Katya's. He could not think of the girl as Lorraine, or even Raine, no matter what she preferred. Wretched name, Alix must have chosen it. It smacked of her taste.
Yes, intelligence and territorial instincts were exactly what he wanted in a self-appointed and highly motivated bodyguard for his niece, now that Novak had been so bold as to indicate an unhealthy interest in her. All Victor needed was to find some way to ratchet up Mackey's protective instincts to a higher pitch without compromising his own all-important security. A challenging puzzle, but he was confident that the solution would present itself soon.
Mackey was not a bad match for Katya, he reflected. He was seething with repressed anger, of course, but most men were if you scratched their surfaces. He was smart, successful and aggressive. Careful background research had revealed that his childhood had been of the squalid urban variety, but he had pulled himself out of the tar somehow. He was a self-made man, which Victor respected. Rather like Victor himself. Rough around the edges, but what he lacked in polish he made up for in sheer ruthlessness. And Katya was more than strong enough to handle him, whether she knew it yet or not. All she needed was a whip and a chair, and a little bit of practice.
The intercom made a melodious ding. He clicked the line open.
“Mr. Lazar, it’s Riggs again.” Mara's husky alto voice was as soft as the brush of costly sable across his skin. “I told him several times that you didn't wish to be disturbed, but he's at the Severin Bay Marina, asking to be brought over to the island.”
A glimmer of an idea began to take form in his mind, chasing away his irritation at Riggs's presumption. “Wake up Charlie. Tell him to go pick Riggs up. Then bring him here, tome.”
“To the control room?” Mara sounded discreetly astonished.
“Yes. And Mara?”
“Yes, sir?”
“You have a lovely speaking voice,” he told her.
There was a long, startled silence. “Ah... thank you, sir.”
He tit a cigarette and settled himself to wait, letting his mind clear to examine possible solutions to his dilemma. All too soon, he heard the heavy clump of the man's boots outside the door. Then the subtler click of Mara's heels. The door opened, and the stink of bourbon that exuded from Riggs's pores reached across the room. The man was much reduced, and failing fast. His usefulness was drawing to a close.
Mara's heels clicked delicately into the distance. Victor did not even bother to turn from his view of the video monitors. “It is uncharacteristically stupid, even for you, to come here,” he said.
“You ignore my messages.” Riggs's voice vibrated with tension. “I didn't know what else to do.”
Victor snorted.
“You don't seem to understand how dangerous the situation is. She saw me today! Peter's daughter was at the Cave, talking to Haley, asking questions! She has to be taken care of, Victor. I should have done it seventeen years ago, but Alix... God, I'm sorry, but it just has to be done. I know she's your niece, but you have to admit—”
“I do not have to do anything.” Victor's tone cut off Riggs's monologue, and he panted, waiting like the whipped dog he was for permission to continue speaking. Victor took a leisurely drag on his cigarette. “Perhaps what happened seventeen years ago has given you a mistaken impression of me, Edward. The truth is, I really do prefer not to kill members of my own family, if I can possibly avoid it.”
“You didn't mind throwing my team into Novak's trap, though,” Riggs snarled. “Didn't lose any sleep over that decision, did you?”
“Ah.” Victor blew out a perfect smoke ring, watched it disintegrate. “Still sulking about that, are you?”
“Cahill died in that fuck-up. Badly. McCloud was in a coma for two months. He's still gimping around like a cripple. Two of my best agents, damn it. That whole thing really sucked for me, Victor. Yeah, you could say that I'm still sulking.”
“We've been through this, Edward. I didn't hurt those men. Novak did. Besides, you should have controlled your men better. You shouldn't have let them get so close,” he chided. “You inconvenienced an extremely important client of mine. Take responsibility for your part in that fiasco, my friend.”
“I am not your friend,” Riggs rasped.
Victor spun in his chair and
smiled at him. “Are you my enemy, then? Think before you answer, Edward. I make a very bad enemy.”
Riggs's throat worked. His bloodshot eyes were desperate and haunted. “Victor, you don't understand. She saw me. And she reacted.”
Victor's smile was pitiless. “Your problem.”
“It’s your problem, too!”
“Not at all. I have nothing to lose, really,” Victor reminded him. “But you have so much. Your career, your reputation, your standing in the community. And let's not forget your lovely wife, your daughters—”
“Are you threatening me?”
Victor clucked his tongue. “Threatening? Is it threatening to take a friendly interest in a colleague's personal life? It's been such a pleasure, following the progress of your charming girls. I was so happy for you and Barbara when Erin graduated from the University of Washington. Lovely girl, with that long dark hair, and such graceful bone structure. She takes after your attractive wife. So intelligent, too. Highest honors in art history and archaeology, if memory serves. Magnificent young woman. I congratulate you.”
“Stay the fuck away from my family.” Riggs's face was purple with impotent fury.
“And the little one, Cindy. More lively than Erin. I confess, she's my personal favorite. She's given you some sleepless nights, hasn't she? Oh, I'm sorry, Edward ... I forgot. All your nights are sleepless now.”
“Goddamn you,” Riggs muttered.
“Pretty little Cindy, just starting her sophomore year at Endicott Falls Christian College, and on a full band scholarship, too. I hear she's quite the talented saxophonist. Three-zero grade point average, they tell me. In my opinion, she could apply herself a bit more. But she's such a party girl. Youthful high spirits, and all. Girls will be girls.”
Riggs dropped into a chair and turned away, but Victor was relentless. “And Barbara seems to be burying herself in community service lately. Or is all this philanthropic activity just her way of compensating for the fact that she's married to a whoring, murdering drunk? She must sense the truth, even if she doesn't know it consciously. Women always do.”
No “ Riggs moaned, putting his head in his hands. “No.”
“I'm sure that even after sixteen years, Barbara would be very much interested in the content of certain high-resolution video footage that I possess. Hours of you fucking my ex-sister-in-law, and in the most imaginative ways, too. Bizarre positions—oral, anal, what have you. And you, a law enforcement agent with a perfect family.” Victor shook his head sadly. “Come to think of it, your daughters might be startled by that video footage as well,” he added.
“You fucked her, too, you hypocritical bastard,” Riggs hissed.
“Certainly. Who didn't? But I tired of her in about ten minutes. She was empty, Edward. Knock, knock, but there was nobody home, eh? Not like Barbara. Now there is a woman of substance. Worth the trouble. Wasted on you, if you ask me.”
“Do not speak my wife's name.” Riggs sounded defeated.
“Ah, Alix.” Victor clucked his tongue. “She may have been an avaricious slut with no scruples, but she served her purpose well”
Riggs sat down heavily in front of the video bank, took off his glasses and rubbed his reddened eyes. Victor concluded that he had pushed far enough. Time for a new tactic. He got up and poured a glass of scotch from the decanter on the sideboard. Riggs's head rose at the sound of liquor gurgling into the glass, like a dog coming to point.
“What do you want from me this time?” he asked dully.
Pathetic. Yes, Riggs's usefulness was definitely near the end. Victor handed Riggs the glass. “To start with, you can relax. Don't take it all so seriously. Life is to be enjoyed, not agonized over”
Riggs took a swallow and wiped his mouth. His pinkish eyes were watery. “Stop playing with me.”
“Oh, Edward. Since you're already inside my den of iniquity, you might as well take advantage of some of the luxuries that I can provide for you. Look at the monitor on the far right, second from the top. Go on, take a look.”
Riggs lifted his head and looked. He leaped to his feet, snatched his glasses out of his breast pocket and slapped them onto his nose, leaning closer. “Mother of God,” he whispered.
Victor turned away to hide his smile. Sometimes it was almost painful how easy people were to manipulate. How predictable their fears and appetites made them. “Her name is Sonia,” he said. “I've had her in mind for you for some time. Judge Madison certainly seems to enjoy her attentions, no? She'll be free soon, if you care to indulge. Sonia won't mind working a double shift. His Honor isn't known for his staying power. She'll be available in, oh, probably less than an hour, if you care to wait. The time it will take for her to freshen up.”
Riggs scanned the other monitors, his mouth sagging. He chug-a-lugged the liquor left in his glass and cast a longing glance at the decanter. 'Trying to get your claws into me even deeper, huh?”
Victor's laugh was mirthless. “They couldn't be any deeper than they already are. I just thought to offer you a bright spot in the midst of the daily round of lies, betrayal and self-loathing.”
Riggs’s head snapped around. The look that flashed from his eyes was one of pure, concentrated hatred. Victor registered it with a clinical sense of relief. Perhaps Riggs still had enough juice left in him for one last task. He wasn't quite ready yet to be ground into fertilizer.
“So, Edward? What do you say? Whoops ... look at that. His Honor has already finished, poor man. He'll be asleep in minutes. Care to indulge?”
“Fuck you,” Riggs said, through gritted teeth.
“Oh, come now.” Victor picked up a silver-framed photo. It was an enlargement of the one in the library. The sunny day at the dock, with Alix, Katya, Riggs and himself. “You know that I've always been rather hurt that you don't come to my parties.”
“Why do you keep that goddamn photo around? It's dangerous!”
Victor placed the photo tenderly back on the shelf. “To keep you honest, Edward,” he said softly.
“You are one crazy, twisted son-of-a-bitch.”
Victor shrugged. “Perhaps. Since you won't take advantage of my hospitality, let's move on directly to the favor I want from you.”
“Yeah. Spit it out, and quit fucking with my head.”
“The task is simple enough. I want you to guard my niece.”
“What?” Riggs's eyes widened, and the broken capillaries over his nose seemed to throb visibly. “You're out of your mind!”
“Not at all. Don't worry, you won't have to deal with her personally. I don't want her to know about our arrangement. I just want you to keep her under your eye at all times. Keep her house under surveillance. Watch her every move. Follow her wherever she goes.”
“That's insane! The Cave—”
“You haven't taken a vacation from the Cave in over five years, Edward,” Victor cut in. “Arrange one.”
Riggs stared at him, aghast. “But I just got promoted! I can't—”
“Of course you can. Don’t play the victim, for God's sake. You're a rich man, thanks to your association with me. You have no cause to complain. And this is the last favor I will ever ask of you.”
Riggs squinted, disbelieving. “Really?” “Absolutely the last,” Victor assured him. “With this simple task, our account will be closed. You have my word.”
“What does she need to be protected from?” Riggs demanded. “Who wants to whack her? And why the secrecy?”
“That doesn't concern you,” Victor said.
“It's Novak, right?” Riggs said slowly. “Novak wants to get to you. Through her.”
Every now and then the man inconvenienced him with brief flashes of genuine intelligence. “It is not necessary for you to know why” he said coldly. “Just do as you are told. If you should be discovered, you know exactly what will happen if you mention me.”
“This is insane “ Riggs muttered. “How am I supposed to—”
“Don't whine,” Victor snapped. “Do
I have to spell out everything for you? A federal agent at the pinnacle of his career, and you need instructions from me as to how to keep your eye on an innocent young woman? Use your dirty mind, Edward. I've seen it at work in those videos, so I know damn well you have one.”
Hatred glowed hot in Riggs's eyes. His hands clenched into fists. “Just watching the girl? That's all you want from me?”
“That's all.” Victor opened a cabinet and pulled out a handheld monitor. “Take this. It's already keyed to the transmitters planted in her clothing and jewelry. The device is simple enough so that even you should be able to figure it out. Her identifying icon is a tiny jewel. You must stay within five kilometers for the monitor to work. This enables you to find her more easily should she slip away, but I would prefer it if you kept her physically under your eye. Do you understand?”
Riggs took the monitor, holding it as if it were a ticking bomb. “How long do I have to do this?”
“I don't know yet.”
Riggs began to shake his head, and Victor let his voice soften. “Just this one last thing, and it will be all over” he said. “Think of the freedom, the peace of mind. And Edward?”
Riggs turned back from the door, looking hunted.
“I do not want a hair on her head harmed.” Victor enunciated very clearly. “At your hand, or anyone else's. If you fail me, I will destroy you completely. Completely. Do you understand?”
Riggs's face twisted. “You're out of your mind, Victor. Why are you doing this? That girl could destroy both of us!”
“Because that girl is worth ten of you, you miserable piece of shit. Now get out of my sight. I can't bear to look at you for another second.”
Riggs flinched, lips drawn back in an animal snarl. The mortal hatred between the two of them flashed in the dim room, as perceptible as a drawn blade. “You hate me for doing in Peter, don't you? You didn't have the balls to do it yourself, you arrogant prick. And you hate me for doing your dirty work.”
Victor's nostrils dilated in disgust The man stank of ruin, decay, and violent, premature death. “Don't push me, Edward,” he said, from between his clenched teeth. “I'm out of patience.”
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