He slapped his friend on the back. “Keep your head up J. You only have, what, two and a half more months?”
“Yeah, but the question is, will I survive them?”
Still chuckling, Junjie made his way out.
“Take it easy, man,” he called after his friend, who waved over his shoulder as he sidled out.
That left him alone with her, again.
His plan was to get the hell out of there before she said anything. But just as he tried to ease out the door, she called his name.
“John, wait.”
He stopped, but didn't turn around. “Yes, Lieutenant?”
“Why are you being so formal with me?”
“Isn't that how I'm supposed to address my superior?” He turned around, leveling his serious gaze on her. “Surely, you don't think you're more than that to me, do you?”
Her lip trembled, her eyes becoming wet. “How can you say that?”
He folded his arms across his chest. “After the way you behaved, I don't know why you're surprised.”
“What if I wanted to apologize?”
He kept his gaze impassive. “Why should you apologize? You were just showing me who you really are.”
Her expression changed, as if his words stung. She wiped at her eyes with one hand, clutching her purse with the other. “Oh, I see. Then I guess I'll see you here next weekend, Agent Groves.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, she stalked past him without making eye contact. He stood in the corridor and watched as she barreled toward the door, head down, and finally out into the crisp night air.
On the heels of her exit, he felt a twinge of something. It made him wonder if he'd been too hard on her. But if she was that kind of woman, who let jealousy overrule common decorum and could let it make her act so childish in public, he knew it would never work between them.
Sexy as the Lieutenant may be, I've got to focus on the mission now.
Resolved to put her out of his mind, he made his way down the silent hallway and left the building the same way he'd come in.
**
Monday morning, Tatiana rolled out of bed around nine. She would usually be on her way to the shop, but she’d taken two weeks off to deal with all the tasks involved in getting ready for the upcoming mission. With less than a week left before the bust, she needed to make sure all the supplies, agents, and vehicles she needed would be in place. There was no way she was going to waste a golden opportunity like this to bag the bad guys.
Finding a clue like the one John had delivered was a rare occurrence. Thinking about how valuable the clue was made her think about him again. As she showered and dressed, she did her best to push away the thoughts of him. He was angry at her, and she supposed he had a right to be. Right now, she needed to focus on the mission, instead of wondering what kind of relationship they might have built.
Dressed in a pair of black jeans and a long sleeved red tee shirt, she sat down on the couch with a mug of Earl Grey tea in one hand and a stack of papers in the other. Rifling through them, she read through the information PHOENIX intelligence had gathered about the Port of Wilmington, including a map that showed how the place was laid out. All of her team members had received the same information via the secure PHOENIX server over the weekend, along with instructions from Dr. Black that they should familiarize themselves with everything the packet contained.
She was immersed in a passage about the CSX station when her house phone rang. Reaching to the side coffee table for the cordless extension, she answered it.
“Hello?”
“Hey, sis. It’s Tara.”
She smiled at hearing her sister’s voice. “Hey, Tara, what’s going on?”
“I could ask you the same thing. Ralph called me and said you took a two week vacation. What’s wrong?”
She sighed. My best friend, the Mouth of the South. “I don’t know why Ralph called you, but why does something have to be wrong? Can’t I just take a vacation?”
Tara laughed. “Um, no, you can’t. You rarely ever take vacations, you and I both know that. Plus, Ralph mentioned a man.”
She placed a hand on her temple. “Tara, I just needed some time away from the shop.” No matter how many questions her sister asked, she wasn’t revealing anything. Tara had no idea PHOENIX existed, and she planned on keeping it that way. “Is there something you wanted, besides to get all up in my business?”
“Actually, I got called in to work today. I was wondering if you can look after Ava for a few hours.”
Hearing her niece's name brought a smile to her face. “Sure, if it’s a short shift.”
“Yep. I’m only working from four to eight. The store’s a little short handed.”
Part of her wanted to tell Tara to move on from the boutique she worked at, but her baby sister felt she was suited to retail. “What time will you bring Ava over?”
“Around three, so I can get there on time.”
“I'll be here. But let them know you can't work anymore surprise shifts this week. I'll be busy.”
“Doing what?” Tara asked.
“None-ya.” She laughed. “There are some things about me you don't need to know, dear little sister.”
“If you say so.” Tara chuckled. “I'll see you later.”
“Bye.”
As she placed the phone back in its cradle, she thought about what she could do with Ava for the afternoon. Forcing Ava to sit around the house and watch her study the case files would be unfair. Deciding to take her niece to a movie, she took a long sip of her tea and went back to reading over the papers in her lap.
As the time for Ava to be dropped off got closer, she put away the files she was reading and checked the movie listings online. Finding a kid friendly movie and a showtime she could manage, she sighed. She knew Brier Creek was the closest theater, and that being over there would remind her of what an ass she'd made of herself that night. Regardless, there was no way she was driving across town to Southpoint—with gas prices being what they were, it just wasn't practical. She'd have to just suck it up.
Soon she heard the doorbell ringing repeatedly, followed by peals of girlish laughter. Shaking her head, she opened the door, and Ava was standing on her stoop, grinning. She was wearing the cutest little purple corduroy jumper dress, a white turtleneck, and white tights. Her hair was in the two Afro-puffs it stayed in most of the time.
“Hey, Auntie Ti-ti.” She pushed her pink metal-rimmed glasses up her nose with a dainty finger.
“Hey, sweetie.” She stooped down to hug her niece. Waving to Tara, who was idling at the curb, she ushered her inside. “What do you say we go and see a movie?”
Ava's brown eyes lit up. “Can we have ice cream after?”
“We'll see.” She knew they probably would. Saying no to her only niece had to be one of the hardest things on Earth. “Let me get my purse and we'll go.”
Flopping down on the couch, Ava nodded.
Once she'd gotten her handbag, they were on their way.
CHAPTER 11
In the fading evening light, she searched her mind for a solution. She paced the floor, barely able to control her anger and frustration. How could she have let her baby sister take on a mission alone? It was supreme stupidity, and now they were going to pay for it.
Iris was sitting on her leather sofa, looking sheepish.
“I can't believe you dropped a code! And why did you wait so long to tell me?” It was only two days before the rendezvous, so it was too late to change the timetable. The Merchant would be waiting for them, and they had to produce the goods at the appointed time. She'd had no trouble plucking the Dare painting from the archives last night, but this little development threatened to ruin everything she'd worked so hard for.
Iris rolled her eyes. “Well, that's pretty obvious, Randy. Look how you're freaking out.”
She cut a disapproving look at her. “Baby sister, this is why I never let you do pickups on your own. You are way too careless.”
Iris shrugged, her shoulders bared by the cutouts in her top. “I'm sorry, okay? Look, it's no big deal. It's all in code. Nobody could figure it out.”
She stopped pacing and sighed. “Come on, Iris. There has to be someone who could break the code. Maybe not RPD, but what about the SBI? Or the Feds?”
The younger woman grew silent.
“That's what I thought.” She knew she shouldn't have let Iris go on a mission alone, no matter how much she'd begged. Now, they might all have to pay for her lapse in judgment.
Iris looked confused. “What do you mean?”
“Well, because of you, we might be intercepted. That means we need to be prepared. We're not shutting this operation down until we have enough money to take care of Mama to the fullest.”
She left the room, walking down the short hallway to her bedroom. Opening her closet, she reached up to the shelf and pulled down a small wooden chest. It held the only protection they had from the unexpected.
As she walked back to the living room with the chest in hand, she mused. Since the stroke, Mama had recovered pretty well. But she needed a twenty-four hour nurse. After all Mama had done for them she was going to get her due, no matter what it took.
She handed Iris the box. “Open it,” she insisted.
Nodding, Iris complied. Inside the box was a dagger, with an intricately carved gold handle. “What is this?” Her eyes were filled with a mixture of confusion and fear.
“It's a special dagger. I don't have time to do a lot of explaining. Just know that if you see someone on the other side using powers, use the dagger on them.”
Wide-eyed, Iris closed the box. “Okay, sis.”
She settled into the leather chair across from her over-eager younger sister, and wondered what else besides the Merchant might be waiting for them at the docks.
**
Saturday morning, John made his way into PHOENIX headquarters. The sun was shining overhead, but the air held a chill characteristic of late October in North Carolina. His loafers crunched on the gold and orange oak leaves carpeting the ground as he made his way inside, carrying his weekend duffel.
Inside the building, he deviated from his usual route, traveling past the conference room and to the stairwell in back. Once downstairs, he entered the tactical center, which was the only other room on the lower level with the training facility. The solid steel automatic doors parted as soon as he approached them, and closed behind him once he was inside.
The cavernous room was designed to look like the lair of a rich old scholar, with burgundy texture wallpaper and an oak chair rail extending around it. Having been in PHOENIX for a number of years, he knew better.
His male team members were seated on two armchairs, already wearing the standard issue tactical gear: the skin tight, navy blue full body jumpsuit bearing a black PHOENIX insignia. Marcelo, his face in a thick volume John assumed to be a spell book, barely looked up. Junjie waved, with the same grim look on his face he always had whenever he had to wear the suit.
He totally agreed with his friend's silent assessment. The suits looked ridiculous on men, but it was the organization policy. Dropping his duffel on the oriental rug near J's feet, he looked around.
He didn't see Tatiana, but he knew she must be there someplace. So, he went to the third wall panel on the right, and touched a hidden switch. He stepped back out of habit as the panel lifted and swung around vertically, revealing his personal tactical station. The lit glass shelves held several of the dreaded suits, firearms ranging from handguns to rifles, and an electronic communicator designed to fit in his ear.
He reached to the top shelf and grabbed the bag of herbs he'd gotten from Kristi Sorensen, the sorceress he'd been on a mission with last fall. He'd had to lift a heavy tractor trailer, and his powers had taken quite a hit. Kristi had been forced to rescue him, dragging his limp body away from the action. She'd mixed up this concoction to help restore his powers in case it happened again.
With his suit and tactical belt in hand, he slipped into the hidden room behind the shelves to change. When he returned, she was there.
She sat on the couch, one long leg thrown over the other. She held an open magazine with one hand, as the other smoothed over the low bun she'd placed her hair in. The tactical suit gripped her like a second skin, and he had to take a deep breath. This was as close as he'd gotten to seeing her naked in weeks. Just looking at her conjured up memories of her soft flesh beneath his hands. The way the fabric clung to her curvy frame threatened to make him lose focus on the mission, and that could turn out to be dangerous. So he tore his eyes away from her, and focused on adding a handgun and some tranquilizer darts to the pockets of his belt.
Once he had himself together, he picked a chair between Marcelo and J, and waited for her instructions.
Her eyes met his over the magazine, but her expression was unreadable. She dropped the magazine on the sofa next to her and stood. “All right, men. We are about to make the trip to Wilmington, so we can get to the docks and set up before the drop is made. We are going to bring these guys down.”
She emphasized the last sentence by pounding her fist into her hand, and they all nodded their agreement.
“Now, Marcelo has something for all of you.”
The sorcerer finally closed the heavy book and stood. He produced a burlap sack from behind his chair. “You will all be needing these.”
John couldn't hide his smile as Marcelo passed out black plastic water pistols.
Junjie chuckled. “Man, are you serious?”
Marcelo nodded. “Do you know a better way to deliver a potion like this?”
Junjie acquiesced. “Nope. You're the sorcerer.”
He took the gun that was offered to him without a word. He could hear the exchange, but couldn't tear his eyes away from her. She wasn't wearing any makeup, he could tell, but that only reminded him of the way she'd looked after a night in his bed. Her natural beauty was as striking as a sunset over Okracoke Island.
“Besides, these are high quality, custom made pistols. Trust me, they will do the job.” She holstered hers even as the words fell from her luscious, full lips.
Marcelo cleared his throat. “Let me explain the potion to you. It only takes a drop, anywhere on the skin, to render a sublimer's powers useless.” He placed his own pistol on his belt. “When it hits them, you'll see a yellowish glow. Also, it will stupefy them a bit, so they won't be lucid enough to flee.”
Junjie held up his pistol, gazing at it as if he'd gained a new respect for it. “Pretty impressive, Marcelo”
Tatiana glanced at her watch. “Our transport should be here any minute. This evening, we'll be staying in a rented condo near the port. A PHOENIX MMU, and a containment vehicle are already there, staffed and ready to haul away these guys once we bag them.”
Even though part of him hated having a female superior, he had to admit there was something very sexy about the Lieutenant when she took on this take-charge persona. The way she stood was mesmerizing—her pert chest thrust forward, fists propped on those ample, shapely hips. It was all he could do not to drool. Realizing she was still talking, and probably saying something important, he shook himself free of the spell she cast, and tried to focus on her words.
“Since we don't know the time of the exchange, we'll take up positions at the CSX terminal exactly at midnight.” Reaching behind her, she extracted a large, rolled piece of paper from a tube strapped to her back. Unrolling it on the polished oak coffee table in the center of the sitting area, she pointed to four marks on the map. “Junjie and I will cover the north and west sides. Marcelo, you and John will cover the south and east sides.”
They all indicated their understanding.
“Also, Marcelo,” she announced, re-rolling the map and placing it back in the sheath, “I'll need you to surround the area with a force field, to hamper any escape attempts.”
Marcelo nodded. “Not a problem, Lieutenant.”
“Good.” She
blew out a breath.
For a second, their eyes met. He could swear he saw a glimmer of something in her brown eyes, something that reached out to him. Wanting to coax it out of her, he held her gaze.
The look grew more intense by the moment.
Everything around them seemed to fade away as they stared at each other. He could hear her breath, coming faster and faster...
A loud, but familiar sound invaded his ears.
She broke the contact, shifting her gaze toward the window.
He followed her eyes, and saw the black skids of the chopper touch down on the helipad outside.
Embrace the Night Page 8
