“Let’s try,” he murmured, his lips brushing the spot on her neck he’d discovered, the one that made her moan softly and shiver against him. “The thing is, you might not want to know anything about me, but I want to know all about you.” He traced a finger down the front of her T-shirt.
“You already know more than anyone.”
“That’s not enough,” he said, right before he kissed her. A kiss that started out soft and sweet but soon took her breath away as his mouth took hers more deeply. And then her T-shirt was off, over her head and on the floor, and she was against his chest, her soft moans telling him everything he needed to know.
21
Five days laterAVA HAD BEEN ALLOWED to stop at her house that morning to grab what she’d come to call her trial clothes—black skirt, jacket and shoes. All stylish and conservative, and somber enough for the proceedings, because today, more than ever, was about serious business.
Today’s proceedings would implicate Robert Mercer and the O’Rourkes. If things went well, there would be warrants for arrests made, both on state and federal levels. Once that happened, the two could fight it out for who got to prosecute. The main thing was that those men would be off the streets and out of business before they could ever hope to grow into a larger crime syndicate, which was where they were headed.
If Susie hadn’t shown up today, the abuse charges would have been canceled and in spite of Leo’s testimony, the illegal business dealings would have been difficult to prove and the New York D.A. would be back to the drawing board in terms of moving forward to trial.
But Susie had been there, just as she and Ava had planned weeks earlier. The women had hugged one another under the watchful eye of Karen and a few federal marshals.
The woman who’d left Ava and Callie’s care three short weeks before appeared to be a changed person. And not just on the outside. Okay, she’d dyed her normally blond hair a rich shade of brown and had it cut short, but there was a glow of freedom to her cheeks that had been missing before. It was as if Susie had tasted happiness and wasn’t going back to her old life.
Ava was more than happy to make sure that didn’t happen.
Now, with a tug to her jacket’s sleeves, she faced Susie, who sat patiently on the witness stand. Robert Mercer had insisted on being at the proceedings, and Ava was impressed at how well Susie was handling that.
There had been no time to truly prepare Susie for the questions, but most times, Ava found that to be for the best. The natural, underlying emotion of Susie’s admissions as to what her life had been like since marrying a secret brother of a powerful drug family had the jury—and the judge—riveted. It was the stuff of heartbreaking television drama, made that much more heart-stopping because it was all true. And, with all eyes focused on Susie, Ava kept her questions brief so she could be all but invisible.
Today was not the day for her to shine.
0220 hours
SINCE THIS WAS a co-mission with a group of Deltas, Justin and his CO stayed aboard their ship by day, acting like tourists looking for some good fishing off the coast of the Horn of Africa.
At night, Justin and Hollywood slipped off the boat and did their jobs. Recon this trip involved a lot of time in the deep blue sea. They’d spent the better part of seventy-two hours fighting the night tides to get to the exact spot Justin had pinpointed days earlier on paper.
Now his camo face paint was slightly smeared from the swim but still effective enough. He and Hollywood treaded around the steel platform of the oil rig in order to reach the beach on the left side. Justin had discovered a path three nights earlier that led directly to the compound, which the CIA believed to be a training ground for terrorist operatives.
After several nights of recon, he believed that the CIA was right on target.
Once on the beach, they crawled to wait in the cover of the cove, until the sights and sounds and smells became familiar to them again. As soon as they’d acclimated well enough to know that tonight was business as usual, they’d make their next crucial move.
It was as good as it got—the night was slightly overcast—no stars and barely a moon.
The only thing on his mind was staying undetected and collecting intel. Two things he excelled at. He and Hollywood communed in near silence as they watched the progression of terrorists slip into the camp.
There were usually at least twenty men acting as guards around the perimeter, and about thirty more who showed up for training. Which meant there was a cache of weapons, equipment and plans.
Yeah, this place had to come down.
On his belly, Justin memorized coordinates and weaponry and counted men until the numbers began to match consistently.
He spoke quietly into his mic. “I can get in there for a better count.”
A better count meant less risk for the team who would ultimately take down this terrorist training camp.
“Fifteen minutes,” Hollywood said. “I’ll cover you.” Hollywood was the team’s best sniper. There was no better man to watch his back in this situation as he commando crawled silently through the brush. He was beyond thinking. He was all training and focus, and nothing else mattered. Not the bugs or the heat or the light rain that fell. No, he was aware of all those things that could alert him to both safety and danger, but they’d all become a part of him that he couldn’t separate from.
He’d moved so slowly through the brush that every second seemed like an hour. Still, the time Hollywood had doled out to him was in the forefront of his mind as he maneuvered around the back of the makeshift building they thought was the armory. Justin pushed through the door slowly.
There were enough weapons here for an entire platoon, and then some. Lockers for forty-five men lined one wall. All of them taken.
As carefully as he’d come, he made the long, silent crawl back to where Hollywood waited.
Intel received. Time to go home.
They humped it to the beach and in tandem they slipped beneath the surface of the cool black water to let the current carry them to the waiting ship.
LEO HADN’T BEEN ABLE to sit still through the last half of the grand jury proceedings, although Callie knew he’d done his best to tamp it down. Months of undercover work, of nonstop action and adrenaline proved that he wouldn’t be able to ride a desk anytime soon.
Still, he’d calmed somewhat when she’d laid a hand over his, and he’d beamed with pride at the way Ava handled things.
“Grand jury proceedings aren’t usually my thing,” he told her hours later as he loosened his tie and slid out of his jacket even before they were down the courthouse steps.
“Today went really well,” she said. “It was everything Ava had hoped for.” They’d waited around to speak with her after the trial but had barely gotten to say congratulations before Karen whisked her away.
She suspected the only reason she wasn’t whisked away herself by the DEA was because she had her own personal agent.
“The actual trial doesn’t start for a few weeks,” he said as they lagged behind some of the crowd to avoid the telltale press cameras. “I’m testifying, which means I need to lay low. I’ll be working out of the office back in Virginia. I’ll have lots of time on my hands. And you shouldn’t be staying here in the city alone.”
“You want me to go back home with you.”
“I want you to go back home with me,” he agreed. “I’ll bring you to the city in time for the trial.”
She’d already been staying with him for the past week, most of that time absorbing all the things she hadn’t wanted to know about him.
The fact that he was a DEA agent. The way he held her at night, not too smothering, just enough to make her feel comfortable and safe.
The picture of him and Ava she’d discovered on his desk three days before they were due to leave for New York…
“Did you know? About me, I mean,” she’d asked.
“I put two and two together after a while,” he admitted. “She knows you’r
e all right.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I wanted you all to myself for a while.”
“Ava’s brother…I should have known. Both of you are so…stubborn.”
“I’m stubborn?” he asked with a laugh. “Okay, sure, if that’s the way you want to play it, I’m the stubborn one.”
Now, Callie took his hand and let him guide her through the throng along the courthouse steps, appreciating both his masculine strength and his respect for her.
As he turned back to smile at her, with a look in his eyes that said, I know, she knew, too, that letting Leo help her take the lead now and again wasn’t all bad. Not at all.
He waited, because he knew she got what he was asking. They began walking along the busy Manhattan sidewalk, moving fast since they were caught up in the notorious street traffic.
“I’m going to help Susie,” she called to him above the hustle and bustle. “She’ll have round-the-clock protection until this is all over, but then what?”
“Yeah, what about after the trial ends?” To bypass the crowds, they’d stopped and taken shelter against a nearby building.
“She wants me to eventually help her acclimate to her new life. And before you tell me, yes, I know even then it still wouldn’t be the safest, but I think—”
“I think this means you’re sticking around,” he said. “I think it means you won’t be that far from me.”
“No, only a couple of hours on the shuttle.”
“And who knows…once Susie’s settled, maybe I can persuade you to make a move. I mean, we need social workers where I live, too.” He paused. “You know, what you want to do, and what Susie wants to do, isn’t going to be easy.”
“Susie said if they want to come get her now for all the things she’s talked about, that it doesn’t matter. That she did what she needed to, and won’t live in fear any longer.”
“Brave woman,” he murmured, tugging Callie in close to him. “I’m surrounded by brave women.”
“And you’re happy about that.”
“Very.”
She’d been pulling him closer, too, her fingers locking around his belt loops right in the middle of downtown Manhattan. “Me, too.”
And just like that, Callie knew she’d finally found her way home.
22
AVA COULDN’T REMEMBER a time she’d felt more drained after questioning a witness. She’d been in front of a grand jury before, but this questioning was more important than just taking down the O’Rourkes. It was helping her brother, Susie and Callie, and made sure that everything they’d done over the past days and months and years wasn’t for nothing. An awesome responsibility, and one she relished.With Leo and Callie supporting her, Ava got through it. And while she wouldn’t be lead counsel, or any counsel at all once the actual trial began, she’d been there in the clutch.
Susie’s appearance, along with Leo’s testimony, rocked the courthouse. And now, Ava was free. Free to stay in New York and go back to the D.A.’s office or free to go to the DEA.
Free. And still, no word from Justin.
She’d thought about calling him at least once every hour the first few days they’d been apart. She assumed the obsession would wane. But by the time the trial was over and it hadn’t, she knew it was time to act. And a phone call wasn’t going to cut it.
By ten that morning, she’d gained admittance onto the base thanks to a call from Leo. She drove the rental car behind the military jeep that escorted her to the SEALs area. The marine in the jeep pointed to a building close to the beach and she waved in thanks.
She was out of her car and in that building in record time, without knocking.
“Hey.” A man dressed in jungle BDUs came out of nowhere, held out a hand and blocked her path. He wasn’t as tall as Justin, but he was pretty big. And good-looking, too. “This is a restricted area.”
She fumbled in her bag for the ID they’d given her. “I’m looking for—”
“I don’t care who you’re looking for. This is a restricted area, ma’am, and you’ll have to leave,” the man repeated, his tone leaving no room for argument.
Well, no room for most people, anyway. “I’m not leaving,” she said.
He tried to brush past her, but she put her hand out and grabbed his arm. His blue eyes flashed and then, just as suddenly as the anger showed, it disappeared.
“Please,” she started over. “I’m looking for—”
“Justin.”
“Yes. I’m—”
“Ava.”
“Are you going to finish all my sentences?”
He stood in front of her as if forming a protective wall between her and his friend.
Which really, she had to admire. “I’m in love with him,” she said.
The man drew himself up sharply, stared into her eyes to gauge the truth in her words.
She must’ve passed the lie detector test because he stuck his hand out. “I’m Cash.”
She took his hand in hers. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”
“Ditto.”
They smiled at one another. “Are you going to help me find him?”
Cash paused for a second. “I’d like to help you, Ava, but I can’t. Justin’s not here right now.”
She stared into Cash’s bluer-than-blue eyes for a second, thinking he was merely trying to put her off again, until her stomach knotted and she finally got what he was telling her. “He’s really not here.”
“Right.”
“Has he been gone…long?” she asked.
Cash shifted, looked over his shoulder before answering her. “Not too long. A few weeks.”
“Have you heard anything? I mean, does he check in?”
Cash didn’t answer.
He can’t answer you.
But that logic didn’t stop her from feeling dizzy.
“Hey, Ava. Ava?” Cash’s voice sounded kind of far away and she heard a rush of other voices around her. In seconds, she was being picked up and carried, then set down somewhere and instructed to put her head between her legs and breathe.
“Bring her some Gatorade or something,” she heard someone drawl, a southern accent, but different from Justin’s.
“Justin,” she whispered just for the hell of it.
“No, sorry, ma’am. I’m Rev.”
She looked into the eyes of a dark-haired man who handed her a drink that was blue. She took a few tentative sips while the men around her spoke to one another.
“I don’t understand it. One second she was asking about Justin, the next, she was fainting,” Cash was saying.
“What did you tell her about Justin?”
“Just that he’s not here right now.”
“Jesus, Cash, you scared her. She’s freaked about us as it is,” Rev said.
“About us?” Cash asked.
“Yeah, like what we do for a living. Her dad was Delta. She gets it too much.”
The men were all looking at her. She wondered if her tongue was blue, and what they would do if she stuck it out at them.
She didn’t bother to find out. “Yes, I get it too much. Your job freaks me out. I already told Justin that. So I just don’t get it. I want to know how the women in your lives handle all of this. Because, so far, I’m not doing a very good job of it.”
“You’re freaked out about our job and want to know how the women in our lives handle it?” Hunt repeated, as if it was the most ridiculous question in the entire world. “How about how we deal with the women in our lives?”
“What is he talking about?” she asked Rev, who just shrugged. “What are you talking about?” she asked Hunt.
“The women in our lives happen to think that living dangerously applies to them. And when we tell them that what they’re doing is dangerous and maybe, maybe they could just slow down or look around or listen to us, because we know what we’re talking about, do they listen? No!” Hunt looked to Cash for support.
“Seriously. Rina doesn’t listen to
me when I ask her to maybe rethink where she’s shooting her documentary. I mean, freakin’ Botswana?” Cash stared at Ava as though she knew how to stop this Rina person.
“Carly wants to surf Pipe again. ‘Just for fun,’ she says. Yeah, fun.”
“Carly’s pro-surfing career ended at Pipe,” Rev explained. “It was pretty bad, but she seems to be over the fear.”
“And then there’s you,” Hunt said, and he and Cash both stared her down.
“Me?”
“Yes, getting involved in this case the way you did without thinking about your own personal safety,” Hunt said.
“And you’d do it again, wouldn’t you?” Cash asked before turning to Hunt. “That’s what Rina always says. ‘I’d do it again, John.’ Like calling me by my first name is going to get through to me.” Cash snorted.
“Carly was surfing with a broken collarbone last week. Said, ‘It’s already broken, so what’s the harm?’” Hunt shared an exasperated look with her.
She looked at Rev.
“Don’t look at me—I’m single,” he said.
“The thing is, we encouraged them to do these things, live their dreams. They were all worried about us—the work we do. And now Rina’s going back to Botswana,” Cash finished, as though that explained everything.
The strange thing was, it did.
“You’re a good match for Justin,” Rev stage-whispered. “That’s what they’re telling you, in case you didn’t get it.”
“I get it, Rev,” she said. “For the first time, I get it.”
AN HOUR LATER, Ava was standing outside watching the men, Cash, Hunt and Rev, debate each other at the corner of the beach near the parking lot. Rev quit the discussion and offered to drive her car back to where she was staying.
Before she could reply that she hadn’t figured that one out yet, the men began to argue again, and a convertible pulled up with surfboards sticking out of the opened rooftop. A tall, blond, athletic-looking woman got out of the car, and Hunt, who’d been yelling the loudest, came right over to her. His eyes locked on the woman’s, who could only be Carly of the broken collarbone, and even Ava’s stomach flipped a little because of the way Hunt looked at her.
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