Intercepted Risk (Aegis Group Task Force Book 5)

by Sidney Bristol

  Logan was very lucky no one had wandered into the bathroom during that scuffle. It could have turned out to be a disaster.

  What the hell was Oliver’s objective, anyway? Why a knife? If they were concealing a weapon, it would have been just as easy to hide a gun, too.

  Well, maybe not. Men’s bathrooms were sparse compared to women’s. For all she knew, a knife was all that Oliver’s people could hide for him.

  The presence of the knife created a new issue. They hadn’t known to suspect someone who already had building access. Which meant they needed to be aware of everyone and not just those on their list.

  She darted a look around the office, peering into all the doorways, nooks and crannies.

  Logan was nowhere to be seen.

  Had he finally left?

  She didn’t need to know that.

  This was her chance. If he hadn’t left, it might be her only chance.

  Kelsey shoved her arms into her coat, shouldered the tote and grabbed the flowers. With luck, she’d slip out of the building before Logan got back from his last round of whatever he was doing. He’d been hanging around despite the senator ducking out early and only taking one bodyguard with him. The rest of the security team had trickled out since then until Logan was all that was left.

  She knew he was hoping to glean information somehow, but the problem there was that other than the list she’d gotten in the senator’s office, nothing else was out of line.

  He was a hit with the other two women in the office. Kelsey was already annoyed at having to listen to someone else extol his physical virtues. Every time those women opened their mouths to make a comment, she wanted to staple their lips shut. It was an irrational reaction. Logan wasn’t hers. They weren’t anything to each other. And she needed to remember that.

  One last glance at her desk and Kelsey was off the hook. For tonight, at least.

  Everything was tucked away. She’d even wiped it down for good measure.

  “Night,” she called out over her shoulder and nudged the door open.

  As expected, the hall was empty. No other employees, and especially no Logan.

  She didn’t breathe easy until she set foot outside and the chilly air sliced through her coat. Her teeth chattered, and she cursed the decision to wear even low heels. It wasn’t like she could jog to the subway or anything.

  Sneakers. She’d have to pack sneakers, so she didn’t freeze to death.

  Kelsey’s stomach growled. She couldn’t wait to get home, put on fuzzy pajamas and reheat her leftovers. A warm meal in the comfort of her own home would be nice.

  Given that she hadn’t lived in DC before joining the task force, Zora had arranged for her to move into one of the last units open where the guy’s lived. It was one of the nicer places she’d lived over the years, even if her furniture was all hand-me-downs.

  Ahead of her, a man pushed up off a bench. The movement startled her, and only then did she realize her error. No part of her had been aware of her surroundings. Given what they were doing and what had transpired today, that wasn’t good.

  The man kept getting taller and taller...

  Her stomach knotted and dread settled on her shoulders.

  He was worse than an adversary, that was for sure.

  It was the knit cap. That was what had thrown her off.

  Logan turned his head. His dark, chocolate brown eyes landed on her and a wave of warmth swept through her body. Her teeth even stopped chattering.

  “They finally let you go?” he asked.

  She stopped on the sidewalk and shivered, but not from the cold.

  Well shit.

  It wasn’t fair. How was it the rough-cut man could look this good in a suit and a freaking beanie? Throw on that coat and she wanted nothing more than to snuggle up to him right here and now.

  He was probably a human furnace. Guys that big often were in her experience.

  Inwardly, she groaned. Being alone with him was the one thing she’d been trying to avoid.

  The holidays were making her weird. That had to be it. This whole issue was in her head.

  “That wasn’t creepy at all.” She took a step forward and then another. Her knees didn’t give way.

  Logan fell in beside her, sparing a glance over her shoulder. “I wasn’t going to leave you walking alone.”

  “I’m a big girl.”

  He snorted and glanced down at her.

  She glared back. “If I had a hand free, I’d punch you right now.”

  Logan’s lips twisted into an almost smile for half a second. He quickly schooled his face into a serene mask.

  That lack of expression made her want to kick him in the shin, just so he’d look human and less god-like.

  “Who sent you the flowers?” he asked.

  Kelsey hugged the vase a little tighter. “None of your business.”

  Her mind screamed at her.

  What was her deal? Why was she saying something so childish? Wasn’t she the one who’d committed to not starting anything with him?

  The card simply said, from your super fly guys.

  It was from his team. His guys. But really, only because she’d told them the gesture would help make her seem more normal. She’d given the guys the bare minimum for a flower order, yet it was clear they’d gone over her meager budget. It was a gesture that likely meant nothing to them, yet she cherished it. Sure, the guys were a mix of nice and annoying, but she liked them.

  Well, all of them except Logan. Her twisted irritation and attraction toward him was a problem.

  They walked several yards with nothing else said. The silence was colder than the weather, and her momentary warmth soon faded. No doubt he wanted to order her around. That hadn’t exactly gotten him what he wanted before today, so silence reigned.

  “Oliver is in custody,” Logan said out of nowhere.

  “Good. I had faith you could manage taking out the trash.”

  “His cell phone and wallet are missing.” Logan glanced at her. “We put his cell phone in an evidence bag and that bag went into a briefcase that was handed off to Diha directly. Ethan recorded us doing just that as proof, but it’s still gone.”

  “What?” She gaped at him.

  “They’re still working through where and how it went missing.”

  “Shit,” Kelsey groaned. “God damn it.”

  They were doing their best to be extra vigilant and still the mole had the upper hand? How?

  “It has to be someone high level,” he continued. “They knew exactly how Oliver and the briefcase would be moved about and where our blind spots are. Diha thinks this person arranged the blind spots, which means we’re probably looking at someone who was on the task force from day one.”

  “And someone high up,” Kelsey muttered.

  “Yeah.” Logan grimaced. “Diha is going to be installing a second system of security cameras to try to catch them if they do this again. I don’t know how she’ll pull off doing it with no one seeing, especially if our mole is watching us this closely.”

  “That’s ballsy.” Kelsey looked up at Logan. “I mean, think about it. Yeah, they’ve fucked us over before, but never in our own building. They’re desperate because we’re on the right path.”

  “But how did they know?”

  She didn’t have an answer.

  Logan stared at her profile for a moment before looking away.

  She’d always been able to trust the people in her corner. This whole situation made her sick to her stomach. The wounds of betrayal would no doubt only deepen when they learned who it was.

  “Oliver had someone in the building helping him,” she said.

  Logan’s head whipped around. “What?”

  “Think about it. He didn’t come in with that knife. I got a look at it, and that thing was heavy duty. No way he got that past the metal detectors.” She glanced at him.

  Logan’s brows were drawn down into a dark, ominous line. “It wasn’t coincidence he went in there
then?”

  “No.” She shook her head.

  “There’d be no reason for our mole to be in on that, so Skilton has someone else there. Someone watching the senator we don’t know about.”

  “My thoughts exactly.”

  Logan muttered something under his breath she couldn’t make out.

  Things weren’t looking very good if they were already getting tripped up by the mole. People had died at the hands of the mole. What if one of them were next?

  She hoped he didn’t beat himself up for missing those details. Logan and his team were great at what they did, but they weren’t exactly used to being covert. It’s why she’d never suspected them. Truth was, none of the guys were wired that way.

  Which left pretty much everyone else. And that was the problem. They had a task force full of intelligence officers and staff used to keeping secrets from the people in their lives. Now the only difference was that they were turning those skills on the very people who relied on them.

  Kelsey’s mind went back to the odd text from Nadine and her stomach knotted. It had been such an innocent thing. And yet, Kelsey couldn’t let it go. She thought it was highly unlikely a mole of this nature would reveal themselves in such a clumsy manner. They wouldn’t show their hand like that.

  Would they?

  She grimaced at the thought and shook her head. This whole exercise went against who and what Kelsey was. She struggled to visualize herself in the mole’s shoes like this.

  Whoever it was, Kelsey hoped the betrayal was worth it. She didn’t think this person was acting out of a sense of gain. These risks were too high if the goal was simply profit. No, there had to be some other motive. Something more valuable than money on the line. But what? And how did they begin to understand that and deal with it? Or was she being too optimistic? Was this person selling themselves out simply to reap the rewards of a fat payout?

  THURSDAY. WASHINGTON, DC.

  Logan gripped the handrail overhead tighter as the floor shuddered and the train turned. Kelsey’s slight body rocked back against his as the train shifted. He’d mistakenly thought accompanying her home was a good idea. Gentlemanly, even.

  Clearly it was torture. She wasn’t even doing it purposefully, which was worse. Despite the normal crowds, the train was still packed for the evening commute. Kelsey had refused a seat twice now and wouldn’t allow him to give her a hand.

  Why did she have to be so stubborn?

  To make matters worse, Logan had to insert himself between Kelsey and some creep who’d been getting too close to her backside. Unfortunately, that now meant he was close enough that she swayed against him from time to time and that was pure torture.

  The floral aroma of the bouquet wafted past him. He grit his teeth against the surge of jealousy.

  Who the hell was sending her flowers? And why didn’t he know about it?

  Logan had no right to be grumpy. None whatsoever. For all he knew, her FBI handlers had sent the vase over. But without knowing that, he couldn’t stop obsessing over the tiny detail that someone that wasn’t him had sent her fucking flowers.

  Why hadn’t he thought of that?

  It wasn’t like he could do such a thing. She’d probably twist it into an insult. Besides, a gesture of that nature could reveal too much. It was one thing for Jamie and Evan to develop connections in relation to their job. Logan was different. He was the Team Leader. He shouldn’t be entertaining an attraction to someone who worked under him. Especially not now, when their jobs were so closely intertwined.

  This sucked.

  He tipped his head back.

  One more stop and then he’d be free. Though that only made him think about the rest of the journey. He’d left his Jeep at the station.

  They should consider carpooling tomorrow. It seemed silly to take two vehicles when they lived in the same building. Then again, that was another fifteen minute drive where they’d be in close proximity to one another.

  Maybe that wasn’t such a great idea.

  Kelsey glanced over her shoulder. “You ready to go to the senator’s place tomorrow?”

  “Should be fun,” he said dryly.

  She tipped her head back and laughed. “My thoughts exactly. God, it’s going to be bad, isn’t it? At least you get to walk around and look intimidating. I’m kind of dreading what they’ll have me do.”

  The train coasted into the station. People shifted around them, jockeying to get closer to the door. Logan braced his feet, doing what he could to break through the crowd, so they didn’t plow over Kelsey. At least one guy elbowed Logan as he passed, which said more about him than Logan.

  He shuffled off the train behind Kelsey, sticking close to her side.

  Logan hadn’t brought it up yet, but part of him was worried she might become a target. It was she who’d uncovered the list of names. Clearly placing her in the senator’s office was the right move for the Task Force. But at what cost? How long until this mole—one of them—got desperate and went after their own team?

  Thoughts like that were keeping Logan up at night. He watched over his shoulder and studied everyone that got too close.

  “Sheesh, want to cut out the mean mugging? Someone’s going to report you for that,” Kelsey said.

  “Huh? What?” Logan whipped his head around.

  She hadn’t been looking at him. How did she know?

  Kelsey grinned and chuckled. She pat his arm. “You are so obvious.”

  “Obvious?”

  “You’ve got to loosen up more. Act natural. Stop actively scanning the crowds and looking for a threat. Use reflective surfaces more. Observe out of the corner of your eye.”

  He closed his mouth and decided to say nothing. This was about as pleasant an exchange as they’d ever had. No part of him was about to ruin that by being defensive. He hadn’t thought he was being too obvious, but what did he know?

  Logan’s training was combat and high conflict situations where the threat was overt.

  Kelsey’s was in spy shit.

  She nudged him. “Look at that vending machine. See the reflection?”

  “Yes,” he groused.

  “You can see that blonde woman checking you out.”

  What the hell?

  Kelsey snickered. “On my goodness, don’t look at her. That face would turn her to stone.”

  “She was not...whatever,” he muttered.

  “Relax, grumpy pants.”

  He slowed, allowing Kelsey to step ahead of him and through the turnstile. She pushed through, glanced back at him. “Need me to get her number for you?”

  “No. Where are you parked?”

  Kelsey arched a brow. “Why? Stalking me now?”

  “Stop being a brat,” he snapped. Logan immediately regretted his sharp words. Why did she have to be so irritating?

  Kelsey didn’t seem to take any offense. She merely grinned at him as if he’d just given her the best gift.

  The woman was impossible.

  “This way,” she said in a sing-song voice.

  Logan kept pace with her, hands in his pockets. He glanced over at her profile again.

  “I was thinking, would it be easier if we carpooled?” he asked.

  “Hm, depends.” She peered up at him, eyes narrowed. “What kind of music do you like?”

  He frowned. “What kind of question is that?”

  “An important one.”

  He shrugged. “Whatever’s on, I guess. I’m not picky.”

  “I don’t know,” she said slowly. “I might let you ride with me. I’ll think about it.”

  Logan opened his mouth to tell her that wasn’t what he’d intended, then thought better of it. What did it matter who drove so long as they got to their final destination?

  Though his luck would be that she drove a tiny car and his knees would be in his chest the whole ride.

  Kelsey shifted the flowers and began digging in her bag.

  “Want help with that?” he asked.

  S
he glanced at him, then held the vase out. He took it without another word and kept walking. She resumed digging in her purse for her keys.

  Logan eyed the bouquet.

  Who sent it to her?

  He peered at the blossoms, noting the card stand. But no card.

  “Still trying to find out who sent them?” Kelsey asked.

  Logan lifted his chin and stared straight ahead.

  She laughed. “This is me.”

  He glanced up at possibly the biggest truck he’d ever seen. And he’d been around quite a few. Tucker, his second in command, also had a thing for trucks but his was at least reasonable compared to the one ton monstrosity filling out all of the parking space.

  Logan whistled and reached out, opening the driver’s side door for Kelsey.

  “Thanks.”

  “And here I was thinking you might drive that little red thing in the parking lot,” he mused.

  “Oh, hell no. Whatever I drive, I want it to be built like a tank.” She grabbed the handhold and used it to hoist herself into the driver’s seat.

  He’d never seen a person actually need those to enter their vehicle before.

  Was it cute? Or scary?

  Kelsey perched on the edge with her feet hanging over the side of the seat. She grinned at him, clearly amused by his reaction.

  “Flowers?” She held out her hands.

  He glanced down at them.

  Just who the hell sent them to her?

  “You’re too easy, you know that? Chill.” She leaned out and plucked the vase from his hands. Her mouth curved into a smile he rarely saw. It was a softer, more private kind of smile, and she was giving it to a bunch of dying flowers.

  Great.

  Now he was jealous of fucking flowers.

  Logan gripped the door, still watching her. He’d be a fool if he didn’t admit that the things that drew him to Kelsey were also the things that frustrated him the most.

  “There’s no secret admirer, grumpy pants.” She glanced up and smirked. “I had the guys send them.”

  “You—what?” He frowned.

  Kelsey twisted and put the flowers somewhere out of sight, giving him a moment to process that admission. The guys? As in his team? Why hadn’t he known? Had she intentionally left him out of that task?