Protecting his Witness (HERO Force Book 9)

by Amy Gamet

  The company had survived, but not unscathed. Even today they were haunted by the allegations. Some in the business refused to work with her father, though thankfully the US government, their largest client, wasn’t one of them.

  Then just last year The New York Times had come knocking, asking the same old questions that had nearly destroyed them so long ago. Something had stirred that pot again, but this time it was Summer who’d stepped up and defended her father and his company in the press.

  Now she knew it was Steven Walsh who was behind it, just as he’d been behind the explosion and Jacques’ death and the theft of the brancium. And if Luke Arroyo wanted to weigh in on the wrong side of that battle line, then it was just one more reason she should stay the hell away from him.

  "Are you okay?” he asked.

  “I’m fine.”

  “Are you ever going to speak to me?”

  “I said something about the snow a minute ago.”

  “You know what I mean.”

  "That depends. Are you going to bad-mouth my family?”

  "I wasn't bad-mouthing your father. I was just saying we should consider all the possibilities."

  "That is not a possibility. That's the problem. You are assuming he is a man who would do such a thing, and it’s clouding your vision about what’s really going on here.”

  "No, it’s not.”

  "Of course it is! Without that assumption, your whole argument falls flat."

  "It wasn't my argument. If you remember, it was Mac and Razorback who suggested it."

  "I don't care who suggested it. You agreed with it. And now you wonder why I’m angry?" She blew out air. "My father worked hard for his success. From day one, he's come up with the vast majority of our designs. He is Daniels Aerospace."

  "Then, what are you?"

  "Just an engineer who someday hopes to be half as good as he is.”

  "Are you sure this doesn't have anything to do with us kissing?"

  Fury burned in her chest. “You pompous ass. What, you think you touch my lips and I lose my mind? Sorry, but it wasn't that overwhelming. It was just a mistake, and a stupid one at that. It isn’t going to happen again."

  “Now, hang on a minute. You can be sorry it happened and you can be angry with me, but don’t pretend it was bad just to save face.”

  “I didn’t say it was bad, I said it was a mistake, just like you did before you even touched me. Does that bruise your enormous ego?”

  “What is it with you? You think you’ve got me pegged as an egotist and an asshole. Why? Because I’m a SEAL?”

  “That might have something to do with it, though the pompous part you earned all on your own.”

  “Holy mackerel.” He held up his hands. “I agree. Kissing you was a terrible idea.”

  “Exactly what I’m saying.”

  “You know what? Fine. Let’s get it all out in the open. I knew I had no business kissing you. I'm just not smart enough to listen to reason, even when it's my own, apparently."

  She shook her head, staring unseeing out her window. She didn't want to be here, didn’t want to have this conversation, and certainly didn’t want to need his protection. But what other options did she have? She was stuck with Luke Arroyo for the duration, unless she wanted to ask Mac for a changing of the guard.

  Luke spoke as if reading her mind. “I don’t have to be the one to protect you, you know. If you’re so unhappy, Mac can assign someone else.”

  Reluctance pulled at her. No matter how ticked off she was, she still didn’t want to swap him for a different SEAL.

  Admit it. You like fighting with him almost as much as you like kissing him.

  She was the damn basket case, not John Walsh. “No.” She resisted the urge to explain herself.

  Luke’s phone rang and he put on an earpiece before answering it. He said very few words to the caller. Affirmative this, roger that, then hung up. "We’re only about twenty-five minutes out of Boston,” he said to her. “Let's go over exactly how we're going to get into AGL Aerospace.”

  She sighed. “We went over this already.”

  “So go over it again. Practice makes perfect.”

  She rolled her eyes. “I’ll pretend to be a sales rep, and you guys will be my muscles, here to set up a booth for the engineers to get to know our new products. This is a small industry. I know who their vendors are. We all use the same suppliers.”

  "But wouldn't the receptionist know who the sales reps are?"

  "Not if someone was fired. There’s a lot of upheaval in sales. I just introduce myself as the new rep and convince her I am who I say I am."

  “Assuming she believes you, what happens if Walsh or your old IT person recognizes you while we're here?"

  "Can't you take care of that?"

  "How? You want me to club them over the back of the head for saying, ‘Hey, isn’t that Summer Daniels?’”

  She glared at him. He smiled, the cutest little dimple tucked into his stubble-covered cheek, and she cursed herself for noticing. If she was going to come out of this experience unscathed, she needed to keep her attention away from Luke’s little dimples and sexy stubble going forward. "You're very funny.”

  “Thank you. I like to think so."

  "You know what I like best about your sense of humor?"

  "What?"

  “Nothing.”

  He chuckled as he took the next exit, slowly turning onto the ramp.

  "Where are you going? AGL is two exits up from here."

  “The other guys are worried about someone recognizing you, too. That’s why they called. Razorback says there's a costume shop up here. A wig and some glasses would go a long way. Something to throw them off the scent so you won't be recognized."

  The other HERO Force vehicles exited the expressway as well, leading the way with Luke pulling up the rear. When they got to a small costume shop in a strip mall, he cut the engine, opened his wallet, and handed her a hundred-dollar bill. "I'm thinking blonde."

  “Of course you are. Men like you always like blondes.”

  He narrowed his eyes. “Men like me?”

  “You know.” She pantomimed a bodybuilder. “Big muscular guys with pretty faces and stupid girls falling at your feet, so that you’re stepping over their dingbat bodies every time you walk to the mirror to watch yourself flex.”

  He raised one eyebrow. “Wow.”

  Mac walked toward them and Luke rolled down his window. “I texted you a link,” he said. “Moto created an app using the 3D rendering of the AGL Aerospace blueprints. It can tell where you are and show you where you’re going, like virtual reality.”

  Luke’s eyes went wide. “He did this on the way here?”

  Mac laughed. “Yeah. He wasn’t driving.”

  “That guy freaks me out.”

  They were all a little bit too much for Summer. In less than a day they’d accomplished more than she knew was possible. “I’ll be back.”

  She pulled her coat tightly closed, squinting against the blowing snow and reminding herself she was lucky they were here to help her, but she didn’t feel so lucky. She felt sad and angry they were stirring up the past like a boat dredging a waterway.

  Especially Luke.

  Without them, you might be dead by now.

  She thought of the car that had tried to run her down. She was definitely lucky to be alive, but her life had been twisted and folded on itself, so many aspects of it barely recognizable.

  She tried on a blonde wig with short, trendy bangs and stared at her reflection. She looked wildly different, but it was her expression that really caught her attention. There was color in her cheeks and a determination in her eyes she hadn’t seen there in years. She looked fierce. Bold. Powerful.

  It was Luke. Fighting with Luke. Kissing Luke.

  He challenged her and excited her in ways no one had in ages. It wouldn’t be possible for her to keep that man in her life, no matter what happened in the next few days. But maybe it was time she mov
ed out of her comfort zone and made room for love in her life.

  Not with him, but with someone. Open herself up to change. She’d been stuck in the same place for far too long, but try as she might, she couldn’t conjure a picture of another man in her head besides that one.

  He made her heart beat faster and some vital piece of herself come alive. She turned away from the mirror, selecting a red wig instead. There was no way in hell she was going back out there in the blonde one.

  14

  Summer’s scalp itched, the wig and her nerves making her hot. She smiled at the receptionist, an older woman named Regina, who seemed just as happy to talk to Summer as to work. “Oh, I just love it,” said Summer, doing her best to gush like she’d seen other women do. “I’ve worked in the technology sector for quite some time, and let me tell you, Val Corp. is one of the best in the industry. The people are top-notch, and Danielle Spacey alone could've gotten me to work there for a dime-store salary. I know I'm just going to fit in so well there, you know?"

  The receptionist’s guard had gone up the moment Summer walked in the door, but now she smiled affably. "I hear lots of good things about Danielle. I know our last rep really enjoyed working with her."

  "Were y’all close? Because I know sometimes it can be so hard when someone new comes in. But I look forward to working with y'all just so much." Her face ached from the effort required to maintain her smile. The ones she dealt with always seemed cheerful. "I know once we get the booth set up and I get to know all of the engineers personally, we’re going to get along just great. Did you bring your lunch? Because I'm having our event catered at the booth in a couple of hours, and you're welcome to join us."

  The woman’s face lit up. “Oh, that's so nice of you. I would love to."

  Nothing like free food to open doors wide.

  Of course, they’d be long gone before lunchtime and the caterers were as imaginary as her sales job. "I just need to have my men come in and set up the booth. There are four of them. They'll need passes, of course."

  The receptionist tore off more visitor passes from a large roll, handing them to Summer. "Is that them, outside?"

  "It sure is.” She leaned in conspiratorially. “They are something to look at, aren't they? This is the fourth location where we set up the booth. And I so enjoy watching them work." She winked at the receptionist, who giggled.

  An alarm sounded in the distance. Summer cocked her head. "Oh my Lord, what is all that ruckus about?"

  The receptionist picked up her phone. "It's just one of the sensors on the testing floor. This happens sometimes."

  Summer put a hand to her chest. “I hope there's nothing wrong."

  "Oh, no. Worst-case scenario, the researchers just have to evacuate the testing facility for a little bit while the air is exchanged.”

  “I’ll just grab my team, then.” Summer pushed back outside. The wind was brutal, biting her skin. “Ready when you are, gentlemen. The air quality alarm is going off as planned.”

  “I can’t believe this stuff happens all the time,” said Razorback. “What’s the point in having an alarm if you can’t rely on it?”

  “Happens at Daniels at least once a month because our experiments can trigger the system. I told you. And we have to clear the floor, or else OSHA would have a field day.”

  Moto closed his laptop. "I have the sensors off-line for the next forty-five minutes, which should give you plenty of time to get in there while the place is empty.”

  Luke gestured toward the lobby with his chin. "Looks like you made quite a friend in there.”

  "I did. Turns out I could be pretty good at sales. But you better watch yourself. She's staring at your ass." She handed out the fluorescent orange visitor stickers and the group made their way inside.

  Once out of earshot of the reception area, Mac spoke in a quiet voice. "First the testing facility, then the IT director gets a visit. Let's see if we can find that brancium before somebody realizes we don't belong in Oz."

  "Look confident and carry a clipboard," said Luke. “Summer, you're with me in the testing facility. You guys check out the lab."

  “We’re looking for a shiny little needle in a proverbial haystack," said Mac.

  “It’s here,” said Summer. “I know it is.”

  The group separated, Summer continuing down one corridor with Luke as the others disappeared in the distance. Three men in white lab coats walked toward them and Summer smiled sweetly. "Good morning, gentlemen. Val Corp. will be sponsoring lunch in the cafeteria this afternoon. Hope to see y’all there.”

  "You're enjoying this," he whispered.

  "I am. I need to broaden my horizons. Open myself up to new experiences."

  "Is that so?"

  "Definitely.”

  “I like you with red hair.”

  “Shut up.”

  The testing facility resembled the one at Daniels Aerospace, though everything here was stainless steel, white, or royal blue. The color scheme matched AGL’s logo, as if the Daniels lab had been taken over by evil forces. “This way,” she said. There were two testing machines that were large enough to be used for Alloy 531, but as she got closer, she realized that neither one had the heat shielding required. "That's not it, either.”

  She put her hands on her hips.

  "I thought they couldn't make this stuff without brancium.”

  "They can't. But that equipment can only be made by special request, and it took almost a year for us to get ours. If they were planning on stealing the brancium, you would think they would have the equipment required to use it.”

  “Would they need it if they were making bombs?”

  She nodded. “Yes. They’d still need the friction accelerator."

  "And you're sure? Nothing here is even a possibility?"

  "No way."

  Luke tapped a button behind his ear. "We've got nothing." He was quiet, listening. "Affirmative." He tapped the button again. "They struck out, too. Time to check out the IT director’s office. Keep in mind, we’re going to get hotter the longer we stay in this building. The more people see us and know we’re here, the more they’re going to wonder why. Especially when we’re snooping around the offices.”

  She opened the app Moto designed, using her phone like a virtual reality GPS to locate the IT director’s office. She was angry. This woman had betrayed her, and Summer didn’t take that lightly. “I want to talk to her. Confront her. Maybe I’ll even kick her ass.”

  “That’s a bad idea.”

  An older man was walking toward them, wearing a dress shirt and tie. Summer smiled. “Good morning. How are you doing?” He nodded and they kept walking.

  “That wig doesn't make you invisible, you know. Just because your appearance is altered doesn't mean you're unrecognizable, especially to the woman who used to work for you.”

  “I want her to realize she did something bad by breaking into the company computers and stealing what doesn't belong to her.”

  “There’s a time and place for that, neither of which is here and now. I can't protect you when you won't listen to me about what’s safe.”

  "I'm tired of being safe. Safe got my godfather killed. Safe let someone walk into my world and ruin everything my family’s worked for."

  He grabbed her arm, stopping her from walking. “Jesus, Summer. Do you want to end up on the wrong side of a gun for the second time in as many days? Because that’s what could happen. This isn’t a game. I know you’re frustrated and you’re scared and you hate this situation, but you can’t just decide you aren’t going to stand for it and tell this woman to go screw herself.”

  She fumed. “I’m mad.”

  “I know you are.”

  From the corner of her eye, she saw the older man they’d passed earlier appear in the hallway behind Luke, unmoving. “Don’t look, but that guy’s watching us,” she said quietly.

  “He wonders what we’re doing here. Two strangers who don’t belong off wandering by themselves. Kis
s me.”

  “What?”

  The man cleared his throat. “Excu—”

  Summer went up on her tiptoes, Luke’s mouth coming down on hers. They were open to each other, tongues mingling, their bodies touching from head all the way down like lust-filled lovers in the middle of a full-blown public display of affection. He groaned, seeming to truly enjoy this sensual assault designed to look like lust. If he was acting, he should take a bow, because even she wasn’t so sure anymore.

  This was a chemical reaction, a coming together of two elements, and the creation of a completely new compound. She wished so badly they were alone, that he would kiss her like this with no one else around and an entire night spread out before them to muddy up with all sorts of questionable decisions.

  Remember how quick he was to believe a committed schizophrenic over your father.

  She opened her eyes to slits, checking for their observer and relieved he was no longer there. “He’s gone.”

  Luke’s mouth came off hers but hovered over her lips, his hand moving to her hip and holding her possessively. “Me, too.”

  She pulled away and straightened her clothes, noting the quick skip of her heartbeat. She had a problem. Because no matter what was keeping her away from him, a greater force was pulling her closer, at least physically.

  His stare moved from her face to her breasts and back again, but his voice was all business. “Promise me you won’t go all Miami Vice on this woman. If she’s in her office, we leave and let Moto try to access her machine remotely.”

  “That would be difficult for him to do. Probably impossible.”

  “He wrote an app in the car.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Okay, maybe.”

  “Let’s hope she’s not there.”

  They continued down the hall and rounded a corner, the hallway opening up and light spilling from wide windows onto carpeting. Nameplates beside each door let her zero in on her former IT Director. The doorway was closed. “What do we do now?” she asked.

  “I walk in. She doesn’t know me, so if she’s there, I claim I have the wrong office and just leave.” He knocked on the door, entering when no one answered, then gestured for her to follow.