Both she and Novak were covered in blood and needed to get cleaned up. First, there was something she needed to discuss.
Novak spoke. “Turns out FWO Bob Jones was still alive, and we helped get him to the Medical Examiner for treatment. Hopefully, he’s being medivacked to the nearest hospital.” His face split into a grin—because why wouldn’t he be proud of that? And he hadn’t even taken all the glory.
“Can I talk to you, boss?” Charlotte tried to keep her tone neutral. Novak had saved a man’s life, but without even a hint as to his intentions or rationale.
McKenzie eyed her and then Novak with narrowed eyes as if the tension between them was palpable. Even her negotiator colleagues exchanged worried glances.
They all traipsed inside to the main living room where a fire was burning in the grate.
As much as she longed to stand before the flames, she remained where she was and cleared her throat. “Actually, can we talk in private, sir? The three of us?” Charlotte indicated Novak. She did not want to say what she had to say in front of anyone else.
McKenzie frowned again then preceded them to French doors that led into a smaller side room. The room had a couple of leather love seats facing one another and was lined with bookshelves, another fire burning in the grate. Any other time, Charlotte would have oohed over the beautiful interior, but right now she was too angry.
McKenzie crossed his arms over his chest. “Is there a problem?”
Charlotte ignored her physical discomfort. The frozen toes and shivers that wracked her to the core. “I have an issue with SSA Novak’s behavior tonight.” She explained exactly what had gone down. “He didn’t consult with me or follow protocol,” she finished.
“What protocol? We don’t have a standard operating procedure for retrieving the dead or wounded from outside paramilitary complexes on US soil.” Novak moved so close she could smell the woodsy scent of his skin. Maybe he was trying to intimidate her, but then he took an abrupt step back, as if he realized he might be looming. “You sound like you’re mad I saved that man’s life.”
She reared back. “That’s not why I’m mad. You could have been killed. You could have put other peoples’ lives in danger if we’d had to come rescue you.”
“I don’t think I’d have to worry about you putting yourself in harm’s way for my sake.” Bitterness dripped off every syllable.
“What does that mean?” Charlotte snarled. “Are you calling me a coward? You think I wouldn’t come for you? Protect you?”
Novak blinked as if unsettled by her vehement reaction but doubled down on his argument. “Would you rather the man was still out there, bleeding to death?”
Charlotte pressed her lips together in frustration. “Of course not.”
“It’s my job to protect civilians and hostages.”
“That’s my job too,” she bit out.
“Then maybe you should have stripped down and gone to fetch him.”
Was he mocking her bravery or her strength or the fact she was a woman? “We’re supposed to work as a team. Why didn’t you take thirty seconds to discuss your plan with me before you went out there?”
“Because I knew you’d try to stop me,” he admitted.
Anger torched her nerves. “You assumed I’d be unreasonable.”
“We don’t all sit behind a desk, SSA Blood.” Novak rolled his eyes. “I made a judgment call.” He looked at McKenzie. Charlotte had almost forgotten he was in the room. “I figured the people inside the compound would shoot to protect themselves from an attack, but that they wouldn’t shoot someone who was obviously no threat to them.”
“You took a huge risk,” McKenzie agreed with Charlotte.
She flashed a grateful glance his way.
“A calculated risk,” Novak corrected.
“SSA Novak is a loose cannon,” Charlotte stated.
“Well, if it had been up to you, SSA Blood, Bob Jones wouldn’t have made it through the night. He would have died from exposure or bled out, and no one would have been the wiser. Whether I followed protocol or not is beside the point. I acted with forethought and as safely as I was able to under the circumstances. If we’d done this your way, we wouldn’t even know he’d survived that long.”
Charlotte flinched because he had a point. Though it wasn’t her fault for assuming the other law enforcement personnel had accurately assessed the situation. The fact she’d been the one to push for going up to the mountain tonight also seemed to have slipped Novak’s mind.
“SSA Novak, if you have a death wish, I’d like to know about it before we start working together,” McKenzie stated quietly. “I already have the goddamned FBI Director and President Joshua Hague himself calling me for hourly updates. I do not need to deal with any macho bullshit.”
“I don’t have a death wish, boss. But sometimes a situation requires immediate action without talking it to death.”
Charlotte’s eyes widened. “You didn’t even give me the chance to agree or disagree with you.”
“Enough,” McKenzie cut in with a slice of his hand. “You two obviously can’t work together—”
“I never said that,” they both said in unison.
McKenzie’s brows jumped.
Charlotte was as surprised as McKenzie by Novak agreeing with her. “I simply don’t want SSA Novak making unilateral decisions in dangerous situations. We need to communicate properly at all times.”
Novak leaned back. “Next time I decide to strip naked in the woods, you’ll be the first to know.”
She glared at him, but his words conjured memories of his well-toned body and a reaction in hers that she was sure he hadn’t intended. God-forbid he found out. “The negotiators have to be able to trust that HRT isn’t going to go behind our backs and make us look like idiots or liars. You know how that can backfire.”
“You two really think you can work together like professionals? It’s not only your jobs on the line, it’s mine. The director has made that more than clear.” McKenzie’s expression was void of humor.
She glanced at Novak. “Yes.”
“Yes, sir.”
McKenzie nodded. “The division between you both is already costing us time, and I am not convinced.”
“I’m happy to work with SSA Novak if he agrees to consult with me in the future. I’m here because of my expertise; I’m not here to sit down and shut up,” Charlotte stated.
Novak stepped forward. “I’ll make sure SSA Blood is better informed of any decisions I make, sir. I’m here for the mission, not internal bickering.”
They waited for McKenzie to make a decision.
“How many negotiators do we have on site?” McKenzie asked.
“Four of us at present. Another arrives from San Francisco tomorrow morning.”
“Arrange for another two negotiators. I don’t care how you do it. This is a Bureau priority and the director promised me everything I need.”
“Yes, sir.” That was a lot of manpower but meant they could work eight hour shifts rather than twelve, assuming they could get the people hiding inside the compound to talk.
Novak pointedly pulled his blood-stained shirt away from his body. “If you don’t mind, sir, I want to go wash off Bob Jones’s blood and then get my snipers into position before morning.”
“We need to not visibly escalate the situation,” Charlotte interjected quickly.
“A show of force will let them know that the government means business and that they can’t piss around.” Novak sounded agreeable except for the edge of irritation he tried to disguise.
“Somehow, I doubt that sending in heavily armed operators is going to reassure the people inside that compound that we want a peaceful resolution to this issue,” she stated calmly. She wasn’t sure that her head wouldn’t explode, but she needed to appear reasonable and be a team player. She knew exactly which of them would be replaced if McKenzie decided they couldn’t work together, and it wasn’t Novak.
Charlotte continued,
“Pull the cops way back from the entrance to appear less aggressive. We’ve successfully dealt with sieges like this in the past few years by demonstrating patience and restraint.”
“There’s a time for restraint and a time for force. While I accept we need to proceed with the former for now, we need to be prepared for the latter,” Novak replied.
“Agreed.” Charlotte nodded. Preparation was key.
Novak nodded decisively even as his brows rose in surprise.
“I’m still not convinced about you two working together.” McKenzie stared at them both long and hard. “A lot of the mistakes of the past were compounded by those in charge not communicating with one another. By not listening to one another.”
“Of course.” She often taught the failures of the past to new recruits. It was great to find an Incident Commander who agreed with her thoughts on the matter.
“So, if you two really think you can work together…” said McKenzie.
Charlotte smiled reassuringly.
Novak crossed his arms and dipped his chin.
“I’m going to change things up slightly.”
Charlotte did not like the sound of that.
“What exactly do you mean, sir?” asked Novak.
“I’m making you partners,” McKenzie asserted. “By that I mean you guys are going to spend the next seventy-two hours joined at the hip and, if you can’t convince me you can work together effectively during that time, you’ll both be sent back to Quantico.”
Charlotte frowned. “How am I supposed to manage my negotiation team if I have to tag along to HRT meetings all day?”
“And vice versa.” Novak scowled.
“That’s why I want more negotiators. At least three teams of two with SSA Blood overseeing everything. You both have competent people working beneath you who can run this show blindfolded. Correct?”
Reluctantly, she and Novak both nodded.
“We all know that these types of situations, especially when there are no hostages—” McKenzie began.
“We don’t know for sure there aren’t hostages,” Novak pointed out.
“—can take weeks and even months to resolve.” McKenzie ignored the HRT team leader. “I don’t want to be here for months. I want to spend Christmas with my fiancée back home, but that’s irrelevant. What is relevant is making sure everyone in that compound comes out alive and whosoever killed that woman and shot both of those law enforcement officials is arrested and charged accordingly. Then we will hopefully leave these people alone to celebrate their own holiday season however they wish to do so.”
McKenzie’s eyes glinted. “In fact, as space is gonna be crammed, there’s a kids’ bedroom at the end of the hallway that has a single set of bunks in it. You guys can share that. Unless you have objections because of gender?”
She shook her head.
“Divide your time between tasks that need to be accomplished. I want you to have breakfast, lunch and dinner together and sleep in the same room at the same time. Joined at the damn hip until I know I can trust you to respect and include one another in any important decision-making processes. Objections?”
Furious protests were screaming through her mind, but if she let any escape her mouth, she’d be off the case.
“None from me. She’s already seen me naked,” Novak joked.
“Which won’t happen again, SSA Novak,” McKenzie snapped.
Novak’s shoulders went ramrod straight. “Of course not. I was joking.”
“SSA Blood? Any objections?”
Charlotte shook her head. She was stunned by this turn of events.
“Charlotte?” McKenzie pushed. “Do you want to switch out as Negotiation Commander with one of the others?”
Anger surged through her blood, making her hands tremble. Switch out because she didn’t want to share a room with a guy she didn’t know, didn’t trust?
“No, sir.”
McKenzie still looked dubious. “Go get cleaned up, both of you. Let me know where to meet you in thirty minutes for the first briefing.”
“Yes, sir.” Charlotte turned away, astonished by McKenzie’s decision. Novak looked equally shell-shocked.
Great. This was just great. Now she had to try to make peace when her whole being felt like she was at war.
* * *
Novak angrily sluiced soap off his skin as he scrubbed away the itch of dried blood. The fact his fellow SSA had tried to throw him under a bus and get him reprimanded was a kick in the gut. While his actions might have been unconventional, they’d been successful, and any alternative would have almost definitely resulted in someone’s death. Bob fucking Jones for one.
He rinsed the stains out of his shirt and, after a few minutes under the hot spray, he washed his hair with shower gel.
He got out of the shower, dragging a microfiber towel all over his body then rapidly scrubbing his hair. One of his team had dumped his kit bag inside the bathroom door as requested so at least he had clean clothes to wear. He wrung out his wet t-shirt in the sink and pulled on fresh pants, t-shirt, holstered his weapons. Felt like a human being again.
He couldn’t believe he was going to be bunking with Ms. Holier-Than-Thou for the next few days, but he’d endured much worse over the years. Much worse. He only hoped she could deal and didn’t go off whining to the boss every time he looked at her sideways.
Once things were running smoothly and they stopped trying to scratch each other’s eyes out, he was certain McKenzie would back off this arrangement. Novak would return to his team. She’d go back to her boys. They simply needed to demonstrate that they could communicate and get along without bloodshed.
He held a pile of dirty clothes and decided to search for a washing machine. He stepped into the empty hallway. The rest of HRT had been billeted in the barn and a couple of outbuildings, and he hated being separated. His men would be busy checking gear and setting up what they needed, fighting for the best bunk.
And here he was waiting for Charlotte Blood to get ready. He refrained from tapping his foot impatiently. He’d never met a woman who didn’t take twenty minutes to wash hair or shave legs or whatever else went on in the bathroom. The only time he spent that long in the shower was when he had female company. The image of Charlotte Blood standing naked under a jet of water suddenly seared his brain.
Oh, no.
Hell, no.
He was not thinking about that incredibly irritating agent that way. Sure, she was pretty and had a hot body. Neither of those things made up for the fact she was a pious know-it-all intent on standing in the way of him getting his job done and generally making him lose his mind.
Nope.
In fact, if he was going to be sharing a room with her, there was no way he was even thinking of her as female and certainly no way he was thinking of her as attractive. He’d worked too long and too hard to get reprimanded simply because someone didn’t like his methods—read “having the balls to do his damn job”—or had simply decided to screw with him.
Shit. Not screw. He shook his head.
Fuck him over.
Nope, not fuck him in any shape or form. What the hell was wrong with him? He gritted his teeth against the lack of suitable words that didn’t involve sex.
Mess with him. Annoy him. Sabotage his career. Undermine him. Judge him. Undervalue him.
He’d been there before.
Thoughts of his ex wanted to invade his mind, and he forced them aside. She certainly hadn’t thought his opinion mattered about anything, so he wasn’t going to waste brainpower on past failures.
The bathroom door next to him opened. Charlotte Blood appeared wearing black leggings and an oatmeal roll-neck sweater. Her wet hair was darker now and slicked against her skull. Clear blue eyes were huge, with dark circles shadowing the delicate skin beneath. She appeared tired and vulnerable and not at all like the firecracker who’d gone after him earlier. She clutched her own pile of dirty laundry.
The anger went out of him. The f
act she’d stood up to him showed guts. And she hadn’t done it behind his back, which showed honesty and balls. They had to work together so he may as well get on with being polite so they could speed this along. He cleared his throat. “I’m going to throw these things into the nearest washing machine so they can be dried by morning.”
“Good idea. Let me dump my wash bag on the bunk, and I’ll come down and do the same.”
“I’ll take them.” He held out his hand. “If you want.”
“Okay. Thanks.” She looked surprised and hesitant about the offer. Did she think he didn’t know how to operate a washing machine?
“I’ll meet you in the kitchen in five minutes. We’ll grab some food before deciding who to brief first,” she said, still clinging to her things.
He held out his hand once again. An olive branch. Charlotte passed over the pile of damp, dirty clothes. She’d attacked the bloodstains in the sink the same way he had.
McKenzie appeared at the end of the corridor, talking on his cell. Perfect. Look at them, making nice and polite. Cooperating. He and Charlotte both smiled like prisoners up for parole.
The Incident Commander nodded curtly and went back around the corner at the end of the corridor.
“You have another coat?” he asked Charlotte. It was too cold outside to go far without one.
She shook her head. “I messaged the negotiator who is coming in tomorrow and asked her to grab one on the way to the airport.”
He nodded. He’d see what he could scrounge up from the guys in the meantime because his stuff would be huge on her. He’d noticed she propped her boots against the radiator too. They’d gotten wet when they’d been rushing Officer Jones to safety. Hopefully, they’d be dry by morning, otherwise her going outside for any length of time would be a problem.
Damn. He needed to stop worrying about her. Despite her delicate blonde looks, she was a tough-as-nails agent who’d gone nose to nose with him without flinching. Plenty of guys wouldn’t.
But looking out for his people was what he did—a team was only as strong as its weakest link, and you became the weakest link if you neglected things like wet boots or cleanliness in survival situations. Charlotte was part of his team now, whether he liked it or not.
Cold Wicked Lies: A gripping romantic thriller that will have you hooked (Cold Justice - Crossfire Book 3) Page 5
