Why?
If she could just find out why, then maybe she could finally put her family—and her own restless spirit—to rest. Unfortunately, that was proving much harder than she’d anticipated when she joined the Bureau.
The key, of course, was Nevsky, but the man was as elusive as smoke. And while she’d been in his home and cooked his meals, she’d had very little interaction with him. Certainly not enough to glean any useful information about anyone working for him. He had a handful of assassins at his disposal. Other than what she’d found in his office about the military equipment he was stealing and selling to the highest bidder, she was loath to admit she hadn’t uncovered anywhere near as much as she’d thought she would. And Annie hadn’t gotten back to Henry about what she’d found on the laptop.
But at least it was done and nothing else would disappear from the base to wind up who knew where. Henry would have taken care of that situation and arrests of involved military personnel had already been made. At least at that base. The others would be on high alert and double-checking their inventory logs.
But Nevsky was still out there working his evil. Once again, he’d slipped through the net without breaking a sweat. It was infuriating. However, she’d have to come back to him later—and Radchenko.
The big question was Daria. Where would she go?
She sent the girl another text.
Daria, please let me know you’re safe.
Daria
I’m safe. Quit texting me. I don’t want anything more to do with you. I’m turning off my phone now so don’t bother trying to track it.
She texted Linc.
Daria texted! See if you can track her phone.
Linc
On it.
To Daria:
Please, tell me where you are. How can we help?
Two minutes passed without another answer from the teen. The door locks clicked up, jerking her from her thoughts, and her fingers curled around her weapon as her adrenaline chased her fatigue and sense of safety away.
When the door opened and Linc slid into the driver’s seat, Allie relaxed her hold on the gun with a slow sigh. “Did you ask Annie to try and track Daria’s phone? I don’t know how long we’ve got until she goes dark again.”
“I did. She’s working on it and will let me know if she gets a hit. What about you? Everything okay?”
“Yes. Quiet. It’s actually been peaceful for a few moments.”
He raised a brow when she didn’t bother to elaborate. “Got your stuff. Hope it’s the right kind. I’m not used to shopping for hair color or makeup—even with three sisters.”
“I’m sure it’s fine. As long as it will turn me from a blonde to a brunette, we’re good.”
“It’ll do that.”
An hour later, Allie stared in the cracked mirror. If she passed herself on the street, she wouldn’t look twice. He’d thrown in a pair of scissors and she’d cut about four inches off her hair so the dark ends barely brushed her shoulders.
Add the black-rimmed, nerdy-looking glasses, the subtle makeup, and an extra layer of clothing, and the disguise was the best she was going to do without professional intervention.
She took another look and decided she was okay with that.
When she returned to the truck and climbed in, Linc looked at her and blinked.
“Well? How do I look?” she asked.
He gaped. “Allie?”
“Guess that answers that question.”
“You don’t look like you. At all.”
She shot him a wry smile. “I think that’s the whole point.”
“Yeah. Right. Of course. Good job, though.”
“Thanks.” She buckled up. “So, I’ve got an idea.”
“Tell me while I hit that drive-thru next door. I’m starving.”
He drove through a Steak ’n Shake and parked while they ate their burgers and fries.
Allie took a sip of the chocolate shake. “I want to go back to Nevsky’s house.”
He paused, a french fry suspended midair. “You what?”
“Just listen.”
“Okay.”
“Daria was going to show me what she did with the evidence. I feel like it’s hidden in the house. Most specifically, the pool house.”
“Why’s that?”
“Because that’s where she wanted to go after finding me in her father’s office, but we were stopped by James, one of the bodyguards, and rerouted.”
“That’s when you went up to her room?”
“Yes. Daria’s out there somewhere. Maybe we can find the evidence she was hiding. Or maybe there’s something that will tell us where she ran to.”
“All right. But how are you planning on getting into the pool house to search?”
“I don’t know if I can, but I want to go by there and do some recon. Then maybe consult with Henry and see if we can come up with an idea for a distraction or something to get Nevsky out of the house.”
“Want to set off Nevsky’s fire alarm?”
She gave a light snort. “Don’t think that would work.” A pause. “What if we have a massive police presence around his house? Think that would chase him out?”
“Might, but it could just shut him down instead and he could decide to hibernate.”
She groaned, then narrowed her eyes. “No, I just thought of something even better.”
“What?”
“You remember that case where that guy took his family hostage and we learned he was terrified of snakes?”
“I remember Mark shoving a few inside and the guy ran out screaming.”
“Right.”
He shook his head. “That could have gone way south. I still can’t believe it actually worked.”
“Me either, but it did.”
“Yeah, but remember the chewing out we got, and it wasn’t even our idea. I’m not ready to go there again.”
“Well, I’m dead, so I’m not really worried about that. My point is, Nevsky’s afraid of bees.”
“Is he allergic?”
“I don’t think so. He’s phobic because that’s how his brother died. He carries two EpiPens on him at all times and keeps one in every room of the house. The man spends a fortune on them.”
“Okay, so what are you thinking?”
“Can we pump some bees into his bedroom? Or even just his house. I guarantee you he’d be out of that house so fast it’d make your head spin. And he’d probably put it on the market the next day.”
“Are you even serious?”
“Not really, but do you have a better plan?”
“I’m working on it.”
10
So,” Allie said, “no bees.”
“Nope. I’m not saying we should do nothing, I just think we should do smart.”
“I’m all for doing smart.”
“Then it’s time to call in reinforcements.”
“Your family?”
“Yeah. Izzy at least. Chloe could bring Hank if we had something for him to sniff out.” His sister Chloe had married Blake MacCallum five months ago and loved working with her K-9 partner, Hank. She’d be happy to help if she could. “Brady and Derek can tap into their resources. I’d have to see who was available.”
“Why don’t you text them and see?” She looked away. “I still need to get inside tonight, though. I don’t know how much time Daria has left. If any.”
After sending the group text, Linc drove the twenty miles to Nevsky’s home while Allie described the best way to get in if they were able to disarm the alarm. “He probably changed the code to the gate and the house,” she said.
“Maybe.”
“Let’s take a look and see what we can see.”
After a drive-by sweep of the front, Linc rolled to a stop at the back of the house. The same spot he and Henry had parked the surveillance van two weeks ago. Had it only been two weeks? Darkness had fallen about fifteen minutes ago, and Linc had to admit he welcomed it, even as music blared from the p
ool area.
“Well, that changes things a bit, doesn’t it?” Allie asked.
“A party. He’s throwing a party. Celebrating how many lives he’s ruined?” He wanted to race into the midst of it and arrest them all. Fortunately, restraint edged out the disgust.
“Probably.”
For a moment, they sat in silence, eyes on the house in the distance, easily discernible thanks to the floodlights. “Sitting by the pool, you’d never know it was dark outside unless you looked up,” Linc muttered. “I’d hate to have his power bill.”
“No kidding.”
Linc lifted the binoculars he’d grabbed from the console. The wrought-iron fence topped with spikes encased the large expanse of grass. Beyond that lay the pool and the pool house—Daria’s destination the day Allie’s cover had been officially blown. Music blared, people milled, guards walked, caterers paid close attention to empty glasses and plates.
“Wait a minute,” Allie said, “something’s weird.”
“Weird how?”
“There wasn’t a guard at the front gate.”
“I noticed that too.” He swept the binoculars to the front gate. “We can get onto the property without being noticed, I think.”
“How many people do you see around the pool and is anyone near the pool house?”
With the binoculars held to his eyes, he counted. “I’d say there are around fifty people at the pool. In all manner of dress. From bathing suits to shorts and T-shirts to more formal attire.”
“So, we’ll fit in.”
“Yeah, we’d fit in. I’m just not sure it’s wise to do this without backup.”
“I think it’s time you had a makeover,” she said.
“What?”
“Time for you to change your appearance too. If Nevsky’s in there—and I’m assuming he is—he knows what you look like, thanks to his spy’s pictures.”
For the next fifteen minutes, she transformed him, using the scissors and the makeup. “Where are your glasses?”
He flinched. “I don’t need them.”
“Now’s not the time to be vain. Take the contacts out and use your glasses.”
With a heavy sigh, he obeyed, only because she was right. The fact that she knew him well enough to know he kept a lens case and solution in his console sent a pang through his chest. But he didn’t know her nearly as well as he’d thought he did. And yet . . . he did.
She slipped out of the SUV and shut the door. Linc did the same. For a moment, she stood still, rubbing her palms down the sides of her jean shorts. “You’re probably right. This is very likely the worst plan in the history of worst plans, but . . . I’m ready when you are.”
“This isn’t like you, Allie,” he said softly.
She turned hard eyes to his. Then gave an involuntary shudder before looking away. “I’ve always done things by the book,” she said, her voice as quiet as his. “This time, it’s a little different.”
“Because of Daria?”
“Yes. Mostly. But also because it feels like the rules have changed. Like I’m off-kilter or for some reason, I’m playing with a partial deck—or someone is stacking the deck to make me look like the fool.”
“Nevsky?”
“He’s one of them.”
“Who else?”
A shrug. “That’s a conversation for another time.”
The mysterious nature of her words perplexed him, but he let it slide.
“You ready?” she asked as she started for the gate without waiting for his answer.
“Allie, hold up.”
She stopped. “If you keep calling me Allie, you’re going to blow my disguise,” she said softly.
“What should I call you then?”
“Nina.” She said the name with a soft smile.
The nickname meant something to her. Interesting. He’d have to ask her about it. At some point. Like when they weren’t looking for missing teenagers—or chasing killers.
Which would probably be never.
So, he’d ask her about it soon—assuming he lived to do so. He tried to ignore the fact that she’d just revealed one more piece of information that he hadn’t known about her. “Call me Rick.”
“Any special reason why?”
“First name that came to mind.”
“Ah.” At the gate, she punched in the code, then let out a low laugh. “Unbelievable. He didn’t change it.”
“He didn’t think you’d live long enough to warrant going to the trouble.” Linc thought about pulling his weapon as he followed her through the gate, but supposed that would defeat the attempt to fit in.
Under cover of darkness, they ran across the grass, halting just before they’d step into the area illuminated by the floodlights.
“Why didn’t we call Henry about this?” he whispered.
“Because he’d talk us out of it—or simply order us not to do it.”
“Right.”
“Hey, you two, are you coming to join the party? Hey! Who are you?” They both froze for a split second.
“We need a better plan,” Linc said. “And fast.”
“I have one.” She turned her face to his, wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him.
For a moment, Linc stilled. He hadn’t forgotten how much he enjoyed kissing her, but it had been a while since he’d done so—and considering that she’d allowed Henry to talk her into deceiving him, he wasn’t too sure it was a good idea.
Mostly because kissing her made his brain turn to mush.
Not exactly the safest thing when they were crashing a Mafia head’s party. Only the fact that Nevsky wanted to kill her and he needed to be alert allowed him to keep his eyes open and on the people around the pool.
The person who’d called out to them stood waiting, watching.
Allie pulled away and started walking. He noticed her attention was also on the figure at the edge of the pool’s concrete. Laughter, followed by a squeal and a loud splash, reached him.
And then they were at the gate. Allie fake-laughed. “We’re here. Let the party begin!”
Cheers erupted from the tipsy partiers. The guard shook his head and walked away.
Allie’s shoulders rose and fell—the only sign she was battling nerves—then she grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the pool house.
No one stopped them. No one even seemed to notice them at that point.
He followed her, feeling too exposed in the brightly lit area with no COMMS, no one watching his back, and no immediate rescue operation available.
At the pool house, Allie twisted the knob and Linc placed a hand over hers, stopping her. “You realize if we do this, any evidence we find won’t be admissible,” he whispered and nuzzled her ear in an attempt to keep up the charade. Or so he told himself.
She hesitated. “Yes, it will.”
“How’s that?”
“Exigent circumstances. Daria’s life is in real danger. We’re looking for her. She could be inside and be hurt for all we know. Whatever else we might come across is a bonus.”
“Hmm . . .” He paused mid nibble. “It might slide. Is anyone else in there?”
“I don’t think so, but I’m ready to find out if you’ll stop kissing my ear.”
“I like kissing your ear.” And he did. He just wished he could focus on that instead of making sure no one was going to stop them from entering the pool house—or kill them. So far, they’d earned a few glances, but no one offered to interrupt or question them.
“Linc . . .”
“Rick.”
“Right. Rick. Anyone watching?”
“Not that I can tell.” He released her hand and she let herself inside. He glanced back over his shoulder, expecting to hear the shout of a guard at any moment.
Instead, the music played on. Someone had started a rousing game of limbo, and attention had focused on the ones brave enough to participate.
He followed Allie into the two-story pool house that was slightly larger than his
small home.
“Since the party’s being catered,” Allie said, “it looks like they’re not using this tonight for any kind of food prep.”
“But there’s no guarantee someone won’t walk in at any moment for a bathroom break.”
“There are closer bathrooms in the game room. They’ll probably use those, but let’s get started and get out of here.”
Allie parted the blinds a fraction to allow some light in, and with his hand on his weapon, Linc swept his gaze around the room to make sure it was truly unoccupied. “Looks clear down here,” he murmured. “Let’s see what’s upstairs.”
His phone vibrated. A text from Brady.
Are you all right for the fifth time? I’m outside the property and Izzy just pulled up. If you don’t answer within twenty seconds, we’re coming in.
We’re fine. Stay put unless I tell you otherwise.
What have you gotten yourself into?
Will explain later.
He paused.
If you hear gunshots or I don’t answer your texts within sixty seconds of you sending, then bring in the cavalry.
Gunshots??
Later. Just be alert.
Linc took a moment to note the luxury. With a mother as the chief of police and a lawyer for a father, he’d not grown up doing without. Quite the opposite, in fact. However, this kind of wealth took his breath away—and nauseated him at the way it had been achieved.
Nevsky wasn’t the first rich man Linc had gone after who thought he was above the law, but he was the one he wanted most to catch. Probably because the man had tried to blow him up, and caused Allie to change—almost overnight—into someone he barely recognized. She’d grown harder and more closed off than when he’d first met her—and that was saying something.
It hurt, but he shouldn’t be surprised by her betrayal. No, not betrayal, but . . . something close. Clamping down on his emotions, he focused. They cleared the second floor, then returned to the first.
Allie’s gaze bounced and he could almost hear her brain working.
“See anything that looks like something Daria would use as a hiding place?” he finally asked.
“Not yet.” She went to the computer on the desk. “You don’t think she’d store it on here, do you?”
Vow of Justice Page 9
