Chapter Nine
“Have I ever mentioned…” Victor demanded, his voice rough and hard, “how much I hate it when you pull your hero crap with me?”
Ah, if Vic was pissed, then Saxon knew he was going to be just fine. With his eyes still closed, Saxon smiled. “’Cause you’re…jealous…when I get the glory.”
“And the bullets in your sorry hide.”
Yes, the bullets. Those would be why he felt so ridiculously weak right then. Saxon sucked in a breath and opened his eyes. Might as well see the damage. But when he looked down, he saw only the white hospital covers.
“They stitched you up. Had to give you some blood because you’d lost too much, but you’ll make it.”
He looked over at Victor. Vic was pale as he sat in the chair near the hospital bed. “You look…” Saxon managed. “Like hell.”
“Yeah, well, you look like shit, so I guess that makes us a pretty good match.” Victor’s lips curled faintly, but the smile didn’t reach his eyes. And, after a moment, the smile faded completely. “I had to call Jazz.”
Damn. “You shouldn’t have…worried her.” Jazz. Jasmine Bennett. Well, now Jasmine Archer. Once upon a time, Saxon, Victor, and Jasmine had come together on the streets. They’d relied on one another for survival, and, as time slid past, they’d turned into a family.
If a fairly screwed-up one.
“She’s flying down here.”
His eyes closed. “I’m fine. She doesn’t need to see me.” The last thing he wanted was to worry Jasmine. She’d been through enough hell. The woman was supposed to be happy now, living the high life with her rich and adoring husband in Vegas. And if that guy ever forgets to be adoring, Vic and I will kick his ass.
“I wasn’t sure you were going to make it.”
Saxon stiffened. “I’m a bleeder.” He hadn’t been that close to death, had he?
“You almost died on the chopper ride here. If you didn’t stay with us, then hell yes, Jazz deserved to know. She would have kicked my ass if I hadn’t told her.”
But Jasmine would just worry about him, and he hated for her to worry. She’d gotten lucky a few months back. Found a smart man who appreciated her for all that she was—a man who’d been willing to risk his life in order to protect Jasmine from the dangers that stalked her.
She deserved some happiness. She didn’t deserve to get pulled back into his and Victor’s mess.
“Tell me,” he said softly, “that Gary died on the chopper.”
One less threat facing Elizabeth.
“He’s in critical condition.”
The machines near Saxon were beeping in a steady rhythm. “I should’ve shot him when I had the chance.”
Victor gripped his arm. “That’s not how the FBI works. You know that.”
Exhaustion pulled at him. Maybe from the blood loss. Maybe from the drugs they’d no doubt pumped into him. But Saxon managed to open his eyes once more. “How many times do I have to…tell you? Not FBI…anymore.”
“Then you’re still going through with it? Walking away…starting new?”
“Yes.” His eyes were sagging closed. His future waited. That perfect spot that he’d picked out in California. Jazz’s husband had even been helping him manage that place for the last few months. Something else I owe Drake for.
One day, he’d pay him back.
“You sure…about the things you’ll be giving up?”
“Undercover assignments…days with drug dealers…thieves…murderers?” He exhaled. “I’m sure.”
“Then I’ll put the paperwork through,” Victor told him, “and Saxon Black will be no more.” He rose then, and headed for the door. But then he hesitated. “You haven’t asked about her.”
He fought to keep his eyes open a few seconds more.
“She was giving up her life for you…you know that, right, man?” Victor looked back at him. “You took two bullets while you were protecting her, and she ran out to face Gary, giving herself up, for you.”
He knew exactly what Elizabeth had done. He would never forget it. Or her.
It’s not possible to forget her.
“You haven’t asked about her,” Victor said again. “Why the hell not?”
He swallowed. His throat ached. Had they shoved a tube down it? The docs were always so eager to do that. “Why ask…” Saxon muttered. “For what you can’t have?”
Elizabeth deserved someone a whole lot better than he was. Someone who wasn’t so comfortable with death. Someone who didn’t have to be talked down from killing a man.
Someone who wasn’t surprised when he heard the sound of his own, real laughter.
“Others will come after her.”
The machines around him beeped—fast and hard.
“I mean, if that hit is still on her, don’t you think they’ll come?” Victor pushed. ‘When word leaks about what went down in Miami, others will appear to collect the bounty. Even though Luther Bates is still in prison, we both know his power stretches far beyond those walls. If he wants her dead…”
She will be. Victor didn’t say those words. But then, he didn’t have to voice them. Saxon knew the score. He knew how men like Luther worked.
Saxon’s hands fisted. The machines near him—and their annoying beeping—seemed to be growing louder. “Then you have to…make Luther cancel the hit.”
Victor stared back at him. “And if he doesn’t? You know there’s only one option I can give her.”
A new name. A new life. Somewhere else. Witness Protection—it was the option that Victor had offered to Jazz when her life had been on the line.
“Then she’s gone,” Victor told him quietly. “For good. You going to be okay with that?”
No, he wasn’t okay with that. He wasn’t okay with anything about this tangled hell. He’d walked into the back room of The Blade and gotten caught by a pair of frightened green eyes. Desperate eyes.
“I’ll give you forty-eight hours.” Victor inclined his head toward Saxon. “Then there will be nothing I can do for you.” He opened the door and left.
Saxon’s eyes closed. Elizabeth. Talk about a twisted fate. He’d spent years in hell, and, days before he’d gotten out of his undercover business, he’d been offered a visit to heaven.
And all he’d had to do…was nearly die for that pleasure.
It was totally fucking worth it.
***
A soft hand brushed over his cheek, pulling Saxon from the darkness of sleep.
“Oh, Saxon,” a low, feminine voice sighed his name, “what have you done to yourself this time?”
The voice and the touch were familiar. So when his eyes opened, he had a smile on his lips because he didn’t want Jasmine to worry about him.
She stood beside his bed, and she wasn’t alone. The shark-in-a-suit that was her new husband—Drake Archer—waited at her side.
“You got here fast,” Saxon said, the words a little too gruff.
“That’s the benefit of having a private jet.” Jasmine—hell, to him she would always just be Jazz—smiled at him. “I’m a long way from those streets where we met.”
But they hadn’t technically met on the streets. They’d met in a blood-stained boxing ring. In fights that weren’t sanctioned anywhere. He and Victor had been facing off. They’d beat each other to bloody pulps—all to earn a little cash. For food. For survival. When the fight had ended, everyone else had left, everyone but Jazz. She’d patched them up.
They’d become family.
Saxon’s gaze slid toward Drake. As usual, the guy was watching him with a wary stare and keeping his hand on Jazz. After all the shit that had went down in their relationship, it wasn’t surprising that Drake was still afraid Jazz might slip right through his fingers and vanish.
The way Elizabeth is going to do.
She edged ever closer to him. “I’m not supposed to get a call from Victor, telling me that you’re fighting for your life.”
He tried to sit up. The damn stitches were pulling. “Vic panicked. I’m fine.”
“No, you aren’t. If you were fine, then you wouldn’t be in that bed. The doctors wouldn’t have spent hours stitching you back up.”
He caught her hand. He’d always wanted to protect Jazz, even from the first moment they’d met. Unfortunately, he hadn’t been able to guard her, not like he wanted. She’d worked undercover for Victor, too, and on her last case, she’d been hurt. Right in front of me. Whenever he remembered that moment, fury tore through him. And he wanted to kill the bastard who’d put his hand on her.
He knew that Jazz’s husband felt the same way. Drake might look like a fancy suit, but the guy had some real killer instincts. He’d proved that, again and again.
It’s why I like the guy. Why I told Vic to back the hell off and let Jazz be happy with him.
“What happened? Vic would only say that a mission went bad.”
Very bad. “We had a traitor in our midst. He came after me and Vic and the…the woman I was protecting.”
Jasmine’s brown eyes showed her worry. “Is he still a threat?”
“According to Vic, he’s here in the hospital, hooked up to more machines than I am.”
Drake whistled. “And I’m guessing you’re the reason he’s that way.”
Saxon focused on Drake. “He was going to kill Elizabeth. So yeah, I wanted him dead.” Don’t act like you can’t relate.
Drake nodded. “I’m surprised he’s still alive.”
“Victor made me stop.” Victor, and Elizabeth. Because he hadn’t wanted her to see him as just a killer. Now, well, now she’d probably never be seeing him again, so what did it matter?
“You should come back to Vegas with us,” Jasmine said, her words rushing out. When she got nervous, her words always sounded a little fast to him. “There’s plenty of room—”
Uh, yeah, because Drake owned a chunk of Sin City.
“And I can keep an eye on you.”
Drake nodded. “You know you’re always welcome. You’re family.”
Saxon pulled Jasmine close and gave her a hug. He ignored the sting of the stitches. What did a little pain matter? “I’ll be back on my feet in no time.”
“You scared me,” she whispered. There was a brief pause and then she revealed, “But that wildness you carry…it’s always scared me a bit. Sometimes, it seemed like you had a death wish.”
Not anymore. He eased back a bit. “I’m done with undercover work. I’m free, Jazz. Free.”
She smiled up at him.
“But I’m not coming to Vegas.”
Her smile dimmed.
“You know what I have waiting on me.” His dream. So close.
And, yet…still far away.
Did that dream always seem a little empty? Or was that just because—because I won’t see Elizabeth again?
“I get to visit you,” Jasmine said.
“Anytime you want.” Of course, he’d be different in this new life. He’d leave his killing past behind. No longer would he have to pretend to be a criminal—I’ve been pretending for so long that I almost lost myself.
But then he’d busted into that back room at The Blade and seen her.
Jasmine was searching his gaze. “Something is different.”
“I’m drugged,” he told her bluntly. “Pain meds.” That he hated. He’d already told the docs no more. He couldn’t stand the slow, sluggish feeling in his body.
“Not that.” Her hand waved vaguely toward him. “You seem different.” Her gaze turned calculating. “Who was the woman?”
Elizabeth.
He looked away from Jasmine. He hadn’t seen Elizabeth since he’d woken up. Saxon knew Victor had her in protective custody, with a guard always close by.
“Ah,” Jasmine murmured, a wealth of understanding in that word. “Now I understand.”
No, she didn’t. Because he didn’t even understand. He glanced back at her. She’d returned to Drake’s side. Their fingers linked together.
“I guess you have to figure out,” Drake murmured, obviously sharing some kind of weird psychic-connection with his new bride, “if she’s the kind that you want to fight for or the kind that you let go.” He looked down at Jasmine. “Because I sure as hell could never let you go.”
No, the guy hadn’t been able to walk away. He’d done anything, everything, for Jasmine.
Because he loved her.
“I don’t love Elizabeth,” he said. The words came out hollow. “How could I love someone I just met?” She’d made him happy, yes, given him incredible pleasure. Driven him to distraction. Had him wanting to fight the world to protect her but—
“She’s better off without me,” he muttered.
“Ah, Sax,” Jasmine sighed his name. “You know I can always tell when you lie.”
***
“Am I under arrest?” Elizabeth asked softly.
The man across from her shook his head.
Her breath came out in a low rush. “Then is there a particular reason why you’ve been holding me here for the last day?” Because it sure felt like an arrest to her. When she’d finally broken out of her stupor and tried to surge into that hospital after Saxon, she’d found cops on their way to get her. Three uniformed men had closed in, and they’d taken her from that hospital, even though she’d fought them.
Maybe punched one in the jaw.
She’d just…wanted to see Saxon. To make sure he was all right. So she’d gotten a little out of control. Keeping her locked up after that little episode had hardly been necessary.
“This isn’t legal.” They hadn’t put her in a cell. Instead, they’d given her an office to crash in. Made sure she had plenty of food. Access to a bathroom. But she hadn’t been able to leave.
Because she had a guard wherever she went.
“I know my rights,” Elizabeth continued when the young cop before her just kept staring back into her eyes. “I want to go home.” Back to the place where this nightmare had started. It seemed like a lifetime ago—she’d been heading to her apartment when those goons had grabbed her. She’d fought, lost her shoes, and found herself thrown into the back of their vehicle. They’d put a hood over her head and tied her up. When that hood had finally come off, she’d found a gun pointing at her.
I was in The Blade then. Saxon came in the door and asked for an hour with me.
“How is Saxon?” Elizabeth whispered.
He opened his mouth to speak.
And that was the same instant that the door to that little office opened.
Her gaze immediately swung to the left, and when she saw Victor standing there, Elizabeth surged to her feet. She was across the room in an instant, and her hands fisted around his shirt. “Saxon! Is Saxon all right?”
Victor’s gaze cut toward the cop. “Take a break.”
The guy hesitated. “But I’m her shift guard—”
“And I’m here now,” Victor pointed out, his voice carrying a lethal softness, “so take a fucking break.”
The cop’s Adam’s apple bobbed and he hurried for the door.
Elizabeth kept her death grip on Victor’s shirt. The agent looked tired, with deep shadows under his eyes. His hair was mussed, and tension was evident on the lines that bracketed his mouth. “He’s not dead,” she said, shaking her head. “Don’t you say that he is.”
The door shut behind the cop. Victor looked down at Elizabeth’s hands. Carefully, his fingers curled around hers, and he slowly pushed her back a bit. “I’m sorry you were held here, but when I found out that I had a turncoat on my own team, I couldn’t take chances.”
“Saxon.” Why wasn’t he just answering her?
His jaw hardened. “Saxon Black won’t be working your case any longer.”
“Is he alive?” Because she’d had to wash his blood off her fingers. Had to watch it slide down the drain in that little bathroom down the hall. Then she’d cried. Cried until she’d thought her whole body would break.
He risked his life for me. A stranger…who gave up everything.
Victor’s gaze cut toward the wall on the right. There was an observation mirror there. One that threw their own reflections back at them, but let other cops view them from the other side. She’d seen plenty of those one-way mirrors on TV shows. She knew the deal.
“I don’t care who is watching,” Elizabeth said. “I have to know.”
Victor brought his mouth close to her ear. His lips brushed against her as he breathed, “He survived, but he’s dead to you…and everyone else.”
Happiness surged through her at that one word…survived. A choking sob burst from her, but then…
He’s dead to you…and everyone else.
She didn’t understand. Her head turned. Her gaze held Victor’s. “Why?” His words weren’t making sense to her, not at all.
But Victor stepped back.
Her hands wrapped around her stomach as a strange, scared tension seemed to course through her veins.
“I’m here to offer you a choice, Ms. Ward.” His words were emotionless, and so was the expression on his face. She was sure that sympathy had flashed in his gaze before, but there was no sign of any softening from him now.
She locked her trembling knees. “What kind of choice?”
“All of my intel shows that Luther Bates still has a hit on you.”
She could feel the blood draining from her face. She’d feared this—how could she not? But actually hearing those words from Victor had her heart stuttering in her chest.
“Gary won’t be the only one who comes after you. Luther Bates—hell, even in jail—he’s still a man with a whole lot of power.”
“B-but my parents have been dead for years. No one came after me before…no one knew—”
“Because you were in Europe. Out of sight…safe, until you came down to Miami, and someone recognized you.”
The sick feeling in her stomach told her that he was going to say—
“I’d wager that someone was Wesley Locke. He figured out who you were because he’d been on Luther’s payroll before. He sold you out, but I’m guessing the guy didn’t realize he’d wind up dead, too.”
Her lips felt numb as she said. “He…he told me to run. Right before he died—those were the last words he said to me.”
“If you’re trying to get away from Luther Bates, you have to run far and you have to run fast.” His voice deepened as he said, “I will do everything in my power to get that hit order rescinded. If Luther will call off his dogs, you can have a chance at a normal life.”
A chance?
“But Luther is a twisted sonofabitch, a man who believes in the eye for an eye mentality. He thinks your family ruined his life, so his goal…it seems to be taking your life.”
It hurt to breathe. “I don’t…I don’t hear choices from you.” More like just really sucky news. At least Saxon survived. Saxon is going to be okay! She’d just never be seeing him again. Her hand rose to rub at the growing ache in her chest.
Victor exhaled on a rough sigh. “You can stay here, in this town, and face the risks that are going to come your way. I can give you some guards while I go to talk with Luther Bates…”
She waited.
“Or you can get the hell out of Miami,” he said bluntly. “Disappearing before worked for you, and it can work again. I’ve got pull at the Department of Justice. I can get you a new start. A new name, someplace else to live. You can vanish, and just start over again in a different town.”
She took a step back. “I just got here.” She’d just gotten used to her routine, just made new friends. She’d been working on the hospital fund-raiser so she could—
“I think if you stay, you’ll die here.”
Elizabeth flinched at those cold, blunt words. Obviously, Victor didn’t believe in pulling his punches.
“And I need you,” he added. “Gary Warren wanted to eliminate you…hell, he risked everything to take you out—blowing his cover at the FBI and coming straight to battle me—so that means there was something special about you. Something he didn’t want you telling me…”
“There’s nothing special,” she said, her words hoarse. “Not a damn thing about me.”
“When your parents were killed, you might have seen him. You might have known something that could link him to their deaths—something that could blow his cover. So he went hard after you. He tried to take out two federal agents in order to get you.”
And he’d killed all of those people when he hunted her? But…Gary had looked familiar to her. “I’d seen his face before,” she mumbled. “I-I think I had, anyway.” Her hands slid back to her sides. Every breath she took felt cold in her lungs. “But I can’t remember when! Or where.”
“Maybe you just need some time to think about your past.”
Why would she want to do that? The past hurt, but then, so did the present. She turned away from him and paced toward the mirror. Her reflection stared back at her, an image of a woman who looked far too fragile. They’d given her new clothes, a t-shirt and jeans, and she looked…lost. Too pale, hair tousled, eyes far too big.
I don’t want to be lost.
“My choice,” she paused, licked her dry lips, then said, “is to stay here with a guard…and keep living my life.”
He was silent behind her, but she could easily see his reflection in the mirror. In contrast to her, he was big, tan, muscled. Dangerous. Solid.
“Do you think this Luther Bates will call off the hit on me?” Elizabeth asked.
He started to shake his head. She saw that faint movement, but he seemed to catch himself. “I’ll talk with him.”
So…no. He didn’t think Luther was going to back off.
“And if a guard stays with me, then that person…he or she would be at risk, just like Saxon was.” Saying his name hurt. How was it possible for one man to get to her this way? She’d known him for such a short time, but now, everything seemed different. She wasn’t even looking at the world the same way any longer.
Because I know the world isn’t safe now. I know danger is out there. It’s always been out there, and I was just stumbling around in the dark without a clue.
“The agents know the risks that they face.”
She kept staring at that mirror. Who was on the other side? “I’m sorry, but I don’t actually trust your agents.” How could she? “Seeing as how one of them tried to kill me, and, by his own admission, he murdered my parents.” The pain was there, waiting to open up and swallow her, but she couldn’t give in. Not yet.
Elizabeth made herself face Victor. “There is a third choice, you know. Maybe I should disappear on my own. I did a good enough job of it before.” She hadn’t been afraid, not once, while she’d been in Europe.
But Victor gave a negative shake of his head. “That’s not going to work.”
Why not?
“Luther was being hauled to jail the last time you got on a plane and left. He and his men were doing damage control. You slipped away at the perfect time.” His lips thinned. “They know about you now. You won’t be able to get away, not without help.”
He wasn’t getting it. “How am I supposed to trust any agent you send to me?” How was she supposed to trust anyone?
Silence. “You trusted Saxon.”
Pain knifed her in the gut. “And I nearly got him killed.”
“His job.”
She stormed toward him. “And my life.” Her breath heaved out. Dammit, this couldn’t be happening. It shouldn’t be happening. “I don’t want another guard. I don’t want to look at people, every single day, and wonder…who is a killer—who’s coming after me now?”
“You won’t have the resources to vanish on your own. If you try it, then you’ll be tracked down. You’ll slip up. Use a credit card that can be linked to you. Call the wrong person. You’ll be found, and then you’ll be dead.”
It sounded like she might be a dead woman no matter what. Elizabeth swiped at the tear that had trickled down her cheek.
“What will it be?” Victor asked her.
There was no choice, and Elizabeth knew that Victor had realized it all along. “New name. New place…and no agents on my trail.”
“You’ll get a handler, someone to check in with…someone to make sure you’re safe. I’ll personally vet him for you—”
Her laughter cut him off. “Didn’t you do that before?”
“You will be safe,” he promised her.
Then he turned and left her. Her chin stayed up and her spine remained straight until the door shut behind him, then, when she was alone…the pain took over.
She turned to stare at her reflection and saw the fresh tears on her cheeks.
***
Fucking no.
Saxon’s hand was on the glass that separated him from Elizabeth. She was there, dammit, she was crying, and he felt as if Gary was shooting him all over again because the pain was so hot and—
“Well…she’s made her choice.”
Victor’s voice came from just a few feet away. Saxon didn’t look back at the guy. He couldn’t take his eyes off Elizabeth. “You didn’t give her a damn choice.”
“Sure I did. She could keep her old life here, and probably die here, too, or she could go somewhere and become someone brand spanking new.”
His wounds hurt. He was supposed to still be in the hospital, but he’d dragged his ass out of bed because he’d needed to see Elizabeth once more.
“You’re becoming someone new, too,” Victor murmured. “Guess you’ll both just move right on…”
No, he wasn’t moving on. “Who is her handler going to be? How the fuck do you know you can trust the guy?” And would that guy have intimate access to Elizabeth?
Yes. Shit. He would. He’d be there, her closest contact day and night. The guy she called if she got scared. The man who’d help her if she needed anything—
“I’m going to get Elizabeth set up. I’ll be working her case personally.”
Elizabeth looked as if she were staring right at him, her gaze boring through the glass.
“I’ll take care of her,” Victor assured him. “Don’t worry.”
She was in pain right then. Crying without making a single sound.
Then her lips moved. He stiffened. Wait…did she know he was there? Because it sure looked like she’d just whispered…
I’m sorry.
His hand fisted near the glass.
Thank you for saving me.
“I’ll make sure she gets set up in a safe location.” Victor’s tone seemed so confident. “Then I’ll go after Luther Bates.”
They’d already covered this. “You don’t believe the guy is going to call off the hit.”
“I won’t know anything for sure, not until I talk to him.” Victor’s voice grew louder as he closed in on Saxon. “It sure would be nice if I could have someone in the field who would keep an eye on her, until I got this shit sorted out. Someone who could protect her when I wasn’t there. Because, Witness Protection is good and all…as long as no one finds the witness.”
She wiped her hands over her cheeks. Squared her shoulders once more.
And she even managed a weak smile.
She knows I’m here.
“You whispered something to her,” Saxon said as he replayed that little scene in his mind. “Something I couldn’t hear.” He sure hadn’t liked how close Victor had gotten to Elizabeth. It had looked like the guy was kissing her. Friend or no friend, brother or not…Saxon had felt jealousy burn in him.
Victor’s hands had been on her skin. His mouth had been touching her ear. That shit had made him see red because Saxon could still remember what it was like to drive into the hot silk of her sex. Because she was crying—for me.
He wasn’t sure anyone had ever actually cried over him before. His mother sure hadn’t cared about him. She forgot me the minute I walked out of the door. No, she’d actually forgotten about him long before that—when he’d still been in the house and days would pass without her even speaking to him.
But Elizabeth, a woman he’d met just days before…she cried for him. She’d risked her life for him.
“I told her that you’d survived, but that you wouldn’t be seeing her again.”
She had paced back across the room and sat down. As he kept watching, the door to that room opened, and the fresh-faced cop returned.
“And I told her…” Victor continued quietly, “that you were dead to her and everyone else.”
Saxon’s head jerked as he turned to glare at his friend.
“You’re free and clear now, buddy,” Victor said as he slapped a hard hand on Saxon’s shoulder. “So tell me…how the hell are you enjoying that freedom?”
Saxon’s eyes narrowed even more on Victor. “Fucking asshole.”
Victor smiled at him. “I’ll be moving her by dawn. I figure you’ll need a bit longer to recover before your transfer.”
She’d just be—gone?
Victor released him and turned away. “Maybe it will all work out,” Victor said as he walked toward the door. “Maybe she’ll vanish into suburbia. Marry some accountant or banker and have two point five kids.”
That would mean she had to sleep with the damn accountant.
She cried for me.
“I hope you enjoy your new life,” Victor said. He opened the door.
And Saxon heard himself say… “Wait…”
When Victor swung back with a smug smile on his face, Saxon knew he’d played straight into the guy’s hands.
But I can’t let her go.
Not now. Maybe not ever.
***
Two hours later, Victor entered another interrogation room at the Miami police station. When he opened the door, Tracy Adams jumped to her feet and ran toward him.
“Victor, you’ve got to let me explain—” She grabbed his arm and her nails bit into his skin. “I didn’t know what Gary was doing, I swear, I didn’t!” Her breath heaved out. “I’m a good agent. I’d never turn on the Bureau!”
This was the part that burned him. “You were his partner. No one worked more closely with him than you did.” So if anyone would have known about Gary’s true nature, it would have been her.
She paled as she stared up at him. “You were the one who partnered us. I didn’t know him until I got the assignment. I had no idea the guy was-was taking hits!”
He wanted to believe her and because of that, he had to make absolutely sure he showed no weakness. “You’re being investigated.” She would have already figured that part out on her own. “The FBI Brass is on a witch hunt right now, looking to take down anyone who might have been working with Gary.” And that was the fear. That there were others like him embedded in the FBI. “Your life is about to be torn apart, Tracy. Every secret that you have will be brought right out into the hard light of day.”
She pulled away from him. Her shoulders hunched. “I don’t have secrets. I’m a good FBI agent.”
It almost sounded like a mantra that she had to repeat.
He walked to the small table. Pulled out a chair and settled down. “We’ll see about that…”
Anger flashed in her eyes. Anger…and fear.
His back teeth ground together. If she’d betrayed him, then he’d make certain she paid.
“Is…is Gary still alive?”
He just stared back at her.
“Because if he is, then he can tell you I wasn’t working with him,” Tracy said quickly. “Just ask him. Just—”
“He’s in critical condition at the hospital right now.” Because Saxon had wanted to destroy that SOB. The guy hadn’t exactly been playing nicely. When your life was on the line—or the life of someone you cared about—nice didn’t enter the equation. “He’s not exactly able to talk right now.”
With slow, shuffling footsteps, she made her way to the table and slid into her chair. “I’ve never been on this side of the table.” Her voice was soft. “I don’t like it.” A hoarse confession.
He flattened his hands on that old table top. There was nothing about this that he liked. “Gary tried to kill me last night. You were his partner. You are his partner, so if anyone was involved in this tangled hell with him, it would be you.”
That was the story the higher-ups at the FBI were spinning.
But Tracy shook her head. “It’s not me.” Her hand flew across the table and grabbed his wrist. She leaned forward and her voice lowered. “Vic, you know me. Inside and out.”
Fuck. She would bring up that night. One time.
“I wouldn’t do this.”
He stared back at her. This conversation was being recorded so he might as well put all the cards on the table. “We had sex once, before you came on board with my team.”
She flushed and glanced toward the one-way mirror.
“So I know you physically, yes, but that won’t have one bit of bearing on my investigation.”
Her hand pulled away.
He gave her a grim smile. There was no room for emotion, not when lives were on the line. Not when Saxon had come so close to death. “Let’s start at the beginning, shall we?”
She blinked quickly, as if trying to banish tears. “Vic…”
It was a good thing he was used to playing the role of the cold-blooded bastard. “No secrets, Tracy,” he told her, voice curt. “And no lies.”
Because no one hurt his brother and walked away. No one.