CHAPTER NINETEEN
Imperial Island, British Virgin Islands
Ten Days Later
The sun blazed, baking into Liv’s skin as she stretched out on the lounger by the pool. Her skin had a healthy glow after living the life of luxury the last three days, boring as it was. But establishing their presence was important. There’d be plenty of action in the upcoming days if things went the way they were supposed to.
Her bathing suit was white, the bottom nothing more than a piece of floss, and the top, two triangles, didn’t even try to contain her breasts. She’d colored her hair a vivid red, and with green contacts and the tan, she barely recognized herself. She was confident no one would see a physical resemblance between her and her sister unless they were standing right next to each other.
The island was lush with palm trees and bright island flowers, craggy cliffs rising above dense vegetation. White sand beaches fringed the perimeter of the island beside water in myriad shades of turquoise. The sky was cerulean and cloudless.
The main house and restaurant perched on the highest cliff—the house holding only thirty guests—with spectacular views out over the water and the surrounding islands. A long stairway descended from the top of the cliff to the beach. Liv had learned that the guests were assigned rooms based on status. Those in the main house were of the lowest status—those who were acquaintances of Raj Mittal instead of friends or business partners.
The rest of the lodging on the island was a smattering of bungalows—some had beach access and others were deeper in the trees—all of them with thatched grass roofs. There were many small pools and grottoes sprinkled throughout the small island, and those in search of privacy could easily find unoccupied areas. But the guests on the island weren’t here for privacy. They were here to be seen and to size up the competition, so they tended to congregate around the larger pools.
She and Axel had been given one of the prime bungalows—or, rather, she and Axel’s alter ego, Joaquin Logan. As far as badasses went, he was pretty high up the chain, considering he was one of the world’s most notorious arms brokers. She’d heard of Joaquin Logan while she was with Interpol, but she’d never had reason to cross paths with him. She wondered how many of the world’s most-wanted were actually planted agents trying to undermine the criminal world from the inside.
Their bungalow was on the far side of the island from the main house, along a private stretch of beach and away from prying eyes. The master bedroom, which Axel had gladly let her have, had French doors with flowing white curtains that opened onto a balcony that led directly to a private beach. The privacy lent them cover to go out when and if they needed, and it also allowed the others to slip into the bungalow for briefings when necessary.
Everyone had been given a cover and an assignment while on Imperial Island, including Tess, much to her satisfaction. Tess was on the housekeeping staff. She’d been cleaning both Raj and Shiv Mittal’s bungalows, and had reported that there was a secured safe in each of them.
Dante had been assigned to the waitstaff, which had not sat well with him at all. And Liv guessed that waiting tables might be a bit intimidating, considering he’d never held a blue-collar job in his life. Serving others was not one of his strengths. He was a selfish creature by nature.
The only way to reach the island was by ferry from Tortola, so Elias and Miller were running the boat and checking invitations and identities at the dock. Since the ferry had been provided by Trident, it was fully equipped with Elaine and other supplies, including diving suits and a cache of weapons.
Liv and Axel had established themselves as a couple since their arrival on the island—she’d been partnered with Axel instead of Dante because of Axel’s established cover as Joaquin Logan.
Logan and Raj Mittal were familiar acquaintances—a relationship Eve had made sure was cultivated—and Logan had brokered a couple of arms deals for Mittal in the past. Logan had no country allegiance and plenty of money to purchase the launch codes. It was well known (thanks to Eve) that Logan was facilitating deals all over the world, and he was in high demand for the big players. He had a reputation of being both good at what he did and dangerous. No one crossed Joaquin Logan and lived to tell about it.
Even Raj Mittal knew Logan wasn’t someone to mess with, so when Logan had informed his host he was bringing two guests instead of one, Mittal hadn’t argued. Logan had made it known that he had every intention of being the highest bidder for the launch codes, and he was bringing Dr. Petyr Fedoryevski—one of the scientists who’d worked on the development of the weapon—to identify the launch codes as authentic. Deacon spoke flawless Russian and was able to take up Fedoryevski’s identity without issue, thanks to prosthetics and makeup, a slight change in the jaw and hairline, and the addition of a wicked scar on his chest thanks to a knife fight from his early years.
Deacon had been assigned one of the bungalows in the center of the island, lacking easy access to the beaches. He was an outsider, so the other guests left him alone for the most part—although one or two of them had privately offered to pay him for his services if they were the highest bidder for the launch codes.
Levi was staying in the main house as a guest. Eve had obtained a copy of the entire guest list; in addition to all the high-profile criminals, a number of ambassadors and dignitaries had been invited. Levi bore a striking resemblance to the deputy ambassador from Lithuania, who would be attending the party in the ambassador’s place. The real deputy ambassador’s plane had been grounded due to mechanical problems. He wouldn’t be making it to the island at all.
Liv found it fascinating how Eve juggled so many pieces of the organization, keeping up with her agents, all of the aliases those agents took and the side businesses related to them, the missions, possible future threats, returning threats from the past, and whoever the hell The Shadow was. Eve was responsible for it all.
She could acknowledge the impressiveness of Eve’s capabilities and her skill at running a covert organization, but that’s all Liv could do. Eve was a coldhearted bitch, and the sooner Liv could release those girls and get back to London, the better.
Liv had purposely chosen to sunbathe beside one of the small grotto pools that had a restaurant attached, as the male guests tended to gather over lunch to discuss different business dealings. She stretched languidly and noticed from beneath the tinted shades of her sunglasses that most eyes were on her. Joaquin Logan was never without a beautiful woman on his arm—the flashier and sexier she was, the better. And Liv was living the life to the best of her ability.
Dante had protested about her going in with Axel—vehemently—but it was more than possible that he’d be recognized by someone from his former life. Money of that caliber tended to stick together, and the circle was small.
Her feelings about Dante were so conflicted. She was hurt, angry, and frustrated. But she still recalled the feelings she’d had for him: the love, the friendship . . . the grief. The competing emotions were wreaking havoc in her brain.
Axel was stretched out on the lounger next to her, wearing a red Speedo that showed off an incredibly disciplined body. He was built like a brawler, wide of chest and shoulders and narrow of hips, his thighs thick and muscular. He had a sleeve tattoo on one arm, and his body glistened with sweat from the heat. His hair was longer than she liked on a man, and he had it slicked back and tied at the nape of his neck in a short tail. There weren’t many woman at this particular pool at the moment, but the ones there were staring at Axel like he was an all-day sucker.
But Axel wasn’t the one who made her heart stop when she looked at him. She could see Dante out of the corner of her eye, taking orders from some of the other guests. He wore a waitstaff uniform—black shorts and a white polo tucked in with the logo over the pocket. She’d always loved the way Dante filled out a shirt, with his broad shoulders and the way his biceps stretched the sleeves. He was ridiculously sexy, and he knew it.
“Trouble coming,” Axel said softly. “Eleven o’clock.”
She didn’t know all the guests by name, including the man coming very purposefully toward her. He was handsome. Very handsome. He was of Latin descent, droplets of water sliding sinuously down his dark skin, but his body wasn’t as muscular as Axel’s, though most men’s weren’t. She had to give him credit—he didn’t seem intimidated by Axel’s presence at all.
“Señorita,” he said, holding out his hand to her. “I am Juan Marco Consuelos.”
She arched a brow and let him take her hand, and when he kissed it she realized he was goading Axel on purpose. It was a power play, a fight of alphas for territory. Normally, she would’ve taken care of the situation herself, but she had a role to play.
“You are beautiful,” he said, continuing to ignore Axel.
She’d also noticed Dante had stopped what he was doing and was staring from the other side of the pool, along with ever other man and woman there.
Liv removed her hand from his and smiled, but she didn’t say anything.
“I’d be honored if you’d join me for the evening’s festivities,” he said, giving her a heart-stopping grin. His teeth were straight and impossibly white, and he had dimples, which clearly worked for him ninety-nine percent of the time.
“I’m taken,” she finally said.
“Ah, mi amor,” he said. “You are with a man who is never really taken. I can give you the moon and stars and a permanent place in my bed.”
“She said she’s taken,” Axel said. His body went completely still, and the tension between the two men ratcheted up about a thousand percent.
“The lady and I were having a conversation,” Juan Marco said. “I’m sure she can make her own decisions.”
Axel came to his feet slowly, like a lion stretching lazily before swiping out with his claws across the throat. “She’s made her decision.”
Juan Marco stood to his full height, but was several inches shorter than Axel. It was obvious he wasn’t a man accustomed to losing. It was also obvious he was a man who was used to being the center of attention. He wouldn’t take kindly to being embarrassed, and that’s exactly what Axel was doing to him. There was no comparison between the two of them when they stood side by side.
She could’ve put an end to things easily, by declaring her position to stay with Axel, but she understood the dynamics of the alpha and that Axel—or Joaquin Logan—had a reputation to uphold.
Before Juan Marco could open his mouth to refute him, Axel’s arm shot out and he grabbed him by the throat, lifting him straight off the ground. It was an incredible display of strength, and Juan Marco clawed at Axel’s hands as his air was cut off.
“You have twenty minutes to gather your things and be on the ferry back to Tortola,” Axel said. “If I see you again on this island I’ll hold your beating heart in my hands and let you watch as I crush it.”
Then Axel tossed Juan Marco into the pool, as if he weighed nothing, and then lay back down on the lounger without even breathing heavy.
She saw Dante start toward them and couldn’t help by playing into the scene a little more than necessary.
“My hero,” she said to Axel, leaning over to give him a light kiss on the lips.
The look he gave her could’ve melted butter, and he took her hand, pulling her to him again for another kiss.
“You’re playing with fire, sugar,” he said, and she knew he was referring to Dante.
“I know,” she said, grinning, and then laid back down on the lounger, adjusting the tiny triangles almost covering her breasts.
“If you keep looking at her like that, mate, you and I are going to go a round in the gym when we get back to HQ,” Dante said, his voice coming from behind them.
She couldn’t help but smile at the jealousy in his voice. He deserved more than a little payback for the hell he’d put her through.
“If I wasn’t looking at her like I am,” he said lazily, “it would draw much more notice than how we’re acting now. No one will bother her now. Which means we won’t have to bury any bodies while we’re on the island. At least not because of that.”
“Just as long as you keep those separate rooms,” Dante said, “so I don’t have to bury your body.”
Liv turned her head so she could watch them.
“Give it a rest, mate,” Axel said, lifting up his sunglasses. “After the looks she’s been giving you lately, I’d say she’s not too eager to share a room with you anytime soon either. I’d like a glass of iced tea, though, since you’re taking orders.”
“I’m going to kill you,” Dante said between his teeth. Axel just smiled and dropped his sunglasses back down over his eyes.
“Excuse me . . . waiter,” Liv called out. “Add a piña colada to that order.” It was everything she could do not to burst into laughter at the look he shot her.
Dante went off to the kitchen to get their drinks, and she grinned at Axel. “I swear, that’s the best part of the job.”
“You’re poking a tiger in a cage,” he said, shaking his head. “Better be ready, because eventually he’ll escape.”
She sat up on the side of the lounger and pulled her sheer white sarong around her waist, and then stood and tied it at her hip. Her wide-brimmed white sun hat sat on the table next to Axel, and she leaned over to retrieve it and place it on her head.
“He’s got a long way to go before he escapes that particular cage, so I’m going to enjoy it while I can. I think it’s time for some lunch, don’t you?”
Axel smiled and shook his head, but he got up and put on a pair of linen pants and sandals. There was a table with an umbrella not far from where they’d been lounging that had a good view of the entire area.
“You’re drawing a lot of attention,” Axel said.
“I thought that was the plan. The more attention I draw, the better the opportunity for you to get introductions to some of the other bidders you don’t know.”
“I know, but we don’t want to incite them into a frenzy of lust. I’ll end up with my throat slit, and you’ll end up as someone’s wife. I’ve already had to give a couple of warnings—and before you say you can take care of yourself, I know you can, but you taking on these guys would draw unwanted attention. We need to avoid that if possible.”
Liv knew he was right, but she’d never liked playing helpless arm candy. She saw Dante coming out of the corner of her eye, and put an impassive smile on her face.
“This is fucking bullshit,” Dante muttered, balancing the tray and setting their drinks in front of them.
“Really?” she asked. “Because I see it as poetic justice.”
“You don’t have to enjoy it quite so much,” he said.
“Oh, I really do,” she insisted.
“Maybe the two of you can have this domestic dispute at a later date,” Axel said. “We’ve got business to attend to.”
Dante handed them each a menu, then took out his pad and pen so it looked like he was taking their orders. “Elias said there were several check-ins early this morning.”
Axel nodded. “The auction for the girls begins this afternoon at four o’clock. An invitation arrived at our room this morning, guiding me to the boathouse on the north side of the island. They’ve assigned each of the bidders a separate room number. Each room will be equipped with a screen and a button. The girls will be presented one at a time on the screen, and if you wish to bid, all you have to do is push the button. Once there are no more bids and the girl has been purchased, she’ll be taken off-screen and replaced with a new girl.”
“I hope every one of these bastards goes down in flames,” Dante said.
“We’ll take down as many as we can,” Axel said. “New monsters crop up every day. I was able to plant the seed in Mittal’s head that Fedoryevski wants in on the bidding, so I know Deacon received an invitation this morning. And Levi confirmed that he also received an invitation. We’ll be wired to each other and have our codes worked out to know who is bidding on what. They’ll auction off three of the girls each day until they’re gone. Mittal said it was the appetizer to the big auction on Saturday.”
“Going down in flames is too humane a punishment,” Liv said. “I want that fucker to hurt.”
“He will,” Dante told her. “I promise. If you’ve got anything else, make it quick. Everyone will think you ordered the whole menu.”
“I had breakfast with Raj Mittal and some of the other major players this morning,” Axel said. “Mittal made it a point to let us know how great the security is around the launch codes. His bungalow and his son’s are joined by a pergola, and armed guards walk the perimeter. Then, once inside, the briefcase is in a locked safe, secured with a thumbprint and retinal-scan passcode.”
“Nothing I can’t handle,” Dante said.
“That’s not all,” Axel said. “The briefcase is sitting on a pressure trigger. Unless it’s been properly disarmed, the moment the briefcase is lifted, alarms sound all over the island and everything is shut down. There’s no leaving or entering the island from that point.”
Dante sighed. “Still nothing I can’t handle.”
“The first formal event is tonight,” Axel said. “Liv and I will attend, and it’ll give you a chance to switch out the briefcase for the dummy.”
“You say that as if there’s a problem,” Dante said, leaning forward to point at random foods on the menu.
“The problem is that we’re still not sure where they’re hiding the girls. The ones we purchase at the auction will be safe with us. We’ll slip them off the island with Elias and Miller. But the others are being kept somewhere. If something goes wrong during the briefcase switch-off, it’ll put Mittal on high alert that there’s a traitor on the island. He’ll start doing closer checks, and we won’t have as much freedom as we do now. He might even start sending home some of the minor players.”
“Then we need to find the girls, and we need to make sure nothing goes wrong during the switch-off,” Dante said.
“Piece of cake,” Liv said.