by Tawny Weber
“It’s enough to get you out of my life,” Nic promised.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Two Weeks Later
THIS WAS IT.
Darby strode toward the courtroom on the Coronado Naval Base with her dignity wrapped around her like a shield. As her heels snapped against the gleaming oak floor, she ran through it all in her head.
She had her argument down solid, she had a firm grasp on the military procedure and protocols.
Now it was a matter of trust.
Not of whether she believed the information Team Poseidon had given her. Despite what she’d told Nic, she trusted him. Almost as much as she loved him.
Which was why she’d ended it.
How many times over the last few weeks had she wished she’d had more time to think that through. Not because second thoughts would have prevented her from ending things. But because with a little time, she’d have figured out how to do a better job of it. Less emotional, friendlier. She’d have broken it off in a way that left things friendly and easy between her and Nic.
Instead, they were ugly and over.
Darby swallowed back the pain of that and told herself it was for the best. Proof, again, she thought, that the smoky gray wasn’t for her. When it came to emotions, it was black, white or nothing.
She reached the end of the hallway and paused before the door of the courtroom to run one hand over the lapel of her jacket, smoothing the navy fabric.
Go, she told herself. Get in there.
But she had to take another deep breath to calm the fluttering in her belly first.
It wasn’t nerves.
She never got nervous about trying a case.
It was concern.
She’d never tried a case worried about the outcome. Sure, she played to win, but losing had never carried the stakes today did.
One way or another, today was going to be a blow to Nic. She was sure of his innocence, but proving it was going to hurt him. Because proving it would destroy a man he’d spent most of his career honoring. Obeying. Trusting.
But just as the country and SEALs had been betrayed, so had Nic’s trust.
Just as she’d betrayed it.
Her fingers trembled as she reached for the door handle.
“Are you ready to win?” Carson asked as he joined her. His expression was fierce as he grabbed the brass handle himself and pulled open the heavy oak door.
“I’m ready, sir,” she said with a confident nod. “We’re going to nail this one.”
But when he yanked the heavy door open and gestured for her to precede him, she hesitated.
“I’ll be a moment.”
Carson gave her a narrow-eyed look.
“Don’t forget what’s riding on this, Raye,” he said quietly, appearing to be carefully weighing each word. “You nail this, you’re on your way to the top spot in the federal prosecutor’s office. You blow it, you’re done with the Justice Department.”
Right. Nerves fluttered through Darby like ants beneath the skin. This was it. Her career-making case.
And Nic’s career-saving case.
She just had to make sure he got what he deserved today.
Redemption.
She owed him that.
With that and a deep breath, Darby was ready to take on the world. She walked into the courtroom with her head held high and her heart sure she was on the right track.
“I’ve been trying to reach you since yesterday,” Paul murmured as soon as she took her seat at the prosecutors’ table. “What the hell are you doing?”
The friendly smile on his face did nothing to hide his irritation. Good, she decided as she pulled her notepad and pen from her bag and began arranging her side of the table. Water to the left, pad in the center, two pens and her closed notebook to the right, just in case she needed to refresh her memory during the case.
She wouldn’t need it.
But she knew the look of the fat leather portfolio, clearly stuffed full of page after page of facts, was intimidating Paul.
Which was part of her carefully crafted strategy. She wanted to keep the opposing counsel off-balance and on edge. And even though he didn’t know it, Paul was her opposition.
“I’ve been unavailable,” she said, finally replying to his complaint.
“You shouldn’t have been. We’re supposed to be working together.” Seeing Darby’s brows rise, he softened his tone and skimmed his fingers over the back of her hand. “This is it, Darby. Your big break. I want to make sure it’s perfect.”
She eased her hand away. She didn’t want to tip him off, so she smiled and made her tone rueful.
“You know the deal, Paul. We’re two separate entities here. You’ll make the military splash with your charges for the Navy while I handle the treason charges for the government.”
“We’re supposed to be working together,” he repeated, frustration clear in his voice. “This case will make your career. It’s going to make mine, too. I don’t want anything to go wrong.”
“What could go wrong?” Darby patted his hand this time, proud that hers didn’t tremble. “Look, Deputy Director Carson wants a clean case. That means our office works alone. Don’t worry, though. I promise I’ll be dishing up the treason charges today. My case is unassailable.”
“I have every faith you’ll do great,” he said. His smile flashed, excitement with a touch of malice as he glanced toward the empty desk for the defense. “Afterward, let’s go out. We’ll get dinner and celebrate our victories. It’ll be like old times.”
Before she could come up with an excuse, there was a furor at the back of the room. They and everyone else in the courtroom glanced back as Nic and his team entered.
Darby automatically took advantage of Paul’s distraction to pull her arm away. But all of her attention was on Nic and his team as they strode into the courtroom like a force of nature.
He was so damn gorgeous it hurt.
He looked delicious in his formal uniform. The gold double-breasted buttons and white shirt stood out in sharp contrast to his suit of navy blue, which was so dark it was almost black. She eyed the row after row of medals affixed to his chest below the gold SEAL trident. If those were just a few of his commendations, that rosewood case of his must be bursting.
She knew his team was dressed similarly, but she only had eyes for Nic. His commanding height, his broad shoulders and slender waist. The chiseled strength of his jaw. And those eyes. She felt them all the way across the room, and while she knew nobody else saw it, she could see the distance in that gaze.
Distance that hurt.
He didn’t trust her. She knew he had reason, but damn, it hurt. Darby didn’t care.
She wasn’t going to let him down.
Her gaze shifted to her boss as he shook hands with the judge, who’d just walked into the room. Instead of wearing the black robes of the judiciary she usually stood before, he wore a Navy uniform. Khaki pants and a crisp shirt with its own share of medals. With him was a large man in a white uniform.
Admiral Cree, Darby realized.
Ignoring Paul’s continued bitching as he whispered complaints and hissed instructions, she watched the Admiral, the judge and her boss talk. Their expressions were deadly serious, their postures official.
She knew Carson was putting in face time to impress upon the judge how seriously their office took this case. From the cold expressions he kept shooting Paul, he was establishing territory, as well.
Carson really wanted this win. But as much as he wanted it, she knew he’d walk away and leave her hanging if it looked as if things were going bad. And that would be it. The end of her career. The end of her dreams.
Darby tried to swallow but all the spit had disappeared from her mouth. As the urge t
o jump to her feet and run from the courtroom gripped her hard, she deliberately looked toward Nic. His eyes met hers.
And just like that, she felt the anxiety drain away.
Whatever happened, she was ready.
Whatever happened, it was worth it.
Darby glanced at her watch as the same judge who’d presided before stepped behind the bench.
“Come to order.”
As Captain Trenton opened the case, he cast an assessing look around the courtroom, his expression making it clear that he considered this a very grave undertaking. In addition to citing the crimes for which Nic was accused, he detailed every treasonous act on the table. Each word carried the sound of doom. Darby sneaked a glance at Nic.
He was pure strength. He radiated confidence, assurance and integrity. As if feeling her inspection, he met her eyes once more. In the dark depths of his gaze, she saw everything that could have been. Everything she’d ruined.
She wanted to apologize. She wanted to explain that she’d been scared, that she’d slapped him away because the feelings she had for him terrified her.
“Lieutenant Thomas, please proceed.”
“Lieutenant Commander Dominic Savino, you stand accused of conduct unbecoming an officer, disobeying orders and conspiracy to commit treason.”
She listened as Paul made his arguments before the judge. She held back a smile at Nic’s plea of not guilty.
Good. He was so damn good.
She pulled her gaze away to scan the rest of the room. The galley radiated testosterone. Admiral Cree’s face was set, his body language screaming indignation. The men of Team Poseidon sat next to him. Unlike their Commander, their expressions weren’t easy to read, but she knew them well enough by now to see the pride on his team’s faces. Louden, sitting next to Nic, had his official look on, his jaw set with determination.
Jarrett sat in the galley, too. But a few seats apart from the men of Team Poseidon. Darby wondered if that was his choice or the team’s.
As Paul finished his opening statement, the Captain turned his gaze toward Darby.
“Miss Raye? Do you have anything to add on behalf of the federal prosecutor’s office?”
“I do.”
As Darby got to her feet, she felt the pressure building in her gut. Pressure to do this right. To clear Nic and get him his life back.
She took her time rounding the desk and approaching the bench. In part because she enjoyed making Paul squirm after everything he’d done. But also because she needed those last few seconds to give her career a just-in-case goodbye kiss.
She stood tall, shoulders back and chin high, and looked directly at the judge. She made sure her words were clear, her tone ringing loud enough to be heard from the bench to the hallway.
“Sir, evidence has been brought to my attention that, in the eyes of the federal prosecutor’s office, clears Lieutenant Commander Savino of all crimes. Charges will be filed in US Court forthwith against the guilty party.”
In any other courtroom, the gallery would have exploded in whispers. But this was a military courtroom and nobody said a word. Then the tension in the room exploded like a grenade, shards spiking off the walls and hitting Darby with their vehemence.
“Would you care to expand on that claim,” the judge invited in a neutral tone that belied the intensity in his eyes.
“Excuse me.” Paul got to his feet, his body stiff with suppressed anger. “I was not apprised of this change of plans. I’d like to request a recess to assimilate this new information.”
After a long, considering moment, the Captain nodded before glancing at the clock on the wall.
“Recess. Thirty minutes.”
A bang of his gavel was all it took to loosen the tension in Paul’s body. He turned a vicious glare on Darby.
“We need to have a conversation.”
He grabbed her arm and pulled like he thought he could drag her from the room. Darby yanked herself free. Before she could snap at him to keep his hands to himself, she saw a wall of men rise on a smooth wave of intimidation. Every member of Team Poseidon, from the leader on down, looked ready to kill.
Whoa. Darby’s heart jumped at the fury on their collective faces. Afraid they’d do something to damage the case, Darby gave a tiny shake of her head.
She cringed at the expression in Nic’s eyes. Even as she braced herself for violence, Nic murmured something. Just like that, the wall of testosterone stood down. And Nic inclined his head as if to say, “have it your way.”
This man was a skilled military operative. He held multiple degrees, his chest was covered in commendations and he was trained to kill in more ways than she could imagine.
And not only was he willing to put his reputation, his career and his freedom in her hands, but he was also willing to stand aside and let her handle herself against an obnoxious bully. After everything she’d said. After all the ways she’d hurt him. He still trusted her.
And just like that, the last line of defense around her heart fell.
She loved Nic.
She gave the team a two-fingered salute of appreciation as she strode out of the room a few steps ahead of Paul, a sappy smile on her face.
“In here,” Paul insisted, grabbing her again to pull her into one of the small side chambers. He stabbed one finger toward the line of chairs flanking the conference table. “Have a seat.”
“I’d rather stand.”
“Fine. Whatever. Where did you get this so-called information?”
“That’s confidential.”
“Who’s your informant?” he snapped, loosening the knot of his tie as if it was choking him. And maybe it was if the red splotches on his face were anything to go by. “I want everything this person has given you. And more importantly, I demand to know who you plan to accuse.”
“You demand?” Darby laughed. “You’re not in a position to demand anything, Paul.”
“You know I’ve been trying for years to get something on Savino and his team of assholes. Don’t blow this.” Paul jabbed a finger at her. “Remember Dan. Your brother is dead because of these guys.”
“No.” Blinking away the tears suddenly burning in her eyes, Darby shook her head. “Danny’s death was his own fault. Nothing he did would have earned him a spot on Team Poseidon. He knew that but convinced himself he could change the rules. He took risks he wasn’t qualified to take thinking that if he could do the impossible, they’d let him on the team.”
As much as it hurt, Darby put the blame for her brother’s death exactly where it belonged. On him.
“His death is a horrible tragedy, but the responsibility and blame doesn’t belong to anyone on Team Poseidon.”
“That’s bullshit.”
“No, Paul, it’s not. Despite what you claim, despite whatever Danny might have thought, Team Poseidon’s inception is clearly documented. You gave me the files yourself,” she reminded him.
Darby gasped when, teeth bared, Paul grabbed her arms. He yanked her up on her toes to glare into her face.
“I gave you those files as background information on the men you were supposed to build a case against.”
“Let me go,” she demanded. Her knee was cocked and ready, but before she could launch it the door opened.
“Thomas, you’re needed in the courtroom.”
As sure as she was that she could handle herself, Darby couldn’t deny her sigh of relief. Nothing screwed up a trial more than kicking your co-prosecutor in the balls.
“We’re not done here,” Paul said through his teeth. His fingers clenched once before he let her go with enough force that Darby almost fell over.
His face still creased with fury, he turned to address the person who’d walked in.
Darby turned, too.
Her relief disap
peared when she saw the man in the doorway. Don’t freak out, she told herself as she faced the man she would soon be accusing of treason.
“Sir, I need to—”
“The courtroom, Thomas,” the man interrupted. The authority in his voice was so absolute that Paul didn’t even look at her again before he scurried out of the room.
Darby was left standing in an empty chamber with a man who’d betrayed his country, facilitated the injury of one man under his command and the murder of another, all to cover his own culpability.
He couldn’t know for sure that they had him, she reminded herself, trying to slow her racing heart. And even if he did, they were in a courthouse full of people.
But that assurance did nothing to calm the shiver of nerves crawling over her skin. Darby curled her fingers into her suddenly damp palms and, even while calling herself a wimp, decided to get the hell out of there.
“Excuse me,” she said, giving him a cordial nod as she moved toward the door. The sound of her heels on the wood floor echoed through the buzzing in her ears.
Then the big man shifted, blocking her path.
And that buzz turned into a roar.
“One minute, Ms. Raye.”
“I really do need to get back into the courtroom.” She shifted to the left, but he blocked her again. She drew in a deep breath and met his eyes.
“Is there something you need?”
“As a matter of fact, there is.”
The man’s smile was so nasty that it took her a few moments to notice the gun he was pointing at her belly.
Where had that come from? Panic exploded, spinning through her system, tingling across her nerve endings. Darby allowed herself three long seconds of terrified thoughts, then shut it down.
“I’m afraid I don’t understand.” Keeping her expression confused, she deliberately looked at the gun, then into his beady brown eyes.
“Oh, you understand just fine. Let’s go,” he ordered, his eyes scanning the room as he gestured her toward the door with his weapon.