He couldn’t deny that. It was bound to be dangerous for both of them, especially because his woman was hiding something from him, and he intended to find out what it was. She was mixing truth with lies in telling him what she was doing tonight. He didn’t doubt that she was meeting someone, but the rest of her story—that was suspect. He intended to follow her and see what she was really up to.
Lana had spent a little time observing her, and Lana was very, very good at observation. She had indicated that Scarlet was concealing several weapons under her blouse, the one that hugged her rib cage and full breasts. He couldn’t imagine where her gun was, but he had known all along she was armed. He knew there were other weapons stashed in her beautiful boots, the soft leather ones, a light midnight-colored suede with chains wrapped around the ankles and going up the boot midway. He had a feeling that chain came off fast when she needed it.
“I can handle dangerous. So can you,” he said with confidence. “I think we’re going to be perfect for each other. Maybe a little explosive now and then, but that just adds to the chemistry.”
“Any more chemistry and we really are in trouble,” she muttered. She lifted her lashes and looked directly into his eyes. “Are you certain, Aleksei?” Her vivid green eyes searched his.
She was looking for reassurance. He wasn’t letting her get away, no matter what was spooking her. No matter what her past was. He was her future. She knew it. She just wasn’t accepting it yet.
“I’m certain.” He poured conviction into his voice. “You have fun with your friend tonight and I’ll see you at eleven tomorrow.”
She had glanced at her watch several times. The library was emptying as the time to close neared. He didn’t want to hold her up. He needed to be “long gone.” Lana had used one of the several sports cars the club kept. This one, a fast little Porsche she liked to drive because she was a little addicted to speed, was going to be difficult to hide from someone experienced in watching for a tail. Absinthe was certain Scarlet was more than experienced. The last thing he wanted was for her to catch him following her. That would put an end to their relationship faster than anything else he could imagine. It was a very good thing both Lana and Absinthe were excellent at tailing someone. They weren’t about to get caught.
FOUR
“You’re really gone on this girl,” Lana said, not looking at Absinthe but keeping her gaze on Scarlet through the high-powered binoculars.
They’d followed Scarlet to a very upscale, trendy restaurant downtown where she parked in the upper parking lot next to an older gray Honda. A woman with long black hair got out on the driver’s side of the Honda immediately, smiling at Scarlet, and the two women hugged.
Lana frowned. “They aren’t that good of friends. They’re pretty stiff with each other.”
“Scarlet doesn’t like to be touched,” Absinthe supplied, happy it was a woman she was meeting. There was something “off,” but he wasn’t certain what it was.
The two women exchanged a couple of pleasantries and started walking along the narrow path leading to the restaurant. Scarlet turned her head and took a casual look around. She was up two floors, but her gaze included the parking garage beneath her as well as the grounds she could see. She looked across the narrow strip separating them to the gardens where Lana and Absinthe were behind the tree weeping long limbs of purple flowers. They stayed very still as her gaze swept first one way and then another, crossing them twice before the two women disappeared inside the building.
One side of the restaurant was glass from floor to ceiling, facing the garden. A lighted patio separated the indoor section from the jungle of plants. Scarlet and her female companion appeared at one of the little tables for two right in front of the window, where any passerby might see them. Absinthe went very still inside. There was something really wrong. They might be two stories up, but Scarlet was in plain sight. She was beautiful and anyone would notice her.
“What is it, Absinthe?” Lana asked, immediately noticing his body language.
“She never sits where she can be seen. Never. In the library, she watches the door, every exit. Every window. She never goes outside until she checks her surroundings, just like she did as she walked toward the restaurant. Choosing that table is out of character for her.”
Lana watched the two women carefully as they ordered food and talked together. “You said they were old friends and one is leaving for her home out of the country?”
He nodded, not taking his eyes off Scarlet.
“Her friend is named Josefa. She’s from Chile. They definitely know each other, but I don’t think they’re really good friends. Scarlet is leading the conversation and the other woman is following her lead. They’re speaking Spanish, but using a Chilean Spanish, their dialect. Scarlet is very fluent,” Lana continued.
Absinthe could read lips as well. Neither had been able, in the library, to get a good angle on Scarlet and Joan because Scarlet was protecting Joan with her body. But here, Scarlet was watching out the window, rather than looking at her companion, exposing her face openly. She was laughing in all the right places and acting as if the two women were old friends who wouldn’t be seeing each other for a very long time. Her friend was shading the upper half of her face, but not covering her mouth.
“It’s possible Josefa is here illegally,” Absinthe mused. “She’s far more nervous than Scarlet. In fact, Scarlet is as cool as it gets. She’s chatting away, carrying the conversation as if she’s done this a million times. Josefa is following along, but she’s sweating. She’s not facing the window and she’s keeping her head down. She plays with that scarf all the time, pulling it up around her eyes and forehead. See?”
“I think you’re right, Absinthe,” Lana said. “Mystery is solved. Josefa was most likely a victim of human trafficking and Scarlet’s helping her get back home. I can see her doing that, using the library for the railway.” She lowered the binoculars.
Absinthe didn’t move. It was the right scenario for certain. It felt right and yet—it wasn’t all right. Just like Scarlet’s truth held a lie. Scarlet was in plain sight in front of the window. Did she have a partner? Was she signaling someone by sitting in the window? Was that what she was doing by acting out of character? He didn’t think so. Why be in the restaurant at all? Why go there if she was smuggling the woman out of the country? That made no sense.
He took the high-powered binoculars off his woman and swept the restaurant, first paying attention to the other customers. The room was full. There were quite a few male customers. More men than women. Most wore suits and quite a few had their eyes on Scarlet. He couldn’t blame them. She laughed often and he’d heard that laugh. Soft. Sexy. And when she tossed all that gleaming red hair, falling like a waterfall of silk down her back, it gave a man far too many fantasies. She’d taken her hair out of the sexy librarian twist she’d worn earlier and let it cascade down her back, thick and rich and unforgettable.
“Fuck.” He whispered the obscenity out loud.
“What is it, honey?” Lana had the binoculars back up.
“Look around that room. That restaurant is filled with suits. Men on the rise. Salesmen. Stockbrokers. Hungry for power. You can see the way they’re talking to each other, their conversations, but most of them are looking at my woman.”
“Babe, I hate to break it to you, but she isn’t yours yet.”
“She’s going to be,” he said with confidence. Because she had to be. But she was up to something. “You notice anything else?” He didn’t wait for her answer. “There’s security cameras everywhere. Lots of money comes to that place. They aren’t risking their customers. Scarlet’s making sure she’s seen on camera. By the customers. Anyone walking in the gardens or the parking garage. She wants to be seen.” Which didn’t make a whole hell of a lot of sense when she was always so careful. And now, when she was helping a woman leave the country, and he was half convinced she was, why would she choose to be seen?
“Lana, what the he
ll is she up to?” Absinthe was intrigued, worried and annoyed all at the same time.
He was good at puzzles. Even brilliant at them. His mind moved at a very high rate of speed and little pieces of information clicked into place for him fast, forming a much larger detailed picture until his mind grasped exactly what he needed. What was she up to? It was beginning to drive him crazy, looping in his mind over and over.
“You’re going to have to tell me what you’re worried about, Absinthe. At the most, I see a woman who might be helping another woman get out of a bad situation. That’s my best guess and you know I’m rarely wrong.” Lana turned to him, her dark eyes focused completely on his face. She couldn’t see anything to set off her warning system, but she was willing for him to convince her.
“Scarlet is behaving entirely out of character. She isn’t like this. She’s cautious. So much so that I thought she was in trouble, that she might be in hiding from an ex-husband, boyfriend or stalker. She stays away from windows; she doesn’t sit in front of them. She’s looking right into those security cameras. She deliberately chose this place so she would be seen, and the other men here would remember her. She wants the waiters to remember her, she’s engaging with them. That woman she’s with is covering her face, avoiding the cameras. She’s letting Scarlet do all the talking with the waiter. When she went out with me, she barely looked up at the waiter and she definitely didn’t want him touching her.”
Lana frowned and glanced back toward the restaurant. “Okay, I can see why that doesn’t follow that she’d bring someone here if she’s getting her out of the country. I could be completely off track. They’re taking their time with dinner and Scarlet’s doing almost all of the talking. She’s looked at her watch a couple of times. Just glanced at it, but I caught it. I thought she might have a partner and sitting there was a signal.”
“I considered that, but it doesn’t make any sense. None at all, Lana. This place? Cameras? No, she’d do a better job of hiding that woman. Something else is happening that we’re not catching.”
Absinthe didn’t like anything he couldn’t figure out. His mind liked intrigue and puzzles and continually needed new learning experiences to keep him from boredom. Knowledge was power, and power meant Torpedo Ink would always be safe.
“Don’t do that to her,” Lana cautioned.
“Do what?” Absinthe studied the restaurant again, looking for anyone in the background that might give him a clue to what Scarlet was doing.
“If you’re really interested in her, you can’t make her into some giant puzzle, Absinthe. I know you. You’ll obsess over her, figure her out and then you’ll drop her and move on. I thought you wanted her because she quieted your mind and she was all about making your body come to life. Don’t make it about solving some ridiculous riddle that probably doesn’t mean a thing. We’re so used to intrigue and everyone having some kind of hidden agenda that we forget most of the real world is made up of nice people. She’s a librarian, for God’s sake.”
“She’s a librarian who carries guns.”
“Women believe in protecting themselves.” Lana sighed. “So, okay, I think, based on what I’ve observed of her, that she’s probably better than most women at it, and she’s had training, but that doesn’t mean she isn’t a normal person, Absinthe, not some crazy assassin running loose. You’re most likely looking for trouble where there isn’t any.”
Was he doing that? He shook his head because even she sounded doubtful. “I want her, Lana. I know that she’s the one. I think about her so much I can barely go to sleep at night. She’s the first thing on my mind when I open my eyes. She makes me laugh. She’s so damn smart. I like her. I like just watching her, knowing she’s in the world. I like hearing the sound of her voice. No, this isn’t about mystery or solving it, although I have to know what she’s up to, but I’ll figure it out. I always do. I need this woman. There’s something with the way her brain tunes to mine and when she’s with me after a certain length of time …” He trailed off. There was no explaining what it was like to anyone, not even to Lana.
“All right then. We’ll just wait. I’ve brought food. We might as well eat it. They’re eating slow so it’s going to be a while.”
Absinthe eyed her warily. “Did you cook? Buy it? Or did Alena provide it for you?”
Lana glared at him. “Just for that I’m not sharing with you. I’m quite capable of putting a meal together. I can make a sandwich. I’ve been around Alena since we were babies. And Blythe is always in the kitchen cooking for her demon children.”
Absinthe smiled. “That means Alena sent you food. You planned on spying on me.”
“Well, naturally.” Lana didn’t bother to try to hide her intentions. “Your protection is placed above all else, even my own comfort, brother.”
He rolled his eyes when she flashed a little smirk at him and sauntered away, making certain to keep out of sight of that very large window that gave Scarlet the ability to see the parking garage and the front of the sweeping, overgrown garden.
He stayed low, fitting the powerful binoculars back to his eyes once more, and studied his little librarian. She seemed at ease, carrying the conversation as the waiter brought salads. Josefa pushed her greens around on her plate while Scarlet ate and talked animatedly, occasionally waving her fork around to emphasize a point she was making. He watched her very carefully just as he had for the last six weeks. He knew her every expression. She appeared relaxed, attentive to the woman across from her, but in reality, she was on alert, watchful, even more so than when she was at the library and always so careful to stay away from the windows.
Scarlet didn’t like exposure, but nevertheless, she was putting herself in the position. Once again, he swept the restaurant looking for clues, anything that might tell him what she was up to. He examined the parking garage and the street below. He tried to see what he could of everything that Scarlet might be able to see. By the time Lana had made her way back, he was more convinced than ever that the only reason Scarlet had chosen the restaurant was for the location, so that she could be noticed and remembered.
The moment Lana opened the picnic basket he knew Alena had been the one to not only do the cooking but also the packing. The aroma was so incredible his stomach growled. Lana laughed at him. Two plates and glasses were included along with real silverware and napkins. Alena always planned for everything. Absinthe was certain she could manage a seven-course meal in a picnic basket if you asked her for one. This one had one of Lana’s favorites, a pork roast stuffed with cheese and tomatoes, that Alena had created from a recipe she’d adapted from their childhood memories of home. There was homemade bread, all warm from her hot packs, and plenty of butter and honey to put on the bread. She had included roasted potatoes and beets, which happened to be a favorite of his.
“That girl is brilliant.” He accepted the lion’s share of the pork, fanned out like a book, without even raising minimal protest. It was that good, and Lana would have given it to him anyway.
Lana heaved a pretend sigh. “Isn’t she? It doesn’t leave much left over for me to do. She’s good at everything.”
Absinthe looked up from his plate of food, fork halfway to his mouth. Lana’s voice was filled with amusement, but her eyes weren’t at all.
“Babe, that’s ridiculous. You’re good at everything too.”
Lana’s smile lost all pretense of humor. “Actually, I’m not. Not at the things Czar wants for us now. I’m good at killing. I’m fast, efficient and accurate. I can seduce the socks off anyone, even someone who thinks they see it coming. I’m good at cards. The things I need to be successful at in a different life, like Blythe and Anya—or even Breezy, and she was born into the life—I’m no good at.”
Absinthe wanted to wrap her in his arms and hold her tight. He didn’t dare. Lana had too many demons. They all did. He couldn’t take them all on. Already, the ones he had were eating him alive. He couldn’t keep adding more. She wouldn’t let him anyway. The momen
t he gave her too much sympathy, she’d turn away from him.
“You choose all the furniture because you can make us feel as if we have a home when we sit in it no matter where we are. You know that.”
She shrugged. “I suppose there is a use in that, but how often do we buy furniture?”
“Lana, we’re all learning. It takes time.”
“I’m not certain what we’re supposed to be learning,” she said, sounding serious. “I’m not ever going to be able to cook like Blythe, and no one can cook like Alena. That’s one of her many gifts. We all know that.”
There was love and pride in her voice. Absinthe could feel the genuine affection she had for Alena. “Babe, that doesn’t mean a thing. Cooking or not cooking doesn’t make or break a relationship. I couldn’t care less if Scarlet can cook. I doubt if Ice cares if Soleil can make a pancake for him. He loves her. That’s what matters. What’s wrong? What’s this really about?”
She shrugged and pushed the food around on her plate with her fork. “I’m restless sometimes, that’s all. I have to fight depression, just like everyone else. It isn’t easy being with everyone all the time. The reminders are … difficult. Some days are worse than others. You know how it is. All of us have to fight those times.”
“Lana, you can put an end to it. You’re capable of loving, you know you are.”
“I can’t. There is no way to end it. I don’t have that second chance like Steele got with Breezy. Some things, when they’re broken, can’t be put back together. I want to make certain Alena is all right, and Savage. I’m so worried about him. If he takes off, I’m going with him.”
“No.” Absinthe had been sitting back, lounging almost, doing his best to keep Lana at ease so she’d talk to him, but there was no way to disguise his visceral reaction to her declaration. “You can’t do that.”
“Someone has to watch over him.”
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