Going to Extremes

by Amanda Stevens

  She drew a deep breath. And only a moment ago she’d been dreaming about murder. So nice to know she had her priorities straight.

  Aidan hung up the phone and placed it on the end table near the sofa. Then straightening, he noticed her in the doorway.

  “I wasn’t eavesdropping,” she said quickly, which was true. She hadn’t heard a word he said. “I just came to get some water.”

  He headed for the kitchen. “I’ll get it for you.”

  “I can get it. You don’t have to wait on me,” she protested, when he beat her to the kitchen. “I’m not helpless.”

  He came back over to where she stood and took her hand. Lifting it up, he pointed to the scrapes that were scabbing over and the shredded nails that she’d trimmed down to the quick. “Those are not the hands of someone helpless,” he said. “You forget that I’ve seen you in action. I know exactly what you’re capable of. I’m not trying to offend you. I’m just trying to be nice to you. I would expect the same from you if I’d been the one upchucking my last two meals.”

  “Three,” she muttered. But she didn’t say another word as he went into the kitchen and filled her a glass of water.

  When he brought it to her, she took a few sips then set the glass aside.

  “Tell me again why you’re here, Aidan.”

  He cocked his head with a frown. “Didn’t we already have this conversation?”

  “Yes.” She folded her arms. “But I still don’t quite understand why you’re here.

  “What is you’re fishing for, Kaitlyn? What do you want me to say?”

  His bluntness angered her at first, and then she realized he was right. She was fishing for something. She just didn’t know what. “I feel empty and restless and…I don’t know why.”

  “You’re dead on your feet, that’s why,” he said sternly. “You need to sleep.”

  “I can’t sleep. I…don’t want to be alone.”

  “You won’t be alone. I’ll be right in here on that sofa. If you need anything, all you have to do is call out.”

  “Maybe I didn’t make myself clear,” Kaitlyn said softly. “I don’t want to be alone.”

  His eyes darkened as he stared down at her. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”

  “There is such a thing as comfort sex, right?”

  “I’m not very good at comforting,” he finally said.

  “What are you good at?” She put out a tentative hand and traced it along his washboard abs.

  He sucked in a breath and caught her hand. “You sure you want to start this party?”

  His eyes burned into hers, and now it was Kaitlyn who caught her breath. To answer him, she lifted her hand to cup the back of his neck and pull his head down to hers. She kissed him as she’d never kissed anyone before. Except for Aidan.

  He drew back in surprise. But he didn’t say a word. Instead he stared at her for a moment before lowering his head to kiss her back, deep and hard and without one ounce of comfort.

  He wrapped his arms around her waist, lifted her up and kept right on kissing her. He kissed her all the way across the room to the sofa, and then he dropped her on the cushions and lowered himself over her.

  He studied her features in the darkness. “You’re sure this is what you want?”

  “It was my idea, remember?” Kaitlyn tangled her fingers in his short hair and yanked him closer. “You don’t have a problem with assertive women, do you?”

  “No problem at all. We can even switch positions if you want.”

  He started to turn them so that she was on top, but Kaitlyn rolled the wrong way and ended up on the floor on her back.

  Aidan didn’t miss a beat. He rolled off the couch on top of her and, bracing his hands on the floor, kissed her again. Then he slid his arms beneath her and this time rolled her on top of him.

  He tugged at the hem of her pajama top. “You’re wearing too many clothes,” he muttered.

  Before he could unbutton her top, Kaitlyn whipped it over her head and flung it aside.

  The lights were still off, but she knew he could see her as clearly as she could see him. She wasn’t embarrassed by her body. She worked out, and she didn’t even mind when Aidan seemed fixated on her breasts.

  “Wow,” he muttered. “I’m impressed.” And to show her, he cupped them in his hands, and then rose to taste first one then the other with his mouth and tongue.

  The sensations storming through her felt almost too good, and she pushed him back against the floor and flattened herself against him. While she kissed him, he slipped his hands inside her pajamas and splayed his hands over her buttocks, pressing her so tightly against him that she could feel his arousal through his jeans.

  “Wow,” she whispered against his mouth. “Now, I’m impressed. Please tell me—” she kissed him again “—you brought…” another kiss “—a condom.”

  “Wallet. End table.”

  Of course, he had a condom, Kaitlyn thought. Not because he’d anticipated what was happening between them, but because a man like him would always be pre pared. He probably had women throwing themselves at him all the time. Just as she was doing at that very moment.

  Kaitlyn slid off him and scrambled for his wallet. It fell open, and in the dim light from the street, she caught a glimpse of a woman’s photo. Then his phone rang, startling her, and she snatched her hand back as if she’d spied a snake. She shot Aidan a glance. “You don’t want to get that, do you?”

  He rose on his elbows, his focus glued to hers. “I’d better. It could be important.”

  She tossed him the phone, then reached for her pajama top. He grabbed it out of her hand and flung it over his shoulder as he answered the phone. Then he grabbed for her.

  “Campbell,” he all but barked as he lay back on the floor with Kaitlyn in his arms.

  “It’s Murphy. Get back to headquarters ASAP. You’d better bring the woman with you.”

  Chapter Twelve

  Kaitlyn had wanted to get inside Big Sky Bounty Hunters headquarters for years, but she’d never even driven by the building because, until tonight, she’d never known the exact location. The place was very remote, and from the outside, looked indistinguishable from other log-cabin-style houses in the region.

  Inside, the rustic charm had carried over, but Kaitlyn gave the decor only a cursory glance because guessing what was behind all those closed doors had her curiosity buzzing.

  Aidan led her into a kind of great room furnished with leather furniture, big-screen TV, dart board and a pool table before disappearing inside one of those closed rooms.

  Kaitlyn wandered about the room, growing more restless by the moment. If Aidan didn’t return soon, she just might have to go exploring.

  Rolling a billiard ball back and forth on the table, Kaitlyn glanced up to find someone watching her from the doorway. She straightened. “Hello, there.”

  The tiny girl looked to be around four, and she was dressed for bed in a pink-flowered nightgown with a ruffled hem. A more incongruent persona Kaitlyn could not have imagined seeing in the headquarters of a world-renowned bounty-hunting firm.

  The little girl rubbed her dark eyes. “I’m not allowed to talk to strangers,” she announced solemnly.

  “That’s a good rule,” Kaitlyn said.

  “Olivia!” someone called from the hallway. A moment later, a gorgeous brunette with a killer body appeared in the doorway. “There you are,” she said a trifle impatiently. “What are you doing out of bed? Again.”

  “Thirsty, Mama.”

  “Thirsty! Livvy, there’s a glass of water by the bed. I brought it to you myself not ten minutes ago.” The woman glanced up and rolled her eyes. “Hello. You must be Kaitlyn. Aidan’s friend. I’m Mia Murphy.”

  The two women shook hands and then Mia said proudly, “This is my daughter, Olivia.”

  Kaitlyn bent. “Hello, Olivia. What a beautiful name. I’m Kaitlyn.”

  Olivia Murphy reached out and ran her fingers through Kaitl
yn’s hair, her eyes widening in wonder. “Look, Mama! It’s fairy-princess hair!”

  “Why…thank you. I think,” Kaitlyn murmured.

  Mia laughed. “She doesn’t see too many blondes around this place. Not as fair as you anyway. And, yes, fairy-princess hair is high praise, indeed.”

  “Well, then I’m flattered.” Kaitlyn smiled at the little girl.

  “Okay,” Mia said sternly. “You met the nice lady, now it’s time to go back to bed. Again. No getting up this time, okay? I’d be in bed myself if your father didn’t need my help.”

  “I want a story,” the little girl declared stubbornly.

  “It’s too late for another story, and besides, mommy has to go help Daddy for a little while.”

  “Why can’t Daddy come read me a story?”

  “Because he’s called a very important meeting, and he wants me there with him. Now, come on. Off you go.”

  Olivia turned her attention to Kaitlyn. “Do you have to work?” she asked slyly.

  “Olivia Murphy, have you no shame!” Mia shook her head. “She’s not very subtle, is she? She gets that from her father.”

  Kaitlyn laughed. “Well, as it happens, I don’t have to work right now, and I’d love to read you a story.”

  “You don’t have to do that,” Mia protested.

  “No, I’d like to. That is, if it’s okay with you?” She probably should have asked for permission first, Kaitlyn realized, especially considering the late hour. She wasn’t all that familiar with protocol when it came to kids and their parents.

  Before her mother could protest further, Olivia hurried over and slipped her hand in Kaitlyn’s.

  “Well, I guess that’s settled,” Mia said with a sigh. “Do not let her con you into two stories. It’s after midnight, for goodness’ sake. Do you want to turn into a pumpkin?” She shook her finger at Olivia.

  The little girl giggled and clutched Kaitlyn’s hand.

  “One story and then we’re done. Scout’s honor.” Kaitlyn glanced down and winked at Olivia.

  The little girl beamed. “Come on.” She tugged on Kaitlyn’s arm.

  “First door on the right at the top of the stairs,” Mia called after them.

  And then she said something under her breath that sounded very much like “Sucker!”

  AIDAN WATCHED as Mia Murphy entered the room and took a seat at the conference table beside her husband. Joseph Brown, Owen Cook, and Anthony Lombardi were also present, but the other bounty hunters were either home asleep or out in the field on assignment.

  Murphy turned and said something to his wife in a low voice, and Aidan heard Mia respond, “She’s finally in bed, but only after she coerced Aidan’s friend into reading her another story.”

  “Kaitlyn?” Aidan asked in surprise.

  Mia turned. “Yes. She’s upstairs right now with Olivia.”

  Aidan and Murphy simultaneously swiveled to the bank of monitors on one side of the room. With the push of a button, Murphy could activate various security cameras that were located in every room of the building. He turned on the camera in his daughter’s room now, and Olivia and Kaitlyn appeared on the screen.

  Kaitlyn was sitting on the edge of the bed, and though the audio was off, Aidan could see that the two of them were laughing and talking and seemingly getting on as if they’d known each other forever.

  He’d never seen Kaitlyn like that before, and for the longest moment, Aidan couldn’t tear himself away from the screen. When he finally did, he caught Mia’s eye and she smiled knowingly.

  Satisfied that his daughter was safe and in good hands, Murphy, too, turned from the monitors. “You’re probably wondering why I called you back out here at such a late hour, but there’ve been some new developments in the situation that I thought you all should know about. I’ll brief everyone else on a need-to-know basis.”

  “New developments regarding Fowler?” Joseph Brown asked, from the end of the table. He was scowling as usual, but Aidan knew the late hour had very little to do with his sour disposition. According to some of the other guys, Brown had been in a bad mood ever since his wife left him three years ago. But the man’s personal life wasn’t any of Aidan’s business. He had his own problems.

  “Possibly,” Murphy said. “It involves the body that Campbell and Clark discovered yesterday near Devil’s Canyon. Whether Fowler and his goons were responsible is yet to be determined. But thanks to Kaitlyn Wilson, we now have a lead on the guy’s identity. Does the name Wilhelm Schroeder mean anything to any of you?”

  “He’s the German ambassador to the U.N.,” Owen Cook, their computer expert, responded. “I’ve been tracking this Lukinburg thing even before Petrov’s speech, and for months Wilhelm Schroeder has been one of the staunchest opponents of military intervention. After Petrov’s appearance before the U.N., however, he did an about-face and now says he’ll vote in favor of the resolution.”

  “Wait a minute,” Aidan said in confusion. “You’re not saying the John Doe we found is Wilhelm Schroeder, are you? What would a U.N. ambassador be doing in Montana?”

  “Yeah, that’s a good question,” Cook agreed. “But I’ve been picking up some chatter online for a while now about a secret Security Council vote.”

  “Why secret?” Lombardi asked.

  “Because the feds are afraid of a terrorist attack on the day of the vote,” Murphy said. “Evidently, they perceive the threat as real and specific enough to raise the alert to the highest level and move the Security Council out of the U.N. building.”

  “But why Montana?” Aidan persisted.

  “Our illustrious governor has some pretty important connections inside the Beltway,” Murphy said. “If he could successfully lobby to have the vote take place here, then I’m sure he’d consider it a major feather in his cap. But that aside, a Montana retreat is not without precedence. There’s a place in the Rockies that was used as far back as World War II by Churchill and Roosevelt and there was even some talk of bringing the president here after the nine-eleven attack instead of taking him to NORAD. I’ve never seen the place, but I’ve heard it’s situated so that anyone approaching by ground or air can be spotted for miles. And once inside, the place is virtually impenetrable.”

  “And you think Schroeder was on his way to this retreat when he was killed,” Aidan said. “What about his staff, bodyguards, driver? Someone like that usually has dozens of people traveling with him.”

  “Not if he was trying to keep the media in the dark about the secret vote. Traveling with a large entourage would have looked pretty suspicious,” Murphy said. “And according to my contact at the FBI, Schroeder was known for dismissing his staff and bodyguards in order to keep his trysts with married women out of the public eye. Supposedly, he’s been with his latest mistress for the past few days, but she came forward a day or two ago and said that she hadn’t seen him in over a week. That’s when the FBI was called in.”

  “Okay,” Brown said, still with that dark scowl. “So what does all this mean? We have the possibility of a secret U.N. Security Council vote taking place in a secret location. An ambassador on his way to said location is murdered and his body mutilated to keep it from being identified. I’d say security for that little meeting has been badly compromised.”

  “No meeting, no vote, no war.” Lombardi succinctly summed it all up.

  “Exactly,” Murphy said. “And I think it’s pretty obvious who would have the most to gain from that.”

  “What I don’t understand is how Boone Fowler figures into this,” Aidan said. “Why would he care about a U.N. Security Council vote? He’s a home-grown terrorist with his own agenda. He’s never been interested in international politics.”

  “We don’t know that he is involved,” Murphy said. “But regardless, our mission hasn’t changed. Fowler is still our target. As far as I’m concerned, the feds can deal with the rest of this mess. There is one thing, though, that is our problem.” Murphy’s eyes met Aidan’s. “My contact was v
ery interested in knowing where I came across the information about John Doe’s German. I managed to keep Kaitlyn Wilson’s name out of the conversation, but sooner or later, they’re going to put it together, and they’ll want to talk to her. Which might not be a bad thing, considering they could put her in protective custody until this whole thing blows over.”

  “I don’t think so,” Aidan said. “I agree with Brown. Schroeder’s murder proves that the security around this secret vote has been badly compromised. If someone could get to him, what would keep them from getting to Kaitlyn in protective custody? She’d be a sitting duck.”

  Murphy shrugged. “What’s the alternative? Stash her somewhere for the time being?”

  “She’d never go for that,” Aidan said. “Right now, the FBI knows everything she knows. She hasn’t remembered anything else. If and when she does, we’ll contact the feds, but for now, until we know exactly what we’re dealing with, she’s safer with me than in their custody.”

  “He’s right,” Mia said. She placed her hand on her husband’s arm.

  Murphy frowned. “Two days ago, we were still wondering if this woman had connections to Boone Fowler. Now she’s upstairs reading a bedtime story to my daughter.”

  “She’s not connected to Fowler,” Aidan said. “I’d stake my life on it.”

  Murphy’s expression turned grim. “You just may have to.”

  ON THE WAY BACK to town that night, Aidan filled Kaitlyn in on the details of the meeting. “A lot of what I’ve just told you is speculation,” he said. “And it has to be off-the-record.”

  “I understand.” She lifted a hand to tug back her hair. “But my head is spinning here, Aidan. The body you found near Devil’s Canyon was the German ambassador to the U.N. He was on his way to a secret meeting to cast a secret vote that would allow coalition forces to invade Lukinburg. Someone killed him to keep him from casting his vote. This doesn’t sound like something that would happen in Montana. It sounds like something that would happen in a Tom Clancy novel.”