“I read her file.” Joe sounded resigned to a miserable task. “Her R & D in that field is how she hit our radar.”
“Who dropped the dime on her?” Sam had all kinds of free time now that he was out of the business. Enough time to visit the person trying to smear Danielle’s good name.
“I wouldn’t be here if the intel hadn’t come straight from our Fratelli informant.”
Few things could take Sam’s breath like hearing those words.
B.A.D.’s informant inside the Fratelli was exceptional and her information had never been wrong. She was some woman known by only one of their agents who constantly put her own safety at risk to sneak information to B.A.D. She’d prevented the Fratelli from killing thousands of innocent citizens more than once.
Nothing else could more thoroughly condemn a person than a warning from that informant.
Even Sam had to consider the unimaginable at this point.
“Danielle resigned from Cybertine Aeronautics two days ago. Our informant said Zydus Engineering has been courting Danielle quietly over the past month. They offered to buy a weapon design from her and she finally agreed. Zydus is a front for a Fratelli operation suspected of stealing U.S. weapons technology. We’ve had our ears to the ground on Zydus for a while and this is the first real break we’ve had. But her deal with them is far worse than selling standard weapons technology. She’s giving them plans for a satellite-directed laser weapon.”
Sam snorted. “If that’s the case, Danielle’s not just a traitor but a scam artist, too. There’re plenty of satellite laser designs, but nobody’s come up with a way to power the damn things.” The Danielle he’d known had been a sexy, straight-as-an-arrow egghead he’d fallen for back when they’d been study partners.
“Rumors surfaced in Cybertine Aeronautics over the past month that she’d designed a compact laser weapon and a supportable power source. Our informant has proof that Zydus and Danielle reached an agreement.”
Sam considered several possible scenarios and pointed out, “Selling plans to another company this way is unethical, and possibly illegal, but not necessarily treason if Zydus is building the weapon for the U.S.”
“True, but according to our informant, the Fratelli will construct and launch this weapon in Russia. Danielle will be paid by funds wired to an offshore account.”
A sick ball of disappointment fisted in Sam’s stomach as he waited for the rest.
“Danielle is presenting her design to Zydus tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. and, as a show of good faith, she’s handing over a component that’s a key piece of the designs. I need Danielle coerced into taking a flawed set of plans into that meeting with Zydus and to wire her so you can listen in. And you’ve got to tag that component with a transmitter.”
“You think she’s going to hand over a phony design knowing the people she just screwed will come for blood the minute they figure out they were scammed?”
“She might as well. The Fratelli intends to fly the plans and component to Russia the minute that meeting is over.”
Sam had always been fast at adding two and two. “They plan to kill Danielle after the meeting.”
“That’s why you—or Retter—may not have to terminate this target.”
Which was how Sam ended up moving silently through the hallway of Danielle’s hoity-toity hotel in Salt Lake City two hours before her meeting. Zydus headquarters was five miles away in an eight-story building and the Fratelli probably had Danielle’s hotel room under surveillance. Fratelli security would be watching for someone who looked like an operative entering the hotel this evening. Sam doubted they’d notice a man in jeans, an oversize blue Western-cut shirt stuffed to give him a gut and a weathered Stetson that blended in with all the other cowboys running around Utah. After reaching his room, he’d changed his boots to soft-soled shoes and swapped the Western shirt for a black T-shirt.
Would Danielle even recognize him?
What had happened to the woman he’d known?
One way or another, he was getting answers out of her tonight. Joe had shown him damning proof.
Upon reaching her suite, Sam breached the door too easily, which sent unease slithering along his neck. The only security had been the hotel’s top-of-the-line key-card protection. Ambient moonlight filtered through window sheers into the living area.
He paused, listening in case she had someone in the bedroom with her.
Wouldn’t that just suck? It’d been ages since he’d talked to her, but that didn’t mean he wanted to see her naked with another man.
Once he’d reconned the living room and ruled out listening devices, he crept into the bedroom.
He’d been prepared to contain her once he’d determined she was alone.
He hadn’t been prepared for Danielle sleeping naked except for panties.
She’d curled up on top of the covers, lush curves turned toward him with one arm draped over her breasts. The room smelled soft and inviting.
Hesitation could mean death in covert situations, but Sam had lost the ability to move. Danielle sure as hell wasn’t a girl anymore. Not with that body. Tousled auburn hair fell across her shoulders. Same pert little nose she’d turn up at off-color jokes, same soft lips that had driven him crazy, but the skinny legs she’d used to peddle an old bicycle around town had shaped up nicely.
She made a noise that shook him out of his stupor.
Sam moved to the bed, extending a hand to cover her mouth….
The hand Danielle had tucked beneath her pillow lashed out.
With a six-inch knife blade aimed at his balls.
He jumped back.
She came alive, snatching up a brass lamp she threw at him.
Sam dodged the lamp and rushed her, grabbing her knife arm and slamming her facedown on the bed with him on top.
She kicked and yelled, “Let me go!”
He had an iron lock on the wrist of her knife hand but she was jabbing him with the other elbow. “Stop it or I’ll have to hurt you.”
“Like that isn’t the point of this,” she snapped and started to scream, “Hel—”
He finally got his hand over her mouth, shutting her up. “Settle down, dammit. I’m Sam Garrett.”
Her kicking feet lost power and dropped. She was breathing hard against his fingers. The minute she lowered her guard, he slid his hand from her mouth to her throat.
She asked, “What are you—”
He applied pressure to an artery in her throat, cutting off her words. She bucked and fought him…then went limp.
He could use limp right now. For years, he’d dreamed about her naked in bed with him, but not like this.
* * *
Danielle stared at the man sitting across from her. Sam Garrett.
This couldn’t be Sam. Not the one she’d once loved. Well, it could be since he had wolf-gray eyes like Sam’s and he had sand-colored hair like Sam’s and a beefed-up version of Sam’s muscular build.
“Are you listening to me, Danielle?” Sam asked.
“Hard not to since I can’t cover my ears.” She gave a pointed look at the zip ties he’d used to bind her to an armchair. The fact that he’d wrapped washcloths around her wrists first didn’t earn him any credit or that he’d dressed her in a T-shirt and jogging pants.
He’d broken in and overpowered her, too.
“You’re in serious trouble.”
She lunged and fell back. “I’m in serious trouble. You’re the one committing a crime.”
He scratched his ear the same way her Sam used to do. “We know about the deal you cut to sell the laser weapon and power source to Zydus.”
Disappointment flooded through her. “So you’re here to get the plans for your people.”
He gave her a wary look. “That’s right.”
She made a sound of disgust. “What happened to you, Sam? You’re the last person I expected to go bad.”
“Me? I’m not the criminal.”
“You break in here to steal the laser plans for a third party and that doesn’t make you a criminal? Then what are you?” Besides the man who just crushed memories she’d held close to her heart for years.
“Let’s back up. I’m not here to sell plans to a third party. I’m here to prevent that weapon from ending up in the wrong hands.”
She considered the possibility that she might have made a tactical error in planning for today’s meeting. “Who do you work for? The government?”
“In a way. All I can tell you is that I’m with a covert intelligence agency that supports U.S. national security.”
“And I’m supposed to just believe you? Got any ID, a badge, something?”
“You’re smarter than that, Danielle. You really think undercover operatives walk around with ID?”
“CIA can’t operate on U.S. soil and FBI—”
He cut her off. “We’re not an alphabet agency. Think of us as Operatives Without Borders. All that matters is that my agency does have the jurisdiction to be here and an obligation to hand you over to the authorities, who will bury you so deep in the prison system you’ll disappear forever.”
Her brain stalled at his harsh warning and skidded out of control at the part about going to prison. She wouldn’t have agreed to be the front person for this meeting tomorrow if getting arrested had been on the table. But she still wasn’t sold. “If that’s the case, why haven’t you arrested me already?”
“Because we need you to follow through with meeting Zydus.”
Now she was thoroughly confused. “You want me to give the plans to them?”
“Not exactly. I’ll explain everything in a minute, but first I want some answers.”
The quiet sincerity in his voice reached inside her to brush against her heart. Of all the times over the years she’d missed him, this week had been the worst. A few men had come and gone in her life, but none like Sam. He was the one person she had wished to have in her corner this nerve-racking week. Her best friend and lover at one time who would have understood why she had to take this risk. “What do you want to know?”
* * *
“Why are you doing this? What happened to you?” Sam asked Danielle, words struggling past the misery clogging his throat. She hadn’t even tried to deny her complicity. “Why would you sell a weapon to terrorists?”
“Whoa, buddy.” Her blue eyes rounded in surprise. “You think…you think… I can’t believe…” She balled her fingers into fists. “You dog! You think I’d sell weapons technology to a terrorist? Me? Or is this some game you’re still playing to get these plans?”
He wanted to believe her, but couldn’t risk making a mistake, not with so many lives at stake. “Why were you selling plans you developed at Cybertine to Zydus? That’s still a criminal offense, especially with Cybertine having a defense contract.”
She didn’t respond except to continue looking at him as if he’d destroyed something precious to her.
“It’s time to come clean, Danielle.”
Her chest moved with a deep breath. She swallowed and her eyes were shiny. Ah, hell. She’d never been one for tears except when she’d lost her brothers and cried on Sam’s shoulder. Both times. Was she in deeper trouble than he imagined?
She finally spoke in a low voice hoarse with emotion. “You know me. You know how much I’ve lost in defense of this country. How can you believe I would do anything to help terrorists?”
How was it that she was the one tied up, but he was the one who felt guilty as hell? Or had she become a damned good actress over the years? “I’m still waitin’ to hear your side.”
“I’m not selling secrets. I’m here to catch the person who is stealing our research.”
That’s the kind of lie he would tell if he were in her shoes. Sam studied her every move, facial expression, sound of her voice, trying to determine if she was feeding him fiction or the truth. The first thing you learn as an operative is that everyone lies.
His heart argued for Danielle, but he trusted his gut when it came to decisions.
She raised hurt eyes to meet his. “My team is in charge of R & D for a laser power source, but only for the U.S.”
“We have proof you are selling the plans yourself, not your team.”
“You want to hear this or not?”
He’d forgotten her cute snippy side when she was interrupted while arguing a point. “Go on.”
“We’ve been hunting a leak at Cybertine for a while. I came up with the idea about letting a rumor on my power design slip out. When Zydus contacted me with specific details I knew it had to be someone on my team. My boss and I agreed to keep all this between us until it’s time to call the FBI. I agreed to meet with Zydus in person when they said their contact inside Cybertine would join us.”
She made it sound so real. Sam hit the crossroad moment of believe-her-or-not. “What exactly is supposed to happen at today’s meeting?”
“I’ll give a PowerPoint presentation on the laser weapon and power source designs. Plus I brought them a component the size of a smartphone that they think is an important part of the prototype.”
“Is that component real?”
“Yes, but no one will be able to construct a laser power source with it.”
Believing too easily was dangerous. “Why not?”
“Because I left enough out of the plans that they’d need me to build the actual product.”
That’s when the possibility she was telling him the truth sank in. “You came here to act as bait?”
“Pretty much.” She shrugged.
He went to his feet. “Are you crazy? Don’t you realize what would have happened when they found out you sold them phony goods?”
She gave him a look that suggested he was simpleminded. “Their engineers will need a day or two to figure out the flaw. The minute I get out of their building, I’ll contact my boss who will call the FBI with all the details so they can take over. We have a plan.”
Sam slapped his hand over his eyes, so pissed he was vibrating. When he removed his hand he told her, “This is not corporate espionage. The real people behind Zydus are the most dangerous in the world, worse than any terrorist bunch you can imagine. They plan to kill you after the meeting.”
Her face turned ashen. “What? You’re serious about terrorists.”
“Yes, dammit.” He still couldn’t just go on her word even if his gut had ganged up with his heart in favor of her innocence.
“Do you believe me, Sam?” When he didn’t answer, she mumbled, “I don’t know how to convince you I’m telling the truth….”
Then she went silent.
He cut his eyes to her. “What?”
She had that serene look she used to get any time she had a solution to a problem. “I know one way to convince you. I hope.”
“I’m listening.”
“I’m telling the truth. Scout’s honor.”
Those last two words took him back through the years to when they both had wanted to be in the Scouts, but no one in their little town would organize a Scout group, let alone allow them to be in one together. So he and Danielle sent off for Scout information and practiced the skills. They agreed to be secret members and go camping when they grew up.
“Sam, I’d rather die than sell those plans to terrorists.”
There was a point when you had to make a decision and he made his.
He believed her. But proving her innocence would be tough. Joe had sent him because Joe figured that knowing Danielle’s weaknesses Sam could get answers quicker. If Sam pulled Danielle from this meeting she would be put somewhere by his agency where he
’d never find her again and have no way to help her. Much as he hated it, she had to go to this meeting for any hope of proving she was not a traitor.
He produced a knife.
When she gasped and reared back, he said, “I believe you.”
“Thank goodness. What about the meeting?”
“Give me a minute.” Sam cut her loose then called Joe and caught him up. When Sam suggested pulling Danielle, Joe said, “We can’t do that. Heard Vestavia’s attending. Danielle set all this in motion. If she backs out now it’ll look like she’s protecting Vestavia from exposure. Can you prove she isn’t?”
Sam hung up and wanted to slam his fist into a wall. Vestavia had once been in DEA under a different name then disappeared and surfaced later as a key man in the Fratelli. B.A.D. would turn a city upside down to catch him. Sam had one option that might save Danielle. He said, “You have to make the meeting.”
She stopped rubbing her wrists and stood up. “Do they still plan to kill me?”
“Yes.”
Her legs folded.
He caught her before she fell. She gripped his arms, her face soft and open like the last time he’d held her close. She’d kissed him like there was no tomorrow, which turned out to be true because she’d left the next day before he could tell her about the ring he’d picked out. He’d known with that kiss he couldn’t keep her from leaving.
She was shaking now. “This is what I get for trying to do the right thing.”
“I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”
A tear slipped down her smooth cheek.
Ah, hell. He kissed her just to calm her down, or so he told himself. She held back for a second then opened to him, loving him with her lips the way she had back before she’d been offered a full scholarship and he’d left for the military. He was breaking all the rules for his line of work, but Danielle was in his arms again.
Damn, he’d like to keep her there.
But even if everything went right and he got her out alive, she’d have to answer to the FBI.
They still might arrest her.
One hurdle at a time. When he lifted his head, she opened her eyes. If he could just put her somewhere safe, but the Fratelli were too careful to do a hit at Zydus. Sam would be close enough to step in if they tried.
At Risk Page 13