Damn, he wished she wouldn’t look at him like that. One glance from her innocent blue eyes and his body shot to high alert with a willingness to damn the consequences. He grabbed the bag of donuts and shoved them at Aislyn.
She peered inside. "Joe is the first cat I’ve seen since I arrived. And if I can’t find cats, how am I meant to test the anti-cat remedies?"
Seamus stared at her. Good point. He wanted to laugh, but his mouth was still full. After chewing the tasteless donut, he swallowed. "I understand now. None of us considered the problem of finding cats in a city." Even though the first sighting of Joe had scared him to death, he was proud of her ingenuity. "How are the anti-cat remedies working out?"
"The one I tested yesterday made both of us sneeze."
Seamus leaned forward, interested in spite of his concerns for her safety. "Did you follow the instructions?"
"See that book over there, the fat one keeping my dresser level? That’s the list of instructions and all the tests the inventor wants me to run on this one anti-cat remedy. I followed the instructions in the first two chapters and not a thing happened--apart from the sneezing epidemics."
"Have a donut," Seamus said. "I thought you’d have coffee up here. Pretty small room."
"Yes." When she reached for the bag, her shirt rode up revealing several inches of skin. His pulse ratcheted upward, while his gaze remained glued to the innocent show. Man, he was one sad puppy.
"I spilt some of the potion when I sneezed. It splashed over my arm and now I have this rash."
Seamus was glad to look elsewhere. He studied the angry red marks on her forearm. "Pack it up and send it back to the inventor."
"But I haven’t finished the tests. Murphy said--"
"The potion is useless if it makes you sneeze and brings you out in a rash. Fill out the report, and I’ll take the whole lot back with me this afternoon. I’ll speak to Murphy. Did you want to go anywhere? I’ll drive you." As Seamus waited for Aislyn to answer, he tried not to think about the real reason he was visiting the colony. It was the day to make his final decision and send off the contracts. The board expected him to make the announcement today.
"Thanks, Seamus, but I want to walk up to the Domain today. Joe and I are going to conduct a few tests in the park.
Unaccountably, he felt deprived. Seamus stood and shook his head in self-denial, but he knew he was lying to himself.
He had it bad for Aislyn O’Sullivan, and the knowledge that after today he’d be betrothed to another woman was slicing his heart in two.
* * * *
A man and woman filed into John Watson’s penthouse suite on the top floor of the Metropolis Hotel in High Street, Auckland.
John Watson stayed at the picture window, staring out at the view of Rangitoto Island, until the shuffling noises indicated they were seated. Not a trace of impatience showed on his face. He’d learned long ago, when he was a child, that emotions were a weakness. These days he wielded that knowledge as a weapon--when it suited him.
From the fair side of the room, his assistant nodded, and John turned.
"Tell Major he can come out now," he said.
His beefy assistant nodded again and silently withdrew. Another man joined the group. He was the splitting image of the man already seated.
Watson allowed a pleased smile to flit across his face. His assistant had done well--very well.
"Good. Everyone is here." Watson moved behind a solid kauri desk and sat in the large leather chair. "Progress report," he demanded.
The woman cleared her throat. "We have collected several items on the list. I’ve arranged shipment to the central judging point on the island."
"Security?" Watson barked, scrutinizing the woman carefully to see if he could identify what made her tick. Early thirties. Dressed in a classic style--smart but not flashy. Efficient, according to the references his assistant had provided, and good at her job. But not flexible enough that she’d bend the rules.
The woman consulted a clipboard and named a reputable company with branches worldwide. Reassured, Watson gestured for her to continue with her report.
"So far, we’ve collected the bottle of wine, the Penny Black stamp and the sapphire."
Watson leaned back in the swivel chair, his mouth set in a displeased line. That was all? Three lousy items? He could have done better by himself. What the hell was he paying these people for?
The woman faltered at his look of disapproval. "The competition has strict rules. It’s not easy to collect fifteen rare items with only three people on the team."
"Why do you think I specified twins? Your job is to coordinate. The scavenger hunt started last week and we have three items. Three items! Pathetic. I intend to win this competition. Do you understand? Do what I’m paying you for or you’ll be removed."
No one uttered a sound. The men stared straight ahead, their faces impassive. A flash of unease sprinted across the woman’s features. Watson saw her catch her bottom lip between white teeth. She needed replacing. He had no time for dead wood on his team, not if he intended to win. Employing the woman had been a mistake.
It would be rectified.
"Right," he said to the woman. "Go to the central judging point and organize suitable storage for each item. Stay there and liaise with security. I want you to check each item in as it arrives."
"But that’s not necessary," the woman protested. "Who will organize the collecting?"
"I’ll take care of it," Watson said. "Thank you, that will be all."
"But--"
Watson eyed the woman, letting his distaste show. "Go."
She climbed slowly to her feet, glancing over her shoulder as she left the room.
Watson steepled his hands in front of him and surveyed the two men. In their mid-twenties, they looked fit and quite capable of carrying out the duties he required of them. Both trained in the forces, they now sold their skills to the highest bidder.
"I want you to fly to London to liaise with my people over there. Collect the items required and bring them back personally. I don’t care how you obtain them, but don’t return without the goods. Understand?"
"Yes, sir."
"Understood, sir."
Watson nodded with approval. "Good. See my assistant on the way out. He will give you your flight documentation. You’re on separate flights so you don’t attract attention."
The two men stood and his assistant followed them from the room. Watson heard the soft murmur of voices as Morgan gave them relevant instructions. While he waited for his assistant's return, he planned the rest of the week.
Revenge would need to wait a little longer.
Watson drummed his fingers on the glossy top of the wooden desk then picked up the phone to make a call.
"Rick? John Watson here. I need you to do a job for me." He listened to the man on the other end of the phone. "Cash. Half now and the rest once I’m satisfied the job is done. Three days, a week at the most. Good. Excellent. My assistant will meet you at DeBretts with instructions. You remember Morgan? Is that acceptable? Excellent. Good doing business with you." Watson replaced the phone before standing and walking across to the bank of windows.
That was one loose end snipped. Now it was time for a reunion with his stepbrother. After all, he’d been in New Zealand for a week now. It would be very rude not to look up his only surviving family member.
Without volition, Watson’s hand moved up to his face. He stroked the scar that slashed the length of his face. His smile held little amusement.
I wonder if Maximillan knows I’m here. Probably, Watson acknowledged silently, his lips twisting in wry humor.
He limped back to the desk to reach for the phone. About time he made his presence known. Tomorrow, he’d move over to the island and with a bit of luck, brother Maximillan would invite him to stay at the estate, which would bring him right into the thick of the action.
Oh, yes. The island was the very place to launch his plans.
* * * *
"Aislyn." Gary’s whisper held a sibilant, secretive undertone.
After dropping her purple pen on the desktop and flexing her fingers, she glanced toward the door where Gary hovered. "Don’t tell me you have more paperwork? It’s late--way past time to go home." If he thought his mysterious manner would intrigue her then he was right. One brow arched as she waited for him to spill the secret that he was bursting to tell.
"Nope, no more paperwork. Something better. I wanted to check you were alone." He scurried through the doorway then turned to shut it firmly behind him. "I have a young lady in my office. She asked to speak to Seamus or Gill. It’s something to do with their current case. I thought you might talk to her."
"Me?" Aislyn’s eyes widened.
"I’m administration," Gary said. "I don’t think I should talk to her, but you’re classified as fairy force. That’s why I think you should talk to her." A vision of Seamus roared through her mind with all the finesse of a freight truck. He’d be furious, yet temptation held her protest at bay. It couldn’t hurt to talk to the woman.
She tossed the pros and cons briefly. Sanity prevailed. "I think she should come back next week."
"No. Go and talk to the woman. This paperwork won’t disappear."
Aislyn stared at Gary, about to tell him he was crazy. Then the siren lure of the forbidden whispered in her ear. Serendipity, she decided. She sprang to her feet. Gary was right. If she didn’t grasp the opportunities presented to her, she’d be old and gray and still pushing paper around a desk.
"I’ll do it," she said. "Show her in here." As she issued instructions, Aislyn ruthlessly shoved her papers in her desk drawer and slammed it shut.
Gary nodded in approval and hurried out to show the woman in. Aislyn dug through the mess left on her desktop for a pad to jot notes on. Nerves made her stomach quake, but anticipation counteracted the worst of the anxiety. At last, she was doing something concrete to help with Seamus’s case.
After a brief tap on her door, Gary ushered the woman inside. Although she accepted the seat he offered, the woman perched on the very edge as though she’d bolt at any second. Her smart black suit bore splotches of mud and there was a small rip on the right sleeve near her elbow. Pansy-colored shadows under her eyes indicated lack of sleep and fine stress lines bracketed her mouth.
Determined to put the woman at ease, Aislyn stepped around the corner of her desk and stretched out her hand in greeting. "Hello, I’m Aislyn O’Sullivan."
The woman hesitated. "Gina. Gina Wilkins. I really wanted to see Mr. Gallagher."
"I’m his assistant," Aislyn said, giving herself a large promotion without blinking an eye. She stepped back until her butt leaned against the desk. "His second in command."
"Someone is trying to kill me," the woman blurted.
"Kill you?"
Gina glanced over her shoulder as if she feared someone would overhear her confession. She swallowed then looked back at Aislyn. "Yesterday when I was waiting at the traffic lights to cross from one side of Queen Street to the other, someone behind me shoved me off the footpath into the path of an oncoming bus." The woman shuddered. "I don’t know how but the driver managed to stop."
"Are you sure you were pushed? Couldn’t it have been an accident?"
"I thought so too, at first, but a woman behind me mentioned she’d seen a man push me off the curb. In the confusion, he disappeared. But that’s not all. Tonight, when I was boarding the ferry to cross the harbor to Devonport, a man shoved me over the side of the wharf just as the ferry moved." What little color remained in Gina’s face bled away when she recalled the incident.
"What happened next?"
"I managed to grab the railing as I fell. I caught a glimpse of a man wearing a hat before the crew came to my aid.
Caught up in the drama of Gina’s story, Aislyn’s heart pounded faster. "Did you see his face? Did you recognize him?"
"It was starting to get dark. And as I said, he wore a baseball cap pulled low over his face. He looked familiar, but I can’t place exactly where I’ve seen the man before."
Aislyn nodded. "Can you think of anyone who has a grudge against you?"
Gina shook her head.
"Who do you work for?"
"I’m not meant to tell anyone." She paused to chew on her bottom lip, her blue eyes surveying Aislyn with clear doubt. "I signed a confidentiality clause. That was one of the conditions of my employment--I can’t say who I’m working for or talk to anyone about my duties."
"Didn’t that strike you as strange?" Aislyn demanded. Sounded murky to her.
Gina’s eyes narrowed on hearing Aislyn’s incredulous tone. "I don’t do anything illegal." Her back straightened, her fearful demeanor replaced by indignation.
"They why all the secrecy?"
"I don’t know."
"I can’t help you if you won’t tell me anything."
"Seamus will help me," the woman said.
This time Aislyn’s eyes narrowed. "How do you know Seamus?"
"He’s friends with my sister. I’ve met him a couple of times, and I thought he might be able to help me."
"Seamus is away for the rest of the week." Jealousy clawed at Aislyn. "You can wait until he returns."
"But I need help now. Someone has tried to kill me twice." Gina closed her eyes briefly then opened them again to stare intently at Aislyn. "Do you promise not to tell anyone, if I tell you about my job?"
"The only person I’ll tell is Seamus."
"I suppose that will be all right. It’s not as if I’ll keep the job for much longer. My boss is less than impressed with the results I’ve produced so far." She paused to take a breath. "My boss is an English man called John Watson. I work as liaison for his collection of artifacts. He’s a collector, and it’s my job to help him add to his collection while he’s visiting New Zealand."
"What sort of things does he collect?"
"That’s just it. The list is a weird assortment of things ranging from jewelry to clothes to birds and animals. Endangered animals," she mumbled, color coursing along her pale cheeks.
"Endangered animals!" Gary bustled into the office carrying a tray with three cups on it. "Did you say endangered animals? Carry on," he said taking a chair right next to Aislyn. "I’m all ears."
"And mouth as well," Aislyn quipped. "What do you think this man is up to?"
"I know what he’s up to," Gary said. "It ties into Seamus’s latest case. I think we should try to contact Seamus and Gill, and meanwhile stash Gina somewhere safe until they can talk to her."
"Seamus told me that he couldn’t be contacted." Aislyn turned back to Gina. "Where is John Watson staying?"
"He has a suite at Metropolis."
"What does he look like?"
"He’s not that tall, maybe a little taller than me, so around five foot eight or nine, he dresses in Italian suits. He has short-cropped gray hair and a scar down one side of his face. His eyes are pale blue and shaking his hand is like touching a wet fish. It’s awful."
Aislyn leapt to her feet. "That’s great. It shouldn’t be difficult to find him if he’s at Metropolis. Do you have somewhere you can stay, Gina? Somewhere safe that you haven’t mentioned to your new co-workers?"
"I can probably stay with my friend, Lucy."
Gary stood as well. "I’ll go to find some clothes for you to put on--sort of a disguise. Hopefully, we can fool anyone who is watching for you." He hurried from the office.
"What are you going to do?" Gina asked.
"We’ll report it to Seamus’s boss. That’s all we can do at the moment." Aislyn willed all expression from her face and hoped like heck that she didn’t look as though she was lying.
"I’ve found some clothes for you," Gary said, holding up a pair of jeans, an ugly gray jacket and a navy blue hat. "The jeans will be too big, but I think Seamus has a tie in his drawer for formal occasions. You can borrow that for a belt to hold the jeans up."
Five minutes later, Aislyn
ushered Gina out a side door of the police station.
"Can you see anyone familiar?" she asked. "What about that man standing over by the Post Office?"
"No. I’ve never seen him before."
"All right. Let’s walk up to the corner and catch the Link bus. We can get off opposite TwoDoubleSeven in Newmarket."
Gina gave a wan smile. "Lucy’s flat is five minutes walk from there."
"Good," Aislyn said, grabbing Gina by the arm. "If we walk briskly, you’ll be safe at Lucy’s house in no time. No one seems to be taking any notice of us." The words sounded sincere or at least she hoped they did. Aislyn didn’t like the way the spot right in the middle of her back prickled or the warning voice whispering in her head. She hastened her pace, literally dragging Gina after her. "Which street? This one?"
Gina glanced over her shoulder. "Is someone following? I can’t see anyone."
Aislyn didn’t answer but picked up her speed even more. She couldn’t see anyone behind them either, but her gut told her they were there.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Aislyn escorted Gina to her friend’s house then spent half an hour lurking in the shadows outside to see if anyone suspicious showed. Nothing larger than a bird disturbed the peace, so she slunk down the street making lots of false turns before heading for the bus stop. When the bus arrived in Queen Street, Aislyn alighted and ducked up Vulcan Lane then turned along High Street, heading for the Metropolis hotel. During the bus ride back into the central city, she’d decided she needed to see this man, John Watson to get a feel for him.
At the hotel, she sauntered through the large double doors into the huge marble foyer. A bank of lifts filled the wall on her right while an officious man stared at her from behind the reception desk. Aislyn hesitated, unsure of what to do next.
A hand settled on her shoulder. "I thought I’d find you here."
Aislyn whirled about balanced lightly on the balls of her feet, ready to defend herself just as Seamus had shown her. The familiar braided hair made her arm halt mid air. "Gary!" She shot a glance at the nosy receptionist and then dragged Gary by the arm until they reached a seating area set aside for guests. After dropping onto a plush blue two-seater, she said, "What are you doing here?"
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