Fire (A Special Agent Novel Book 4)

by C. P. Mandara

  “She’s not a plant.” I am adamant in my belief. I can still remember the first day Lois came to me, when her emotions were raw, and her defences were down. There’s no way Lois has been playing me. I’d know.

  Adie shrugs. “I’d just keep an open mind. It wouldn’t be the first time Alain has had an operative in the field for the long haul, and it certainly won’t be the last. If you’re not prepared to risk your life on the fact, be careful around her James.”

  “Oh, I intend to. As from now, we are not friends.” Adie handed me two packets of sterile wipes and some bandages. I’d been rubbing my wrists for a few minutes now, and they were finally coming back to life. They’d be a little sore for a few days, but it’s nothing that won’t heal given time.

  “Good to know.” Adie then stood and passed me some clothes. I hadn’t even noticed he’d been carrying them when he walked in. Just goes to show how mad I was. That kind of rage interferes with my perception of things. It’s rare I let my emotions consume me, but where Lois is concerned, I can’t seem to see reason.

  “How’s the back?” I can’t examine it at the moment because he’s facing me, but I know when he walks out of that door, I’ll see the monstrosity of flesh that his brother has left him with. It won’t look pretty.

  “I’ll survive.” Adie is, as ever, pragmatic about the whole episode. I have no idea how he’s stayed as sane as he is. If it had been me, I’d have gone nuts, and probably blown up most of Carte Blanche by now. I’m a hands-on kinda guy.

  “Can you get around okay?” I know he can’t. He looks stiff when he’s walking and turning, but it's early days yet.

  Adie sighed. “It’ll take another week before I’m back to reasonable mobility, but I’m feeling a heck of a lot better than I did a few days ago.” I nod. At least he’ll live to fight another day. At the time, I’d wondered.

  “I’m going to take a shower and sort myself out. Can you get me something to eat before I come back? Your brother seems to think I’m allergic to food.” I gave him a wry look. Standing up carefully, I felt my head swim and had to put an arm back down on the bed for support until the wave of dizziness left me. I hated feeling weak. Although I knew why Alain had pulled this stunt, it didn’t make it any easier to bear.

  “Food is already on the way. I’ve ordered something light. If you want anything else, you need only ask. The hunger strike has officially ended,” Adie said.

  That made me pause as I made my way carefully to the bathroom. Turning to face him, as I clutched the doorframe for support, I said, “Should I be concerned by this turn of events?” It would just be one more thing to add to my list. At the moment, I was worried whether I’d be able to stay conscious for long enough to get showered. It would be a close-run thing, and if I was any kind of sensible, I’d wait until I had some food in me. I wasn’t in a patient mood, though, and the urge to wash the stench of sex off my body, amongst other things, was strong.

  “Probably. For the next week he’s got you doing a full schedule in the gym, and you’re getting assigned a personal trainer. Something’s up, that’s for sure.”

  “Mother-fucker,” I hissed. “He told me I’d never work for him again. Your brother seems unable to keep even the simplest of promises.” Touching my head to the doorframe, I wondered what unspeakable acts I would be committing for the eldest Dumortier brother in the near future. I wasn’t sure I would be able to cope with this, not that I had a choice.

  Adie lips twisted. “Tell me something I don’t know.” He stood up and walked towards me. “You told me you’d get me out of here one day. I’m still holding you to that promise.” He put a hand on my shoulder and sighed. There was a long silence. Eventually, he said, “It’s never going to happen, is it?” The look he gave me was heart-breaking.

  “Be patient. We’ll get there,” I murmured, with far more bravado than I felt. Right now, it seemed as if I was on the twentieth floor of a high-rise building, while the walls were crashing in all around me. Perhaps I’d get some perspective after a decent night’s sleep. I could dream.

  “Go shower,” Adie said. “I’ll be here with your food when you get out.”

  Adie was as good as his word. When I’d finished my shower, a club sandwich with a side salad awaited me on the desk, accompanied by a tall glass of water and a bottle of beer. Christ, Alain was going all out this afternoon.

  Sitting down on the bed, I towelled myself off and got dressed. Adie had brought me a pair of jeans and a black T, so I couldn’t complain. While I’d been gone a tube of antiseptic cream had appeared next to the sterile wipes, so I sorted out the cuts on my wrists and bandaged them up. At the moment, they were bruised and swollen, but they wouldn’t take long to heal. My left hand still looked a bit worse for wear where Alain had speared it, but the worst was over. At least I was still in one piece. It could have been worse.

  Sitting down at the desk, I then tucked into the food. Adie waited patiently on a chair beside me. He was flicking through the Guardian, but he didn’t find much of interest, for his gaze never lingered on a page for long.

  In the end, I only ate half the sandwich and a couple of forkfuls of salad before I gave up. I’d eat the rest later. My stomach just needed time to readjust. Grabbing the glass of water, I downed it and then drummed my fingers on the table.

  “What are you thinking, Adie?” He didn’t look up from his reading, but I knew his focus was on me. Something was bothering him.

  “I’m trying to figure out Alain’s next move. He wants you back to full fitness for a reason.” Standing abruptly, Adie threw his paper down and began to pace.

  “You don’t have to be a mind-reader to figure that one out,” I said grimly, running my fingers down my face so they dragged against my skin.

  “Do tell,” said Adie. When I caught sight of his back as he turned, I winced. So much for the skin graft. His back was once again ruined, although I dare say his appeal would only grow with the ladies. A few scars wouldn’t chase them away, not with that exceptionally handsome face he possessed.

  “He’ll put me together with Lois and ask us to do some hair-brained scheme or another. Something that’s fucking dangerous and probably destined to get at least one of us killed. As we both know, I shouldn’t be anywhere near her.” My stomach was now making unpleasant gurgling noises, and I had a feeling it would keep me up all night.

  “Do you love her?” Adie murmured.

  That question nearly made me jolt upright. I didn’t want to answer that, especially not coming from him.

  “No.” I knew Adie’s eyes were on me as I replied, but I kept my face carefully blank. I still wasn’t sure how Adie felt about Lois and denying them some kind of happiness felt wrong if he truly cared for her. I could never have her. As soon as I had the chance, I was going to put as much distance as I could between us and that would be the end of the problem.

  “Are you telling me the truth, James?” My face remained blank. Fuck you, Adie, I thought. There was no other answer to give, though.

  “Alain will try his hardest to get me to sleep with her. He wants payback for Alaina. I want you to promise me you won’t let that happen. I don’t care what methods you use, but if I touch Lois again - I’ll end it - and we know what happens then. Give me your word, Adie.”

  “You know I have your back, Leveritt. It goes without saying. It might not be a problem, though. There’s a chance you might hate her shortly. I know you think she’s not working for the other side, but I have my doubts.” Adie bit his lip as his footsteps came towards me once more.

  “Will you sit the fuck down and explain that to me? Where the hell is Lois, anyway? Is she too frightened to face me at the moment?” I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the woman. I had lots of things that I wanted to say to her - and none of them were very pleasant.

  “I don’t think you want to know,” Adie said quietly.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” I wasn’t in the mood for riddles. If he had something to say, he
needed to come out with it.

  He put his finger over his lip, as if debating whether to tell me something. So help me God, if he didn’t come clean in a minute, I was going to dig my fingernails into the bastard’s back until he was screaming. The least he could do was be honest with me.

  “Adie,” I threatened. My fingers formed claws under the table, and I was about ready to snap as it was. It wouldn’t take much to push me over the edge.

  “Fine.” Adie bit his lip. “Brace yourself, though. You won’t like this.”

  “Get on with it, already,” I growled, losing patience and throwing my hands in the air.

  “I saw Lois just before I walked in here, and she was then walking into Alain’s room.” Adie gave me a look I couldn’t decipher.

  “So? She was probably giving him all the juicy details of what had just happened here,” I said sourly.

  “His bedroom, James. He doesn’t take anyone there unless he intends to fuck them.”

  My jaw went slack as I began to digest the horror of what that statement implied. If those two…

  “You’ve got to be kidding me,” I whispered.

  Chapter Thirteen - Adie

  There was no point staying around James after I’d dropped that little bombshell. I probably shouldn’t have said anything because the man had enough to deal with as it was, but I figured it was better that he found out from me rather than anyone else. There was also a rather large part of me that was jealous as fuck that James had managed to get a piece of her. Alain had made me watch the whole thing, of course, gloating at appropriate intervals. The idea of her having sex with another man wouldn’t normally bother me - I’ve become immune to the green-eyed monster for the most part and am quite good at sharing - but I didn’t share with James. That had never ended well in the past, and we’d agreed we wouldn’t do that to each other. Technically, James hadn’t done it now, he’d had no choice in the matter, but it didn’t change the fact that we’d both had sex with the same woman, and I wanted her. As if all of that shit wasn’t bad enough, now she was in bed with my brother. Either the woman was a class-A whore, or she was in deep trouble. I couldn’t figure her out. I would unravel this mystery, though, one way or the other. If she’d been playing me this whole time, there would be a price to pay, and she already owed me for breaking her word about the whipping. I wondered what kind of price I’d extract from her. It depended on what was going on here. Whatever I decided, she’d go through hell for it. Everyone pays their debts in the Dumortier household, and it looked like she’d just become a fully paid member.

  My footsteps slowed as they passed by my brother’s room. I’d learnt long ago that eavesdropping was a dangerous business, but today I figured it was worth the risk. Listening carefully for voices, I strained my ears for several seconds with my heart pounding. I knew what my brother did to those who were caught snooping, so if there was nothing to be heard I wasn’t hanging around. As it happened, I was just about to pull away when I heard Alain’s voice.

  “Well done in there, Dumpling. I honestly didn’t think you’d be able to pull it off. It’s rare that James is anything but careful. I wonder if that was down to you or the lack of food. I must say, I can’t wait to find out.” My brother sounded impressed, and that was a rarity. He also sounded fairly cheerful, yet another anomaly I didn’t normally associate with him.

  “So, now that I’ve done as you asked, where do we go from here? What now?” Lois’s voice was more matter-of-fact.

  “Was the half a million pounds in your account not enough? You could have asked for double, you know. I’d have happily paid it to see that bastard laid low.” And there it was. Lois was on my brother’s payroll. Fucking hell. I had to bite my tongue to keep myself from swearing out loud. Shit. Why was I not surprised, though? Here was the woman that could cry to order. Her acting skills were second to none. She’d been playing us all this time. How had I not seen it? Desperately wanting to thump my fist through the wall, I held myself together. If I wanted to glean anything else from this conversation, I would need to keep quiet.

  “I owe you a favour, my dear. What do you want?” Alain’s voice was soft and seductive. It was obvious he wanted the conniving little whore, and I smiled at the thought. If Lois thought my brother and I were alike in that department, she was much mistaken. Alain was a sadist in the truest sense of the word. He liked discovering people’s fears and then using them against them. He’d fry her in a vat of hot oil and then watch as she cracked and burst into flames. There was no escaping him. Once he’d set his sights on someone, there was no backing down. He’d make it his mission in life to have her, the consequences be damned. Lois didn’t know what she was letting herself in for. After Alain had finished with her, that half a million quid would rot in her bank. Didn’t she realise Alain wanted her dead? He knew she was the quickest way to bring James to his knees, and that had always been his goal. I gave her six months tops, then she’d be dead. My brother wasn’t known for his patience. Either the woman was completely insane, or the money was going to someone else. Lois was a smart woman. I’d ascertained that much in my time with her. I couldn’t believe she’d sell her life so short. Oh boy, I couldn’t wait to have a chat with her and straighten some things out around here. We were certainly going to have some fun together.

  Lois’s voice startled me out of my dark den of depravity. “I’ll keep it as you owe me one for the time being, Alain,” she said slowly. “Right now, I’ve been up a rather long time, and I need my beauty sleep. As I’m sure you have things planned for me in the near future, I’d better rest.” She sounded odd. For someone who was now in my brother’s good books, she should have been pleased, but what I was hearing was defeat. It didn’t make sense.

  “Won’t you warm my bed for the evening, Lois? I assure you you’ll have fun.”

  The only person who would have fun was Alain, but she’d figure that out soon enough.

  “Not tonight, Alain. It’s been a tough day and I’m not on my best form. Can I take a rain check just this once?” My eyes nearly shot out of my head. Had they slept together before? Oh Jesus Christ, I didn’t know which way was up anymore.

  “Of course, dumpling. I’ll see you out.” That was my cue to get the hell out of here and fast. I had a lot to think about and a night with which to chew it over. Tomorrow I would seek out the duplicitous little bitch and have my fun with her. Until then, I’d drown my sorrows in a decent bottle of Johnny Walker. It did wonders for the pain meds.

  The next morning, I was up early. I had a few preparations I wanted to make for my showdown with Lois, and James would want some answers. I knew he wouldn’t be in a good place right now, and it was my job to keep his spirits up. I’d half hoped Lois was going to be his light at the end of the tunnel, but last night had firmly slashed that thought in two. Still, perhaps this would work in his favour. If he hated her guts, he was hardly likely to sleep with her.

  Showering in record time, I let my back drip dry and as I debated whether I could wear a shirt today. While going around half-naked has its place in the bedroom, I generally preferred to be fully clothed, especially when dealing with my crazy ass of a brother. Call it power dressing. It gave me some semblance of confidence, and I needed all that I could get around him.

  My hand slowly ran over the wooden hangers in my wardrobe, trying to find something suitable to wear. For some reason my brother kept a stash of my clothes in all our facilities, even though I hadn’t been near them in a few years. That’s the thing about Alain - he never gives up. Finally settling on a black silk, Armani shirt, I pulled it off the hanger and caressed the fabric between my finger and thumb. It was soft and light. I’d be able to wear it without too much swearing. Dragging the thing carefully over my shoulders, I felt the material flutter down my back as it settled into place. Gritting my teeth for a minute, the discomfort slowly faded. It was bearable. That was all that mattered. It was time to find Lois.

  “Morning, Sunshine.” Pulling the bli
nds up, I flooded Lois’s room with sunlight. She stirred in her bed and waved her arm about, but quickly settled back down again. She didn’t have a chance in hell of going back to sleep now that I was in the room, but she’d figure that out soon enough.

  Grabbing the bucket I’d brought with me, I filled it up with cold water. Marching over to her bed, I dumped the contents on top of her. She came to quickly enough.

  Spluttering and squawking like a deranged parrot, eventually she calmed down enough to say, “Adie, what the fuck?” It irritated me to notice that she still looked breathtakingly beautiful, even when soaked wet through with her hair plastered to her skull. Scrap that, even better than beautiful, because I could clearly see the outline of her nipples through the thin white T-shirt she wore.

  Sitting down on the edge of her bed, I steepled my hands together and gave her a dark look. “Well, now that you’re working for the enemy, you won’t get any special treatment around these parts. When were you thinking of telling us, by the way?” It was a reasonable question, I thought.

  Lois said nothing. Getting up from the bed, dripping wet, she made her way silently over to the bathroom. The whole time she didn’t look at me, not even once. Odd. Was she embarrassed? Surely, she should be proud of her efforts. Not only had she earned herself a shed load of cash, but she’d gotten the boss’s attention as well.

  “Aren’t you going to gloat?” I yelled over my shoulder. The bathroom door slammed violently shut and the sound of the lock snapping firmly into place made me grin. Lois was not a happy bunny this morning. I didn’t think it was all down to my soggy wake-up call, either. I wondered what was eating her? Had she realised Alain meant to kill her? That would probably put a dampener on things.

  “You’d better be out of that shower in ten minutes, Lois, or I’ll smash that door down and come get you.” I meant it, too. I was royally pissed at being duped, and I intended to take it out on someone - her.