by Lexi Blake
The conference room was dark, the only illumination the light from the projector. This meeting was being kept to a minimum with only Damon and the Taggarts attending, besides himself and Hayley. Everyone else was working busily, proving that no matter how desperate the situation seemed, life did go on.
Even when it felt like it might come to an end.
“You’ll find all the information Ian and I were able to compile on these two in the folder in front of you,” Damon was saying. His boss was big on reports but Nick didn’t need to read facts and figures to know what these men were capable of.
Anything. They would do anything for the money they were being promised, and they would enjoy the job. They would enjoy hurting someone as sweet and innocent as Hayley. They would enjoy making her cower and scream and twisting her life into something terrible.
A soft hand covered his and he was brought back to the moment.
“As you can see, these are both serious players in the criminal world. They have deep connections,” Damon continued.
Hayley leaned against him, her eyes on Damon. Even while she focused on the meeting, she was reaching out to him, giving him comfort, as though she knew how tense he’d gotten.
“O’Malley is known to be the go-to guy when it comes to stealthy assassinations.” Damon stared down at the reports he’d handed out at the beginning of the meeting. “I don’t know of him personally, but Ezra came through in this case.”
Naturally Ezra Fain had to be a part of the discussion, despite the fact that he was two floors down asking Dante the same questions over and over again. Fain had been in the break room when Nick had escorted Hayley from their flat. He’d been standing there like he’d been waiting for another shot at talking to her. He’d given her a soft smile when she’d walked in the room and offered to get her some tea.
Nick had offered to punch him in the face.
“O’Malley works privately, but according to Ezra’s Interpol sources, he’s also worked for some of the world’s larger syndicates,” Damon continued. “They go to him when they want the appearance of keeping their hands clean. He’s considered smart, but a bit on the reckless side. He likes to gamble and he’s known to have a roving eye for the ladies.”
“Our Ukrainian contestant is known for being a bit more circumspect.” Taggart took over the conversation. “And he’s also known for his cruelty. Wanted in five different countries for everything from murder and rape to arson. He enjoys his job. Where O’Malley snipes from a distance, this guy prefers to play with his prey before he kills it. He’s an expert in torture.”
“And we’ve also identified three other known criminals who’ve surfaced here in England in the last few days.” Damon sent him a pointed look. “I got that from some friends at MI6. The same ones who tossed you out because you shouldn’t have been there in the first place, you impatient bastard. I’m trying to run those men down as well. I’ve got names and some intelligence. Brody should know where they’re staying in a few hours.”
Of course he would. Nick’s gut twisted. Damon was right—he was an impatient bastard and this time it could cost Hayley. It was good to know he’d nearly been murdered for something Damon had gotten with a phone call. “Are they in the same vein as the other two? Professional? European?”
“I’ve got a couple of Americans, and one of my sources thinks the call possibly went wide,” Damon replied, his voice grave.
“So they’re running the gamut. They aren’t targeting a specific type of expert to bring her in. We could be looking for anyone.” It was his worst-case scenario. He wanted a small list of professionals because they would be predictable. They would know how to play the game and what the rules were.
“It tells me they’re desperate and we have to watch our backs because we can’t be certain how they’ll come after her,” Damon concluded. “All we can be certain of is that they will. Walt was able to figure out that they both left their home countries the day after Hayley showed up on our doorstep. They traveled with false passports, but Walt believes he’s got them tracked properly down. Whoever this is, they want to act quickly. Which is precisely why we’re going to do the same. Both men are here in London, so obviously someone knows where you’ve gone. I have to believe at least some of them know you’re not merely in London, but here at The Garden. The element of surprise is no longer ours to claim.”
It was Hayley’s turn to tense. She sat upright, no longer touching him at all. “So they’ll come here for me.”
It was hard to believe that a mere hour ago she’d been purring in his arms. After they’d made love, he’d taken her to the shower and spent forever touching her and washing her. He’d even loved the way she’d fussed over him and forced him to bandage the hell out of the tiny wound on his arm because it wasn’t supposed to get wet. Only when she was certain it was waterproof would she let him in the shower.
She’d been happy and relaxed when he was done. He’d been the same until they’d had to leave their nest and come back to the real world. Now he was facing all the issues that came between them once again.
Nick moved his chair closer to hers, leaning in so he could whisper. “Calm down. Listen to what they’re saying. These men are professionals. If they thought you were in danger here and now, they would have moved you out.”
Her jaw tightened and she kept her eyes on the wall across from them, as though trying to memorize the faces of the men who would come for her. “It’s not me I’m worried about.”
Yes, he had to deal with her martyr complex. He’d managed to get her to cry earlier and it seemed to have drained some of the sorrow from her, but he wasn’t sure how to handle her guilt. If he hadn’t made the moves he had earlier, she might have gone to the Taggarts and tried to get moved out of The Garden. The trouble was he wasn’t certain she would invite him along. It wouldn’t be out of her character to protect him. It was utterly ridiculous, but she would try.
She was different from any other woman he’d ever been involved with and he wasn’t sure how to handle her.
He wasn’t sure he deserved her at all.
“I’ve given this some thought.” He needed to concentrate on getting the information they required. The only two leads they had were the men on the wall, and that meant breaking at least one of them.
A brow rose over Taggart’s left eye. “Have you? Because I heard you were doing something else.”
He couldn’t help but roll his eyes. Everyone here was a sarcastic teen, especially Taggart, and everyone knew damn well what he’d done with his free hours. “I can think about more than one thing.”
Charlotte leaned forward. “Ignore him. It’s the only way to stay sane. What did you have in mind?”
“I know I’d like to have a personal chat with them. I think we need to find at least one of them and have a sit-down.” He couldn’t say what he meant. Not with Hayley in the room. He meant he would like to bring them in and torture them until they gave up the names of whoever was trying to hire them. “We can’t take out every man they send to bring her in. We need to know who’s behind this. Someone has to go out and bring back a target. How much intel do you think they have on the team?”
Hayley turned back to look at him. “You can’t go out there again. They definitely know who you are. They already shot you once.”
“That was an entirely different matter.” And one he was going to have to weigh when it came time for her to go. If they were still serious about hurting him, she would be the easiest way. She was safe inside this place, but in the outside world he was a danger to her.
“Nick’s right. That was about something that happened a long time ago. As to his question, if I’ve done my job properly they shouldn’t know much about any of us,” Damon replied. “I don’t exactly advertise and there’s no website with our biographies. I shudder to think of it. I suppose if someone got their hands on a list of our clients, they could question them and find out a few things.”
“If we sent Kay in t
o seduce O’Malley, how much danger would she be in?” The minute he’d heard the Irishman was a bit reckless and liked the ladies, he’d known which route to take with him. Kay was smart and deadly, and he hadn’t met a man yet who could resist her sunny charm. She could lure him in, slip something into his drink, and haul her prey home.
“You can’t send Kay in to deal with an assassin,” Hayley protested. “She could get hurt. If this guy is as dangerous as you say he is, how can you even think about sending her in?”
Yes, this was what he was worried about. “Because she’s far more dangerous than O’Malley. I would do it myself, but I fear I’m not his type.”
She still shook her head. “I can’t ask her to put herself on the line like that. There has to be another way.”
He began to protest, but Taggart held a hand up. Excellent. Perhaps Big Tag could explain that this was a ridiculous argument.
“She’s right, Nick. We can’t send in Kay.”
Frustration made his hands fist. “Of course we can. She would be the first one to volunteer.”
“Already sent her out after the Ukrainian,” Taggart admitted. “She did volunteer for that one. Apparently she’s in a shitty mood and really wants a fight. Something about a cliffhanger she wasn’t expecting. She takes her novel reading damn seriously. It was either let her go after a nasty assassin or some chick named Zanetti was going to get Miseried. So it’s going to have to be Charlie.”
Charlotte beamed, excitement plain in her eyes. “Yes. It’s been so long since I got to seduce a dumbass into thinking I would actually sleep with him. Can I rough him up a little? Please?”
Taggart smiled his wife’s way, his affection clear to everyone. “You always look so sexy when you’re working, baby. We’re going to take this asshole down and then I’m going to put baby number four in you.”
“Yes to the raucous sex, no to the baby,” Charlotte shot back, but it was clear her mind was on the job to come. “Once we figure out where O’Malley’s drinking tonight, I’ll go in and when we go back to my room for some fun, well, that’s when he finds out he’s gotta deal with Ian. I love the look of fear in a man’s eyes. It does something for me.”
It seemed like a perfect plan to Nick.
Hayley stood up. “No. No. I don’t think you should put yourself in that kind of danger. You have three kids.”
Charlotte frowned. “Yes, I do. I don’t think they would be good at this though.”
“Yeah, they’re totally not right for the job,” Taggart concurred. “See, when we say he’s into women, we mean adult ones. Ones with boobs. Charlie’s boobs are spectacular. Very distracting. I should know. I’ve been on the wrong side of those boobs and they win every time. Now if I wanted to blow something up, my twins are there. I mean it. They can destroy some shit, if you know what I’m talking about.”
Charlotte’s head shook. “Seth is useless at this point. He pretty much just eats and poops and looks super cute. But I have a feeling one day he’s going to be really good. His hand-eye coordination is incredible.”
“You’ll have to forgive them.” Damon sat back, seemingly amused. “They’re trying to build a whole team simply from their offspring. I keep telling them they’ll have the muscle, but the brains might have to come from somewhere else.”
Taggart shot him the finger.
Hayley sniffled, looking around like she couldn’t believe how the others were behaving. “Don’t joke about this. I’m serious. Charlotte could get hurt.”
Charlotte gave Hayley a beatific smile. “I could get hurt driving home from work. I could get hurt falling down. This is my job, sweetie. I’m excited. I’m usually behind a desk now, but I can still take down one Irish dude who almost certainly will have too much to drink. And Ian’s my backup.”
“Trust me, I’m not going to let anyone hurt my wife, but she should be allowed to have a little fun.” Ian sounded softer than usual. “This is what we do and who we are. Sit back and don’t worry. We’ll get to the bottom of this.”
“It’s why you came here in the first place,” Charlotte pointed out.
“Nah, she came here to get in Nikolai’s panties.” Taggart smirked in his big old sarcastic asshole way. “Getting out of hot water is a side project, but we can handle it.”
His wife sighed. “You have no discretion at all.” She turned to Hayley. “Come on, sweetie. Why don’t you come upstairs with me and we’ll talk some more. I’ll tell you some of my Russian mob stories and you’ll feel better about letting me have some fun tonight. I think I’ll go raid Kay’s closet. She’s got some killer hooker heels. Rule number one. Always let them think you’re for sale.”
He wasn’t sure he wanted Hayley to learn that particular lesson. “Perhaps she should stay here with me.”
“I was actually hoping we could talk to you alone.” There was a gravity to Damon’s voice that let him know whatever he was about to say wasn’t something Hayley should be part of.
Fuck. What had they found out that would scare her more than she already was? He nodded and stood up. “Go with Charlotte. She’ll convince you it’s okay. There’s nothing to worry about as long as we stick together and play it safe.”
The look on her face told him he hadn’t exactly inspired confidence. “All right, Nick. Thank you all for the update. I know I’m not exactly a normal client, but I appreciate everything you’re doing for me.”
Damon nodded her way. “You’re the best kind of client. Most of the time we work for corporations. It’s hard to give a damn about a corporation. And Penelope believes she’s close to figuring out the code. It shouldn’t be long before we have some real information about what they think you know.”
“That would be good.” Hayley sent Nick a half smile. “I’ll see you later.”
She walked out with Charlotte and he wished that smile had been her normal, natural smile. The one she gave him when they were in bed together. The one that seemed to light up the world. The door closed behind her and he felt the loss. “Does Penny really think she’s close?”
“Yes, she does.” Damon closed one folder and dragged out another from the pile in front of him. It looked like his boss had been busy in the few hours they’d been apart. “Des was a tricky one, as you all know. Penelope believes the majority of what’s on the drive is junk, but there are a few places where she mentions numbers. She thinks this is all about the numbers on the drive. It’s her use of directional words in the reports and notes she stored on the drive that tipped her off. She uses south and east in places where they don’t particularly fit speech patterns.”
He sighed. “Yes, I don’t know why I didn’t think of this. You’re looking for longitude and latitude, but she wouldn’t have made it so easy. It’s likely all jumbled up. Des loved a puzzle. Get me a list of potential sites and I’ll tell you which ones mean something to me.”
“Absolutely,” Damon replied. “I’ll also let you know when we bring in one of our targets.”
He felt his eyes narrow. “As well you should.”
Taggart’s elbows hit the table and he leaned forward. “You will not be running the interview, Nick.”
“This is my case.”
“No, this is your girl and you’re incapable of being reasonable and rational,” Taggart pointed out. “I’ll let you in on anything at all you want to know concerning the case, but after what happened this afternoon, you’re benched.”
He wasn’t sure what a bench had to do with anything, but then he didn’t always understand American idioms. He did understand that they were cutting him out. That was a phrase he knew. “No. This is my case. I know I fucked up this afternoon, but I’m not going to allow myself to be cut out.”
Damon’s spine straightened, his glare becoming steely. “You will do as you’re ordered to do, or have you forgotten that you’re an employee here?”
Taggart put a hand out, stopping Damon’s dressing down. “Do you think I don’t know where you’re sitting right now? I do, Nick.
I have sat in that same place where I should have been cool and calm about protecting a client. That client was my wife and that means she can never be a client because that woman is half my soul. The much better half. I was a dumbass at the time and I told everyone that I didn’t love her so I could handle the case myself. I ended up strangling and damn near killing a witness whose cooperation we needed quite badly. I ended up hurting her because I chose to play the operative when I should have been her man. I should have allowed someone else to run point while I did my job to protect her and love her and be her rock. Don’t make the same mistake I made. Let us handle the intelligence portion of this operation and you handle Hayley. Because intelligence is not your strong point right now.”
Well, at least he’d snuck in the words “right now.” Nick’s stomach threatened to roll. Was he truly this obvious? “I do care for the girl and we do have a physical relationship.”
A frustrated huff came from Damon’s mouth. “Bloody hell, admit you’re in love with her. It goes so much more smoothly if you simply lie down in front of the steamroller and allow it to smash you. You can run all you like, but it will still catch up to you. And while we’re handing out advice, tell her you love her. Even if it makes you a bit ill in the beginning. Women take those three words quite seriously and when you dodge them, they get their knickers in a twist. A good, firm ‘I love you’ will untwist the knickers and get them on the floor where they should be.”
“Also, if you tell Charlie I mentioned that I was wrong, I’ll murder you. I take a strict and hard line on rewriting history,” Taggart explained. “As far as our kids will ever know, Daddy was a saint who welcomed their mother back from the dead with open arms and a loving heart. Though I probably will tell them about the time I strangled that Russian dude. He turned the coolest shade of blue.”
There were a few things that they didn’t understand. “Like I said, I care about her and I have for a long time. I want what’s best for her. Do you honestly believe that the Butcher is going to settle down with a history professor and raise nice children? No. This is not life for me.”