Memento Mori

by Lexi Blake

  Big Tag and Ezra started arguing over whether or not he was a meddling old man, but Jax was looking for River. He glanced out at the dance floor. The song had slowed down and couples swayed in each other’s arms. Well, the ones who weren’t threesomes did. There were a surprising amount of thruples out on that dance floor, two men surrounding a single female. He caught sight of Owen, his hands on a pretty blonde’s hips as he swayed to the music.

  “Where’s River?” He stood up.

  “I’m sure she went to the bathroom or something,” Robert replied, but he stood up as well.

  Tucker was beside him, looking out over the crowd. “I thought she was dancing.” He waved Owen over.

  The big Scot frowned but moved their way, gently disentangling from his dance partner. “What is it? I was making time with…I can’t remember her name, but she was definitely into me. It’s the bloody accent. Makes American ladies go crazy.”

  “Where did River go?” Surely she was at the bar or she’d seen a friend.

  Owen shrugged. “No idea. I thought she went to find you.”

  He moved toward the front of the bar, scanning the tables and booths. He found Ty sitting next to a pretty brunette. “Have you seen River?”

  Ty’s lips turned down. “Nope.”

  Oh, he was lying. Even he knew that. He had to get the information out of River’s employee as quickly as possible. “Ty, it’s important. I need to find River. There might be a problem. Please. I need to see her now.”

  Ty sat up, his expression changing to concerned in a heartbeat. “She’s going to kill me. She said she was planning a surprise for you and some guy was going to help her.”

  “What guy?” His heart started to beat heavy in his chest.

  “No idea. Never seen him before.” Ty stood, worry suddenly clouding his eyes. “Is she in trouble? She did seem tense, but I thought she was trying to keep her surprise a secret. You don’t think she was lying, do you? Look, I know River. She wouldn’t do that. If you think she’s covering up some kind of date with this guy, you’re wrong.”

  He wasn’t worried River was planning on cheating on him with some random asshole she picked up in a bar. He was worried the asshole wasn’t random at all. River would be the ultimate bargaining chip for him. Still, he couldn’t have Ty getting messed up in all of this. He needed to concentrate on finding River, not be worried about saving the civilian if things got nasty. He plastered what he hoped was a casual smile on his face. “I think he’s probably one of my bosses. They mentioned they might stop by to check in on how things are going. I’ll see if I can find them.”

  Ty nodded, obviously relieved.

  “I’ll go with you,” Ezra said. “I’d like to know if our friend is here, too.”

  Jax leaned over and whispered to Robert. “You and Big Tag check the rest of the bar. Send Owen out back. I’ll go out the front. Ask Alexei if there are cameras anywhere that might have caught them.”

  Robert nodded and went back to the table to talk to Big Tag and Owen.

  Jax led the way outside, Tucker and Ezra following.

  The night was quiet around him, the streets eerily empty after the raucous party in the bar. She was gone.

  He had to find her. He had to.

  * * * *

  River stared at the pictures in front of her, trying to reconcile the image with the vision in her brain. She understood on a logical level that it was Jax. He had the same straight jawline, his hair flowing to the nape of his neck in the same semi-curly wave. His sensual lips were present. It was the addition of the AR-15 and the wretchedly angry look on his face that threw her off.

  “I don’t understand.”

  Levi Green pointed to the photo. “That image was taken off CCTV in Madrid during a robbery. The bank was small and local, just like this team likes it.”

  He started a long recitation of the crimes Jax and the others had committed, but River couldn’t take her eyes off the photos he’d lain out on the desk of his motel room. She’d followed him back to the Movie Motel at the edge of town, well aware that she was trailing after a complete stranger who might or might not be a serial killer. If he was, his MO was outstanding because she’d been caught from the moment he’d mentioned he could save her from almost certain personal and financial ruin.

  He hadn’t been able to save her from getting her heart ripped out of her chest again.

  “Why would they rob banks?” She knew it was a stupid question but she had to say something.

  “Money, of course.” Mr. Green laid out another several photos, each more damning than the next. “I’ve run the numbers and I believe over the course of two years, Jax and his ‘brothers’ managed to hit seven banks on three continents to the tune of roughly three million dollars. These are copies of the warrants for his arrest in Europe and South America. The group is careful in the States. They don’t spend a lot of time here.”

  She shook her head because it was all too much. There was a grainy photo of a man holding a gun to a crying woman’s head.

  How was it possible that was Jax? Maybe he was acting. They were a film crew. Maybe he’d done some work as an extra.

  “Do I need to show you news coverage? I have a file on my computer.” Green’s voice was gentle but relentless.

  “If he’s such a bad man, why don’t you arrest him? The sheriff of the town vouched for him. And my friend Henry said he was okay.”

  “Do you mean John Bishop?” He had another file in his hand. He opened it, showing the CIA credentials for the man named Bishop. It was a younger version of the man she knew as Henry Flanders. He was younger and harder, his eyes flinty as he stared out. She knew she should wonder if the documents were faked, but the truth was there in his eyes. The man in the picture was cold as ice. And yet it was clearly Henry.

  All those rumors were true.

  Mr. Green stared down at her, sympathy plain in his gaze. “You are surrounded by wolves, River. The man you know as Ezra Fain used to work with me.”

  “I’m sorry. I’m confused. His name isn’t Ezra Fain?”

  “His real name is Beckett Kent, but he’s gone by many names over the years. He used to call himself Mr. White when he ran black ops missions. Ian Taggart worked as an operative for a time as well. He was the Agency’s go-to guy for wet work. Do you understand what that means?”

  It meant he had a lot of blood on his hands. “I don’t understand any of this.”

  “You don’t have to know the finer points to understand that you should never have been placed in the middle of this war. No man who cares about you would do this to you.”

  She was starting to get the feeling Jax didn’t care about her at all. He’d needed her for something and he’d found a way to make her do his bidding. Still, he’d told her some of the truth, right? “He told me about the CIA and that this place he wants to find was run by them.”

  Green nodded as though he’d known that was coming. “Yes, but he’s not trying to save the environment. When The Ranch was closed down, the Agency locked everything inside that facility. They evacuated the employees and sealed the building shut. Everything that was being worked on is still in there, and that includes some serious research. I believe they are trying to gain access to the research of a doctor named Hope McDonald. She was murdered by Taggart’s sister-in-law, though he would have done the deed himself.”

  Who the hell were these people? It was surreal. She’d sat and had dinner with a killer? “I don’t know that I believe any of this.”

  “It’s easy enough to look up. Take your phone out and search for the world’s most wanted criminals.”

  Her hands shook as she did what he’d told her to do. It took a moment to pull up. She selected the first website in the search and there he was. He had no name, was merely known as a member of a gang labeled the Professionals, but it was obviously Jax. Tucker and Dante and Sasha were on the list of internationally wanted criminals. Robert was missing, as was Owen, but they probably hadn’t been ca
ught on camera.

  Bile hit the back of her throat. She looked at the second site and he was there as well.

  He was a criminal, and not the kind who sat behind a computer, though he did that, too. She had two million in her account that he’d stolen from her ex-husband. Was she laundering money for him? Would she look in there and find the account empty and her fingerprints all over the records?

  She thought she’d been conned by the best, but Matt had nothing on Jax. Jax had managed to do more damage in a few days than Matt had done in years of marriage. She might never recover from this. God, she might go to jail. “He put a bunch of money in my account. He said he stole it from my ex-husband.”

  “The con artist?”

  It shouldn’t surprise her that he had a file with her name on it. The man seemed to know everything about everyone. He was a master at finding out dirty secrets. “Yes. It happened a couple of days ago. He said Matt had stolen money from a lot of different women and that he would help me find them and get it back.”

  How naïve was she? Now that she was saying the words, she realized how stupid she sounded. Why had she believed him? She’d bought every lie he’d told her.

  “It’s possible he took it from your ex,” Mr. Green allowed. “It’s also possible this is another way they’re laundering the money they stole. You could be in a lot of trouble. I can help you.”

  She went quiet, trying to find that place deep inside her head where she could be cold and logical. “He wants this research so he can sell it?”

  How could he be so sweet? So thoughtful?

  “There are dangerous secrets in that facility. Do you understand what I mean when I call it a black ops development site?”

  She thought she did, and it meant Jax’s group was involved in something incredibly dangerous. But then he also robbed banks, so he likely considered it all in a day’s work. “They were developing weapons?”

  “Yes, and running experiments that would likely make Joseph Goebbels blush. It all sounds horrible, but the Agency will do anything to defend this country. What Ezra Fain and Taggart want to do is tip the balance of power. When they do that, there will be all-out war inside the CIA. The Ranch needs to stay closed.”

  “He’ll still try to find it.” She was speaking, but she couldn’t feel anything. She’d gone numb, a comfortable cage she’d been in for the last eighteen months.

  “He won’t succeed without you. Their time is limited. Have they been pushing you to go? They can’t stay here in Colorado for long. They have to keep moving.”

  Because they were criminals. “Why don’t you arrest them? Why don’t we walk to the sheriff’s office and tell him?”

  “I assure you Nathan Wright knows exactly who Jax and his group are. John Bishop would have told him.” He held out a hand, staving off the question she’d been about to ask. “Wright is a do-gooder and they’ve convinced him that what they’re doing is for the betterment of everyone. I could call in the police, but the truth is I would rather convince them to turn themselves in to the CIA. They have information that would be dangerous if it got out. We could try to take them in, but Taggart has surprisingly strong allies. Again, that group of men is part of the balance I’m trying to keep.”

  The door swung open and Heather stood there, a pistol in her hand. River got to her feet, shocked at the sight of her friend. She was aiming for Mr. Green’s head, but he was cool and calm.

  “I should have known you would show up. Were you hanging around outside the bar, watching him with longing eyes?” Mr. Green asked. “You must have freaked out when you realized he was coming into town. Or have you solved your problems?”

  Heather frowned and the gun came down to her side again. She pointedly ignored Green, coming in the room toward her. “River, come with me. I need to talk to you. You can’t trust this man.”

  How had Heather tracked her down? Why had she pulled a gun on a CIA agent?

  Mr. Green shook his head. “Oh, Solo, I’m not the one she can’t trust and you are on the wrong side of this fight.”

  Heather had a hand on River’s elbow, trying to guide her toward the door. “Come on. We need to get out of here. I’ll explain it all to you when we get back to the office. Don’t believe a word this man said.”

  But Levi Green might be the only one who’d given her a single bit of truth. She pulled her arm free. “No. I’m staying here.” She turned to the agent. “Can you help me?”

  She had to get that money out of her account. More importantly, she needed someone who would believe that she hadn’t put it there.

  A triumphant smile crossed his lips. “I can. I can tell you everything. I’ll start with your best friend’s real history. How long have you been here? You look good, by the way. I’m glad you went back to blonde. It suits you.”

  “How do you know Heather?” Suspicion played through her.

  “She’s the Agency operative sent to make sure we don’t get to The Ranch,” a deep voice said. “Hello, Solo.”

  Ezra Fain moved into the room, his eyes on Heather.

  It looked like Green was right. She was surrounded by wolves.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Jax knew the minute he saw River’s face that everything had gone to hell. She looked pale, her eyes tight. She looked through him as he crowded into the room behind Ezra, Tucker behind him.

  “River, are you all right?” He moved past Heather, trying to get to her. “Why did you walk out of the bar? Did that man hurt you?”

  He’d been sick with worry, imagining every terrible thing that could happen to her.

  She looked at him like he was a bug she was ready to step on. “Don’t come any closer.”

  She moved nearer to the man in the suspenders. Levi Green. Ezra had cursed his name as they’d jumped into the SUV and headed over here. He’d received a text that had him calling for Jax. Apparently somehow Heather had gotten Ezra’s phone number and she’d been the one to send the information on where River had gone.

  Ezra had gone positively arctic. “Are you working with him?”

  The question had been directed at Heather, but it was Levi Green who responded. The man casually closed his laptop. “She’s absolutely not working with me or I suspect you wouldn’t be here. Solo there must have been stalking around outside the bar. She’s good. I didn’t see her, had no idea she’d embedded herself in this town.”

  “Who the hell is Solo?” Tucker seemed to be following the conversation far better than Jax was. He couldn’t take his eyes off River.

  “Heather,” River said quietly, her eyes on anything except him. “She’s apparently some kind of super spy.”

  “Oh, she’s a legend in our business.” Levi seemed to be the only one having a good time. He leaned against the desk, not concerned at all that his room had been invaded. “Her name is Kimberly Solomon. You see there’s this driving test you take when you’re being trained to be an operative and she managed to make it through the course ten seconds faster than anyone else. Hence, all we nerds in her class like to say she did the Kessel run in twelve parsecs.”

  Like Star Wars. Kayla had watched it with them. He caught a glimpse of a stack of papers on the desk. River must have been looking through them.

  “She’s also called Solo because she likes to work alone,” Ezra said. “She certainly doesn’t like to take anyone’s advice. River, can we go back to your office? Whatever this man has told you it’s not the whole story.”

  “River, let’s go somewhere and talk.” His whole body was tight with fear. He couldn’t lose her. In the brief amount of time he’d known her, he’d become a different person. For the first time in his short life, he knew what he wanted. He wanted her.

  Her eyes finally came up. “Are you or are you not wanted in several countries for armed robbery?”

  The bottom dropped out of his world. She knew. She knew the things he’d done.

  She would never forgive him.

  “River, Beck is right,” Heather…S
olo…began. “There’s far more to this story.”

  Shame coursed through him, a familiar drug. “I did everything he told you. I did it all.”

  “You didn’t have a choice,” Tucker insisted. “None of us did.”

  River seemed to get some of her confidence back. Or perhaps it was rage fueling her. She stepped up to him, her face an angry mask. “When were you going to take that money back? Would you have tipped the police off or were you simply using me to launder it? I bet the money you paid me for the job would vanish, too. It was easy to offer it when you have someone who can take it back with a couple of strokes of the keyboard, huh?”

  It was worse than he’d thought. “I would never take your money. Never. I gave it to you.”

  Ezra’s jaw had dropped. “You did what?”

  Yeah, he hadn’t exactly run his plans by the boss, but he would have to deal with that later. “I wouldn’t take it back.”

  Levi had a smirk on his face. “Oh, Ezra, are the boys feisty enough for you? I told you this was a mistake. You gave up your entire career to save a bunch of dumbasses. Jax here stole two million from River’s ex-husband. I suppose as grand gestures go it was an excellent one. But I have to wonder if he wasn’t planning on taking it all back.”

  “I was surprised you’re still going by Ezra.” Solo’s eyes had gone wide. “Beck, come on. Even after all these years?”

  “Is my brother still dead?” Ezra shot back.

  He had no idea what was going on with those two. His brain was looking for any way out. It was obvious Levi was doing anything he could to damage his reputation with River. She never had to know who he’d been. That’s what he told himself.

  “Please talk to me.” He couldn’t seem to stop trying with her.

  She turned to Levi. “Can you save me from him?”

  The agent shrugged. “I don’t have to now. My job here is done, sweetheart, though I might stick around to see the fallout between those two.” He pointed to Ezra and Solo.