“I am Max Walberg, a citizen of the United States. We’re going to be married as soon as possible and this will be my home. I’m becoming a father to four children and hope to have many more of my own, but above all, I will see to Airiana’s protection.”
“That’s the deal, Jonas,” Airiana said. “Apparently my father is a famous Russian physicist. If you question Max’s loyalty, you’re going to have to question mine.”
Jonas swore and turned away from them to stare out the window. “Do you have any idea how complicated this situation is becoming? The Drakes are all returning. With them will come Elle and Jackson. Now this. I feel like I’m walking through a damn minefield.”
“He’s going to make another try for her, Harrington,” Maxim said softly, watching the man. His hand was never far from his weapon and the sheriff knew it, but it hadn’t stopped him from expressing his frustration.
“Who? Her father?” Jonas spun around.
Maxim shook his head slowly. “The Russians might try again for her, but somehow I don’t think they will. No, Shackler-Gratsos. He won’t come himself. He’ll send mercenaries. He’s angry. Shackler-Gratsos doesn’t like to be thwarted by mere mortals. He feels entitled to anything he wants. And he wants Airiana.”
Damon sucked in his breath sharply. “It’s him. He’s got to be the one behind . . .” He trailed off.
“That’s what Theodotus thought as well. The Russians were threatened.” Maxim wasn’t employed by either government anymore and not bound to silence. He wanted Damon, at least, to take the threat to Airiana’s safety very seriously.
“What makes Airiana so important to all these people?” Jonas asked. “To you, Damon?”
“My brain,” Airiana answered, a shade sarcastically. “The girl’s got a brain.”
Jonas stopped his pacing abruptly in front of her chair. “Have I ever given you the impression that I think less of you because you’re a woman? Or that I think women aren’t as intelligent as men?”
Airiana shook her head, looking slightly ashamed. “No, of course not, Jonas.”
Jonas shot Damon a hard look. “It isn’t you I’m upset with, Airiana. It’s the situation. I came here to take a report on a kidnapping and my brother-in-law asked to come along. It didn’t occur to me that he had any motive other than concern for your well-being. I don’t like being used. Airiana has clearly been through hell, Damon, and now you’re insisting she do whatever it is she does for you. What makes you any different than Shackler-Gratsos or her birth father, who, by the way, should be thoroughly ashamed of himself.”
Damon sat back in his chair. “I guess I think of us as the good guys.”
“So does every other country. I’m a patriot, but I don’t like bullying or threatening women for any reason. Shouldn’t she be protected whether or not she does whatever it is you want her to do?”
“Of course. If the situation wasn’t so dire . . .” He broke off, and shook his head.
“Is it?” Airiana took a breath and let it out. What if Evan has already developed a weapon? But then he really wouldn’t need me, would he? But if he has it . . .
If he has, could you counter it?
She shrugged. Maybe.
You explain to Wilder and Harrison that I already know what this is about while I take care of our child who has big ears.
Airiana nodded and waited until Maxim excused himself and left to go down the hall. “Theodotus talked in front of Max. He already knows everything.”
The breath hissed out between Jonas’s teeth. “Great. The Russian knows. The Greek knows. I’m the only one in the dark, and I’m the one who has to sort all this out.”
“He wouldn’t do that,” Damon said.
“He would if he expected Max to be killed—which he did. That’s the reason for my cut feet and Gorya punching and kicking me. When I realized they were going to kill Max after he rescued me from Evan’s men, I tried creating a diversion so he could get away.”
“So Evan’s men actually were the ones to kidnap you,” Jonas said, sinking once more into his chair.
“The Russians believe he or his brother kidnapped a physicist, a man by the name of Dennet Laurent, and gave him what little they had of a project I’d started when I was a child. My mother fed the information to Theodotus. He was working on it as well, using my work as a platform.”
“So that’s how they got their hands on it,” Damon said. “We suspected your mother of selling the information, but there was no real evidence of it.”
“She gave it freely to my father. She was proud of her daughter, not betraying her country. Theodotus had a wife who had many lovers, and one of them worked for Shackler-Gratsos. He was able to use her to get the work Theodotus was doing and they turned that over to Laurent, or at least that’s who Theodotus suspects Shackler-Gratsos had taken prisoner.”
“Certainly Dennet Laurent is one of the few who could have figured the weapon out,” Damon agreed. “Everyone wondered what had happened to him. He disappeared without a trace.”
“It wasn’t a weapon. It was never supposed to be a weapon,” Airiana said. “It was a useful tool to help countries get food. To help farmers with their crops. To stop global warming.”
“You’re talking about controlling the weather,” Jonas said. “That’s what this entire thing is about.”
Airiana nodded, ignoring Damon’s groan of frustration. “I found patterns I could use to predict hurricanes and droughts. Even tornados. I envisioned expanding the results in order to go into each area where the weather affected what was happening on the ground, long droughts for instance, and being able to make it rain.”
“Haven’t they already tried that?”
“I’m not talking about seeding clouds, Jonas. What if I could actually change the weather patterns and make it rain naturally. Remove one component so the hurricane won’t make it to land. Stop two cells from forming a tornado. Think about all the good that could be done,” Airiana said. “But no, instead of helping starving children, each person who has seen the projections immediately thought of it in the context of a weapon.”
“That’s not entirely true,” Damon contradicted. “I was using your platform with the idea of the same thing—until we got the threat. We didn’t know which terrorist had the capability of changing the weather, and everyone was scrambling around trying to find a countermeasure. The request is nearly impossible to meet and we’re running out of time.”
“Except,” Maxim said, walking back into the room, “the fact that Evan tried to acquire Airiana, which means he may have run into the same glitch Theodotus and you did, Wilder.” When Damon raised an eyebrow, Maxim shrugged. “It isn’t that difficult to figure out that your work wasn’t completed. You wouldn’t be here if you’d been able to complete the project.”
Jonas shot Maxim an amused glance. “He’s got a point, Damon.”
“Clearly Theodotus couldn’t finish it either,” Maxim added. “I can’t imagine that Laurent could when the two of you couldn’t do it.”
“We can’t take that chance,” Damon said. “A weapon like that in the hands of a madman could virtually wipe out countries. He could be trying to get Airiana because he doesn’t want her working for anyone else.”
“He would have killed her,” Maxim said. “He needs her. Shackler-Gratsos kills anyone who gets in his way. He never has to get his own hands dirty, and there’s never evidence to connect him. He may have owned that ship filled with guns, drugs and women and children he knew would be murdered, but he’s far away and will show outrage that such a thing occurred on one of his vessels. He can manufacture evidence against the captain and make himself look like a victim.”
“You know a lot about him.”
“I knew a lot about his brother. Less about him. He wasn’t raised with his brother. The mother took Evan and fled to the United States, hiding from h
is father. His father was a billionaire with a far reach. There were all kinds of rumors about him but no one could ever prove anything. He was a cruel man and being his son couldn’t have been easy, especially after the mother left,” Maxim said.
“Now you’re talking about his brother, the one killed off the coast here,” Jonas said.
“There was some speculation that Stavros had his own mother killed when he found her. He’d grown as cruel as his father and he’d never forgiven her for leaving him behind with the father. He took whatever illegal activities his father had started to an entirely new level. When he died, Evan inherited everything.”
“You certainly know a lot about these men,” Jonas said.
“I told you, we’ve been after them for some time. Their human trafficking ring is probably the largest worldwide. Evan’s mother came here with him and she met and fell in love with a man in a motorcycle gang.”
“They call them clubs,” Jonas said.
Maxim showed his teeth. “They can call themselves anything they want. In the end, it’s all the same. Evan didn’t grow up with the privileges his brother had, but the genetics held true. He thrived in the biker world of drugs and arms dealing, eventually rising to the top to lead them.”
“So now this man controls a major biker gang that has chapters all over the world, as well as his brother’s business,” Jonas said. “He’s the one all of you believe has this weather weapon?”
Maxim nodded. “He’ll be sending his men after Airiana. Anyone trying to stop him will be killed. That’s what he does. That’s who he is. Inheriting the money only made him more powerful.”
Jonas looked to Airiana. “What do you think? What do you want to do?”
Maxim was surprised at Jonas’s reaction. Everyone else had tried to force Airiana through different means to do what they wanted; Jonas was asking her what she wanted. His opinion of the man rose.
Airiana moistened her lips. She glanced at Maxim.
What is it, baby?
All the theories they have to date, using hot spots, isn’t going to do much good. It sounds good, but it won’t work. Unfortunately, I don’t think I can make my project work for anyone else. I didn’t realize I could manipulate air and shift warm spots into areas where it’s needed.
You aren’t telling me what’s wrong.
I don’t want to do anything that would hurt you. Of course I want to see if I can make it work, but not if it would make you unhappy.
Why would that make me unhappy? He’d never had anyone worried about whether or not he’d be happy or sad. It was a new experience and one he wasn’t altogether comfortable with.
I’d want to work for the U.S., and you love your country as much as I love mine. I can’t guarantee if I did find a way to make it work, that it wouldn’t be used as a weapon.
I’ll always love Russia, honey, but this is my home and this will be my country. I can never go back. In fact right now, Sorbacov is dispatching hit men to find and kill me. You do whatever it is that will make you happy.
“Damon, I’ll work with you,” Airiana decided. “But from here on the farm. I’ll put together a secure room. That way I know Max can watch over the children at the same time he’s watching over me. I’ve got four children who need someone to guide them. That has to be my first priority, but I’ll do the best that I can to help you.”
Damon nodded. “Thank you, Airiana. I know it isn’t easy thinking about coming back after all that has happened. I wouldn’t have asked if it wasn’t important. Even if Shackler-Gratsos doesn’t have the work completed, it would be nice to have a countermeasure in place just in case it ever happens.”
“I’ll give you a list of supplies we’ll need,” Maxim said. “To beef up security around the farm.”
“When do you think Evan is going to strike at you again?” Jonas asked.
“He won’t wait long. He can’t. He has to know either Russia or the United States is going to protect her. Even with a good team of experienced mercenaries, he’ll know his chances of acquiring her will go down drastically if we have her under wraps,” Maxim said.
“I’ll make a few calls,” Damon added. “My people will come out and secure a room for you to work in. Do you have any ideas where you want your workroom set up?”
She glanced at Maxim. “I have one. There’s a basement below us, in the ground actually. It’s like a big bunker. I wipe it clean every now and then just in case.”
Damon gasped. “You destroy your work? Are you crazy? Airiana, you have one of the greatest minds on the planet. It was bad enough that you hid yourself away, but to have been working all this time and periodically wiping it out is just insane.”
“I refuse to make weapons for anyone. I want to do something about children starving to death. I don’t want to send a hurricane to Italy or Greece or tornadoes to the Middle East just because I don’t like their politics.”
For the first time Damon actually looked excited. “I’d love to see what you’ve been working on. Talking to you would be . . .” He trailed off, looking at his brother-in-law. He gave a little shrug. “Sarah is great and she understands me, and Libby’s husband, Tyson, listens, but Airiana actually thinks like I do.”
“She doesn’t want to make weapons, Wilder,” Maxim pointed out.
“Neither do I, although I do see the need to protect our country.”
“You work for the Defense Department,” Maxim said. “One would think they would expect you to come up with weapons for them.”
I understand what he means. Sometimes my brain goes into hyperdrive and I can’t slow it down and I make myself crazy trying to stop it. Having someone else to talk to, someone like me, could be wonderful. I loved the school I was in for that reason. I was surrounded by others who continually thought up new and exciting ideas and how to implement them.
Yeah. He got that. He didn’t have to like it though. He wanted to be her—everything. He didn’t want her to have to need anyone else, not even for her peace of mind—especially not for her peace of mind. He nodded slowly. She would spend a lot of time with Damon Wilder and they’d have long, animated conversations she would never be able to have with him.
Maxim.
There it was again. Her soft voice, just saying his name in that tone. So much love washing over and through him with just one word. His gaze jumped to hers. He sank into the blue sky. There were no drifting clouds, only the intensity of her love. His heart reacted like it always did, a slow somersault that left his throat raw.
You’ll be with us. Remember. You’re my bodyguard. I won’t do this if you don’t want me to. You’re far more important to me. The children are more important. I learned the hard way about the things in life that matter. That’s you. The children. My sisters and Levi and Thomas. All of us here. I don’t need to do this.
She was so generous in her love and trust of him. All along he had wanted her to show him what love was. Real love. There it was laid out in a neat gift-wrapped package for him. She would give up the thing that made her mind calm. He felt her excitement at the opportunity to work with a man like Damon Wilder, but because he might be uncomfortable with it, she was ready to say forget it. That was love. How could he show her less?
Maxim shook his head and leaned down to brush a kiss across the top of her head. You work with this man, baby. It will help you when you think your mind is too chaotic. I want you to do it. I’ll be with you every step of the way. When the talk gets too boring, I’ll go play with the kids.
Airiana burst out laughing. You’re just trying to get me to underestimate you, Max. I’m fairly certain you’ll be able to understand most things, if not everything we say. How do I know this? Because you understood the concept when Theodotus was talking to me. You didn’t need any explanation and you grasped the severity of the situation immediately. You can pretend you don’t understand, but my guess is, be
neath all that rough warrior skin lies a brain much like mine.
Maxim nodded. “So bring in your people to secure her workroom immediately. I’ll get the list of supplies to you by noon. I want to consult with Levi and Thomas first just to make certain I’m not overlooking anything.”
Jonas made a sound of pure derision. “The urchin diver and the art gallery owner? They’d know all about security, now wouldn’t they?”
“Jonas, that was so sarcastic,” Airiana reprimanded. “You know very well both Levi and Thomas know this farm better than Max could possibly know it.” She raised her gaze to Damon’s. “Now that I have children, and won’t be helping out so much on the farm, we’ll need to talk salaries.”
20
MAXIM woke with the moonlight pouring through the bedroom window. Beside him, Airiana’s eyes snapped open and she glanced out the window as well. He felt the instant tension run through her body. He put a hand on her to keep her calm. Siena and Nicia had both climbed into the bed and he didn’t want them to wake up and cry.
He sat up slowly, making certain not to shift his weight too fast and risk waking the two little girls. Lucia lay on the floor wrapped in a blanket a few feet from Airiana’s side of the bed while Benito lay on his side. He hadn’t expected all four children to be joining them at night—every night. They definitely needed a sign as well as a lock on the door or they’d never get any privacy in the bedroom.
During the day the children spent their time with Judith doing art projects or Lexi on the tractor or inside the greenhouse. Benito hung out with the men and Lissa trying to learn everything as fast as he could about weapons and turning his body into a weapon. The boy was like a sponge, soaking up every bit of information as fast as he could. He learned quickly to be respectful of Lissa’s skills. Maxim had learned respect for her as well, although he still knew little about her.
Daytime was the only time Maxim could sneak off with Airiana and seduce her. Fortunately there were many places on the farm they could go and be undiscovered. Their house was just not one of them. True to his word, Damon had men rebuilding Airiana’s workspace, making it soundproof and totally secure. Maxim was going to be very grateful for that room if the children insisted on sleeping with them every night.
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