by Debra Webb
The door behind Smith opened and Aikman entered, minus his usual bodyguards. They no doubt waited outside the door. No matter that he was well aware that Smith was unarmed, he would never take the risk of being alone in a room with a known follower of the Resurrection without backup close by.
“You got some nerve coming here after what you did, Flynn.” Aikman sat down behind his desk. “I was expecting you to deliver two packages yesterday. Prentiss and I had a deal. First, you don’t show, then I get word you’ve dropped off the grid. Now you waltz in here with only one package.” He shook his head. “This is not good.”
Draven Aikman was younger than Smith. His rusty-brown hair was kept skinhead short but his beard was long, at least ten or twelve inches. He wore the same dark uniform as his soldiers. He’d killed the old man who held the position as leader before him. The story was that the old man was sick, practically on his deathbed and making bad decisions. Aikman claimed he took care of the failing part for the good of the whole. Whatever his motive, he now held the highest position among this closed, clannish group known only as the others by the few who were aware of their existence.
Aikman propped his feet on the desk and leaned back in the chair, eliciting a squeak of protest from the base. The desk and chair, like the rest of the furnishings, might have been unwanted castoffs picked up from the side of the road on garbage day. The others had a reputation for living free of excessive material burdens. Survival of the coming human self-annihilation was their singular goal. Still, they were only human and not completely immune to power and greed. In any group there was always someone who couldn’t resist the temptation of more.
“You suddenly develop a death wish?” Aikman asked. “Coming here, throwing my name around like we’re friends. I could get the wrong idea.”
“The deal Prentiss made is off. I’m here with a different offer.”
Aikman lifted his brows. “This better be good.”
“There are other names on my list,” Smith warned, “but I chose to bring this offer to you first.”
The other man’s gaze narrowed. “What kind of offer?”
“We both know the Resurrection is your primary competition. We’ve blocked your every attempt to expand your operation into other areas. You’ve been stuck making the drugs no one else wants to make unless they have no other choice. We’ve pushed you out of the arms business. Basically, we’ve kept you down for decades.”
“If you’re supposed to be buttering me up for some proposition,” he laughed, a rusty sound, “you’re falling way short of the mark.”
This was the mistake most people made. To look at the others and how they lived, one would automatically think uneducated, backwoods hillbillies. But that was not the case at all with the ones like Aikman. According to Smith’s sources, the man had a master’s degree in business administration. He was smart. Allowing you to believe he wasn’t automatically put you at a disadvantage in any negotiation.
“I’m sure you get my meaning,” Smith said, ignoring his dig. “I’ve decided it would be in both our best interests to join forces. We both have our resources. If we pool those resources, we could expand our operations and take over the Southeast.”
Aikman dropped his feet to the floor. “You want me to believe that you’re ready to abandon your loyalties to the Resurrection—an organization that runs in your blood? You would trample on your daddy’s memory?” He grunted a sound of disbelief. “Pardon me if I don’t believe you. What’re you up to, Flynn?”
This was the risky part. It would have been easier for Smith to keep walking. To climb down this damned mountain and turn himself over to local law enforcement. He would have been sent back to where he belonged ASAP. The mission would have been over and the goal he’d dedicated his entire existence to for the past two years would have been lost forever.
He would have been alive, safe and free of this nightmare.
Except Prentiss would have gotten away. He and his Council of ruthless killers would have relocated and continued doing whatever they pleased with no care of the human cost. No worry about what the guns and the drugs were doing to society.
Smith was left with one option—finish this in the only way possible: light the fuse of the Resurrection’s number one enemy.
Start a war.
“Prentiss sold me out,” Smith confessed. That part was true. Rumor of the shake-up would get around soon enough if it hadn’t already.
There was no other explanation for the trio who’d showed up behind them on that mountain road after they left the compound. Prentiss had intended to wash his hands of Winters, Buchanan and Smith. End of story. To believe they had appeared for any other reason would be foolish. Somehow Prentiss knew. Which would also explain the sudden drop in communications with Smith’s contact.
Whatever had gone wrong, Smith was on his own. He had few options if he wanted to finish his mission and this was the best one.
Aikman reared his head back and considered the announcement for a moment as if he didn’t quite believe what he’d heard. He pursed his lips then rocked forward, propping his forearms on his desktop. “You actually expect me to believe that Prentiss dared to attempt a coup so he could be rid of you?”
“Believe what you want.” Smith turned his palms up. “I came here to give you the first dibs on my coup. If you’re not interested, then I overestimated your ability to see the bigger picture. I won’t waste your time. I have other options.”
Aikman’s gaze narrowed once more. “What other options? We own this mountain. My people and yours. There’s no one else.”
Smith smiled. “If that’s what you believe, then I really did overestimate you, Aikman.”
The statement was a direct insult but it also made the other man think. “You’re talking about that Hispanic gang, aren’t you? They’ve been inching their way up the food chain for years, but they’re not organized enough or financially flush enough to be more than a nuisance.” He hesitated. “What is it you know that I don’t?”
There was no time to go there. “We have to act fast, Aikman. We can’t sit around discussing the politics of the region. Prentiss is out there looking for me right now.”
Aikman scrubbed a hand over his jaw. “What is it you’ve got to offer?”
“You get me and my friend off this mountain and I’ll give you everything you need to take down the Council. Locations, security codes. Everything. The Resurrection and all it entails will be yours for the taking.”
“Where do you come back into the picture?” He shrugged. “Doesn’t sound like we’re doing anything. Sounds more like I’m doing and you’re cutting out.”
Smith shook his head. “I’ll be back. There’s a personal matter I have to take care of first.”
Aikman grinned. “Are you referring to the woman?”
Tension slid through Smith. “I am.”
Aikman scratched at his thick beard some more. “You see, that’s where we have a bartering issue.”
Smith’s instincts stirred. “What does that mean, Aikman?”
He leaned back in his chair, his hands on the worn arms. “To tell you the truth, things get a little lonely out here from time to time. Sure there’s women, but not one I’ve cared to take for more than a little bump and grind. There’s definitely none like her. I need someone who presents a challenge. The ones I’ve run up on so far bore me.”
Smith’s gut clenched at the idea of what this bastard had in mind. The others were known for staying to themselves. They had no use for those who were different, whether that difference was as simple as skin color or went way deeper. The man’s fascination with Buchanan would be short-lived and then she’d end up a curiosity or, worse, a sex slave.
“I don’t see how that’s my problem. This is business. Important business,” Smith warned. “You should keep that in mind as you decide your next move.”
Aikman grinned. “I’m making it your problem, Flynn. You brought this problem between you and Prentiss to my door, now I’m bringing mine to you. I want the woman. You give me the woman and we’ll have a deal.”
“Not happening.” Smith stood. “Let’s not waste each other’s time with games. We’ll be on our way to the next prospect if this is your final answer.”
The other man stood, leaned over his desk, bracing his hands on the worn surface. “Do you really think I’m going to let you just walk back out of here?” He moved his head slowly from side to side. “This was a no-turning-back meeting, Flynn. You don’t get to sit in my office and then just walk away. You think Prentiss would watch me walk away if I paid him a visit?” Aikman angled his head and studied Smith. “Then again, he might if I told him I had a gift for him. What you think you’re worth to the old bastard?”
Smith smiled. “Not nearly as much as you are.”
Aikman reared back, then laughed as if Smith’s statement hadn’t startled him. “I gave you a chance, Flynn. I guess you aren’t as smart as you think. What woman is worth dying for?”
“I could ask you the same thing.”
Aikman didn’t flinch, but Smith saw the glimmer of uncertainty in his eyes before he blinked it away. “My people appreciate tangible proof they’re being protected. With that in mind, from time to time a public display is required to keep them reassured. At dawn, we’ll give them something to feel good about. Maybe the two of you will be worth all the distraction you’ve caused after all. You wouldn’t believe what organs go for on the black market.”
Smith ignored the threat, turned his back and walked out of the man’s office. The guards grabbed him by the arms and jerked him forward.
Not exactly the news he’d hoped to take back to Buchanan.
* * *
Sadie had moved around the entire space and found no openings, not even a crack, except for the small round opening she’d been forced to crawl through to get in here. She couldn’t help wondering if the owner of the remains in the corner had done the same thing—searched for some way to escape, wondering what would happen next—before he died here.
Whatever he’d had planned, it hadn’t worked out for him.
For the first time on a mission, her mind wandered to her folks and she tried to remember the last time she’d spoken with her parents. Had she said the right things? Told them she loved them? She couldn’t see her sister being there for them in their time of grief if Sadie never made it out of this place.
Don’t even go there, Sadie.
Moving around the perimeter of the room once more, she closed her eyes and listened for any sort of sound. The soft whisper of words slipped beyond the crack between the stone that made a door and the hole in the wall that it covered. She couldn’t say if the voices were those of the guards outside the room or people walking past in the long corridor.
The lives of these people likely revolved around the preparing and packaging of drugs. Survival. They lived to please their leader, this Aikman that Flynn asked to see. There was no logical reason why they would concern themselves with her or her survival.
Lines creased her forehead, nagging at the ache that had begun there. How long had Flynn been gone? An hour? An hour and a half? He could be dead by now for all she knew. She hugged her arms around herself, feeling oddly chilled. It would be bad enough to be stuck here with him. The concept of ending up alone in this hole—her gaze drifted across the darkness—was far worse.
Movement near the small opening drew her attention there. The rock rolled away and light poured in. Sadie stood back and waited to see what would happen. She held her breath, hoped it was Flynn and not the guards ready to drag her away to some torture chamber.
When Flynn popped up through the hole, relief rushed through her and she drew in a lungful of air.
Before he could speak, she asked, “What happened? Did you talk to Aikman?”
The stone was rolled back over the hole, blocking all but that narrow crack of light. Flynn hesitated, waiting for the guards to lose interest and wander back to their posts.
“I did. He was intrigued by my offer.”
His tone told her that wasn’t the whole story by any means but it might very well be the best part of it. “What was your offer?”
“The information he would need to take over the Resurrection.”
No surprise there. Flynn was worried that Prentiss would get away. He didn’t want that to happen. “What did you ask for in return?”
“Safe transport off this mountain.”
Made sense, she supposed. If his ultimate goal was to stop Prentiss and his followers, giving away his secrets to an enemy would certainly do the trick. Not exactly the usual protocol for a federal agent, but desperate times called for desperate measures. She couldn’t fault him for wanting to see his primary mission accomplished no matter that his cover was blown.
She sat down on the floor. No need to keep standing. She’d walked this space a thousand times. Exhaustion and hunger were nagging at her. “When do we leave?”
He didn’t sit. Instead, he kept moving around the space as if he was agitated or frustrated. Either would be understandable under the circumstances.
“Watch for the bones on the left of the door,” she warned.
Still, he said nothing, just kept moving through the near total darkness. After five minutes, his movements had grown unnerving with her sitting so still. Finally, she stood and demanded some answers. “So what’s the rest of the story?”
He stopped, turned to her. She couldn’t see his face, certainly couldn’t read his expression, so she waited for him to explain.
“I took a calculated risk coming here. I put my offer on the table and it didn’t go the way I expected.”
“Can you be a little more specific?” He’d told her a considerable amount with those two statements and yet nothing at all.
“The only way he’s prepared to accept my offer is if he gets you in the bargain.”
Sadie barked out a laugh. “Are you serious?”
“Unfortunately, I am.” He heaved a frustrated breath.
The idea of where they were and those bones over in the corner slammed into her midsection like a sucker punch. “How did you respond?”
On one level she could see how he might want to agree. After all, at least one of them needed to get out of here alive. It was the only way the people expecting their return would ever know what took place on this mountain. No matter that she comprehended the logic, she struggled to maintain her objectivity. Agreeing to the man’s terms would be the reasonable thing to do.
At least that way Flynn could go for help. Assuming she survived whatever came after that, she could still be alive when help came.
But on a whole other level, she wanted to kick his ass for coming up with this insane idea in the first place. Fury burst through her.
As if he’d read her mind or felt her mixed emotions, he said, “I told him no way. If I go, you go.”
Her heart skipped and then sank just a little. “What good does it do for both of us to be stuck here?” Or end up like the guy in the corner? She exhaled a chest full of exasperation and crossed her arms. “Tell him you changed your mind. Tell him,” she added firmly, “he has a deal. You go and I’ll stay.”
“No way.”
His hands were on his hips and she could feel his glare even if she couldn’t see it.
“It’s the right thing to do, Flynn. One of us needs to get down this damned mountain.”
She hoped Levi Winters had found help. Maybe she would have been smarter to go with him. Except it was better that she and Flynn drew the danger away from him and let him get away. At least he could tell Ross and the others all that he knew. That was something.
“I got you into this,” Flynn said, his voice low, fierce. “I’ll get you out.”
“How do you plan on doing that?”
He moved in closer, put his face near enough to hers that his lips brushed her ear. She shivered in spite of her best efforts not to react.
“He’s not going to pass on this deal. He just wants us ready to do whatever he asks when he pretends to have a change of heart.”
The feel of his breath on her skin made her want to lean into him. She pushed the idea away. “What do you think he’ll want us to do?”
“He’ll want us to act as a distraction while he carries out his coup.”
“What kind of distraction?”
“The kind that gets captured and taken back to the compound and to Prentiss.”
She jerked away from him. “What? Why the hell would we do that?”
“Because he’s not a fool. He knows it won’t be easy getting in even with the information I can give him. If that’s what he requires, we have to be prepared to go. Are you with me?”
She wasn’t so sure this plan was any better than the first one he walked in here telling her about.
But that was irrelevant.
“I’m in,” she said finally. “At least we won’t end up like the guy in the corner.”
How had this mission turned so completely upside down?
Chapter 12
Tuesday, August 13
Sadie woke, her body shivering. A moment was required for her to orient herself.
Cave. Aikman. The others.
She sat up, scrubbed at her cheek where her face had been pressed to the cold ground. She’d been curled into a ball on the cold rock floor. She peered through the darkness, scanning the room as best she could. Listening for any sound, including breathing, she heard nothing.