Deception, page 12
I turned to Santino, ignoring the sweat running down my face as I gripped my gun tighter. “What happened?”
He crouched next to where I was behind a garden shed. “They barricaded themselves into Maurizio’s suite.”
I slumped against the wall. We’d been here for two days. And to say the last forty-eight hours had been a mess would be calling a marathon a stroll in the park. Somehow, we’d screwed things up so bad, we were now in a stand-off with the few remaining men intent on claiming the mansion as their own.
But I wouldn’t leave anything standing. I refused to give any of the men a chance to rebuild. The warehouse in Georgetown already had an unfortunate electrical fault and Maurizio’s apartment in the city a rodent problem.
The mansion was the last thing remaining. It was also the most crucial. We’d brought enough explosives with us to blow it up, but we couldn’t set them until everyone had left. I hadn’t counted on anyone staying behind.
Maurizio had surrounded himself with soldiers, men who were used to getting orders and following mindlessly. I didn’t think any of them would be ambitious enough to attempt a takeover.
Every day I was delayed was one more day away from Everleigh. I hadn’t had much hope I’d be able to return to her when I left her at the airport. But we’d almost accomplished the impossible: raze Maurizio’s operation to the ground so there was no way of building it up again.
I was burning with the need to finish this. Not only did I have information that the hitman I’d been looking for was hiding out in Venezuela, but he could also lead me to his boss. I wanted revenge for Sam’s death, but I also wanted to know why they’d targeted him.
The delay was grating on me, making my already frayed nerves brittle. I wiped my face with the end of my T-shirt. “Do you have any smoke bombs left?”
Santino nodded. “A few. But there’s no way to get them inside.”
Lucky for us, I knew the mansion inside out. And I knew that there was an issue with the vents going in and out of Maurizio’s office. And there was a way to access them.
“Is the air-conditioning still on?”
Santino paused, then nodded. “It is.”
I didn’t deserve his loyalty. But I was grateful he stood beside me. Getting up, I inclined my head to the end of the wall where the big generators sat. “Let’s go.”
He followed without a word, and we crept closer, using bushes and cars as cover until we reached the towering units lined along the walls.
Once I had the panels off, I worked on disabling the system. The hot air blew right at me, making my shirt cling to my flushed skin. The towering units came to a shuddering stop a few minutes later, and the first grin in days stole over my face. “Let’s smoke them out.”
We went inside undetected, each step we took in the direction of Maurizio’s suite slow and deliberate. Our breathing was even and our movements unhurried. If we did this right, we could finally get out of here.
There mansion was quieter than I’d ever seen it. The hallways stood abandoned, doors to the rooms left open, drawers ripped out. We didn’t stop until we were at the vacant room next to Maurizio’s office suite, Santino following. The grate covering the vent leading into the suite came off in seconds, the screws easy to remove. I’d done it enough times, after all.
The vent allowed me to spy on Maurizio. It was the reason I was able to escape. It was a design flaw in the otherwise secure room, one that nobody had seemed to notice, and I’d been in no hurry to point out.
Santino handed me a wet towel and pressed one over his own nose. We then rolled the remaining smoke bombs in the vent, putting a pillow over the covering.
Counting to twenty, I dropped the pillow and left the room, getting in position. It didn’t take long for the doors to burst open and men to come stumbling out, coughing. A cloud of smoke followed in their wake.
When they finally noticed us, it was too late.
“There’s nothing left for you here. Get out and don’t come back.” The command was muffled by the towel over my mouth.
One of them was stupid enough to lift his weapon, but Santino shot him before he aimed at us. The weapon dropped to the floor with a loud thud, the guy swaying. He’d been hit in the shoulder. If they left now, they’d be able to get him to a doctor in time.
The shot turned out to be enough to get them moving and they stumbled out, coughing.
I lowered my weapon. “Let’s get this done.”
Santino dropped the backpack he’d been carrying on the floor, pulling out a stack of explosives. We put them around the house, our movements sure. Blowing up my childhood home would be the last string holding me to this life. I would finally be free.
“What the fuck were you thinking?” Officer Harris’s usual calm demeanor had disintegrated about thirty seconds into our phone conversation. Guess he wasn’t happy we destroyed valuable evidence.
Done with his pointless rant, I cut him off. “I was thinking that nobody should be able to take over. I was thinking that the best way to disband the whole operation was to blow it up. And I was also thinking that you’d be more interested in the information I have for you than a mansion of horrors. I can give you the names of everyone he’s worked with. I know how they operate. And I’m willing to give it to you in exchange for a location.”
We both knew there was only one location I wanted. He had it and I’d needed leverage to get him to give it up. And I finally had something he wanted badly enough.
“Fuck you. I knew I should have never worked with you.”
“I’m about to make your career. I think we both got out of this what we wanted.”
He sighed, the anger in his voice replaced with resignation. “You can’t believe I’d be happy to sign someone’s death warrant. I went into this job to protect my country. Not to be the reason someone gets killed.”
“He’s a professional hitman. You should be thanking me for stopping him.”
Five minutes later, I had an address. Ten minutes later, Santino was sitting behind the wheel of a stolen car, driving me to Argentina.
Chapter 20
Everleigh
The next few days passed at a snail’s pace. I couldn’t go outside except to the backyard, where I spent a lot of time. Carter was on babysitting duty today. At least he was a little chattier than the others, but he usually stayed busy on his computer. He’d set his office up at the kitchen table as soon as he came in this morning and hadn’t stopped typing since.
I’d been trying to read a book I’d found on one of the shelves in the living room since arriving at the house but couldn’t concentrate. The days dragged on and on. I stopped asking for updates after a while. Gunner assured me they’d let me know if they had any new information.
The noise of the keyboard that had been my soundtrack all day stopped, and Carter jumped up. The sudden movement startled me, and I dropped my book.
“Fuck me. No way.” With long strides, he went to the back door. “Just have to make a call. I’ll be right back.”
More secrets. Great. I’d give this another few days, and then I was out of there. The one thing they did tell me was that there didn’t seem to be anyone coming after me. I longed to be home in my own four walls. To see Thea. To hopefully get back to my job.
I flopped my head back on the couch with a groan and closed my eyes. I wasn’t great at sitting still. The need to do something was overwhelming.
Maybe I’d leave tomorrow. What difference would a couple days make? If I was gone, they wouldn’t have to spare one of their guys to look after me. I was sure they had more important things to do.
Carter came back in, typing on his phone, a crease between his eyes.
“Problems?” I asked.
He looked at me as if he’d forgotten I was there. He probably had. “I think we might have a lock on Lucius. But we can’t get into any of their accounts.”
“Not sure if it’s helpful, but I did their books for a while. I can remember every account number and access code.”
Carter’s mouth dropped open, and he blinked at me. He started to say something, then stopped, blinking at me some more. Eventually, he narrowed his eyes. “And you didn’t think to mention this sooner?”
I shrugged, putting my book down. “You didn’t ask. And if I remember correctly, you guys said you’d handle it and asked me to stay out of the way. So I did.”
“Women,” he grumbled, then put his phone back to his ear. “Me again. I’ll bring Everleigh in. She has all the account numbers and can access them.”
Carter listened to whatever the other person said, then grunted. “How would I know? Nobody, and I mean nobody, will ever understand what’s going on in a woman’s head. Says she’s fine? That could mean eighty-six different things, from ‘I’m sleepy’ to ‘fuck off.’ She says she doesn’t care that you’re still friends with your ex. Next day, she moves all her stuff out.”
The person on the other end cut off his tirade and, after a few more grunts from Carter, they hung up.
He handed me my jacket. “Let’s go.”
“I take it we’re going to the office?”
“Correct. And we could have saved ourselves a lot of work if you’d told us you have the account numbers in the first place. Why didn’t you give them to Gunner with the hard drive and phone?”
I climbed into the high cab of his truck and sank into the seat. “As I said, you didn’t ask.”
Carter nodded. “At least that explains why they didn’t sell you.”
“Lucius wouldn’t have let them.”
He eyed me while he was waiting at a red light. “You sure about that?”
I glared back at him, standing my ground. I hardly ever stood up for myself, but nobody talked shit about Lucius. “I am. He’s the best man I know.”
“You do know why he was in Guyana in the first place, don’t you?”
“It doesn’t matter to me. All that matters are his actions when we were together. Did you know he jumped off a cliff after me and saved my life?”
Carter kept driving. “I didn’t. But that doesn’t change the fact that he’s a traitor. He sold us out.”
My breath hitched, and I sat up ramrod straight. “I’m sure he had a good reason for what he did.”
He stilled for a few seconds. “They took his daughter. But instead of telling us, he gave the people who kidnapped Sofie information. And that information nearly got Freya and Gunner killed.”
I cleared my throat, the little morsel he’d shared sitting uncomfortably in my stomach. Not only had Lucius done something bad, but Carter also confirmed that Sofie was his daughter. “Instead of condemning him, put yourself in his shoes for a moment. What would you do if faced with a decision like that?”
“I trust my team. He didn’t.”
I guessed for some guys it was as easy as that. But when those you loved the most were in danger, a level head and logical thinking took a back seat. I was the best example of that.
“What was on the hard drive?” My question threw Carter for a moment. I’d never asked after the phone or hard drive since handing it over. But I was thinking they were more important than they let on.
“Information on crime syndicates and cartels around South America. It also held the locations of people who had gone missing.”
“Missing people?” My voice pitched high.
The grimace on his face was answer enough. “There was nothing on your brother. I’m sorry.”
The flicker of hope that had sparked at the thought of finally having a lead on Archer went back out.
Carter parked the car in the underground garage and got out, opening my door for me when I didn’t make a move to follow him.
We went up to the Locked Security offices and past the perky receptionists. Their giggles and raspy hellos directed at him barely registered. I was stuck in my head, needing to be useful.
Carter nudged me. “You okay?”
“I’m fine.”
He groaned at my response but continued walking.
We stopped in front of a big conference room with glass walls. Gunner and a few other guys I hadn’t met yet were inside, talking.
Carter didn’t break his stride but waltzed inside, interrupting the conversation. “We’re here to save the day.”
Gunner raised a brow at him but didn’t say anything. I hovered at the door, intimidated by all the attention directed my way. I wiped my clammy hands on my pants, hoping I wouldn’t have a panic attack in front of everyone.
Carter nudged me toward one of the free chairs around the large table, and I dropped into it with a sigh.
“How many accounts did you have access to?” Gunner asked, breaking the silence.
“All of them.”
There was a murmur across the room, and my breathing turned choppy.
“And you wrote them down?”
I shook my head. “No, that would have gotten me killed.”
He frowned. “Then where did you save them?”
I tapped my head. “In here. If you give me something to write them down, I’ll do that and get out of your hair again.”
“You memorized all the numbers and codes?”
I shrank into my chair. “I have a thing for numbers. I see a number once and remember it.”
“Let’s see how good you are, then.”
I’m sure he didn’t mean it as a challenge, but I hated it when people doubted me. Or wanted proof of my abilities.
Carter sat down in the chair next to me with his laptop. He typed in the numbers as I said them, opening account after account. The room was so quiet, you could hear every tap on the keyboard.
When he’d opened the last account, I sat back with a smirk on my face. I couldn’t help it. I might have been shy, but that didn’t stop me from basking in the stunned silence and wanting to say “I told you so.”
Carter’s fingers flew over the keyboard of his laptop, and I watched on the big screen as he worked on the accounts.
Gunner stood up, catching my attention and nodding to the door. I followed him out with a relieved sigh. I was grateful to escape all the testosterone.
“Have you had lunch yet? Freya is hanging out with Sofie, cooking. I’m sure they’d love some company.”
I’d been thinking about Sofie a lot. And now that I knew she was Lucius’s daughter, even more so. “That sounds great.”
But instead of his office, Gunner directed me to the elevator. He scanned his handprint on a panel by the door I hadn’t noticed before and pressed a button. “This will take you to the apartment. Have fun.”
The elevator took me to the motherload of all apartments. And I could do nothing but stare once I walked inside. It was a beautiful day outside, and for once the sky was clear, giving an uninterrupted view of Lake Michigan out of an enormous wall of windows.
“Beautiful, isn’t it?”
I turned at Freya’s comment and saw her standing in the kitchen with Sofie, both dressed in aprons. Sprinkles of dough covered Sofie from head to toe, and Freya had red sauce on her hair and face.
“Hey. I hope it’s okay I came up here. Gunner said something about lunch.”
Freya looked at Sofie, and they giggled. “Lunch was supposed to be homemade pasta with sauce. But after a few unsuccessful attempts, we’ve given up. You don’t happen to know how to cook, do you?”
“Sorry, no. My food either comes in a box or gets delivered.”
Freya waved me over. “Shame. Sandwiches it is, then. You want a drink?”
“Water would be great, thank you.”
Sofie jumped off her stool and took the glass Freya got down. I watched Sofie fill the glass from a tap on the fridge, her tongue sticking out, her forehead creased in concentration. She handed me the full glass with a big smile, leaving drops all along the way.
After Freya half-heartedly cleaned the kitchen, she looked at Sofie. “Don’t touch anything, little sticky monster. I’ll get changed and grab you new clothes, too. Lucky Carter remembered to bring your bag for once.”
She left me with Sofie, whose achingly familiar eyes studied my every movement. “Did you have fun cooking?”
She nodded, her braid swishing back and forth. She was a beautiful kid, her raven hair shiny, her doll-like features making her seem younger than she was.
Freya came back and helped Sofie change into clean clothes. We made sandwiches together, and I relaxed, finding myself feeling comfortable around a woman I barely knew and a child I didn’t know how to interact with.
But by the time we’d finished our sandwiches, and they’d challenged me to another Uno game, Sofie had warmed up to me. She’d even said a few words and was now leaning into me, helping me beat Freya so I wouldn’t come last again. Sofie had already won, much to her delight.
But Sofie’s joy when she won was a beautiful thing to witness, so I continued to lose on purpose.
“No, don’t play that one.” Sofie pointed to a different card than the one I was going to put down. “This one.”
Freya put down a card. “After we finish this game, it’s time for your homework, bug.”
Sofie let out a long-suffering sigh. “But it’s boring.”
“You want me to help you?” I offered.
Her face lit up, and she leaned even farther into me. “Yes, yes, yes, please.”
I laughed at her exuberant reply. “Well, then, let’s whoop Freya’s butt so we can get your homework done.”
It was after I’d helped Sofie complete her homework and watched a movie with her that Freya came up to me. “Dalton called. He’s your ride back to the safe house whenever you’re ready to leave.”
A yawn escaped, and I slapped a hand over my mouth. “I’m so sorry. How rude. I’ve had such a great time today.”
Truth was I hadn’t slept through the night since Guyana and was running on empty.
“Don’t apologize. You went through something traumatic. If I were you, I’d still be rocking underneath a bed, crying.”
I’d been opening up to Freya while we spent the afternoon together. She was easy to talk to and had a way about her that made me want to tell her all my secrets.
