LITMIR.BIZ

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       Chapter 4

      Natalie jumped on Sean, pushing him to the ground.

      “Stay down,” she growled.

      Though he narrowed his eyes, he did as she asked. In the past, he’d led and she’d always followed. No more. Still, with his muscular body pinned beneath her, she was suddenly hyperconscious of their positions.

      Thoughts like that in times like this would get them both killed.

      “Come on.” She yanked his arm. “We’ve got to get out of here.”

      “Get off me so I can move.” His voice sounded strangled. Whether from arousal or from annoyance that she’d taken the lead, she couldn’t tell.

      She scooted down the length of him, purely for revenge, then got to her knees. “We’d better stay low. Come on.”

      Making sure he was following her, she crawled to the nearest section of iron fence. “Corbett’s man is dead.”

      “We’ll mourn him later.” He paused, catching his breath. “I’m thinking he took the code with him.”

      “Lost in the explosion, no doubt. But they’ll check to make sure.” She glanced over her shoulder. “We’re going to make a run for the car.”

      “Right.” His tone was dry.

      Too late, she remembered his walking cast. “Can you do it with that thing on?”

      “Yes.” Again, her assuming the leadership position seemed to bother him. But, unlike the Sean she’d once known, this Sean clenched his jaw and said nothing else.

      She didn’t have time to reflect on what that meant.

      “You go first.”

      He shot her a go-to-hell look. “Why?”

      “In case you can’t get over the fence on your own. I can help you.”

      Without another word he got to his feet and hobbled to the next statue. At this rate, they’d be there all day.

      Somehow, Sean managed to climb over the fence unassisted and without getting shot. Natalie could only hope their luck would hold.

      In the meantime, she needed to take steps to make sure she wasn’t recognized again.

      When they reached the car, she went to the passenger side. She’d let him drive. She’d learned a long time ago how to pick her battles.

      Natalie kept a sharp lookout for any hint they might be being followed, but not a single car made the same turns.

      “Are they playing with us?” she wondered out loud.

      “Could be. They have to know their rigged explosion was a failure. We’re not dead. Maybe they want us alive.”

      “For what reason?”

      “The code. Could it be possible that damn code is more important than any of us realizes?” Intent on the road, his expression gave away none of his thoughts.

      “Surely they know their own code.” She heaved a sigh, wishing she could still rest her head on his shoulder as she’d done in the old days.

      “Unless it’s not theirs.”

      Natalie stared. “What do you mean?”

      “Think about it. Why would the Hungarian be so eager to get some old, coded message away from you? Whatever information it contained, he could simply change.”

      “But if it belonged to someone else—”

      “Like one of his enemies.”

      “Who would be foolish enough to go up against someone so powerful?”

      Sean smiled wryly. “The Hungarian has a lot of enemies. Maybe a bunch of them got together to plan something.”

      “Wouldn’t we know? I mean, both SIS and the Lazlo Group have undercover operatives in place. We would have heard something by now.”

      But they both knew that wasn’t necessarily true. Huge secrets had been kept before, men killed, wars fought, with no one in the intelligence community the wiser until it was all over.

      This time, when their gazes met, for the space of a heartbeat, she couldn’t look away.

      Taking a deep breath, she bit back questions she didn’t want answers to and instead pointed out a sign on the corner ahead, advertising a discount drugstore.

      “I need to stop at that store.”

      Sean shot her a look that plainly said he thought she’d lost it. “I know you like to shop, but your timing sucks.”

      She nearly smiled. Nearly. “Trust me, this is a necessity. But it doesn’t have to be that one,” she said as they drove past. “Any chemist’s shop will be fine.”

      A quick stop at the first druggist on the way out of town, and she had what she needed. Climbing back into the midget-size car, she buckled up and dropped her small bag on the floor. “I’m good.”

      The stark expression on Sean’s face made her catch her breath. “What’s wrong? What happened?”

      “I just got off the phone with Corbett. He already knew he’d lost a man.”

      Natalie bowed her head. In the undercover community, the death of a fellow operative was treated the same way it was by firefighters and policemen when one of their own died—with respect and sorrow.

      “Did you convey to him my condolences?”

      “Yes. He was on his way to talk to the family.”

      She winced. “That’s one duty I wouldn’t want.”

      “No one would. But as head of the agency, Corbett takes his responsibilities seriously.”

      As if she didn’t know. Her own father couldn’t speak highly enough of the man. When her father had lost his legs in an explosion while working undercover, Corbett had helped him find the best surgeons, paid for a wheelchair and paid to renovate his home, even knowing he’d have to retire. The two men still talked regularly. Their stories about the life of a secret agent were why she’d gotten into the business in the first place, though in her bid for some sort of independence, she’d chosen to work for the government rather than the Lazlo Group.

      “I’m assuming Corbett had his own copy of the code.”

      “Of course. He’s working on another way to get it to us, along with a computer.”

      She nodded. “Perfect.”

      “Yeah. But still, we need some help. What about your resources? Can you access any of them?”

      She stared. “Resources? You mean like SIS?”

      “Exactly.”

      “No.” She hoped the single word would shut him down. “I’m on leave. Administrative, due to the trauma of losing my entire team. As far as they know, I’m recuperating on the French Riviera.”

      She waited for his questions, but apparently he had none. The sky had grown darker and it wouldn’t be long before the inky night became complete. Suddenly exhausted, she yawned.

      Noticing that in the dim light from the dashboard, Sean smiled. Again, she felt the beauty of that smile like a punch in the stomach. “Stop it,” she said crossly. “It’s been a long day.”

      “We’ll find a place to stop for the night.”

      “Great.”

      Parking in the back drive of the first B and B they came to, Sean went inside and secured them a room. When he emerged, he looked grim.

      “I rented one room.”

      “Why?”

      “Security

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