LITMIR.BIZ

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well enough to guess that he felt some sort of responsibility for recovering them.

      Yet, she had to play by the rules. This time there were others to think about. Others like Dylan who needed a mom, and Kane who was now a man she didn’t really know.

      Yet at the same time, he was that exciting, dangerous man she’d married. Sparring with him tonight had awakened every feminine instinct she had. Why now? Was it simply because they’d been apart so long? Or was it because she was once again experiencing that elixir she loved—the combination of danger, excitement and the one man who really made her feel alive.

      “I’m returning to Kane. Should I take care of our captives?”

      “Charity and Justice are on their way to apprehend them. We’re to return to London for debriefing and interrogation.”

      “Gotcha.”

      Nightshade blended back into the shadows and walked swiftly to the spot where she’d left Kane. The night air was chilly yet invigorating. She stopped for a moment, closing her eyes and tipping her head backward. She was in the field again. Something she hadn’t been sure she’d be able to manage until Dylan was in school.

      But here she was. It was different than she’d expected it to be. She didn’t feel as if it was real. Except for the aches and pains from the contact earlier with the sentries. She felt as though she was pretending to be someone else. When was she going to feel like herself again? When was the damn feeling of playacting going to go away?

      Kane was conscious when she returned. His eyes were steely and she had the feeling that if she released his cuffs now he was going to have her in arm shackles in thirty seconds.

      She knelt beside him, her gun in one hand, her eyes watchful. It would be foolhardy to try to retreat until they were sure that the two men were still on the ship.

      “Orly, give me an exit route.”

      “Sit tight. There’s some activity in the next berth. Will advise when you can move.”

      “Gotcha.”

      She turned to look at Kane. He watched her with a stare that was devoid of emotion. Inwardly she shivered. Her marriage wasn’t going to survive this. And she wasn’t sure she was too upset about it. Kane was more dangerous than facing a loaded gun because he made her react more strongly to things than she should. She would have left any other man out here.

      “I couldn’t let you do it,” she said softly. She wasn’t apologizing. But she wanted him to understand. Why did it matter? She’d carefully tucked away her emotions for Kane, channeling them into a more safer outlet—their son.

      “Skip to the good part, Nightshade.”

      “Is there a good part?” she asked. Because she didn’t see one. She saw her husband in jail for a long time and she and her son leaving Great Britain.

      “Where are you taking me?” he asked, instead of answering.

      “To Ano.”

      “And then you’ll turn me over to Temple?”

      She didn’t say. He had to pay for his actions but he was her husband and she was torn. She didn’t want to see him tried and found a traitor and then sent to jail.

      He shifted to face her and in his eyes she saw something she hadn’t seen there in a long time. He leaned up, so close that his lips brushed her cheek when he spoke. His breath smelled of mint and she wanted to taste him.

      “There’s still time, Nightshade. Set me free. I’ll come back when I can.”

      God, she was tempted. She turned her head, brushing her lips against his stubble-covered jaw.

      “No, Kane.”

      The two A.R.C. operatives arrived ten minutes after the Eudora left port. Orly was tracking the ship via satellite and was running photos of all the men captured or seen with Townsend through databases searching for names and connections.

      For a minute Sasha wished she were back in Yorkshire in the safety of her country home, her little son sleeping down the hall and her husband still working in London but not on the outs. But she knew that some dreams weren’t meant to be. And sometimes you had to realize the truth in that fact.

      Sasha had escorted Kane to the command vehicle. He hadn’t spoken to her since she’d refused to release him. And until she had a chance to really talk to him, she wasn’t going to. She needed to understand his reasons. Plus, she was dealing with the aftermath of being close to once again breaking the rules and going after Townsend herself. She needed to cool down a little before she spoke to Ano.

      She knew Ano wanted the information that Kane had, but Sasha knew she could’ve taken Townsend. Or at least disabled him enough to make him move slower.

      Charity and Justice had arrived and were escorting the men she and Kane had captured into a white transit van with tinted windows similar to the ones used by MI-5. After the last man had been secured in the back and cuffed to the bench, Justice got behind the wheel and started radioing in the information that Sasha had gathered.

      “Nice job, Nightshade. You’d never guess that you’ve been semiretired for almost two years,” Charity said.

      Charity was of Asian descent, the daughter of an American soldier and a Vietnamese woman. She’d been sent to America at the end of the U.S. occupation there and adopted by Ano. In some ways, Charity was like her soul sister. They’d each been raised by one parent and that parent was absolutely fanatical about protection and global security. Rather than wishing the world was a better place, their parents were out there teaching them how to do it.

      “It’s not like I was sitting on my butt. I have been doing a few jobs.” Sasha realized she sounded defensive. She’d been raising her son, and that wasn’t a task to be ashamed of, but she’d been feeling lately that it was. Part of the reason was her dad’s attitude. But a deeper part was her own longing and envy every time she talked to Kane or another agent.

      “Yeah, I heard about that exciting revamp of the Yorkshire B and B’s security system.”

      Nightshade heard the humor in Charity’s voice. “Very funny. I know it’s not exciting, but it was important and I was able to stay with Dylan.”

      “How’s he doing? Any more new teeth?”

      “No new teeth. But he’s started talking.”

      “Really? I can’t wait to see him.”

      Sasha felt a tug in her heart. Charity was Dylan’s godmother and had been to visit only two weeks ago. At that time Sasha had felt she had nothing in common with her friend. She’d felt as though they were slipping apart as Charity talked in very vague terms of her latest mission in South America. But now, now she was back in the game.

      And she’d have to thank Kane for it. Because she realized that she wasn’t really ready to let this part of herself go. Protecting the security of tourists was fine, but she’d forgotten what it was like to go head-to-head with someone twice her size and come out the victor.

      “You okay?” Charity asked.

      Sasha realized she’d let the silence go too long. She also realized she wasn’t doing as good a job of hiding her restlessness as she should. Though she and Charity were friends, she knew that the other woman would have no qualms about reporting to Ano that Sasha seemed unstable. “Yeah. Why wouldn’t I be?”

      Charity took her arm and pulled her a few feet away from the vehicles. “Kane.”

      “Ano called him Sterling. A wild card that had to be stopped at any cost.”

      “Mom can be a tough piece of business.”

      “I know. The hardest part was knowing she was right. Kane is…”

      Charity watched her and Sasha found she couldn’t say what she was thinking. That Kane had slipped past the control that all good agents had.

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