All In (10 page)

AJ clicked on the earpieces. “I’m getting patchy signals, guys. I think I’m about to lose you. Just know that this is how far you have to come back to connect. I’ll leave all the lines open and activated. I’m out on this end.”

“Gotcha,” Jackson said. “We’ll do a little exploring and report back. Over.”

“Over and out.”

Jackson tugged on Lisa Bee’s hand. “We’ll take a rest soon—I know the perfect spot. You okay to go on?”

She smiled up at him. “I’m great. Thank you so much for asking, though. This is all a bit much to get used to.”

“I know,” he said gently. “But you’re doing great.” They walked down the stone stairs and some length across the bottom of another cave. With their headlamps pointed at the far end, Jackson said, “See that rise over there? There’s a corridor through there to a cave with some light and a place to sit and hang for a bit.” Lisa Bee nodded and allowed him to guide her up a steep embankment. They squatted to crawl through a cool mud-lined tunnel and emerged into yet another cavern.

It took a moment for Lisa Bee’s eyes to adjust to the light—then she was awestruck. This cave was vast, with rock formations that were heart-stopping. Half of the cave was filled with water, surrounded by rock structures that looked like ornate columns or fallen statues of ancient gods. Another part of the cave was dry, with circular patterns that looked like it had been shaped by a whirlpool. Jackson took her hand and led her to the dry part, where he took a camping mat and unrolled it on the ground. They sat next to each other in silence, taking a drink from their water bottles, staring at the natural beauty that surrounded them, listening to the sound of water droplets hitting the pool in front of them.

Lisa Bee could feel her heart beating in time with the droplets, the pitter-patter so loud she wondered if Jackson heard it. She was so turned on and so near him that she didn’t know if she could keep herself contained. She reached a hand over to rest on his thigh; that was, it seemed, all he needed. He threaded his fingers through her hair and pulled her lips to his.

Her world exploded with this second kiss, richer, deeper, and sexier than the first. It was so sensual in this cave, dark, moist, silent, and stunning. They were both ready to explore each other the way they were exploring new terrain. Slowly, their bodies came together. Jackson gently put his tongue in her mouth, teasing her, tasting her, entering her lips but giving her the freedom to back off or pull away. She did neither. Instead, she grabbed his hair and pulled him to her, lying down on the mat, urging him on top of her, wrapping her legs around his body as he did so. God, she was on fire! She needed him with a desperation she hadn’t realized she had. She could feel the rigid full length of him rubbing up against the center of her as their kiss deepened further still, and
oh
, wow!
What it would be like to have that inside her, to fill the space that yearned for him so completely. It was clear to her that they fit together perfectly, like puzzle pieces. His hands grabbed her ass, lifting her up, readying her to take him inside. If they only had their clothes off . . .

As if reading her mind, Jackson pulled off her caving harness, her hiking boots, her wet pants, and her equally wet panties. To her surprise, a fiercer part of her took over: Without hesitation she took his head and pushed him down to the heart of her, to the swollen place that craved his mouth. He dove in, lavishing her with his lips, his tongue, devouring every single piece of her until she came, screaming his name over and over again.

‡‡‡

JACKSON WAS BESIDE HIMSELF.
He was so turned on, he was about to lose his mind. He looked down at Lisa Bee, half naked, legs spread, moisture running down her thighs. Her skin was so creamy in contrast to all that bright red hair. She was so incredibly gorgeous, so wildly sexy, and she had no idea of any of it. Here they were, in one of the most exciting and vivid places of his young adulthood, the place where he had learned to explore, to camp, to use survival skills. Having this woman here with him was like a dream come true. He unbuttoned her shirt, pulled off her tank top, and made quick work of undoing her bra. And what a gift he received! Her breasts were large and full, with perfect pink nipples hardened and waiting for him. He put his mouth to one, then the other, and had the pleasure of hearing her moan out his name again and again and again. He had to pinch himself. Was this real? She wanted him. She was ready for him. And he would give her anything she desired.

‡‡‡

LISA BEE WAS
fully naked and on her back. Her breath was coming in quick pants, and she didn’t know if she could wait for him to get his clothes off. Thank God he was quick. He ripped his clothes off in no time and stood above her, naked and waiting for her sign. She looked up at him—
dear
Lord,
he is gorgeous!
—tall, broad, muscled, and with that smooth dark skin. All joking aside, he was the
largest
man she had ever laid eyes on. She felt her insides rumble in anticipation of having him inside her, but she was also nervous to push their friendship into new territory. His eyes glistened. His skin shone. And he waited for her cue.

Barely able to breathe, she said, “Please . . .”

He needed nothing else. He grabbed a condom from his pocket and rolled it on, then got back down on his knees. Lifting her legs, he rested her shins on his shoulders and stared into her eyes for a brief, teasing pause. He entered her gently at first, opening her up, giving her the chance to accommodate him, to get used to his size. Then the pace shifted; they were one now, one being, one rhythm, one desire. She moaned and grabbed his upper legs and thrust him more deeply inside, wanting all of him, needing to be fiercely and uncompromisingly taken. He received her cue and picked up his pace, thrusting fully into her, getting deeper inside than anyone had ever been before. Locked in rhythm, they rode to the finish line, climaxing and screaming as one. Their sounds were amplified within the cave walls and echoed, making it seem as if their cries were produced in triplicate.

Jackson stayed inside her for a long while, then rolled off and removed the condom. They stayed on their backs for a time, breathing heavily, allowing themselves to cool down. Then Lisa Bee turned to look at Jackson. He was staring at her passionately, stroking her hair.
How could I not have noticed?
she thought.
How could I have missed seeing
this amazing man next to me?
She put her hand on his face and looked deep into his eyes. “Damn,” she whispered. “I guess all that writing on the bathroom walls is true. You’re one helluva stud. And one helluva man.” And then she kissed him again, and her heart burst wide open.

10

ANNABELLA FRITZHEIMER SHOOK
her mop of frizzy dark hair and pushed her glasses up on her nose. She was worried about Janice, worried about her seeing Buzz again and what that might do to her friend. Like Janice, she had been kept in the dark and was now trying to manage her anger and frustration. Why wouldn’t Buzz have let someone,
anyone,
know what he was up to? Especially her.
She
could have protected Janice and Susannah. And if he’d been scared about who was after him, she could have kept it quiet. Surely he wouldn’t have considered her a threat.
Would he?
She didn’t know what he had been thinking, and it rattled her.

She was also concerned that FTP was out of their depth. She had initially connected with them to keep an eye on Susannah. In the wake of Buzz’s supposed death, Fritz had promised Janice that she would do anything she could to protect Susannah.

But things had gone truly awry. FTP was a small undercover investigations company specializing in white-collar crime. John Collins Boss and all of his employees were competent, certainly, but for specific jobs. They were perfect for small stuff, building blocks, stateside only. But ever since
this
case—the one that began with the Italian, Pierre Descartes, and the scheme that Chas was working—things had gone haywire. This was supposed to be about money and art heists and stopping some very high-profile thieves. Computer hacking, robbery, corporate greed—that was it. But now? Susannah Carter was exactly where her father had been: dealing with the most wanted criminals, murderers, mob bosses, and terrorists the world had to offer. How had Fritz gotten it so wrong? In trying to protect Susannah, she’d somehow steered her directly into the maelstrom of assassins and criminal masterminds. And now Buzz Carter was
alive
and back in the picture? This couldn’t be good. The only reason Buzz had faked his own death had to do with something insidious going on at the CIA, a vast rift in security that he feared more than the loss of all he had known. The implications were so far-reaching that Fritz couldn’t comprehend them. The only good thing to come out of all this was that the added members of the Bod Squad—Tyka, Mahmoud, Chas, AJ, and Gabriella—were seasoned agents and experienced assassins. Still, she was worried. She felt torn between her anger at Buzz, her sympathy with his plight, and her fear of the unknown security breach.

‡‡‡

IT WAS THE MIDDLE
of the night in D.C., and Robert Smith was watching a video. A video that had been sent to him by one of his agents in the field. When he couldn’t get in touch with Gabriella, he had sent his best to find out what the fuck was going on.

What he received was a video from a security tape of a street in Sicily, outside a café known to be a hangout of the middlemen of the Cosa Nostra. There was no audio. He watched in silence, barely moving, save a twitch in his eye. With no reaction, he looked on and saw Gabriella fighting some of her former colleagues to the death. He played over and over the moment when she ran down the street, seeming to be free, and Luigi Borrelli, known as “The Boot,” fatally shot her before collapsing.

He sat at his staid desk in his functional chair in his bare apartment, staring at his laptop. No lights were on. The only movements in his body were his finger on the keyboard of his computer and the movement of his eyes. If not for these things, he would have appeared to be a statue. He continued to replay the tape without cease in the darkness.

‡‡‡

CHAS, SUSANNAH, AND BUZZ
were back in the U.S. and were being escorted to Quantico, where Buzz would be protected. Chas hadn’t revealed to them what he’d been lying about, and Susannah was thrown off by his secrecy. But there wasn’t time to talk just yet. There was a reunion to be had first.

Janice was already there, waiting with Fritz for Buzz and the others to arrive. She was both apprehensive and excited to see the husband she had thought died in a car crash so many years ago. She’d been at Quantico for the last day or so and was being taken care of by Bella and her security detail. Rafael, the Israeli operative who had been in charge of Janice’s safety, was with them, as he was the lead security for Buzz. They all sat waiting in silence in Fritz’s office.

It was then that Fritz got the call to come down.

‡‡‡

SUSANNAH, CHAS, AND BUZZ
were waiting in the conference room for Janice, Fritz, and some others to arrive. They were all going to connect for a bit, then Buzz was to meet with Fritz to discuss details of his own investigations and the past sixteen years. They were all nervous, and the air felt hot with anticipation. The conference room was windowless, with dark wood paneled shelves, a few locked drawers, several phones, a large monitor, and several iPads. Though there were very comfortable business chairs, no one sat. They all stood, shifting from foot to foot, waiting. All except Buzz, who paced back and forth along one wall. Susannah and Chas stood next to each other, not speaking, an awkwardness between them.

Janice walked in, followed by Fritz and Rafael, and they all sharpened up. There was a terribly strained silence, then Janice walked over to Buzz and looked him up and down. He stood before her and stared, then stepped toward her. “Janice,” Buzz said, his face haggard, “sweetheart, I’m so sorry about all this.”

Janice’s eyes filled with tears. Then, in a lightning flash, she slapped him hard across the cheek. “I don’t give a damn what the reason was,” she said, her face red with anger. “You had no right to put me through that!”

She walked out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

There was a fully pregnant pause. Then Fritz took command. “Buzz, why don’t you and I talk for a bit? Susannah and Chas, there’s a place where you can get coffee just down the hall. And Rafael will stay here with us.” Taking their cue, Susannah and Chas left.

‡‡‡

THEY WALKED DOWN
the hall to a coffee/tea station where they could sit down and grab a warm beverage. “Okay,” Susannah said. “Talk. Now.”

Chas inhaled deeply. “Listen, can’t we talk about this later? I feel like there are more important things to be discussed.”

Susannah rounded on him. “More important than the fact that you
lied
to me? That you put my life in jeopardy? Where the fuck were you?”

“Whoa,” Chas said, putting hands on her shoulders that she quickly shrugged off, “I didn’t put your life in jeopardy. I sent Amal as backup. I knew she’d take care of you.”

“So Amal knew about this?”

“Not exactly. She knew I was borrowing her scooter and that I had an errand to run. Beyond that, she didn’t know anything.”

“How come
she
got to know what you were up to?” Susannah asked, her voice rising. “And why the fuck did I need to be
taken care of
?”

“Now, slow down, sweetheart—”

“Don’t
‘slow down, sweetheart’
me,” Susannah said, her face turning red. “Is this a partnership or isn’t it? Because before I say
‘I do,’
you better give me a reason not to say
‘I don’t’
!”

“Well, that’s pithy,” Chas said with a grimace.

“CHAS!” Susannah shouted. “Tell me what’s going on!”

Chas’s shoulders sank. “I just don’t want you to get hurt.”

Susannah put her hands on his shoulders and kneed him in the balls.

“Fuck!” Chas shouted. “
What in the hell was that for?
”

“Don’t you dare treat me like some little girl who needs protecting,” she said, just getting started, “you’ve done this before and you’re not going to do it again, not after my father treated my mom and me that way by
faking his death
and making us mourn for
sixteen years
because
God forbid
someone might hurt us. And now you, my
almost husband,
decides to do the same kind of lying bullshit in the guise of protection, I mean,
MY GOD,
Chas, what were you thinking?”

“I was thinking that I loved you more than the whole goddamn world,” he said gently, sinking onto the sofa and holding himself protectively, “but I didn’t realize I’d have to give my balls away to prove it.”

“But you did give your balls away,” she said, not moved by his words. “You gave them away the minute you didn’t trust me to be every bit the agent you are. If you don’t think we can be partners, if you don’t think I rate as high,
if you can’t trust me,
fuck, Chas, then it’s over between us.”

Taking a deep breath before dragging himself to his full height, Chas pinned her with a heated look. “Now, you listen to me, Legs. That’s not what this is about. Of course I trust you.
Of course
I think we can partner. Of course I know what an extraordinary agent you are. I had to go back to one of my old contacts, one of the ones I got from Bruni and Descartes, and I didn’t want you to get made, that’s all.”

“Is that where you got the intel from?”

“Yes. ”

“You could’ve let me know.”

“I realize that now, and I’m sorry. I’m
truly
sorry. I thought I was doing the right thing, especially since your dad has put you back on the map as a target.”

Susannah let out a breath. “I understand why you did it, but it’s the one thing I can’t deal with. Ever. You are either a hundred percent honest with me or we’re through. Even if you have to tell me you’re on a mission you can’t talk about. I need you to be straight with me.”

He walked toward her and smoothed down her hair. “Got it. I’m sorry I underestimated you. I wanted to protect you.”

She grabbed his face and angled it down so they were eye to eye. “I don’t need a protector. I need a partner.”

“Okay,” he said, meeting her gaze. “I hear you.”

‡‡‡

JACKSON AND LISA BEE
were moving steadily south through several more caves. Jackson was hoping they’d find his former school buddies, but he was getting progressively more wary. Some of the terrorist cells could be operating out of the caves, could they not? It was the perfect place to run a part of a larger operation. There were networks all over Morocco that operated like the eyes, ears, and arms of the person who commanded them, and their members were paid in full in exchange for weapons, bombings, murders, or information. There were miles of undiscovered caverns down below, and Jackson and Mahmoud had explored a fair portion of them. There was one cave that was like the heart of the place, a deep cavern with tunnels that led to every other path within the structure. It would be the perfect space to network, to plan, to plot.

Thinking about this, Jackson got scared. His heart was so full, and he was so psyched for the possibilities with Lisa Bee. But what had he gotten them into? Was he really taking the woman he loved—yes, sure as shit,
he loved her
—into the possibility of danger? He stopped abruptly and pulled her over to a pile of rocks that looked like it would make a good hiding place. He turned off his headlamp, then hers. They could see, dimly, by a bit of light coming from the next cave. “Listen, Bee. We’re about to go into possibly dangerous territory. I need to go in there alone. If something happens to me, I want you to come back here, hide, and use the thing from Scrubs, okay? And wait for Mahmoud to come get you. It won’t take more than a couple hours if he takes a jet. I just want you to be safe. That’s the most important thing to me.”

Lisa Bee’s eyes widened. “But Jackie, shouldn’t we just turn back? I mean, maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.”

“It wasn’t such a good idea, that’s true. But if I hadn’t had it, I never would have gotten to spend this kind of time with you.”

“That’s true, Jackie,” Lisa Bee said with a blush. “But we have a chance to decide what we want to do about the mission. Do we continue going in? Or do we go get some backup? That sounds smarter to me.”

“To me, too,” he said, already doing an about-face. “Let’s turn back—it’s the smart choice.”

“Or,” she said, stopping him, “you can trust that I can handle myself with a gun and go in there and figure out what’s up. Then we have more intel before we make everyone track us.”

“I know you can handle yourself with a gun,” he said. “But how often have you had to use it?”

“Not a ton,” she said honestly. “But my father made sure I knew what I was doing. And I used to have to compete with my brothers. I’m not scared to do what I need to do. I think as long as we’re down here, we need to figure our shit out. Right?”

“Okay, Bee,” he said. “I’m wary. But if you’re game, let’s do it.” Then he kissed her with ferocity, and passion, and heart-stopping joy, so deeply that he felt her weaken in his arms.

‡‡‡

JACKSON WAS HOLDING
her steady, but it was hard for her to move, let alone think.
Man, this boy
can kiss!
She was experiencing so many emotions at once, she didn’t know how to handle them. She was so excited by this newfound romance, at her new perspective on her old friend. But she was also wary about where they were in the caves and how dangerous it might be.

Abruptly, he stopped. They could hear the faint sounds of music and conversation. They were by an archway, and Jackson motioned to Lisa Bee to stay put while he went to investigate. Then he turned back and said, “No matter what happens, don’t come after me. Go back to the place I showed you and use the thing from Scrubs. Promise me.”

“I got it, Jackie. I’ll be okay, I promise.”

“Good,” he said. “And Bee?”

“Yes?”

“I think you’re the best person I know. I’m just blown away by you. And I’m not gonna do anything to fuck it up. You know that, right?”

She smiled, tingling everywhere. “I feel the same way, Jackie. You know I do. Now don’t do anything stupid.”

“I won’t, Bee. I won’t.”

And with that, he walked through the archway and into the light.

‡‡‡

THROUGH A CRACK
in the wall, Lisa Bee watched him. She could see what turned out to be a few small campfires, with about ten boys situated around them, eating a meal together. They looked like teenagers, some on the younger side. The sound of Arabic music came from a small transistor radio in the middle. Jackson approached the first group, speaking in Arabic, then in French. She could tell he was acting jocularly, likely pretending to be a lost tourist and looking for his friend. The boys laughed at first; then, in what seemed to be a flash, they surrounded Jackson, and one pointed a vicious-looking dagger at him. Lisa Bee gasped, bile rising in her throat. She reached into her pack and took out the stuff from Scrubs. He had created a literal bug—a winged creature with a camera and recording device set to alert the home base when in range. She took a picture of Jackson at knifepoint and activated the bug. It flew out and away.
It was completely fucking stupid of us,
she thought,
to have gone into some caves in Morocco looking for leads. What were we thinking?
Now they were stuck up shit creek without a paddle.
Or are we?
she wondered. Maybe this was the chance she had been looking for. She wasn’t scared, not at all. She just wanted to get them both out of there ASAP. It was time to conjure her brothers and take care of this the old-school way. She knew what she’d been trained to do, and she knew she could make her daddy proud. Pulling her gun from her holster, she walked through the archway and said, “If you don’t put that dagger down, darlin’, I’m gonna blow your fucking balls off.”