Read Charade Online

Authors: Kate Donovan

Tags: #Romance, #Suspense

Charade (29 page)

BOOK: Charade
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Teal giggled, explaining to Allison, “She’s teasing me. Because of something I said in Kestonia. I should have known better than to tell secrets to a snitch, right?”

Allison laughed, noting that the two seemed more like long-lost sisters than rescuer-rescuee.

The ringing of her NSA cell phone interrupted the charming moment, and Allison glanced at the screen,
then
winced to see the caller was Morgan Rush, a colleague who had reportedly been making a nuisance of himself trying to learn the classified details of the Kestonian incident.

“Sorry, I have to take this. We’ll catch up more in a bit, Sasha, okay?”

“Sure. Teal can introduce me to Lena. Plus, we can hit the buffet table.”

“Thanks.” Allison flipped open the phone as she strode toward the doors that led to the terrace. “Morgan? This is a bad time. I’m at an important school function. Can I call you in the morning?”

“This won’t take long,” he promised, adding in a drawl, “And since you haven’t returned my last three calls, I’d like to do this while I have you on the line.”

“It’s been a circus,” she assured him, “but I was going to call you back.
Really.
So?
What’s up?”

“That scene at the Kestonian border—I get why the Bureau had agents there to advise and assist Interpol. They’ve been hunting Martino forever. But why was Stringer there? And why are the files so sensitive that I can’t access them? It’s not like I don’t have clearance—”

“It’s complicated. And quite frankly, I can’t discuss it over the phone, even on a secure line. Maybe when I get back to headquarters—”

“Right,” he said sarcastically. “Come on, Allison. We both know you’re evading me. What I want to know is, why? What the hell happened in Kestonia? It’s got something to do with your missing student, obviously. My question
is,
what? And I’m not going to stop asking until I get an answer.”

Allison paused for dramatic effect. Then she informed him coolly, “It’s strictly need-to-know, Morgan. And quite frankly, curiosity is not the same as need. So I suggest you back off for now. If and when the situation changes, I’ll be glad to share the details with you. Until then, this conversation is over. Have a nice evening.”

As she closed the phone, she pictured Morgan’s usually handsome face twisted with annoyance and frustration. He was an arrogant, stubborn man who didn’t like to hear the word
no
—not even from a superior and
definitely
not from a woman.

Which meant Allison Gracelyn had a big problem on her hands.

 

At that same moment in the Athena Academy office, principal Christine Evans was discovering an even more serious problem in the form of a fax that had come from an unknown—and undoubtedly untraceable—source.

It read:

You have won the battle. Be smart now and let it go. I am the enemy of all things Athena, and if you do not abandon your search for me, no one—not your students, not your graduates—will ever know a moment’s safety or peace.

The warning was signed simply and chillingly:
Arachne.

 

BOOK: Charade
8.12Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
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