Dangerous Attraction: Part Three (Aegis Group) (3 page)

“You’re right.”

“And what’s to say you wouldn’t do the same thing again? What if this is just how you are? Here one minute and gone the next. That’s not okay.” She sucked in a breath and blinked her eyes.

No, no, no, no tears!

“I’m not used to anyone relying on me. My longest relationships have all been shorter than this. I fuck up, but I do learn from my mistakes.”

She wiped under her eyes, hating how stoic Travis could be about this situation.

He left her.

Yeah, he came back, but he left her when she’d trusted him to be there.

She didn’t know if she had it in her to trust like that again. This whole ordeal, the nightmares, she blindly allowed herself to pin all her trust, with no reservations, on this man. And he failed her.

Yes, it was crazy to expect anyone to be perfect, but when she needed him there with her, he was gone.

She had to get away from him.

“Where are you going?”

“Bathroom.” She wrapped her arms around herself and strode out of the break room.

It was hard to make anything out with tears making her vision hazy, but she stumbled into the women’s restroom and splashed water on her face. The cold chill of it woke her brain up a bit. By some miracle she was alone. There wasn’t anyone around to hear her crying or pester her about what was wrong.

Travis was an amazing man, but he wasn’t perfect. She’d needed more from him than he could offer, and it had broken their trust. Whose fault was that?

The bathroom door opened on a long, slow squeak.

Great. Just what she needed. A witness to her breakdown.

She glanced at the newcomer. Was it too much to hope it was Jade?

“What are you doing in here?” she blurted out.

Travis had his shirt back on and his frown in place. He flipped the bathroom lock and stalked toward her.

“You can’t be in here. This is a women’s restroom.” She jabbed her finger at his chest.

“You can’t run from me.”

“Yes, I can. You did.”

The air left her lungs.

She did not just say that.

Travis’ lips compressed into a tight line. She’d drawn blood with those words.

“I didn’t—I shouldn’t have said that.” She wrapped her arms around herself and stared at his chest.

“I deserved that. Tell me you want me gone and I’m gone.” He crossed his arms over his chest. Was it her imagination, or did she hear the tape pulling?

She opened her mouth and closed it.

The anguish of losing him all over again was an ache deep in her bones. She didn’t want it to be over with him, but they’d lost something special. They’d lost the trust. Her blind belief in him was gone.

How did she put her feelings into words? How did she begin to tell him?

“I don’t know that you’re not going to leave again. I can’t trust you when you say that. You left. You left me alone.” Sure, he had a life and a career that didn’t involve her, but for a few minutes they’d flirted with the idea. They’d wanted to make it work. Didn’t that mean something? Weren’t they something to each other?

Travis wrapped his arms around her, and she buried her face in his chest. She was angry with him, and she still loved him. He had more power over her than Daniel, more pull on her fears and hopes than the worst nightmare to ever walk Vegas.

“That was the worst decision of my life, darlin’. If I could go back and kick my own ass, I would. I don’t deserve another chance, you’re right.” He kissed the top of her head, and she clung to him, melting from the inside out.

The unspoken statement hung in the air so clear she thought she heard him say,
But I want a second chance.

“Do you want me to leave?” he asked instead.

She’d never heard Travis sound hesitant or uncertain before, and she didn’t like it. If she stopped thinking about herself, she knew they were both going through something here. It wasn’t just about her.

Bliss leaned back and stared up at him. She wasn’t the only one scared of what was happening between them, she just chose to react in a different way.

“No.”

He squeezed her a bit tighter.

“I’m used to handbooks and officers barking orders. I’m going to screw up, but I promise no repeat issues.”

“I think I saw a
Relationships for Dummies
once.”

“I’ll get a copy. Do they have one for boyfriends?”

Oh... Her body flashed hot and cold.

“Too soon?” he asked.

“No, I’m just—processing.”

“I’m not used to people relying on me outside of the SEALs, but if you’ll give me another shot, I’ll do better.”

“It’s a two-way street. People in relationships,” the word and all its implications made her shiver, “rely on each other. I think it’s too soon for us to stick a label on this. Don’t argue with me, okay? You freaked out. I think it’s reasonable to say maybe we jumped in too fast.”

“I don’t know any other way.”

“I’m not going to change my mind.” He spoke with the determination of someone with conviction. A man with his mind set on one goal. Her.

“I hope you don’t.”

She slid her hands up his arms and over his shoulder, mindful of his wound. They were a messed up couple, but they had each other.

Travis tightened his grip around her waist and dropped his head.

“I could take you away from here,” he said.

“Where would we go?” She chuckled.

“Anywhere. Jamaica. The UK. Thailand. Somewhere far away.”

She pulled back a little and looked up at him. Oh, the fantasy of it. But it wouldn’t work. “I’m not leaving, and I’m not giving up my life. It’s mine. And besides, if that happened you’d have longer to fly to get back to work, and I’d spend longer alone. That’s not going to work for me.”

“Fine. Then we’ll figure something else out. I just want to keep you safe.”

He wasn’t perfect, but he was hers. If he forgot that again, well, she’d have to put the Taser he gave her to another use.

D
aniel hunched down in the front seat of the sedan. Four cars in less than two hours. He was pretty sure he’d covered his tracks, but he couldn’t shake the sense that he was being watched.

Damn feds.

He was getting too old for this.

No, he couldn’t be old. Gods didn’t get old. Right?

He gripped the steering wheel, but his hand slid off the smooth leather. A smear of blood stained the high-end material.

Shit. Was he bleeding again?

He should have never used the officer’s gun. It was different than his six shooter. He’d missed because he’d gotten cocky, and now that son of a bitch was still alive.

His plan was screwed to hell. First he botched killing the fed attached to Bliss, then he took too long to get back to the safe house and snatch Bliss from under the cops’ noses. The only thing left was to pick up his wife, but even that wasn’t enough for him any longer.

He needed to get revenge.

Found them
.

Travis glanced at the message and instinctively squeezed Bliss’ hand.

“What?” she mumbled.

“Come on.” He pushed off the desk and strode toward the conference room. Since he wasn’t technically on this case, he’d stayed out of the way. If Daniel were in the wilderness or hiding out in a hot zone, Travis knew what to do. Getting inside the head of a deranged serial killer and figuring out what fucked up kind of reasoning made the man tick was a place Travis didn’t want to go.

Ryan glanced up from his phone as they entered. Travis pushed Bliss behind him in a vain attempt to shield her from the jar babies.

“Lali and Gavin found them,” Ryan announced.

“Them, who?” Bliss glanced from Ryan to Travis.

“Your sister.”

“Wendy? Are they okay?”

“They’re fine. Still in CIA custody.” Ryan pocketed his phone. “We can’t make them do anything.”

“No,” Travis agreed.

“I bet she could.” Connor thumbed at Bliss.

She squeezed Travis’ hand, and he released the tight grip he had on her, swiping his thumb over her knuckles as an apology.

Five minutes. That’s all Travis wanted with the guy. Somewhere he could punch his lights out.

“Let me talk to her,” Bliss said.

Ryan held up his hand. “How sure are we that Daniel knows where Wendy is?”

“He’s too detail-oriented. Wendy is his target. Bliss and Travis are bystanders in this. It’s the women he focuses on. Look.” Connor turned and gestured at one of the boards. Photographs of several dead blonde women lined the top of it, with coordinating information below. “The women were first. It’s always been about them. He had his accident, got well, and then the first woman went missing. The best we can tell, the transient murders were a year later, after his accident. The women represent who he really is, the men are his way of expressing his rage. It’s in how he disposes of the bodies. The women are left. He wants them found because they’re special. The men? They’re trash. He tosses them out. He’s going to zero in on Wendy, and there isn’t an army out there that will stop him.”

“What about what Wendy said? That he’s copying someone?” Bliss glanced between them, her nose scrunched up.

“If he’s copying someone, it’s obscure enough we can’t place them.” Jade sighed and glared at the floor.

“Where is Wendy?” Bliss turned to Travis. “You know I’m right. She’ll listen to me. Remember how scared she was?”

Connor glanced from Bliss to Travis.

“I’ll take you,” Connor said.

“I’m riding with you.” Travis wasn’t about to let her out of his sight.

“If we do that, we’re putting everything he wants in one location.” Ryan scrubbed his hand across his face.

“He hasn’t yet taken on more than two people.” Jade gestured to another list scrawled on a dry-erase board. “Ones and twos, he’ll attack one and use them to control the other. We saw that with Don, and preliminary reports on several identified remains support that theory. Don’t go off on your own and he won’t attack.”

“Let’s go then.” Connor grabbed his jacket.

Travis didn’t like it, but he was completely biased. Still, he grabbed Bliss’ jacket, borrowed another that wasn’t soaked with blood, and joined the small team heading to waylay Grayson’s hideout.

“Do I want to know how you guys found her?” Bliss asked. She sat between him and Dimitri, about as safe and protected as he could make her.

“The baby.” Travis stared out of the passenger window.

“Paul?”

“Yeah. He gets some kind of frou-frou fancy baby formula. Lali and Gavin looked for recent purchases. Then they followed the money.”

“Someone’s getting in trouble,” Connor said from the driver’s seat.

“Why?” Bliss’ brow wrinkled.

“Because a CIA agent in the field should be harder to identify. His guy nailed the fella doing the buying.” Connor thumbed at Travis.

“Oh. Then...if it was that easy for them to find Wendy, it’ll be just as easy for Daniel?” Bliss wrapped her hand around his and squeezed. She was holding it together so well, it was hard to remember this was all new for her.

“Not as easy, but yeah, that’s what we’re afraid of. We know he’s got mad technical ability, but Lali was never able to track down where his stuff was kept or where the cameras transmitted to. He had another location, somewhere not at his house.” Connor merged onto the highway and headed south.

Twenty minutes later they pulled into another gated, upscale community. Connor flashed his badge to gain entry and navigated them around to a sprawling, three-story abode that was just slightly less opulent than the home Grayson already owned.

A man trimming perfect hedges turned around and stared at the minivan. Security. They weren’t that discreet. But they had protected Wendy from another kidnapping. Maybe that’s what Bliss needed. Round-the-clock watchdogs, but that wasn’t any way to live. They had to stop this, soon, before someone that wasn’t Daniel got killed.

Bliss pushed past the man stationed at the door and glanced around the sparkling marble entry.

“Bliss?” Wendy’s voice echoed, intermingled with the sounds of a TV and other people speaking.

“Where are you?” Bliss peered into the two rooms on either side, but they were empty.

Wendy strode through a grandiose arch leading to the rest of the home, baby Paul perched on her hip. Bliss stared, blinked, and couldn’t believe her eyes. It was a subtle transformation, something a casual observer or a stranger wouldn’t notice, but Bliss did. It was Wendy’s smile, the color of her cheeks, a slight bounce in her step.

“Oh, Bliss!” Wendy wrapped her free arm around Bliss’ shoulders.

She hugged both mother and son, burying her face in Wendy’s hair. Paul immediately took the opportunity to pull on Bliss’ ponytail, but she couldn’t care less.

“What are you doing here? Is everything okay?” Wendy pulled back and glanced from Bliss to Travis.

“What the hell is going on this time?” Grayson came down the stairs, followed by another man in a suit.

“Mr. Horton, I’m Supervisory Special Agent Connor Mullins.” He extended his hand.

“Bliss?” Wendy pitched her voice low, watching the men grumble and growl at each other.

“Come in here.” Bliss dragged Wendy into what she guessed would be someone’s office someday.

“Have you seen Mom and Dad?”

“Yes, they’re at the station.”

“Oh, good. How are you?” Wendy cupped Bliss’ cheek.

“I’m okay. You look—good.”

“I feel good.” She absently stroked Paul’s face and let him grasp hold of her finger.

“Yeah?”

“It’s like...I woke up.” Wendy tilted her head to the side and stared at the floor. “It’s almost like I’ve been asleep, and what happened—it made me realize I want to live. I don’t want to be who I was letting myself be. It was awful and terrible and...I can barely sleep, but I feel like I’ve got my life back.”

“That’s good. That’s really good.” Bliss could hardly believe her ears. She’d never wish this experience on anyone, but if something good could come out of it, well, she’d focus on that.

“How about you? Travis is still around?”

“Yeah. I pretty much owe him my life.” She followed Wendy’s gaze to where Travis stood scowling at Connor and Grayson.