Dangerous to Know

 

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CHAPTER ONE

“Do I need to remind you that your father considers this man a friend?” Colonel Decains asked.

Bram Magnus stared straight back at the colonel. “I've grown up with him as an uncle.”

Pain crept into his tone, despite his efforts to remain poised in front of his superior officer.

The colonel leaned back in his chair, but he took an eight-by-ten picture of a downed helicopter with him. His eyes narrowed as he looked at the charred remains of three servicemen.

“That intel was sent through my passcode,” Bram said.

“You were hacked, son,” the colonel said. He frowned at his own use of a familiar term and tossed the picture down. “We'll have the culprit tracked down soon enough. No one gets off this post unless I clear them.”

“That's only half the problem,” Bram argued. “I've traced the intel to my sister's house.”

“Which means she might be the buyer.”

Bram tightened his fingers until his knuckles popped. His superior officer didn't miss it, either. Decains flattened his hand on the desktop.

“I appreciate your feelings, Captain, but we need to maintain our perceptive.” Decains tapped the picture. “Your father's record and yours are both impressive. I don't doubt that your sister comes from the same stock, which is why we're going to do this by the book.”

“Zoe will check out,” Bram said firmly. “It's got to be Tim. He's the only other person who has access to my sister's house.”

“Sure about that?” the colonel asked. “She's plenty old enough for a boyfriend.”

“Check her out all you want,” Bram stated firmly. “Zoe will stand up to your worst.”

The colonel's face tightened. “Glad to hear it. Your father is a friend of mine. I'd hate to have to tell him your sister is going to disappear.”

“You won't have to,” Bram answered. “Zoe is no traitor, and she certainly wants both me and my dad home safely. I could have been on that helo.”

Decains looked back at the picture. “These men deserve justice.”

Bram nodded.

“I'm turning this over to a special branch of intelligence. Completely off the radar. They'll send in a team to get evidence. They specialize in catching their prey with their hands on the smoking gun. We'll back off on our leak here and give him a little bait intel to pass along. I'm going to leave your old access code active, no need to let him know we're on to him. Besides, we can't be outdone by one of the stateside teams. I want to catch this traitor with his hands on the cheese.”

Bram drew in a stiff breath but didn't argue. It had to be done the way the colonel was doing it. His insides were knotted and he was half afraid he was going to puke from the knowledge of what his sister was going to endure. But he kept his composure and cut the colonel a salute before making his way out of the man's office.

He itched to pick up the phone and call his sister.

He couldn't.

Which pissed him off. Tim had been his father's buddy longer than Bram had been alive but there was no doubt in Bram's mind who was responsible. And it pissed him off knowing he couldn't get his hands locked around Tim's neck. At least not personally. Still, part of him was enjoying knowing Decains was setting a team on Tim's ass that was going to tear him apart, bit by bit.

Exactly what a traitor deserved.

*   *   *

“The Magnus family has a good reputation,” Kagan said.

“They do,” Colonel Decains confirmed. The connection was scratchy, the distance between Afghanistan and the States showing up as background noise. It was the most detailed thing about the moment. The office Kagan sat in was stripped of anything that might be considered personal. The phone he was using was a landline that would be disconnected the moment the operation was finished. “That's why I'm calling you. Make sure your team does a good job. When it gets to mopping up, there is going to be a full-bird colonel looking mighty close at the details.”

“You know my men are going to see the daughter as a possible suspect,” Kagan advised Decains.

“No way around it,” Decains agreed. “I'll handle the heat over that point.”

“I'll be in touch.” Kagan cut the connection.

There was little else to say. He lived in a world of shadows because that's where he was most effective at catching the scum who did business there. The information was spread out over his desk. He considered it before picking up his phone and selecting a contact to reach out to. Agent Tyler Martin answered on the second ring.

“I have an assignment for you.” Kagan didn't waste any time.

*   *   *

Tyler Martin liked his job.

In fact, it was his life.

Which was why he was going to make sure his future was a bright one. One thing about working shadow operations, it left a stink on a man. Once you were in deep, there really was no leaving, so it was best to ensure a long, profitable career. Sometimes, that meant doing some dirty work for powerful people.

Tyler considered the case Kagan had just assigned him. It was a gift really. A perfect little present dropped in front of him. One he'd been waiting for. That was another thing about shadow operations: the hard fact that just when you thought you were safe, fate would circle back around and bite you in the ass. He'd been waiting a long time to get in some payback. But today, that wait was over. Saxon and Vitus Hale were about to get a king-sized serving of it. It was going to be Tyler's pleasure to dish it out. He'd been waiting for just the right case to take them down. Tyler looked over the details of the information Kagan had sent over and grinned.

It was perfect. Classified intel. Dead servicemen. All the components needed to blacken someone's name forever. Since the leak was already plugged, there was no reason not to twist the operation to suit his own agenda. All he had to do was find the man on this side before anyone else did.

He didn't spare a thought for the Magnus family. They had friends for certain but no other family, which made them an even stronger candidate for what he needed. They could be buried. They'd end up with full military honors or branded as traitors. He really didn't care so long as they were dead and silenced. Tyler had his future to secure and it wasn't going to come cheap. He'd always known that. But it was his blood or someone else's, because the men he was negotiating with played for keeps. He couldn't afford to get picky about the means. The opportunities would be few and far between. His own future had a price tag on it, one he had to pay if he didn't want to end up dead himself. It was a dog-eat-dog world.

He selected a contact from among his teams and punched it. Time to assign Saxon Hale to the last case of his career.

And life.

Tyler didn't let his conscience get in the way. Congressman Jeb Ryland might be a whack job of an overprotective father but the man was in the right position to offer Tyler a secure future. So if Jeb wanted the Hale brothers taken out for pissing on his turf, Tyler planned to make it happen. A nice little treason case was the perfect answer. As for the Magnus family, well, it wasn't personal.

*   *   *

“Now, he is hot.”

Roni rolled her words and ended up sounding like she was purring. Zoe glanced over to the man in question and wished she hadn't.

Hot
was an understatement.

She'd never known his equal, much less experienced what it must be like to have such a prime animal in her bed. Sensation prickled along her skin instantly, deep, carnal awareness twisting through her belly. The swiftness of the response sent her looking away with a shrug designed to protect her emotions from being spotted.

Roni was a master at sniffing out Zoe's true feelings. It made her a great friend and major pain in the ass when life decided to deliver a punch to her solar plexus. Which was the perfect definition of a best friend. Zoe nodded, earning a husky chuckle from her pal.

“Lickable,” she agreed.

The guy really was a double shot of whiskey. The kind you wanted to take straight up then slam down the empty glass while you felt the burn smoking your insides.

Mega hot.

She looked down at her drink suspiciously. Maybe the bartender was just doubling up in the hope his bar would get a reputation as a great pickup joint.

“Oh Lord.” Roni jabbed her with an elbow. “What's the point of hanging out at a bar if we don't do a little window-shopping?”

“Point taken.”

Zoe lifted her drink and watched the man in question over the salted rim of the glass. He was wrapped in black leather, which made him doubly delectable. The jacket hung open, giving her a glimpse of a T-shirt that hugged a torso defined and tight. Dark hair and eyes gave him a slightly sinful, badass look, and combined with the black leather, he was like dark chocolate.

Premium window-shopping, for sure.

“I'm going to ask him to dance.” Roni slid off her bar stool with a click of her heels. “Wish me luck.”

“He's not a dance-floor kind of animal.” Zoe wasn't sure where the justification for her opinion came from, only that she was firmly sure of it. The guy was suited to shadows and thrived there. The only thing capable of scaring him was being predictable. Confidence radiated from him so thickly, it felt like he just might be worthy of the arrogance his stony expression declared.

“He'll turn you down,” she muttered while setting her glass down. She was no longer interested in numbing her wits. Not when there was such a feast standing near enough to enjoy. Nope, she was going to enjoy the moment. Completely.

Roni fingered the strand of silver beads hanging around her neck. “You might be right; you're definitely spot-on about the fact that he's an animal … One I'd like to let play with me, no taming required. He can run wild … anywhere he wants to go.” Roni made a sweeping gesture with one hand up and down her body.