Heat Seeker (25 page)

Of course, it couldn’t be that simple, could it?

Staring back at Raymond, her gaze cold, she rose slowly to her feet. “Very well. I’ll leave you two to discuss whatever manly things you have to discuss without me.”

Raymond appeared a little too amused by her statement. Comedy wasn’t exactly her forte, so she wasn’t a bit pleased by it.

“We do appreciate your patience with us, my dear,” Raymond drawled. “I promise I won’t keep him long.”

John had to restrain a smile as Bailey shot him a worried look from beneath her lashes. To give her credit, she didn’t argue further. Rather she donned the polite, femininely arrogant look that made him hotter than hell before she turned and left the room.

He knew the interrogation that would come later. She didn’t like being cut from any phase of this operation. The fact that she hadn’t been involved during his meetings with the team pissed her off enough. Now, he was going to have to deal with her anger toward Raymond. And she did know how to get pissed at the other man.

As the door closed behind her, Raymond followed and locked it quietly before turning back to John.

“You’re taking control of things nicely,” John told the other man as he stared around the sitting room. “I hope your marriage isn’t too constraining.”

“My marriage is the one thing in this farce that gives me any pleasure.” Raymond grimaced as he moved back to his drink and tossed it back, then narrowed his eyes on John. “Does Bailey suspect my involvement with the unit?”

John shook his head. “Not at all. Does Warbucks suspect your involvement?”

Raymond gave a hard shake to his head as he rubbed his hand over his face and breathed out roughly. “It’s a dangerous game we’re playing here, John.”

“But a necessary one,” John murmured. “How close have you gotten?”

“His second in command is Myron Falks, just as we suspected,” Raymond answered him. “I haven’t pieced together the rest of the group yet, though.”

“It’s a group rather than an individual, then?” John probed.

Raymond shook his head again. “At this point, I don’t know. I’ve managed to move in close enough in the past years that Myron trusts me implicitly with everything but Warbucks’s identity. I’m wondering if he even knows himself. As
you know, I’ve identified several of Ford Grace’s security personnel, as well as at least one of Waterstone’s and Claymore’s. There’s no way to track exactly who it is, because no one singularity ties any of the men.”

“But he trusts you enough to interview the broker involved with this sale,” John stated.

Raymond nodded. “I was put in charge of brokers three years ago, as you know, until Warbucks focused on Bailey. I’ve tried to make certain I’ve shown no preference for any one broker. Several times it’s been noted that each transaction you’ve overseen has been equated with greater financial benefits as well as discretion. Jerric Abbas, as you also know, despite his lack of expertise in the area, was running a close second.”

John nodded. Raymond was unaware that Micah Sloane was now Jerric Abbas, and part of the unit. John didn’t always support Jordan’s decisions on keeping relevant information from the players involved in missions, but in this case he agreed.

If Bailey knew Raymond was a part of the mission, then she would spend the majority of her time trying to prove he was betraying them. Raymond wasn’t betraying them. He had too much to lose, and his hatred for Warbucks matched Bailey’s.

“Just ensure that I get the contract on this,” he told Raymond as he rose to his feet. “Let’s make certain we get him this time, Raymond. We may not get another chance.”

Raymond rose to his feet with a sharp nod. “You and Bailey seem fairly close. Will she end up hurt when this is over?”

Was there any way any of them could end up not hurt? John wondered.

“I’ll worry about Bailey,” he informed Raymond. “You worry about your end.”

“Is she still determined that Grace is Warbucks?”

“What are the chances that Ford Grace is involved with this?” John asked, his eyes narrowing on the other man.

Raymond breathed out roughly. “About as high as the
chances any of the other men we’re looking at are. Warbucks is well hidden, John. He’s surrounded himself with men who guard his identity like junkyard dogs. Our only chance to find him out is full disclosure on this deal. Thankfully, it’s something Jerric Abbas seems to be demanding as well. The sensitivity of the item, the amount of money involved in the transaction and the risk factor are all things Warbucks will have to look at as he makes his decision.”

“Make certain Myron understands that neither myself, Bailey, nor Abbas will accept anyone but Warbucks,” John told him as he headed to the door. “Let’s not fuck this up at this stage of the game.”

“Now.” John leaned forward, feeling the rage he had been trying to contain for a week now bubbling to the surface. “Who tried to kill Bailey?”

“God, I don’t know.” Raymond grimaced as he dragged his fingers through his hair, frustration lining his expression.

John could see the concern that marked the other man’s face and for just a second, fear for Bailey flashed in his eyes. She thought Raymond held her in such contempt, that his attitude toward her had been one of dislike.

It was an impression Raymond had worked to convince Bailey and others of, but the fact was, the other man held her in very high regard. Most people who truly knew Bailey did care for her.

“Warbucks went through the roof with that attack,” Raymond continued. “Surprisingly, I believe I heard a note of fear in his tone during the conversations we’ve had. For the first time he hasn’t gone through Falks, but came straight to me instead.” His gaze turned thoughtful. “A few times, John, I could have sworn I recognized his voice.”

They had known going in that whoever Warbucks was, he was a member of this particular society. Raymond had worked these past years to infiltrate and work himself into a position of trust to learn the identity of the traitor.

“Not enough to be sure, though?” John asked.

Raymond shook his head. “Just enough to make me crazy
trying to figure out who it could be. He has Falks running himself ragged trying to secure Bailey while still working for his employer. I think Falks is a man ready to break. Too many years of trying to please too many masters maybe.”

“That will do it to you,” John sighed.

“He’s a scared man, John,” Raymond stated thoughtfully. “Warbucks keeps Falks with Waterstone, me with Ford, and several other men with the other families in security positions to draw suspicion from him. But in doing so, over the years I’ve noticed that the strain is beginning to show on the men he’s using. They can’t quit, or he’ll kill them. Mess up and they die. They’re stuck between a dagger and a grenade and they know it.”

“Interesting analogy,” John grunted. “Makes sense though. His men are divided.”

“Exactly.” Raymond nodded before glancing at the clock above the fireplace. “We better cut this short. Falks will be arriving soon and I’m supposed to be available as soon as he arrives.”

Of course, Myron Falks would want an update as soon as possible, John thought as he rose to his feet and headed to the door.

“Keep me updated,” he ordered. “I want to know what’s going on immediately.

Raymond nodded before moving to the doors and opening them with a flourish. The arrogant persona was back the second he gripped the doorknobs. Nose high, his expression pinched and self-aware, he stared down his nose at John.

“It’s been a pleasure getting to know you, Mr. Vincent,” he expressed in stilted tones. “And it’s a pleasure to know our lovely Bailey will be so well taken care of.”

Several couples were milling in the hallway as they shook hands. John moved from the room to find his lover. At least two of the men standing in the hallway were on the unit’s suspect list: Stephen Menton-Squire and Samuel Waterstone. Both men had the connections, the background and the ability to acquire the weapons now coming up for auction.

He nodded to the couples as he moved past, aware that behind him guests were moving toward Raymond, greeting him in friendly tones.

Raymond had settled into this society nicely since the operation that had placed him in sight of Mary Altman six years before. The widow had been ripe for a love interest, but had made a point of steering clear of any man her brother set before her. She had expressed an interest in dangerous men. In men who walked a darker path than those she knew. Raymond had been placed in her path. They had married a year later.

Not that John didn’t see genuine affection between the couple. He did. And Raymond had a flair for business that had cemented Mary’s interest in him.

Raymond had been more than a CIA agent, even then. He had been part of a very select group of covert Internal Affairs agents searching for a link between Warbucks and the CIA. Bailey had been under suspicion immediately. It was a suspicion that had been quickly terminated and later used to benefit the unit. Her refusal to pull back on Orion had worked perfectly. It had led to her disenchantment with the agency as well as the renewed inner-agency suspicion that she was indeed working for or with Warbucks.

She was their ace in the hole, but in ways, she would be to Warbucks as well. Because of her close association with all the men involved, as well as her contacts, it was hard for her to suspect anyone outside Ford Grace.

Moving to the opened doors of the ballroom, he caught sight of Bailey at the other end, engrossed in conversation with Kira and Ian Richards.

“Ah, Mr. Vincent. There you are. It seems you and Bailey brought a bit of excitement into our little group.”

If you call attempted murder excitement,
John thought.

John turned to face Samuel Waterstone and Ronald Claymore. Claymore was watching Bailey broodingly. Turning back to John he glared at him in disapproval.

“How so, Mr. Waterstone?” he asked curiously.

Samuel winked back at him subtly. “Did you think you
could sweep one of our heiresses off her feet without an investigation? A very thorough investigation, I might add. Then the attempt to kill her last week? Be careful son, we would not appreciate losing her.”

John arched his brow. “Neither would I.”

“He’s a smart boy,” Ronald commented with a hint of ire to the other man. “It’s not as though Bailey really gives a damn what we think, anyway.”

John’s brow arched in question. “Should she?”

“You’re a bit unsavory, Vincent,” Samuel stated. “Not exactly unacceptable, though you’ll need a bit of polishing if you know what I mean. We can’t allow one of our group to be caught up in anything illegal, you understand.
Discretion
is always the key word. And only then if you protect what you’re responsible for.”

“Discretion?” John asked. “You mean as discreet as you and good ol’ Stephen here were in that trade scandal last year?”

Ronald Claymore glowered, though Samuel Waterstone grinned in pride. “Well, a bit more discreet, but in all fairness we did skate by that one fairly well.”

The US government had nearly brought the two men to trial for their involvement in trading delicate national secrets with China. The charges had been dropped for lack of evidence, and the two men had retained their government contracts with their companies simply because they’d been too powerful to warrant pulling them. The pressure that had been brought to bear on several senators, as well as the president himself, had been extreme.

“I’ll be certain to be just as discreet,” John murmured. “Though I’m not certain how my business dealings could come under the same scrutiny.”

His cover had always remained cohesive: He was an international negotiator between American and foreign interests in various business dealings. The less savory side he was always careful to deny, even to those who knew the truth.

Samuel grinned at his response. “Sticking to your story, huh? My contacts say you’re a bit more extreme than you let
on. That perhaps you negotiate more than international contracts. I could use a man like you. We should talk business sometime.”

“Really?” John murmured. “Business in what fashion?”

Samuel glanced around in concern.

“The kind of business that isn’t discussed in company,” Ronald grunted with a fierce frown. “Let’s say Samuel and I have a few business dealings that could require a bit of a rogue. The sort of rogue we understand you can be.”

John stared back at them as though assessing his chances of a true business deal. This weekend was designed for Warbucks to size up the buyers he was considering. John and Abbas were there, obviously the two major players in the running. He’d expected to be contacted, though he doubted these two men were going to hand over information on the
CROSSFIRE
contract.

“I’m more than happy to discuss business at your convenience,” he stated. “You can contact my assistant for scheduling.”

Samuel’s brows lowered at the information. “There’s no sense in dragging anyone else in on this,” he argued. “We can deal with this among just us men. No sense in dragging in that female. She demands too much information.”

Which meant they had already been in contact with Tehya at one time or another.

“That’s an assistant’s job,” he reminded them.