Operation London (14 page)

"That I am
. Kickboxing lessons lets me live a comfortable life, but it's a bit lacking if you catch my meaning," he smiled. "Step and slide, my man, step and slide!" he called to the man in the ring.

"I have the backing for a potentially profitable business venture that can keep us both in as much action as we can handle
. If we make good on this first case, we might have a full blown private investigation team," she said excitedly. "Do you know Magdalene, Piper's sister?"

Cormac’s eyes suddenly clouded over.

"Maggie?  Why would you be interested in her?" he asked, suddenly sounding exactly like a sulky little boy.

"Because I heard she's excellent with computers and I need that," Ava said, cocking an eyebrow at him jauntily
. "Is that a problem for you?"

"If you want a computer genius, you picked the right woman," Cormac acknowledged.

Ava noticed he had been very careful to avoid her initial question.

"She should be here any minute now," Ava said, glancing at the slim red leather wristwatch on her arm.

Not a second later the doors of Piper's House of Pain flew open and Magdalene McGinty rushed in like a storm.

"Ava London?" Magdalene asked, sticking a small white hand out to shake with Ava, and the shake was surprisingly firm. She stood about five feet three inches, but it was obvious that she was a powerhouse
. The petite blonde had well developed muscles in her upper arms. Her green eyes were bright and clear, the exact color of jade, and they were sharp and refined. She had a dainty nose, a pouty mouth, a wash of freckles and one definite all-business attitude.

"Magdalene McGinty? Pleased to meet you," Ava smiled, as she shook back.

Everything seemed relatively even keeled until Magdalene happened to look over and see Cormac. Suddenly there was a tension in the air that made Ava's hair stand on end. Magdalene and Cormac had their gazes locked, eyes spitting fire, lips curled in low growls.

"Is something wrong?" Ava asked with quiet control
.

Two heads snapped to attention and looked over.

"Nothing at all here," said Cormac gruffly.

"I'm just fine," Magdalene pouted.

"Good. Because I didn't ask you two to come here so I could break up school yard fights. I asked you to come because you were referred to me. I'm trying to start a business as a private investigator. I've worked with the government, so I have relatively extensive experience in the field. But I need a team. If you are both ready and willing, we can begin our first case tonight. Based on tonight, we will be a team or we won't."

Ava gave them a minute to think about what she had just said.

We're all adults here. I expect that we can work around each other's schedules, help each other out when needed. Until we have a thriving business, I don't expect anyone to give up their day job. And any profit made will be split evenly, no matter what kind of role we play in the operative."

"That sounds more than fair," Magdalene said
. "One more long night doing computer work for those uptight office geeks and I would have busted everything in the room. I'm ready to do something new."

"I agree," said Cormac, his mouth set in a firm line
. It was as if he loathed being in agreement with Magdalene.

For a moment Ava wondered what the story behind their obvious dislike was
. She used the word dislike carefully, since it seemed to her that they liked one another a great deal more than they were willing to admit. In the name of fair sport, she decided that she would not interfere in their personal lives as long as they conducted themselves properly on the job.

"If we're all in agreement, we can get started."  Ava felt a sudden wave of excitement, the same exact excitement she saw radiating from the eyes of her new partners
. They were about to start a new chapter together, and they were absolutely ready. Laying a portfolio on the nearest table, Ava pointed out the plan for that night. "This is Marie Deltore. She's a sixteen-year-old missing person. No one has seen her in four days, and we've been hired by her mother to find out where she is. I did a basic sweep of her school today and was able to copy several pertinent pieces of information, which you see before you. But I wasn't shown the confidential file. Those are kept in the guidance closet, behind the room. Tonight we want to break in undetected, find the files, copy them, replace them and get out. The key here is undetected."  Ava took a deep breath before she continued

What we're doing is not legal
. It's breaking and entering, it's invasion of personal property, it's so many things that I'm not going to make you nervous listing them. But it's the only way we can do this and do it quickly. Otherwise we'll be trying to work through mountains of red tape. Do either of you have any problems with this?"

Magdalene's eyes were shining with soft green light
. She looked like a woman possessed. "I can have a schematic of the foundation and a formatting plan for security cameras and alarms. Also the sprinkler system!  Those ritzy schools always have crazy sprinkler systems," she said, suddenly taking out a notebook and jotting down some ideas.

Not to be outdone, Cormac jumped in right away
. "I'll bring every lock picking tool I've accumulated. No telling what kind of safe they use. Even if it's simple to open, that doesn't mean you can open it in a way that can be easily disguised."

"That's excellent," Ava nodded
. "I would like it if you two came up with the bulk of the plan and filled me in when we get there."  Ava knew she was treading on this ice, but she had to be absolutely certain that these two could watch one another's back as well as her own.

"That's fine," Magdalene said tersely, at the same time that Cormac spat, "We'll do it."

"Once we have what we need we'll meet at my place and go over what needs to be gone over. Then we'll decide who should follow what leads and when and we'll keep reconvening."  Reaching into her bags, she handed them tiny silver cell phones. "Keep these on vibrate. They operate on a frequency that's virtually impossible to pick up, so we're relatively safe talking on them. But we can conduct everything in code, if you want to."

Magdalene and Cormac finally grinned
. "Code," they said at once.

The three spent the next half an hour ironing out the details of the night
. Ava knew that she wasn't imagining the electricity in the air. This was the beginning of something great.

Her new partners were eager to be on their way and get everything in order before the evening came
. Ava was left with free time before Miguel arrived.

She was watching a kickboxing match and keeping one eye on the door when she felt a movement behind her
. Her senses pricked as she stilled herself, focusing on the body that was approaching behind her. Just as she was about to take action, a voice breathed into her ear.

"Hey there," he said breathily
. "I saw you dance the other night. You looked real good."

She turned slowly, the way you turn if a there is a predator stalking you
. She was face to face with Angel Espino.

"I'm waiting to meet someone
. I don't really want any company," she said firmly, hoping that her voice didn't shake. In the flesh Ava could see Angel's tawny eyes. She shuddered when she realized that they were absolutely flat, devoid of emotion. He was an animal, and he had fixed his sights on her.

"Oooh, you've got claws
. I like that, baby. I like my girls a little rough," he laughed, his eyes taking on a wild gleam. "I'll leave you if you want. For a while. But I like you already, so I can't stay away too long,"  He walked away, his tall, well-built figure backing into the shadows of changing room. The last thing Ava heard was his low laughter, emanating from a strong mouth full of sharp teeth.

Ava was trying to stop her body from physically shaking
. She had her thumb and middle finger pressed to her temples when she felt a warm hand on her arm. Jumping back, she gave a shaky laugh that revealed deep relief.

"Miguel!" she cried.

She looked so distraught that his first instinct was to pull her into his arms. Burying her face in his chest, she focused on his smell, trying to absorb him as she washed the image of Angel's sinister, powerful face from her mind. "I missed you," she said softly, bunching the fabric of his shirt in her hands, pulling him closer.

Usually Miguel could tease Ava, could use their mutual strength and affection to ignite the fire neither ever wanted to burn down
. But there was something so vulnerable about her tonight, so completely out of character, and he wanted to know what was wrong.

"Ava, honey, I missed you, too
. You look like you saw one hell of a ghost. What's wrong?"  He caught one finger under her chin and tilted her head up. "You have to tell me."

Breathing in shakily, she managed a bright smile. "I just haven't really been getting enough sleep, and I'm out of it," she lied
. He knew it was a lie because she wouldn't meet his eyes with her storming gray ones.

He could call her on it, could demand she tell him the truth
. But something held him back. It was obvious that she didn't like to be forced into anything. Much as he wanted her to share, it made sense to let her come to him, let her feel safe enough in his arms to seek him out.

Wrapping his strong arm around her slight shoulders, he led her to his Jeep.

Angel watched from the shadows, the place he was most comfortable, as Miguel walked away with the most extraordinary woman he had ever seen in his life. He spat on the floor of the gym, his entire being filled with loathing for the man who had ruined his plan. Angel Espino had gone to LA to find his center, the dark place where he belonged in his blood. And he found that even that place wasn't dark enough.

Miguel Gustan was leading the Latin Kings like it was a Boy Scout troop
. Angel had interfered, had forced some changes, but he knew he had never gained the respect Miguel had held. No one would have given his life for Angel the way every one of them would for Miguel. And when Miguel went to prison, Angel had done the work of collecting new meat, keeping the ceremonies alive, forcing the guys to wait until Miguel came back so they could honor an old leader with a proper welcome. At which point Angel was going to make sure Miguel verbally appointed him the head of the gang, where he would stay after he planned Miguel's fatal accident.

But that had never happened
. Angel felt his blood boil and he whimpered aggressively to keep himself from cutting someone. Or better yet, lighting something on fire. His eyes gleamed. Miguel had left, had left him to control an angry group of young men who had turned on him, beating him until he had a limp that would haunt him forever.

But he got them back
. Even now he ran his hand over the silver surface of the lighter that had turned their tiny apartments to ash, that had eaten up their screaming children, their wives and girlfriends. In his mind he could see the faces of those traitors, those fools who had imagined that he was so easy to defeat. He could see their skin melting away as the flames caught on. He couldn't keep his hand off the lighter, off of the smooth, hot metal. With a blinding need, Angel felt himself being pushed into the changing room to do what was in his nature. To destroy.

The Jeep sped down the highway, the dusky sunset enveloping them in a lovely, muted light
. Ava had her eyes closed and her head leaned back, enjoying the flow of the wind through her hair. Miguel couldn't resist looking over at her, drinking in her beauty. She looked amazing in red, very sexy and a little dangerous. He pulled over on a low bluff so they could enjoy the rest of the sunset together.

Pulling a blanket out of the back of the Jeep, Miguel spread it out along with a loaf of fragrant Italian bread, several sharp cheeses, fruit and a bottle of red wine
. Ava's eyes widened at the dinner.

"I don't think you eat enough, so I brought some things to help encourage your appetite," he said smoothly, pouring her a glass of wine.

"Miguel, this is perfect. Thank you so much," she breathed.

It was difficult for him to sit so close to her and remember to act like a gentleman
. His hands were itching to touch her, to pull her towards him and fulfill his need for her. He had already had a tiny taste of her wild, sexual side and it had left him starving for more. The sweet perfume of her body wafted towards him, making his head dizzy and pushing on his restraint.

Just as he was telling himself to behave, to take things slow, Ava grabbed him behind his neck and kissed him deeply
. Her small, soft tongue made him crazy as she assaulted his mouth, kissing him deeply. He couldn't help but groan at the taste of her, a combination of red wine and sun ripened berries. Strands of silky hair filled his hands as he grabbed at her, pulling her onto his lap, running his hands along her curves.