Authors: Elizabeth Bevarly
Tags: #Fiction, #Thrillers, #General, #Suspense
Overnight Male (21 page)
Adrian smiled. “That’s much too nice a car for a cockroach like you, Chuck. I’m afraid you’re just going to have to do without. Because none of you will be collecting that money. In fact, none of you will be collecting another cent. Save what they’re paying in federal prisons these days for the tiny-minded labor you’ll all be doing for a while.”
Chuck emitted an incredulous sound, as if he couldn’t believe Adrian would turn on him, even though he’d just turned on Adrian himself. Incredible, Adrian thought. For someone who had an IQ in the range of Mozart, the kid was as bright as a melba toast.
“Well, that’s not fair.” Chuck spat out the words. “You can’t keep all of it for yourself. And you can’t turn us in, because we’ll rat you out faster than chili through a Chihuahua.”
“Nick.”
Iris’s voice was soft when she said his name. No, not his name, Adrian thought. Someone else’s name. Someone he was tired of being. He didn’t dare look at her when he replied, so, still holding the gun on the boys, he said, “Adrian. My name is Adrian, Iris. Adrian Padgett.”
“It is?” She sounded genuinely surprised that he had given them all a false name. Which only went to show how innocent she remained, in spite of all she’d been through.
“You’re not Nick Darian?” she asked.
He shook his head. “I am not.”
He did brave a glance at her then, long enough to see the devastated look on her face. So he hastily returned his attention to the trio of boys.
“You lied to me,” she said.
“Yes.”
“You’re not any of the things you told me you are.”
“Actually,” Adrian said, “everything I told you about myself—save my name—was true. In fact, you’re the first person I’ve been able to tell the truth to since…” He sighed with much fatigue. “Well. For a very long time. Perhaps even for the first time.”
“Are you going to let my family take me back?” she asked.
“No, Iris. I’m going to take you home.”
He looked at her again, and saw her eyes filling with tears. It took a moment for him to understand her reaction. So, hastily, he clarified, “I’m not taking you back to your family, Iris. I’m taking you home.”
She obviously still didn’t understand, because her eyebrows knitted downward in confusion. “Where’s home?” she asked.
He grinned and looked back at the boys. “I have no idea. I guess we’ll find out when we get there.”
J
OEL WAS STILL TRYING
to process everything that had happened in the last fifteen minutes when Adrian pulled a garment bag and carry-on from the closet and began to stuff it with his clothes. By then, Donny, Hobie and Chuck were all tightly bound with duct tape, courtesy of Iris Daugherty, who had pulled a roll of it out of her huge black tote bag to bind each of them to the three remaining dining-room chairs while Adrian held the gun on them. And if Chuck had cried out in pain more than Hobie and Donny had when she jerked his arms behind him, to the point where Iris had taped his mouth shut, too, well, hey, who was Joel to say anything?
Ultimately, she’d taped Hobie’s and Donny’s mouths, too, and now all three of them sat completely helpless—and figuratively emasculated, which Joel had to admit was kind of gratifying to see—in the middle of the suite. Not that Joel was one to point a finger, since, not only were his hands still bound to his chair, making such a gesture impossible, but his hands were still bound to his chair, making such a gesture moot. He was still as much a prisoner as the others were. And he still had no idea what Adrian intended to do next. Except, you know, stuff all his clothes into his luggage.
Which actually told Joel rather a lot. He’d gotten to know Sorcerer-AKA-Adrian-Padgett fairly well over the past few months, even if he’d never met the guy personally. And he knew Padgett was, among other things, fastidious and vain. The fact that he was so carelessly shoving thousands of dollars worth of clothing into his bags without bothering to fold them indicated he was in a massive hurry. Strange, since Joel wasn’t in any position to alert OPUS to his whereabouts, and his three amigos posed as much threat as a trio of trussed-up turkeys. Iris, too, he noted, was scurrying around the room like a whirlwind collecting what was left of Adrian’s belongings, cramming them into the bags with even less concern than he.
Obviously their rush had something to do with Chuck’s comments about Iris being worth a million and a half dollars and someone coming to get her. The remark had been just one of many things that had Joel’s head spinning, especially since it had sounded as if the million-five was a reward. But OPUS’s background check of Iris Daugherty had indicated she was from a working-class neighborhood in Columbus, Ohio, and her father was currently unemployed. Nor had she ever been arrested for anything. Whatever was in the file Adrian had received from his OPUS contact, it was information no one else in OPUS had been made privy to. It was just one more thing Joel and Lila were going to need to figure out. As if there weren’t already enough loose ends on this case to weave a carpet.
And not just with the case, either. There were even more loose ends with whatever was going on between Joel and Lila. Or, at least, with Lila. Because one thing had become crystal clear to him over the past twenty-four hours. He was in love with her. He must be. What he felt for her, even after knowing her a short time, was infinitely stronger than anything he’d ever felt for anyone else. Since meeting her, he’d been reduced to his most basic masculine responses, and elevated to the highest human joy. And in between, he’d come to realize that the day—any day—was made better just by having Lila in it. He wanted every day to have her in it. Every hour. Every moment. And he wasn’t sure how he was going to enjoy the days ahead without her.
Because he feared Lila hadn’t responded to him the same way. Or, if she had, she wasn’t willing, or even able, to acknowledge it. She’d spent her life pulling away from other people. And, truth be told, he didn’t blame her. Pulling away was probably what had kept her sane. What had kept her going. What had kept her alive. Had he had to suffer the same kind of upbringing she’d had to weather, he probably wouldn’t be half as well-adjusted as she.
But that kind of life was over for her, and had been for some time. As an adult, Lila was strong and focused and confident. She’d made a life for herself that might not be conventional, but it was damned sure meaningful. She just didn’t want to share it with anyone. Or else she was afraid to. And maybe that was what it all boiled down to, Joel thought. Lila Moreau wasn’t as fearless as she thought.
His thoughts halted there, because Adrian and Iris had finished their packing, and were clearly preparing to leave. Before going, however, Adrian moved to the desk and picked up the phone, punching in enough numbers to let Joel know it was a local call. When whoever was at the other end of the line answered, Adrian said, “Hello, sweetheart, long time, no chat.” There was a pause as the other person replied, and whatever they said made Adrian smile a broad, very happy smile. “Yes, I’ve missed you, too. It’s a shame we keep missing each other the way we do. We’ve gotten so close to meeting face-to-face again so many times, and then…Ah, well. Still, it
is
good to hear your voice, Lila.”
“C
UT THE CRAP
, A
DRIAN
,”
Lila said into her cell phone.
She was seated at the foot of the Waverly library steps, where she’d been seated for the past thirty minutes, waiting for Chuck Miller to show up for his shift in the computer lab and wondering where the hell he was. She told herself she shouldn’t be surprised to be receiving a call from Adrian. The guy loved to taunt whoever was tracking him at any given moment, and he had to have figured out by now—either through his contact or simply because he was Adrian Padgett—that Lila was close to finding him.
But she was surprised to hear from him. The voice coming to her from the other end of the line was one she hadn’t heard for years, one that had been able to, at one time, pebble her flesh with goose bumps. The first time she’d heard it, those goose bumps had been a result of the sexual awareness and anticipation he’d roused in her. After that first time, hearing his voice had generated goose bumps because of the challenge he presented. Hearing it now…
Huh. That was weird. Hearing Adrian’s voice now had no effect on Lila at all. It was still deep and velvety and erotic, still self-possessed and defiant. But there was something else there, too, now. Fatigue. Disenchantment. Even—she was amazed to realize it—fear. Adrian sounded different now. He sounded…human.
“Still the charming way with words, I see,” he said. “You always did know how to reduce all of life’s big moments to a handful of words. One of which was almost always…Well, not
crap,
” he said, sounding as if he was the one who was surprised now. “My, my. You’ve cleaned up your vocabulary, Lila. You must have met a nice boy.”
“You are so full of crap, Adrian.”
Even if he was right. But it hadn’t been a nice boy who’d cleaned up Lila’s vocabulary. That had been a result of her sister Marnie’s influence. Even though the two of them had had only one evening together to get caught up before OPUS had sent Lila after Adrian again, it had been enough to make Lila realize how rough around the edges she was when compared to polite society, and had made her rethink much of what she’d become in that regard. Of course, Joel was also polite society, she reminded herself. And like Marnie, he’d made Lila rethink much about herself, too. But unlike Marnie, what Joel had made Lila rethink had nothing to do with surface things like social niceties. Joel had hit her much deeper than that.
“What do you want, Adrian?” she demanded. And after voicing the question, Lila realized it was one she should probably be asking herself, too.
“I want to help you,” he said.
“Of course you do,” she cooed. “After all, you’ve made it your life’s work to help OPUS, haven’t you?”
There was a slight pause on the other end of the line. Then, very earnestly, he said, “I’m serious, Lila. I want to help you. And believe me, at this point you need my help.”
Every scrap of mischief had left his voice as he’d spoken. He really did sound serious. Lila had never heard him sound serious before. This was serious.
“I’ve been forced to make a change in my plans,” he told her.
Oh, that didn’t sound good. “What kind of change?”
“A change for the better.”
“For me or for you?”
He hesitated another scant moment before replying, but even that scant hesitation spoke volumes. She’d never known Adrian Padgett to hesitate before, not even for an instant.
“For both of us,” he finally said.
Lila shifted the phone to her other hand, mostly because she needed a couple of seconds to digest that. “How can it be better for both of us?” she asked.
“We can discuss that part later,” he said. “Once I’ve worked out all the details.”
“But—”
“Right now I have someone here who wants to talk to you.”
There was the sound of a phone being transferred to someone else, then a voice that had become all too familiar over the past few days. And it was a voice that raised goose bumps a hundred times faster than Adrian Padgett ever had. “Lila?”
“Joel?”
Her fingers convulsed on the phone as she uttered his name, her heart constricting with terror at the realization that he was with Adrian. Terror rolled in her belly, too, and air fled her lungs in a whoosh so fierce it dizzied her. It was all she could do to ask shallowly, “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” he hastened to tell her. “I’m tied up, but I’m fine.”
“Did he hurt you?” she demanded. “I’ll kill the son of a bitch if he laid a finger on you.”
It was with no small surprise that Lila realized what she said was true. Never had she felt homicidal before. Sure, she got angry, and more than once she’d reacted too hastily to that anger. But those reactions had still been focused and carried out with great care. Had Adrian done anything to harm Joel, however, she knew that not only would she react blindly, but she wouldn’t regret a moment of whatever she ended up doing.
“I’m fine,” Joel repeated. “But—”
“He’s fine.” Adrian’s voice came over the phone again. “But as he said, he’s a bit tied up. You’ll need to come and get him.”
“Where are you?” Lila demanded, her heart still pounding. Her entire body was trembling now in response to her fear. Her palms were damp and her face was hot, and she thought for a moment she might even throw up. And she knew her condition wouldn’t change until she saw Joel for herself and knew he was safe.
“
I
will be gone by the time you get here,” Adrian assured her. “But you can find—” Lila heard his voice shift away from the phone as he asked, “I’m sorry, I don’t believe I caught your name. What a dreadful host I’ve become.” She heard Joel’s muffled reply, then Adrian’s voice, still away from the phone but more clearly now, saying, “Virtuoso? Are you serious? What kind of code name is that? Who’s assigning code names these days? They should be shot. How can anyone feel threatened by someone named Virtuoso?”
Oh, if he only knew, Lila thought.
“Anyway,” Adrian continued, his voice coming clearly again, “Mr. Virtuoso would appreciate it very much if you came to get him at the Four Seasons Hotel. Suite 2442. I’ll put out the Do Not Disturb sign so no one will bother him between now and then. Oh, and when you get here you’ll find I’ve left a few more little presents for you, as well. Nothing destructive, I promise,” he added, anticipating her next question. “Well, not anymore, at any rate. Ta-ta, Lila. We’ll chat again. Soon.”
“Adrian, wait, I need to know if—”
But he’d already severed the connection. There was only silence at the other end of the line.
In one swift, fluid gesture, Lila snapped closed the phone, gathered up her backpack and sprang from the concrete step where she’d been sitting. If she hurried, she could be downtown in less than half an hour. She just hoped Joel would still be there—safe—when she arrived.
N
OT ONLY WAS
J
OEL
safe by the time Lila arrived, but he was wandering around the hotel suite consulting with four other OPUS agents who had responded when she’d alerted the local office to what was going on. The “few more little presents” Adrian had referred to, she saw now, were Chuck, Hobie and Donny, all taped up nicely. Unfortunately—though not surprisingly—Adrian was nowhere to be found. What
was
surprising—and more than a little interesting, as far as Lila was concerned—was that Iris Daugherty wasn’t around, either. What was most interesting of all, however, was Lila’s reaction to all of it.
Simply put, she didn’t care about any of it except for the fact that Joel was safe. Not that Adrian was still on the loose. Not that there might still be a potentially disastrous virus floating around out there. Not that Chuck Miller looked even smaller than his little peepee all trussed up as he was. Just that she was within touching distance of Joel again, and that he was looking at her as if he very much wanted her to touch him. Even better, he looked as if he wanted to touch her, too.
So, heedless of the other two agents in the room, Lila strode directly to him, threw her arms around his neck, snuggled—yes,
snuggled—
her entire body against his and said, “Thank God you’re okay. I don’t know what I would have done if he’d…If you’d…If anyone had…” She couldn’t finish the statement. Because she couldn’t finish the thought. If anything had happened to Joel…Well. It was just unthinkable, that was all.
He hesitated not a moment in wrapping his arms around her and pulling her closer still. “Gee, you sound like you were kind of worried about me.”
“No way,” she said, pushing herself harder against him. “I was
incredibly
worried about you.”
He said nothing in response to that, only skimmed his open hands lightly over her back and bent to settle his cheek against the crown of her head. There was nothing sexual in the embrace. As close as they were, and as intimately as they were touching, there was nothing arousing about it. Lila didn’t think she’d ever held a man without it being some kind of prelude to sex. But in this embrace there was only serenity and familiarity and…affection, she told herself. Because she did feel…affection…for Joel. Hey, he was her partner. Of course she’d have…affection…for him.
Someone cleared his throat gently, and Lila was surprised to discover it was Joel. She removed her head from his chest and looked up to find him looking back at her as if he had something very important he wanted to tell her. All he said, though, was, “We need to coordinate on everything that’s happened.”
Boy, did they, Lila thought. Then she realized he was talking about the assignment, not about the two of them. She gave herself a good mental shaking, forced herself to drop her hands to her sides and took a step away from him. The assignment, she reminded herself. The job. That had to come first, right? Of course it did. The job always came first. Even if she did care more about Joel at the moment.
“Right,” she said. “So tell me what happened, and then we can figure out what to do next.”
He filled her in on how he’d gotten to the Four Seasons and everything he’d learned during his brief confinement. And after they made clear to Chuck and Hobie and Donny just how serious their situations were, the three men began to talk all at once, each vying to see who could reveal the most information first and buy himself the most legal favors.
“This could take a while,” one of the other OPUS agents finally said. “We should take them in and question them all separately.”
“We’ll expect a full report tonight,” Lila said. Then she turned to Joel. “Any sign of the virus?” she asked.
He shook his head. “Sorcerer never mentioned it when he was here, and he and Iris cleared out everything when they took off. Except,” he added with a curious smile, “my briefcase. Chuck brought it with him from the apartment when they brought me here, but Adrian never even glanced at it.”
Interesting, Lila thought. But something else interested her even more. “Adrian and Iris left together?” she asked.
Joel nodded. “Funny thing, too,” he said.
“What?”
“I got the feeling they were going to stay together. As in, disappear together.”
“Along with the virus,” Lila said.
Now Joel cocked his head to the side a bit. “Yeah, but I’m not sure we should be as worried about that as we were before,” he told her. “Call me crazy, but I don’t think the two of them are all that interested in the virus anymore.”
This, too, surprised Lila. “No?”
“No. I think they were a lot more interested in something else.”
“What?”
Joel grinned. “Each other.”
“What?”
“Long story,” Joel said. “I’ll fill you in on the way back to the apartment, after we’ve finished up here. There is one thing, though,” he added.
“What’s that?”
“We should be able to locate his source in OPUS,” Joel said.
“How?”
“Sorcerer evidently collected
a lot
of information about Chuck and the gang. Information that only his contact in OPUS could have uncovered. And it was information that the source didn’t relay to anyone else, or you and I would have had it. No one in OPUS can run searches like that without leaving a trail. So all we have to do is find out who ran searches on Chuck, Hobie, Donny and Iris, and we’ll have our leak.”
“It’ll be that easy?”
He nodded. “Yeah. It will. I can take care of it myself.”
“There’s one other thing, too,” Lila said.
“What’s that?”
“Adrian told me on the phone that he and I would chat again.”
“So he did,” Joel said, obviously remembering. “And he doesn’t make idle promises, does he?”
“Never. And I’m betting it won’t take him long to contact me,” she added. “His time is running out. He’s smart enough to figure out we’ll be able to ID his contact at OPUS now. So that contact won’t be able to give him any more one-step-ahead-of-the-agents information. He knows we’re gaining on him. And he knows I’m good enough to get him. So if he’s going to contact me, it will be soon. And then, if he has his way, it will all finally be over.”
Joel met her gaze levelly. “So now we just have to figure out how to make sure it ends in our favor instead of his.”
A
CTUALLY
, L
ILA THOUGHT NINETY
minutes later as Joel closed the apartment door behind them, they had a lot more to figure out than that. At least,
she
did. Like how she was supposed to act around Joel now. Now that she realized how terrified she was by the prospect of losing him, but still couldn’t see how he would fit into her life if he stayed. Now that she understood how good the two of them were together, but still couldn’t imagine being shackled to someone else—even someone she…had affection for.
Lila just couldn’t imagine including someone else in her life. She didn’t even know how to share her life with someone else. She’d been alone for so long. In many ways, she’d always been alone. And she’d always expected to stay alone. And she’d
liked
knowing she would be alone. Alone, she didn’t have to be responsible for anyone else. She didn’t have to worry about anyone else. Didn’t have to take care of anyone else. Alone, she didn’t have to fear for anyone else. She could do whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted to do it. She hadn’t wanted anyone else to mess that up.
