Edge of Betrayal (13 page)

The answer was so obvious, he didn’t understand why she even had to ask. “Because you’re important.”

“So are the others.”

He couldn’t keep his hands to himself any longer, so he pulled her rolling chair closer, until she was perched between his widely spread knees. His fingers settled lightly on her cheek. So warm and soft. “Not like you.”

Mira’s breathing sped, as did her pulse. As close as he was, he could even see the minute changes in the size of her pupils as they expanded to swallow up the golden starbursts. “I’m not going to let you suck me in again. I’m
not going to let you seduce me, only to learn later that it was all just a game.”

Seduce her? That he even had a chance to do so was enough to make him want it. Need it. If he could make her feel toward him half of what he felt for her, it would at least level the playing field.

She
had
kissed him. It had been done in the heat of the moment, and hardly lasted at all, but it had been a kiss—something a woman would never do with a man she didn’t trust, at least for one split second.

The notion gave him hope and thrilled him all at the same time.

He leaned forward and threaded his fingers through her hair. Her eyes fluttered closed before he once again had her full attention.

“No more games,” he said. “If I manage to seduce you again, this time it will be for real.”

She glanced at his mouth. He knew she was thinking about kissing him again. It took every bit of strength he possessed to resist giving her what she wanted. What he wanted.

But he did resist. He had no idea if there was something real between them or not—he’d never had anything real before, so there was no way for him to tell—but if it was, he wasn’t going to ruin whatever fledgling trust she might have for him by moving too fast.

No matter how much he wanted her, he would control himself. She deserved at least that much from him after all the mistakes he’d made with her.

Adam let her go and stood. Her gaze went straight to the bulge in his pants, but there was nothing he could do about that. At least she’d know his desire for her wasn’t a lie.

“I’ll be in my office if you need me,” he said as he went to her door.

She cleared her throat. “You’re just going to leave?”

He paused by the door. “Do you want me to stay?”

She blinked a couple of times, then shook her head. “No, of course not. I’ll check in with you later, after I do some research on our mystery lady.”

“Ruby Rypan?”

“Yes.”

“I plan to do the same. But I urge you to be careful. I don’t know much about her, but I do know that she’s dangerous.”

“That’s okay,” said Mira as she stretched her fingers and rolled up to her keyboard. “So am I.”

As Adam walked away and felt the immediate loss of her presence, he knew that what she said was true.

Mira was dangerous, and there was no body armor in the world that could save him.

M
ira’s research revealed that Ruby Rypan had no life. She rented an upscale apartment, owned a nice car, had suits sent to her from fancy boutiques, and got her hair done on a regular basis. Besides that, the woman did . . . nothing.

There were no meals out with the girls, no movie nights, no gym membership. She didn’t even get cable TV.

“She doesn’t scream
evil mastermind
,” Mira told Adam, who hovered just behind her, reading over her shoulder.

“She calls no attention to herself. Can you find even a single parking ticket?”

“No, nothing like that.”

“She wants to remain invisible to the authorities. I did exactly the same thing—made sure I looked respectable, kept my head down and my nose clean. People rarely noticed me.”

“I have a hard time believing that. You probably had women all over you, even when you were trying to be in stealth mode.”

He pointed to a video file she had in the background. “Watch it. I bet you see that she has her shields up—completely unapproachable, making no eye contact unless it’s to warn someone away.”

Mira played the video of Ruby inside a local grocery store. She was in a perfectly fitted suit and heels. Her hair was coiled up in a sleek roll. Her appearance was put together and polished, all the way down to the glossy color on her fingernails. Several men looked her way, but not one of them approached her. The two men who drew her attention enough that she glanced their way actually backed up a step and gave her a wide berth.

“See. Shields up. A man would be risking his life making a move on a woman like that.”

“So how do we find out what she’s up to?”

“I’d say we follow her, but I don’t think we’d get far before she saw us. Our best shot is probably going to be to break into her apartment and see if she’s sloppy enough to leave information lying around.”

“That seems like a waste of time, doesn’t it? I mean, a woman as meticulously groomed as she is, as careful as she is with her spending, giving away nothing about herself, with no friends or family popping up—she’s not going to be the type to leave secret files to break my dad out of prison sitting on her kitchen counter.”

“No, but she might have a hiding place. If I get into her apartment, I might be able to find it.”

“You also might get blown up.”

Adam pointed to the copy of Ruby’s financial statements. “She has maid service. A woman who lets a maid come in and clean isn’t leaving explosives lying about.”

“Don’t you think that would make it even more likely for her not to keep files at her apartment?”

“Possibly. But if she thinks her hiding spot is good enough, she might risk it.”

“Why? Why wouldn’t she just live in a dirty apartment?”

“When your life depends on your skills, you constantly test yourself. A maid going through your house every few days is an excellent test.”

“I can’t say it’s how I’d want to live, but I guess it gives us a bit of an edge.”

“How’s that?”

“Because all I have to do is print up some T-shirts with that maid service logo on them, and we have our way in.”

He nodded. “Do you have any surveillance devices handy?”

“Always. I’m not sure how long it will take her to detect them, but I’ll break out the best stuff for this job.”

“She should be at work for a few more hours. That will give us plenty of time to get there and do what we need to do before she gets home.”

“Give me thirty minutes and I’ll meet you in the garage.”

Adam left and Mira went to work.

*   *   *

Adam was almost to the armory when he saw Gage Dallas turn the corner.

He was nearly as tall as Adam, with short black hair and an angular face. His eyes were a blue so faded, they were almost gray. His clothes were covered in dust and wrinkled enough that he had probably slept in them. The weapons strapped to his body, however, were perfectly clean.

Even after several weeks of working with the man, Adam still had trouble controlling his emotions every time he saw him. Relief, anxiety, joy. Heartache.

After decades of being separated from his little brother, wondering how he was and whether or not he was safe and happy, here Eli was, safe and walking around with another man’s name.

Gage nodded in greeting at Adam as he neared. “How’s the new partner?”

Adam used every bit of skill he’d ever learned about lying to pretend that Gage was just another colleague, rather than his baby brother. “Fine. A bit rocky at first, but I think she stopped plotting my death.”

Gage grunted. “Softie.”

“I wouldn’t let her hear you say that. She’s gotten pretty good in the sparring ring.”

Gage grinned with pride, but he said nothing.

“I won’t bother to ask you about how your assignment is coming. I know it’s all hush-hush.”

“Almost done.”

“Will you be assigned to help Mira and me when your job is finished?”

Gage shrugged. “Bella’s call.”

Adam hesitated, but knew he’d regret it if he didn’t say something. “I know you don’t trust me, and I don’t blame you—any of you. But you’re one of the few people here who is at least willing to speak to me. I just want you to know how much I appreciate you giving me a chance to earn your trust.”

Gage’s skin tone darkened just enough to tell Adam he’d crossed a line and made his brother uncomfortable.

“When this job is done, drinks are on me,” said Adam.

Gage nodded once in agreement. “Good luck.” He walked away.

Adam slipped into the armory and leaned against the door. His heart was beating too hard. Something close to frantic desperation danced just under his skin.

He wanted to tell Gage who he was so badly, he could barely keep the words locked behind his teeth.

Part of him resented the fact that Gage didn’t recognize him. He knew they’d just been kids when they’d been separated and that Eli had been two years younger—practically a baby. Still, every time he looked at Gage, he
knew
he was looking at his brother. He saw the genetic connection in the other man’s eyes, height, build, and features. He heard it in his voice.

How could Gage not recognize him?

Maybe because Gage was a good and decent man—the kind of man who saw what was inside the hearts of others. And when he looked inside Adam, there was nothing familiar looking back at him.

*   *   *

Mira was shaking by the time she’d bypassed the security system and they’d made it into Ruby’s apartment.

Adam shut the door behind them with a soft click. “Plant your surveillance devices while I look around.”

“How much time do I have?”

“As little as humanly possible.”

She made quick work of identifying the prime areas to target and moved as fast as she dared. She’d gotten three of the bugs planted when she heard keys jangling on the other side of the door.

She raced to the bedroom where Adam was and whispered, “She’s here.”

He didn’t waste time asking her any questions. Instead, he grabbed her arm and shoved her into a small walk-in closet. He pushed her behind the open door and crowded her with his body.

“Close the door,” she whispered.

“No. It was open when we came in. Just be quiet. It’s probably the maid.”

She squeezed back into the dark space as far as she could go. Adam shifted toward her and drew his weapon. With slow, practiced movements, he threaded a silencer onto the barrel.

Mira desperately hoped he wasn’t going to need it.

He put his mouth next to her ear. “We’ll wait until she starts to vacuum, then slip out.”

But as the click of heels sounded on the kitchen floor, Mira realized the truth. That wasn’t a maid. It was Ruby Rypan.

A second later, the woman crossed through the bedroom toward the bathroom. Mira could barely see her through the crack in the door, but what she did see made her skin go cold.

Ruby moved with precise, almost robotic motions. Her hair was so perfect it could have been molded
plastic, and her skin flawless enough that it must have been airbrushed. None of that was what bothered Mira, though. There was something else—something that tickled the back of her mind, something she hadn’t noticed on camera.

But what?

Mira studied her as she tried to let go of the frantic fear quivering in her chest.

Ruby tossed her suit jacket on the bed and slipped off her heels as she walked. She was much shorter now, but still easily as tall as Bella. There was a birthmark on her left calf that looked almost like a child’s handprint.

That’s when it hit Mira. She knew Ruby. They’d been kids together. She’d been one of the kids her father had taken down to his lab for hours, doing God knew what to her.

She disappeared into the bathroom. Water ran into a tub.

Mira didn’t realize she was gripping Adam’s shirt in her fist until he turned, gently tugging it free. One look at her face and he frowned in concern.

“What?” he mouthed.

She shook her head. She couldn’t talk about this now. Not here.

They waited in silence while the tub filled. Ruby appeared again, this time in a silky black robe. Her hair was down and flowing about her shoulders. Gone were the stockings obscuring the birthmark on her calf—the same one Mira had seen on a scrawny child’s leg years ago.

There was no mistaking it. Ruby was one of her father’s subjects. And she wanted to free him.

The urge to flee pounded against the soles of her feet. Adam must have sensed her anxiety, because he reached back and stroked her arm in a slow, soothing sweep.

Her pulse slowed. She was able to pull in a full, deep breath. She laced her fingers with his, not even caring that it made her seem weak and afraid.

She needed to reach out to Ruby. To offer the poor woman help. She was a victim of her father’s evil, and it was Mira’s responsibility to do everything she could to clean up his mess.

Ruby went back into the bathroom. The water stopped running. Splashing sounded as she got into the tub.

Adam tugged on her hand. She followed in his wake, moving as silently as possible. They were out the door and on the elevator in seconds. It was only after the doors shut that Mira let go of the breath she’d been holding.

He cupped her face and tipped it up. “You’re okay now. She didn’t see us.”

All Mira could do was nod. Her whole body was quivering with adrenaline, and it made her wonder what the hell junkies of the stuff saw in it. All it did for her was make her feel like she was going to puke.

His thumbs stroked across her shoulders as they rode down to the first floor. She let her forehead fall against his chest. His heart was beating slow and steady, as if nothing had happened.

She envied him his cool.

He turned as the car reached the ground. His hand casually circled her upper arm, forcing her to walk at a calm pace. When they were finally outside with the cold winter sunshine hitting her skin, she let go of her control and gave in to the single sob that absolutely needed to come out.

“You’re okay,” said Adam again. “Just keep walking.”

She did. His firm hold on her arm made sure of that. He opened her door, settled her in the seat, then went around the car. As soon as he was inside with the door shut, she blurted out, “I know her.”

His frown told her he didn’t understand her meaning. “Of course you do. We studied her all morning.”

“No. I mean I’ve seen her before. I knew her. When she was a kid.”

That, he understood perfectly. “One of your father’s subjects?”

She nodded. “I remembered the birthmark. She was about my age, wearing a bright yellow checked skirt. There was dirt on the hem, and it was too short for her, like she’d grown out of it. I remember her going down into the lab with some man. He came back out, but she stayed down there for a long time. When she came up, she was crying.”

“What else?”

“This was back when Dad was working out of the basement. There weren’t many kids then—just a few. Like Clay.”

“Do you know what he did to her?”

“No idea. We can look at the records. They’re not complete, but we might be able to figure out which subject she was.”

“Ruby Rypan isn’t her real name. Her background was too clean for it not to have been a false identity.”

“Do you think she knows?” asked Mira.

“Knows what?”

“That the man she’s working for now is the one who hurt her when she was a kid.”

“The real question is whether or not she’s choosing to do any of this. We’ve seen others acting against their will. She could be doing the same.”

Mira hugged herself. “This is all my fault.”

“Impossible,” said Adam. “Your father’s actions are his own.”

“Yeah, but if it hadn’t been for the success he had experimenting on me, he might not have hurt all those other kids. I’m the reason the Threshold Project went as far as it did.”

“That’s not true. You can’t think like that.”

He didn’t understand. No one really did. How could they? It wasn’t as though everyone grew up with a mad scientist father. “If only I’d known enough then to fudge
the results of his tests, all the damage he’d done would have ended with me. I could have saved all those kids if I’d been smart enough.”

“How old were you?” he asked.

Mira shrugged. “I don’t know. Four? He might have done stuff to me earlier, but four was when I started remembering it.”

“You were a baby. You didn’t know any better.” He pried one of her hands away from her tight hug and warmed it between his palms. “No four-year-old is responsible for the actions of her parents, no matter how smart she might be.”

“Logically, I know that. But I wasn’t your average four-year-old.”

“Because of what he did to you.”

“I should have used it against him then.”

He gave her hand a squeeze. “There is no possible way your involvement could have made or broken the Threshold Project.”

“What makes you so sure?”

“I was born before you. The research had been going on for years by the time you were four. You couldn’t have stopped it if you’d tried.”

“But I didn’t try. Maybe I could have at least slowed it down.”