Fatal Honor: Shadow Force International (19 page)

“So you two worked together before?” Jax was saying.

Silverware clinked, the sounds of someone rustling through a drawer met his ears. “Our paths crossed about a year ago, yes,” Charlotte answered. “How long have you known him?”

Redirection. Typical Charlotte.

“We landed on the same Team more than once when we were both SEALs. Figured he’d end up running a team at some point. Would have if not for his bum ankle.”

“And since he joined Emit’s group? Have you worked with him much?”

“A few times. He’s solid.”

The clinking of utensils stopped. Charlotte must have looked at Jax for clarification. Miles moved slightly, catching a glimpse of Charlotte’s back, her hair.

“You know,” Jax said. He was across the room, out of Miles’ view. “Once he trusts you, he’s got your back forever.”

Charlotte’s voice was light, breathy. “Good to know.”

“I say that because I like the guy. He’s a valuable part of our team.” The creak of a cabinet door opening and closing suggested he wasn’t looking at her. Playing things casual. “Don’t want to see him get hurt.”

A pause hung in the air and Miles could almost see Charlotte’s head moving in a slight nod. “Message received. It’s not my intention to hurt him. Emotionally, I mean. The mission we’re on, however, is a dangerous one. I can’t guarantee he won’t be harmed physically. All I can assure is that I’ll do my best to keep him safe.”

“Good luck with that. He’s got a protective streak a mile wide. If bullets fly, he’ll shove you out of the way and take every last one.”

Her sigh echoed in the high-ceiling room. “It’s rather charming, don’t you think? Very manly, the way he tries to shield everyone. Safeguard them. I’ve never had anyone do that for me.”

Jax snorted. “Charming? Never thought of it that way, but if you say so, Charlie.”

Jax was calling her Charlie now?

Charlotte clasped her hands in front of her. “As long as we’re being forthright, I need to explain to you how the rest of the mission will go.”

Miles could hear the smile in her voice, but there was steel underneath it.

“Go on,” Jax said. Wary. Miles felt a bit wary himself.

“As I’m sure you realize,”—her voice was spun sugar now—“a woman traveling with
two
men is rather…out of the ordinary.”

Jax was quick on the uptake. Miles knew he’d worked with spies before and never had much use for them. Regardless of Charlotte’s sugary voice and pleasant smile, he wasn’t giving ground. “If anyone asks, you can say I’m your brother.”

Her chuckle was light and conveyed that was the worst idea she’d heard in a long time. “I appreciate your dedication, but I’m afraid no one would believe us.”

Jax tried the stepbrother angle and even threw in something about adoption. Charlotte shut him down on all counts.

Finally, he gave in. “You want me to hang back or bow out completely?”

“Could you stay here while we continue onto Romania? That way if we need help, you’ll be close by.”

She was good, he’d give her that. She didn’t want Jax knowing where her cabin was, or the spot she’d hidden the USB. Like she’d told Miles, the fewer people who knew, the less chance there was that someone would end up in Nico’s hands spilling their guts.

She turned her head slightly to look out a window. “Miles and I will return here, if at all possible, and we’ll all fly home together.”

Was Jax buying this? Miles doubted it. Home to Charlotte wasn’t the States. Once she had her file, she would head straight to her handler, or maybe back to Vauxhall Cross.

Sliding around the doorframe, Miles leaned one shoulder against it. “Am I interrupting something?”

Charlotte jumped. Jax gave him a chin nod. “Morning, Sleeping Beauty.”

“Miles,” Charlotte said. She’d braided her hair and her lips were shiny with pink gloss. She pointed to a bag on the floor. “We were just gathering a few extra supplies.”

They had the truck, weapons, the clothes on their backs, and some food. They could use a map and a few other things, but he was curious. “Like what?”

“A map for one thing,” Charlotte said, withdrawing a folded one from her back pocket and holding it up. She waved it toward the bag on the floor. “We also found some silver to sell or barter, extra batteries, and a couple pair of traction cleats to put on the bottoms of our boots for when we climb in the mountains. I think with our other supplies and the cash, we won’t need to stop at any stores.”

“I also grabbed a few tools I found in the barn,” Jax said. “A couple of knives and some oil for the truck, just in case. There’s a generator out back, but it’s not portable.”

They’d been busy. “Why didn’t you wake me?”

“You kidding?” Jax snickered. “After you almost shot me last night in the trees, we figured you needed some sleep, man.”

Charlotte walked to the kitchen table, spreading the map out on the linoleum top. “We have a long trip today. By my calculations we’re here.” She pointed to a spot on the map, then ran her finger along a winding line that crossed the border into Romania and skirted the mountains. “We’re heading to this area. I’ve sent the route and coordinates to your phone.”

She seemed chipper, ready to go. Almost excited. Miles wished he felt the same. He followed the line her finger had traced and mentally calculated the distance. A six to eight hour drive, depending on the roads and the weather. “We better get hauling then.”

Charlotte gave him a smile that made his lower gut tingle as she refolded the map. “I’ll gather some food from the plane’s kitchen and be ready to go shortly.”

She practically skipped out of the farmhouse, leaving him and Jax to haul the load of supplies back.

Outside in the bright sunlight, Jax broached the subject Miles had overheard him discussing with Charlotte. “Your girl wants to ditch me.”

Up ahead, she was already at the plane, climbing the steps. “I heard.”

“What’s she up to?”

He wanted to say nothing. She was simply going after this USB. Or maybe, his ego said, she wanted to be alone with him to fuck his brains out. He could get behind that. “The mission is to get to the caves and retrieve an item of intel she left there, take it back to London and give it to MI6.”

“So she says.”

“Nicolae Bourean kidnapped and tortured her after I left here nine months ago. She may have some revenge in mind.”

Jax shrugged, keeping his pace steady but slow so they could talk. “Can’t blame her for that. You?”

“I’d like to take some revenge on his ass myself.”

“As long as you know what you’re getting into and you’re cool with it.” Jax hefted the supply bag higher on his shoulder. “You want me to do as she says? Hang back and wait for your call?”

“The spot we’re heading to is pretty remote. If we get in trouble, I’d prefer you were a little closer.”

“That old Jeep in the barn needs a tune-up but I used the Land Rover to jump start it this morning and it purred like a kitten. I found a battery charger and hooked it up. Should be ready to roll by now. I’ll give you guys an hour head start, then I’ll follow.”

They neared the Land Rover and Miles nodded. “Let Beatrice know the plan, okay?”

“Damn straight. She scares the shit of me. It’s like she can read my mind, man. No way I’m crossing her or pissing her off by not reporting in.”

Smart man. Miles slapped him on the back and took the supply bag from him to shove in the truck. “You got any GPS trackers on this?”

“Two, and a couple on your girl. She doesn’t know it.”

His girl. The words made his pulse skip around. “You better not let her hear you call her that.”

Jax grinned. “She’s a hellcat, isn’t she?”

She’s something. “The ‘girl’ moniker will earn you a punch in the nose.”

They headed for the plane. “If you run into that asshole Bourean, make him bleed for me too. Make sure he can never hurt her, or anyone else, again.”

Miles bumped fists with him before he climbed the stairs. “Deal.”

Chapter Twelve

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T
HE
L
AND
R
OVER
bumped over potholes, climbing the hill to the top as the farmhouse and barn grew smaller behind them.

Charlotte held onto the door handle, the rough terrain jostling her from side to side. Finally, they were on their way.

Even so, it had been ridiculously hard to watch Miles sleep and not wake him up and get him going. The light covering of snow on the ground was a harbinger of what was to come. Winter in these parts was harsh and any day now could bring a sudden and violent storm. She had no intention of getting stranded in those mountains again.

They crested the hill and headed west, Miles quiet. Was he still tired?

Watching him sleep in the plane had given her a sense of calm, reminding her of the nights when he was injured and she’d stayed awake to watch him sleep in case his fever got too high or he woke and needed a drink. He was normally restrained, quiet, except in bed. There, he was anything but subdued. Outside of sex, though, he kept things to himself. Behind his eyes, she could see the wheels in his head turning. Always analyzing, always planning his next move.

Of course, he’d insisted on driving today.
Such a man
.

They drove a good half hour or longer before he finally spoke. “You going to tell me what you’re up to?”

“Up to?”

“Why’d you want Megadeth to stay behind?”

“You can stop calling him that. He told me his name is Jaxon.”

Miles quirked one brow, his gaze never leaving the road. “He told you that, did he?”

“He may not trust me completely, but he trusts me with that. Also told me a bit about his childhood. We had a nice conversation in the farmhouse. He thinks quite highly of you.”

“Why did you want him to stay back at the plane? The real reason you wanted to leave him behind?”

“I have a plan and it will work better if it’s just the two of us.”

“Don’t you think you should share that plan with me?”

“When the time comes.”

Miles braked. Hard. Charlotte flew forward, her seatbelt locking up. “For goodness’ sake! What are you doing?”

“Tell me the plan now or we turn around and head back.”

She stared at him, narrowing her eyes.

“Now, Charlotte. I’m not kidding.”

Was it possible he knew her better than she’d thought? “I told you. We cross the border today, get to the cabin later tonight. Tomorrow morning, we hike to the caves, retrieve the USB, and start back.”

“You’re leaving out details. Why?”

So maybe she was. It was too early in the journey to tell him everything. “The details may change. No sense locking them into stone at this point.”

“I know you’re afraid Jax will get hurt if he’s with us. That’s why you asked him to stay behind, isn’t it?”

Of course, she didn’t want Jaxon to get hurt. “That’s why I tried to talk
you
out of coming, if you’ll recall. I’ve survived a lot in my life. I know how to endure pain and soldier on. And while I’m sure both of you can handle quite a bit of danger and such as well, I also know both of you have something to go back to. You started your lives over, found the right job for your skill set. You have a life in San Diego and a future with SFI.”

“You have a life to go back to. Your parents, your brother.”

She really didn’t. “My mother is dead. My father and brother couldn’t care less about me.”

“Your file didn’t state your mother had passed.”

The whole thing had been covered up. Her father had forbidden her to talk about it. Not that that had stopped her. “She was murdered.”

Miles’ face clouded with concern. “Charlotte, I’m so sorry. I didn’t know.”

One of the conditions of her agreement with MI6 was that she could look for her mother’s killer in her downtime. A lot of good that had done her. Four years later, she was no closer to finding the bastard than when she’d been eleven and strapped to a bed at the looney bin. “That’s because someone doesn’t want it known.”

His brows furrowed. “What do you mean?”

She hadn’t spoken of it in years. When you told people your mother had been murdered but there was no proof—and that your father had had you committed—they tended to look at you differently. She hated that look. Another reason she’d stopped talking about it a long time ago.

What would it hurt to do so now? It was a long story, but they had a long drive ahead of them. “Do you really want to know?”

“Yeah, I really do.”

He thought that now, but once she told him, things would change between them. She was sure of it. It always did.

But the cat was out of the bag. At least he wasn’t asking her to go into detail about her op.

Settling back in her seat, she motioned for Miles to drive. He took his foot off the brake and they once more started forward.