Risky Temptation (33 page)

Chapter
Twenty Three
Halle

              I made a little grumble in frustration as I turned another wrong corner. Pivoting on my heel, I stomped back down the way I had come again, checking the numbered plates by the door.

              Why would they want to do the meeting in their offices?

              Agent Hadfield and Truman had finally contacted me about debriefing. They asked me come into the office but instead of meeting them in the conference room, which is where we had typically met before, they had asked me to come to Agent Truman’s personal office.

              The fourteenth floor of the building was where all the field agent offices were. They were quite anticlimactic considering the highly trained operatives the floor housed.

              It was just row after row of normal offices, complete with the small black numbered plates by the doors and the folding plastic blinds in the windows.

              But that made it all the more difficult to find the correct office. They all looked alike and all the numbers ran together.

              I needed to find 1452 but it seemed as if that particular door had disappeared. I had seen 1451 on my first incorrect trip around the floor. And I had seen 1453 on my third incorrect trip around the floor. But I had yet to find this elusive 1452.

              Thank goodness I had arrived early. I had anticipated a little trouble finding the right place and so had arrived early with plenty of time to find my way. But I hadn’t anticipated
this
much trouble. I was literally lapping around the whole fourteenth floor.

              Not wanting to waste time and possibly run late, I decided to slow down and carefully search each door as I passed. I walked at a snail’s pace to make sure each and every door was
not
1452 before I passed it.

              I checked my phone and luckily I was still twelve minutes early. Hopefully, I could find 1452 within the next twelve minutes.

              That seemed like plenty of time and yet this was what felt like my fifteenth time around the floor.

              I walked slowly and paused when I found 1450.
Okay, close but no cigar yet,
I thought, wondering how finding an office could be harder than infiltrating a notorious crime family.

              1451.

              I was about to turn in the direction I had before when I suddenly heard a muffled voice.

              I turned around, wondering where it was coming from.

              Behind me, was a wall with a small forgotten potted ficus. I had thought it was a dead end to the hall but as I peered in, I realized that in fact, the ficus was covering a half wall. I walked closer and noticed that the mysterious 1452 was hidden behind the half wall.

             
Who in the hell could find such a—

              I was about to head right in when I heard a voice that sounded like Agent Truman’s chuckle.

              “That man is just a whack job,” Agent Truman said, letting out another chuckle.

              I heard a muffled grunt of amusement that sounded like Agent Hadfield. “Well, it worked, didn’t it? You gotta give the old coot some credit.”

              “After much unnecessary elaboration, sure,” Agent Truman conceded. “Except for his son. I guess old Roy don’t know his boy like he thought.” There was another burst of smug laughter.

              I felt a sudden chill run down my spine. The way the agents were talking, there was a sinister familiarity that made my heart want to curdle. What were they talking about? What ‘worked’? They couldn’t possibly be talking about the Juarez deal, could they? Because that was the opposite of anything that ‘worked.’

              Agent Hadfield let out a big sigh. “He should’ve just been content to let the Juarez Family take the fall. It would’ve been enough. If he remains careful and plays by the rules, he shouldn’t have to worry. But of course, that paranoid sonofabitch needed to axe his son as well.”

              I gulped dryly, hearing my heart pounding in my ears. This sounded like some kind of terrifyingly odd parallel dimension where up was down and down was up. If I could make it out, which was hard to do with my heart in my throat, it sounded dangerously like the FBI were in cahoots with Roy Desmond.

              “Jesus, what an elaborate mess that plan had been,” Agent Truman said. I could hear a chair squeaking as he presumably leaned back in his reclining seat. “It couldn’t be enough that we had that twitchy little Agent Moralez in with the Juarez clan. He wanted someone else with him so that he could try and lure his son into the mess.”

              “Well just be glad we found someone with the tits and ass to match Roy’s standards,” Agent Hadfield said dismissively.

              My face burned. That was me. That was me that they were talking about.

              I was the tits and ass.

              As I had suspected, they had only seen me for my physical nature and nothing else. It hadn’t mattered if I had worked my tail off to prove myself. To them, I was just tits and ass.

              “Where is Agent Moralez, by the way?” Agent Hadfield asked off handedly, as if he couldn’t really care too much about what happened to the mole.

              Agent Truman made a dismissive noise. “Oh he’s on desk duty. God, that weak nutted bastard was too easy to manipulate. I knew we wanted a green agent to fuck up but who knew he’d fuck up so spectacularly? All he needed were a few confusing radio orders and the kid just blows up.”

              “Hey, it all worked to our benefit,” Agent Hadfield corrected. “Except of course for the last bit—no Marco Desmond.”

              “That was fucking idiotic,” Agent Truman commented casually. “Roy should’ve just let the Juarez Family take the fall. With a coup like that, the Desmond Family could coast quietly for at least another decade before there’s another big witch hunt.”

              “But that man is too paranoid for his own good,” Agent Hadfield replied. “You can tell he can’t even trust his own son anymore. But it doesn’t matter. Clearly
Agent
Margot didn’t do her job in catch Marco Desmond’s eye.”

              The way he emphasized the word ‘agent’ made it clear that he thought that title clearly just a formality when it came to me. I was less an agent to him than Moralez.

              “Roy had overestimated Margot’s ability,” Agent Hadfield continued. “He thought for sure that by bringing her to the deal, Marco would follow.” Agent Hadfield made a
tsk
-ing noise. “Then Marco would’ve either been shot in the shoot out or arrested with the rest of the Juarez clan. Either way, he’d be rid of him.”

              There was a pause between the two men.

              My vision almost started to swim before my eyes. This couldn’t be real. I couldn’t really be hearing this. This had all been a set up. Everything had been a lie from day one.

              I hadn’t been hired by the FBI. I had been hired by Roy Desmond.

              And my mission hadn’t been to seduce Marco but to lead him to his death.

              An ice cold stone dropped into the pit of my stomach at the thought. This was a complete mess. Everything was much more tangled than I had ever imagined. How could such corruption be happening at such a deep level of the Bureau?

              “It is too bad though,” Agent Truman said wistfully. “If we had also gotten Marco Desmond, dead or alive, we could’ve gotten some real attention. That would be tantamount to capturing the Desmond Family itself. We could’ve gotten some real recognition then.”

              “Not to mention that cut from Roy,” Agent Hadfield grumbled, clearly resentful that he would not be getting his sizeable bribe now.

              And of course, with Marco imprisoned or dead, Roy would have even more anonymity. People would be less thirsty for Desmond blood, thinking they had captured the worst of the Family. And Roy would have an even tighter hold on the Mafia since he would have proven that he was willing to throw his own son over if it meant keeping the Family in line.

              “Well, if we’re lucky, maybe we can still grab that cut,” Agent Truman said mysteriously. There was a loud
thunk
as his chair swung forward. I imagined him leaning forward towards Agent Hadfield, conspiratorially.

              “What the hell are you talking about?”

              “Apparently,” Agent Truman said, his voice a little lower, more confidential, “Roy isn’t quite finished in trying to off his son. He’s gonna give it another go and wants us to stay in touch. With how close it’ll be to the Juarez arrest, this can be good publicity for us. And him.”

              There was a tense pause. “When?” Agent Hadfield asked, clearly having had his interests whetted. I could almost hear the greed in his voice.

              “Tomorrow,” Agent Truman said immediately. “Original drop point. Same time.”

              “Fuck,” Agent Hadfield said breathlessly. “This might be our best year yet.”

              I slowly started to step away. I inched back till I was near the opposite end of the hall.

              This was so fucked.

              Roy Desmond and the FBI were on the hunt to kill Marco Desmond.

              I blinked and then rubbed the heel of my hand hard against my eyes, hoping I would wake up suddenly from a horrible dream. But instead I found myself in the same fluorescently lit hallway, staring down towards the door that held a horrible fate.

              I had worked my whole life to live up to my father’s legacy. He had been a good and decent man. And so I had assumed that everyone else would live up to his standards. But it was clear now that that wasn’t the case. The FBI had just as many criminals as the outside world but they were more dangerous because they had wormed their way into the highest level of federal defense.

              Marco had had the opposite life. Forced to live under his father’s rules and demands, he had grown up into a honed killing machine. He had become a man that he did not want to be. The only reason he held up the pretense was to protect those he loved.

              Perhaps it was time we both shed off the burden of our fathers.

              Perhaps it was time to live our own lives.

              I took in a deep breath and swallowed. Roy had brought me to the deal as a lure for Marco. And although the timing hadn’t worked out, thankfully, Marco had still come. He must’ve known how dangerous it would be and yet he had still come.

              This time, I would rescue Marco. I would save the man who had saved my heart.

              Carefully, I took a step forward. Then another one. And another one. I carefully arranged my face into a neutral expression.

              This debriefing was clearly a joke. No wonder we weren’t meeting in the conference room. They were just too lazy to keep up the complete charade.

             
Marco, I’m coming for you. I’ll protect you.

              I knocked on the door, hoping my face was completely relaxed and oblivious looking.

              “Agent Margot?” Agent Truman called out from inside, his voice holding no hint of all the corruption it had been speaking of earlier. “Come in, come in.”

Chapter
Twenty Four
Marco

              After the countless months of planning coupled along with the whirlwind of having Halle in my life, the aftermath of everything seemed dull in comparison.

              After the Juarez bust, it seemed like I was just floating. I had been working towards such a specific goal for so long that to have it now taken away made me feel unmoored and in limbo.

              And having seen Halle now, I felt even more off kilter. Yes, I wanted her. Even after everything, I still wanted her. Bad.

              But there was no way that I would endanger her life again just to have her in my arms once more. She should never have been involved in such a crazy mission in the first place. The last thing she should be doing is getting herself back into the risky mess that the Desmond Family swam in.

              And there were no jobs to keep myself preoccupied either. The collapse of the Juarez Family has rocked much of the criminal underworld. Everybody was playing close to the cuff and nobody was making any big moves. They didn’t want to be caught up in the sweep.

              I leaned back in the deep leather chair in the den.

              With nothing much to do at the moment, many of the Desmond Mafia men found themselves bored.

              A few of them were gathered in the den. Some were smoking cigars. Another few were playing an informal game of cards. And others were staring vacantly into their phones.

              I leaned back and closed my eyes. At least with some noise around, I could be distracted from my thoughts. The grunts and sporadic good natured cursing was hardly the best distraction but I would take whatever was at hand.

              I don’t know how much time passed before I heard a voice above me intone, “Sir.”

              I opened one eye. Above me stood one of the newer recruits. I could tell he was new just by how nervous he was to be standing in front of me. His round face, still boyish, was pale and clammy as he clearly tried to wrestle with the decision to meet my gaze or not.

              “What is it?” I asked.

              The newbie handed me a folded note. “I was told to give this to you,” he said. He gulped and then added hastily, as if he had forgotten a huge piece of protocol, “Sir!”

              I took the note and then raised a brow in dry amusement at the kid. “At ease, soldier,” I said dryly. Some of the men nearer by laughed at the nervous recruit.

              I opened the note with curiosity. Rarely did anyone in this compound send notes. This was the 21
st
century after all. We had phones. Email. Willing men to carry the message verbally, if need be.

              Opening the note, I quickly read the contents. My knuckles whitened with each passing word.

             
Haven’t you missed that sweet little piece of yours? You only gave her that one visit. And it didn’t seem long enough to even get your cock wet.

              Well as a favor, I’ve got her with me. Thought it would be a nice surprise for you. Why don’t you come meet us? You know where.

              Be quick. You know how quickly I get tired of babysitting.

              I immediately lunged forward and grabbed the arm of the kid that had brought me the note. He gave a cry of alarm as I yanked him towards me.

              “When did you get this fucking note?” I hissed. I could tell right away by the thin crawling handwriting that it was Roy. No doubt in my mind. But I just couldn’t believe that he would do something so fucking reckless.

              She was part of the FBI. If he didn’t know it now, he’d know it soon enough when they came for her.

              What the fuck was he thinking?

              “Just now! Just now, sir!” the boy said, trying to keep a bit of distance between himself and my snarling face.

              I yanked again. “From who? Who gave it to you?” It couldn’t have been Roy. He would still be on the road then. I could easily catch up to him.

              “From Gabe!” the kid cried. “This morning, he said he had a job for me and that I was to report back to him at nine tonight. So I did and he gave me this note, telling me to give it to you.” He leaned away from me, clearly terrified. “Sir.”

              I rose in one fluid movement, releasing the kid’s arm as I did so. He stumbled back, his eyes wide with fear.

              “What’s wrong, boss?” one of the men near me asked, a voice laced with tension. The whole den was now strung tight. They were itching for some action and if I had some to give, they wanted in on it.

              But I couldn’t do that. I knew I couldn’t do that.

              He hadn’t said it in the note but I knew if I brought anyone with me, Roy would kill Halle immediately.

              Also, although there were a handful of men that I knew would be completely loyal to me, it was still a gamble to bring anyone with me with the express purpose of defying Roy Desmond, head of the Desmond Mafia. That went against everything in our code.

              No, I had to do this on my own.

              That’s how Roy wanted it.

              “Nothing,” I said as I rushed out the room. “Nothing.”

              I headed upstairs to gather my weapons. I didn’t know if Roy was alone or with some of his men. But either way, it didn’t matter. I wasn’t going out quietly. No matter what happened, I was going to make sure I got Halle back. And if that meant shooting a few or taking a few, I would get it done.

***

              I gripped the steering wheel as I drove down the deserted road. I couldn’t yet see the twitching lights of the hangar but I knew I was close.

              The abandoned hangar was one of several meeting places we had on rotation. But it was Roy’s favorite. It was the most isolated and while still sizeable, it had an intimacy to it. Roy liked this since it allowed him to feel more intimidating in the smaller space.

              How the fuck had he gotten a hold on Halle?

              Roy had said absolutely nothing about her after the Juarez deal. Given his lack of concern or even interest in her whereabouts, I just assumed that he had figured her dead. And that worked in everyone’s favor, especially Halle’s.

              But clearly, he had somehow figured out she was alive and still in town. Why the fuck wouldn’t the FBI take her out of LA? Shouldn’t she have been put in some kind of witness protection program?

              I turned off into a dirt road and felt my car jerk and tumble over the rough terrain.

              Quickly, I scanned my brain to make sure everything was taken care of. I had made sure that in the event of my death, which had always seemed imminent, that everything worth having would be transferred over to Jamie. It was a morbid thought but a necessary one. I didn’t know what I would find in that hangar. And I definitely didn’t know how I would get back out.

              A dark thought flashed through my mind.

              If I were to find Halle…already dead….

              I gave my head a rough jerk.
No.
That wouldn’t happen. Roy needed her for some reason. He obviously knew what she meant to me. But the question was, what was he planning to do with that information? How was he going to use Halle?

              Finally I saw the orange-yellow flickering orbs in the distance. The hangar.

              I was getting close.

              I slowed down as I neared. I could make out Roy’s Range Rover. I didn’t see any guards posted around it or near the back entrance. Maybe his men were inside with him.

              I parked the car a few feet away from the Rover and killed the ignition. Taking in a deep breath, I pulled out my gun to make sure it was loaded and primed.

              Reaching down towards my ankles, I felt the two knives strapped there. If it came to the point where I was relying on my knives, I knew then that I was fucked. But you go out with a roar. And I planned on fighting till the end.

              But of course, the ideal situation would be pulling both Halle and myself out of here for good.

              But ideals don’t always happen. At least, not around people like us.

              I stepped out of the car. Adrenaline was already coursing through my veins. Through experience, I carefully channeled that crackling live wire energy towards my extremities, keeping my body focused and alert.

              I reached for the back entrance doorknob. Taking in a deep breath, I pulled it open and walked towards fate.