The Mercenary (15 page)

She scraped her nails down his back, lingering at the scar on his hip. Her fingers moved over it and she remembered the stories he’d told her about his scarred body and the sacrifices he’d made to live his life by his own code. She looked into his gray eyes, which were anything but cold right now. She skimmed her hand around his hip to his cock, taking it in her hand and stroking him from base to tip.

She circled her finger over the tip at the end of each upstroke. Bracing himself with his arm, he levered up to give her greater access to his body. She loved the way he responded so openly to her caresses. He made love to her like she was the only woman in the world he wanted.

She skimmed her fingers into her own wetness and rubbed it on his erection. She kept caressing him until she felt a spurt of moisture at the tip of his cock. She caught it with her fingers, drawing her hand up to her mouth and licking her finger.

He bent down and opened his mouth over hers. Their tongues tangled, the mingled taste of both of their bodies in her mouth. He lowered himself over her again.

He continued his downward journey on her body, skimming his lips over her ribs and then tracing the line of each one with his tongue.

She couldn’t get enough of him, though she’d never say it out loud. He made her feel so wonderfully safe. Like she was the most beautiful woman in the world. Like she had no flaws and was perfect the way she was. Not anyone else’s version of perfect, just the perfect Olivia.

He lingered over her belly button, glancing up at her over the length of her body. She swallowed hard and pulled him back up over. She reached out blindly for the condom packet on the nightstand and grabbed one, tearing it open and fitting it over him in one smooth motion.

He tested her with his fingers and then shifted his hips and entered her in one smooth movement. She held on to his hips, urging him to be still when he would have started thrusting. Their gazes met and held and she took a deep breath, so that the mingled scents of their skin and sex were embedded deep in her senses as he made love to her for the last time. She never wanted to forget this moment, she thought.

The softness of the mattress beneath her back and the hardness of his body over hers. When he started to thrust she lifted her hips to meet his. Slid her hand down between their bodies and caressed his balls with her fingers. Then slipped her hand a little lower, pressing on his perineum. His hips jerked harder against her. He reached down, pulling her hand away from him.

He pushed her legs back against her own body to give him greater access to her. His thrusts were fiercer now and she couldn’t do anything but hold on to his hips and let the feelings he generated wash over her.

Every nerve in her body convulsed as her orgasm raced through her. He only grunted her name and changed the angle of his penetration, riding her hard through her climax until she felt it build again. It was too much. She couldn’t do it again. She wanted to slide down on the bed and close her eyes, but he was relentless, using his cock, his mouth, his hands to build her once again toward the pinnacle and this time following her over.

Her orgasm was even more intense than the first. He called her name as he emptied himself into her, collapsing against her chest. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, one hand in his hair as he rested his face between her breasts. His breath sawed in and out of his open mouth, warming her chest and sending goose bumps all over her highly sensitive skin.

He glanced up at her and she tried to close her eyes and look away. Tried to give herself a place to hide. But she knew it was too late for that.

He cupped her face in his hands and kissed her with exquisite tenderness that rocked her body and soul. She clung to him even though she didn’t want to. She held him closer to her, wrapping her arms and legs around his body as the sweat dried on his back.

They both got up and dressed in silence, not saying anything until Olivia realized that if she let him, he’d leave without a word.

And that was the last thing she wanted. She hadn’t told him that she loved him and that she wanted to figure out a way to have a life with him once they were both out of this mess.

This mess…

This was her life. She was going to be starting over from scratch and she realized that she wanted to start over with Kirk, but that wasn’t going to happen. How was she going to survive without him? They were sending her back to London to meet her parents, but she didn’t want to go. She was afraid to leave this house in South Africa.

But she had no idea if Kirk wanted a life with her. Had he been interested in her for anything other than sex?

She’d like to hope so, but it was hard to tell. Because they had been thrown together in this situation. This life where nothing was real and tension and adrenaline were the only things she could count on.

She went to the hallway, but it was empty. She needed to talk to Kirk one more time, but she knew all of a sudden that she wasn’t going to get that chance.

And she wanted to cry. She felt a bit like a coward for letting him slip away like that.

When was she going to be able to let go of her fears and trust a man again? She didn’t care about any other man except for Kirk. She needed to be able to trust him, because he already owned her heart.

A
UGUST
5, J
OHANNESBURG
I
NTERNATIONAL
A
IRPORT

R
ay was beyond pissed off when he saw Phillip, Lars, and two uniformed Cullinan police officers walk into his office. This wasn’t the way the diamond consortium had been rumored to handle illegal activities.

“Mr. Lambert is very busy,” Anita was saying, trying to keep the men out of his office.

“I’ll have to ask you to leave,” Burati said, standing up and blocking the door.

“What is going on here?” Ray asked Lars.

“We have evidence that you have been working two abandoned mine shafts after hours,” Lars said. “It’s not what we wanted to do, but you know that the system is in place and we have to follow our own rules.”

Ray nodded. He had thought over the last few days that Lars had started to side with him. “I didn’t condone any mining in those shafts.”

“I’m sorry, Ray, but we have voice and video recordings of you doing so,” Phillip said. “Officers, please arrest him.”

The officers moved forward to do so and Ray felt his temper boil over. Just who the hell did Phillip think he was? Lars was the company man who’d gone over to the consortium. Lars was the only one he had to answer to.

Ray looked directly at the other man. “Don’t do this.”

“My hands are tied. I’m afraid Phillip and the other board members have decided on this course of action.”

At least that told Ray where this was coming from. “Phillip, I know you are upset because your cousin is missing—

“It’s more than that. There have been rumors about you for years—about the way you have used and abused your workers. We are trying to be a more internationally aware organization and we can’t be when men like you are in charge.”

“Men like me? You mean men who can run an organization and turn a profit?” Ray asked.

Phillip walked over to him and leaned over the desk. “No, I mean men who still think that they are some sort of demigod instead of realizing they are simply managing directors.”

The officers stepped around his desk on either side, and Ray shook his head as he stood up. He held his wrists out to the men and he was cuffed. “You will regret this once I’ve talked to my lawyer.”

“If you can prove otherwise—that you aren’t the man I believe you to be—then I will apologize,” Phillip said.

“Is this about Olivia? I told you I know nothing about her disappearance,” Ray said.

“We have evidence that you tried to kidnap her. She is in the hands of someone who has protected her until you are in jail.”

Ray was led out of his office past workers who seemed stunned. He was humiliated and upset. And as he was force-marched down to the police car, he realized there was one person to blame for this mess.

Olivia.

If she hadn’t disappeared, then Phillip wouldn’t have come here and paid so much attention to everything.

As soon as he was in the car with the men Ray started talking to them, offering them money and anything else they wanted. It was the money that did it. They drove him to his house in Sandton instead of to the station and he paid the men handsomely for their decision.

He would go to the airport and get out of the country. He called Monte, who had taken care of all his transactions involving illegal uncut diamonds.

“What can I do for you today?”

“I need a new identity and new money. I have to get out of Jo’burg tonight.”

“I will see what I can do, but it will cost you.”

“I have money,” Ray said. That was the one thing he did have. Beyond the Swiss account that Olivia had taken the bankbook for. He really wanted to get his hands on Olivia. He was lucky that the men at the police department had been bribable. But he knew that the government authorities wouldn’t be as easy as the local cops had been.

For a moment he wondered if he should just leave South Africa and not deal with Olivia. But she’d cost him. It turned out she’d cost him everything and that kind of action had to be dealt with. So he would make her pay.

Olivia walked through the crowded airport, feeling a profound sense of shock that everything had changed so much in five short days. She couldn’t believe she was back at the airport, this time without Kirk.

Savage and Anna had gone with her to the ticket counter, but everyone seemed to be of the same mind-set, that there was nothing more to worry about. She felt a sense of relief as she collected her ticket and then stepped away from the desk to find Anna. Kirk and Savage were standing in an open area not too far away and they looked out of place.

She bumped into a man as she turned. He was taller than she was and his cologne was familiar. She glanced up with a smile on her face, thinking it must be someone she knew, and was shocked to realize it was Ray.

She screamed and tried to pull away from him, but he held her arm tightly in his grip. “Don’t make a scene, darling.”

She opened her mouth to scream again, but he brought his mouth down on top of hers before she could make a sound. She tried struggling and pulling away from him, but he kept her close and fast.

She tried to bite his lip or tongue, but he brought his free hand up to her neck and squeezed threateningly. He lifted his mouth from hers. “Don’t make me hurt you, Olivia. If you come with me, the man who took you will live.”

“What man?”

“Kirk, I believe his name is,” Ray said.

She glanced around the airport lobby area and saw Kirk and Savage both running toward her.

Ray saw them, too, and dragged her through the crowds into a large tour group. She looked back, but she couldn’t see anyone. Not Anna or Savage or Kirk or any of the other guys from the Savage Seven.

“I thought you were going to be arrested,” she said.

“Not yet, darling,” he said, leading her toward the exit.

Olivia knew she had to stall, had to slow Ray down, and Kirk would rescue her. “Let me go, Ray.”

He stopped and took her chin in his hand. “No. You owe me, Olivia. And you are going to pay.”

“I owe you? Burati tried to kill me. No doubt on your orders. Since you would have when I drove by you if my car didn’t have bulletproof glass.”

“Very true.”

“Did you ask me to bring the envelope out there so you could do that?”

“No,” he said. “It is unfortunate that Thomas was caught that day. I was looking forward to our marriage, Olivia.”

“Why?”

“I like you,” he said.

She doubted that. “How could you kill me, then?”

“You are one of those people who can’t look the other way when there is something wrong, and I had no choice but to get rid of you. My business depends on it.”

“Your business?” she asked. “Ray, you make a very good living as a managing director.”

“It wasn’t enough. But that doesn’t matter now. I’m on the run, thanks to you, and I’ve decided that your family will pay ransom for you.”

“Why? Why not just make a run for it?” she asked. “I’ll give you all the money I have.”

“It’s not enough. I’m going to have to start over from scratch.”

“What are you doing with me?”

He led her out into the hot afternoon sun and across the parking lot to the parking garage. She struggled, but now that they were away from other people he simply punched her in the stomach, which made pain explode in her body. She stopped struggling.

As they approached Ray’s car, a tall black man walked toward them. He took Olivia’s hands from Ray and held her in tightly. “What are we going to do with her?”

“Put her in the trunk. Tie her hands and make sure that she can’t escape.”

“Please don’t do this, Ray. I will give you whatever money you need. Just leave me here.”

“It’s too late to use that account. Your cousin Phillip had the account frozen. I have nothing left, Olivia.”

“Yes, you do. Don’t think like that,” she said, digging her feet and trying to pull free.

“Stop it. Or I’ll break your wrists.”

“Please don’t do that,” she said.

“Shut her up, someone is coming,” Ray said. Olivia felt the black man’s hand on her neck and then she slowly lost consciousness.

Olivia woke with a start. Dull pain throbbed at the base of her neck and her stomach felt like one big bruise. She heard nothing but the loud sound of a ticking clock and the shuffle of footsteps over the cement pavement.

She opened her eyes as little as possible, trying to figure out the best way to take control of her current situation. Her hands were bound behind her back and she tried working at the thick stiff bindings. And she was on the floor of a car. It felt smooth on one side, rough on the other. Maybe a leather belt?

Her feet were bound, and a handkerchief was stuffed in her mouth. She worked her jaw carefully, using her tongue to push the cloth out of her mouth. Her head ached bad enough that she could hear her own racing heartbeat echoing in her head.

She couldn’t wait around to be rescued. No one knew she’d been taken. She was scared and afraid and had no idea what to do next. Especially since she knew time was running out. She’d figure this out.

She steadily worked her hands against their bonds, knowing that nothing other than slow and steady movements would work to free her.

Olivia pushed herself into a sitting position. And felt her stomach rebel.

“Good. You’re awake.”

Startled, she brought her face around to the left and for the first time noticed the man sitting there. He was the big black man who’d taken her from Ray. He had on chinos and a plaid button-down shirt.

She tried to speak, but felt bile well up in her throat and she turned away, throwing up. She shook and felt moisture on her face. The man didn’t move, just sat there staring at her. She wiped her face on her shoulders.

The front door opened and Ray got in the car. “I don’t think I was followed. Is she awake?”

“Yes, I am. Let me go, Ray. This is just silly. If the diamond consortium knows you’ve been stealing from them, you know they won’t let you get away with it.”

“That’s why I have you, Olivia. You are my insurance policy.”

“Get up front, Taji,” Ray said. “I don’t want anyone thinking I’m your driver.”

Taji opened the door and Olivia heard the sound of footsteps. She dragged herself toward the open door and stuck her head out the opening.

“Help me!” she screamed. “Please help!”

Taji lifted his foot and she was afraid he was going to kick her in the head. She dug her feet into the floor of the car and pushed with all her might. She hit the pavement hard as she spilled out of the car. Taji grabbed her and held her in front of his body.

He kept his hand over her mouth, strangling her cries. She heard Ray start to run and then felt the man behind her flinch and a splatter of blood hit the side of her face.

She felt like she was going to pass out as the man crumpled at her feet. His eyes were wide open, but he was dead from a bullet in the head.

She looked around, but Ray was in his car. He fired his own weapon out the window in the direction the shot had come from as he drove by.

Olivia was shaking and alone as she saw the silhouette of a man walking toward her. He held a long rifle type gun in his right hand and he moved in a way that was achingly familiar to her.

That confident walk and long stride belonged to only one man. “Kirk.”

She started running toward him, and he caught her up with one hand. She noticed the rest of the Savage Seven were behind them. The men she’d last seen relaxed and smiling were serious now, deadly serious as they bagged the body of the man who’d held her.

Wenz gave her an antiseptic wipe and she used it to clean the blood from her own face. Kirk hadn’t said anything to her and that was fine. She’d realized when she’d looked in his eyes that he wasn’t going to walk away from her again. Or, rather, she wasn’t going to let him.

She needed him and there was noplace in the world she’d ever feel safe without having him by her side.

“How did Ray find me?” she asked Savage.

“He bribed the arresting officer and escaped.”

“He’s crazy now. He feels like he has nothing left to lose.”

“Oh, but he does,” Kirk said.

“What?” she asked, chilled by his monotone voice. This was the man she loved but he wasn’t acting like she had expected him to. She could tell that he’d changed, and she had no idea what had caused the change in him.

She looked over at him, hoping that eye contact would show her Kirk’s gentler side, but he wasn’t in the mood to soothe her fears right now. He was in full-out warrior mode, she realized.

“His life.”

Burati waited until after the cops had taken Ray away and Lars had left to talk freely to Phillip.

“I’m not sure that was the best idea,” Burati said. “He still has connections in the police force.”

“I know that. But we had to make a move on him. He was almost impossible to frame here. Now he’ll either go to jail and stay there or break the law in such a way that we can take care of him.”

Burati realized that the diamond consortium wasn’t going to allow Ray Lambert to simply go to jail for his crimes. They wanted him to pay and with his entire life.

“What should I do?”

“For now, get to the station and try to get him released. It’s important he still believe you are loyal to him.”

Burati left the offices a bit shaken. He’d thought he was working for the better of two men, but now he was coming to realize he worked for the lesser of two evils. And that was hard to stomach.

His mobile beeped and he glanced down at the text screen. Ray was free of the cops already.

Burati had seen the anger in the other man’s face and knew that Lambert’s first course of action would be to get new papers and to take care of Olivia. Over the last day and a half, Lambert had started talking about how she was the one thing that had cost him everything.

Without a second thought, Burati dialed Kirk Mann’s mobile.

“Mann here.”

“It’s Burati. I’m not with Lambert, so I can’t be certain, but I know he is going to the airport. Make sure Olivia isn’t there.”

“What? How did he get away from the cops?”