When they finally broke apart, breathless, Ike stared into her eyes. "You disappeared. I didn’t know when I’d see you again. If … I’d see you again.”
"I told you I'd be a distraction," she whispered, but her fingers were still curled around the belt loops of his shorts, keeping him close. "You need to focus."
"I am focused." His voice was rougher than he intended. “The key from the memorial is to a safe deposit box at Mountain Kingdom Bank in Lesotho.”
She didn't look surprised. Of course, she wouldn't.
"And?" she prompted.
"And I'm heading there once the only pilot I trust gets out of this jam he’s in." He studied her face.
“Lachlan …” she nodded.
"What do you know that I don't, Ava? Why Lesotho?"
A shadow passed behind her eyes. "Your father had dealings there.”
"What kind of dealings?”
She stepped back slightly. “Ones that put a target on his back. The kind of things that get planes shot out of the sky. Get the safe deposit box, Ike. The answers are there.”
"Come with me," he said, taking her hand. “Help me get to the bottom of this. Stop fucking disappearing on me. I need you.”
Her smile was bittersweet. "Not yet. I have my own path to follow. But you haven’t seen the last of me.”
“Ava, don’t go.” Ike hated the pleading in his voice. The raw, primal desire coursed through him for this woman. The desperation to keep her close. To have her with him. Always. “I want you with me.”
Tucker barked suddenly, drawing their attention toward the compound—a truck Ike didn’t recognize pulled into the front parking lot.
"I have to go," she said, squeezing his hand. "Be careful, Ike. Not everyone around you is who they claim to be."
Before he could respond, she was jogging away, her form quickly disappearing among the trees. Ike watched until she vanished, the scent of jasmine fading on the breeze. Then, with a low whistle to Tucker, he continued down the path toward the compound.
As he approached the outer perimeter, Ike slowed, scanning for the security cameras he knew were positioned throughout the grounds. There weren’t many blind spots, but he knew them all as well as the few seconds they’d exist before an overlapping security measure would close them off. He'd designed the system himself, after all. He circled to the east entrance, where the kitchen delivery door would provide cover, obscuring his position from the parking lot. As he moved closer, voices carried on the morning air. Ike froze, pressing his back against the building.
"—just need to know where they're looking, Remi." The male voice was familiar, sending a chill down Ike's spine. "If Quattro has him, time is critical. The joint PIIB-PISCO task force I’m leading could be instrumental in bringing him home.”
“If I had any details, I’d tell you, Wesley. I’m sure they’d welcome your help since you fought side by side with Ike on all those PISCO missions. But they didn’t give me any. All I know is that Bobby got a new lead from the work he did overnight, and they all left before dawn this morning to see if they could find Lachlan and Britt.” Remi's voice sounded tired, worried.
Why the hell was Wesley Thomas here?
“Britt?” Wesley pressed. “You mean Britt Freeman? She's alive? You’ve seen her?”
Ike cursed under his breath. The last thing they wanted was for the PISCOs and the PIIB to find out about Britt. It would only complicate matters until they could eliminate the Quattro threat.
"Yes, it's true," Remi confirmed. “The team found her a couple of weeks ago. She has amnesia. Doesn’t remember her old life yet, but the DNA tests confirmed it’s her. It’s a miracle. But now, because of me, she went off to find Lachlan, too, and hasn’t come back. I never should’ve helped her take off on her own. She wouldn’t be missing if I’d convinced her to stay put until the guys returned. It’s my fault that Paloma is missing both of her parents.”
“Both her parents,” Wesley repeated.
Ike cringed. More information Remi had no clue she shouldn’t be sharing.
“And the child? Where's Lachlan's daughter now?"
Something in Wesley's tone set Ike's nerves on edge. Why would he care about Paloma's whereabouts?
"She's inside with me," Remi answered, hesitation creeping into her voice. "I'm watching her until the team gets back."
"Poor thing must be frightened," Wesley said, his voice dripping with false concern.
