Page 72 of Palace of Betrayal

“Exactly, but we can.”

“What else? Because I know there’s something.”

“Pax found evidence that might link this auction to one five years ago. It wasn’t traced to The Collector back then, but it now looks like it might have been. Do you remember when the CIA asked for help because three of their black sites had been compromised and they suspected an insider was leaking the details?”

Bebe’s jaw tightened. “Yes, the one where Laverne nearly got killed by a damn missile strike from a rogue officer.”

“Yes. Well, it looks like the officer in question wasn’t just leaking information, he was giving the details to The Collector who then auctioned them. Unfortunately, that officer died before he could be questioned, which in itself is suspect.”

“How does it link to The Collector?” Bebe glanced at Leo who was leaning forward, elbows on his knees.

“They were later auctioned off. That was how we managed to find the terror group who bought them. What we didn’t know until Pax checked was that the terror group used two panels from the Amber Room as payment to enter.”

Bebe gaped at Roz. “Are you kidding me? The Amber Room, commissioned by King Frederick I of Prussia and lost after the second world war?”

“One and the same.”

“How do we know?”

“Two years ago, the terror cell was caught by a drone strike but one of the leaders survived. He told the CIA in exchange for a lighter sentence.”

Bebe paused her pacing and glared at Roz. “Tell me he didn’t get it?”

Roz shook her head. “No, he was killed in a car accident on his way to a black site holding facility.”

Leo rolled his eyes. “Convenient.”

“Exactly.”

Bebe chewed a nail as a thought ping-ponged around her brain, looking for something tangible to hold onto.

Leo stood and came to her, pulling the nail she hadn’t realised she was chewing from her lips. “What is it?”

Her eyes came to him in triumph. “I think The Collector is a woman!”

Roz stepped past Kanan who was watching them all with an intense focus only former spooks had. “What makes you say that?”

“Think about it. Every item is not only collectable but it’s beautiful in a way men don’t always desire. If The Collector was purely after a rare item, you might see other things. I bet if you check back to all the items linked to The Collector, you’ll find they’re gems, art, jewels, and the like.”

Roz nodded. “I’ll get Pax on it right away and have her reach out to her contacts too.”

Roz gripped her hands and smiled. “This is good work, Bebe. I think you’re onto something here. It could change the way we hunt this person down. The psychology of a woman is so different from a man. Luckily for us, we have women hunting her.”

“If I’m right.”

Leo squeezed her hip, bringing her focus to him. “You are, I can feel it.”

Roz glanced at her watch. “You two need to get ready and I need to share what we have with the others.”

Bebe nodded, for the first time since this mission began feeling that perhaps they were making some headway.

Twenty-Seven

Leo took a step back when Bebe entered the room. Her blonde wig styled in loose waves mimicked Chelsea so much it was disconcerting. Her beautiful brown eyes which he loved were now blue from contacts. She wore a long navy gown with a sequined bodice revealing the creamy tops of her breasts, the satin skirt fitted to her hips with a split up the side. He guessed it was in case she needed to move quickly. She had navy satin heels on her feet which, he was sure after seeing her array of weapons, probably had a blade in the heel. She was breathtaking, and yet, he hated it. He wanted her, not this horrible facsimile of a woman he now hated.

“I know it’s hard, but this will be over soon. I promise no more dressing up. Unless you want me to, that is.” She winked and he saw his Bebe, hidden inside the disguise, her full lips a deep berry red. She was trying to distract him, and it was working.

He led her to the long limousine that would drive them to the venue and held her hand as she stepped inside. Leo followed and caught Kanan’s eye in the mirror. He’d be driving them while Roz, Alex, Evelyn, and Brody set up as close as they could get to the psych hospital.