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“I could never. I promise.” He reached out and touched the side of her face in the way he always did.
Tears ran down her cheeks as she realized she couldn’t make him the same promise. If it came down to choosing between betraying Gunner and saving her mother, she’d betray him in a heartbeat.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “My mother…”
“Let me help you.”
Raketa shook her head as the tears streamed down her cheeks. “I work alone.”
“You don’t have to. Not anymore. You have me and the rest of the K19 team. You can trust us.”
She shook her head again and put her hand on the doorknob. “I can’t.”
She pulled the door open and was crossing the threshold when Gunner put his hand on her arm. “Stay with me. Don’t go.”
“I wish I could.” She pulled away and walked toward the elevator.
“Wait,” he shouted.
When she looked back, he was scrubbing his face with his hand.
“I know why Petrov wanted you to bring Ava and Aine to him. It’s not the reason you think.”
“Gunner…”
“You’re in the same danger they are. Or maybe it’s that they’re in the same danger you are. He’ll kill all three of you, and I’m sure, your mother too, as soon as he gets his hands on what he wants.”
Raketa slowly walked back toward him. “You said you’d let me go.”
“And I will, but first you need to know what you’re up against.”
—:—
Was he doing this for the right reasons? Gunner couldn’t honestly say one way or the other. All he knew was he couldn’t let her leave without telling her everything he’d learned since the last time they were together. He could say it was for her safety, but if he was being honest, it was so he could spend just a few more minutes with her.
Raketa came back inside the room and sat on the edge of the bed where she’d been before. He pulled up the chair and sat as close to her as he could get.
“There are bank accounts that were set up in all three of your names. He’s running out of money. That’s why he wanted Ava and Aine. I’m convinced that once he gets his hands on it, he would kill you and your half-sisters.”
“Why did you say you think he’ll kill my mother too?”
“There was a fourth account—in her name. It’s already been liquidated. I believe her only value to him now is as a means to get you to do what he wants you to do.”
“Where are Ava and Aine?”
“Somewhere safe.”
Raketa studied him. “You don’t trust me enough to tell me.”
“It isn’t that.” Wasn’t it? Did he have a valid reason for not telling her where they were? “They’re in Oregon. The same place they’ve been. They’re with Razor, and they have a great deal of protection. If we believe their safety has been compromised, they’ll be moved. Although at this point, I don’t know where that would be.”
—:—
Her burner phone buzzed in her pocket. She couldn’t risk answering it in front of Gunner, but what if the person knew she was with him and assumed she’d already told him about the earlier call? Why hadn’t she left before instead of letting him talk her into staying? She may have just signed her own mother’s death warrant.
She stood abruptly. “I have to go.”
“I’ll say it again. Please. Let me help you.”
