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nce he has time to meet with me. He knows who put the money there, and it has nothing to do with my brother,” she said firmly, but she felt even more guilty and low. She owed that to Corona.
Cramer looked her body over. “It came from the men who were watching over you. That’s a lot of fucking money. I’ve started an investigation into them, as well.” The way he looked at her made her feel just as much like whore trash as Corona’s payoff did. Cramer had a reputation of being crazy and intense, never mind a bit promiscuous himself. Yet, Viktor trusted him enough to run investigations like this, which involved what could become controversial for the Russian family. They cut ties fast around here, and Nina wondered when Viktor would stop helping her and just toss her away.
“Do whatever you need to do. I’ve got nothing to hide, and like I said, that money from Corona to me was a mistake. One that will be resolved by Viktor.”
He took a deep breath and then looked around them. Then he held her gaze. “Nina, these Cubans are bad news. Your brother was murdered and caught up in the middle of this shit. If they don’t get back what Zinc took from them, they will come after you next.”
Nina felt like throwing up.
“Someone has to be able to contact the Cubans and ask the bosses what went down and what was taken. I know Karlicov and other members talk to other bosses. I’m not stupid, Cramer. Obviously you’ve done your homework and you know what type of life I had before my brother found me. There has to be a way to find out what this is all about.”
“That’s for the bosses to decide. If they call, they acknowledge it. Therefore, they could try to get our bosses to give in, on some other avenue. It could cause trouble that they’re not willing to involve themselves in over your brother. It’s a big enough deal that Viktor is putting his neck out for you. The higher-ups think he shouldn’t bother, especially since, years ago, a certain Cuban boss wanted you as his woman and you were working at his club.”
Her head was throbbing as she heard his words loud and clear.
“That was years ago, and Viktor and his team took over that club. They saved me from the Cubans, and I never looked back. I don’t know how they got Polo off my ass, and Viktor never told me. I haven’t heard from Polo or anyone in that organization since they tried to kill me that night outside of the club. I am not part of this. I didn’t do anything wrong. I don’t know what else I have to do to make you believe me. Look into whatever you want. Ask me anything. I’ve got nothing to hide. I don’t know what Zinc was thinking.”
Cramer nodded. “I’ll keep digging, maybe find out what was taken and who is looking for it. We’ll take it from there. Meanwhile, watch your back. These men won’t think twice about interrogating you themselves—and in their own way.”
Nina watched Cramer leave the club. She needed to figure things out quickly. One look at Mirella giving her the evil eye and she headed back to work. She needed to talk to Viktor. Then, she needed to figure out what Zinc was involved in (and how the hell she was going to fix it) in order to get everyone off her ass. Her world was falling apart, and everyone’s lack of trust just showed her how unimportant she was, even to the men she’d given her heart and soul to. Could she wind up back under Polo’s control? Would Viktor and the family send her that way to be rid of the trouble Zinc caused them? The trouble that they now associated with her, too? Trepidation filled her soul at the possibility. She wouldn’t be Polo’s whore. She wouldn’t be anyone’s whore. She’d made a mistake trusting Corona and the team. Nina wouldn’t make the mistake of trusting any other men again. She was on her own, and now she had to start thinking like a survivor again.
* * * *
“Jessup? Are you fucking paying attention?” Atlanta called to him through the radio. He jerked at the sound of Atlanta’s voice, then held the gun steady and looked through the scope again.
“It’s still all clear,” he whispered into the mic. He was lying down low in the overgrown grass, some heavy bushes and the camouflage he wore as his only cover to keep him hidden. Jessup was finding it hard to concentrate. The past two weeks, it had been the same thing. As soon as he was out here, keeping watch, waiting for this asshole arms dealer to show his face, his mind would drift back to Salvation and, of course, to Nina.
He couldn’t help it. He was different in so many ways. Since the last mission, before being asked to watch over Nina, he’d felt different. He’d been shot twice and nearly died. He was aggressive, angry, and mean, yet, somehow, Nina and her sweetness, her willingness to open her heart and help him, actually did more than that. She touched all their lives. She changed each of them.
Atlanta had been more of a prick than usual. He was all business, just like Corona. Freeman looked lost in thought several times and even fucked up the first coordinates during the practice run they’d done a few days ago. Freeman never fucked that shit up.
Jessup inhaled the smell of sweat and dirt, and the feel of fear, anticipation, that flowed freely, nearly suffocating his breathing. He used to live for this shit. To take out the bad guys, to remove weapons, drugs, terrorists from potentially making it into the United States and onto the streets. Right now, he couldn’t help but wonder what he could have had with Nina. Sure, she was young, and maybe it wouldn’t have lasted forever, but it would have been worth it. That thought shocked him so much that he grunted and rubbed his eyes before refocusing on the dirt road leading up to the small compound. He just couldn’t get her off his mind.
The sound of an engine approaching brought him back to the present as he forced thoughts of another life, a fairy tale life, from his mind. That was went he saw the convoy of vehicles.
“I got three vehicles approaching. Looks like our targets.”
Jessup swallowed hard. Suddenly, the anticipation and determination to bring down the bad guys was overpowered by fear. The fear he might never see Nina again, never hold her, make love to her, possess her—never mind hear her voice, see her smile, smell her scent. It seemed as if nothing mattered more to him than she did, and he damned himself for the thoughts. Who the fuck was he? What could he give her?
“Jessup!” He heard Atlanta’s hard tone just as the target they needed to eliminate stepped from the vehicle. He was now halfway toward the first small building. There were others behind him, monsters of men that raped, tortured, and killed innocent women and children. They had their orders. Jessup took the shot. Then chaos erupted around him.
* * * *
Nina was exhausted. She tossed and turned all night, her mind on Zinc and what he’d involved himself in and, of course, thoughts of her American soldiers. She snorted as she slowly got out of bed. Her American soldiers? Ha! What fantasy world was she living in? They had left her so easily, and with not even a glance over their shoulders or a sign that it had been hard to leave her, before they entered that warehouse.
A nauseous feeling hit her belly. They aren’t my soldiers. They never wanted anything more than sex, and she had accepted that they’d made her feel so good and want so much. The experience had been life altering, and she would never forget it, or them. As she stood up, her belly ached a little more, and she felt a little crampy.
“Just what I need, my period to come and make my mood swings worse.”
She noted that she had been pretty on edge and testy the last few days, but considering that she was now a suspect in whatever Zinc had involved himself in, and Mirella was a thorn in her side trying to make her miserable and blame shit on her she’d never, no wonder she was testy.
She walked into the bathroom, but before she got there, the nausea increased. She knew she was going to throw up, and she just barely made it to the toilet.
“Great. A stomach virus. Just my luck.” She rose up slowly, feeling much better, but she rinsed her mouth and then looked into the mirror. She looked terrible. The last thing she needed was to get some virus and miss more work.
She reached for the cabinet, prepared to take her birth control pills and the vitamins she liked to take. Maybe some vitamin C would help? Tea and honey, once she made it to the kitchen? The thought of taking the pills made her stomach churn. She opened the case and looked down. Her heart began to pound. She was already two weeks into a new box of birth control pills.
“No. Oh, God, no.” Nina panicked and looked into the bathroom garbage. She lifted it and turned all the contents onto the floor. She fell to her knees and reached for the case of pills she’d finished, in a blur, more than a week ago. She opened it and covered her mouth. The sugar pills were all gone. She should have gotten her period already. She closed her eyes and counted back the days when she was in Texas, realizing that she should have gotten her period the week she’d returned from there. But she hadn’t. Oh God, she was always on time. Always. But there were three pills in the old box. How had she missed this? When did she miss taking them?
