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Brody shook his head, motioning to his ear. “We’ve never met in person.”
I nodded, realizing that Harry must have been on coms during my rescue, which wasn’t typical, but considering I was the one they were coming to get, it made sense.
“Well,” I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear, “I suppose we better get this done and over with.”
Chapter 29
Alessia
Istayedquietinthe car, partly because I wasn’t sure what to say and partly because I was beyond exhausted. Brody, Gideon, Keene, and I were in Uncle Harry’s SUV, with Boone, Royce, and Matteo following behind. The silence was tense, with Keene and Gideon wordlessly communicating in a way that never failed to annoy me. Brody seemed oblivious to their byplay, but I knew better. Ignoring them, he moved his hand to grasp mine, rubbing my knuckles gently in a soothing massage. I left my hand in his, enjoying the sensation his touch provoked. My fingers had finally stopped tingling an hour before, but my nerve endings fired up again for a whole other reason.
When we turned into A.T.’s parking lot, I squeezed Brody’s hand before letting it go, unfastening my seat belt and jumping out without waiting for Gideon to open my door. A few days ago, I would have been dreading what was about to happen, but now, I just wanted to get it over with.
Brody split off from our group as we headed to the conference room. Everyone left the chair next to me open, leaving Matteo and me on one side of the conference table and my brothers on the other. Uncle Harry sat between us, pulling out a jammer so that we could talk freely, and I couldn’t help but feel like he thought he could mediate this to a peaceful resolution. If everyone thought I would behave myself how I had at Sunday dinner, they had another thing coming. I hadn’t done anything wrong. And yes, while lying to my family wasn’t exactly right, protecting your cover for the sake of everyone’s safety was the only option.
“I amnotgoing to apologize.” I wanted that on the record immediately.
“For what, exactly?” Boone asked, his attitude hot and scathing.
“Boone—” Royce started, but our brother cut him off.
“No, I want her to answer. Is shenotsorry for lying to us for all these years? For letting us believe she was someone she wasn’t? Or maybe because now we have to deal with knowing that our sister is a cold-blooded killer.”
Brody came back just in time to hear Boone’s tirade, holding a tray of bottled water and a mug. Setting the tray down, he set the mug of coffee in front of me before turning to Boone. “Your sister might not owe you an apology, but she sure as hell deserves one from you with that comment. Do you think Alessia’s the only Accardi who has killed for her country?”
I swallowed hard. I hadn’t looked into my brothers’ pasts, although I could have. It felt like an invasion of privacy to know about that part of their lives when they could not know mine, but I knew at least one of them had seen action. Raiders weren’t the kind of soldiers who spent their entire enlistment on a nice safe base. Boone scoffed but looked over to see Gideon and Keene staring studiously at the wall behind me. Even Royce looked uneasy at Boone’s words.
My voice came out shakier this time, quieter than I was a moment ago, but just as certain. “I will not apologize for doing what I do. I made my choice a long time ago, and at a point in my life where I felt it was the only way to stay true to me. My oath required that I keep my career to myself—something I know every one of you understands as you have all done things while enlisted you cannot discuss. I’m not sorry you feel this information came out of the left field because it means I did my job correctly. If those closest to me had no idea what I was involved in, what I am capable of, then the outside world doesn’t either.” I glanced at Brody. “Though I’m not sure if I can be as certain about that anymore,” I half grumbled, feeling his silent amusement.
He set the tray of waters at the center of the table, then moved his chair closer next to me before sitting down. Matteo reached for a bottle, as did Gideon and Keene.
“Don’t feel put out, sweetheart. You have to admit, my PSO duties put me closer to you than the average person. And I came into this not knowing who you were, so I didn’t have any preconceived notions when it came to you.”
I raised an eyebrow. “My encounter with Mike-the-asshole was that impressive, huh?”
He grinned down at me. “It made an impression, that’s for sure.”
I snorted. “You just think it’s sexy that I can take you down without breaking a sweat.”
“I’d like to see you try, darlin’.” His slow, sexy smile made me want to flush.
Gideon cleared his throat, bringing my attention back to the rest of the room. “Our feelings about this are individual and not something I think we’re ready to tackle right now. Each of us needs time to process what we’ve learned today, and now is not the time to address this.” He turned to Uncle Harry. “What I would like to know is how or if this kidnapping changes anything for her regarding her and our family’s safety. And what this means for us from this point forward.” He looked at me for the first time since we’d sat down. “Were you targeted because you were the perceived weak link of the Accardi family, because your cover was blown, or because of an obsessed fan? If someone kidnapped you because of us, we need to know.”
It was Matteo’s turn to speak up, looking sideways at me as he did so. “The situation had nothing to do with the Accardi family, and Alessia’s cover is still intact, should she decide to continue to work in the field.”
Gideon nodded. “Good enough.”
“That’s it?” Boone asked incredulously. “She puts us through hell, lies to us for years, and that’s all you’re going to say?”
He looked over at our youngest brother. “As I said before, we all have different thoughts about this. We all need to take time to think about how we’re feeling and get past the point of just wanting to react before talking to Alessia one-on-one. Until then, as far as I’m concerned, that’s all we need to know.”
Uncle Harry waited for a beat, making sure no one else had something to say before turning to me. “That might be all your brothers need, my dear, but I’m afraid we still have one last important matter to discuss.”
I looked at my brothers, unsure why we weren’t having the conversation in private. Uncle Harry nodded to Matteo as he continued, “Matteo has already informed me about pulling back as your in-field partner to be replaced by Mr. McCallister.” I could see the hint of amusement in his eye. “However, I know you’ve also been contemplating a change. Your advanced age—for a model, anyway—as well as a growing discontentment in your current role are all reasons to think about your career.”
None of what he said was a surprise. Ignoring the whole left side of the room made up of my male relatives, he pressed on. “Our organization has been in talks with Accardi Tactical,” his eyes flickered to Gideon, “regarding the hiring of someone with a more … private … skill set for the express purpose of teaching advanced classes for back-door or prospective back-door operatives within differing levels within the United States. An individual who, on paper, would blend in with the rest of the staff typically hired by A.T.”
I felt my pulse tick up a notch, unable to stop myself from leaning forward in interest. Three of my brothers looked slightly surprised as they made the connection, but Gideon stared at Brody with an unreadable expression. If I didn’t know better, I would think he was ignoring the conversation, but I knew my brother enough to know that, if pressed, he could recite our uncle’s words verbatim.
