Destined for Power (19 page)

Mallory remembered to exhale as she hit the table. The woman fell slightly on top of her, giving her the upper hand. People were screaming, and the screams grew more panicked as the assassin pulled out the knife strapped to her thigh.

Military veterans pushed forward to stop the fight, but as they closed in, the redhead threw the knife. It landed in the leg of one of the soldiers and the others fell back to help him and to protect the civilians.

“Get back,” Mallory called out before the woman straddled her and landed a hard punch to her face. Mallory blinked back the stars and heard the distant shout of her name. It was Reid! Reid was still alive.

Mallory responded by rolling her hips and sending the two of them tumbling off the shattered table and onto the floor. The two women stood up and circled each other. Mallory reached for one of the daggers strapped to her back. With a flip of her wrist, she sent the knife sailing at the woman. The woman lunged to the side and it flew past her, lodging inches away from the wife of a veteran. The veteran pulled his wife to safety and started yelling to everyone to evacuate.

“So, you like knives. Let’s see what you’ve got,” she said as she pulled another knife from her other thigh.

Mallory pulled her last dagger from her back as they circled each other. In a blink, they both lunged.

“Shoot her,” Reid ordered the Secret Service agent.

“They’re moving too much. I can’t get a clear shot. There are civilians all around. I can’t.”

“Reid,” Senator Westin yelled to get his attention. “Are you telling me that girl with the black hair is my daughter?”

“Yes, now get somewhere safe,” Reid ordered as he pulled his gun from the small of his back.

“Like hell.” Westin shoved off his security and rushed across the stage.

“Who hired the assassination?” the old man yelled at Liam. Bowie was the old man.

“Diplomatic immunity. You can’t touch me,” Liam said with a haughtiness that implied he thought he could walk out of there with no consequences.

Reid staggered forward, ignoring the sharp pain in his back. He stopped in front of Liam and raised the gun. Bowie’s surprise was evident even through the heavy makeup. “Who hired her?”

“I have diplomatic immunity.”

“Ah, but I’m not a government agent. I am a private citizen and don’t give a shit about your immunity.” Reid lowered the gun and pressed it against Liam’s thigh. “Tell me now or I shoot you. The next time you don’t answer, I will shoot higher.”

Bowie struggled to keep back the prince’s security back as Reid put his finger on the trigger. The sound of blades crashing against each other in a deadly battle drew Reid’s attention, and it cost him.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Mallory sliced through the air, and the redhead blocked. Their blades slid along each other before being pulled away. It was a deadly, beautiful dance they shared—lunging, slicing, and spinning as they fought. The world fell away until it was just the two of them.

The assassin stabbed and then spun the other way. Her hair whipped into Mallory’s face, causing a second of blindness. It was all the woman needed. Mallory felt the knife pierce the skin of her hand and dropped her dagger. A four-inch gash ran across her hand, but luckily she could still move her fingers.

“Sorry about that, honey.” The assassin smiled with pure joy.

Mallory felt her training slip, and her emotions burst to the surface. She closed the short distance between them and slammed her head into the woman’s nose. The impact of the hit sent both women stumbling back. Mallory felt her fake nose and wig slip from position. She reached up and tore off the wig and props. She stared in surprise as the assassin’s red hair lay on the ground. Instead of being a redhead, the woman was a bottle blond. They looked up at each other and blinked.

“Mallory, it is you.”

“Tilley, darling. Fab seeing you again,” Mallory said with ice in her veins as she looked at the young party girl. Mallory reached for her shoulder harness and unhooked the tomahawk. “Totes sorry we won’t have time to chat.”

Reid felt Liam’s fist slam into his face. His head snapped back, and Liam made a move to bolt. Bowie fired his gun, taking down two of Liam’s guards, leaving two confused Secret Service agents standing there. Reid spun and leveled the gun. He only had a moment before the agents would tackle him. He pulled the trigger and saw Liam stumble as the bullet ripped into the back of his leg.

Mistaking the situation, the agents attacked Reid. The punch to Reid’s stomach made him fall to his knees, and another agent tackled him to the ground.

“CIA,” Bowie shouted.

“I command you to stop. They are with me,” Senator Westin yelled, climbing off the stage with a bloody Ambrose leaning on him.

“But, sir . . .”

“No buts. Let them go.”

“Liam—you must stop Liam,” Reid shouted. The prince was limping through the crowd.

“Go,” Westin ordered. The two agents bound from the stage and gave chase.

Bowie grabbed Reid’s arm and hauled him up from the ground. Reid saw his security team organizing the evacuation of the ballroom with the help of the veterans, who provided a wall of bodies protecting the civilians as they filed from the room. He could see Secret Service and CIA moving people into the restaurant. No one would be allowed to leave until this was all settled.

“Dear God,” Senator Westin gasped the moment Mallory head-butted the assassin.

“Holy shit,” Bowie said in shock. “That’s Tilley Vanderfield.”

“And that’s my daughter with a tomahawk. Where did she learn this, and who are you?” Senator Westin demanded.

“This is Bowie, her CIA handler. Your daughter has been a government asset since college,” Reid said, pushing through the ring of veterans and other agents who had formed a large containment circle around the two women.

“With them standing there, we can’t shoot,” Damien cursed as he rushed over to Reid and Bowie. “We grabbed Liam as he was pushing his way through the crowd. My men moved him to a secure armored prisoner transport.”

“Asset? But, but . . ." the senator mumbled.

Reid almost felt bad for Senator Westin as he stared at his daughter. He cringed as Mallory swung the tomahawk at Tilley. Tilley leapt agilely back, and the dance was back on.

Bowie pressed his finger to his ear. “They have Graham and Orson in custody.”

Reid couldn’t move as he watched Mallory. She was beautiful, elegant, and deadly. Was this the same woman he had fallen in love with? Yes, and he’d be damned if he didn’t love her even more as he saw her completely focused on her task.

Tilley blocked a chop and jumped back. Mallory’s weapon was far superior in a close combat situation. Mallory fell to her knees and swung out with her tomahawk when Tilley swiped. She felt it connect with Tilley’s leg before she could jump back. The slice cut off part of her dress and left a deep wound.

Tilley cursed and hobbled backward. Mallory didn’t let up. With singular focus, she advanced and sliced again. Tilley blocked, but barely. She was fading, and Mallory wasn’t feeling sorry for her. She was going to finish this.

“Are you working for Liam or Black?” Mallory asked as she advanced again.

Tilley grunted as she blocked Mallory. Her arms shook as Mallory pressed the tomahawk against her blade. Tilley’s weakness spurred Mallory on.

“Who hired you to assassinate Ambrose and my father?”

“Who said I was to kill them? They’re still alive, aren’t they?”

“It just means I’m better at your job than you are.” Mallory pulled back and swung again. Their blades clanged together and Mallory stepped forward until they were only inches apart. She pushed down on her tomahawk, causing Tilley’s arms to shake where she was holding the knife above her head.

“I want immunity,” Tilley said through clenched teeth.

“How about I just let you live?” Mallory smiled.

Bang
!

Mallory gasped and jumped back in surprise as warm blood splashed across her face and chest. Tilley’s arm went lax, and she dropped her knife a second before crumpling to the floor. An agent grabbed his chest a short distance away as he stumbled backward and cursed. The bullet that had gone through Tilley’s head had also hit an agent protecting the remaining partygoers as they left the room.

Reid and Senator Westin stood side by side as they watched Mallory press her advantage. Mallory swung down with the tomahawk and Tilley blocked. Her arms started to shake, and everyone leaned close to hear what Tilley was going to say. Reid didn’t pay attention to Ambrose pushing forward to hear.

The gunshot caught Reid by surprise as well as the agent whose gun had been taken.

“Mallory! Thank God!” Ambrose dropped the gun he’d taken from the agent he had been leaning against, rushed forward, and wrapped her up in a hug. “It’s okay, you’re safe now.”

Reid and Mallory’s eyes connected, and she looked as bewildered as he did. They were safe. That was what mattered. Mallory pushed Ambrose from her and stared daggers at him.

“You idiot! She was about to tell me who hired her.”

“Well, we know that, right? It was Graham and Orson.”

“You killed the only evidence of it. Now they are going to say they didn’t do it, and we have no one to prove otherwise.”

“I’m so sorry,” Ambrose stuttered. “I was just trying to protect you.”

“We have Liam,” Reid said as he stepped around Ambrose and wrapped her in a hug. “You scared me to death.”

“I thought she had killed you,” Mallory said with a break in her voice. It was hard to keep her feelings bottled up anymore. She leaned forward, buried her face in his chest, and came face to face with his vest. “This is how you are still alive. Smart man."

Cameras flashed and video cameras were pushed forward. Reid cursed but didn’t let go of his hold. Ambrose was already talking to a reporter about how he saved Mallory Westin’s life. Her father came forward and touched her gently on the shoulder.

“He saved my life, dear. That bullet was meant for me, but your man saved me.”

“You saved my father?” Mallory asked as she was pulled away from Reid and into her father’s tight embrace.

“I figured you’d want him around after he apologized to us. You are planning on doing that, aren’t you?” Reid leveled a glare at him. Their eyes met over Mallory’s head, and he gave a soft smile.

“An apology and a whole lot more,” the senator said quietly.

“We need to talk to Liam,” Mallory told them, stepping away from her father. “We’ll talk later.”

Reid saw her mask go back in place as she set her jaw, determination filling her eyes.

“He’s already calling for diplomatic immunity and demanding to be returned to his plane. The trouble is, we’re going to have to let him go. We just got word his father died. Liam is now King of Stromia. There’s no one left to grant us an exception to the immunity. Besides, we don’t have any proof of a crime he’s committed. I’ve been telling him we are holding him for his safety, but soon I will have to let him go,” Damien told them as rejoined the group.

Mallory nodded. “Let him go. Bowie and I have this. Reid, stay here with my father, please. I want to make sure you two are safe. I won’t be gone long.”

“No. I can’t let you go again. You’re finally safe,” Reid said as he grabbed her arm.

“I have to, Reid. This is my last job, and I’m going to see it through.”

“Your last job?” Bowie asked as he came toward them, carrying Tilley’s bag.

“My last job. I have something more important to do with my future,” Mallory winked at Reid. “Come on, Bowie. We've got a job to finish.”

Reid pulled out a handkerchief and dunked it in a crystal water glass at a nearby table before wiping it slowly over Mallory’s face. He didn’t say a word as he cleaned the blood from her face and neck.

When he was finished, he leaned down and kissed her. “Come back to me. We have our whole lives to start living. Together.”

“I can’t wait.”

Mallory strode from the room with Bowie on one side and Damien on the other. She saw Reid escorting her father and Ambrose from the ballroom with television cameras surrounding them. Ambrose was eating it up, while her father looked contemplative. It relieved Mallory to no end to know he wasn’t the one behind this.

“Bowie, get the king’s car. Damien, give me three minutes, and then release him.” Mallory watched as Damien walked over to the windowless box truck Liam was in.

“How do you want to handle this?” Bowie asked.

“Let’s see what I can get from him in the car. Then we’ll have to see. But I’m thinking Plan 32.”

“Ah, good ol’ Plan 32,” Bowie said before taking off for the garage.

Three minutes later, Liam burst from the back of the truck, pushing off the EMT wrapping his bleeding leg. He cursed, he threatened, and he preened as Damien apologized and swore they were just trying to keep him safe.

“Liam,” Mallory called out as she walked over to him. “I’ve ordered your car to be brought around. I think it’s safer for you to go back home. Sadly, we have become too politically unbalanced to guarantee your safety any longer.”

“Mallory? What is this? Who are you?”

“I’m doing a favor for the government. Right now I need to see you to safety. We have the assassin in custody, but we need to get you to your plane.”

“Of course. But, I can’t believe you . . .” Liam looked down at her with surprise.

“It was my job to look after you, Liam. I was to protect you so you may become a strong king with favorable US ties.”

Bowie drove up and stopped the limo. His cap was set low to disguise his face as he opened the door for Liam. Liam didn’t even look at him as he climbed in. Mallory slid onto the seat next to him and grabbed his hand.

“I’m sorry to tell you, Liam. It’s your father. We just got word he passed away thirty minutes ago.”

Liam’s eyes lit. “He did?”

“Yes, you’re the new King of Stromia. No one can touch you now.” Mallory had to force herself not to flinch as his eyes took on an evil, powerful glint.

“Yes. Yes, I am. I am king.” He smiled as he patted his pockets. He found his phone and held it in his hands. He stopped short of dialing. “You have the person in custody? The lady you were fighting with?”

“Yes, but she was able to finish her job. We didn’t stop her in time,” Mallory said sadly.

Liam patted her hand. “I’m sorry we both lost our fathers tonight. But, I know you are like me . . . held under the thumb of a powerful father. It must be a relief to you.”

Mallory swallowed. It was supposed to be her father. The thought sent a chill down her back. “So, Tilley was right. You did know about it.”

Liam looked at her as if she were a child. “Are you really mad at me? I thought you would appreciate being free from him?”

Mallory let out a shaky breath. “I am. I’m just surprised you went through all this trouble for me, especially since I know you were depending on US support when you took the throne.”

“As much as I would like to take credit for it, my dear, I’m afraid I can’t. I did this for just that reason.”

“But, Tilley is saying only you were behind it . . .” Mallory said with confusion. She batted her eyelashes and pushed back her long hair. Liam never thought women were smart enough to compete with him. It’s what surprised her most about his hiring Tilley instead of a man.

“Me? Tilley said it was me?” Liam asked with surprise.

“Yes, she told us it was all your idea.”

“She didn’t even mention Ambrose?” Liam slammed his hand in his fist. “Stupid whore. She spread her legs for him, and now she’s being loyal to him instead of me. She had these grand ideas he would marry her and eventually make her First Lady. Stupid woman. Besides, she’s not my employee. She’s with Black and Jonak.”