Rogue Alliance (18 page)

             
“Pie’s not smooth,” Jason said, jumping into the conversation, “i
t’s chunky and delicious, but not smooth.”

             
Everyone laughed.

             
“Okay, well it’ll be as smooth as something that’s smooth, then.”

             
“How about ice cream? Ice cream is smooth, and creamy.”

             
“Why are we talking about food? Now I’
m hungry,
” Shyla
teased, secretly glad of
the lig
ht banter. It eased the tension. D
espite her speech about this weekend retreat being simple, she was
anything but relaxed about it. She wasn’t really sure what to expect or what she was getting herself into, but she was excited to get closer to Victor’s secret life and criminal activities.

             
“I want you to take this,” Hal said
,
stepping forward. In his hand h
e held a small recording device, “u
se this if at all possible. You never know what kind of information will come up this weekend.”

             
If she wasn’t mistaken, Hal looked a bit worried himself. It touched her to think these guys she had only known for a short time were
so thoughtful about her well-being. In all her time on the force, she had always managed to irritate most and flat out avert the rest. Building a bond or relationship was new. She didn’t know how to feel about it.

             
“Thanks, Hal. Eli had said you
guys were the right ones for this case. I guess he was right. We’re gonna surprise everyone and bust this guy
’
s balls faster than they would have ever imagined.”

             
Another round of laughter bubbled up.

             
“Seriously, though,” Shawn said
,
his expression flattening, “don’
t try to be a hero down there.”

*

             
During the flight to San Francisco, Shyla curled up
in the seat of Victor’s small private plane
and feigned sleep.
It was a short flight, but she wanted to avoid Brennan’s watchful
gaze. Plus, she was hoping
if they thought her asleep, they
might be inclined to speak
freely.

             
Unfortunately, they were fairly quiet, engaging in only casual conversation. There was only one brief moment whic
h caught her attention when
Brennan spoke up.

             
“
What is your plan for her while you have your meeting?”
he asked.

             
Victor cleared his throat.

             
“The meeting will be conducted
on
Sunday
,
after we return from our sail. I want you to
make the rounds while we’re away
, check up on everyone.
We will meet you
back at port
at eleven. The meeting will take place
on board
at noon
while we are docked. It will be brief and to the point. It will not be made i
nto a big deal. You haven’t met
Cougar yet, but he’s the nervous type. He doesn’t like strangers or outsiders.
You’ll have to take Shyla for a walk while I meet with him.”

             
“Cougar? Is that the guy’s real name?”

             
“Do I give a shit, Brennan? No. I don’t. The guy wants to be
called Cougar,
I call him cougar. He
’s one of our best. You think you can handle taking Shyla out for a half-hour at best?”

             
It was interesting how Victor seemed to drop his charm when he thought she wasn’t listening.

             
“Of course,
” Brennan said,
“I
t
’
s just that I’m supposed to keep you safe. I would feel better if I was able to stick around.”

             
“I appreciate your concern. But I trust this guy. I’ve known him a long time. It
’
s not that he wouldn’t try to get one over on me if he tho
ught he could get away with it,
but he knows better than to fuck with me.
Also, like I said before, he gets antsy when there are fresh faces around. A girl like Shyla would give him a heart attack. I mean
,
just look at her. Doesn’t she make your heart race just looking at her, sleeping, vulnerable?”

             
Shyla’s own heart quickened
as she listened to the odd conversation and waited to hear Brennan’s response. There was only a heavy silence.

             
“
You don’t think she’s breathtaking, Brennan?” Victor prodded.

             
“I don’t really look at her like that, I guess.”

             
Shyla detected the lie in Brennan’s voice. She knew he was attracted to her. She could feel it, just as she was oddly
attracted to him. It
was palpable and nearly as strong as their distrust for one anoth
er.
Victor must
have recognized it as well, hence the questions.

             
She
had better rein that in. She needed Victor’s full trust and engagement if she wanted to carry out this investigation.

             
Victor changed the subject to the shooting club. They chatted another few minutes then he
took his seat next to her. She squirmed and yawned. She prepared for landing. It was sure to be bumpy.

*

             
The Shannon was exquisite; a luxurious home built with excellent craftsmanship, furnished with lush furniture, rich in deep reds and gold. It was small but
so comfortable and cozy that one w
ould forget they were
floating at sea.

             
Shyla knew the weekend would pass painfully slow
ly
as she
anxiously awaited Sunday. She was desperate to get a look at this Cougar fellow. And now that she knew she would be unable to stick around for the actual meeting, she was
glad that she had brought the
small rec
ording device. At least that
way, she would be able to hear the exchange later on.
Who knew, maybe it would
lead to the hard evidence they’d been waiting for.

             
Later that
evening, Shyla stood on deck
and watched the sunset cast primrose pinks and scarlet reds across the horizon.
Victor
sneaked
up behind her and wrapped his arms arou
nd her, whispering into her ear.

             
“
Hey, are you okay?”

             
He
had asked
her so many times
she realized her pre-occupied thoug
hts were causing him
to
wo
rry.

             
She smiled and let him nuzzle her neck
. She was craving a drink
.

             
“I’m wonderful,” she said,
“
I was just enjoying the sunset. It’s gorgeous.
”

             
“I’m glad you are enjoying yourself. You’ve been so quiet today, I wasn’t sure.”

             
“Have I? I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be. I’m just not used to such extravaganc
e; private planes, small yachts…
you know.
Your business must be doing very well.
”

             
Vict
or pulled away. He opened a small hatch and pulled out a bottle of champagne.

             
“The business has always done well. Gems never lose the
ir
value. And women never stop wanting them.”

             
He smiled as he poured each of them a glass.

             
“What about you?
” he asked, “d
o you like jewelry? I never see you wear anything but those small sapphire studs in your ears.”

             
“They were my mother’s,
”
Shyla said, self-consciously touching her right earlobe.

             
“
Your mother must have been very beautiful if you look anything like her.”

             
Shyla felt her skin flush
with embarrassment and
with
a flash of
shame from the
harsh memories of her past.

             
“I…I’ve been
told I look very much like her,
”
she stammered.

             
Victor set the glasses on a table nearby but his inquisitive gaze never left her face.
             
“Tell me about her, ab
out your family. I’d love to hear about your childhood.”

             
Shyla was suddenly frustrated with herself for having lost control of the conversation. How in the hell had she allowed it to focus on her, especially her past and family connections?
She wanted to down that whole bottle of champagne.

             
“
Oh, it wasn’t too exciting. Nothing as exciting as yours I’m sure. I mean
, chasing gems around the world? N
ow that’s
interesting. Tell me,
how did you get involved
in such a career?”

             
“I guess you co
uld say it just kind of evolved,” Victor shrugged,
“
I became close with a rich family who had many contacts and one thing led to another and next thing I knew I was learning the trade of gems.”

             
It amused Shyla that he was essentially telling the truth if she just inserted the word ‘drugs’ to replace the word ‘gems’.

             
“And
have you and Brennan been business partners
for long? You seem to trust him, so I assume that you two ha
ve been friends for a long time?
”

             
“Well trust is big word,” he chuckled,
“
I’m not sure I fully trust anyone, to tell you the truth. You never really know what someone else’s agenda is or where their loyalty really lies
. And
no
,
we haven’t known each other for all that long. But sometimes you meet someon
e on
c
e and you just know that, as far as trust goes, they’re as close as your ever going to get. We both understand one another. And we both have each other’s back.”

             
Shyla
wandered toward the table and lifted the glass of champagne to her lips
. She
sip
ped
slowly
.

             
“How did you two meet?”
she asked.

             
There was a swift change in Victor’s body language and expression. He narrowed his gaze and his movements stiffened.

             
“Why the sudden interest in Brennan?”

             
“I was just curious. You have to admit
he’s a bit odd and you two are an unlikely match. While you are friendly and outgoing, he just kind of lurks around in the background, following in your footsteps. And when I asked him where he was from he clammed up and a
cted like I had asked him if he
were from the moon.”

             
Victor slammed the bottle of champagne on the table with a heavy thud.

             
“
Well
,
that’s not my problem. That’s between you and him. I’m going down below to speak with the captain for a moment. I’ll be right back.”

             
Shit, she thought as he stormed off. She’d raised his alarm by asking too many questions. Now he was acting like a jealous boyfriend.
She took a shaky sigh and waited till he returned.

             
When he stepped on deck, he was still heavy footed as he marched about pouting like a twelve-year-old boy. She almost wanted to laugh.