“Well, at least Elissa did. Fia, not so much, huh?” He sipped his beer. “You were supposed to be there to ensure that didn't happen.” He looked pointedly at her. “You were also supposed to recruit Fia to Watchdog, not Elissa, but you didn't. You went for the underdog, the one who destroyed Skeleton Key. Word is, you set it up.”
“And they didn't like that.”
“No, they didn’t.”
“Enough that they pulled my ex out of cold storage,” she fished. “He’s alive and they’ve been hiding him. Isn’t that correct?”
Gina swore the air around Malcolm dropped to below freezing.
He glared at her. “Yeah, I bet that was a shock for you, considering you’re the one who hit Eva. And when Jeremy tried to protect her you captured and tortured him. Not quite to death though, huh?” He smiled. “Suuur-prise.”
“That’s not how it happened, Malcolm.”
“Oh, so you didn’t mean to kill him? Just interrogate him? You’re very good at that, but I guess you’ve had ample opportunity to improve your skills over the years.” Malcolm took another sip. “Fixer,” he scoffed.
“It wasn’t me. I didn’t kill Eva and I didn’t take Jeremy or torture him. I would have never hurt Jeremy. He was my mentor. My partner. My friend.”
“Not what the dossier said. You’re the one who went rogue and betrayed him. It’s just that no one understood it back then. Then you killed that paparazzi Ron Anderson when he got close to the truth. And now you’ve betrayed Walker and Kyla.”
Gina’s blood turned cold. It wasn’t just Mal’s words but the look in his eyes. He believed what they’d told him, heart and soul. Believed that she was behind Walker and Kyla’s deaths.
When she designed their escape, she didn’t want a single leak. She realized too late she should have trusted Malcolm and let him in on the plan. But all it would take right now was one phone call to Walker and Kyla to convince Malcolm.
Maybe.Or, knowing they were alive and where they were would give him currency to trade for Annalie’s safety. Annalie might be safe for now, but she couldn’t stay in a safehouse forever.
She tensed, waiting for an attack. She was no match physically for Malcolm, built like a brick shithouse as he was. But she’d studied all his weaknesses and she knew was faster.
That’s what the tiny vape was for.
To airport security it looked harmless—well, as harmless as vaping could be. It would even give you a wicked-strong nicotine buzz if you used it to vape. But hit the little button on the side just right and the vape pen would turn into the equivalent of an epi pen that could deliver a fatal dose of nicotine straight into the bloodstream. All she had to do was hit Malcolm in the neck or chest and he would be too nauseated to attack and dead of a heart attack within five minutes.
“Mal,” she whispered. “I didn't betray anyone.”
And please don’t make me betray you. She pleaded with him with her eyes. And at the same time she got ready to strike.
“Is that a lemon slice in your Hugo?” Malcolm pointed to the lime wedge in her drink.
Gina’s heart skipped a beat.
Lemon. He knew her code forsame team. Her meeting with Princess Sana must have been in her dossier in detail.
So, did he mean he was on her side or was he bluffing?
“Yes, actually,” she lied. “My little addition for luck.”
Malcolm smiled, but this time, it held all the warmth in the world. It was probably the same smile that made Annalie fall in love with him.
Gina lowered her hand holding the vape pen.
Malcolm laughed, low and bitter-sounding, but the warmth remained in his eyes. “You’ll need luck. You betrayed all of us. You’ve been working for Capitoline all along, starting with Jeremy, your own partner. Funny how it all goes back to Eva and Marcus Porter. I put it together. Your little absences here and there away from Jeremy. You were on Porter’s sick little island. It’s all right there in your dossier for anyone with half a brain.”
Gina felt a mixture of rage and triumph. Yes, Malcolm was confirming what she’d suspected. He’d figured everything out, too—all the connections, even her relationship with Lachlan.
She gave him a smile. “Fascinating. What else is in there?”
“You’re notlistening. You betrayed everyone when you left Watchdog, Gina.”
There was something in the way he said listening.
