Chet swept inside and closed the door as if he owned the place. “Well! Isn’t this cozy?”
He headed straight for the small kitchen counter and poured himself a generous dose of dark brown alcohol over ice cubes. “Just a minute. I need a drink.”
“What do you want, Chet? We were busy.” Tori’s patience had vanished. I’d told her about Derek disappearing. I had no desire to keep secrets from my mate. I also told her I planned to eliminate him.
I’d expected an argument. She’d kissed me and changed the subject. Good enough.
Chet’s eyes drifted to the couch. The rumpled cushions. The reminder of what we had been about to do.
A knowing smile curved his mouth. “Oh, I know.” Then he gestured lazily toward the two agents. “But this couldn’t wait.”
The female stepped forward, pulling a badge from inside her jacket. “Special Agent Morris. FBI.” She indicated the man beside her. “Special Agent Chen. We’re here about Derek Sterling.”
The name hit like a physical strike.
Tori’s fingers tightened around mine. Her body stiffened. “What about him?” Her voice remained steady, but the tension in her grip told me everything.
“May we sit?” Chen asked.
I nodded toward the small table near the window.
They sat.
Chet dropped onto the arm of the couch—my couch—and sipped his drink.
“Derek Sterling has fled the country,” Agent Morris said without preamble.
Fucking coward. My beast was not amused. No wonder we couldn’t find him. Didn’t matter where he went. I would find him and eliminate the threat to my mate. This planet or any other. I would fucking end him.
Agent Chen tilted his head. “He’s in the Cayman Islands. Non-extradition territory. We cannot touch him there.”
“Good.” The word left my mouth before I could soften it. “Let him remain there. Far from Tori.” Now that I knew where he was, I would make arrangements to pay the male a visit.
Agent Chen leaned forward slightly. “Unfortunately, he isn’t staying quiet.”
My muscles tightened as Tori trembled next to me. I wrapped my arm around her and pulled her into my side. She should not be upset over such an insignificant male.
“We intercepted some communications. Sterling has hired mercenaries. Multiple teams.”
The air inside the suite seemed to compress in my lungs as I waited for him to continue.
“Their objective is simple.” His gaze shifted toward Tori. “Extract Victoria Smith and deliver her to him.”
Extract. Deliver. As if she were cargo.
Something inside me snapped. My vision tinted red. Claws slid from my fingertips before I could stop the partial shift.
“Why would he kidnap her after she left him at the altar?” Chet asked before I could. Good thing. My beast was making it difficult to speak.
“She was technically already his wife.” Agent Morris didn’t react to my partial transformation. Professional. Unimpressed. Or really fucking stupid. “And based on what we’ve discovered,” she continued calmly, “he needs her. He transferred the bulk of his assets into her name. Without her, he can’t touch them.”
Tori’s face had gone pale. But she didn’t crumble. Didn’t cry. She leaned into me and my beast held himself perfectly still. She was cuddling him. Her hand squeezed his arm once before she lifted her chin. “What do you expect me to do? I didn’t know about any of this.”
“We need your help.” Agent Chen leaned forward. “We need to lure him back to U.S. soil. Somewhere we can arrest him. We already have more than enough evidence to charge him. Now we can add conspiracy to kidnap. Attempted murder, if his hired teams are armed. Which we assume they will be.”
“How do we lure him out of hiding?” she asked quietly.
“That,” Chet announced brightly, “is where I come in.”
