“We’ll make good on that promise,” Will assured her. “But if I let you leave here without knowing what else could put you at risk, I don’t know who to hide you from.”
She arched a brow at him. “Well, I’m sure you guys already ransacked my house and found my notes. And they seized my laptop when I got here. So there’s nothing left to tell.”
He gave her a tight smile. “Don’t be so sure,” he argued. “And, trust me, Claire, my method of questioning is more subtle than my friend’s. He’s good at what he does and he always gets answers—one way or another. Andhismethods are preferable to those of another colleague who’s picked up a thing or two from dealing with the yakuza. I’d rather we not have to get to that point. So, let’s start with an easy one. What’d you do with the flash drive Tad Ralston sent you?”
“I gave it to your friend,” she said. “Jack.”
“Yeah, you gave Jack a flash drive,” he confirmed. “But it was blank.”
She shook her head, frowning. “Blank? That can’t be right. Tad told me it contained everything I could possibly want to know about a secret society called ‘the Alliance.’ I’d heard that mentioned before in the dark ops I’d uncovered. I figured it would lead me to figuring out who you were, what had happened to you. But then Tad started going on about his boss and the Illuminati and I began to wonder if what he was sending me was just a bunch of conspiracy theory BS—until I found out he’d been murdered.”
Obviously, Claire hadn’t been able to get into the flash drive, because she still thought it contained information. She’d had no idea when she’d handed it off to Jack that it was blank. So their theory had been right. Antonovich had double-crossed Ralston and Hale. They’d all died for nothing.
A quiet knock on the door brought Will’s head up. “Yeah.”
Tony poked his head inside. “Do you need more time?”
Will shook his head. “No. I found out what I needed to know.”
“What?” Claire cried as soon as the door closed and they were alone once more. “What about finding out all I know? What about not wanting to turn me over to the other guy for questioning?”
Will got to his feet. “I was just trying to scare you so you’d tell me what you know about the flash drive. The examiner’s actually a really nice guy.”
Claire’s cheeks flushed with rage. “You asshole. So was the threat about the other guy—the one with the yakuza connection—was that bullshit too?”
“Oh no,” Will assured her. “That one was true. So do yourself a favor and answer the examiner’s questions.”
Claire jumped up and rushed toward Will as he turned away, grabbing his arm to keep him from leaving. “What aboutmyquestions? I think I deserve a few answers, don’t you?”
Will met her pale blue gaze, torn between wanting to drag her into his arms and kiss her—taste the lips he’d tasted briefly once, years before, when they’d both believed death would soon claim them—and his desire to get the hell out of there before she managed to work her way into his heart again.
He sighed. “One question. I’ll answer it if I can.”
Her expression softened. “Have you ever thought about me since Nigeria?”
“No,” he lied. “What happened there was just another mission for me, Claire.”
She studied him for a long moment, nodding slowly, her eyes narrowing. Then she grasped the back of his neck and pressed a hard kiss to his lips. It took every ounce of his willpower not to return the kiss. And yet when she pulled back and looked up at him, she shook her head. “You’re a bad liar, Will.”
Without a word, he turned back toward the door and opened it. But before he left the room, he paused and looked back at her over his shoulder. “Be safe, Claire,” he said. “I want you to be happy and have a full life without any of the Alliance’s bullshit putting you in danger. Withoutmeputting you in danger. You found out what you needed to know. We’ll set you up with a new life, a new profession. Any attempt to disclose information about the Alliance will be intercepted, discredited.”
Claire’s expression twisted with outrage. “You can’t do that! I have a responsibility—”
“To whom?” he interrupted. “If you think revealing the truth will benefit anyone, you’re mistaken. You’d be causing more damage than you can possibly imagine. Give it up and walk away. I’m afraid I have to insist upon that.”
“Or what?” she asked, a twinkle in her eye that looked to him like a challenge. “You’ll have to kill me?”
But Will didn’t rise to the bait. “I’m not the one you have to worry about.”
