“No.” She couldn’t leave without doing something. “I…can’t.”
“Yes, you can. Climb down now.” She didn’t move or reply. “If you have to shoot, take out the girl. But there are always more inside. If you take out the men, the owners will just move theirkafenasto another location, with better security. And you’ll probably be caught. That one weapon you have isn’t enough for this battle.”
She slowly lowered her weapon, then turned to stare icily into the darkness below. She couldn’t see anyone down there in the shadows. Putting away her weapon, she climbed down the wall in silence, forcing herself to concentrate on her hands and feet.
The moment she dropped onto the ground, a hand grasped hers and pulled her into a brisk jog before she could say anything. She was forced to keep up with his longer strides, trusting his eyes in the darkness, as she couldn’t stop to see where they were going. They finally turned the corner and he slowed down. It took her a minute to catch her breath from the sudden exertion.
“That’s why you wanted me to stay in the back of the building, isn’t it?” She glared up at him, the outline of his face and body barely discernible.
“Yes,” Hawk answered.
“You were in there,” she accused.
“Yes.”
He stood like some big statue as she stared at him. “You saw what happened and…”
He was a covert operative and very likely had to participate. Disgust snaked through her and she was about to back away when he reached out and grabbed her hand. She kicked out at him, wanting to get away.
They fought in silence. He wouldn’t let go of her hand as he countered every one of her moves, pushing her back and moving closer until his body trapped hers against the brick wall of the building.
“Damn it, Hawk, let me go.” She had seen enough tonight. “I don’t want to see you or talk to you right now.”
“You’ll show me the back alleys like you’re supposed to.”
She stiffened at the coldness in his voice. “You can’t order me around,” she said, just as icily. “And I don’t work with rapists and cowards. Couldn’t you have done something?”
“It isn’t time.”
“You mean you can’t blow your cover,” she said bitterly.
“Yes.” A finger tilted her chin up. His warm breath brushed her face. The back of his hand touched her cheek, softly wiping away the remaining wetness from her tears. “I know what you think of me right now. I can’t do anything about that. But I want to be clear that I don’t rape women and children, and if I could do anything without jeopardizing my mission, I would in a heartbeat. But I can’t. A lot of people depend on the success of my mission. Jed told me you’re the best in the tracking business and I need you to help me. Are you in or out?”
“What’s in it for me?” she asked. “Money isn’t everything.”
“Jed told me to make you an offer you can’t refuse. I’ve been thinking about it and was going to ask you tonight, but it doesn’t matter now. I have an offer.” He leaned down until his lips almost touched hers. “I’ll destroy Dilaver for you, Amber. At the end of this mission. I’ll come back and destroy him.”
“Kill him?”
“No. I’ve strict orders not to do that for now. But I’ve traveled with him and know all his strongholds. There are ways to get a man like that. Will you trust me?”
Amber didn’t—couldn’t—trust any man right now, not after what she had seen. She couldn’t fathom any decent human being witnessing anything like that and not doing a thing about it. Her own experience had been secondary; she had never seen the crimes, just the victims. This made it even more personal.
“I don’t know. I can’t feel a damn thing right now except murderous.”
“It’ll stay with you,” Hawk told her. “It’ll be there tomorrow, and the day after.”
She shuddered at the knowledge in his voice. She jerked her face from his finger. “I’m going to kill Dilaver myself.Iam not under orders.”
“There you go. The woman of my dreams.”
The statement was so ludicrous it made her stare at him for a moment. “That’s ridiculous,” she finally said.
“Not at all. I’ve always dreamed about a woman who would do everything for me, including kill a man I can’t.” Her mouth gaped in astonishment even as he dipped his head. Still reeling from his words, she barely registered his quick, hard kiss. “There, now that we’ve sealed the bargain, let’s look at those alleys.”
“What…have we agreed on?” Amber felt as if she were on a runaway train.
It might be dark, but the humor was back in his voice. “That you’re the woman of my dreams, remember? And that I’ll help you in any way I can. Come on.”
