She set the file down and took the pictures. Uploaded them to Nimue via text.
“Got ‘em. Okay, well, these look like standard blueprints for a security tech. They look like assessment materials.”
“So he’s clean?”
“Looks like it.”
Jayden sat back. Let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding.
He was legitimate. Security consultant. Weird though that he was working the same venue she was.
Still. He was exactly who he said he was.
A pause. “You sound relieved.”
Did she? She shouldn’t. Professional verification of a potential asset. Nothing more.
“Just glad I don’t have to add another complication to this mission.”
“Uh-huh.” Nimue didn’t sound convinced. “London wants you in Sydney yesterday. Your contact will be waiting.”
“I’ll be there.”
She ended the call. Her breath eased out, and with it, the knotting of her chest. That was what she’d hoped for, even if she hadn’t admitted it to herself.
But she’d still violated his privacy. Gone through his things.
She repacked the bag carefully—Henley, jeans, shoes, toiletry kit, tablet wrapped in the T-shirt exactly as she’d found it. Zipped the bag closed.
Now she needed her own bag back. Which meant finding Dakota before his flight left.
She grabbed the rolling bag and hurried out of the restroom.
The airport was chaos.
In the twenty minutes she’d spent in that bathroom stall, something had changed. People clustered around departure boards like survivors around a life raft. Staff hurried between gates, their professional smiles strained. Announcements crackled over the speakers in that particular tone of voice that meant nothing good—delayed, canceled, please stand by for further information.
Through the massive windows, Jayden could see the sky darkening. Clouds rolling in from the coast, heavy and gray, carrying the promise of the same kind of storm system that had stranded them in Fiji.
Not again.
She pushed through the crowd toward the Sydney gates, her heart pounding. Found Gate 14—the one for Dakota’s flight.
The jetway door was closed. A gate agent stood behind the counter, fielding questions from frustrated passengers.
“I’m sorry, sir. All Sydney flights are suspended until further notice. Weather system moving in.”
“But my flight was supposed to board?—”
“Suspended. I’m sorry.”
Jayden scanned the crowd. No sign of Dakota. He must have already boarded before the suspension, or?—
“There you are.”
She spun around.
Dakota stood behind her, gray rolling bag at his feet. His mouth was a grim slash.
