Page 65 of Mountain Trial

He must have noticed it when we spent the night at my place.

Tears sprung to her eyes at the thought that Luc had not just noticed that his comb made little headway on her curls, but had also taken the trouble to go to the store and buy her a brush.

The smell of freshly cooked bacon reached her through the closed bathroom door. Her stomach rumbled loudly, making her realize how hungry she was. She’d only had a couple canapés last night, before―

Let’s not go there.

“Food’s almost ready, Kat,” Luc said, knocking on the bathroom door. She opened it and smiled brightly.

“Smells amazing.”

“I didn’t have any ham, but I found some bacon,” he said, sitting at the kitchen table.

She tucked into her galette with gusto. Luc kept the conversation light, telling her of how he learned to cook, after living off ramen noodles for two months.

“I think I went through five boxes of them. I have no idea how I found the energy to train that winter. Even now, years later, I get sick if I see a pack of ramen noodles.”

“I used to eat them raw,” she confided. “You just sprinkle some flavoring from the little sachet and chew on them―like crackers.”

“Ugh, don’t even mention that to me,” he groaned, laughing.

Her fork froze in mid-air as Luc’s doorbell rang.

“Are you expecting somebody?”

He shook his head.

Luc propelled himself quickly to the front door and looked out the small window on the side.

“It’s your boss,” he said, opening the door and rolling the chair back to let the other man in.

“Damien? What are you doing here?”

“I’m sorry to bother you. Drake gave me Luc’s address. I wanted to return your phones.”

Kat stared at the small object in Damien’s hand. It was hard to believe she hadn’t even remembered her cell phone.

“Thanks, Damien.”

Damien smiled, but the smile didn’t reach his eyes. He looked exhausted. She wondered guiltily if he’d gone home with Tess at all, or if he’d gone straight to the office.

Kat cleared her throat. “Are all the mercenaries accounted for?”

“One died inside the hotel, another one in the ambulance en route to the hospital,” Damien said grimly. “Two others are in custody.”

Kat could still see Mako’s open, dead eyes in front of her.

“So two are still missing,” Luc finished for him.

Damien nodded. His hands clenched into fists.

“They disappeared into thin air. The one they called Bull―he’s the one we need to find.” His gaze went from Kat to Luc. “A sketch artist from Annecy has been called in, to speak to the most reliable witnesses. Would you be able to describe them, do you think?”

Luc nodded calmly. “I can try, certainly.”

“Today?” Kat said.

“Time is of the essence. Every hour they’re missing further reduces the chances of finding them.”