Red Wolf was the other.
He’d already stampeded over one, so he didn’t dare risk the second. One thought was to track down his lordship, string him up, and interrogate him. Once he had pried all the information out of him he needed, Sam could put a bullet in the back of his head. Problem solved.
Only, it wouldn’t solve the problem. Addy was too much like him, and if somebody had taken out his parents, they’d be damn sure to find him as the one who pulled the trigger. It wouldn’t matter who did it for him, if he was denied that right…
No, he couldn’t do that to her. Neither could he let her walk into that kind of a fight blind. When emotion got involved, it dulled reaction time and led to more danger. She was obviously working on her own, otherwise why else would she have reached out to him? Cut off from MI6’s resources—but that didn’t mean she was cut off entirely, not any more than he was. Though he hadn’t been burned, he’d told them to take their job and shove it up their ass. Within six months of his leaving, he’d also sent back three of their hired-out assassins in body bags. They’d gotten the message. If they left him alone, he would leave them alone.
Now he was going to take Addy right into the lion’s den. They’d be in the heart of Britain. MI6 would have a field day with them, if they caught them.
We just don’t let them catch us. We don’t let them catch us, and we go snatch us an Earl. After scanning the controls, he glanced over at Henry reading a book. The other man could fly the plane in his sleep, whether he was present or not. Leaning back, he closed his eyes.
The best they could hope for was the Earl was out of London and on his estate. Been a good long time since he gone on a shoot.
Pheasant.
Venison.
Nobleman.
Sounded about right.
One hour from Newfoundland,he unlocked the door. Addy sat in one of the seats, her head back and eyes closed, but she lifted the gun and pointed it in his direction. Slowly, she sat up straighter and stared at him.
“You should have just said it was about Red Wolf, luv. I’d have done all of this for free.”
“Youaredoing it for free. Did you actually think I would pay you?”
Sam smiled. At least the gun went down a notch, though she was pointing it straight at his dick. “You still should’ve told me.”
“Why? So you could lock me out again? Or maybe you wanted another shot at Clark.”
Sam sighed. “We will be having that conversation, as well. For the time being, however, I’m in. I’ll help you track down the Earl of Bonneville. We’re stopping for a short hop in Newfoundland, we’ll get fuel, then head to Iceland. As soon as we’re ready to board in Iceland for our next flight, we can do some research on where his lordship happens to be right now.”
“There’s no guarantee he is anything other than another smokescreen.” The faintest hint of defeat in her voice had his spine stiffening. Nobody bested his Addy. No one, not even him.
“There’s a bloody lot in there that says he is. Either way, we’ll ask the Earl himself. If his lordship doesn’t want to share, I will convince him.”
“They’ll put a warrant out for you.”
“Makes no difference to me. MI6 knows better than to mess in my business. I’ve already taught them that lesson.” He hadn’t killed an Earl before, but he certainly had taken out plenty of other notable individuals. They knew exactly whom they were dealing with.
“I can’t ask you to do that, Sam. I can’t read you in.”
“Don’t care. You didn’t ask, and I’m going. You just try to lose me, sweetbabes.” He curled his fingers in invitation. “Come up and have a seat. You can take a look at the file as I finish getting us ready for landing.”
“You opened it?” She slipped out of her seatbelt, then stood. It was the first time he noticed what she was wearing. When he picked her up, she’d been in a cocktail dress, now she wore one of his shirts over a pair of shorts that she’d belted. The oversized clothing should look absolutely ridiculous, yet somehow, she made it seem smart. Her feet were still bare, but then he doubted he had any shoes back there that would fit her.
“Course I opened it. I wanted to know what the bloody hell was going on and why you’re out in the cold by yourself. Speaking of which, where the bloody hell is your brother?”
She raised a finger. “Already told you, not reading you in. Don’t bring up Clark again.”
“I didn’t damn well bring him up, you did.”
Damn Nancy boy. Oh, let’s talk to Clark, the vaunted doctor. This specialist. He’s going to save the world. Oh, it doesn’t matter if he’s got a gift for cracking codes, that’s not what he wants to do. He’s going to make something of himself. I’ll do all the dirty work, and he’ll save all the lives.
Addy had a case of hero worship where her younger brother was concerned. Sam had never resented someone’s relatives before, yet Clark had a hold on her that no one could shake. The hold she didn’t even acknowledge informed every choice she made, including the one that ended up getting her burned.
“Fine, I won’t bring up Clark again, and neither will you. Deal?”