Page 47

Rowena was feeling better, and the rough seas had calmed down considerably. Unbelievably, their captors had provided a small bottle of Gravol, and Rowena had been able to take a tentative spoonful and keep it down.

Ships like this usually had life rafts. He wondered if he and Rowena could get on one and launch without the rest of the crew knowing. Possibly. But probably not when he was expected for dinner .

What he really needed was that key. Or to pick the lock. But the door was also bolted on the outside which complicated things.

He was led up to the stateroom where they’d originally been brought and saw a long table set for a banquet with two places set at opposite ends.

To prevent Kurt from grabbing Hurek and using him to bargain their way up to the bridge where he could call for help? Probably.

He had a sudden thought. Hurek probably had a helicopter on the ship.

It might take a little time to make it flyable, ten minutes at a pinch, but if they were close enough to land or a friendly naval vessel then perhaps that was their way out.

He just had to find it, then figure out where the hell in the ocean they were, or else they might not have the fuel to reach safety.

Kurt was ordered to sit at the far end of the table, and Hurek arrived wearing a white suit with gold piping and brocade on the shoulders like some military dictator or ornate table lamp.

It took everything in Kurt not to laugh.

The man was petty enough to take any perceived slight out on Rowena, and Kurt wouldn’t risk her.

Not even for the satisfaction of mocking this asshole.

The man with the AK held Hurek’s chair out for him and then stood back against the far wall with his weapon drawn and pointed in Kurt’s direction.

Kurt doubted he’d be able to clear the mountain of food to get to Hurek before even the most incompetent bodyguard could shoot him.

Good chance Hurek might catch a bullet too, but Kurt would still be dead. And then God help Rowena.

“I trust you find your accommodations adequate?”

Kurt nodded. “Better than I was expecting.”

“Well, you promised to work with me if you got the girl. I gave her to you—for now. I trust you are making good use of her in the meantime.”

The threat of taking her away as if Rowena was some kind of chattel hung in the air.

Rather than react to the obvious bait, Kurt moved the conversation where he wanted it to go. “I don’t understand what you want from me.”

“Please.” Hurek waved his hands as if they were in some fancy restaurant. “We will talk as we eat.”

A waiter draped a large bib over Hurek’s white and gold suit and tried to do the same to him. Kurt shook his head. He wasn’t a baby.

Kurt eyed the lobster and prime rib and wondered if he’d fallen asleep days ago and was still dreaming. To say everything that had happened lately was surreal was an understatement.

Kurt helped himself to steak and salad and hoped Rowena was okay. The danger they could take her while he was dining with this motherfucker was high on his radar.

“You’re probably wondering by now why I offered you my protection.”

Protection ?

Kurt cocked his head. He wasn’t the only one living in fantasyland.

He couldn’t react to the lies. He needed information. “The people chasing us in the mountains tried to shoot us. Are you telling me they didn’t work for you?”

“I can assure you they were not working for me. I heard about your plight and decided to rescue you from those brigands, even though the FBI has been less than fair with me.” Anger lit the back of the man’s eyes, and Kurt knew he was on a rollercoaster with an unstable psycho.

An unstable psycho who held the welfare of the woman he loved in his hands.

“Do you know who was shooting at us then? Who they work for? The FBI would be very interested in that information.”

Hurek waved a lobster claw in his direction. “No idea, but Americans have made many enemies in that part of the world.”

Hurek knew. He wasn’t ready to show his hand.

“Did you know I’d been sent to Africa specifically to track you down, Mr. Hurek? I guess I have you to thank for successfully completing my mission. ”

A sly smile formed on the man’s glistening lips. “I heard something about it. From various sources.”

“You seem to have a lot of friends.”

Hurek shrugged and looked uncomfortable for a moment. “Rich men always have friends. Whether they are trustworthy is another thing entirely.”

So the brotherhood was cracking. “I understand you went to university in Scotland. That was a long way from home for a young man from Indonesia.”

The man’s smile looked sincere. “That was probably the happiest time of my life. It’s the sort of experience you can never repeat, no matter how you try. I hope—” He cut himself off and frowned again.

“You a fan of haggis? I still can’t bring myself to try it.” It felt weird to make small talk with a guy he wanted to arrest but who instead held him captive. But he was a professional. He’d do whatever it took.

Hurek smiled. “Dougie cooked it for us, and I liked it well enough, but I couldn’t stand the turnips that he insisted went with it.”

“Dougie Cavanagh. He was a friend of yours?”

Hurek’s mouth thinned. “He was. He was a good man until a woman ruined him.”

“Allie Smith?” Kurt held his breath.

Hurek’s brown eyes flashed. “She was a little bitch, always taking photos and poking her nose into everything we did. Everything changed after Dougie met her and brought her to our camp.” His expression turned petulant.

“But she went back to England alone. Did she dump him?” He deliberately didn’t mention the letters or photographs.

“She left.” Hurek shrugged again, looking amused.

Kurt could tell he desperately wanted to share the full story but couldn’t because Kurt was law enforcement. That gave him some hope that Hurek might plan to release him.

“She stole another friend’s very expensive watch when she did so. A gift from his parents who died not long afterwards. He’ll be glad for its return.”

Gilder? Or one of the others whose background he didn’t know yet? He didn’t want to reveal his hand too soon. “What exactly do you want from me?”

“A little information about people in your acquaintance.”

“Something tells me your friends could easily get this information for you at the press of a button.”

Hurek’s eyes shot to him and away. Yeah, Kurt knew who his friends were.

“I’m not at liberty to ask them at this moment.”

Ah. There was definitely a rift. “Who do you want to know about?”

“Quentin Savage and Haley Cramer and a little bitch called Darby O’Roarke.”

Kurt held himself very still. “You can’t honestly believe I would help you hurt those people again.”

“You forget I can take your girlfriend away from you at any time and make her the ship’s whore.”

“You can make her a rape victim, but you can’t make her a whore.” Rage rose up inside him. No way would he sacrifice those people. Not even for Rowena. “What’s your plan exactly?”

“The Cramer woman has an island. I threaten the O’Roarke girl, and she gives me the island—a fair exchange for the one she took from me.”

This guy had a lot of anger toward women. Haley hadn’t done squat to him. Neither had poor Darby.

“And you presumably hold onto Darby O’Roarke as insurance.”

“O’Roarke and Ms. Smith.”

Kurt’s jaw clamped shut. “That’s a terrible plan.”

Hurek flashed him a narrow look. “You’ll tire of her before then.”

He would never tire of her. “I work for the FBI. We don’t sacrifice innocents to people we view as criminals. Why do you really want to hold onto Rowena Smith?”

Hurek looked flustered, then angry. “Women have their uses.”

“Haley Cramer’s island isn’t much bigger than this ship and a hell of a lot easier for your enemies to track you down on.”

“I can’t live my life on a ship! My s—” Hurek’s breathing grew labored as he cut himself off.

What had the other man been about to say? It had sounded a hell of a lot like “son.”

Did Hurek have a child he cared about? On this ship or squirreled away somewhere?

“I want to be off that damned list. I want the Interpol red notice canceled. I want immunity.”

Never gonna happen. He stared at the man stonily.

“I rescued you from certain death.” He wagged his greasy finger at him.

“And now you are holding myself and Ms. Smith captive.”

“They’d be grateful for your safe return whatever your condition. You can force them to grant me leniency.”

“The American government does not negotiate with terrorists.”

“That’s bullshit, and you know it. Semantics. They negotiate. They just use third parties so they can lie about it like they lie about everything else?—”

“They might be willing to do a deal.” No point letting Hurek build himself up into a rage. “What could you offer them?”

“You.”

“Besides me.” Kurt cut into his steak, wondering if he could sneak the knife into his pocket. Pity the shirt had short sleeves.

“You aren’t enough?” Hurek gave an ugly laugh. “From the outpouring of grief I’ve witnessed over your death, I’d think your return from the grave would be enough to make me quite the hero.”

Thanks for the reminder.

“I’m not saying this ‘rescue’ counts for nothing.

But it strikes me that a man like yourself would know who brought that airplane down and why.

A smart man might have certain insurance policies in place to protect himself if others of his acquaintance turned on him.

And if he did have evidence of someone bringing down a commercial airliner in order to target an FBI agent, well, the US has certainly been known to grant immunity to lesser charges if it means we get a conviction on the major offenses. ”