Page 74

I t was only a week or so since Gilder had been arrested, and Kurt found himself standing beside a pretty arched bridge painted a rusty red color that spanned a wide, deep, muddy-looking river.

They’d spent the day before yesterday in DC with Marianne.

He’d shown her and Rowena some of the sights and promised to catch up with the orange grower when they returned.

The US had agreed to let Marianne stay in the country on a three-month tourist visa, and she’d decided to rent a car and tour the National Parks before returning home to Mozambique.

“The really cool thing about this bridge, aside from it being the first major bridge in the world to be made of cast iron, is that it was made mainly using woodworking principles rather than industrial techniques.”

Kurt wrapped his arm around Rowena’s shoulders, glad they both wore warm coats. He knew she was acting as tour guide in an effort to avoid the emotions that would surely surface soon. “It’s pretty.”

She beamed at him. “It is.”

The town was quaint and old-fashioned, and considering it was the heart of the industrial revolution, remarkably green and wooded .

“Okay.” She straightened her back. “I’m ready now.”

She gripped his hand and tugged him along.

She’d forgiven him for not telling her that he’d taken and mailed the photographs back to the States.

She understood his reasons. Earlier that day he’d copied all her mother’s photographs that her friend John had developed and sent them to SIOC.

They’d contained images of the four friends and photos of the local miners, plus enough geographical data to tie them to the site of the mine.

That mine was being drained before the macabre process of trying to identify the bodies could begin.

The amount of evidence of Gilder’s wrongdoing was piling up so high he wasn’t ever getting out of prison.

Leo Spartan had raised hell, but the Zimbabwean government had been persuaded by the evidence the US presented to them regarding the mine, the plane crash, and the mercs who’d been sent after Kurt.

He’d been placed under house arrest with no contact to the outside world.

Not enough in Kurt’s eyes, not yet. But considering the anger from the local population when the accusations became public, they’d have to deal with him properly then.

Hurek was being held in what he thought was protective custody. As soon as they had all the goods on Gilder, the Feds had decided to let the Brits and Indonesians vie for extradition.

Kurt’s bet was on Indonesia winning first because if Hurek went to the UK they wouldn’t extradite to a country that had the death penalty, and Indonesia sure as hell did.

He was really hoping the guy got exactly what was coming to him and that Kurt could keep his promise to Darby, Haley, Savage, and Winters that justice would be done.

They slowly crossed the bridge and headed right. Down a dirt track for about a quarter of a mile.

He’d introduced Rowena to Daisy, who’d been so happy that he was home safe she hadn’t cared he was in a relationship with someone almost her age.

He’d been shocked by what Krychek had told him about being bugged and almost killed by a state police officer.

Gilder had tentacles throughout law enforcement, politics, and industry.

Weeding them out was causing a whole lot of damage control and back-pedaling from people who should have known better.

The Interstellar Company was filing for bankruptcy protection after precipitating a stock market crash that had rocked the Nasdaq elite to their cores.

Row had lost almost everything too.

Birds sang in the woods behind the lane.

The smell of smoke hung in the damp afternoon air.

The faint acrid scent of destruction. They reached a small wooden gate painted a green close to the shade of Rowena’s eyes.

He pushed it open, and they walked down an uneven path through an overgrown garden that was probably incredible in the summertime, but right now looked decrepit and decaying.

The walls of the house stood proud, scorched red brick unprotected from the elements by the lack of a roof. The inside was completely gutted.

Rowena gathered herself and walked around the back. A small greenhouse had lost some panes of glass, probably due to the intense heat of the fire. Rowena’s eyes grew glassy as she stared at what little remained.

“I feel as if I’ve been erased from this place. Like my whole family has been erased.”

He held her hand, his heart breaking for her. “I’m sorry you’ve lost so much. I know you have insurance. You could rebuild it. I could help.”

“It wouldn’t be the same.” She shook her head.

“I loved this house. I hate seeing it destroyed—but being here, seeing that there is nothing left. Honestly, it’s kind of freeing.

” She sniffed. “I spent way too much of my life thinking that if I simply knew who my father was, I’d finally figure out the missing pieces of myself.

” She moved away when he tried to comfort her.

“But being Gilder’s daughter doesn’t define me.

What defines me are the people who raised me and loved me.

What defines me is knowing you and I survived terrible things and that I can rise from these ashes and build the future I want. The future I deserve.”

He was so damned proud of her .

“Row,” he swallowed. Christ, he hadn’t felt this nervous since he’d been a teen asking a girl on a first date. And maybe this was a bad time but… “I was wondering if you’d like to build that future with me, either in the US or here.”

She blinked. “You’d move here for me?”

“Babe, I’d move mountains for you.”

Through her tears, she smiled that quirky smile of hers. “I can’t see you settling down in a town like this.”

It was tiny. And very English. “I’ll move wherever you want me to.

” He’d spent his whole life putting his work before his personal life, before his family—as if he alone could save the world.

But the guys had more than proven they could manage without him.

“I can also talk to the guys at Hereford about working there for a couple of years. Or,” he took her hands in his, “you could come live with me in Quantico. I’m planning on taking that promotion.

I’ll be home a lot more. We can find a house you like.

” He stared over her shoulder. “It won’t be as old as this one, but we still have some historic sites to visit, if you remember. ”

Her eyes shone. “I remember.”

He sank down to one knee, ignoring the way the damp earth saturated his jeans.

He could still contribute while making a new life, a better life with Rowena.

He produced the ring he’d bought in the Tiffany store at Heathrow Airport when she’d been in the restroom.

The diamond was simple and elegant—hopefully conflict-free—its setting a vibrant yellow gold.

“Row. Will you marry me?”

She stared at him in shock for a few seconds before nodding and pulling him to his feet and slipping the ring on her finger. “Yes. Yes, I’ll marry you. I love you.”

He took her face in his shaking hands and kissed her.

Joy washed away some of the pain from her features, and he knew he’d picked the right moment after all.

“Let’s go tell Betty and Alasdair the good and the bad news.”

He pulled her to a stop. “What bad news? ”

“That I’m moving to America, assuming they’ll have me. They’ll need a new librarian.”

Stress fell away from his shoulders. “The US better have you, otherwise they’re going to need a new HRT Director.”

Saying it out loud made him realize how proud he’d be to lead such an incredible group of people, but only if Row was by his side.

“Why don’t we get married here? At the registry office.

” She circled around him barely able to contain her obvious excitement.

“We have a week before you have to get back, and hopefully, we can start the immigration process more easily if we’re official.

I can plan a party for my friends here. Daisy might be able to make it? ”

“Don’t you want a big white wedding? The dress? The flowers?”

“We can always do a fancy ceremony later if we want to.” She clutched his hand in her right and admired the ring on her left. “Unless I’m rushing you.”

“You are not rushing me. I cannot wait to start our lives together.” He shook his head and tugged her away from the ruins of her old life, into the future with him.

Turn the page for an exclusive bonus scene, featuring Ryan Sullivan and Meghan Donnelly!