Chapter 6
In the backseat of the car, Giva pulled off the wig, jammed it into her backpack, unwound her dark hair and finger-combed it into some sense of order. She shrugged out of the dark jacket and applied a coat of bright red lipstick. The blouse she’d worn under the jacket was a designer label Sasha was known to wear.
While she replaced her running shoes with the stilettoes, she watched Dax out of the corner of her eye.
He slipped his jacket off his shoulders and ditched the hat and sunglasses. The tightness around his mouth was the only visible sign of tension. His sky-blue polo shirt complimented his dark hair and dark eyes. Yes, he looked a lot like Evan Maas, only better. His shoulders were broader, and his waist trimmer.
She straightened and stuffed her running shoes into the backpack. “Worried about the man on the motorcycle?”
Dax shook his head. “A little. I’m more concerned about the upcoming meeting. We don’t know what role Evan Maas is supposed to be playing in this little get-together.”
“Let the others do the talking,” Giva said. “I wish I could be with you. I don’t like that you’ll be in there on your own with no backup.”
“Tell me about it.” Dax shook his head. “I’ll be all right. I just have to keep my head on straight and stay one step ahead.”
She snorted and snapped her fingers. “That should be a... how do you say...piece of cake.”
He barked out a short laugh. “Doubt it.”
Giva frowned. “I wonder who sponsored the sentries and who initiated the meeting? Do you think it was one of the Russians? The oligarchs are probably the most desperate. Having lost favor with their president, their companies aren’t getting the exclusive contracts like they had in the past.”
“I don’t know,” Dax said. “The US elections are this year. The man predicted to win is threatening to raise tariffs on imports. They might be scrambling to get something going before the new administration gets in place and starts making changes that will impact their cash flow.”
“Then why Evan Maas?” Giva asked. “He’s a naturalized citizen of the US.”
“With investments in foreign companies that could be impacted by the tariffs.” Dax’s brow furrowed. “Although, he’s been focused on space more than anything lately. The man has almost 7000 satellites in orbit.”
Giva stared out the vehicle’s window. “Is anyone monitoring what he’s sending into space?”
“Supposedly, NASA and US Space Command are tracking what goes up from the US. But they don’t necessarily know what’s launched from other countries.”
“And Maas has corporations in other countries,” Giva said. “He could have duplicate manufacturing complexes cranking out rockets and technology to send to space.”
Dax nodded. “I’d bet our computer gurus with the Brotherhood Protectors are looking at all angles on the internet and via the dark web. If they find anything of interest, they’ll let us know.”
“Hopefully, before you go into the meeting.” Giva glanced at her watch. “That’s not long from now.”
“I should get that text soon.” He looked up. “Here’s the hotel. Are you ready, Sasha?”
Giva nodded. “Ready.”
“Evan and Sasha have arrived.”
“Roger,” Dmytro’s voice sounded in Giva’s ear. “Systems are in place. Bodyguard on his way.”
Giva wished Peter hadn’t stayed behind to track where the German and Italian went. Though she knew it was the right thing to do, she didn’t like that only one bodyguard would escort Dax into Old Town. Her hands clenched into fists. She wouldn’t let Dax go into the old city with only one bodyguard. They didn’t know who was a true friend or foe to Evan Maas.
There was too much they didn’t know. Which was the reason they were there, to begin with.
When the vehicle pulled up to the swanky hotel entrance, Dax remained seated until the hotel valet opened the back door of the SUV.
Dax slid out and turned to hold out his hand for Giva.
She laid her hand in his, swung her stilettoed feet out first and stepped out as gracefully as she could, laughing up at Dax as if he’d just shared a funny story or joke.
He tugged her into his arms and kissed her soundly.
The feel of his lips on hers sent a ripple of desire throughout her body, making her want him to skip the meeting and spend the evening and night with her.
Dax slid an arm around her waist and walked with her into the hotel. He was met by a hotel representative who quickly guided him through check-in and handed him a keycard to a private penthouse suite.
Dax thanked the hotel clerk and guided Giva toward the elevator.
She leaned close, smiling up at him like a lover on her way to their room to spend time rumpling sheets on the king-sized bed.
The nearer they came to the time she and Dax would have to part ways, the less she liked the idea. He’d be entirely alone, with no way to communicate with his team outside the heavy stone of whatever thick-walled room the host had in mind.
For all she knew, they could be luring Evan Maas into a dungeon to torture him and force him to transfer all his assets into their bank accounts. Then they couldn’t turn him loose to rat them out. Instead, they’d murder him and stash his body in the catacombs beneath Old Town.
Her fake smile faltered as they entered the elevator.
Dax ran his key over the card reader inside the elevator and then touched the button for the penthouse suite.
The elevator whisked them up to the top floor and opened into a short hallway with only a couple of doors and one marked EXIT.
Giva led the way to the room number assigned.
Dax used his key card to unlock the door and pushed through to enter the spacious penthouse suite. “Only the best for Evan Maas.”
Giva snorted, dropped her backpack on the sofa, and wandered around the suite.
It consisted of a sitting area with a posh sofa, gilded end tables and a glass coffee table. The bar in the corner wasn’t the typical minibar Dax was used to. Crystal decanters filled with amber liquid stood beside matching crystal tumblers and wine glasses. Bottles of wine were set into the latticed cubby behind the bar.
“Look at this view,” Giva called out from the other room, which was divided only by a wall, with no doors on either end.
Dax stepped into the bedroom with its floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Old Town and the Fortress. The harbor beyond was lit with a gorgeous sunset, coloring the water and casting shadows over the city.
A king-sized bed stood against the wall he’d walked around. Whoever slept there would have that view going to sleep and waking in the morning.
Giva touched a button on the wall, and a motor hummed softly, lowering shades over the windows, blocking the view out as well as the view in.
“This would be a great place to stay...” Dax started.
“If we weren’t here for a purpose,” Giva finished. She turned toward the bed, a smile tilting the corners of her mouth, one eyebrow lifting into the swath of hair dipping over her forehead. “Care to test the mattress?”
His cock jerked to attention at the thought of getting naked with Giva and testing the firmness of the mattress. He even glanced at his watch, wondering if they had time.
A sound from the other room brought him back to reality.
He hurried into the sitting room to find Dmytro, dressed as one of the wait staff, pushing a cart into the room. “A light snack for Mr. Maas and Ms. Royce, care of hotel management.” He rolled the cart into the room, letting the door close behind him.
Once he was fully inside, he pulled out a foot-long black wand, clicked a button on the side and walked around the room, waving the wand over light fixtures, end tables, televisions and mirrors.
When he’d completed a full sweep of the room, he nodded. “No bugs detected,” Dmytro said with his heavy Ukrainian accent.
He slid the wand into his uniform pocket and pulled the metal cover off the plate on the cart. “Thought you would like a bite to eat while I prepare Evan for his meeting. You should receive the message soon and need to be ready.”
“Prepare me?” Dax asked, reaching for a cracker and a square of cheese from the charcuterie board Dmytro had brought for them.
“We must assume the location will be somewhere they’ve blocked all tracking devices and radio waves. They won’t want anyone leading others in or allowing anyone to listen to their plans.”
Dax nodded. “I expected as much.”
Dmytro continued. “You must not carry anything that will set off a metal detector, including weapons, radio headsets, voice recorders or tracking disks. Still, we need a way to track you, should we want to find you, should you not emerge in a timely manner.”
“If we can’t rely on electronics, it sounds like I need to leave a trail of breadcrumbs.” Dax chuckled. “My luck, some dog would follow, eating them as I go.”
Dmytro gave a brief nod. “I have something better.” He held up one of the shoes Dax had purchased in his shopping expedition with Giva.
“You want me to leave a trail of shoes?” he asked.
Dmytro laughed. “No. Your shoe will help us find you. Put it on.”
Frowning, Dax slipped out of the boots he was wearing and pulled on the shoe. “I don’t understand how this will lead you to me. I thought they would be looking for tracking devices. Wouldn’t they find one if it’s inserted in the shoe?”
“They would. But there aren’t any tracking devices in your shoe...that they can detect.” He tipped his head. “Walk a few steps, bearing down on the heal every other time.”
Dax walked across the carpeted floor, bearing down on the shoe every other step. When he turned, he didn’t see anything but the carpet as it had been before he walked across it.”
Dmytro stood near the door to the suite, his hand on the light switch. “Watch.” He flipped the switch, plunging the room into darkness. Then, a click sounded, and the glow of a blacklight lit the room in an eerie purple glow.
Dmytro carried a flashlight with a black light bulb toward them, shining it on the carpet.
As he neared, the faint outline of a shoe heel glowed in the darkness.
“What is it?” Dax asked.
“Invisible ink.” Dmytro walked back to the door and flipped the light switch. With the room lit with the overhead lights, he turned off the blacklight and flipped the switch again.
The carpet remained black, with no sign of the heel print.
Again, Dmytro turned on the overhead lights, laid the flashlight on the cart and crossed to where Dax and Giva stood. “I drilled a hole into the sole of the shoe and inserted a packet of invisible ink.”
Dax removed the shoe and looked at the heel. He couldn’t see where the hole had been drilled unless he studied it carefully. Dmytro had sealed it carefully and blended the color to match.
Dmytro took the shoe and turned it over. “I drilled little holes in the heel to allow the ink to flow through when you press hard on the heel. It is not perfect, but it will work if you use it wisely and don’t run out of ink before you get to where you are going.” He handed the shoe back to Dax.
Dax grinned. “Where did Hammer find you?”
“Who says he found me ?” the older man said, his face poker-straight. “I have set up operations in the room a floor below yours. I will not be with the others when you go to the designated location. I will be in contact with everyone, except you, of course.”
“Thanks for looking out for me.” Dax shook his head as he stared down at the shoe Dmytro had rigged with invisible ink. “Take care of the others.”
“ Konechno.” Of course. Dmytro’s brow dipped low. “The word on the dark web is that they are planning something that could spark World War III. My family is in Switzerland, alive and well. I would prefer they stay that way. I would prefer a world where I can enjoy grandchildren someday.” He held out his hand. “ Udachi .”
Dax recognized the Russian words for of course and good luck . As part of his training in Marine Force Recon, he had been required to learn another language, preferably in the area of operations they’d most likely serve. He’d learned enough Pashto and Arabic to get by in the Middle East. Because he had an aptitude for absorbing languages quickly, he’d studied Russian as well.
He didn’t consider himself an expert linguist by any means, but he’d learned enough Russian he could read most messages and make out a lot of the words in the Russian movies he’d checked out of the library at the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center (DLIFLC), located Monterey, California.
On vacation in Czechia after leaving the Marine Corps, he’d been surprised he’d retained as much as he had when he ran into a man from the Ukraine and had a long discussion about US versus European football.
Dax gripped Dmytro’s hand. “ Spasibo.”
Dmytro’s eyes lit up for a moment, his grip tightening around Dax’s. “You will do well.” Dmytro left the room, closing the door softly behind him.
Giva picked up a piece of cheese. “Do you speak Russian?”
Dax shrugged. “I learned a little.”
“It will be useful with the oligarchs. Evan Maas speaks Russian,” Giva said. “How’s your German and Japanese?” She popped the piece of cheese into her mouth.
“I can understand a lot of German. I’m not familiar with Japanese.” He frowned. “Please don’t tell me Evan Maas speaks Japanese.”
Giva grinned. “Not that I know of. Though it would’ve been nice to understand whatever Yamaguchi says. I believe all the members of the Nexus Collective have a good understanding of English.”
“Hopefully, they’ll conduct the meeting in English, or I’ll struggle to gather all the relevant information.” He shook his head.
“Your language training was another consideration for bringing you on board for this assignment,” Giva said.
“Which languages do you speak?” Dax asked.
Giva nodded. “Hebrew, English, French, Spanish and Russian.”
Dax gave her a twisted smile. “I feel like a slacker.”
“In Israel, we learn languages at a younger age,” she said. “It makes a difference.”
“I learned when I was in my twenties.” He nodded. “I can understand how it could be easier when you’re a child.” He glanced across at Giva. “I know Fearghas will follow me wherever the directions say. And, if we head into Old Town, Peter will be there as well.” He pressed his lips together for a moment. “What about you? Will you stay with Dmytro and monitor communications.”
Her brow furrowed. “No.”
“I’ll go where you go.” She waved a hand. “Undercover, of course, but I’ll follow you until I can’t.”
Dax’s frown deepened. “I’d rather you stayed with Dmytro.”
Her dark brows descended. “Not happening.”
“You’ll be safer with Dmytro than wandering through the streets of Dubrovnik.”
“I don’t care about being safe. We need to be as close as possible in case you need us.”
Dax shook his head. “If they capture you, they’ll use you as leverage against me.”
“Then you must not consider my safety in that scenario. I choose to stay involved. If my involvement places my life in danger, that is my choice and my problem, not yours.” She stepped up to him. “Your job is to determine what they have planned, get out and let the rest of us know what it is so we can stop it. What happens to me is not important.”
Dax raised a hand and cupped her cheek. “But that’s the problem. What happens to you is important. You are important.” He leaned closer, lowering his head toward hers, his lips hovering so close he could kiss her.
“You can’t be concerned about one person. If what they are planning will annihilate thousands or millions, what happens to me is inconsequential.” She covered his hand resting on her cheek and turned to kiss his palm. “Your mission is critical. Don’t lose focus.”
“Sweetheart,” he whispered, “it’s too late. I’ve completely lost focus. It’s all on you.”
She stared up into his eyes, her brow knitted. “Then get it back. Do I have to spit in your face or kick you in the crotch to bring you back to reality?” The crease in her brow deepened. “I will, if that’s what it takes.”
Dax chuckled. “No, that won’t be necessary. I need to be able to walk out of this room when the time comes. I’ll do my job. You don’t have to worry about that. I just don’t want you to be collateral damage if shit hits the fan.”
“I can take care of myself.” She squared her shoulders and lifted her chin. “Can you?”
He nodded and then shook his head. “Not where you’re concerned. I can’t seem to push you out of my thoughts. Not for a second.”
Giva bit her lip and stared up into Dax’s eyes. “You have to let me go. What you’re doing is what counts.”
He bent and brushed his lips across hers. “I know. But what does it hurt to kiss you one last time?”
She sighed. “Not a damn thing.” Giva reached up, wrapped her hand around the back of his neck and pulled him closer, pressing her body against his.
Their lips met in a soul-defining kiss that robbed Dax of his breath. He didn’t care. Didn’t need to breathe. Not as long as he held Giva in his arms. She was everything he hadn’t known he needed in a woman.
If things went south on this mission, he’d never see her again. Hell, the Nexus Collective might make an example out of him. They might use him as a poster child for what happens when an outsider infiltrates their happy little group. And if that wasn’t harsh enough, they might capture Giva and threaten to harm her to get Dax to talk.
“Please, stay with Dmytro,” Dax begged.
“I can’t promise that,” she said, applying pressure to the back of his neck, urging him to kiss her again.
He held back, staring down into her eyes. “Why didn’t I meet you sooner?” he said, stroking her cheek with his fingers. “We could’ve ignored any efforts by the Brotherhood Protectors to operate this mission.”
“We can’t back out now,” Giva whispered, her gaze locked on his.
“No,” he said, his heart plummeting into the pit of his belly. “We can’t.”
Giva drew in a deep breath, leaned up on her toes and kissed his lips in a light sweep of her mouth.
Dax drew her into his arms and held her close.
Giva’s body melted into his as she wrapped her arms around his neck and one of her calves around the back of his thigh.
She felt warm, alive and excited in Dax’s arms as his mouth claimed hers in a kiss that said everything he was afraid to say. They’d been strangers until two days before. He only knew the basics about her. It didn’t matter.
Dax didn’t want the kiss to end.
He pressed his hips against hers, his cock straining against the fly of his trousers.
If only they were on vacation, not on a mission.
He’d take her into his arms and not let go for a long time. Past morning, past a weekend and into the rest of his life.
When he had to break free and breathe, he leaned back, staring down into her passion-filled eyes and wished he could stay.
The cell phone in his pocket vibrated, jerking him back to the present.
Giva must have felt the vibration. She backed away, her arms falling to her sides, her gaze strained.
Dax’s gut clenched as he stared at the text message across his phone screen.
Finally, the wait was over.
“It’s time,” Dax whispered. “I have to go.”