“I think I’m going to throw up.” Nina looked to Austin, who gripped her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze.
Never in a million years would Jackson have pegged Nina for a mafia princess. His mental image for the type was the complete opposite of the woman seated across from him. Wearing faded jeans, high-top Nikes, and a purple T-shirt that read “I paused my game to be here,” she looked more like an attractive computer geek. A very stressed-out computer geek, but who wouldn’t be after learning there was a bounty on your head?
“This doesn’t make sense. I’m not a threat to anyone. I never got involved in the business. What’s the point in killing me?” Nina dragged a hand through her choppy blonde hair. “None of my immediate family is even involved with the Bratva anymore. Hell, most of them are dead. My mother moved out of the country last year, and—oh, God.” Panic widened her eyes. “Do you think they’ll go after my mother?”
“That depends,” Essie replied, her voice as calm as if she were talking about the weather. “Are you and your mother close?”
Nina scoffed. “Not in the least. She disowned me after my brother’s death.”
“In that case, the odds of anybody trying to use her to get to you are slight. Unless…” Empathy softened Essie’s eyes. “Is there any chance your mother took out the contract?”
“What—no! I mean…well, I suppose anything’s possible. She blames me for what happened to my brother, but I don’t think she hates methatmuch.”
Hands folded on the table, Essie leaned forward slightly. “Not to put too fine a point on it, but somebody wants you dead and is willing to pay a lot of money to make that happen. It’s critical we discover the identity of that person as soon as possible. If it’s not your mother, then it could be somebody who wants to make a name for himself within the organization. Or perhaps it’s a friend of your brother who wants to avenge his death.”
Nina laughed, but the sound lacked any trace of humor. “My brother never had friends, not even when we were kids. In that business, he couldn’t afford to let anyone get that close.”
“Tell me everything you know about Vaughn Yeager,” Austin said. By all outward appearances, he was calm as could be, but there was no mistaking the raw aggression radiating off him like the heat haze on the highway.
And who could blame him? Jackson would feel the exact same way if some asshole was after his woman. As it was, he couldn’t wait for the opportunity to choke the living shit out of Vaughn. And yeah, she damn well was his woman, whether she realized it or not.
Essie met Austin’s steely gaze. “Vaughn Patrick Yeager. White male, age forty-four. Five eleven, approximately one hundred eighty pounds. Brown hair, but it’s starting to show a little gray. He was my mentor and one of the best field agents I ever worked with at the Agency. He’s an expert in surveillance, infiltration, intelligence collection, and the use of deadly force. Up until a few days ago, he was presumed dead in a building explosion in Beirut. Apparently, that was a ruse so he could move into the freelancing business.”
“As an assassin,” Austin bit out.
The corners of Essie’s mouth tightened. “Unfortunately, yes.”
“You got a picture of him?”
“I’m afraid not,” Essie said with a shake of her head. “Unless you have access to a sketch artist, the best I can do is a detailed description.”
“Would the Agency have a picture of him in his file?” Nina asked.
“Probably, but I don’t have that kind of access anymore.”
Austin and Nina exchanged a look, and Jackson would have been willing to bet his next paycheck that Larissa, Austin’s sister and Six Points Security’s resident hacker extraordinaire, would be taking a crack at the Agency’s servers within the next hour or two.
There was a long, uncomfortable pause. After what seemed like forever, Nina asked, “How much is the price on my head?”
“Five million.”
Nina’s mouth dropped open while Austin unleashed a creative string of profanity.
“Should we call the police?” Nina asked.
“You can, but it won’t do any good. They don’t have the resources to watch you every minute of the day, and even if they did, he’s better than they are. Sooner or later, he’ll find a way to get to you.”
Austin glared daggers at Essie. “Aren’t you just a fucking ray of sunshine?”
It took all of Jackson’s self-control to keep his big mouth shut. Lashing out at Essie wasn’t going to do anybody any good. But he knew better than to say it out loud, because this was Essie’s show, and she’d get pissed if he came charging to her rescue when it wasn’t needed. Or wanted.
Unfazed by Austin’s surly attitude, Essie’s eyes met his head-on. “I’m just giving you the pertinent facts. Don’t shoot the messenger. No pun intended.”
Austin looked as though he wanted to punch something, a sentiment Jackson totally understood. But he managed to hold it together and wrapped a comforting arm around his wife’s shoulders. “Don’t worry, Nina. We’ll find them, and we’ll stop them.”
“And then what? It’s an open contract. There have already been two takers. For that kind of money, others will come if Vaughn and the Russians fail.” A note of hopelessness had seeped into Nina’s normally steady voice, and Jackson hated Vaughn for putting it there. “For all we know, they’re already here or on their way.”
“We could drop off the radar for a while,” Austin suggested. “Maybe go on that vacation you’ve been talking about.”
