His eyes were bloodshot, and as he approached, he reeked of cheap whiskey. He was looking at her with so much longing and . . . pain?
What was going on?
“Travis?” She smiled tentatively. He bent down and kissed the top of her head then walked past her into the house. He said something to Nate who nodded and took off from the house. Emily was out on an errand, so the only other remaining person in the house was Sam.
Travis never glanced her way again. He handed Sam a laptop bag and just headed straight to their room. Caitlin followed him, wanting to scream in frustration.
“Will you please tell me what’s going on?” she snapped. “What did Porter say?”
“It’s a legitimate op, Caitlin,” Travis said as he went to the closet to pull out an overnight bag.Wait. Where is he going?
“What are you doing?”
Travis didn’t answer her, but continued explaining about the Hephaestus-Carpathian files.
“And you believe him? That he wants to end that murderous, arms-dealing Zorin?”
“What choice do I have, Cat?” His eyes finally met hers. “If I say no, they’d probably just grab you. If it’s for greed, have no doubt that I will crucify Porter. I don’t give a damn if he’s CIA. I’ve made enough connections to bring him down if he’s dirty. But all signs are pointing to the fact that he’s got the support of the intelligence committee.”
“So what now?”
“I’ll call him when you’re ready.”
“I don’t know when I’m going to be ready. Our moralcompasses are pointing in opposing directions. This is not a decision I can make lightly.”
“I know, Cat. But good men caught in this op are going to die if we delay any longer.”
“How sure are we that they’d be able to prevent Iran and North Korea from getting their hands on these?”
“They’ve planned this op for three years. And I know how Porter operates. They’ll manage it.”
“I’d probably feel better if Porter said they were destroying them. Will the International Atomic Energy Agency ever be informed about this plutonium cache?”
A muscle worked in Travis’s jaw. “I don’t know.”
“Well, I want to know,” Caitlin retorted. “Can’t believe you didn’t ask him this pertinent question. I’m not about to sign over a blank check for plutonium without an IAEA oversight.”
Travis looked chastised, exhaled deeply, then strode to the dresser and pulled out some clothes.
“Why are you packing and where are you going? And why in the hell can’t you look at me.”
He froze, mid-packing, staring at the white shirt he had in a death grip. He cursed and threw the shirt in the bag and grabbed the manila envelope he had with him and handed it to her.
Confused, Caitlin dug her fingers into the pouch and gasped when she saw its contents.
“Oh, my God!” And then angrily, she said, “Who gave you this?”
Travis cleared his throat. “Porter.”
“I don’t understand. Why is he trying to drive us apart?”
“I told him I wanted to marry you. He thought I needed all the facts.”
Caitlin had a love-hate relationship with Porter, and right now, it was fully on the hate side. “Are you telling me Jase is still a problem between us? I thought we’d gotten past this,Travis. Look, I probably should have told you sooner, but Jase and I were behaving more like roommates three months before Berlin. He’d been planning to leave me for some time.”
Travis completely stilled. A play of emotions crossed his face. Suddenly, his features hardened, and he continued packing. “Those pictures were from before we were married.”
“Wait, you told me that I told you, Jase and I were just friends.”
