Page 25 of Winter's Heart


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Good?She’d been great.Scarily so.They’d achieved their first goal.Now, hopefully, the rest of the plan went just as smoothly.

He grappled Nikki into a bear hug, then kissed her hard, claiming her, desperate to feel her warm, stubborn mouth on his.Closing his eyes for a second as he tasted her sweetness, his spike of adrenaline receded.She was fine.They were both fine.But he needed to feel her whole and alive pressed against his chest before the last of his heightened anxiety levels came back to normal.They were taking a calculated risk here, but things could still go terribly wrong.Especially if Nikki decided to go off script.Because if he couldn’t control her, then he couldn’t control the situation, and that might be a path to ruination.But right now, he was happy just to revel in the feel of her mouth against his.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

NIKKI PACED ACROSS the kitchen, the aging wooden floorboards squeaking beneath her socked feet.She stopped when she reached the sink, peered out the window for a few seconds, then turned and continued pacing.Where was Linstead?It’d been two hours since their little pantomime on the front porch.Jacob assured her that Linstead would come; they just didn’t know when.She’d already checked the window beside the back door in the washroom, twice, and the same agent—the driver from their car from the airport the other day—was still in his position outside, ambling slowly up and down the concrete pathway that led to her garden shed, stopping now and then to stomp his feet.She almost felt sorry for him; it must be a cold, thankless job standing guard for endless hour after hour.Almost sorry, but not enough to really care—he was just another jailer after all.There was no sign of the second operative stationed out the back, but he had to be out there somewhere, doing a circuit of the yard, or perhaps hiding behind some bushes, not wanting to make it too obvious there was a phalanx of agents surrounding her residence, so as not to alert the neighborhood there was something fishy going on.

After three more fruitless circuits of the kitchen, Jacob reached out and grabbed her hand as she walked past where he was seated at the small table, stopping her forward motion.He frowned at her but didn’t articulate his thoughts because everything they said was being monitored.Now she knew how a caged lion must feel.This helpless waiting was just about killing her.

But she gave Jacob a wan smile and took a seat at the table, more to appease him than because she wanted to.They sat in uneasy silence, she unable to think of any small talk to lighten the mood.Resisting the urge to look out the window one more time, she propped her elbows on the countertop and nibbled on her nails.Which was most unlike her; she never chewed her nails, not even when she was terribly stressed.She’d always thought she was one cool customer.But this was a whole other level of stress, one she’d never encountered before.

Lost in her thoughts, she almost hit the ceiling when a loud knock sounded at the front door and she leapt out of her chair to head into the hallway.But Jacob beat her to it.He motioned for her to stay back, that he would let the agent in and to just stay calm.This had to be Linstead.It was the exact thing they’d been waiting for, but now he was here, Nikki wondered if she could go through with it.

A low buzz of conversation filled the passage, then a few moments later, Agent Linstead rounded through the kitchen door, Jacob hot on his heels, with Miller right behind him.They’d expected that Linstead wouldn’t enter the house alone, and she was glad it was the female agent and not that hot-headed asshole, Sabitino.Drawing in a deep, controlling breath, Nikki kept her face passive as Linstead shot her a ready smile.Their self-appointed prison officer didn’t deserve any kind of welcome.His grin faltered only slightly as he caught her look of contempt.The room was crowded now with the four of them all milling around.

“I heard you wanted to see me,” Linstead opened the conversation as he pulled out a chair and sat, crossing his legs with careful consideration and dusting off a speck on non-existent fluff, clearly feeling superior and totally unconcerned.Well, he was about to find out the hard way not to mess with her.And Jacob.Miller remained standing in the main doorway, her usual cool, unruffled self.Nikki secretly hated that the woman never seemed to have a hair out of place; it was always pulled back into a simple ponytail that on anyone else would’ve looked severe, but on Miller just highlighted her high cheekbones and startling green eyes.She would be stunning under the right circumstances.

Jacob leaned casually against the countertop a few feet away from Miller, seemingly also unconcerned, which left Nikki standing on the opposite side of the table to Linstead, with her back to the doorway that led to the washroom.

But before she could jump into their rehearsed conversation, Jacob surprised her by asking, “Where’s Sabitino?And who’s the new bloke out on the front porch?”

Linstead shot him an unfathomable look.“Sabitino has been reassigned,” he said.

Wow, that was interesting.She risked a glance in Jacob’s direction, and he raised a sardonic eyebrow.After the showdown on the porch, they’d retreated to her bathroom to regroup without the surveillance watching them.They’d only stayed a few minutes, not wanting to raise too many suspicious, just enough time for him to hold her tight until the adrenaline had faded and she stopped shaking.Then he’d whispered into her ear while they ran the faucet that Sabitino’s reaction had been over the top, and they needed to watch out for him.But if his assessment was correct, and this team was working outside of normal channels, then these FBI officers were trying to keep everything on the low-down.And Sabitino’s little scene had been the exact opposite of discreet.The agent’s sudden removal seemed to support his theory.

“But that’s not why you called me in here, is it?”Linstead’s cool, gray eyes landed on Nikki, and she drew in a lungful of air, readying herself.

“No, it’s not.We believe you’re holding us illegally.I want to talk to a lawyer.”She put her hands on her hips to hide the fact that they were shaking, and faced him across the table, piercing him with her best icy stare.God, she hoped she could do this.A small part of her wondered if Jacob’s faith in her acting abilities had been misplaced.She was suddenly unsure she could see this through.

“I’m sorry, that’s not possible,” Linstead replied easily.“Your friendly Swedish cops still haven’t caught the two men who were trying to kill you, and we now have no idea where they are.They could very well be hunting you down right here in the US.We are doing this to keep you safe,” he stated, spreading his hands in what she assumed was a gesture of goodwill, but it only made her blood begin to boil.

“I don’t believe you,” Nikki countered.Linstead smiled in return and said nothing.“Well then, at least tell me when you’re going to release us.”Even though this was all scripted, Nikki could feel her anger rising; she wanted to slam her fist down on the table in a fit of pique.And why the hell not, she decided.The smack as her hand hit the wood was very satisfying, and it even had Miller taking a step forward.Jacob didn’t move a muscle, but Nikki could tell by the tiny crease in his forehead that he was readying himself.“If you really are just keeping us‘safe’,” she raised her hands and made air quotes above her head, “then will you let us go on the day that the trial starts?”

Linstead stared at her and pursed her lips.His cool indifference got right under her skin.He was probably used to staying in control under pressure; he was an FBI agent after all, and she’d do well not to forget it.But right now his complete lack of concern was playing right into her scheme, because she could feel her face flushing with the injustice of her situation.And the madder she got, the more unhinged she became, the more believable this would all look, and the less nervous she was.

“Or will it be the day after I’m supposed to give my testimony?”She demanded.“So that when I don’t turn up, the judge shall be forced to move on?”She was getting a good head of steam up now, could feel the blood beginning to surge, hot and heavy in her veins.Leaning both hands on the table, she glared at Linstead.“Or will it be once the court case is finished?Which could take weeks, months even.”She thumped the table again for added emphasis.“I will not stay locked up in here for months.”A bit of spittle flew out of her mouth and landed on the tabletop between them.

Linstead kept his eyes trained on her, but she could see his barely hidden contempt.He didn’t care one bit about her predicament, or that a big Chinese company was going to be allowed to continue raping and pillaging pristine ocean waters.She was a job to him, nothing more.He didn’t care about her, and he certainly didn’t care about the environment, something she was passionate about, something she’d given her whole life to protecting.It was that realization that tripped the switch inside her, and much like it had out on the front porch this morning, she sensed an anger like she’d never felt before.

She used that rage, twisted it to suit herself.If she looked half-crazy now, then perhaps it was because she was.

“I’m sorry, I really am, but—” Linstead began, but she cut him off, yelling now.

“And what about my friend’s funeral?I want to go to Tammy’s funeral.I need to be there to say goodbye.You can’t keep me here.”She ended her tirade with a sob.A real sob—she didn’t need to fake it—the thought of missing Tammy’s funeral hit her with the force of a punch.It was true; she needed to bid farewell to her friend, but she knew this bastard would not allow it.That belief banished all doubt from her head.She could do this because she had to.For her friends if not for herself.

Linstead pushed back in his chair, but didn’t rise, content to stay seated, arrogant enough to think she wouldn’t be a problem.Miller wasn’t so complacent, and though Nikki had her full focus on Linstead, she saw the agent take another step toward her in her peripheral vision.

Linstead spoke.“Like I said, I’m really sorry, but I have my orders.If it were up to me—”

“That’s all bullshit,” Nikki screeched.“You’re lying.You have to let me out of here.I need to get out of here.”Miller moved closer again, and Jacob stood up from where he’d been lounging against the countertop.

It was now or never.

Nikki pushed the table hard toward Linstead, and at the same time Jacob took Miller in a grapple hold around the neck.Then all hell broke loose.Nikki screamed something incoherent and made a dash for the door behind her that led to the washroom.

She heard Linstead curse, then yell, “Bakshi, get in here.”The small part of her mind that wasn’t overtaken by near hysteria registered that he must be calling in the new agent from the front, which meant she only had a few seconds.It was a quirk of her house that not many people knew about.Unlike most other wash rooms which normally led straight out to the rear door, hers had a second door cut into it, exiting back into the hallway right next to her bedroom.The door had already been there when she’d first moved in, and at first she thought about filling it in.But then she noticed how useful it was, because instead of having to detour all the way down the passage and right through the kitchen when she carried her load of clothes from her bedroom to the washer, she could just duck through the semi-secret entrance.Most people would assume that the door hid a closet behind it, and wouldn’t give it a second glance.

Now, she lunged for the concealed door, yanking it open and letting herself into the hallway.At the other end, the front entrance was open, and a dark figure loomed in the doorway; Bakshi.The sounds of a scuffle emanated from the kitchen as Jacob contended with Linstead and Miller, trying to block them from getting to her.She had only seconds to complete her mission.Her socks slipped on the polished wooden floors, and she cursed her lack of thought about her unsuitable footwear as she scrambled to open the door to her bedroom.Loud footsteps boomed on the floorboards behind her.