“That hurts.”
“He works for the Caleb Group,” London said.“He’ll give us Axiom.”
“Maybe,” Stein said.“But let’s remember that Emberly attacked him in Barcelona?—”
“That’s a little overstated.”She rolled her eyes.
He ignored her.“And even if Declan does hand over Axiom—what if the Russians don’t have the program?They could be watching her.”He cast a look at Roy.“Maybe that’s why we walked away so easily from Sintra.”
Silence.
“Black Swans work alone,” Emberly said softly.
He met her green eyes.“Not anymore.”
Her jaw tightened as she looked away.
“We’ll track down Luis,” said London.“You guys get Axiom.”
“Then what?”Steinbeck said.
“Stay out of trouble and wait to hear from us.”
“Youhavemet her, right?”He grinned when her mouth opened.
London laughed.“Try not to kill each other.”
“Been there, done that,” Stein growled.
Emberly folded her arms, shook her head.“He’s slow.And annoying.And?—”
“And just maybe, Emberly Hart, you’ve met the one man who can keep up with you.Try to keep him alive.”London pointed at Stein.“Don’t make me regret this.”
“Mystique—”
“You either,” London said as she turned back to Emberly.“I don’t want to lose one of my best operatives, so try to play nicely.”
Emberly rolled her eyes.
“I’m not sure where Declan is,” Steinbeck said.“My guess is Minnesota.”
“Great,” London said.“I’ll arrange a flight for you in the morning.Check into the server for details.And get some sleep.”She turned to Roy.“Let’s go.”
Roy smirked and clamped Stein on the shoulder as he left.“Heaven save us from Black Swans.”
Stein locked the door behind them.Turned.“Emberly?”
She sighed.“Phoenix to you, bub.”
“That’s what you think.”
A beat, then she picked up her backpack.“I’m going to bed.But...”She also picked up her handgun.“Next time, maybe you let me shoot them.”
He laughed as she closed the door at the end of the hallway.
Then he grabbed the pillow off the bed and set up a perch on the sofa.
Just in case.
