Kate stared, then laughed uncomfortably. “Anastasia, despite your background, you’re a civilian now. I can’t just let you?—”
“You are the Special Agent in Charge, and you’re welcome for that, by the way. You have the authority to bring me on as a consultant.”
“Anastasia—”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake! Will you stop calling me that? It’s Anya. And I’m calling in my favor, Kate.” Anya scoffed as she glared at Kate. The reminder of the favor only had her slipping back to that day. The day when everything changed.
Kate was on her knees, clutching Anastasia’s hands. “Please! I will do anything, Anastasia. If they know Ialtered your report, they could hold me accountable for what happened. They could put me in federal prison! They’re offering you early retirement—no black marks. I’m begging you not to tell them the truth.”
Anastasia was reasonably confident that the FBI wouldn’t imprison Kate for altering a report. But Kate’s career would certainly be over. Although that was Anastasia’s fate, she couldn’t bear the thought of being the reason someone she loved lost everything. Still, could she ever forgive Kate for betraying her?
“Anastasia, you’re not saying anything. It’s never good when you’re quiet.” Tears streamed down Kate’s face. “Look, I thought I was doing the right thing! We were under the gun, and…”
“And you thought you could assert your dominance by undermining me?” Anastasia finished for Kate.
“That wasn’t my intention.”
“Wasn’t it? The Director asked for a meeting with me a week prior to this case, presumably for a promotion. When I told you about it, you weren’t happy for me. In fact, your attitude changed quite a bit in private and professionally. You’re asking me to throw away my career to save yours. You can at least be honest with me about that, Kate.”
Kate lowered her eyes but never relinquished her hold on Anastasia’s hands. “Yes, I was jealous. I came up from Quantico a year before you, and I’m a tactical field agent, not just a profiler.”
“Just a profiler,” Anastasia repeated, trying to extract her hands from Kate’s almost painful grip.
“I didn’t mean it that way, I—” Kate sighed. “This is all coming out wrong, and I’m scared. This is my life we’re talking about here. You have the power to end it all for me right now,and I am literally on my knees begging you not to.” Kate dipped her head to look Anastasia in the eyes. “Think of it as a favor.”
“A favor?”
“Yes. Give me this, and I will owe you for the rest of my life. Whatever you want, Anastasia. If I can give it to you, I will.”
Anya kicked that day from her mind and focused on Kate. She wasn’t taking no for an answer.No matter what, she was dealing with this. “Well?”
Kate sighed. “I have a team scheduled to be here at 0800. I can give you until then.”
“Not good enough.” Anya held up a hand. “Yourexactwords the day I gave up everything for you were, ‘I will owe you for the rest of my life. Whatever you want, Anastasia. If I can give it to you, I will.’ I got them tattooed on my ass.”
“I remember w…w-what…?” The folder Kate was holding slipped from her grasp and hit the floor with a loud thunk.
“Pick that up. We’ll need it along with everything else. Call your team and tell them you won’t need them for another twenty-four hours.”
“Anastasia.”
“Anya,” Anya corrected. “I stopped being Anastasia a long time ago, Kate. Twenty-four hours. That’s what I’m asking for with the files and all the resources I need.”
Kate bent down to pick up the file she dropped, and Anya wondered if Kate thought she was being discreet when she glanced at Anya’s ass while she was down there.
“Fine. We’ll go to my hotel room.”
“No. You’ll bring everything to my home. I’ve been gone far too long. Derek will be worried about me.”
“Your home is a crime… who’s Derek?”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Kate placedanother stack of files next to Anya. “That should be everything unless your friends are holding something back.”
Anya peered over the top of her glasses at Kate. “You’d do well to remember who you’re with, Kate. Your high horse isn’t so high with me.”
Kate pursed her lips and nodded. Anya knew Kate had no factual rebuttal, so she did what she did best: she deflected. “This is a beautiful place you have here, Anya. You always had an eye for decorating.”
