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his knuckles and on the faint, white scars there. Her fingers reached out and traced lightly over the
marks on his right hand.  What happened?
 I busted too many faces.
She looked up at him.
 In another life& 
Wait, those were scars from fighting?
 You need to remember, he told her, staring straight into her eyes,  I m not some safe guy you can
play around with while you re biding your time until you get to return to your real life. When I said I
wanted you more than breath, I meant it. His gaze glittered.  Next time, I ll take you instead of that
breath.
She was not ready for this. For him. Not in any way. Elizabeth hurriedly pushed open her door. It
wasn t until that moment that she fully became aware of the sounds it was like a million different
insects were out there chirping at her. Probably because they are. She high-tailed it toward the cabin
because she did not want to deal with any snakes, and when Saxon opened the front door, she rushed
inside.
 I have a generator out back, he told her, his voice the deep rumble that made her think far too
much about what he d sound like in bed.  I ll get it going for you. Just stay here, okay?
Wait, he was leaving?  Uh 
And he was already gone.
So she stood there, keeping close to the door because it let the sunshine in, and those chirps and
cries got louder and louder. She started to inch deeper into the cabin s interior. The lights flashed on.
She was so startled that she gave a little scream.
Saxon came running.  Elizabeth!
She pressed her lips together. Embarrassed now, her gaze slid away from his.
Saxon laughed. It was a kind of rusty sound.  Thought you might have seen a snake. You know& the
anaconda kind.
Elizabeth s stare jumped right back to his face. Oh, jeez, that smile of his was back in place. The
smile that said, Hi, I m uber sexy. Don t you think so?
He shrugged.  I know the cabin isn t much, but it s a safe place. I ll make contact with Victor
soon, and we ll see what the next step is for you.
She turned around and looked at the cabin. The place was small, but absolutely immaculate. There
was a big, dark rug on the floor. Gleaming, wooden chairs. A table. A bed one obviously designed
to hold a single person, but it had nice, comfy looking pillows on top of it. And there was a bathroom.
How much more did she really need?  It s perfect. Snakes and all.
 Good. You rest here. Try to get some sleep.
The floor creaked. She looked back and saw that he d moved toward the doorway. Uh, oh.
 Saxon?
 I ll check in with Victor and be back before you can even miss me.
Doubtful.  Saxon 
 And I m sorry about Wesley Locke. Never in a million years would I have wanted you to watch
him die.
Her breath caught.
And he was gone. He d just shut the door. Locked it, and by the time she got the door unlocked
and open, he was already back in the truck.  Saxon! He was really just dumping her there? After that
kiss? After that whole wanting-her-more-than-breath thing?
Leaving?
Her jaw dropped.
His tail-lights vanished.
Yes, he d dumped her.
The chirps grew even louder. Elizabeth hurriedly shut the door.
So much for needing her more than breath. That guy really needed to work on his seduction
technique.  Cause abandoning a girl in the middle of snake central? So not sexy. So not.
I m sorry about Wesley Locke.
 I m sorry, too, she whispered. She wrapped her arms around her stomach and wondered just
what the hell she was supposed to do now.
***
Since he knew this particular area so well, Saxon knew the exact spot where he d start getting cell
service again. He d been working the undercover assignment in Miami for the last few months, and
he d been escaping to his cabin whenever he could.
On the days when I have to escape so I can try to remember who the hell I really am.
He yanked out his burner phone, and he called Victor. The phone rang, and he tapped his fingers
against the steering wheel. The damn truck actually smelled like Elizabeth now. She didn t just smell
like honey, she tasted like that sweetness. He hadn t been kidding when he d said that he could just
eat her up and
 Agent Monroe, Victor snapped.
Victor was always snapping. The guy needed to learn how to relax the hell up. Maybe once Saxon
was out of the business, he d help his friend.  She s in a safe spot.
Silence.  You re on a burner.
Obviously. What might not be so obvious to Vic&  I m not liking this whole setup, Vic. I mean,
we were found at the motel. And now both Taggert and Locke are dead? By the same killer s hand?
 We don t know yet if it was the same 
 Aw, man, it s me. Don t feed me that line of crap. You and I both know we have to be looking at
the same killer. What I don t understand is& why? Why is someone so determined to get Elizabeth?
When he thought of Taggert, fury pumped through him. He d lost months of his life so that bastard
could be brought in and turned against his clients. Taggert was supposed to be pressured into rolling
on all the people who d hired him over the years. This case should have resulted in a massive
takedown.
And now now he had no clue what was happening.
When Victor didn t respond, Saxon said,  You need to get an APB out on Tommy Haines, Flint
Mayo, and Romeo Gustav. I want those bastards out of the game and locked in a cell, understand?
Maybe those goons could tell them who d originally hired then killed their boss. Victor thought
of just how close those men had come to getting Elizabeth.  I can t promise you I ll let those bastards
live if they come after her again.
Silence. Victor would know that Saxon wasn t bullshitting. His days of playing by the FBI s rules
were over.
 I ll find them, Victor promised.  Hell, once they get word that their boss is dead, you know
they ll panic, anyway. No doubt they ll cut and try to run from the city, but my team will stop them.
 You d better. Or he d be stopping them.
 Where are you now? Victor demanded.
Saxon hesitated. Normally, he told Victor everything. The guy was closer to him than any brother
could ever be. After the shit they d survived together, they d formed a bond that Saxon had never
expected. Only&
Elizabeth s life is on the line.  I ve got her someplace safe. Like he d said before.
 Saxon? There was surprise in Victor s voice. But Victor shouldn t be surprised. Saxon was
using a burner phone for a reason.
I m not sure who I can trust. Because maybe someone had tipped Taggert off about Jenny s true
identity. And maybe that same someone had led Taggert s men to the motel.  Did your team know that
I had Elizabeth at the motel?
 Well, yes, but 
That was all he needed to hear.
Victor s long sigh carried over the phone.  I get it. You still think someone from my team could be
selling us out?
Because, yeah, after Jenny s death, Saxon had brought up this suspicion to Victor. By nature, he
was just a suspicious bastard.
Victor s voice dropped to a low, lethal whisper.  I told you, I checked everyone  [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]