chapter 15
Nate settled Audrey more securely against him, keeping his weapon in sight. Peace threatened to dull his senses. In the aftermath of the passionate storm, with Audrey sleeping in complete trust against him, he allowed himself to relax.
She murmured and cuddled closer, her hand curling on top of his chest. Her warmth and soft skin offered comfort he wasn’t strong enough to turn away from. The defenselessness of her position made him want to tuck her close forever, but he couldn’t do that, even if she’d allow it. In three weeks, he’d probably be dead, and she’d have to pick up the pieces again. Why do that to her?
The constant tension always riding his body finally calmed. She was the only person in the world who’d ever been able to bring him peace. For that alone he’d love her forever.
Add in her courage, incredible intelligence, and the inherent kindness she’d had to bury, and Audrey Madison was a miracle.
Just not his. The truth of that carved a hole in his chest more painful than any injury he’d ever sustained.
He needed to stop pretending and living in the moment or they were both going to die even before the chips exploded. How loud had they been? The music had played, and surely the commander’s men didn’t have Nate’s hearing. Even so. For a precious few moments, Nate had forgotten about the threat outside. That couldn’t happen again.
Checking in outside, he listened for the heartbeats of the three men, scrubbing out all other sounds. They were still out there but not moving. Good.
Nate could afford to sleep for a brief time. He allowed himself to drop off, somehow not surprised in the least to have the one dream he had more often than any other—the day he’d met Audrey.
The sun was strong, the smell of dirt stronger, and he’d had no clue his world was about to change. The first time he met her, he had blood on his face. The training exercise had been brutal that morning; he’d been brutal. He was tired of training, tired of killing. Most of all, he was tired of being controlled by the people who had made him. But he knew the rules. If one of them failed to return from a mission, they all died. He had three brothers, and he’d die for every single one of them. He killed for them now. But a change was coming, and he held on to that hope.
“Hi,” she said as she stood in the sun next to the dark doorway, the red highlights in her black hair absurdly out of place on the outskirts of the dismal training field.
He took the towel she offered and tried to wipe off the blood. She looked to be about nineteen, younger than him, and innocence shone bright in her eyes. That wasn’t a place for innocence.
One look, and he could tell she was far different from the women who had shaped them in the last ten years; they were hard, cynical, and had taught them more than anyone should know about interrogation, sexual and otherwise. He had learned a long time ago that softness was an illusion.
“Are you Nathan?” she asked.
“Yes.” He growled it, uneasy as hell with her.
“I’m Audrey.” She held out a small hand for him to shake.
He shook her hand, feeling the fragile bones tremble slightly in his. She was afraid of him, but her gaze remained calm and direct. Admiration welled through him.
“You’re supposed to train me,” she said.
“In what?” The thoughts of some of the ways he might train her ran unwelcomed through his head. Beautiful and delicate, the woman drew him to her. Big blue eyes set in an oval face with ivory skin tempted him, while she barely reached his shoulder in height.
“Basic hand-to-hand”—she gave a self-depreciating shrug—“just in case.”
“In case of what?” He could break her in two with minimal effort, and there wasn’t enough time in the universe to protect her from somebody with his kind of training. Besides, why would anybody want to hurt such a sweet little thing?
“I don’t really know.”
“Who would bring you here?” The question surprised him even as he asked it. Whoever had brought her into hell should be shot. Twice.
She sighed. Her gaze darted to the ground, away from him, while her shoulders hunched forward in defense. “I guess you’re going to find out anyway.”
“Find out what?” He reached out and placed a knuckle under her chin to lift her gaze back to his. Her pretty eyes held more warmth than he’d ever seen, and he wasn’t ready to relinquish the heat.
He was surprised by the sheen of tears in their blue depths as well as the shamed flush that stole across her pale skin. He suddenly wanted to defend her against whoever had brought that look onto her face.
“My mother brought me here,” she said.
He didn’t understand.
Audrey sighed again and tried to tug her face away from his hold. Although he knew better, he kept her in place.
She stopped struggling and met his eyes directly. “My mother is Dr. Madison.”
He dropped his hand, and his shoulders went back. Shock and anger tightened his muscles.
“I know.” Pain and regret filled Audrey’s voice. “I have some understanding of the experiments she’s conducted on you because of the commander, and I’m sorry. So sorry that they hurt you.”
He stared at the top of her head, shining so brightly in the sun. Confusion made him blink. He hated the sociopathic psychologist with every fiber in his being and had since she’d forced him into the training field with the three older Brown boys. Nate had held his own, but he’d still ended up with several broken ribs, a broken femur, and a cracked wrist.
He hadn’t healed by the time Matt had returned, and Matt had gone berserk, ending up in the brig for two weeks after going after the Brown brothers. Christmas had rocked, though. It was the best memory the brothers had, and neither Nate nor Matt regretted it.
Years later, Nate wanted Dr. Madison dead nearly as much as he wanted to see the commander bleeding out over the packed earth of the training field.
“I’m sorry.” Audrey’s voice remained muffled as she scuffed one small shoe in the ground.
Nate brushed aside anger and opened his senses, studying her closely. His odd gift of being able to discern a falsehood assured him she told the truth. The poor girl really was sorry and actually felt shame.
Now she needed his assistance.
His heart warmed as the wish to help her roared through him. They shared an enemy, now, didn’t they?
He snaked out a hand, tangling his fingers in her silky tresses. Desire unfurled through his gut. They needed to understand each other, so a quick twist of his wrist jerked her head back to meet his gaze. “If you’re playing me, you’ll regret it.”
“I know.” Her easy acceptance bothered him more than it should have. Then she smiled, and he forgot how to breathe.
Years, scars, and pain later, Nathan awoke to a slight drumming of rain on the window and a sleeping woman curled into his side.
Slipping out of the bed, he secured his gun to go check on the threat. He turned back to study the only woman he’d ever loved, the one he’d have to let go in order to save his brothers. For the first time in five years, he wondered if he could do it.
* * *
After scouting outside the building for almost an hour, Nate stepped back into the apartment, smiling at the scent of cooking eggs. “Morning,” he said as he stalked into the kitchen.
Audrey jumped and flipped around, a spatula in her hand. “Where did you go?”
“I wanted to check on the men watching you. They’re not bad.” Not that great, either. No wonder the commander wanted the Gray brothers back so badly. “Why are you up so early?”
She expertly tossed the eggs. “I have an early press conference.”
About that. “I’d like you to call in sick and maybe take a vacation.” If he got her to safety, he could better concentrate on killing the commander and decimating the entire organization.
“No.” Audrey slid eggs onto two plates and added a toasted bagel to each. She handed them to him. “Table.”
He followed the order, slid the plates on place mats, and turned to face her. “Why not?”
She moved back to the stove. “Because I have work to do.”
He rubbed his chin, his instincts humming. “Turn around, Audrey.”
Her heart rate increased, so he tuned in to her breathing. Slow, calm, purposeful breaths. What in the world was she hiding? “Now.”
She turned, her face placid. “What?”
Slowly, flexing his biceps, he crossed his arms and studied her.
She tilted her head to the side, sliding on a curious expression. “Nate?”
Oh, she was good. But he was better. So he remained silent, keeping his expression closed and his eyes hard.
She blinked but kept his gaze.
He purposefully didn’t move. An inch.
A pretty pink flared at her chest and wound up her neck to cover her face. The blush had to burn, but she didn’t turn away.
Admiration melded with irritation. He’d been trained by the best, and he’d spent too many moments interrogating people and figuring how to break them. He wouldn’t break Audrey, but he’d get her to talk.
She rolled her eyes. “Is this really necessary?”
He knew she’d talk first. So he stayed silent.
Her fine eyebrows drew down. “Fine,” she huffed, slamming the spatula onto the stove and beginning a lovely storm from the room.
He took a step sideways to block the exit.
She halted, her breath catching. Then she lifted her head, sparks glinting from stunning eyes. “Get out of my way, or I swear, I’ll shove your balls through the roof of your mouth.”
Yeah. He loved her spunk. Slowly, he lifted one eyebrow.
Fire burst across her face. “What the heck do you want?”
“The truth.”
She backed away, her gaze darting away. “About what?”
He waited until she focused back on him. “On why you can’t leave. What’s really going on?” His mind spun different scenarios, and nothing made sense. Except—“Why are you really working for the commander?” She could find another way to be close to her mother without working for evil. Audrey would never work for evil.
She swallowed. “I told you why.”
“You lied.”
She took another step back. “How dare you.” Her voice lacked any conviction.
What was going on? “You’re not leaving the kitchen until you tell me the truth.”
Defiance lifted her chin. “You want the truth? Fine. I’m working with the senator to close down the commander’s organization and put the bastard in prison.”
Everything in Nate stilled. “Excuse me?”
Audrey hissed out air. “He needs to be held accountable, and you can’t do it. Sorry, but I’m in the position to do it, and you need to get out of the way.”
Oh, hell no. “The senator knows?”
“Yes.” She put both hands on her hips. “I’m sorry I didn’t say anything, but I wasn’t sure how to say it, and I knew you wouldn’t want my help. And I couldn’t tell you about the senator, because you’d be pissed, and I couldn’t tell him about you, because I wouldn’t do that to you.”
The long string of words made his head ache, and a tension began to coil in his gut. This wasn’t going to be good. “What are you talking about?”
“The senator and I have ulterior motives in working with the commander. We’re going to find out all about the current organization, and then we’re going to expose him.” She belted her robe tight, determination tightening her jaw.
Nate’s mouth went dry. “Expose him? You can’t expose him.” Letting the world know about the experiments, about Nate’s brothers, would be a disaster. “He has to be killed.”
“No. The man deserves prison—forever. Trust me, we’ll bury any information about you or any other soldiers. Darn it. I have to get ready.” Audrey limped toward the bedroom.
He stood and manacled a hand around her arm. “Ah, darlin’, you’re not going anywhere.”
She blinked, her gaze sparking to his. “Excuse me?”
He walked her backward to sit, every muscle he had turning to rock. “Start at the beginning.” Sheer determination kept his voice gentle when all he wanted to do was bellow. But as he eyed her, sitting so small and defenseless next to her scrambled eggs, her midnight-hair a mess from his hands, her lips a well-kissed red, something in him awakened. Something dark and dangerous, something undeniably male raging with the urge to protect and defend. Whether he liked it or not.
She rubbed the bridge of her nose. “I knew I shouldn’t tell you.” Creamy flesh beckoned when the neck of her robe opened.
His gaze dropped, and he mentally shoved down interest. “Too late. Spill it.”
The plan she detailed made his blood slow down and go cold. It was crazy. They planned to trick the commander into giving up all intel, and then they planned to have him arrested and incarcerated.
The naiveté nearly made him dizzy.
“Audrey, there is no way the commander is going to give the senator information that would hurt him. There’s also no way that monster is going to jail.” The commander probably had more escape plans than Nate did, if that were possible. “You’re going to get both yourself and the senator killed.”
Audrey shook her head, her body visibly vibrating with temper. “You’re wrong. We can do this the right way.”
To have such trust. “What about your mother?” Would Audrey be able to testify against her mother, if there actually was a court case?
“The senator promised she’ll be protected.” Audrey glanced down and picked at a loose thread on her robe. “I know she doesn’t deserve it.”
Everything in Nate loosened. After how Isobel Madison had been to Audrey, after she’d used her, sweet Audrey still wanted to protect her. Sweet and terribly sad all at once. And wrong. No way would the commander or Madison go easily. They’d fight until the last second.
“Your plan won’t work, and it’s not going to happen.” Nate stood, his mind reeling. Where should he send Audrey? “We need to get you out of town.”
She stood again and poked him in the chest. “No. I have a job to do, and I’m going to do it. Besides, you need me to find out about the commander’s other facility. The senator will be able to get the information, and you know it.”
Temper tickled the base of Nate’s neck. “Don’t think for a second of manipulating me like that. It’s not going to happen.”
The stubborn tilt of her jaw seemed to harden. “Too bad, because I’m taking that bastard down.”
“Why?” Nate asked. “Why do you hate him so much?” It wasn’t as if the guy had trained her to kill or ever beat her when she’d failed. Nate had a scar on his back that’d never fade because of the commander’s cruelty.
Vulnerability and fury comingled in her eyes. “Everything is his fault. He hurt you, he hurt my mother, and—”
Oh. Nate exhaled slowly. “Your mother made her own choices. Right or wrong.”
“Wrong.” Audrey raked a hand through her tousled hair. “She loves him, and she’s followed him her entire life. My mother is a brilliant scientist, sought after by many institutions. We could’ve had a good life.”
Ah. Realization finally cleared Nate’s thinking. Audrey couldn’t blame her mother, because, what kid could? But it was easy blaming the cruel military leader. And who knew? If Isobel Madison hadn’t aligned herself with the bastard, maybe she would’ve been a different person. “I’m sorry, Audrey,” he whispered.
Tears glimmered in her eyes. “There’s nothing to be sorry about. But I do have to get to the press conference, and whether you like it or not, the senator is the only person who can find out where the other military base is—the one where Jory might be.”
Nate hated that she was probably right, and the second he found the other location, he would take her from DC whether she liked it or not. “Fine. But we do things my way, or I’ll take your butt out of town right now.”
She sighed, her shoulders dropping. “Of course.”