“And once again you’ve proven yourself incompetent.”
When he saw the other man’s eyes go hard, he reminded himself that this man could be dangerous if pushed too hard, so he decided to ease up. Once the crisis was over, he’d deal with him. For now, all he cared about was salvaging the project and his reputation.
“Let me make some calls,” he said. “Call in some markers.”
The cop shot him a questioning look. “What kind of markers?”
“A marker that might help me get Madrid out of the picture once and for all.”
The uniformed man nodded. “In the interim, what do you want me to do?”
“I want you to find them.” He picked up the phone. “When you do, I want you to kill them both.”
Chapter Thirteen
Jess woke with a start. For an instant she lay nestled in the warmth of the blankets. But while her body cried out for more sleep, her mind began to churn. The memory of everything that had happened the night before rushed back. Entering the Dorian Rae. Finding the prisonlike cells. Hearing the scream echo through the corridors. Running through dark and narrow passageways. The icy slap of the water when she’d jumped overboard to avoid capture.
Everything else was a blur. She didn’t remember taking a bump on the head, but her memory was foggy. She had a vague recollection of Madrid speaking to her, gazing at her with concern in his eyes. Then nothing…
She looked around. Her surroundings were not familiar, but she was pretty sure she was in some kind of RV. There was a small galley. A bench seat and fold-down tabletop. Faux paneling. A narrow door she assumed led outside. Someone had covered her with blankets…. Then she remembered. But Madrid was nowhere in sight.
A quick physical inventory told her she was unhurt, except for some sore muscles and a lingering fatigue. She snuggled more deeply into the blankets, comfort turning to shock when she realized she was wearing only her panties and bra.
But she knew. Madrid had undressed her. Again. Her clothes had been wet, after all. It wasn’t as if he could leave her in them all night. Still, the thought of him seeing her without her clothes made her cheeks heat.
“Morning.”
She sat up abruptly at the sound of his voice. He was standing in the doorway, a grocery bag in his arm. “I didn’t hear you come in,” she said.
“I thought you might like some lunch,” he said. “It’s been a while since we ate.”
“Where are we?”
“In a safe place.” His gaze flicked over her, then he met her eyes. “How are you feeling?”
“Okay.” The image of him undressing her came to her unbidden. Jess tightened her hand on the blanket she clutched to her chest and hoped he didn’t notice the blush. “I remember going into the water. I don’t remember much afterward.”
“By the time I pulled you out, you were hypothermic. Semiconscious. I got you to the car and brought you here.”
“Thank you.” She looked around. “Where is here?”
“An RV park and campground a few miles from the coast.”
She nodded, pursed her lips. “And my clothes?”
“In the dryer.” He set the bag on the counter in the galley. “I’ll get them for you and then fix us something to eat. Then we need to talk.”
“I want to take a shower.”
“In that case, let me run the engine for a few minutes. It’s faster than the generator.” Turning from her, he opened a small cabinet above the dining table and pulled a set of keys from a hook inside. “Water will be hot in ten minutes.”
When Jess finally got in the shower, the hot water felt delicious cascading over her sore muscles, and she couldn’t get enough of it. By the time she turned off the faucets, the water was beginning to run cold.
She found Madrid in the galley. He’d pulled down a fold-out table and set out paper plates. “I made omelets. I hope that’s okay.”
Jess’s stomach grumbled at the sight of the omelet neatly folded on her plate. Next to it was a large glass of orange juice and two slices of toast. “Nice.”
He poured coffee into a plastic cup and handed it to her, his dark eyes meeting hers. “I wouldn’t go that far.”
Jess took the cup, but she didn’t take her eyes from his. He had the longest lashes of any male she’d ever met. “You didn’t tell me you cooked.”
“I haven’t told you a lot of things.”
“I bet.”
He grinned at her over his cup.
She smiled back. “You must have a lot of hidden talents.”
“You have no idea.”
She wasn’t sure where the banter was coming from. Something to break the tension and stress of the past few days. After all, it wasn’t as if they didn’t have more important things to discuss. Like what they were going to do about the horrors they’d discovered on board the Dorian Rae.