Chapter 14

Mason stoodin Avery’s cozy houseboat, a thundercloud of tension roiling overhead despite the tranquil view of black water and glittering shoreline outside.

Paul was pounding away at him, arguing against Mason’s decree that tomorrow was his last day undercover at the warehouse. “I can handle this longer if I need to,” Paul insisted. “If there’s more evidence I can get I want to stay.”

Mason folded his arms across his chest. “Too dangerous. You’re done after tomorrow.”

“I’m not five,” Paul shot back.

Mason shifted uncomfortably, not wanting Avery to witness this family discord. He kept his voice low. “It’s my job to watch your six. Don’t fight me on this.”

But as usual, the guy refused to back down. “I can make my own choices.”

“Not on my watch, you can’t.” Frustration mounting, Mason glanced at Avery. He hated airing their dirty laundry in front of her.

Paul followed his gaze and muttered, “I knew I shouldn’t have called you for help.”

Mason scrubbed a hand over his face, working to control his temper. Keeping Paul safe had to be the priority, popular or not. If that drove the wedge between them deeper, so be it.

Before the strained silence could drag on, Avery’s phone chimed with an alert. She scanned it quickly.

“A body was just discovered in Tacoma. Adult male, matches the description of our mystery passenger.” She raised her eyes to Mason’s. “This could be it.”

Instantly Mason was all business, argument with Paul forgotten. “Location?”

“The industrial district, not far from that self-storage facility,” Avery replied. “They already have an ID. Vic’s name was Rohit Sharma.”

Paul paled. “There’s a guy by that name who works in the Rain Bay office. Same first name at least. Nobody really uses their last name there. The management doesn’t like it. But how many Rohits can there be here, right?”

Mason’s gut twisted. Exactly.

Avery pulled up a photo of the body and showed them.

Paul’s jaw tightened. He gave the image a quick glance before looking away. “That’s definitely him. He works … worked … in the back office. I don’t know what he did there, but that’s the guy.”

Mason put a steadying hand on his brother’s shoulder, exchanging an ominous look with Avery. “Sloppy work.”

“No kidding.” Avery looked puzzled. “We’re surrounded by water. Not hard to make a body disappear.”

“Unless they wanted to send a message,” Mason said darkly.

The implication made his blood run cold. Rain Bay clearly had no qualms killing potential leaks. And they wanted their partners and employees to know it.

Mason met Avery’s steely eyes. Come morning, they’d find a way to get a look at that cargo. Then he’d persuade Paul to disappear.

First, though, he was getting Paul and Avery to a safer location. His intuition was knocking. Hard. Whoever was behind this operation had money and resources. No way they wouldn’t be aware of Avery’s initial investigation. It was possible they were the ones who got the mission cancelled.

Highly likely, actually. If he were a betting man, he’d put money on that.

He pulled up a mental map of his many safe houses on the West Coast, and winced. Amazingly, he had none within even a couple hours’ drive of Seattle. Unlike Tai and Bridger, he’d never spent much time in the Pacific Northwest. He preferred desert, or high mountains. Lakes and creeks and dirt roads that stretched for miles.

So, yeah, he’d have to create a safehouse on the fly.

Or borrow one.

He grunted out loud, drawing Avery’s attention.

She stared him down. “You’re doing it again.”

“Doing what?”

“You’re planning something, and I’m not going to like it.”

How did she do that? He prided himself on his poker face, but the woman read him like a book.

Mason sighed. No point in denying it—she’d see right through him. “We need to get you two somewhere secure until we can figure out our next move.”

Avery’s eyes narrowed. “And I’m supposed to just follow you blindly?”

“Copy that.” Mason kept his tone even, but firm. “This is escalating, Avery. You’re a target now.”

She opened her mouth to protest, but he held up a hand. “I get that you don’t know me, don’t trust my skills. But keeping you and Paul alive until we can crack this case is my priority.”

Paul shot Mason a grateful look, but Avery crossed her arms stubbornly. “And where exactly is this secure location? A black-ops bunker?”

That made him laugh. Hard. “Not exactly. It’s my buddy’s place. He’s never there anymore. You’re not gonna want to hide, but you’re going to love the house. That’s a guarantee.”

“So we’re going to hang out at some stranger’s home without their knowledge?” Avery shook her head disgustedly. “And you wonder why I have trust issues?”

Mason felt his temper flare but forced it down. Getting angry wouldn’t help. He locked eyes with her, willing her to see his sincerity. “I’m trying to protect you here.”

She studied him carefully for a long moment. Then, surprising him, she gave a curt nod. “Fine. But I want to get the okay from your buddy first. Clear?”

Relief washed over him. “That won’t be a problem.”

If he knew Bridger, the guy would have the place stocked with Mason’s favorite foods before he made it halfway across town.

Paul cleared his throat awkwardly. “So where is this friend’s place?”

Mason grimaced. “Laurelhurst.”

Avery’s brows shot up. “You can’t be serious.”

Mason shrugged apologetically. The fancy neighborhood at the edge of Lake Washington was wall-to-wall mansions. Not exactly his style. Or Avery’s, obviously. “Bridger had more money than sense when he bought the place. He’s kind of embarrassed about it, to tell you the truth. He’s been talking about selling it since we started up Redemption Inc., but then along came marriage, and an adopted kid. He’ll get around to unloading it soon.”

“You’re taking us to stay at a mansion?” Avery protested. “Really under the radar there, don’t you think? Are you really going to ask for permission?”

Mason pinched the bridge of his nose, fighting back his exasperation. “I’ll call him right now. You can hear it from him directly.”

Avery widened her stance and crossed her arms. “Let’s do that.”

“Fine.” He needed to clue Bridger in anyway. Eyes on Avery, he punched up Bridger’s number.

His friend answered on the first ring. “Mason. You best be calling with a sitrep,” he warned, but his voice held only lightness. Joy, even.

Grinning, despite himself, at his buddy’s hearty greeting, Mason responded to Bridger’s happy tone. “Sounds like post-honeymoon life’s treating you well, my friend.”

“Copy that.”

“Mind if I put you on speaker? I’ve got a situation.”

“Affirmative,” Bridger assented, his tone holding none of the curiosity Mason knew the man was feeling.

Mountain jays cawed in the background. The familiar sounds shot him with a huge dose of homesickness. Beautiful as Seattle was, for a big city, he was not a metropolis guy. He needed dirt beneath his boots. The crunch of morning frost and the scents of pine and sage and snow.

He punched the speaker button and held the phone out so Avery and Paul could hear. “I’ve got Special Agent Avery Ellis here, and my brother, Paul.”

“Hi, kids,” Bridger called out. “Watcha need, Ortiz?”

“We’re looking for a bed for the night. Probably a couple nights. Okay if we crash at your place?”

As Mason knew he would, Bridger agreed instantly. “Anything we can help with?” he added.

“Just logistical support for now.” The team would have this handled in a nanosecond, but he had agreed to do this Avery’s way. For now.

“Copy that. Keys are under the mat,” Bridger said. A kid’s high, joyous laughter rang out in the background. Bridger’s soon-to-be-son, Kellen.

“Hey, Dad, it’s getting dark out. You said we could play one more game of Night Ranger before bed.”

“On my way, bud,” Bridger called out. “We good?” he asked Mason. “I gotta jet.”

Between the wondrous happiness in his friend’s voice and the thought of having a family—a wife like Jane and a fantastic boy to come home to—Mason’s chest constricted.

“Be safe, bro.” Bridger ended the call.

Mason eyed Avery. “You good with that?”

For a heartbeat, he thought she was going to argue, but mercifully, she finally nodded. “For now.”

“Cool.” He pocketed his phone. “We’re leaving in ten minutes. Gather what you need.”

“What about me?” Paul asked. “We’re going to swing by my place first, right?”

“Negative. What part of ‘lay low’ don’t you get?”

Paul flapped his arms helplessly. “Dude. I don’t even have a toothbrush.”

“I’m heading back to my motel later to clear out my room. I can grab whatever you need from the store on my way back.”

Paul tensed. “What about my truck?”

“It stays at the casino. They’ll have it towed. Eventually.”

Paul’s mouth dropped open. “That pickup cost me thirty-five hundred bucks.”

“I’ll buy you a new one. Not a problem. You ending up dead, however, is a problem. You follow me?”

He braced for another argument, but his little bro merely nodded meekly.

Excellent. At this point, Mason would take what he could get.

“We’ll head out in my rental.” He thought through the plan out loud. “We’ll leave Avery’s car in her parking spot.” He caught her eye. “There’s no evidence that you’re being shadowed, but we should plan for the worst-case scenario. That’ll buy us more time.”

Avery hadn’t moved. From the set of her jaw and the fire in her eye, he predicted a coming storm. Tempting fate, he tapped his watch. “Tick tock, Agent Ellis. Eight minutes and counting.”

She eyed the collection of pans hanging above the stove. He widened his stance, ready to duck if she chucked one, but her hands flattened on the counter. “Just one thing. Does your friend’s place have a spa? I want to know if I should pack a swimsuit.”

The woman had gumption. Maybe too much. Despite his attempts to keep his communications professional, he couldn’t stop the grin that split his face. “No spa. Run that sass at me again, though, and you’ll be sorry.”

Paul leaned in her direction. “Careful. He’s big into forced pushups. Must be all that soldiering.”

She eyed Mason from head to toe, and back, as if she was studying a prize steer. “Yeah. He doesn’t scare me.”

Mason folded his arms, going for a bored look, but he couldn’t help rocking back on his heels. Agent Avery Ellis had fire, that was for sure. He liked spice. Always had. Only not on the job.

He had a bad feeling this was just the initial spark before everything went up in flames.