Chapter 9

Nyx tried to exude calmness because Lurch was pacing the suite from the sitting room to the bedroom and back again. She wanted to ask what had him on edge, but she wasn't sure he would tell her the truth. After living with her dad and brother, she knew how protective Special Forces soldiers could be and he was in full guard-dog mode. She liked the way he moved. Graceful and athletic, but his inability to remain still made her nervous.

Breakfast had been cleared an hour ago. While she'd showered again, she was back in her grungy clothes. She didn't feel clean, but there was nothing she could do about it.

Lurch's route brought him back into the sitting room and she feigned interest in the television even though she had no idea what she was watching. Calm and serene was hard to pull off when she was on edge. And when she was relying on someone else.

Nyx took care of herself. She always had. Her father was out on ops for months at a time. Her mom had her hands full with four kids, three of whom had other fathers. Her sisters had been born when her mom was married to husband number one, and her brother while her mom was married to husband two.

Her family. If she didn't get out of here, her dad was going to organize a rescue, and her brother would be leading it. She didn't want anyone to die trying to free her, so she'd have to get herself out. And Lurch, too.

She hadn't thought of a way to manage that yet. The guards remained on the balcony and there was another pair in the hallway. She'd seen them when the food had been wheeled in. All of them were armed with assault rifles.

Lurch made another appearance, but before he pivoted and left again, she wanted to ask a question. Not that he'd necessarily answer it. If her brother's best friend was anything like Dylan, he'd try to protect her. If only Dill had told her more about his buddy, she might have some idea how Lurch would react.

"Hey, hon, is there something I should know about? You've been pacing pretty intensely since we finished eating."

He stopped and shook his head. "No, sorry. Se?or Vargas should have asked to talk to me by now. I'm trying to come up with why, and I think better when I move."

"Maybe he's busy with something else," she suggested.

One side of his mouth quirked up. "That's on the mental list."

"Along with a dozen other items," Nyx said, trying to ignore the way that sort-of smile made her heart beat faster.

"At least that many." Lurch didn't relax, but some of the tension left his face and it made his lips soften. She found herself wondering what it would feel like to kiss him. Really kiss him, not that fake goodnight brush of lips they'd done last night.

Clearing her throat, she got to her feet and stood in front of him. "What do you need me to do? I want to help."

"You're doing what I need—following orders, and not becoming overly emotional or demanding. That helps more than you realize."

Nyx nodded. She understood more than he knew. Her dad told her all the time that emotional reactions got people killed. He'd also trained her to obey orders when the situation warranted it. Like now. Her dad would expect her to listen to Lurch, to follow his lead. And she would. If she came up with a plan to get them out of here, she'd run it by him. If he told her it wouldn't work, she'd do more thinking.

What she wouldn't do was go rogue.

"You're in charge," Nyx assured him, wanting him to understand she wouldn't be a bigger liability than she was already. "You're the one with experience. If we need research done, then I can take over. Grad school taught me my way around a library."

Lurch smiled and Nyx nearly sighed. It was a good thing he didn't do that often, or she'd be in big trouble.

"Thanks. I'm aware you like to call the shots."

How did he know that?

His smile broadened. "Fireball, I realized the first time we met that you were strong-willed. It's one of the things I appreciate about you."

It was Nyx's turn to smile. "As I recall, it irritated you when we met, not something you deemed a virtue."

"You're wrong," he said. "If you'd walked away when I glared, I would have forgotten about you."

Was he implying that he hadn't put her out of his mind? Or was she reading too much into it because she hadn't been able to stop thinking about him?

Lurch's hands went to her hips, and he pulled her closer. Although he seemed to be looking at her, his gaze was to his right. The balcony. One of the guards was peering in the window. Damn, she was glad he was cognizant of what was going on around them but disappointed that his touch was for show. Nyx put her hands on his shoulders and tried for an adoring expression.

"Our relationship will never be dull, since you like issuing orders, too." Nyx forced the teasing tone in case he'd missed a microphone, but fear had returned. Her life literally hung on the whim of a drug lord.

Maybe he saw it in her eyes. Maybe he sensed it. Lurch's expression became serious. "I'm going to do everything in my power to get you out of here safely. I promise."

"I know you will. I trust you."

The words meant something to him. Nyx saw it on his face, but before she could figure out how to ask why, his lips brushed over hers, and he released her, putting distance between them. More show for their guards, not a real kiss. The disappointment surprised her.

Lurch returned to pacing and Nyx retreated to the sofa. Everything would be easier if they didn't have to act as if eyes were on them all the time. They could get to know each other. She could ask questions about things an engaged woman would already know about her fiancé. If she didn't need to worry about bugs and eavesdroppers, she could tell him who her brother was, and let Lurch know that she was aware he wasn't a mercenary.

She couldn't do any of those things.

A door opened, and Nyx stiffened, unsure if Lurch needed her to stay put or if it would better to stand with him. Before she could make a decision, a man loomed in the entrance to the sitting room, her Special Forces sergeant right behind him.

"Se?orita Templeton," the man in the dark suit and tie said, "Se?or Vargas requests your presence in his office."

Nyx stood in the most ostentatious office she'd ever seen and struggled to breathe. She was alone. Lurch was not invited, and his arguments had been shut down. Two men aiming assault rifles at him had dissuaded him from trying to tag along.

Armed guards stood to her right, one on either side of the wide entrance, and she tried not to hyperventilate. She needed to be cool. She needed to be in control. She needed to be ready to save herself and Lurch if the situation required it.

Focus. Breathe. To keep her eyes off the guards, she examined the office. The floor was marble, the walls were painted a rich charcoal gray, and white molding outlined individually illuminated artwork. Nyx assumed they were expensive, but she couldn't identify the artists.

To her left was a black table with two chairs upholstered in gold velvet. The desk and the bookcase behind it were white and black with generous amounts of gilt, with two sconces on either side of it. There was a tray ceiling with intricate molding, and behind her on the right was a seating area. She'd only gotten a glimpse of it and didn't want to turn around and look, but if her memory was correct, it was as wildly inappropriate for the rainforest as the rest of the office.

The top of the desk had nothing except a table lamp on it. Nyx stared at the black lampshade using it to center herself. Damn, she wished Lurch was with her. He'd know what to say, how to maneuver with the drug lord.

Before she was ready, the guards came to attention and the man from the ruins walked in, taking the seat behind the desk. He wore a suit and tie, but it did nothing to conceal the fact killing was casual for him. Nyx fisted her hands at her sides, trying to hide her nerves.

"Se?orita Templeton," he said in English, "how nice of you to join me."

As if she had a choice. "Se?or Vargas."

He stared at her for a moment. A long, uncomfortable moment. "You work for the Paladin League."

Shit, shit, shit. He'd investigated her. If he was aware of her ties to the Paladin League, did he know about her family, too? Calmness descended, and she cloaked herself in it. She'd do whatever it took to protect her parents, her siblings, and everyone else she loved.

"I'm a contractor, not an employee, but yes, I've worked for the Paladin League." She couched it in past tense, hoping that Vargas would think she wasn't currently working for them, but not anger him if he did know that little fact.

"Contractor?" Vargas asked with no inflection.

Nyx felt her nerves ramp up higher. Pressing her nails into her palms, she said, "I'm still in grad school. I'm working on my PhD." As if she couldn't do her job for the Paladin League and go to school, but he didn't know that. She hoped.

"What does your fiancé think?"

Charlie, Charlie, Charlie, Charlie, she chanted silently, hoping that would be enough to have the name emerge smoothly as if she was accustomed to using it.

"Charlie has always been supportive of my education." It worked. She said Charlie without any hesitations or stutters.

"I meant," Vargas said coolly, "what does your fiancé think about the Paladin League sending you to Puerto Jardin? Does he know that's why you're here or does he believe you traveled solely to spend time with him?"

Her stomach bottomed out. Instinct told her not to lie about the Paladin League. "He knows," Nyx said with a calm she didn't feel. "He wasn't happy when I told him."

Something seemed to ease, although the drug lord's expression didn't change. "You're headstrong." It wasn't a compliment.

"I'd already accepted the job before I knew where the Paladin League was sending me. It wasn't as if I could tell them I'd changed my mind, not if I wanted to work for them in the future."

Silence as Vargas considered her. Nyx struggled not to shift, but his calculating gaze made her uneasy.

"Were you honestly at the ruins to watch over a mercenary who can take care of himself? You? A woman whose area of expertise is archaeology and not tactics?"

"Yes. I would never let the man I love walk into what sounded like a trap without trying to help. You might not think much of what kind of assistance I could give him, but I was damn well going to try my best if the situation warranted it."

His stare intensified as if he were trying to peer into her soul. It took forever before he said, "Loyalty is an admirable trait. Tell me, what does your boss at the Paladin League think of you traveling to the ruins to protect a mercenary?"

Nyx drew a deep breath as the room spun around her. "He doesn't know about Charlie. My personal life is none of his business."

"Then why does he believe you traveled here from Trujillo?"

Another deep breath. She had to assume Vargas knew she'd checked into the inn. "I told him I wanted to examine the ruins. That there might be something there despite the archaeologists who excavated the site for years. He had no reason to doubt me."

Shifting in his seat, Vargas locked his gaze on hers. Nyx knew soul-deep terror. If he was aware she was lying, there might not be anything she could say to save herself.

"He never questioned you?" The skepticism was unveiled.

"He's an administrator. He knows nothing about archaeology." Her skin felt as if it were burning, and Nyx wondered if she'd flushed. She hoped not because it would be a huge tell that she was being dishonest. She didn't know if Archer had a degree, but he was as versed in archaeology as she was.

The drug lord studied her again even longer than he had earlier. She struggled not to squirm. His eyes were emotionless, dead. It was scary to meet his gaze head-on, but Nyx did it anyway. Too many people were at risk if she faltered.

"What does Se?or Case know of the Lost Treasure of Trujillo?"

If she'd been flushed a moment ago, she'd likely gone pale now. Was he aware that she was in Puerto Jardin to find the Lost Treasure or had he brought it up for some other reason? She shrugged. The movement felt jerky and stiff. Trying for a humorous tone, she said, "Knowing Charlie, not much. He's not interested in legends."

"Even if his fiancée was sent to find this particular legend?"

Nyx felt her skin go ice cold in little more than a heartbeat. "The treasure has been missing since 1820. Men have searched from the day it disappeared. Charlie doesn't believe anyone will be more successful in locating it now than they were then."

"What do you believe?" Vargas asked. His voice offered no clue as to how she should answer.

"The treasure is likely lost forever. I'd be amazed if the location of the cache didn't die with the captain and his first mate."

"Yet you're down here, looking for it."

"I'm being paid to chase a legend. My fee will cover a nice chunk of my school costs."

Vargas seemed to relax. "I begin to understand the attraction between you and Se?or Case. You are as much a mercenary as he is, albeit in a different way."

Nyx felt insulted but suspected the drug lord meant it as a compliment. It also suggested that Vargas had questioned if she and Lurch were a couple. At least she had put that to rest. She forced her lips to curve, but it was the last thing she wanted to do.

Her attempt at a smile faded as he continued to stare at her.

After an eternity, he leaned back in his chair. "While I share your doubts about the Lost Treasure ever being recovered, I do believe in playing long shots on occasion. I have some documentation I'd like you to peruse. It might contain some clues as to its whereabouts. If the treasure can be found. I want it."