I Spy a Wicked Sin (31 page)

“So true. Who wrote that?”

“Spider-Man, I think.”

“Seriously.”

“I
am
ser—” A spasm of pain shook his limbs and he knew he had to get out his request before he lost his nerve. “Lily, if our doctors can’t help me—”

“No!” she blurted, voice hitching.

“Listen—”

“I already know what you’re going to ask, and forget it.”

“You’d want me to suffer? I can’t live like this, if there’s no end to this agony. Say you’ll help me,” he entreated.

“Jude—”

“For me. To bring me peace.”

She didn’t answer for a long moment. When she did, he knew she was crying. “For you. But only if there’s no hope at all, which is unlikely. You’re going to recover.”

Reaching out, he skimmed her shoulder to her neck, then up to her face. Searched for the damned tears, wiping them with his thumb. “It means everything that you’d take care of me.”

Pop had cared for him, too. Had loved Jude enough to protect him from the human monsters of the world. He’d have done the same thing Lily had just agreed to do if he were still around for Jude to ask.

He’d flip open the cap on the old Zippo, cup his hands around his cigarette, and light up. Then flip the lid closed, put the lighter back in his pocket. He’d pin Jude with his piercing stare and say, “Whatever is best for you, boy. That’s all that ever mattered to me.”

Jude almost smiled at the image of Pop and that old lighter. His thoughts ground to a halt.

The lighter . . .

Jude ran a hand down his body to find he was still dressed in the same clothes he’d been wearing in Los Cabos. A check of his pocket revealed his grandfather’s beloved lighter resting there, as always.

And just like that, the rest of the puzzle fell into place.

“My God,” he said. He dug into his pocket. Pulled out the Zippo and rubbed the worn surface, smooth and shiny with age.

“What?”

Unbelievable. Maybe he was smarter than he’d thought. “What would you give for proof of Dietz’s theft of the weapon and his dealings with our enemies?”

“Anything. But—”

Smiling, Jude said, “Give me your hand.”

“Okay.” She sounded interested, but unsure.

He pressed the lighter into her palm, curled her fingers around it. “A gift from me. Keep it in case anything happens to me.”

“An old Zippo lighter?”

“Flip open the lid and look underneath, very closely.” He waited.

“I don’t see . . . wait. Is that—shit! Is that what I think it is?” she asked, excited.

“A microchip. With the sixth file on it.”

“How?” she asked in wonder.

“The chip is basically a wireless hard drive, not unlike what you’d find in a BlackBerry. It served the purpose in a tight fix.”

“I know. I mean, how did Dietz miss this?”

“I can only guess that when one of his men gathered my things in the motel room where they caught me, he glanced at the lighter, maybe even checked to see if it really worked, then discarded it as unimportant. He never looked under the lid, just tossed it into my bag, where it stayed.”

“Yes!” She launched herself, caught him in a fierce hug. “You’re wonderful, Agent St. Laurent.”

Tension thrummed between them, and his mouth found hers. In spite of the ghastly pain, he wanted a kiss. Even if he couldn’t do anything about finishing what they started right now.

She rubbed against him, taking the kiss deeper—

Suddenly, gunfire outside shattered the near silence and he jerked away from her, heart in his throat. “Where’s Liam? Do you have a gun?”

“In the kitchen, and yes. Stay here!”

“No fucking way.”

But she was already gone, footsteps receding rapidly. Ignoring the agony, and the fact that he didn’t know his surroundings, he pushed out of bed and staggered after her.

Lily ran through the house, SIG at the ready, shouting at the top of her lungs.

“Liam!”

When she made it to the open living area, she saw him standing in the kitchen near the fridge, a can of soda suspended halfway to his lips, gray eyes wide.

“Get to the back bedroom with Jude! Go!”

But the front door burst open, slamming against the opposite wall. She barely had time to register Liam ducking behind the bar when a man she’d never seen before rushed inside, Dietz on his heels. She had a split second to wonder what they’d done to Agent Kelly when the first man swung his weapon toward her and opened fire.

Wood splintered near her face and she ducked, using a stuffed chair as a poor shield. Bracing herself, she took aim and returned fire, putting a hole in his forehead. He crumpled into a heap.

But there was no time to savor her victory. Dietz fired several shots, the bullets piercing the chair and going all the way through to hit the wall behind her. No way could she hold out for long. If he improved his aim, she was dead.

She popped out from behind her cover, fired two quick shots, and was rewarded by the sound of his weapon clattering on the floor.

Lily rose to finish him off and realized he’d faked her out. Or he carried a backup. His weapon was trained on the doorway behind her, and her heart sank. She glanced around to see Jude standing there, his face murderous.

“You’ll want to drop your weapon before I blow a hole in your lover’s head, Lily dear.”

“Fuck,” she spat, letting the gun fall from her fingers.

He almost sounded pleasant. “I was going to kill you first, but I’ve waited too long for this moment.” With that, he focused on Jude.

Slowly, she inched from behind the chair. She needed a clear path.

“You want me? I’m right here, you son of a bitch,” Jude said. “This is between us.”

Now.
With Dietz’s attention on Jude, she lunged forward and delivered a kick, knocking the gun from the man’s hand. Shouting in pain and anger, he tackled her. Took her to the floor and grabbed a handful of her hair. Slammed the back of her head into the floor, hard, as she cried out.

Her vision burst and her brain swam as she tried to fight him off. But in hand-to-hand combat, she was no match for his greater weight and bulk.

Snarling, Jude hurled himself at them and succeeded in knocking Dietz off her. The men clashed together, the impact sending them crashing over furniture, knocking over a lamp. They rolled, each struggling for the upper hand.

Jude’s rage was palpable, his need to pummel the man who’d taken so much from him an unstoppable force. Lily scooped up her gun and kept it trained on Dietz as best as she could, fear for Jude fueling her adrenaline. She couldn’t fire without hitting the man she loved, and the knowledge made her crazy. She wanted to end this quickly, but the two men intent on killing each other prevented it.

Jude got on top of Dietz and planted his fist in the man’s face. However, his second punch glanced off the man’s shoulder and Dietz turned the tables. No doubt Jude was a good fighter, but fighting blind put him at a serious disadvantage.

The noise of an approaching helicopter, perhaps more than one, droned outside.
Michael, hurry.

Dietz rolled with Jude, putting him on his back, and delivered several blows to his face. During his struggles, Jude kept rising upward, swinging his fists, putting himself in Lily’s line of fire.

Her finger itched to pull the trigger.

Then the unthinkable happened. Somehow, Dietz got Jude turned, pinned on his stomach. Dietz fumbled with something and before Lily could react, he brought his clenched fist down on the back of Jude’s neck.

“Gotcha.”

Dietz released his grip and Lily saw it. The needle sticking out from Jude’s neck. Jude went limp, unmoving.

All of this in the space of five seconds, and she heard herself scream, the gun bucking in her hand.

Dietz jerked and went down just as Michael Ross and a team of several men rushed in, converging on the fallen traitor, dragging him away from Jude.

Jude. The gun slipped from her fingers. She ran to him and dropped to her knees as Michael and one of SHADO’s doctors, Taylor McKay, yanked the needle from his neck and gently turned him over.

Jude’s eyes were closed. He was unresponsive. Too still. McKay placed two fingers on his neck and shook his head.

“Oh, no, please,” she whispered.

“Jude?” Liam appeared, kneeling beside her and grasping her arm with his shaking hand.

“He’s alive, but just,” McKay informed them, voice full of remorse. “I’ll give him the largest dose of the antitoxin I’ve got, but it’s a crapshoot at best.”

Lily brushed her fingers through Jude’s hair. “Hang on, handsome. I love you.”

“He won’t die,” Liam said with a choked sob. “He won’t.”

“He’s strong, so we’ll see.” McKay slid a black bag closer to him, pulled out a vial and a syringe. Quickly, he drew the medicine and injected the fluid into Jude’s neck. Done, he placed the used needle in a hazard-proof plastic container.

“What now?” Liam asked, fighting back tears. Letting go of Lily, he took Jude’s limp hand.

“We get him out of here and fly him back to the compound as fast as we can get there,” Michael said, standing. To a couple of his men, he barked, “Get a stretcher for Agent St. Laurent and get him loaded in the medical chopper. How is Dietz?”

“Hanging in, sir,” one replied, bent over the man in question. “Was plugged a good one in his shoulder, but he’ll live.”

“Make sure he does. I’m going to take great pleasure in making sure he survives to face his punishment. Take him back to the compound as well and keep him under guard while he heals. After I review the evidence, if there is any, I’ll decide what to do with him.”

“Yes, sir.”

“There
is
evidence,” Lily said, pulling the lighter from her pocket and handing it to Michael. “It’s the last file, hidden in a microchip under the lid. Jude gave it to me right before Dietz arrived.”

Was that only minutes ago? It seemed like a lifetime.

Finally, Michael smiled. “Son of a gun. I knew he’d have one last trick up his sleeve.”

“We’re ready to transport,” McKay said. “We’re moving Agent Kelly as well. He took two bullets. His flak jacket stopped the one to his chest, but I’m worried about the one that grazed his head. Gotta fly. Meet you all in New York.”

Lily watched helplessly as McKay and a couple of agents hustled Jude out to the waiting chopper. A part of her soul went with him, willing him to live.

She did not want to keep her promise to him. Didn’t know if she could, if it came to that.

“Can’t we go with him?” Liam begged.

“Not enough room, sweetie.” Lily hugged him close. “McKay will take good care of him.”

“He’d better.” Liam pulled back, glaring at Michael. “I’m going with you guys to this compound whether you like it or not, just so you know. I’m not leaving Jude until he’s better.”

“You’ll ride with us, and you’re welcome to stay until he’s well,” Michael reassured him.

Liam’s defiance deflated. “Oh. Thanks, I appreciate it.”

“No problem.” Frowning, he glanced around. “Carter, you and two others stay back and clean up this mess. I’ll send transport back for you when you’re finished.”

“Yes, sir!”

“Let’s get the hell out of here.”

Lily didn’t have to be told twice and neither did Liam. They followed Michael and the rest of his men to the waiting copter and climbed in. By the time they did, the medical chopper was a speck on the horizon.

When they climbed into the air, Lily let go of the terror and grief she’d been holding inside for hours. Just lost it, without a care for the silent men witnessing an agent’s meltdown.

Comforting arms slid around her.

“He’ll be okay,” Liam whispered. “He has to.”

She prayed he was right.

And that their luck would hold out. Just one more time.