Ian took a sip, the rich, almost vanilla-like flavor coating his tongue. But he wasn’t here to drink. “So do you know that you’re being targeted by an ex-CIA agent who I believe now works freelance for various employers?”
The king sat back, his face not showing a moment’s surprise. “Mr. Taggart, I am the king of a small country almost no one knows about. We’re one of the smallest countries in the world.”
“With very important resources,” Charlie pointed out.
“But limited compared to others,” the king argued. “There is no reason to target me. Yes, we have oil, but if you added up the barrels we produce, it’s a drop in the bucket. We have moved to biodiesel on our island. The oil is a nice income, but nothing anyone would fight a war over. Most of our income now comes from tourism. Do you honestly see anyone invading the Arabian Sea equivalent of Hawaii?”
Yes, he could see that plainly. All he would need was one sub, three black ops teams, and a nice quantity of C-4. After he took over the country’s communications systems, the airports, and its central city, he could easily install himself as the new king of Loa Mali. Luckily, he didn’t want a crown. “I think you’re not giving men enough credit or maybe your view of wealth is skewed. The hundreds of millions your oil brings in is certainly enough to start a couple of wars.”
The king waved him off. “Bah, I play the game. I deal with OPEC and the US. They have no reason to come after me. You sound very much like my mother. She keeps begging me to settle down and start producing heirs so the line is secure, but I have a very fine nephew who can take over if they get to me.”
“I don’t think this is about a political coup.”
The king toyed with his glass, his fingers running around the rim. “The Agency would love for me to do something that might bring down the wrath of the democratic world on me, wouldn’t they? Fine. Perhaps they do want my oil. So does India. You have to know they would love to swallow up my little island. So much drama over a resource that will be gone in a hundred years. Perhaps less.”
“You’re worried about peak oil?” It was a term the media and economists used to describe the tipping point, when the world’s supply of oil was consumed to past the fifty percent mark. It was argued that the planet was already there.
The king leaned forward, his face turning serious. “Everyone should be worried about it. The world is run by companies now. If I were, say, to prove to be a horrible dictator, do you know who would be the first in line to petition your government to protect my people from human rights violations? The oil companies. They are likely more dangerous to me than any government.”
The special interest groups didn’t care about the citizens of Loa Mali. They cared that the oil industry was nationalized there. But at least now he and the king were on the same page. “I believe this man is possibly working for an oil company. Can you think of any reason why he would be targeting you if killing you wouldn’t change the state of politics in your country?"
“I have several projects going,” the king admitted. “But I think you’re being overly pessimistic, Mr. Taggart. There is nothing out of the ordinary. If someone is watching me, that is normal. It’s nothing my security team can’t handle.”
He’d only seen a couple of men with guns. Nelson wouldn’t barge onto the ship all by himself.
Fuck.
Nelson would send someone to distract the king. Like he’d done before. Chapal was about to get his wish. He was going to do a whole lot of spying in very little time because there was no way Nelson didn’t have a team here.
“How well do you vet your women?”
The king frowned. “What do you mean?”
Apparently the king had one massive weakness. “I’m talking about your sexual partners. The women on this boat have been through a security check, correct?”
The king sighed. “You sound like my guards. These are beautiful women. They are models and actresses. They are completely sweet and harmless to everything except my stamina. Come here, little flower.”
The Asian woman stepped up, a smile on her face. She was graceful and willowy, and Ian remembered just how good she was with a stiletto, and he wasn’t thinking about shoes. She also had awesome aim with a semi, and he had the scar to prove it. “Your Majesty?”
She suddenly turned and looked at Ian, her eyes going hard. She cursed in Mandarin under her breath.
“My parents were married when I was born,” he shot back. She understood English perfectly well. She’d been able to curse him in at least three different languages.
Charlie sat up beside him, obviously feeling the shift in the woman’s mood. Her eyes narrowed. Yeah, his wife didn’t miss much. “Really, Ian?”
“I had a colorful life before I met you, love.”
Sean coughed but there was no way to mistake the word. “Manwhore.”
“She is nothing to be afraid of. Beautiful women need protection. There are so many men out there who would take advantage of them.” The king brought her hand to his lips. “Lin, please say hello to our guests.”
Ian sent her a frown. She was one of the most intelligent operatives he’d ever tangled with, and now she was playing a supermodel and screwing royalty? How the mighty had fallen. Of course, she’d probably gotten her ass demoted because he’d gotten away with the prize. “Lin? Really? And they made you a supermodel? I thought the last time we talked you said all models were idiots without a brain in their heads.” He looked back at the king. “If you had run a deep check on that little flower, you would have discovered that she’s MSS, Chinese intelligence. Her name is Jiang Kun. She’s one of their deadliest operatives, but I suspect she’s here on a gathering mission rather than a hunting one.”
Kun sent him a scowl as a security guard came up behind her. “After everything I did for you, Taggart?”
His wife tensed, an offended huff coming out of her mouth.
“You shot me,” Ian replied. “I don’t think that qualifies as tender treatment.”
Sean snorted beside him. “You let her shoot you?”
He sent his brother his middle finger and looked at the MSS agent. “You’re not here to kill the king, right?”
“Of course not. If I was, he would be dead by now.” Her voice was all arrogance now. “Like you should have been. And yes, I consider leaving you alive at the end of our encounter to be tender treatment.”
The king finally looked a little confused. “Wait. She’s not a supermodel? But she had a portfolio.”
Ian ignored him. He had some questions for the operative. “What do you know about Eli Nelson?”
The faintest grin curled her lips up. “I know he’s a bigger problem than you think.”
No help there. He thought Nelson was a pretty big fucking problem. “What are the Chinese interested in?”
She shook her head. “I’m not answering your questions, Tag. You should know that by now. The king won’t let you torture me so you should just let me go and we’ll call it a day.”
“Torture?” The king stood. “You lied to me?”
Dark brown eyes rolled. “Of course I lied. Although not about everything. You actually were quite a pleasant assignment, Your Highness. I didn’t even have to fake it. And just so you know, I’m certainly not the only one. I think Nelson got his own girl on board, but I haven’t figured out who yet. If I were him, I would have bought a couple of guards, too.”
“Why do you think he already has people on board?” She’d been an operative long enough that if she said she wasn’t the only one, Ian would keep looking. She also wouldn’t want someone else to succeed where she’d failed.
“Someone’s been trying to get into the king’s private office,” Kun explained. “It’s the only room that isn’t keycarded. It’s got a really sturdy lock and he has the only key. Check the door. Someone’s been trying to pick that lock. I should know. I was there for the same thing, but someone had beaten me to it. He keeps five women with him most of the time. He sent two home yesterday. I can’t be certain one of them wasn’t Nelson’s girl. The Swedish blonde is new. The American blonde has been here around two weeks. Either one of them could be on Nelson’s payroll.”
One of the guards started to haul her away.
The king ran a hand through his hair. “I can’t believe it. I thought she was so sweet. And she was so very good at fellatio. If that isn’t a sign of a generous spirit, I don’t know what else is. Damn it. Chapal will never allow me to live this down. He will gloat for the rest of our days.”
So the king was a little naïve about women. He couldn’t afford to be that way any longer. “You need to have your team dig deep on every woman on board this boat.”
“What do you keep in your private office?” Sean asked.
The king took a long swig of his Old Monk as he watched the guard take away his former lover. “The usual things. Paperwork. My computer.”
Now they were getting somewhere. “That computer has your work on it?”
“It has all the research from my latest project. It is a very secret project, you have to understand. I’ve put a lot of money into it. Only the head of the project and myself keep the documents. I have one set with me and he has the other at the project site. I don’t want it to leak until I’m ready to make a big announcement.”
So that was why Nelson hadn’t made a move yet. He wanted those documents. “It’s already leaked. Your Highness, I have to ask you. What is your project?”
“I can’t talk about it.” But Ian could see he was wavering.
“She’s not the only one on board your ship, and I know the man who’s watching you. He won’t hesitate to use anyone and anything he can to get what he wants.” It was time to manipulate the king a little. What the king wouldn’t tell another man, he might give up to a feminine plea. “Charlie, tell him.”
She put a hand in his as she stood. “He tried to divert us by sending assassins after me and my whole family. He was willing to do just about anything to make sure we didn’t stop him. He put Sean’s daughter on a contract. She’s just a baby. He’s willing to kill women and children to get that research. Is it really so important that it stays a secret, Your Highness? I think it’s only a secret to the people who want to help you.”
The king bowed slightly to her and then made his decision. “I have been working with a very smart scientist. He trained in England and the US. When he came home to Loa Mali, he requested an audience with me. He said he wanted to do something for the world. Something to change everything. This, I was interested in. For the last seven years, I’ve been funding him and giving him a space to work in secret. We’re close to a working prototype.”
The hair on the back of his arms started to stand up. This was it. This was what Nelson wanted. “How are you going to change the world, Your Highness?”
“We’ve found a way to run a combustion engine on salt water.”
Bingo. Fuck.
Yes, that would certainly be worth going to war over. And this was bigger than Ian had thought. “Your Highness, we’re going to need to get you to a secure location.”
“What?” King Kash held his hands up as if trying to force the world to slow down. “What are you talking about? I am perfectly safe here. This is my boat. I have my security guards around me. I don’t see how I would be safer somewhere else.”
A massive boom sounded through the air, a crash of sound that could be felt against the skin and the sea. This time the boat rocked as large waves started pounding it.
Ian grabbed his earpiece. It was time for backup again. “Simon, what do you see?”
“Not much. There’s a ton of smoke coming from the west. But it’s too far to see what’s on fire. Wait, Knight says there’s news on the radio. A big explosion. Some oil rig off the coast of Loa Mali.”
Fuck. Fuck. And mega fuck.
He turned to the king. “Tell me the research wasn’t being done on your oil rig.”
The king’s mouth dropped open. “I thought no one would know we were working there. I had special rooms built.”
Sean cursed. He’d put his earpiece back in as well. “Your rig is gone.”
If Nelson blew the rig, then he was planning on taking the boat. He would have to get those documents. Either he already had them or he was about to assault the yacht.
“I have more bad news, boss,” Simon said, his voice low. “You’ve got company. Off the starboard. Looks like two fast-moving boats. They’re coming from the west. The same direction as that explosion. I don’t think they’re coming for tea, Tag.”
Ian ran to the right side of the ship, away from the shoreline. Sure enough, there were two boats moving toward them, and there was no way for him to mistake them for anything but what they were.
Somali pirates. He could just bet who was playing the pirate king today.
Charlie felt her heart nearly stop as Ian took her hand. Everything had gone wrong, and she wasn’t even sure what the hell had happened. One minute the world was fairly calm and the next it was all going to Hell in a hand basket. Around her people were rushing either toward the stairs or to the side of the boat where they could watch the damage about to happen.
“We have to get you someplace safe, baby. I don’t want him to know you’re here.” He started leading her down the steps to the lower decks. He pulled her hard, forcing her to look away from the water view where she could plainly see ships coming toward the starboard side of the yacht. She’d counted two medium-sized ships, all with full crews and, she suspected, full armaments.
“He already knows I’m here. Can’t we outrun them?”
The king shook his head. “We’re too big. These are Somali pirates. They’re quick and efficient in these waters. They’ll be on us in a minute.” He barked out orders in Hindi, and four armed guards showed up.
They stepped up to the side of the boat and began to fire, raining down bullets on the incoming boats.
The world became a cacophony of gunfire as the guards began to defend the yacht. Ian dropped down, hauling her with him and covering her body with his.
The king was on one knee beside them. Chaos seemed to have taken over the boat. Feminine screams were punctuated by volleys of staccato gunfire. She managed to peek out from under Ian’s arm and saw one of the guards being peppered with bullets, his gun falling, arms flying back before he dropped to the deck and the blood began to flow.