The Temptation (9 page)

I let my eyes close and then all I could do was think about my sister and saving her from the hell she was in.

Chapter 11

Bachmann

Karl stared at Rori Steele, unable to take his gaze from her. There was something about her that reminded him so much of his younger sister, Mia, that it had taken him aback the first time he saw her.

Even now, blindfolded, gagged, and bound to a straight back chair in his suite, he could see and even somehow feel the similarities between Rori and Mia. It wasn’t so much looks as it was something intangible.

He took inventory of Rori while she couldn’t see him watching her. A smudge of dirt streaked her cheek and her face looked blotchy from crying. Her pink top and blue shorts were wrinkled and her shoulder-length dark brown hair was tangled. She had a large bruise on one of her thighs.

“Take off her blindfold.” Karl gave a nod to Dominic, the large, muscular man who served as his bodyguard and who handled physical tasks. Dominic went to Rori and removed the cloth covering her eyes.

She blinked as if her pupils were adjusting to the light. Like Mia, she had big eyes framed with dark lashes and was about the same height as Mia as well as being slender and well developed.

It was like having his sister with him again.

Fear was in Rori’s gaze as she looked from Dominic to Karl. She seemed to be pleading, begging for mercy with her eyes. She looked scared, innocent, like Mia had before she died.

Karl’s stomach clenched with an ache that surprised him as he stood there. He’d missed Mia in a way that he had refused to admit. Even now he had to shove painful feelings to the back recesses of his mind. He could not allow himself to think of Mia or feel the pain of her death.

He ground his teeth. The fact that Rori reminded him so much of his sister made things far more difficult. He didn’t want to hurt her. Didn’t want to torture her in front of Lexi when he finally had that bitch.

But he had to. He had to inflict pain upon Rori to get to her sister. It was the only way. He’d have to have Dominic do it.

“Remove her gag,” Karl said to Dominic. He looked at Rori. “If you scream I will hurt you. Is that understood?”

Rori nodded.

“Why did you kidnap me?” Rori asked when her gag was undone. “Our family doesn’t have much money.”

Karl crouched in front of Rori. “I want your sister, Alexi Steele.”

Rori looked confused. “Why would you want Lexi?”

Karl narrowed his eyes. “She helped to ruin me. I intend to get my revenge on her.”

With even more confusion in her gaze, Rori said, “Lexi? She’s an interpreter. How could she ruin you?”

“So that’s her cover.” Amusement made Karl want to laugh. “Your sister is a federal agent. She’s been lying to you and your family.”

“That can’t be true.” Rori shook her head. “Lexi wouldn’t keep something like that from our family.”

Karl gave a harsh laugh. “There is a lot that your dear sister has kept from you.” He reached out and touched Rori’s cheek and she flinched. “I intend to make her watch me carve up your beautiful face,” he said even thought the thought of hurting the woman who reminded him so much of Mia made him ill.

Yes, he would have Dominic do it for him.

“Carve me up?” Horror filled Rori’s expression and fear filled her voice. “Please, no. Please don’t hurt Lexi or me. Please.”

Anger surged through Karl in a hot wave. The anger wasn’t from Rori’s begging. No, he was angry with himself because he wanted to let Rori go.

He got to his feet and glared at Dominic. “Gag her and blindfold her again.”

“I’ll be quiet,” Rori’s voice notched higher. “I promise. Please don’t put the blindfold and gag back on.”

Despite the urge to listen to the young woman, Karl turned and strode out of the room. Behind him he heard Rori’s whimpers and he ground his teeth. He didn’t know how much more he could take of having her near him. He was going to have to have her killed. Once he had Lexi, he would arrange for Rori to be taken away and dealt with.

Karl shoved open the door from the main suite into the sitting room where he had set up his temporary office. He shook with anger at himself and he shook with regret.

The regret came out of nowhere, slamming into him. He’d managed to push away the pain of Mia’s death and every feeling associated with her and lock it all away deep inside him. After she’d been killed he’d immediately immersed himself in building on the wealth he’d inherited and in developing his own financial endeavors.

Karl went to the desk where his laptop was plugged in and entered his password. No matter how he tried, he couldn’t get his sister out of his mind.

Mia had been an unfortunate casualty. She wasn’t supposed to be there when their parents died in the accident.

She’d been the only family he’d loved. The only family member who had mattered to him.

Their parents had been planning on cutting Karl out of their will when they’d had an unfortunate accident.

Karl had arranged everything. It had been the perfect plan, down to every last detail. Every detail had been carefully gone over to make sure it looked like an accident so that Karl would never be suspected. And it had gone almost perfectly.

The one thing he hadn’t been able to forgive himself for was that his sister had been in the car with their parents. She should have been at a friend’s house. The friend had taken ill and Karl hadn’t known.

His parents’ deaths had been more than welcome. He had inherited the family fortune and had become a very wealthy man. But the gain had felt somewhat hollow without Mia there to share it with him.

Now it was as if her ghost was taunting him.

If the fucking idiots had taken Lexi instead of Rori, everything would have worked out the way he’d wanted it to. Lexi would already be dead.

He stared at the laptop as he brought up spreadsheets for the only financial venture he’d had access to since he’d been betrayed. If he didn’t need the bastards now to continue this one operation, he would have exposed every single person involved. He didn’t give a shit about any of them. What he cared about was money and right now he didn’t have nearly enough coming in.

The lifestyle he’d grown accustomed to was no more. He would have to rebuild it from scratch and do so under a new identity.

Fury at the injustice that had been dealt to him made his once shattered hand tremble as he slid it into the pocket of his slacks. He drew out his cell phone and punched in a number he’d memorized.

When John answered, Karl said, “Your incompetence is going to cost you another life.”

Shocked silence met his ears. “It was a mistake,” John then rushed to say. “You have my sincere apologies.”

“What good are your apologies?” Karl nearly shouted. “Lexi Steele is now aware that I want her. She is more than likely looking for me as we speak.”

John paused. “It won’t happen again.”

Karl’s voice was cold. “Another screw-up and photographs and video recordings will find a way to the local news stations. Recordings and pictures that I am certain you do not wish to have seen.”

“There will not be any more problems, I assure you.” John sounded like he was trying to hold his composure together.

“Did you like my message?” Karl said. “What a shame, really. The head of the NSA had been useful but I believe he makes an even better example to the rest of you.”

“Yes, sir.” John’s tone was tight but barely controlled.

“That could be you next.” Karl drew the words out slowly and deliberately. “Do you understand?”

“Yes, sir,” John said.

“Good.” Karl almost smiled at the fear in the so-called important politician’s voice. “I am going to be watching every step you take.”

He pressed the off button, dismissing John and the sounds of protestation he had made just before the call was disconnected.

Karl turned his thoughts to Lexi Steele. It was time to lay his plans for taking her and the something special he had in mind just for her.

Chapter 12

Charles

“The Man is going too far.” John ground his teeth loud enough for Charles to hear. John sat behind his desk and stared at Charles. “You gave him Alexi Steele’s sister instead of the bitch herself. Now he’s making our lives a living hell.” Charles cringed as John glared at him. “You fucked up big time, and the Man knows it.”

“It wasn’t my fault—” Charles started to protest, feeling panic soar inside him.

With bared teeth, John interrupted. “Ultimately it was your responsibility to make sure your men got the right woman. It was your screw-up.”

“Yes, sir,” Charles said, wanting to fold in on himself. The Man knew that Charles had been responsible for arranging Steele’s kidnapping? Shit.

Damn Steele. The bitch had been more trouble than she was worth ever since she’d been on Bachmann’s trail. He hadn’t realized that Bachmann and Hagstedt were one and the same when he’d been informed regularly on the project’s progress. If he had, he would have killed the operation long ago. Bachmann would still be unknown to the world and everything would be the way it used to be, which would have been perfectly fine with Charles.

John stared out the window on the Washington, D.C. landscape for a long moment before he spoke. “We have to negotiate our way out of this with the Man. And if that doesn’t work, we will have to do something about him.”

Charles took a deep breath, both relieved and scared shitless at the thought of doing away with the bastard who now seemed to control their lives. “If negotiating doesn’t work, is it possible that we can even get to the Man?”

John narrowed his eyes, as if scowling at a thought he was having. “I can arrange it.” His gaze went to Charles. “But you will have to do the dirty work.”

Charles’s jaw dropped and his skin went cold. “How can I do that?”

John waved away the question. “You’ll figure something out. If and when the opportunity presents itself, you will be ready.”

Charles licked his lips, nearly shivering from the goose bumps that had popped out on his skin. “How can you be so certain that we’ll be able to get to him?”

“For now we need to appease the bastard.” John ignored Charles’s question as he pushed back his chair, got to his feet, and started pacing the length of his office. “For now we need to make him think we’re going along with everything he wants us to do.” He gave a sharp look at Charles. “You’re to continue screwing the whores so that he doesn’t suspect anything.”

The only hardship in that, Charles thought, was knowing he was probably going to be recorded every damned time. What difference did that ultimately make when there were already multiple damaging photos of him? If it hadn’t been for the fact it was blackmail material, in a perverse way it would have been exciting to know he was being recorded.

“Is that clear?” John paused in his pacing and looked directly at Charles, who hadn’t answered. “You will continue the status quo.”

“Yes, sir.” Charles gave a slow nod. “What about you?”

“Don’t be concerned about me.” John scowled at Charles. “Just worry about yourself and keeping up appearances.” John went to his desk and braced his hands on the desktop as he met Charles’s gaze. “And get a team ready to take care of Bachmann the first opportunity that arises. Don’t tell them who the target is, just have them prepared.”

Charles swallowed. It was one thing to kidnap a woman… It was another to plot a powerful man’s murder—a man as incredibly powerful as Bachmann. How would he get to him?

But if they didn’t kill the Man, where would it end? Eckstrom had been murdered as an example. Who would be next? Charles? John?

Charles couldn’t say that he’d miss John, but it would be a shock to the American people. And if anyone found out what John had been instrumental in arranging and facilitating, it would rock the foundations of the government itself.

As a patriot, Charles couldn’t let that happen. Whatever had to be done, he’d hire the right guys to do the job this time and take care of Bachmann once and for all.

Chapter 13

Redheads have more fun

With four-inch heels to give me some height, I wore a royal blue designer sleeveless dress and carried a small purse. Everything had been purchased at exclusive shops with high price tags that morning after we arrived at Dulles. My wig had long, straight red hair and Georgina had packed loads of makeup onto my face. She had loaned me a few pieces of jewelry and I had some special RED-issue pieces.

The picture of a very wealthy woman would have been complete if I’d had a toy poodle with a diamond-studded collar.

It was evening by the time I walked into the D.C. hotel with Nick at my side. He carried both pieces of our luggage. I let him because I was playing up the part.

 The hotel was glitzy and glamorous, the perfect place for high-priced call girls and the men who used their services. If you could call prostitution a service. It was only Tuesday and I hoped there would still be a booming business in the earlier days of the week. The clock was ticking—we had to find my sister, and I desperately hoped she was here and not back in Boston. One way or another, I’d find out soon.

Massive chandeliers dripping with cut crystals sparkled above us and huge flower vases with brilliantly colored cut flowers were set on tables interspersed among the furniture in the lobby. The carpeting was rich burgundy with gold and forest green designs.

I wondered if Bachmann was holed up here. If he were, it would make it all the easier to find him. At least I hoped it would.

Nick and I headed to the front desk. I had made reservations earlier this morning for a Mr. and Mrs. Lyle Stevens. Zane and Georgina had checked in separately sometime before us, and Ryan was set up in the surveillance van across the street.

Again and again my thoughts turned to the fact that Bachmann had Rori. Those thoughts had consumed me since she was taken. If he hurt Rori in any way I was going to kill him. Well, I was going to kill him anyway, but I’d make it hurt first.