Total pages in book: 155
Estimated words: 146392 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 732(@200wpm)___ 586(@250wpm)___ 488(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 146392 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 732(@200wpm)___ 586(@250wpm)___ 488(@300wpm)
“Really? Spanish? You want to use Spanish on the spy from Texas?” the woman asked, and it was easy to see these two were comfortable with each other. Though she didn’t think their connection was sexual. They were friends, or they’d worked together for a long time. “I wouldn’t try French, either. She went to a private school for much of her education, and they taught French. She switched to Spanish when she moved to a public high school. Which you would know if you ever read the files our handlers send us.”
They had a file on her? Who was she dealing with? She was still thinking MI6. British intelligence rather than criminal element.
“Jag kan inte ryska. Jag menar allvar, syster. Håll ögonen på vägen,” he replied.
So he was almost surely an intelligence operative. She wasn’t sure which Nordic language that was, but she had identified one word. Syster.
They were brother and sister.
“Skruva inte ihop det här,” the sister replied with a sharp edge. She pressed a button and a wall came up, dividing the limo and leaving Lou alone with her brother.
He reached into the bar and pulled out a couple of glasses. “Don’t mind my coworker. Like I said, who I am doesn’t matter. I want to know why Theodore Taggart Jr. is working with The Jester.”
They were back to this again. Lou took a calming breath. Well, it was supposed to calm her down. She knew from the outside she looked fairly steady, but her heart was pounding in her chest. She had to play this cool. At some point in time she would be far enough away that whatever tech he was using to jam her locator signal would fail, and she knew her team would be watching. “He’s not. He has no idea who The Jester is. Are you getting intelligence from mobsters? Is that where MI6 has gone? I know your agency has been struggling to keep up, but that’s sad.”
She needed to shake this guy up a bit. She wasn’t sure where they were going, but she had to hope she would have a chance to run again, and this time she would be ready. She was never wearing heels again. And now that she thought about it, Kala was right. She should be a walking armory at all times. If she’d thought to strap a couple of knives to her thighs, she would be in a better position.
She hadn’t taken her gun because it didn’t fit into the purse that went best with her dress. She needed a better excuse like oops, she dropped it or something because everyone was going to rag her for the rest of time.
Or she could die. That seemed like an actual viable option.
However, she was interested in why the Brits hadn’t simply called. Ian used to have a decent relationship with MI6. She knew at some point it had gotten tense, but she was surprised they hadn’t put in a request to speak with him to Langley. Something was happening that she didn’t understand, and it was her job to get as much out of this guy as she could.
He was a cool customer. He simply poured out two glasses of Scotch and offered her one. “You should know that sometimes the best intelligence comes from the oddest sources. I would never be so snobbish about gathering intel, love. Here, you should try it.”
She wasn’t risking taking a drink. “Like I said, it’s barely ten a.m., and I’m more of a margarita girl.”
“Well, when we get where we’re going, I’ll make you one.” He downed one of the Scotches and set the empty glass back on the shelf, apparently happy to sip the second one. “You know I think we could make this whole episode interesting. We might be together for a couple of days. We shouldn’t waste them. I can make things comfortable for you.”
Was he flirting with her? Seriously? “You mean my kidnapping?”
He waved that off. “That’s such a loaded word. I prefer to think of it as a meeting you didn’t expect to take. In another country.”
So they were heading to an airport. Probably a private airport where she would be driven right into the hangar, and everyone inside would be in on the plot. She wouldn’t have much of a shot if she got on that plane. “I assure you kidnapping is the word my team is going to use. If you’re MI6, I want to know why you didn’t call Langley. What do you need to know that’s so secret you couldn’t use proper channels? If this Jester person is really so dangerous, I would think you would want my team helping out.”
“Your team is too close to the target.”
“TJ isn’t The Jester, and he doesn’t know who he is.”
Her captor chuckled. “I certainly didn’t imagine TJ is The Jester. The Jester is brilliant. Criminal, but brilliant. However, TJ could serve as a go between. I’ve been looking into his former commanding officer and seeing some things I don’t like.”