Page 29 of Redemption

I huff out a breath and take a sip of my coffee, gathering my thoughts. We have to work together with that baggage, and I need to be sure she’ll have my or Carys’s back in a tight spot. The urge to remove Kim from this equation is strong. If the situation were reversed and she did what I did, I’d put a bullet in her spine at the first chance.

“You still want to kill me?” I stare at her. She might have been a double-crosser, but she was never one to sugarcoat her feelings.

“Some days, yes.” She doesn’t break eye contact. “Do you ever have any regrets?”

I toy with my cup on the table. How do I answer that? “That’s who I was then, and if I think back to him, then no, I don’t.” I shrug. “Sounds unfeeling, I’m sure. But I didn’t let myself give a shit about people. Empathy had no place in my life.” I meet her gaze again. “The guy I am now, though?” My mind grapples for the right way to explain the changes I’ve undergone. “I’d never willingly cause you or my brother pain again.” It’s the best I can offer. I’m still not a good man, but I’m better than I was.

Emotions flash across her face in quick succession, but her disappointment is clear. Maybe I should’ve lied.

“I guess that’s something,” she says as the bartender arrives with our food. Lorcan’s hand slides along her back, and she gives him a grateful glance. Their connection, a buzz under the surface when we were in the same house, shines out of them now. Unmistakable. The dimmer on a light bulb turned to full wattage. Christ, I miss Carys.

We eat in silence for a few minutes before I decide to broach the other elephant in the room. “You really don’t understand why the PLA wants me?”

“No.” Lorcan sops up his egg with his toast. “Reckon it could be any number of reasons.”

Kim eyes me, an internal struggle evident on her face. “This is nothing we’ve been told, but I wonder whether your involvement has something to do with the Van de Berg family?”

Carys’s family? “They set her up to take the fall for several PLA arms deals.”

“I’m aware.” Kim’s tone is sardonic. “I did warn her.”

“Why the fixation?” I slice into my fried tomato and take a bite. Charles did business with the PLA when he was in charge of Van de Berg Ammunitions, but Carys stopped those transactions when she took over. Were they pissed at her? Frustrated by her morals? Did they have something against women in powerful positions? “Who runs the PLA?”

“PJ.” Lorcan cradles his coffee cup in his hand. “Pierre-Jacques, a French national with a hot temper. At least that’s what we’ve surmised. Haven’t met him yet.”

“That’s who we’ll see at eight?”

Kim’s cutlery rattles against her plate when she finishes her last bite. “I’d think so. PJ wanted you. We’re delivering. Noel went with us as assurance everything was on the up and up.”

“So, despite the fact he’s a lieutenant, he must be expendable.”

“Aye,” Lorcan agrees. “He’s important enough to babysit us, but not a loss if we killed him.”

“Curious strategy,” I admit. We never let our babysitters get overwhelmed by the ones being babysat. Too risky. When someone needed killed, we did it ourselves. “A loyalty check?” If we outnumbered Noel and could have taken him down and chose not to, it’s an interesting gauge of character.

“Perhaps,” Kim concedes. “If so, we’ll have passed when we turn up with you as directed.”

Tiredness seeps into my bones. With the five-hour time change, I’m fading fast. It might be morning here, but it’s still the middle of the night in Michigan. What time would it be in Cape Verde? Two hours behind here. She’ll be pacing a hole in the floor or on a flight if Evander figured out the switch. “When Carys turns up, I need to be told.”

“What makes you think either of us will hear?” Kim raises her eyebrows.

“Zahir said he was fine with her being here. So, I’m guessing they’ve got eyes on her, and someone will let one of you know.” I push my empty plate into the middle of the table between us. “’Cause I’m not sticking around to help anyone if I can’t see her.”

Lorcan lets out a deep sigh. “Aye, we’ll be informed when she arrives. We’ve been told to let you meet as long as it’s safe.”

I scrunch up my face as I contemplate his answer. “Seem odd to you? Them being so willing to throw her into the middle of this?”

“As we said”—he drains his coffee—“the PLA has a hard-on for the Van de Berg family. Perhaps Zahir believes Carys will be leverage.”

Realization sinks in. The FBI or the CIAwanther here. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be this agreeable. She’s my flight risk, the reason I’d ditch and run. So, what are they expecting when she appears? “I want to see her, but then I’m sending her home.”

My brother meets my gaze, and there’s sympathy in his depths. “A wise decision, I’m sure. Nothing good can come of having her in the middle of this.”

PLA headquarters is a run-down, partially converted castle. Looks as though someone tried to turn the ruins into a mansion and got bored halfway through. We’re somewhere in Northern Ireland. Kim and Lorcan are vague and won’t let me check their phone or search the map. If they’re not willing to help me, I’ll add a phone to my list of demands from Pierre-Jacques. Pretentious fucking name. Doing other people’s dirty work has never appealed to me, and I’ve got a feeling they want me to climb into the mud for something. What will it be?

After we’re searched, we’re taken to a ballroom that looks as though it was remodeled in the seventies. A bit garish for my taste. The only piece of furniture is a throne. Well, two. They sit to the left of the oversized double doors. Each one is a deep red with PJ embroidered into them in a crisp white. Is this a joke, or are these people insane? I glance at Lorcan, who is grimacing. Bet he’s thinking the same thing as me.

“You made it.” Noel breezes through the doors.

---