Page 18 of The Gentleman

She sat down heavily in a chair, turned toward her brother. “Gage, this is Leonid Bychkov. Leonid, my brother Gage.”

Gage lowered the frozen peas, revealing the beginning of an impressive bruise around his left eye. He extended his free hand. “Charmed.”

Leo took it.

Their handshake lasted precisely two seconds. Gage squeezed harder than necessary, getting his measure of the stranger who had come for his sister.

Leo met him with equal pressure, unblinking as he forced a smile. “Likewise.”

The television hummed in the background, local news playing at low volume. Leo released Gage’s hand as the anchor’s voice suddenly sharpened into focus.

“—nationwide alert for Agent Katarina Landon, an MI6 officer wanted for questioning in relation to classified materials?—”

All three turned to face the screen where Kat’s professional headshot filled the display.

MI6 was upping the ante.

“—considered a person of interest in a developing national security matter. Kat Landon served as a Navy?—”

Leo switched his attention back to Kat. The pink of her cheeks drained, leaving her complexion waxy, her chest rising and falling rapidly.

She reached for the remote and muted the TV with one click. “I think that’s enough of my public career dismantlement.”

She blew out a breath. “They’ve escalated faster than I expected. Eldridge wouldn’t have gone public this quickly unless she’s under pressure from someone higher up.” She looked at Leo and transformed from hunted to hunter before his eyes. This was the Kat he knew—the capable intelligence officer who had built her reputation on staying three steps ahead of her targets. “Or unless Korolov has more influence at MI6 than we realized.”

“You think Korolov is involved in this?” Leo asked.

“He’s my best guess, yes. Without my intel, he might have extracted and sold Raptor’s data. This is personal.”

“So, what’s the plan?” Gage asked, replacing the peas against his eye.

Leo studied the muted television screen where Kat’s face had been replaced by footage of police vehicles outside MI6 headquarters.

“If Korolov is behind this, we need proof. My brother Zak can run background on Korolov’s recent activities, but he’ll need time. And time is something we don’t have.”

He tapped his fingers on the table, deciding. “We need someone with immediate access to London’s underground network. Someone who knows what Korolov’s people are doing in the city.”

“You have someone?” Kat asked.

“Brock.”

Gage straightened. “Desmond Brocklesby? The ex-SBS operative?”

Leo’s gaze snapped to Gage. “You know him?”

“I know of him.” Grudging respect crossed Gage’s features.

“Nothing gets past Brock,” Leo confirmed. “And he owes me a favor. He can give us the street-level intelligence we need.”

“We’ll also need access to MI6’s secure servers to find out what evidence they think they have against me,” Kat added.

Leo’s hands knotted at his side. “You can’t do this alone,” he said. “Every law enforcement officer in Britain is looking for you.”

“I know.” She smiled at him, and his heart skipped a beat. Just like that, she derailed his biology. “This is my life, my career. No one takes it from me without a fight.”

She turned to Gage. “I need you to do some digging on Victoria Eldridge for me. Can you do that?”

Gage lowered the bag of peas to the counter. His eye was now swollen completely shut. “Already on it, Kit-Kat.” He glanced between them. “Much as it pains me to agree with the man who tried to rearrange my face, you’ll get further with his help.”

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