Page 11 of Undercover Shadow
I closed the tablet. “I agree.”
“So we act on the assumption that they know you’re onto them.”
“Yes. And, soon enough, they’ll know I’m with you. If they don’t already.”
Tag didn’t react. People like him—myself included—never did. We couldn’t. If we spent all our time looking over our shoulder, we’d sign our own death warrant.
“It could be someone else who learned from McLaren,” Tag said, his shoulders tense.
“Yes.” I crossed my arms. “Or it could be her. Whoever this is has been cautiously acquiring resources, technology, and personnel.
“If she’s alive, then is the supposition that she’s trying to recreate what was destroyed in the explosion?”
“No idea. Although I don’t think she’s Janus—the mastermind. I found references to her communicating withsomeone about moving into phase two. She isn’t calling the shots.”
“There’s something else,” Tag said. “Sullivan Rivers traced Tower-Meridian’s shipments out of Tees, then through Felixstowe. The working theory is that AIWS components are being moved through ancient tunnel networks. If they exist.”
I considered it. “It makes sense. The very definition of Labyrinth is a complicated and irregular network of passages.”
“Not terribly clever on their part,” he muttered.
“They have far bigger things on their minds,” I agreed.
Tag’s gaze fixed on something beyond the window. “You ran again yesterday. Why?”
“Viper said they were getting closer. Bolder.” I sank into the chair. “She arranged for an MI6 extraction team, but then I received word that hostile forces were moving in. I couldn’t wait.”
“Kestrel again.” He approached the table, pulled one of the chairs out, and motioned for me to sit. After I had, he pulled the other chair closer to mine. “I have another question, and this time, I want you to answer me honestly.”
I waited, biting my lip.
“Leila, did you want me to find you?”
Of everything he could’ve asked, that question might be the hardest for me to answer. Yes, I had. Maybe because I was tired of being on my own. Maybe I missed Idris so much and Tag was the closest connection I had to him.
He spoke before I did. “Three years ago, I promised your brother I’d look after you. That promise doesn’t have an expiration date. You know that, don’t you?”
It was as though he’d read my mind. “I do.”
“What you aren’t sure of yet is how much you can trust me with.”
“I…” I shook my head.
“It’s okay, Leila. Either way, you’re stuck with me.” He winked, and for the first time since our conversation began, I smiled.
“He’d be disappointed in how little I’ve accomplished. Months of investigation, and I’m no closer to understanding the full scope of Project Labyrinth.”
“You confirmed Bennett was dirty. You found evidence suggesting McLaren is alive. That’s not nothing.”
“It’s not enough.”
“It’s a start.” He took my hand in his. “And you’re not working alone anymore.” For a moment, his thumb brushed across my knuckles, and something flickered in his eyes—something warm and unguarded. Then, as if catching himself, he jerked his hand away and stood abruptly.
Before I could react, Tag’s mobile chimed. He glanced at the screen, then set it on the table between us and put it on speaker.
“Hey, Renegade.”
“Hiya, boss. How’s the family castle treating you? Fair warning—the plumbing screams like a banshee and the west tower’s been trying to fall down for thirty years or more.”
