Tightening her arms, she lifted her chin. “I think you need to know that I may have misled you somewhat about my ability to recognize the voice.”
“That has nothing to do with the reason I made the request.”
“Then what does?”
“Whoever wants you dead…If they sent someone after you once, they may do it again. If they do, we’ve got a shot at getting to them before…” Mark didn’t finish the thought.
Why not finish it? What exactly had happened? And then the last pieces fell into place.
“It’s happened, hasn’t it?”
“Maybe. We’re waiting for the FBI lab to make the confirmation. Now get dressed.”
Beth shoved the gun into her waistband. At least now she knew why he hadn’t finished his earlier statement. And the reason for the disconnect in his eyes. She had suddenly become a means to an end. An instrument he could use. That he could exploit.
She jerked off the mask, dropped it on the pile of rubble. “So you want to use me as bait?”
His mouth tightened. “Sweetheart, you are bait. I can’t change that. But I fully intend to take advantage of it.”
Ducking because of the limited headroom, Mark walked up the tight aisle of the Cessna Citation. The pilot, a man in his early thirties, glanced up from the instrument panel. Seeing Mark, he flipped the mike away from his lips.
“We’ll be taking off in the next ten to fifteen minutes. We’ve got some more weather coming in from the west, so the ride’s going to be bumpy. You might want to grab coffee and a doughnut from the beverage center before we get in the air.” He motioned to the magazine rack. “I shoved a USA TODAY in there somewhere, too. Help yourself.”
“Thanks.” After digging out the newspaper, Mark bypassed the first seat because it faced backward. He preferred to see where he was going.
Larson had followed him onboard. Still talking on a cell phone, he dropped down into the seat facing Mark’s, leaving Beth five more to choose from.
She hesitated just inside the door, one hand resting on a seat back as she gave quick consideration to her options. Mark saw her gaze briefly connect with Larson as she took the seat across the aisle from Mark’s.
When she and Larson had met fifteen minutes ago, he hadn’t bothered to hide his opinion of her. Or of Mark’s decision to add her to the unit. She’d handled the rebuff surprisingly well, and had maintained a professional aloofness since.
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