Since her husband’s death, she’s made it her mission to find and bring her stepdaughter, Emily Brantley, home.”
Mica nodded at the roomful of people. “Thank you for volunteering for this mission. I won’t rest until Emily is home safe and my husband’s killer is brought to justice.”
“Mrs. Brantley was not in the country on the date her husband was murdered in their home,” Fontaine said. “She’s had multiple attempts made on her life but managed to get here despite her pursuers.”
Mica nodded. “Since Trevor’s death, I’ve lived aboard my yacht and traveled, searching for Emily. I’ll never give up hope of finding her. I love the girl as if she were my own.”
Fontaine nodded. “She’s taken a huge risk to come back to DC, offering herself as bait to catch the killer.”
Mica gave a brief, sad smile. “I’ve spent a lot of money and time searching and thus far haven’t found the source of all the tragedy. Royce has been in contact with me since the incident in Cancun. When he learned about the disk, he thought I should know.” She lifted her chin. “I’m tired of running. If I can put myself up as the target, maybe we can flush out the killer, or catch one of his hit men and interrogate him.”
“That’s a dangerous proposition,” Kate said. “You’re willing to risk your life for this effort?”
“I am.” Mica turned to Fontaine. “With the understanding that, should I die in this attempt, someone continue to look for Emily.”
Fontaine nodded. “We’ll do our best to keep you alive and find Emily.” He glanced around, making eye contact with everyone in the room. “We’re all in this together. We have to stop those behind all the murders and attempted murders in this case.”
As one, everyone in the room nodded.
Montana’s sense of justice refused to let him back down from this mission. He’d seen the women held captive for auction. No woman, or her family, should be subjected to the horror of human trafficking. He wanted to get to the bottom of the case as much as Mica Brantley did.
Montana tipped his head toward the screen, ready to get on with solving the case. “What about the rest of the dates and coordinates?”
“We connected the dots with a couple of ‘accidents,’” Geek said. “Richard Giddings drove off a bridge into the Potomac. He worked with Senator Houston on the same subcommittee. Percy Beardon, an avid cyclist, fell from his bike at this coordinate on the date indicated.”
“What’s the deal on Beardon?” Duff asked.
Fontaine shook his head. “His claim to fame was that he was one of the survivors of the Syrian attack on the US Embassy in Turkey a couple of years ago.”
“Most of the dates are past,” Sawyer said.
“Like notches on a bedpost?” Quentin asked.
Montana’s lips twitched. Trust Quentin to make it about sex. The man was an expert ladies’ man and charmer. At least until he’d met his match. Becca had been good for him. She made him work to woo her. And now that they were in a committed relationship, they were seldom apart.
Montana was glad for his friend. Quentin had needed someone to come home to. He’d settled down and quit going out as much. Too bad they worked so far apart, with Becca based out of Virginia and Quentin out of Mississippi. But then Fontaine didn’t care where his SOS operatives lived, as long as they could deploy at a moment’s notice. Montana suspected Becca would soon base out of Mississippi, to be closer to Quentin when she wasn’t working an assignment.
Familiar with those conditions, Montana didn’t envy Quentin and Becca’s relationship. As often as SBT-22 was deployed, and given the nature of Becca’s work, the two would be hard-pressed to get together on a regular basis, even if she was based out of Mississippi.
Montana had always considered that as long as he was on active duty as a Navy SEAL, he’d be better off steering clear of entanglements. Being a bachelor was the safest bet.
He glanced at his new partner, Kate McKenzie. The woman seemed no-nonsense and decidedly kick-ass. He shouldn’t have a problem sticking to his intent to stay single and emotionally unavailable to women. Especially one who’d tackled him before they’d been properly introduced.
Those steely eyes didn’t inspire him to lose himself in her. Her athletic body and shoulder-length, straight, sandy-blond hair didn’t make him want to run his hand through it to ascertain just how silky the strands were.
Well, maybe just a little. And her eyes were a startling steel-gray, rimmed with a darker pewter outline.
When she’d lain on top of him, protecting him from potential shrapnel, he hadn’t been all that turned on by the rounded swells of her breasts against his chest.
Okay, so maybe he had noticed her breasts. They had been smashed against him for what had felt like an eternity. When he’d rested his hands on her hips, his body had naturally reacted to having a female on top of him. A lot of time had passed since he’d been with a woman.
He turned to study his new partner and frowned. It was so much easier to work with men. They didn’t threaten his determination to remain footloose and single.
Dragging his attention from Kate, he focused on Fontaine. “Most of the dates are past. That means some of them are in the future. Like a schedule of events to come. You agree with that, don’t you?”
Geek and Fontaine nodded simultaneously.
“That’s exactly what we’ve learned,” Fontaine said.
“So how do we fit in with this mission?” Kate asked. “Why did you need me when you had all of these people to run your operation?”
Fontaine faced Montana and Kate. “Becca tells me you are an expert chameleon, able to change your appearance to look like anyone you want.”
Kate shrugged. “I did a lot of theater in high school and college. My skills with makeup came in handy as a field agent with CIA. I had a knack for transforming into whomever I needed to be.” Her lips thinned and her jaw tightened.
Montana noted this little change in her expression. That she spoke in the past tense made him curious. Wasn’t she still an agent in the CIA?
Fontaine nodded and his gaze shifted to Montana. “Raines, your team considers you the best at camouflage and bombs.”
Montana frowned. “Sure. I can blend in with any tree, bush or desert location. But nothing like Kate.”
“Your abilities to blend in were only part of the reason I chose you two for this assignment.” Fontaine waved his hand. “If you could please stand, I’ll show you the other reason.”
Montana stood and held Kate’s chair while she rose as well, her brows pulling together.
“Mrs. Brantley, I’d like you and your bodyguard to please stand by Raines and McKenzie.”
The two complied.
Fontaine smiled. “Perfect. Kate, you’re almost the exact height as Mrs. Brantley. And Raines, you’re pretty close to Rex
