Chapter 19
19
The food was delicious, and having skipped lunch, Logan ate heartily. Chicken on skewers, falafel, and hummus with naan bread, combined with Vivian’s steaks and corn on the cob. Interested in the participants, he easily slid into the cover of just a mechanic looking for work. As they sat in lawn chairs with the late afternoon sun still shining warmly over the treetops, he sipped his drink, disguising his study of the various players. Casting his gaze back toward Vivian, he gave a nearly imperceptible nod, relieved when she seemed to pick up on his nonverbal command.
“What are you studying?” Vivian asked, smiling at Rashad and Malik.
Rashad’s mouth was full, but Malik answered for both of them. “Science. I’m a grad student in chemistry, and Rashad is working on a master’s in biology.”
Eyes wide, she exclaimed, “Oh my goodness, me too! Well, not my master’s degree… I’m just working on my undergraduate. I have most of my credits but am taking some online classes in education because I’d like to teach biology someday.”
Rashad smiled as he swallowed. “Great?—”
“Really?” Nafisa asked, her eyes narrowed. “You? Biology?”
Maintaining her smile, Vivian nodded. “Well, actually, my major is microbiology.”
Nafisa leaned forward, a sly smile firmly in place, and asked, “And what particular type of microbiology are you interested in?”
“Nafisa!” Rashad growled.
“What?” she argued, shrugging her delicate shoulder. “I’m just seeing what she’s majoring in.” Turning back to Vivian, she provoked, “If you can tell us.”
“I’m particularly interested in microorganisms used for drug delivery. Of course, they can be suitable for high-value medical applications such as tissue engineering. I studied the biotechnological production of biopolymers with tailored properties and a variety ofother biopolymers, such as polysaccharides, polyesters, and polyamides. Obviously, these are produced by microorganisms.” Smiling widely, her eyes twinkling, she focused on Nafisa. “Is that what you were looking for?”
Nafisa scowled and leaned back in her seat, and Logan hid his smile at the way Vivian had proven she knew what she was talking about, helping to solidify their cover. Rashad and Malik burst into laughter.
“What do you plan to do with your degrees?” she asked the two men. “What are your specialties?”
Malik’s smile drooped slightly as his gaze shifted to Akram. “For now, I just want to continue to learn as much as I can. I sometimes think that perhaps I’m best as a student but not so much as an employee.”
She nodded, sympathy in her eyes. “It’s so hard to have an unending love of learning, don’t you think?”
Rashad wiped his mouth, his eyes on her as he said, “I had thought about pre-med. I don’t know…maybe.”
“That’s so noble. To be able to save lives is such a gift,” she commented pointedly. “I hope to work in the pharmaceutical industry.”
Silence fell over the group as they continued to eat, Farrah standing occasionally to serve the men, always starting with Akram. As she approached Logan, he smiled genuinely, saying, “No more, but thank you. It was delicious.”
“Mr. Preacher, what do you do?”
Logan shifted his gaze to Akram and gave a self-deprecating shrug. “I work on aircraft. Been a mechanic for several years.”
“And where did you learn such a trade? The military, perhaps?”
A heavy silence hung in the air. With an aw-shucks attitude, he grinned. “Nah. My parents were farmers and had their own crop-dusting plane. I learned how to fly it, and my dad taught me how to fix it when needed. After high school, went to technical school to learn more.”
Akram seemed to relax slightly in his chair, his eyes less wary than before. “And Alaska? Why here?”
“My grandfather,” Vivian said quickly, interjecting before Logan had a chance to reply. He kept his expression neutral, but inside, he quaked. What the fuck is she doing? We haven’t talked about that yet ? —
“My mother is full-blooded Tanana Athabaskan. My parents are in California, but my grandfather is still here. He’s not well, but I wanted to be closer to him.” She beamed at Logan. “My husband was sweet enough to tell me he could get a job anywhere, so…we’re here.”
His pulse eased as he noted the others appeared to relax with Viv’s biology response and the story of her grandfather. Surprised at her ability to think quickly on her feet, he smiled at her in return, his face a mask of an indulgent husband completely in love with his wife.
Turning his focus toward Akram, he leaned back, patting his stomach. “And what do you do?”
Akram’s dark eyes penetrated his for a moment. Just when Logan thought Akram wasn’t going to speak, he answered, “I work at the university. I counsel a variety of students, particularly those from other countries.”
“Been in Alaska long?” Logan continued.
“For a while.” That was his noncommittal reply.
“Where are you from originally?” Vivian asked, turning her wide eyes to the gathering. “I find that Alaska’s cold can be hard to get used to after the California sun.”
Farrah nodded enthusiastically. “I much prefer the warmer weather of?—”
Clearing his voice loudly, Akram interrupted her, causing Farrah to clamp her lips shut, her eyes darting anxiously toward Akram.
“I was in Northern California,” Vivian jumped into the breach. “So we certainly had snow, but it was nothing like here.”
“Well, this was lovely ,” Nafisa said, sarcasm dripping from her words as she stood. “But I gave up an evening of studying and need to get back to work.” She gathered two almost empty dishes from the table and looked down at Farrah. “Helping?”
“Of course,” Farrah said, jumping up from her chair. “Vivian, it was truly very nice of you to invite us to share a meal with you.”
Vivian stood also as Nafisa handed the two platters to Farrah. “It was our pleasure. Your food was wonderful, and the spices you gave me for our steaks made my poor attempts at grilling more successful than if I’d been on my own.”
The men stood and, with goodbyes, followed the women back to Akram’s house. Logan folded the card table and carried it inside their house as Vivian brought in the last plates. Once inside, she set her dishes on the counter before immediately turning to him.
“Look, Logan. I know you’re probably mad as hell at me. It was just all so unplanned, really. Well, not completely. I had mentioned a cookout to Farrah yesterday and went to the grocery store just in case. I had no idea if I could meet them or get them to come. It worked out when Rashad and Malik came. I couldn’t get the charcoal lit, and my request for assistance appealed to their machismo side, I think. But it worked, didn’t it? I mean, we got to meet them all and stayed outside, right?”
Logan leaned his hip against the counter, watching Viv’s arms flying about as she walked and talked, her nervousness palpable. Sakari weaved figure eights between both their legs before Viv reached down to pick her up, snuggling against the sweet cat’s fur. He stepped closer, placing his hands on her shoulders and pinning her in place.
“I’m beginning to get used to the idea that you seem unable to follow a plan.” Sighing when he watched her face fall, he added, “It’s okay. I admit, when I drove up the road, I was caught off guard.” Tilting his head back, he stared at the ceiling for a moment before lowering his head so his gaze could hold hers. “Yeah… it was good. We now have confirmation of who’s there, but babe, you’ve got to realize the dangers lurking.”
Sucking in her lips, Vivian sighed loudly. Almost in anticipation of knowing a lecture was forthcoming, her body stiffened, and his fingers lightly massaged her shoulders.
Jerking his head toward the direction of the house next door, he continued, “They’re not just neighbors. They’re not nice people. Any one of them would slit your throat if they had an idea you were looking into them.”
At that, she sucked in a quick breath, her forehead crinkling as she pulled the cat closer to her chest.
He noticed the change in her expression and pressed his point further as his fingers lightly trailed over the silk-soft skin of her neck. “Yeah, Viv. You heard me right. Slit. Your. Throat.”
She opened her mouth to speak, but with no words forthcoming, she closed her lips, and Logan observed them quiver slightly. He battled the urge to press his mouth against hers to settle the nerves he felt move through her body.
Instead, he blew out a long breath and spoke in gentle tones. “I see I’m starting to get through. That's what I meant when I said I needed you here to watch their comings and goings. Not going over and meeting them. What if I had been late getting home? You would have been here with five known terrorists. And the instant one of them suspected you were anything other than a new wife taking some online classes, they would have killed you without compunction…and I wouldn’t have known what had happened.”
Tears welled in her eyes, and he hated making her feel as though her sense of accomplishment was decimated. Her shoulders slumped, but instead of Logan pulling away after making his point, he gently pulled Sakari from her arms and set the cat on the floor. He encircled Vivian’s shoulders and pulled her forward until her face planted in his chest. His arms slid around her back as he barely rocked side to side, and her arms wrapped around his waist as she held on, accepting the comfort he offered.
“I’m sorry,” she said, a silent trail of a lonely tear sliding down her face, soaking into his shirt. “I just wanted to help.”
“I know,” he said, his voice softer as his hand stroked up and down her back. “But you’re here to do the lab work and be my eyes when I’m not. That’s all. I can’t do my job properly if you’re not doing yours.”
She unclasped her hands and opened her arms, stepping back. Swallowing deeply, she offered a jerky nod, then smiled wobbly with a quick swipe underneath her eyes. The deep blush on her cheeks gave evidence to her embarrassment, and that was the last thing he wanted her to feel.
“Right…uh…right.” Glancing at the dishes in the sink, she said, “I can get these later. I think I’ll…uh…take a shower.” Slipping around him, she hurried down the hall and closed the bathroom door.
Logan stood in the kitchen, dropping his chin as he stared at his boots for a moment, his heart strangely heavy. Sakari stared up at him, the cat’s intense gaze feeling like a judgment. Rubbing his hand over his face, he pinched the bridge of his nose as his eyes squeezed shut.
“Fuck,” he whispered. This mission was not like any he had ever attempted, and it appeared to be getting more complicated by the hour.
Walking into the now dark living room, he stared at their neighbor’s house for a long moment before pulling out his phone and placing a call.
“What’s up, Logan?”
He heard the concern in Landon’s voice. “Would you believe I came home today, and she was in the front yard with the whole terrorist group having a barbecue? She said it just happened, but she managed to get them to talk about some things I would never have gotten and did it all under the guise of just being a cute neighbor.”
There were three seconds of silence before Landon snorted. “I swear, I can’t decide if that’s brilliant or fuckin’ crazy.” Then he started to chuckle. “You know, you’ve just called her cute. Is there something going on?”
“No.”
“Okay, fast but short answer. I’m sorry if that was the wrong thing to assume.”
He dropped his head to stare dumbly at the scuffed wooden floors, and his shoulders slumped as a heavy sigh left his lungs. “No, it wasn’t. She is beautiful and smart. And swear to God, she’s funny. But also maddening. She doesn’t seem to get the danger from these people. She’s trying to help and manages to do what I ask, but then when I’m not around, she also manages to get herself in situations I can’t control.”
“Is that the issue? You’ve met someone you can’t control?”
Thoughts of the shared kiss from earlier lingered in his mind. “No,” he lied, then offered a kernel of truth. “I’m just not sure how all this works.”
“Take some time to get to know her. I know that wasn’t necessary for the mission, but it’ll make you more comfortable with being around her. You two will seem more natural.”
“Yeah, maybe that’s what I need. Anyway, I should be able to get the inside cameras up tomorrow since Vivian managed to find out they go shopping on Thursdays, and then we’ll make fast work of this. I should have it all wrapped up soon. Thanks.”
“Not sure I did much, but what are friends for anyway.” Landon laughed.
Disconnecting, he leaned his hands on the countertop, his gaze still aimed downward. Just think of her like any team member you’ve worked with. Not nearly as easy as the other Keepers thought it would be. He’d seen the look in her eyes after they’d kissed and knew she felt something. He wondered if he was brave enough to let her know he felt something, too.