Chapter 19
CHAPTER 19
W ell, fuck me.
This woman never stopped surprising him.
“Are you still married?” Dom asked.
She shook her head. “No, Damian divorced me a few years later. A private investigator tracked me down and served the papers—I signed them without a second thought.”
“He didn’t come himself?” Dom couldn’t believe the hacker had let her go so easily. If she was his woman... He shook his head.
Better not go there.
“No. I think he was too angry, or upset, or both. Alek found me, though. Told him I wasn’t coming back, didn’t want anything to do with him. He said Damian had disappeared, and no one knew where he was. I think my father tracked me down because he figured Damian might’ve tried to reach out, but he didn’t.”
Dom frowned. “That’s why you and your father stopped talking?”
It was starting to add up now. The bastard used her. Used his own daughter to keep a hacker in line. What a goddamn piece of shit.
“Yeah. We didn’t speak again—until recently. I don’t know what happened to Damian, but I carry the guilt around with me everywhere.”
“It wasn’t your fault.” Dom felt the anger rise in his chest. “You were a kid. Your father used you.”
“I know, but it doesn’t make me feel any better.”
They stood in silence as the sun gave one last valiant effort to shine, then sank into the ocean. It should have been a peaceful setting, but Ghost felt anything but. Inside, he was seething. He wanted to break Markov’s face, pay him back for what he did to Becca, what he was still doing to her...
But when he glanced at her sad expression, his gut twisted.
Did she still have feelings for the hacker? Was that why she hadn’t settled down? Or was she so messed up from it all that no one stood a chance? Easier to stay on the move than commit.
Yeah, he knew how that worked.
“Why’d you agree to work for him?” Ghost asked, once the sun was gone. “Why go through all this again?”
She sighed. “I didn’t plan to. But when I ran into Alek at the embassy, something changed. He looked... older. More human. I thought maybe we could finally put the past to rest. He waited for me outside after work, convinced me to come work for him. Said he was making a fresh start here. Wanted to start over, make things right.”
“And?”
She shook her head. “Nope. Same old bullshit. He never wanted to make amends. He just needed someone he could trust to help him set up shop and run his house. I’d done it before in San Francisco, so he knew he could count on me. I fell for it. Again. But he did offer a fat salary, more like a bribe, honestly.” She sniffed. “At least he didn’t lie about that.”
“Then leave,” Ghost said, his voice low and firm. “Take the money, get the hell out. Go back to the States and cut ties with this mess. Your father’s not gonna save your ass when it all goes south. You’ll be on your own. And for what? Loyalty to that bastard?”
She nodded miserably. “I know. I was just hoping it would be different this time.”
Ghost grabbed her hand. “Listen to me, Becca. I’m going to try to get Markov at the delivery in Cartagena, three days from now. I told him this ambush spooked the cartel, and they want him there for reassurance. I think he’s buying it.”
She stared at him, not catching on.
“That’s when the FBI will strike,” he said. “If they get him there, caught in the act, he’s done. No more hiding behind shell companies or fake names.”
“Three days,” she whispered, letting his words sink in.
He nodded. “The shipment’s already moving. We’ve got no hard evidence connecting him to the deals. No paper trail, no weapon transfers in his name—he’s too smart for that. We’ve got nothing else.”
“I had a feeling something like this would happen,” she admitted. “I just thought I’d have more time.”
“Time’s up,” he said, his tone hardening. “You need to leave by tomorrow. Don’t wait around for the authorities to arrive. You don’t want to get tied up in any of this. With your history?—”
She stared at him, horrified. “You mean with Damian?”
He shrugged. “Hacking, anonymous dealings on the dark web, and now arms dealing. It’s going to be tough to prove you didn’t know about any of this.”
“Oh, God.” She closed her eyes, the reality dawning. He didn’t want to hurt her, but it was time she took her head out of the sand. Markov was going down, whether she liked it or not.
“Make sure to wipe your laptop. Get rid of anything that can link back to you.”
She gulped, her eyes widening. “This is serious, isn’t it?”
“It’s life-in-prison serious.”
He saw her knuckles go white as she gripped the railing.
“There’s no other way?”
“He’s gotta pay for what he’s done, Becca. Either you get out, or you go down with him.”
“Then, I’ll leave tomorrow,” she whispered, tears brimming in her eyes.
He gave a sharp nod, feeling some relief. At least she’d be safe. The FBI wouldn’t come for her, wouldn’t dig into her past. But as he looked at her, that relief started to twist into something bitter.
Once she left, he knew he’d never see her again.
Becca must have thought the same thing, because her honeyed gaze turned to him. The longing he saw there made his breath hitch.
“Can we be together tonight?” she whispered. “One last time?”
Fuck.
This was a really bad idea, but goddamn, he wanted her too.
Needed her.
One last night to savor her, cherish her, make her his own. One last night with the woman of his dreams.
Ghost helped her to her feet, and wordlessly led her back to his cabin.