Chapter 18
AVA
Ava strode to the elevator, her fingers loosely clutching Charles Whittaker’s arm. Despite the protestations sounding in her ear from every member of her team, she knew they needed access to his laptop.
They needed the decryption software if they had any chance of moving forward in their crusade against The Board.
“Ava, this wasn’t the plan,” Sebastian growled in her ear.
She ignored it, smiling sweetly at her companion. It was obvious this wasn’t the plan, but it was also obvious their plan wasn’t working–at all.
They’d never be able to snag his room key and let themselves into his room. Instead, she needed to think on her feet, to make adjustments to the plan. They needed this software, and she was the only one who could provide it for them.
Her heart rate ramped up higher as she stepped in the elevator. She hoped she could make it through what she needed to do with no adverse effects.
Her biggest concern was an unexpected pop up of one of her “episodes.” All bets were off if that happened. But she prayed it wouldn’t.
If she could only get through this, grab the software, and get back, then she could focus on her health while Sebastian and Alex decrypted the files she’d stolen from Miranda Vale weeks ago.
“Ava, cease and desist,” Alex whispered in her ear. “Get out of that elevator now.”
She flicked her gaze to the camera in it, giving a slight shake of her head.
“Do you want me to shut down the power? Because I’ll do it,” he warned.
“So, do you invite all the women back to your suite?” Ava asked, twisting to face Charles.
He smirked at her. “No, not all of them. While I’ve certainly had my share of beautiful women, you are a rather impressive specimen.”
She arched an eyebrow at him.
“Please do not fall for this stuff, Ava,” Alex said through the earpiece.
“And, uh, do you often go to men’s rooms?” Charles asked.
“Only when they impress me,” she said, running a hand up the soft material of his tuxedo jacket.
“Well, I suppose I should consider myself lucky to have caught your eye.”
“Now, to see if you can keep my attention,” she answered, her voice sultry.
“I really hate when you have to flirt your way through things so much. It was bad when we were only sort of married, but now that we’re married…ugh.”
“I feel you, bro,” Kyle answered. “It’s painful even for me, and I’m not married to her.”
“A challenge,” Charles answered, a sparkle in his green eyes. “Well, I must warn you, I do have a few tricks up my sleeve, Ms. Collins.”
“Ava, please,” she said with a demure smile.
“Ava. What a beautiful name for a beautiful woman.”
“Oh, that’s hardly original,” Alex said, clicking his tongue.
Sebastian’s voice cut through the conversation. “Where is she?”
“Still in the elevator with the creep,” Alex answered. “How did you let this happen?”
“Me?” Sebastian cried. “Dude, you saw her. She’s got a mind of her own.”
“Yeah, well, you were supposed to stop that mind from doing something like this. Ava, I swear to you this had better work out. I do not want to be mourning you for real this time,” Alex said.
“Yeah,” Kyle responded. “No one will come to your funeral because they’ll think it’s another fake. So think about that before you go dying on us.”
The elevator chimed, and Charles led her from it. Her heels sank into the thick carpet running the length of the hall as he removed his keycard from his interior pocket.
“There’s the key. Step on his insole and grab it,” Alex said.
Ava pressed her lips together as they reached the double doors at the end of the hall. He pressed the key against the reader before he swung the door open.
She stepped inside the well-appointed suite, the soft lighting casting long shadows over the thick carpeting and decorative furniture pieces.
Charles crossed to the wet bar. “Can I get you something?”
“Brandy,” she answered, scanning the room for any sign of the laptop.
“Hmm, a hard liquor woman,” he said as he poured from a decanter. “I like it. I’m pleased you didn’t ask for champagne.”
“I’m not that kind of girl,” she retorted, stopping her fingers from curling into fists as she didn’t spot any sign of his laptop.
He twisted to face her, holding a glass out. She accepted it, and he clinked his own glass against hers. “To learning what kind of girl you actually are.”
She shot him flirty glance before she took a sip of her beverage.
“Any answers on that front?” he asked as he sloshed his whiskey around.
“I don’t know what you mean,” she answered.
“Don’t you?” he questioned. “And here I thought you were far smarter than this, Ms. Collins.”
“He’s on to you, Ava, bail, now!” Alex shouted in her earpiece.
“I’m heading down there,” Sebastian answered.
Ava chuckled, her heart thudding a little bit harder. “I haven’t a clue what you mean. I like hard liquor, I like winning, and sometimes, I enjoy the company of intriguing men.”
“How does your husband like that?”
Ava’s smile faltered for the briefest second, her stomach plummeting.
How does he know? Her pulse quickened, her throat tightening.
She couldn’t let him see her panic. Not yet.
"What are you talking about?" she asked, her voice steady despite the storm brewing inside her.
“I told you…that man is not my husband. He works for me,” Ava answered, ignoring her sweaty palms as she forced herself to slowly take another sip of her brandy.
“No, not him, Ava. Alex Stone.”
She tried to keep her expression neutral, but her jaw clenched involuntarily.
“Yes, that’s right. I know all about you and your little crusade against my organization.” He tugged on his sleeve to reveal a King chess piece.
“All right,” she answered. “Let’s cut to the chase then. Your little organization is ruining my life. And I want it to stop.”
He chuckled at her. “Again, I really did not think you were so naive, Ava. You know too much. And since you won’t join us, you will need to be eliminated.”
He reached into his jacket and tugged out a small pistol, aiming it at her.
“Oh, shoot,” Alex answered. “Shadow, you’d better hurry. He’s got a gun.”
Ava reacted the moment he trained the weapon on her, tossing her glass toward him as she dove sideways.
He instinctively raised his arms to block the glass from hitting him. His momentary reaction gave her enough time to scramble to her feet and sweep him off his.
The move stunned him, but only temporarily. He reacted quickly, trying to aim the gun at her again, but she kicked it from his hand.
He grabbed hold of her ankle, yanking on it to topple her. She fell hard onto her back with a groan.
Charles scrambled on top of her, pressing his hands against her throat.
She clawed at his fingers before she attempted to throw him off of her.
“Her heart rate is super high right now,” Kyle’s voice echoed in her ear.
She struggled to take a breath, her chest constricting.
Ava’s vision blurred as Charles’s grip tightened around her throat.
There was a loud, high-pitched ringing in her ears—almost like a warning.
And then, everything went silent. When her eyes flicked open again, it wasn’t panic she felt. It was power. Pure, unrelenting power.
She tilted her head to stare at the man above her. Her lips curled into a feral smile, and she reached up to press her thumbs into his eye sockets with enough force that he cried out in pain, letting go of her throat.
She used the reprieve to crack him across the face so hard that he fell sideways.
“Ava? Babe?” Alex asked.
“Your little game was very cute. Too bad it backfired,” she snapped as she swung around to land a roundhouse kick to his skull, knocking him to the side. She stormed across the room and scooped up the weapon he’d lost earlier.
As she crossed toward the door, he leapt onto her back. She doubled over, before she thrust her head back, smacking him in the nose. Blood ran down his face, but he still clung to her.
“It’s not going to be that easy, babe,” he growled.
“Oh, I think it is.” She jabbed him in the ribs with an elbow before she twisted around and kneed him in the groin. He stumbled back a few steps as she raised the weapon and fired.
“Ava!” Alex said, his voice stunned.
The man dropped in front of her, grabbing his leg where she’d fired. “The next one goes somewhere more fatal.”
She crossed the room to open the door.
A winded Sebastian, his face masked, stood there, his head shaking.
Before he could say anything, Charles grabbed hold of Ava’s throat, his bloody hand slick against her skin.
She twisted out of his grasp easily and kicked him in the stomach, sending him spiraling back several steps.
He crashed into the room’s glass coffee table.
One piece of the steel frame twisted as his weight fell on top of it, impaling him.
“Uhhhh…is he dead?” Alex asked.
Ava twisted and dumped the gun in Sebastian’s hands. “I just need to grab the laptop.”
She wandered into the bedroom. Her lips curled into a smile as she spotted the laptop on the desk. She crossed to it and whipped it open.
“Alex, tell me you’re ready.”
“Uhh, yeah, I’m ready, babe.”
She shoved the USB drive from her purse into the computer’s port and waited for him to connect to the laptop.
“Downloading the decryption software now.”
“Perfect,” she answered as she waited.
“Hey, Ava,” Kyle’s voice said in her ear, “can you describe what you’re feeling right now? Like emotionally, physically.”
“Emotionally, nothing. Same with physically. I’m cool as a cucumber.”
“Got the software,” Alex announced.
She closed the laptop, wiped her prints from it and yanked the USB drive out of it, returning it to her purse. She strode in the living room, finding Sebastian crouched over the body of Charles Whittaker.
Ava crossed to the glass lying on the floor. “My prints are on this.”
She grabbed it with a tissue, wiping it down before she returned it to the wet bar. “Let’s go.”
“Are you sure that’s the only thing you touched?” Sebastian asked.
She nodded as she strode to the door. Sebastian hurried behind her into the hall. “Ava, are you okay?”
She stared at him, her features sharp. “Of course. The mission was a rousing success.”
“But…you’re having another one of your episodes.”
“What?” she asked as she stepped into the elevator.
“You passed out when he was choking you, and now you’re…not you.” Sebastian grabbed a tight hold of her arm and dragged her from the elevator to the suite they’d rented.
Kyle rushed to greet them as he hauled her through the door. “Ava…I need you to lay down. I’m going to check some of your vitals.”
“Avs?” Alex asked, his features twisted with worry.
She stared at him for a moment, her eyebrows furrowing. “Ace?”
“Yeah, it’s me. Are you okay?”
“I’m...” Her lips parted as dizziness overcame her. A second later, she slumped to the floor, the world turning black.
When her eyelids fluttered open again, she found herself still surrounded by darkness. She pushed up to sit, her eyes adjusting to her new surroundings.
She knitted her brows, glancing around. Nothing seemed familiar. Her fingers scraped against cold pavement. Her head throbbed at the temples.
She rose and stumbled forward a few steps. She was in a dark, back alley somewhere. She didn’t recognize the area, and she had no idea how she’d gotten here.
She glanced down at her trembling hands, her heart stopping. They were caked with blood.
Her breath quickened as she stared down at her hands.
Blood. Dark and sticky. Her heart thundered in her chest. How did she get here?
She stumbled back, her head spinning as she searched the empty alley for clues.
The last thing she remembered was… Charles.
But now…now she was alone, drenched in blood.
And the question hit her like a punch to the gut. Who did I kill?