Chapter 13
Thirteen
“So, your assessment?” Conner asked the moment they stepped into the kitchen.
Miko studied her new boss. When she’d left the FBI, she had been so sure her career in profiling was over.
Yes, she had been considered the best in the country, but she was damaged goods.
No one wanted a profiler they couldn’t trust. When Conner had called her out of the blue and asked her how she liked the beach, she’d thought he’d been joking.
He had not.
But, just like the other FBI agents outside of the BAU, he wanted answers too fast. Granted, he was much better than most of the other agents, but he still wanted results faster than she could deliver.
“I think she doesn’t realize how attached she is to Ian. There’s something between the two of them.”
“Oh, I get that. She’s spent the last year driving him crazy.”
“That’s one word for it.”
His steely gaze sharpened. “Do you think it could be a problem? I can order him to stand down.”
She felt her lips twitch. “I would like to see you try. That might be fun.”
“I could threaten his job.”
Miko wanted to laugh. “And he would tell you to bugger off. He will not budge from her side.”
Another long stare. “Like that?”
She nodded. “Again, I think he might not understand just how attached he is to her, but they seem to be…” she grappled with the words she needed.
At one time, she would easily throw out terms, but she always seemed to hesitate.
“It’s like they’ve become in tune on some level that we don’t understand. ”
“Spy shit.”
“No. I think it has more to do with affection.”
He blinked. “You think they’re involved?”
“I think that Ian would very much like to take her to bed.” And she thought of the way Lila had relaxed the moment Ian had walked in. “I think it might be reciprocated.”
“Might be?”
She made a face. “It’s hard to get a read on Lila. She doesn’t show a lot of emotion.”
“Is she a sociopath?”
“Might be, but it also might be conditioning. I bet that grandmother of hers was a control freak and when her daughter and grandson were killed, she wanted to make sure her one living relative survived. Even so, not every sociopath is a bad person. We both know lots of people can be sociopaths and good at their jobs.”
Conner nodded as he looked out window.
“So, the profile on our perpetrator?”
This was harder. “There’s something off.”
He glanced at her, then back out the window. What he was looking at, she had no idea. It was dark outside. More than likely, he was thinking. It was one thing she had always appreciated about Conner. He didn’t react on the fly.
“Listen, I get that you might not want to give me a profile this fast, but I just want first impressions. I’m going to have Emily go over your thoughts and start working on our few suspects. I’m not grading you like the FBI.”
Old habits died hard for her. She sighed. “Okay. I think something along the way changed for this guy.”
“His motive?”
“At first glance, revenge. Part of the killing of her family might have been to stop the investigations. It seems that the CIA dropped the ball on that.”
“Yeah. Those assholes always see their people as expendable to an extent. They’re so damned secretive, and they will do anything to stop those secrets from getting out.”
Even sweep the murder of two of their analysts under the carpet.
“I think that the person got a great deal of happiness from making her grandmother suffer. It was like a secondary benefit. If this person was involved with crypto, there is a good chance he knew who her grandmother was. Making a woman who stood for justice suffer might have been a cherry on top of his sundae.”
“But that has changed.”
She nodded. “The need to make her grandmother suffer isn’t important anymore. That’s why I think it might have changed. If I have the timeline right, her grandmother died not too long before Lila was burned by the CIA, right?”
He nodded.
“That’s the key. This person wanted revenge…burned with it. Almost savored it. Then…Judith died. There was no way to make her suffer, and that might have made the person even angrier.”
“You don’t think this person is a man? I thought men usually were the ones who blew things up.”
“True, but we’re dealing with some sort of spy.”
“Do you have any idea who this person is spying for?”
She shook her head. “And I doubt the person is active anymore. It’s almost as if the compulsion to kill…
to exact revenge, has taken front and center.
You are looking for a person who has lost touch with friends, family…
anyone who can’t help with his or her plan fell to the wayside.
You’re looking for a former member of MI-6, the CIA, FSB, or even the MSS from China. ”
“That makes it…”
“Difficult.” She said with a nod. “I know. That’s why I want to work on it a little bit. I can do it here or back at my place.”
“You don’t mind staying here?”
“It’s a big house, plus, I have a go bag. As long as it’s okay with Ian.”
His mouth twitched. “I always loved you BAU types. Ready to jump on a plane and go anywhere.”
“Yeah, well, being a military brAT helped too.”
He nodded. “And you don’t need Ian’s approval.”
She found her first real smile in months. “That man is planning on taking over for the foreseeable future. He’s not planning on budging.”
He nodded, but he didn’t look convinced. Even so, she had seen the look in Ian’s eyes when his gaze had landed on Lila. She just hoped that both of them survived this mess to figure out what was brewing.
“I don’t need a nap.”
She didn’t need a nap. It was the middle of the night. She needed more sleep. Lila was frowning at him, but what else was new? She needed to rest, and he was going to make sure of that.
He rose from the loveseat. “Let’s go. You need to be in bed.”
Of course, just thinking that brought to mind the kiss they had shared at his house. It took every ounce of his control not to touch her.
“I want to work more.”
He was painfully aware of the silence in the room. They were being watched like they were some kind of show. He usually hated to be examined, but at the moment, he hated how pale Lila was. The dark circles beneath her eyes were more pronounced.
It ticked him off that she wasn’t doing what he’d ordered her to do. Granted, he didn’t have a right to do that…or maybe he did. He was working her case, so he was the operative in charge. He leaned down so that he was eye level with her.
“You either get that sweet ass of yours up off that loveseat and go lie down, or I will pick you up and carry you myself.”
She studied him. “You wouldn’t.”
“Without hesitation.”
Aggravation colored the sigh that escaped from her, but she stood, causing him to straighten and take a step back. “Fine. But just for a little while.”
They would see about that. She put on a good show, but each step she took showed a different story.
It was as if every move she made took almost all of her strength.
He led her through the house, getting angrier each time he looked behind him.
Her shoulders drooped and she barely made a sound.
That was not the Lila he knew. The woman who had driven him crazy was a shell of herself.
They arrived at her room. “You have a private bathroom.”
“At least I have an indoor one this time. It’s like I’m a billionaire.”
It was said in the same tone a normal person would mention the weather. He studied her. “You look exhausted.”
“Once again, you have to stop with the compliments, Ian. I’m not sure I can take it.”
He closed the door to the bedroom, then returned to her. What he had to say needed privacy.
“I need you to promise me that you are not going to run away from me…or try. You are not well enough to get out of here by foot, and while you might think you don’t need help, you do.”
She studied him for a long moment. “I could put all of you at risk. I don’t like that. That’s why I tried to leave.”
“Then why did you keep contacting me? You have to know that each time we talked, you might draw attention to yourself.”
“And you. It’s my weakness.” She shoved a hand through her hair, then paced away to the window. “I’m sorry. It was just hard to not…stay informed. I promised my grandmother I would.”
“Bloody hell, Lila, I can take care of myself.”
She looked over her shoulder at him. “It’s been a few close calls. And even though I know I annoyed you—”
“You didn’t annoy me.”
“That’s not what you say to other people. You think I don’t know what you say about me? And no, I don’t listen in.”
At first, she had annoyed him, but somewhere along the way, he had changed. His need to hear her voice had colored his every thought. He rolled his shoulders, drawing her gaze. “What?”
“It’s a tell. When you’re annoyed.”
“I’m not annoyed.”
She snorted and crossed her arms beneath her breasts. Jesus, he wanted a taste. The kiss had just made all of his fantasies about her even worse.
“I know when you get irritated. This is irritated.”
“You really want to know what I’m thinking about?”
“I know.”
He shut the door, then took a step closer. “I’m trying to control myself.”
She said nothing. She was a tall woman, but he was taller. He leaned down to whisper in her ear.
“I want to strip you naked and make you moan my name.”
The click of her swallow was loud in the quiet room.
“So,” she said, her voice shaky and almost breathless. “Not irritated.”
“Believe me, I am definitely irritated that I can’t take you to bed.”
“Why?”
“Because, every time you call, every little interaction has been like foreplay. Then, that kiss…I want my mouth on you again.”
Another swallow before she turned her head to look at him. Her gaze studied him. “I meant, why can’t you?”
Fuck, his dick shoved against the zipper of his jeans.
“You’re recovering.”
Even to his own ears, he didn’t sound convincing.