Chapter 3
CHAPTER THREE
She did as he asked, and even said a prayer, though it seemed impertinent to ask a supreme being she wasn’t even sure she believed in to help her succeed in the mission, but it couldn’t hurt to ask for help on others’ behalf.
God knew they needed it. “Help the captives survive until we get there, and restrain the cruel hand of the slavers.”
Now she only had Elijah to face.
Great.
Leaving the hard wooden pew behind, she walked swiftly and silently to her prechosen exit.
The main thing to remember, she reassured herself as she stepped out into the heat of the busy street, was not to flinch or beg for his help.
Not a single flicker of doubt must cross her face.
If Elijah knew how terrified she was at the thought of confronting this particular band of slavers, he might question why she’d come back, putting him and his team in danger.
It was a risk she was prepared to take to save Anna Marie and others like her.
That was only half the picture. Missing Elijah had been hell.
Seeing him again for any length of time would be worse.
On a personal level, their relationship had been purely physical.
Apart from his promise of a ring. That had been his one and only gesture of something more than sex.
And how short-lived had that been. Chasing his brutal ghost had only made her more frustrated.
It wasn’t all about sex. We laughed together too.
There was no sign of those rare, precious moments being repeated, nor would there ever be. She’d forfeited his trust when she left.
Missions had always ended in a vigorous celebration of life.
Like that time in Sarajevo, she reflected as she approached the harbor.
Rain had been coming down in sheets, yet they were on a rooftop with Elijah’s fist in her hair.
The delicious rhythm he set as thunder cracked overhead held her on the edge for ages.
“You come when I say, not before,” he’d instructed.
His thumb had circled her clit with cruel precision until she sobbed his name into the storm, begging for release. When he finally gave her what she wanted, she realized he’d remained ice-cold throughout.
That wouldn’t happen again.
Really?
Given the chance, would I refuse?
Absolutely.
Better not put that to the rest.
She arrived at a stunning vantage point with the harbor laid out before her. The Seraphim, with its sinister black helicopters squatting on the top deck, was more than impressive. It was magnificent and intriguing. All the other flashier, smaller boats looked insignificant by comparison.
A shiver ran down her spine at the sight of Elijah’s floating fortress moored like a ruling monarch in the biggest berth at the furthest end of the marina, with a security cordon around it.
Somewhere in that circle was Elijah.
Some nagging demon chose that moment to whisper into her head.
Dark nights and darker passions. He’d always been inventive.
Her wrists bound with his belt, his mouth between her thighs, and then that slow, deliberate claiming as she begged in two languages while he watched her break with ice-cold satisfaction.
This was the man she was about to confront.
When they’d shared a small apartment in Cospicua, one of the three ancient cities across the harbor from Valetta, Elijah came back from recon one night, wired and hungry. No words. He backed her against the wall, ripped off her clothes, and drove into her in one savage thrust.
The utter bliss of submitting to pleasure was a memory that had kept her awake on many a night since. Elijah always fucked her as if trying to brand himself into her bones.
But that had changed. She had changed. Now these memories served only as warnings. Elijah took what he wanted, then walked away.
I did that last time.
Her silent confession opened the floodgates, and another memory flashed into her mind.
“You’ll remember this every time you try to forget me,” he’d said just before tipping her over the edge.
He’d made her wait so long that the sensation was almost unbearable.
She could remember it as if it were only moments ago, her body seizing around him as he held her pinned to the wall.
When she was calm again, he stayed inside her, his forehead pressed to hers. That was the closest he’d ever come to a tender gesture. She’d hoped he’d say more. And should have known better. Pulling out, he walked away as if nothing remarkable had happened.
How many more warnings did she need? If Elijah knew how many times she’d found release with his name on her lips— He’d do what? Laugh?
He wouldn’t care.
Elijah was her drug and her damnation, and she was about to meet him again of her own free will.
Traffic chaos descended from the ramparts down to the harbor below. The discordant noise was a fitting soundscape for Black Meridian’s vow of vengeance. The consortium’s kill price for Elijah’s head was in the multimillions, reflecting the danger he posed to their trillion-dollar operation.
Remaining with him would have made her a homing beacon, guiding Black Meridian to their target.
Her disappearance, together with Elijah’s strategic thinking, made the Seraphim appear to be nothing more than another megayacht owned by a shell corporation.
His connection to the vessel had never been listed.
His survival was more important than her happiness, which was why she left. Only this brush with an innocent girl with no one else to defend her could persuade Sable to come out of hiding and put Elijah at risk. Anna Marie’s story was so similar to theirs that she couldn’t ignore it.
She stared at the Seraphim. The vessel was huge, like an armored city. Sable could never have imagined Elijah would own something like it when they first met as rookie agents.
Military technology was the source of his wealth. She guessed the hull was reinforced and the interior armored. Cutting-edge tech would be everywhere. The Seraphim was not some pampered billionaire’s plaything, but a manifestation of power, control, and fearsome strength.
Fortress Elijah. Safer for his team and the people he’d sworn to protect. Shock and awe directed at any enemy in his path.
Being this close to Elijah and his floating kingdom spooked the hell out of her. The outcome today was by no means certain, and from what she’d seen in the cathedral, Elijah was not in a forgiving mood. He’d treated her as if she were something he’d scraped off his boot.
She couldn’t blame him. He’d believed she was dead, yet here she was, not just alive, but demanding more.
Would it change anything if he knew the truth, or would he be even angrier because she hadn’t told him—
“Halt! This is a private dock.”
A massive guard blocked her way. Dressed in black, he had to be one of Elijah’s men. His build alone confirmed her suspicion that the Seraphim was more barracks than pleasure craft.
Keeping her voice low and level, she explained that Elijah Steel was expecting her.
“Name, ma’am?”
“Sable Alexandrovna.”
He checked his tablet, then waved her on with an unexpectedly warm “Welcome aboard, Ms. Alexandrovna”
Something flickered in his eyes as she turned to acknowledge him. Surprise? Respect? Was she overthinking? Perhaps he’d heard rumors about her relationship with Elijah.
He paused for a beat, then stepped aside to allow her to approach the gangplank.
She stared up at the few short steps she would have to take to enter Elijah’s world. It might as well have been a creaking footbridge over a crevasse. Firming her jaw, she took the first step.
A crew member in crisp whites waited at the top. “Ms. Alexandrovna. Commander Steel is expecting you. Permit me to escort you.”
Commander Steel? How appropriate. She almost smiled.
“Ms. Alexandrovna”
“Yes, of course. Sorry. I’m trying to take everything in.”
Her escort’s expression remained neutral. “Are you ready to move on?”
God help her, yes.
“Yes. Thank you.”
Elijah was a dangerous obsession, but some obsessions weren’t chains; they were oxygen, and she’d just taken her first free breath in a long time.