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For once, Noah was appreciative of London’s notoriously heavy traffic. He turned on his police scanner but wasn’t surprised when there was no report of any incident at Zara’s home. He glanced at her and noticed the outline of her cell phone lodged under her shirt, being held in place by her lingerie. Without asking, he reached down her shirt, into her bra, and snatched it from her, tossing it out the window.
“Hey,” she snarled. “I just got that phone last week. Do you have any idea what that cost me?”
“I’m guessing not more than your life is worth.”
“Just who the bloody hell do you think you are?”
“I thought I covered that when I helped you escape your uninvited visitors. I’m assuming, of course, they were uninvited. In case you’ve forgotten, I’m the guy who just saved your ass.”
Noah used the Rover’s Bluetooth capability to call Croft. He refused to think about time differences, figuring Croft needed to know there was trouble, then he could alert the rest of the team.
“Hello?” came the groggy voice.
“Croft, wake up! We’ve got trouble.”
“Noah? What the hell? Where are you?”
Noah could hear Croft coming fully awake.
“London. Well, technically, headed out of London. I have Zara Hughes with me. A small assault team just tried to get to her at her place. I’ve dumped her phone, but I don’t think it’s a good idea to go back to the Savoy. I’m going to toss my phone as soon as I hang up. Avery left me with the secure laptop, and I’ll establish a secure phone line when we get settled. I’m headed to our European bolt hole. I’ll contact you once I have us safe.”
“Gotcha. I’ll get everything rolling on this end. Is Hughes all right?”
Noah glanced over at her. “I can’t tell if she’s annoyed, scared, or a combination of both, but no worse for wear. I’m betting you can’t say the same thing for Finn.”
Croft chuckled. “Well, she’s not complaining at the moment. Of course, she’s exhausted and sound asleep, but I’ll tell her you asked after her. Take care of Hughes, she’s Finn’s best friend. And Noah, Hughes isn’t Finn. She’s going to be a major pain. Contact us when you’re in place.”
“Will do,” Noah said before taking his own phone and headset and tossing them onto the highway as they drove through the outskirts of London. Noah watched via the rearview mirror as both were crushed beneath the wheels of the large moving truck directly behind them.
“So, you’re Noah Taylor, and Finn is with Croft? When did that happen? I just spoke with her night before last.”
“It seems your friend thought better of her decision to run off to London and went home yesterday.”
Noah’s eyes swept all the mirrors to ensure they weren’t being followed, but he continued to take a circuitous route out of the city.
“I’m not sure if she realized the danger her brother brought down on her head wasn’t over or figured it was better to be waiting for Croft at home than to have him catch up with her.I’m not sure she has enough sense to understand neither of you is safe, but she was right about Croft.”
“That’s all fine and good. Don’t think I’m not grateful for the assistance you gave me back there, but if you drop me off at Scotland Yard or MI-6, I can make a report about what’s happened…”
“The team will take care of that from our headquarters in Mesa. We prefer to control the dissemination of information.”
“Dissemination of info…” She sighed, then continued, “I’m sure you want control, but you won’t control me. I need you to drop me off. It looks like you’re headed out of town, so you can just drop me at the closest tube or train station, and I’ll get myself back.”
“Did you miss the part where those guys jammed your phone and circumvented your security system, so you were cut off from any kind of help? I know Edmond LaCroix?—”
“How do you know who I was talking to?” she interrupted.
He looked at her and laughed. “I was eavesdropping on your phone. As I said, I know LaCroix. He’s a lazy sonofabitch. My guess is he shrugged off your call and has gone back to eating donuts or whatever the Sûreté’s equivalent of that is.”
“Oh, that’s rich coming from the guy who left the military—a guy with a heavily redacted service record. Was it intelligence or something far more nefarious? Of all the men at Wild Mustang, you seem to be the one people fear the most. Then without any warning, you left for a cushy job with a private security firm.”
He laughed. “If you know my background, then you know enough about Wild Mustang to know it’s far from cushy. I think you’re trying to get a rise out of me, Zara.” He felt his cock throbbing against his fly. “Which at this point is redundant.”
She glanced over at his lap, saw the evidence of his arousal, and blushed, which was kind of endearing.
“No,” she said, rolling her eyes and focusing forward. “What I’m trying to impress on you is I know you have no legal jurisdiction to take me anywhere I don’t want to go, and you need to honor my request to let me out of this vehicle. Now, Mr. Taylor.”
“Not a chance, Zara. I think we ought to be on a first-name basis, don’t you? Finn involved our firm in whatever mess her brother stumbled into, and our team is still figuring out how all the pieces fit. The assault on your home this morning should prove whoever is pulling the strings is more than willing to kill to achieve their goal. Until we know what that is, there’s nothing we can share with the authorities. In most situations like this, if we get them involved too early, they just get in the way. Since Croft’s girl involved us, we feel an obligation to protect those of you who are in danger. That means, until further notice, you’re with me and will do what I tell you.”
