Page 35 of The Allure of Ruins

“You used Pax as bait without even letting him know,” Colton accused Walker. “And how the hell did Antonov know Pax was in Chicago?”

“That was Erast—at least that’s our assumption,” Walker said, appearing pained. “When we recovered Gen’s phone, it had a message on it placing Pax in Chicago. The text came from a burner phone.”

“Gen’s known all this time where he is.”

“Yes. He simply couldn’t do anything about it without money and men. He was completely cut off from his accounts. All his assets were first frozen, then seized.”

“As if all his money was in one place,” I scoffed, squinting at her.

“Well, I agree it’s likely he had reserves we didn’t know about, though less than he would have had if you hadn’t given us the information about the second safe behind the first. We really appreciated that—there was a lot of money and gold bars back there, as well as another hard drive with even more evidence.”

I nodded.

“You gave us so much that day, laying the groundwork for Rokov’s eventual arrest.”

“And you repay me by not telling me Gen Antonov is after me,” I said sourly, standing up and walking to the large mirror on the wall.

“We can protect you,” she asserted.

“Yeah, because you’ve done such a great job already,” I replied curtly, glowering at her. “I have no idea how long Gen’s been here, watching me… And how did he… How did…”

“What?” She sounded exasperated.

I surveyed Walker, then Hall, and finally turned to Colton, my voice having deserted me.

“That’s a very good question,” Colton stated, reading my mind as usual, eying Walker. “How did Gen know we would be at the pub?”

“I—” She opened her mouth, then closed it, glancing around at all of us before stopping on Hall and gasping.

“Why’re you looking at me like that?”

“What did you do?” she barely got out, her breath catching as she searched his face, trying to uncover the man she knew. I understood. It was the same experience I had the first time Gen hit me. The hard slap was one thing, the shock as I hit the ground another, but all of it paled in comparison to the absolute betrayal of all I’d felt for him. How could a man I’d given my heart to, put me on the ground? It shifted my whole world around me. Things I had missed finally coming into sharp focus. I suspected Agent Walker was having a similar experience.

Hall stared back, holding her gaze, the two of them locked in a battle of wills, her wanting him to speak, him resisting.

“We already know, Hall,” Calhoun said gravely, lifting his hand, gesturing for someone to come in. “As soon as I was notified that the van was driving away from the pub, I knew you were all running for your life. Or more precisely, that one of the two visiting agents was in danger along with the lawyer and his assistant. The other agent knew that once their partner and the lawyer were dead, they would deliver the assistant to Genrikh Antonov.”

Hall’s face crumpled as he regarded his partner. “I would have never hurt you.”

Which didn’t matter, because now, as that moment was in the past, he would not have the opportunity to hurt her. And in his heart, because they were friends, and more, partners, and had history I wasn’t privy to, he must’ve hoped that when push came to shove, he would have remained steadfast. But the facts were, when faced with the choice, with Gen demanding her life, there was no telling what he was capable of. I was certain that once, long ago, he would have never thought he’d betray his oath either.

Walker seemed devastated, her eyes swimming with unshed tears, and I knew she was sad, but I was betting she was mad too. I always cried when I was furious.

He bent his head forward, closed his eyes, and put his hand on his forehead.

The door opened then, and Calhoun nodded at the two men who walked in, followed closely by a third, all coming around the table.

“What would you have done if Colton hadn’t taken over the driving?” I asked him. “It all happened so fast. Would you have killed him?”

He took a shuddering breath, lifted his head, and looked at me. “Antonov and I got our wires crossed—that’s why his men were outside. I thought it would be fine, though. I thought… I was certain you’d think they were the agents.”

“No. Colton knew better.”

His eyes flicked to him and then returned to me. “When the two of you started running, I was scared, but by the time we got you both in the van and I started driving, I was sure I could salvage the situation when Antonov’s men caught up to us. They were in a newer SUV, twice the horsepower, there was no way we could outrun them in that ancient fucking van.”

Calhoun turned to Colton. “How did you do that, and why did I lose both Walker’s and Hall’s GPS signals at—oh. You took them underground to Wacker.”

“I did.”