Page 5 of Kept By The Agents

Sighing, I knew I couldn't actually withhold anything from them. It wasn't fair to the victims of the Raleka. They had a much better shot of finishing all this than I did. "I came to Russia to help Alyona." Suave knew who she was, he met my eyes and I saw sympathy there.

"Who's Alyona?" Brandon asked, interrupting me.

Shooting him a scowl, I shrugged. "She's a family friend."

"That's so goddamned dangerous, Cat," Suave snapped. "Even if Alyona is somehow involved you can't just-.

"We can discuss that later," Brandon said, effectively shutting Suave up.

I wasn't sure what that meant, so I ignored it. "She needed my help. I couldn't turn her down," I admitted. Suave's features tensed even more, but he didn't berate me. "So, I came to Russia."

"What's this got to do with the Raleka?" Weaver asked.

Sighing, I snapped, "It's going to take twice as long if you guys keep interrupting me to ask questions that I'm in the process of answering. Keep it up and we're going to miss the meeting."

Brandon stuck his face in mine. So close our noses were almost touching. His breath fanned over my cheeks, stirring the loose wisps of hair that had escaped my pony tail. The blush was working its way back into my cheeks. Why were these men affecting me like this? "What meeting?"

With him so close it was impossible to miss how attractive he was. His face was all angles, a straight nose, chiseled jaw, eyebrows that were slashing downward as he frowned at me. His mouth was the only hint of softness on his face, full lips that made you wonder what they tasted like. My eyes flicked away, unable to hold his intense stare.

Holding back my irritation at yet another question, I continued. "I met Alyona and her family at their home." I shivered as I remembered the desperation in her eyes as she pleaded with me inside her home. "She asked that I look into the disappearance of her niece, Elena."

It didn't matter that I'd never met Elena. I grew up seeing pictures of her, hearing all about her, and watching the love and pride light Alyona's face up anytime she talked about her. It was as though I knew her. And once I met her parents? How could I tell them no? Any of them? I wanted to find Elena just as much as they did.

Brandon pulled back so he wasn't in my personal space anymore, but he didn't go far. They were all surrounding me again. Heat swirled through my belly and I frowned at the sensation. I wanted to be disappointed in myself, but it was so sexy the way they were all glaring down at me while I was tied, helpless, to this chair. I had to mentally slap back my inner hoe. She was enjoying this entirely too much and the stakes were too high to be focusing on anything but that meeting. But the combination of the adrenaline, the danger and these men…made me want things.

Shoving aside my rising interest, I continued, "In the interest of saving time, I'll skip ahead. Alyona told me about Denis and I've been following him ever since. He's low level, but the Raleka uses him a lot. He's good at his job. Discreet."

"And what's his job?" Suave asked, finally sounding calm.

"Breaking heads."

I could all but hear Suave's teeth grinding at my answer. "Let me get this straight, Cat. You've been following around an enforcer for this organization?" At my nod his hazel eyes flashed with rage. "Do you have any idea what could have happened to you if he'd found you? He would have fucking killed you!"

Chin jutting out, I scowled at him. "I'm good at my job, too, Darro. He didn't catch me because I have skills." I gave him a smug smile. Thoughts of my apartment back home flashed through my mind.

Following these men was dangerous, but they already knew about me. It was easy to make up my mind and decide to keep helping Alyona because even if I stopped now the Raleka's men would still find me. And they weren't going to show mercy just because I gave up. I wasn't about to let Suave know that I was scared out of my mind. He didn't get the privilege of knowing my inner thoughts and feelings any longer.

"She's too pretty to be killed. She would have ended up someone's sex slave."

I looked over at Weaver in horror. It's not like that possibility hadn't occurred to me. But with him saying it in that matter-of-fact way, it sort of drove home the point more than it would have if Suave had yelled it at me.

Weaver shoved his glasses up higher on his nose. "Fucking frames. I hate these glasses," he muttered

"You're the one who forgot your spare contacts," Brandon said. He focused back on me. "What was that you said about a meeting?"

"Oh. That's where I was headed when you guys kidnapped me-"

"Saved you from yourself," Suave interjected.

Ignoring him, I kept going. "I was following Denis. Alyona's source caught wind of something big. She didn't know what it was, just that the Raleka had contacts coming in from all over the world."

They all swore. "What was your plan?" Brandon asked, his voice even and calm. "Were you just going to waltz in there and demand a citizen's arrest?"

I watched him, unease growing. It was easy to see that Suave was pissed. Even Weaver looked angry at hearing my admission. But Brandon, I couldn't read him. All I knew was the hairs were standing up on the back of my neck, warning me of danger. "Of course not. I was going to film everything, gather evidence, then take it to the local authorities."

"You seriously don't think the authorities are involved?" Weaver asked. He sounded incredulous at my naivety.

"Well, yes, I know they are, but I was planning to find someone who would help."

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