Page 33 of Belgian Betrayal

The train pulled away from the station.

The three of them remained in the connection area between the two railcars until the train cleared the station. Once out of Amsterdam, they settled into seats close to the end of a car. When the train employee approached them, asking for their tickets, Fearghas paid using his credit card.

If someone was tracking his card use, it would take time to realize they were on their way to Brussels. With less than twelve hours remaining to get to Bruges, they wouldn’t be in Brussels long.

As Catya settled beside Fearghas, she drew a deep breath and let it out. “You want to tell us what this plan is and why we need to get to Brussels?”

He gave her a twisted grin. “Brussels is on the way to Bruges.”

She nodded. “Given.”

“My team is meeting us there. Dmytro has a contact who might be able to decode the password. The rest of the team is coming as backup when we head to Bruges.”

Atkins’s brows dipped. “They warned me to come alone, or my daughter would die.”

“With the amount of effort they’re giving this, they want that disk,” Fearghas said. “They won’t kill your daughter when she’s the only leverage they have over you to bring the disk to the exchange. At least they won’t kill until they have the disk in hand or within reach.”

Atkins frowned. “You’re willing to bank on my daughter’s life? What if it was your loved one they were holding?”

Fearghas’s gaze met Catya’s. “I’d mobilize every goddamn connection I had and do everything in my power to get her the hell out of there alive.”

“You have people you can trust with the life of someone you love more than your own life?” Atkins asked. The shadows in the man’s eyes darkened.

Fearghas’s eyes narrowed as he thought about the team he’d helped in Athens. Would he bet Catya’s life on them?

They’d gone all out to rescue a woman’s son being held hostage to get the woman to retrieve and deliver an ancient artifact. They’d risked their lives to help the woman and the little boy.

The team was on their way at that moment, having offered to help. He believed they would risk their lives to help him and Catya.

“Yes. I have people I trust,” Fearghas said.

Atkins shook his head. “MI6 sent me on a mission to kill a woman who might not have been a threat to anyone except for the information on a disk that likely belonged to her father. No one but the MI6 should have known of our mission—which leads me to believe someone in my organization knew what would go down before I even got the assignment and leaked it to the people who took Madison.” He drew in a breath and let it out. “I don’t know who to trust.” He waved a hand at Fearghas and Catya. “I’m putting my faith in people I don’t know and who don’t have to do this. She’s not your daughter. Why should you care?”

Catya leaned forward, placing her elbow on her knees, her gaze meeting Atkins’s. “These people killed my parents and killed a preschool teacher all for a disk. They will pay for that. As Gia Rosolino died, she was adamant I get the disk back and give it to someone I trust before more people die. Whatever is on it has people scared or greedy. I want to know who. Those are the people responsible for what’s happening.”

Atkins nodded. “Agreed. And I’m afraid someone in MI6 is that person or works for them. I have nowhere else to turn. Are you sure you can trust this Dmytro with the disk?”

Catya turned to Fearghas. “He’s your man.”

Fearghas nodded, praying he was right. “He’s got a wife and daughter. I’m sure he’d do anything for them.”

“Do you think he can get into that disk before we have to leave Brussels for Bruges?” Atkins asked.

“I don’t know,” Fearghas said. “But, right now, he’s our best shot. We need to know who is behind all this.”

Catya nodded. “That disk might be our best chance of finding the ones pulling the strings, maybe even who they’re manipulating in MI6.”

“Right,” Fearghas said. “And if Dmytro can’t get in, at least we will have tried before taking it to exchange for your daughter.”

Atkins glanced from Fearghas to Catya and then his shoulders slumped. “I don’t have any other choice. I can’t walk into Bruges alone and expect to get my daughter out alive.”

“I know you have no reason to trust me,” Catya said softly. “I mean, I’m a killer.”

“As am I,” Atkins said.

She snorted softly. “Call it professional courtesy. Call it what you like. I don’t believe in killing innocents. The people I’ve targeted deserved to die. They were people who killed indiscriminately, murdering women and children.” She stared at Atkins. “I give you my word that I’ll do my best to get your daughter back.”

“We will do our best,” Fearghas seconded. “And my team will help.”

---