Page 48 of Sinner's Salvation

“I don’t think this op was sanctioned.”

“Shit, that’s even worse,” Nika said.

“In some ways.” Evan shrugged. “I’ve got Ledger on tape planning my murder. He likely planned to kill anyone who’d seen Anna and Brian.”

“Does he have proof?” Baz asked. “Of my Mom surviving a head shot.”

Evan grinned. “I blew it up and set it on fire.”

Baz chuckled. “Well, SOP for you then.”

“That’s your standard operating procedure for getting rid of evidence? What about cell phone pictures or video?” Nika asked. “That’s hard to control.”

“This guy is more than a little paranoid. He was on top of that shit, no devices allowed. Not that I followed his rules,” Evan said. “I do think he’s going to label Anna, Brian, and likely myself as members of some kind of terrorist plot. His first goal will be to capture and/or kill us.”

“He doesn’t have any respect for Army Intelligence. He talked about me and other soldiers as if we were expendable.” Evan shook his head. “He’s like the worst kind of politician. He believes his own press, and thinks everything he’s done and going to do is justified.”

“Okay, so Ledger is a problem we’re going to have to deal with,” Baz said.

“And those Italians?” Evan asked. “Are they going to try again?”

“I don’t think we can count on any of our allies.” Anna said, from behind them.

Evan turned to find Anna standing in the doorway of the ladies’ room. She was dressed in the same clothes, blood and all, but she’d put a light raincoat on over top of it all. She’d also put on a watch cap, covering her messed up and bloody hair.

She’d wiped the blood and soot off her face and neck.

She looked so young. Carefree, even sweet. Yet, he knew she could be as ruthless as any mob hitman.

“I’ve been thinking.” She paused and took a seat next to him. The expression on her face, serious and sad and spent, made his stomach clench.

Evan gave her his full attention. “Something tells me these aren’t happy thoughts.”

“No.” She looked at him and one corner of her mouth tilted upward. “There aren’t that many of us. One hundred and seventy-six, to be precise. The success rate of conversion is very low. Yvgeny found someone who has a much better chance of becoming one of us, but she is only one person. Despite that, another family tried to kidnap her. They broke treaties that we have kept for hundreds of years.”

“If we can talk to them, explain the situation in detail, maybe we can salvage the situation,” Baz said.

“Are you willing to risk your life on that?” Evan asked his old friend. “Are you willing to risk hers?” He glanced at the cop standing so close to Baz she was touching him.

Baz studied him for a moment before looking at Anna. “Is he right? Are we completely exposed.”

“Not yet, but it could happen at any time. This Ledger fellow has already told too many people. The thing they lack is proof. If they decide to force a confrontation where it can be recorded...” She spread her hands. “We’re hot buttered bread.”

“Toast,” Brian muttered. “We’retoast.”

“We have to get ahead of Ledger,” Nika said. “But it might already be too late to do that.” Her phone went off, interrupting her before she could say anything else.

She took the call, but didn’t move away from the group. She listened for a moment, then shot to her feet. “What?” The word came out in a growl. The tone women used to tell the man she was talking to that he was an idiot and an asshole.

Something in Evan’s pocket buzzed. He reached down and pulled out a cell phone. He looked at it and frowned. His commanding officer’s number.

He accepted the call. “Gunn.”

“What in the flying fuck is going on?” The tone in Major Marek’s voice told him that if he was in the same room with the man, Evan would already be wearing handcuffs. “You’re the last man I would have predicted going rogue.”

Across from him, Nika sucked in a deep breath. “That’s fucking crazy, he’s an FBI agent,” she yelled into her phone. “Why put a BOLO out on him?” The snarl in her tone did not bode well for someone.

“No, sir,” Evan replied to Marek. “Ledger is the one who has gone rogue. He kidnapped a foreign diplomat and an FBI agent, then told the FBI they both died in a car accident. I doubt he told the Slovenian Embassy anything.”

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