Page 31 of Poison Evidence

Curt: Do you believe you’re in physical danger? Beyond his threat to leave you stranded?

She paused and considered the question for a long moment. Curt needed an honest assessment of her situation.

Ivy: I don’t think he would hurt me.

Two minutes passed before she received a response.

Curt: I want you to help him find what he’s looking for.

She stared at her phone in shock. It took her a full minute to come up with a reply.

Ivy: This is a direct order from US Attorney General Curt Dominick? You want me to cooperate with a Russian spy? To give Dimitri Veselov access to CAM and the database?

Would this communication stand up in court? She doubted it. Especially because she’d have to delete it from her phone the moment they were done. But still.

Curt: Yes, yes. And yes. Don’t endanger yourself. Your safety comes first. But yes, we want you to cooperate. Confirmed with the Pentagon and DIA. State Department is monitoring your situation.

She couldn’t believe this wouldn’t somehow bite her in the ass when this was all over. She decided to come clean now, because it would only get uglier later.

Ivy: For the record, I had sex with him. Last night. Before I knew who and what he was.

Another pause in the conversation. She hoped to hell it was because the satellite signal was interrupted, not because he was planning to file a federal case against her.

Curt: Did you in any way compromise CAM and the security surrounding the system because you had sexual relations?

Ivy: No.

Curt: I can’t promise it won’t be a problem. But Ivy, you’re human. You’d been through an ordeal. He’d helped you and offered refuge. I ran a preliminary background check when you gave Mara the name Jack Keaton last night. He checked out. These factors will be taken into consideration. You might lose your security clearance, but I doubt you’d face charges.

She swiped at the tear that rolled down her cheek before it could land on her phone. Was she really going to survive this? She might not face legal consequences, but the press was a different matter. They would flay her. Again.

Ivy: Are you saying this as attorney general or as a friend?

It was presumptuous to call him a friend. She didn’t know him well, but he was in her cousin’s inner circle and they’d met socially several times over the years, long before she began working for his wife. And right now, she wanted to believe Curt saw her as something other than a pawn.

Curt: Both.

Ivy: I should go. Dimitri could come looking for me.

Curt: Protect yourself first and at all costs. Text again when it’s safe.

Ivy: Will do.

She cleared the message history and unlinked the phone from the satellite feed, then tucked it back into her purse. Task completed, she returned to the head of the bed and pulled her knees to her chest. Part of her wanted to sob—and she didn’t know if it was from relief or fear. She’d been given orders to cooperate with Dimitri by no less than the man who was seventh in line for the presidency.

Dimitri had presented himself as a reluctant spy, and she wanted to believe him. She even felt sorry for him but didn’t know if her feelings were influenced by the fact that she’d slept with him.

She didn’t have to fight Dimitri—not unless he threatened her. She couldn’t be obvious in her reversal. It had to happen slowly, or he’d wonder at her sudden about-face.

His claims he wouldn’t hurt her had been convincing. And then there was his erection when she straddled him on the deck. She had pathetic little power here, but she’d use every tool in her arsenal, including her body if she had to. But that interrogation method had backfired, and she’d been shamefully aroused when she had him pinned. There had to be a way she could use his attraction to her without risking herself.

She glanced at the ladder to the front deck, and an idea took form. While they were underway, he expected her to assemble the drone for this afternoon’s survey. She hadn’t responded to his command because she wanted to try to contact Mara.

Now it was time to show some rebellion.

Dimitri nearly swallowed his tongue when Ivy emerged through the front hatch onto the sunbathing deck above the galley and dropped the beach towel that covered the tiniest of bikinis.

Tall with lush curves, she had a beautiful body he could stare at all day. And given that she set her towel on the padded bench directly in his line of sight, it appeared she was inviting him to enjoy the view for a while.

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