Page 59 of Protected Hearts

He was doing this for Shiloh, with the backing of his brothers and Black Heart Security. The threat against the country was something the CIA already knew about. Which meant people were already on their radar.

“We can hand over everything we know to the military. Let them handle it.”

“I’ve made some contacts.”

Oaks heard the gravity in his brother’s statement and nodded with equal seriousness. His brother was a rule breaker but only in extreme cases. This wasn’t one of them. He’d be the first man in line to hand-deliver intel when it came to a threat against the country they’d served.

“While we wait for one of your guys to get back to you, we can search for William. If we find out where he is, we take a team in.” Oaks had visions of tossing the guy into a black bag and dragging him out. Throwing him into a trunk would be too kind to make up for the terror he inflicted on Shiloh, and the world under the guise of business.

Oaks leaned against the desk. “We hit him at his weakest point.” With the interrogation tactics used on their enemies. A grim smile stretched over his face.

Carson gave him a second glance. “Where is he weakest? His home? Office? Or any number of the places he meets up with his contacts?”

“His home will be a fortress, but cutting wires to cameras isn’t too hard.” Oaks pointed at a photo of the California mansion. “My concern is the thugs he seems to travel with.” The photograph showed William getting into a car with three huge, burly guys standing guard right behind him.

Carson shrugged, dismissing his concern. “That’s a one-man job if you’ve got the right jump in the game.”

True. He, Carson and Colt were all former SEALs. They knew how to handle themselves, even when the odds were low.

Oaks contemplated the maps, photos and scans of intel scattered on the desk again. “As for the files Shiloh has in her possession, I agree with you that it’s a good idea to give her what she needs to safely transfer them electronically. We can’t take the chance that the files could be wiped out by William if he finds a way to do it before we take him down.”

“You’re right. I’ll talk to Colt about giving her what she requires.”

“I’m thinking a password-protected flash drive. As a backup to that, she can use a second cloud that’s locked up like a vault. Put her eggs in different baskets.”

“Solid ideas.”

“Also…I think we need to dangle the files in front of William…then sweep in for a takedown.”

They both shifted their attention across the desk to a grouping of photos all showing places where William stayed on a regular basis. His mansion in Silicon Valley, a Chicago loft apartment and a penthouse in New York City.

Oaks listened for sounds from the conference room where Colt and Shiloh were both working, but the house was silent.

“So we set up an exchange with William, then take him down.”

Carson wasn’t shocked by his idea. Oaks wondered how long he’d been thinking about the same plan.

He met his brother’s stare. “Can we really get Shiloh on board with this, Oaks? She’s been keeping the files on lockdown for so long, I can’t see her just agreeing to transfer them to a flash drive or a cloud—or suddenly coaxing William out by offering them to him.”

“I think she’ll see the benefit of having the files in multiple locations. As for William…she wants him stopped. Especially after he basically sold her to Vanya.”

“Good thing you were the highest bidder.”

“Or I’m one lucky bastard. Having all the key elements at hand—fluency in Russian, and an ID and story to match—made it possible.”

With a grunt of amusement, Carson twisted away from the investigation layout on the desk as if everything was decided. “What if she doesn’t want to offer William the files to lure him out? It’s a dangerous game for her to play.”

“Let’s plan a meeting to talk to her first thing in the morning. I’ll find a way to make her comfortable with the idea.”

He didn’t mention how he’d be alleviating her anxiety—by giving her orgasm after orgasm. When she was a boneless, shaking mess, and crying out his name, he could convince her to trust him with her life.

Memories of their evening together on the enclosed porch filtered into his head and heated his body with desire.

He needed to find Shiloh and remind her that he could keep her safe like no other…and make her feel good like no other too.

Chapter Fourteen

Warm, rough hands enveloped Shiloh’s. “Keep your eyes shut.”

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