Page 89 of Deadly Designs

Two guards flanked a closed door when he arrived onthe top level. One looked at his phone, while the other had hisback turned. Before Christian took them out, he needed to ensureAja Blue was inside.

A thin ledge surrounded the windows of the office. Hefound an access point and climbed out. The windows were darkened toblock the sun’s rays, but one was open, letting in the sea breeze.He counted two people in the office. One was Aja Blue, and hebreathed a sigh of relief that she was unharmed. The other wasHeathcliff Sinclair. Christian’s jaw clenched. The man was holdingAja Blue at gunpoint. Neither had noticed him, so he backed awayand notified Presley and Kayne. It took less than three minutes forthem to arrive.

“There are two guards. We need a distraction.”

“I’ll get their attention,” Presley stated. “You guystake them out.”

She removed the band securing her ponytail, bentover, and finger-combed the long blonde hair. Then she stood, shookout the strands until they danced down her back like a fluffy,silky curtain, and whetted her lips. “Get ready.”

Presley opened the door and stumbled inside likeshe’d had too much to drink. Both guards turned to her with weaponspointed.

“This is a private floor,” one man barked, andChristian realized it was Jonas Thames, a.k.a. Johnny Cash.

“He’s mine,” he told Kayne.

Presley walked past them and then tripped, gasping asshe started to fall. Both men lowered their weapons and dashed tohelp her. Christian and Kayne came from behind and hit them beforethey knew what was happening.

Christian wrapped flex-cuffs around Thames’s wrists,and as he was choking him unconscious, he whispered, “You go nearmy girlfriend again, I will end you.”

He didn’t bother helping him to the ground. Christianlet his dead weight crash to the floor. Then he cuffed his legs anddragged him into a storage closet with the man Kayne had subdued.Presley’s hair was back in a ponytail, and they were ready to stormthe office.

“There’s an open window starboard. I’m going in thatway. You two pick the lock and come up behind him when hisattention is on me.”

“Roger that.”

Christian returned to the thin ledge and quietlypushed the window wider so he could climb inside. Sinclair hadmoved from behind his desk to stand before Aja Blue.

“You’re busted, Sinclair.”

Both Sinclair and Aja Blue gasped. Sinclair’s armswung to him so the gun was off Aja Blue. That had been Christian’sfirst goal.

“Christian,” Aja Blue whispered.

“Who are you?” demanded Sinclair.

Christian kept his Sig trained on Sinclair as hemoved in front of Aja Blue, shielding her with his body. “The jig’sup. You’re finished, Sinclair. I know about the meeting with CesarNofeshku, the Butcher of Kormu. You’re going down as a traitor tothe country.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” The sweatbeading on his forehead told a different story as he turned hishead and yelled, “Thames, get in here!”

“Jonas isn’t going to be able to help you. He’s alittle tied up at the moment.”

Presley’s chuckle came through the comms.

“You’re trespassing on private property. I’ll haveyou arrested.”

“Ah, Heath—can I call you Heath?” He didn’t wait fora response. “I’m not trespassing. I was invited.”

“No, you weren’t. I don’t know who you are. I neverwould’ve invited you.”

“Yet, here I am.”

“I’ll have your badge for this.”

Christian scoffed. “I’d like to see you try,especially since I don’t have one.”

Aja Blue tapped his shoulder. “Christian, he admittedto killing Jay.”

“I did no such thing, missy. That’s slander. I’ll sueyou.”

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