Page 40 of Tempting Tessa

Tommy did, the two men acting like partners as he guided Clarence’s driving from the rear seat. The streets grew quieter as they left the city’s bustling heart behind. Soon, they entered Ilford, and it was no surprise when they cruised past skyscrapers of various heights and ended up in front of a modern one with a prominent sign announcing the headquarters of Kaltrain.

The Rover idled in a fire lane across the street from the main entrance. Several people walked past, paying no attention. The traffic light turned red, stopping them, and Tessa was thankful for the tinted security windows.

Both she and Tommy swiveled in the seat to watch as the Rover’s passenger side door opened.

Her breath caught sharply in her chest like a fire—Jessie, pale but unmistakable, seemed to look right at her. The left side of Jessie’s face was…not right. The cheekbone drooped, as did that corner of her lips.

But the second figure made Tessa’s chest fill with a different fire—one of absolute fear.

“It’s him,” she whispered.

Tommy, mouth open as his gaze fixed on his sister, turned to her, alarmed. “Renard?”

She stared at the man. He took Jessie by the elbow and led her across the street, dodging cars, as he guided her to the Kaltrain entrance. Tessa’s past crashed into the present like a meteor, scorching the entire foundation of her world. “His name is Harris Brewer. That’s my stepfather.”

Sixteen

The building loomed against the gray skyline, all sleek glass and sharp edges. A fortress for the powerful…and corrupt, Tommy suspected.

Tommy squirmed in his seat, his gaze locked on the entrance, where Viktor and Jessie had disappeared inside. Tessa sat stiff and silent beside him. After cruising around the block, Clarence parked across the street, close enough to watch the building but far enough not to draw attention. So far, no one had come or gone since the pair had entered.

Tommy wrestled with his emotions over seeing his sister. Wrestled with questioning Tessa about the man posing as Viktor, but whom she claimed was her stepfather.The stepfather who had murdered her mother and been killed in prison?Holy hell.

The ghosts of the past were indeed alive and creating nightmares. He exhaled slowly through his nose, fidgeting with the laptop. “I know you have a theory. Out with it.”

Her hand tightened on her phone, her attention riveted on the imposing structure. “I wish I did.”

“Come on, Tessa. Jessie’s alive. Your stepfather’s alive and posing as Viktor Renard. They’re working together with the group behind the EMP attacks. What the hell is going on?”

She was already so stiff that he feared touching her might make her break apart. Yet, at his words, she stiffened further. Tommy wondered if she planned to stonewall him entirely.

Because he knew—knew—she was putting together the pieces of this puzzle. That’s what The Architect did. She built theories and profiles the same way she designed buildings.

“Yes,” she finally admitted, her voice barely above a whisper. “That’s him. He’s older, obviously, but I’d never mistake him for anyone else.”

That was understandable, seeing as how he’d killed her mother.

“Jessie is working with him,” she continued as if repeating it to herself would help her process it, “and they’re running a widespread plan to destabilize US military bases and frame the swans—and by association—the CIA, for it. The design of such a plan is staggering. He must’ve been planning this for years.”

Nerves clawed at him. “But why?”

“Revenge,” she said without hesitation. “He must have believed The Agency would take care of him after he killed Mom. That he wouldn’t end up in prison. His murder was staged, he escaped, and now he’s seeking revenge.”

“Which lets the CIA off the hook for faking his death,” Tommy said. “If they’d played a part in it to get him out of prison, he wouldn’t want revenge on them.”

Working it through aloud, her body unfroze, and she nodded. “Someone he met in prison offered him an opportunity. Someone who had powerful connections in the outside world.”

“Like our Russian investors?”

“Bigger, I imagine. A power player. Whoever it is, they discovered Harris had been a consultant for the CIA, and I’d bet that player has ties to the Russian government.”

“FSB recruited Harris in jail?”

She nodded. “Them or one of their other undercover agencies. It makes sense.”

A sleek silver Audi SUV stopped in front of the entrance. Several men in suits exited. A second vehicle pulled up behind them and out piled men in sunglasses and earbuds. From the bulge under their jackets, Tommy knew they were armed.Bodyguards. He raised his phone and snapped pictures of all of them as they entered the building.

“And who are these guests?” Tessa asked in a voice that sounded more like her—assured and in control.

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