Page 90 of Shadowed Vows: Ghost
Jax swivels in his chair, a knowing smirk playing on his lips. "Speaking of moving... I noticed you were running pretty late this morning, boss. Would've called to check on you, but figured you were... occupied."
I shoot him a warning glance.
"Focus on the mission, Nitro," I order.
"Always do." Jax turns back to his screen. "And speaking of focusing, these shipping routes all converge at specific intervals. Almost like a well-choreographed dance of criminal activity."
"We have enough to start planning an intervention," Alina insists, ignoring Jax's comment. "My source at the port says—"
"Your source?" I scoff, frustration building. "The same brilliant judgment that had you meeting an unknown contact for dinner without backup?"
The words slip out before I can stop them. I immediately see my mistake.
Alina freezes. "What are you talking about?"
The room goes silent. Asher suddenly becomes very interested in his tablet. Cole types with unnecessary focus.
"Nothing," I mutter, turning back to the display.
"No." Alina steps in front of me, blocking my view. "How did you know about my dinner? I never told you about meeting David."
I say nothing, which is confirmation enough.
Her eyes widen with realization. "You were watching me that night." Her voice drops to a dangerous whisper. "After the warehouse—you were following me."
Jax whistles low. "Oh shit."
"You were stalking me?" Alina's voice rises.
"Did you—" She stops, connecting the dots. "Did you get David to leave? That emergency client call... that was you?"
My silence condemns me.
"Ghost works in mysterious ways," Jax offers unhelpfully. "Especially whenhe's—"
"Finish that sentence and you'll be running drills until next year," I snap.
Asher clears his throat. "If we could return to the matter of international human trafficking, rather than Ghost's questionable surveillance techniques? Though I must say, the latter is marginally more entertaining."
"You've been manipulating everything from the start." Alina's voice trembles with anger. "You saving me wasn't a coincidence either, was it?"
"We have a mission," I growl, struggling to maintain control.
"Answer me!" she demands.
The team stills, uncomfortably silent. Cole studies his screen with sudden intensity. Asher examines the ceiling as if it holds tactical information.
"I was investigating Roman's disappearance," I finally admit. "Your research into Apex Solutions crossed paths with our investigation."
"So you decided to what—insert yourself into my life? Get me to trust you? Was that part of your mission too?" Her voice cracks slightly.
"That's not how it was," I say, but the words sound hollow even to me.
Jax shifts uncomfortably. "Maybe we should give you two some pri—"
"Ship logs," Cole interrupts, his voice deliberately neutral. "Large transfers of personnel listed as 'equipment' on manifests match the financial patterns from the shell companies."
Alina's eyes remain locked on mine, betrayal radiating from her entire body.
