Having Jules put herself at risk was one thing. He trusted her skills. Putting herself at risk specifically for him was another matter. If anything happened to her, he’d never recover. Losing Meg had almost killed him. She’d been his best friend for years, and even though their marriage had been on shaky ground, he had still loved her. Being responsible for her death had put him in a black hole for a long time. If he lost Jules, he’d go back down that hole again, and Ash was pretty sure he’d never come back up.
This had to work!
“Okay, we’re stopping in front of the club. Wish me luck.”
Ash closed his eyes and, instead of wishing her luck, prayed for a miracle.
Reeking of wealth and clandestine happenings, Millie’s Spot was a small and elegant private club. Jules could imagine that while sipping expensive liquor or the latest fancy cocktail and munching exotic hors d’oeuvres, bad people had conceived many illicit deals here. How many had Turner been responsible for? And how many deaths had resulted from those deals?
Following Turner’s directions, Jules knocked on a side door. It was immediately opened, revealing Turner.
“I hope you understand that not only is this an inconvenience, but it’s incredibly dangerous.”
“I’ll be brief.”
“Very well.”
Turner backed away, and Jules walked inside. The interior was dark, allowing only glimpses of light from the low-glow light fixtures above each table. For their plan to work, the conversation required light.
“Interesting place. Does it have to be so dark? I can barely see where I’m going.”
Surprising her, Turner adjusted a lamp over one of the tables and said, “Have a seat.”
Though the rest of the room remained dim, she was pleased that the small area was lit up quite nicely. Relieved, Jules settled into a chair.
The instant Jules was seated, a man came out of the shadows.
“What the hell?”
“Did you think I’m going to talk with you without making sure you’re not wired or armed? I’ve been around too long to fall for that trick, Ms. Diamond.”
“Stand up,” the man growled.
Jules released an exaggerated sigh and stood. The man was only slightly taller than she was and on the thin side. However, he had the look of an experienced killer. Since she had no reason to fight him, Jules raised her arms and allowed him to pat her down. He removed her phone from her pocket and the gun strapped to her ankle.
He placed the items on a nearby table and then took something from his pocket. Jules showed no outward sign of fear, but her heart rate sped up a bit. The cam/mic inside the button on her shirt was the most modern and sophisticated one in existence. It wasn’t yet on the market, and so far no scanner had been designed to detect it. Still, there was the worry.
Seconds passed as he waved the scanner around her body. When he nodded at Turner, she smiled and said, “Wait outside for me, Ted. I’ll only be a few moments.”
Without a word, he nodded and left the room.
“Have a seat, Ms. Diamond.”
Jules settled into her chair and said, “I have a proposition for you.”
“First, show me the photographs.”
Jules reached over and grabbed her phone from the table. “I was in a hurry so could only take a couple.” Clicking the icon, the image of Ash appeared. No matter how fake it was, the photo looked altogether too realistic to Jules.
Apparently, Turner agreed. She let loose a delighted little l
augh. “How wonderful. If I thought I could get away with it, I’d have an eight-by-ten made for my credenza.”
Resisting the urge to punch the woman in the face, Jules smiled. “Photography has never been my thing, but I must admit, the picture does highlight my work.”
“How did you get away with it?”
Jules gave a casual shrug as if it was all in a day’s work, but she added a smug smile. What killer wouldn’t be proud of such a scheme? “We were on an op in Madrid. Drake and I were chasing a slimy informant. I pretended to pull a muscle and held back a little. We got separated. He lost the suspect and came back looking for me. I was standing behind a dumpster. I came out, took the shots. Radioed in that the suspect had shot Drake and gotten away.”