“I agree. I’ll have the team move back in.”
Gunner followed Shiv out the same door he’d used to rescue Raketa, and into the SUV.
—:—
Raketa sat on the bed, cursing the tears that threatened. Gunner had expended a great deal of energy trying to convince her that he wouldn’t use intimacy to get her to talk, but that’s exactly what he had done. If he did anything to jeopardize her mother’s life, she would skin him alive.
What a fool she’d been, thinking he was different. None of them were different. They’d all been trained to get what they wanted by any means possible.
She caught a glimpse of Monk outside on his phone. There had been several ways she’d thought of to kill him. This would be the perfect opportunity to slit his throat, take his phone, and tell the man she was certain he was talking to, exactly what she thought of him.
As though he could feel her threat, Monk turned and made eye contact. Giving him the finger probably wouldn’t elicit much of a reaction from him. If only she had a gun. That would make him pay attention. She might even be able to get him to talk.
She saw him nod, disconnect the call, and walk toward the house. Within seconds, she heard his footfalls coming down the hallway, followed by a knock.
“I’ve been instructed to give you a briefing.”
A briefing? What the hell? She was tempted to tell him to fuck off, but information was her friend. The more she had, the more she could do with, including getting the hell off this island.
Monk stepped back when she opened the door and motioned for her to go to the main living area of the house. Once there, he motioned for her to sit. Was he planning to brief her using sign language or did the man ever intend to speak?
Raketa heard what sounded like a printer and then watched Monk leave the room. When he came back, he held several sheets of paper.
“This is for your eyes only,” he said, handing them to her.
She looked to her left and right. “Are you saying I shouldn’t share it with the animals inhabiting the island?”
“Habit,” Monk said, sitting in one of the kitchen chairs.
“Why are you sharing this with me?” she asked after skimming the first page.
“Orders.”
“From?”
Monk shook his head, stood, and walked out the front door.
It had been a stupid question. Of course the briefing was from Gunner. She stood and went into the bedroom.
A half hour later, Raketa set the papers on the bed next to her and wondered if he’d sent them somehow believing she wouldn’t hate him as much if he shared what he and Shiv’s team had discovered.
He was wrong. Very wrong. She hated him with every breath she took and every tear she cried over the lying bastard.
—:—
“You’ve copied all of it. I’m taking the originals back to Ivashov.”
Shiv shook his head. “We’ve been over this already. Taking the contents of this box anywhere is not an option.”
“You’ll have to kill me to stop me.”
The man shook his head a second time. “Don’t think I haven’t considered it. At least wait until the translation is complete.”
“There’s no need. She’ll be able to read what’s in it.”
With the wooden box under his arm, Gunner left the room. He could hear Shiv cursing him, but he didn’t care. He also didn’t take him seriously. If MI6 had wanted to stop him, they could’ve very easily.
He hoped by now that Raketa had digested the information he’d asked Monk to pass on to her. When he returned to the island, the two of them would have to craft their next plan of action together.