Merciless (Option Zero 1)

“And that’s the best answer you have?”

“It’s the truth.”

“You’re telling me you’ve been doing this for more than a half-dozen years. Answering to no one. Making your own decisions. Taking the jobs you want to take and being very successful at it. And now you suddenly want to work for someone else?”

She looked down at her feet, and he knew the next thing that came out of her mouth would be a lie.

When she raised her head, tears glistened in her eyes. “Did your research dig up any intel on Fran Johnson?”

“No.”

“That’s not a surprise. They want to keep it a secret. Pretend it never happened.”

“And what is ‘it’?”

“Fran was a key witness in a murder investigation involving a crime family in Pittsburgh. They knew there was a mole, possibly several moles, within the Justice Department. I was tasked with finding the mole.

“I found him, but he turned out to be the mayor’s nephew. Fran was killed. I got the boot, and the department covered it up. Case dismissed for lack of evidence.”

“And you think that wouldn’t have happened if OZ had been involved?”

“I know it wouldn’t have happened. OZ is too powerful.”

“I think you overestimate what we can do. We have a lot more enemies than allies.”

“Maybe so, but you wouldn’t let them get away with it. You would have found a way to expose who they are and what they did.”

Ash considered her story. It was easily verifiable, which meant there was some truth to her words. She was still holding back, though. He needed to make a decision. He didn’t have to know everything about the people he employed, but he damn well needed to trust them.

Was Jules’s reticence a natural part of her private self, or was it something more? Kate’s endorsement went a long way in helping him decide. She was responsible for sending Jasmine McAlister to him. Jazz, as she liked to be called, was one of his most valuable operatives.

Ash looked at Jules long and hard, and she withstood his scrutiny unflinchingly.

“OZ has rules. Not a lot, but a few. We might be more lenient in some areas, but the rules we have are written in stone. Anyone who violates one is out on his or her ass.”

“I’m not opposed to rules when they make sense.”

That wasn’t a resounding agreement that she would follow the rules blindly, but he was okay with that. If she had indicated otherwise, they might have had a problem. He relied on his people to make good decisions and do what made sense. Micromanaging was not his way.

“Most of my operativ

es live close to our home base. You got a problem moving?”

“No. I live outside Flagstaff in an older two-story house I renovated. I live on the second floor, and my office is on the first. I should have no problem renting it out.”

“OZ employees are expected to be on call 24/7. You could be gone for weeks or months at a time. No spouse or significant other that’s going to resent your absence?”

“No.”

She didn’t elaborate, and he didn’t probe further. The intel he’d received had already confirmed that she had no current romantic relationships. In fact, from what he could tell, she didn’t date. Period.

“You’ll have to go through a rigorous physical and psychological exam. Plus, a six-month probation period. One screw-up and you’re out. I don’t give second chances.”

“Not a problem.”

Before he committed, he had one more question he needed her to answer. If she denied the truth or brushed it off as nonsensical, he’d have his answer.

“How are we going to handle this heat between us?”