once. âEFLA has known about you for a while. Weâve been following your activities with great interest. Weâve documented every kill youâve ever made. Impressive. Weâre amazed youâre still alive.â
Was he here to remedy that?
âWell, now youâve met me.â Lifting the handle, she opened her car door.
âMaybe we could go somewhere. We must talkââ
âI donât see what we could possibly have to say to one another.â Sliding into the driverâs seat, she tried to shut the door.
His hand caught it. Glaring at the tanned, elegant fingers, she tried to tug the door shut, grunting from the effort.
âHow about that NODEAL is a thing of the past. And Cooper is on his way out.â
She ceased tugging on the door and stared at him in alarm. Her palm grew sweaty where it clutched the doorâs arm rest. Her jobâhunting in relative freedomâdepended on Cooperâs looking the other way. Without Cooper, NODEAL might actually stop her from hunting. Or try to, anyway.
âI thought that might get your attention.â
âWhat are you talking about?â
âItâs been in the works for some time now. EFLA and NODEAL are merging.â He paused, adding, âWith EFLA at the helm.â
âShit,â she muttered, her heart squeezing painfully in her chest, as though an invisible fist had grabbed hold of it. All her hopes of being a paid, sanctioned agent vanished at his announcement.
âYour fun is over.â
âIt was never fun to me, never a game,â she snapped, thinking of her parents, thinking of all she had lost because of the soulless fiends walking the earth.
Heart racing, she knew she had to go. Had to talk to Cooper. Had to get in contact with her brother. With another grunt of effort, she managed to slam the door.
âThanks for the information,â she said through the window, her words ringing hollowly.
âThey sent me for you.â
Her fingers stilled around her keys. Her mind reeled. Still, she did not look his way again, avoided drowning in the fathomless pools of his eyes. Dark puddles without reflection. The eyes of a killer. An assassin. Her assassin. Not at this moment, perhaps. But eventually.
She stared straight ahead. He continued talking, his voice loud and clear through the windowâs glass. Undeniable. âIâm here to stop you.â
She swallowed through her suddenly too tight throat. âAnd my brother?â
âHim, too. Where is he, Kit?â
So he knew Gideon was out of town, but evidently not where. A shaky breath shuddered past her lips: mingled relief and gratitude that Gideon and Claire had chosen now to take a vacation.
Gideonâs absence was probably the only reason this man wasnât bothering to kill her now. He needed her to get to Gideon. It was not an advantage she was about to give up.
âYou expect me to offer him up to you?â She turned the key in the ignition. The engine of her VW purred to life. âSorry. Youâre going to have to work a little harder for your kill.â
She slid the gear into reverse and turned, locking gazes with him through the glass, knowing that while he wouldnât stop her from leaving, he also wouldnât stop. They would meet again. EFLA was that way. Relentless.
âKeep away from me,â she added, âOr youâll regret it.â
He gave a small nod of acknowledgment, well-shaped lips curving in a humorless smile. âI look forward to next time we meet.â
His blasé attitude struck a nerve. Did he think her weak? Easy to kill? Because she was a woman? Familiar indignation spiraled through her.
âGo ahead. Underestimate me. It will be your mistake.â
His smile deepened, grooves forming in the planes of his cheeks. The bastard was too handsome for his own good.
Easing her foot off the brake, she pressed down on the gas pedal and drove away.
CHAPTER 4
D