Carol Ericson - Navy Seal Spy

Who is this?

You have a tattoo of a mermaid just above your right pelvic bone.

Even sitting at her desk, she squirmed at Liam’s reference to her tattoo. The man had gotten to know her body very well during their time together in San Diego.

She typed her response.

R u going to rat me out?

Same stairwell at 8 tonight.

What choice did she have? If she refused to meet him, he just might let her real name drop, and then Tempest would make the connection between her and Sebastian. KC Locke had no history with Sebastian Cole, but Katie O’Keefe did. She’d worked too hard to scrub her background and identity. She didn’t need Liam McCabe to come along and blow it all up.

Not that she really believed Liam would expose her. Even if Liam knew her true purpose here, he’d never do anything to harm her. Although he’d bruised her heart, he’d move heaven and earth to protect her, and she’d do the same by telling him to run as far away from Tempest as he could.

The rest of the afternoon flew by with her joint efforts at doing her real job and continuing her assault on the firewalls Tempest had set up. Whoever had put them in place was damned good.

She jerked her head up and blinked her eyes when Samantha banged on the side of her cubicle. “Whoa, take it easy.”

“I’ve been saying your name and tapping on the edge of your cube for the past minute. It’s quittin’ time, girl. A few of us are going to the Deluxe Bar for a couple of cocktails. Do you want to join us?”

“I’ll pass. I have a problem to work through, so I’m going to stick around until I figure it out.”

Samantha saluted. “Now that’s what I call dedication. If you figure it out quickly, join us. We’ll be there for a few hours.”

“Will do. Have fun.”

When Samantha left at five-twenty, Katie got a bag of chips from the vending machine and returned to her desk, slumping in her chair as she ripped open the bag.

“Are you working late?”

She glanced up, and her heart skipped a beat as Meyers’s form filled the opening to her cubicle, his two hands wedged on either side of the edges as if blocking her exit.

She swallowed her chip and wiped her greasy fingers on a tissue. “I can get more work done when it’s quiet.”

“I just wanted to apologize for this afternoon. Management keeps us on our toes about protecting that area where the recruits are housed.”

“I understand.”

“We’re kind of damned if we do, damned if we don’t. We’re supposed to keep a close eye on it, but then we get in trouble for overreacting.”

“Didn’t mean to get you in trouble. I’ll be more careful where I wander around next time.”

“Yeah, just, sorry.”

“Me, too.”

He scratched the heavy stubble on his chin, causing the bird on his hand to move its wings. “Samantha leave for the day?”

“Uh-huh.” She stuffed another chip in her mouth to end the conversation.

“Does she have a boyfriend?” He stared at his thumb while picking at his cuticle.

Her tense shoulders dropped. So, he had a thing for Samantha and probably did know the button he’d found belonged to her and used it as an excuse to talk to her.

“Nope.” Not that she wanted to give Meyers false hope, but he wasn’t Sam’s type, anyway, and after his complicity in Patterson’s death last night, she sure as hell wouldn’t let Samantha date him.

“She likes those recruits, huh?”

Her spine stiffened again. He sure was keeping tabs on Samantha. “Oh, I wouldn’t say that, no more than any other woman around here.”

“I’ll let you get back to work. Just wanted to apologize for drawing my gun on you this afternoon.”

“Thanks.” She swiveled her chair in front of her keyboard and popped another chip into her mouth, listening for the office door to close behind Meyers.

She worked for a few more hours, glancing at the time on her computer every ten minutes, not able to concentrate on anything. She’d never get through Tempest’s firewalls with her mind on Liam.

At ten minutes to eight, she scrubbed the history on her computer, including her instant messages. Then she logged off and snatched her access card from the card reader on her computer. She had a date in a stairwell.

She headed for the elevator like she did every night, but when she got off at the second floor, she entered the stairwell instead of heading to the exit for the parking garage. She jogged up two flights of stairs and ducked beneath the staircase.

A door above her scraped open, and she held her breath until Liam came into view.

He joined her, huddling so close she could smell the fresh scent of his soap and the mint of his toothpaste. He placed his lips close to her ear. “Did you get rid of those instant messages we traded?”

“Of course. I should be asking you that.”

“I had a good teacher show me how to cover my tracks on a computer.” He touched his finger to her nose.

She jerked her head and he dropped his hand. “Would you really blow my cover?”

“To keep you safe and get you away from Tempest? Maybe.”

She caught her breath. Did he realize the danger at Tempest, or was this some kind of trick?

“What are you talking about? We both work for Tempest.”

“Under somewhat assumed identities.”

“Are you telling me they don’t know you’re Liam McCabe, former navy SEAL and all-around badass?” She narrowed her eyes.

“I like that description. Maybe I’ll put it on my next business card.”

She punched his arm, her fist meeting rock-solid muscle. “Be serious.”

“They know I’m Liam McCabe, former navy SEAL, and they know about my badassery.” He raised an eyebrow. “But that’s where my identity ends as far as Tempest is concerned.”

“What does that mean? What else is there?”

“What happened last night in Patterson’s office? Why were you up here?”

She sighed. Maybe if she started answering some of his questions, he’d start answering some of hers.

“I’ve been searching Tempest at night, trying to find unlocked offices, looking for evidence. Patterson had left his office unlocked last night, and I slipped inside.”

Liam pressed the heel of his hand against his forehead. “And you found him dead?”

“Worse than that. He came into the office while I was there, and I had to hide in the closet. Ginger Spann followed him, and...and she murdered him.”

His body stiffened. “Are you sure? How?”

“She injected him with something that mimicked a heart attack. I heard the whole thing, Liam. Then she got some security guard in there to help her—the same security guard who pulled a gun on me at the track.”

“They didn’t see you?”

“No.”

He took her by the shoulders and squeezed. “Why are you doing this, Katie? What’s Tempest to you? And I want the truth. Tempest isn’t some high school or hapless government agency that you can hack into for fun and games.”

Staring into Liam’s blue eyes, she felt safe for the first time since arriving at Tempest. He didn’t seem that surprised about the murder, and he was obviously hiding something from Tempest. She could trust him. She could always trust Liam, except when it came to staying by her side.

She closed her eyes and let out a shuddering breath. “It’s Sebastian.”

“Sebastian? You told me he was dead.”

“He is—and Tempest killed him.”

“What? How? You have proof of this?”

“One question at a time.” She placed her hands against his chest, and his heart thundered beneath her palm.

“He killed himself, Liam.” Her nose stung, and she sniffled back the tears.

Liam’s touch on her shoulders turned into a caress, and he pulled her snug against his body. “I’m so sorry, Katie. Was it the drugs again?”