Linda O. Johnston - Claws of the Lynx

Linda O. Johnston

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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Chapter 1

This was it! Lt. Nella Reyes was about to receive orders for her first solo mission for Alpha Force, the covert military unit to which she was assigned. She leaned forward eagerly, her camouflage fatigues easing the discomfort of the wooden chair.

“This is an especially delicate situation,” said the unit’s commanding officer, General Greg Yarrow. Gray-haired and especially impressive in his dress uniform, he had called Nella and told her to appear this morning at nine hundred hours at his office in the Pentagon.

The room was ordinary compared with the general’s office at Fort Lukman on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, where Alpha Force was headquartered. There, he had a whole collection of first edition books on wall shelves behind his mahogany desk. Here, his desk was worn and well used, and the only decoration in the office was the American flag.

“I can handle it, sir,” Nella said confidently. The general had selected her for this assignment. She would do it, whatever it was. “Just give me the particulars.”

General Yarrow’s smile bisected his long face and lifted the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes and mouth. “I’m sure you can,” he agreed, then grew somber. “But the assignment’s not without danger, including the potential for the worst kind of exposure. You’re a medical doctor with plenty of important things to do for Alpha Force. I’ll understand if you want to opt out once you hear what it is.”

“That won’t happen.”

He studied her for a long moment with the piercing stare that could make the most self-assured officer wilt. Nella didn’t flinch, although she felt like it. She tried to maintain a confident expression on her face, ignoring the urge to touch her hair, make certain that no strand had escaped the tight bun at the back of her head.

“Okay, then.” The general leaned back in his chair. “Here’s the brief explanation. A journalist, Sherman Jonash, has stolen a computer thumb drive from Congressman Crandall Crowther. It contains highly sensitive information about Alpha Force. Fortunately it’s password protected, and Jonash is unlikely to have been able to get into it. It also has a GPS chip inside, so we know where it is. We need someone with your special abilities to sneak in and get it back. Fast.”

Nella translated silently. She knew who Sherman Jonash was. Who didn’t? He was a sleazy tabloid type who loved to create controversy in the reports he gave on network TV news.

The media giant he worked for, Omnibus International Communications, had been sued more than once for shenanigans Jonash had allegedly pulled. She didn’t know the results of the lawsuits, though. OIC had settled out of court, and one of the conditions had supposedly been absolute confidentiality.

But all that was irrelevant now. What was important was that, apparently, wherever the thumb drive was now hidden, a normal person couldn’t just slip in and retrieve it. But Nella could. Stealthily, in the dead of night. Scaling walls if necessary. Hidden by who and what she was.

“Yes, sir,” she said.

A knock sounded on the office door. “Come in,” the general called, then turned back to Nella. “Glad you agree, since here’s the congressman now. Oh, and instead of one of our usual Alpha Force handlers for backup, you’ll be assisted by the congressman’s chief aide. He’s particularly aware of the location and details about the building, and he knows the sensitivity of the mission.”

Even a solo operative of Alpha Force always had backup, but Nella had never heard of it being someone outside the unit. Yet she was used to following orders, and she had confidence in the general.

As two men entered the office, she turned—and froze.

She recognized them both. Congressman Crandall Crowther was in the news all the time. He was the head of the House of Representatives’ Armed Services Committee, known for his outspoken position on keeping things in the military solid and efficient—with funding of even the most covert ops under strict oversight of appropriate government personnel with highest security clearance. Despite that, he secretly supported Alpha Force and everything it stood for. That meant no official oversight, since government scrutiny would be contradictory to its very special mission.

His grip was firm as he greeted Nella after the general’s introduction. She wasn’t sure what she said in response as she tried to keep her eyes politely on the congressman.

And then she attempted to be cordial and unemotional as she was introduced to the congressman’s aide. The man who was assigned to be her aide as she performed her mission.

The man she had known and loved in college, with whom she had engaged in the hottest and most unforgettable sex ever. She had even dreamed of sharing a future with him.

Until he had seen who she really was and couldn’t handle it.

“Hello, Alec,” she said.

Good thing Alec Landerson had taught himself long ago to control his emotions—at least outwardly. It was the only thing good that had come from years of hell as a kid.

There’d been that lapse when he had first left home and been on his own at college, of course. That was when he had met Nella Reyes. His drinking and carousing had felt like a welcome relief from life with his demanding abusive father. But it had blown any chance of a future with the woman he now faced for the first time in nine years.

Losing her had hardened him. Changed how he directed his life. Made certain he was always in control, even as he chose to follow instructions… his way.

“Hi, Nella.” He approached casually and shook her hand as if this was the first time they had met.

He almost grinned at the wryness in her memorable golden eyes. He still recalled, in his rare vulnerable moments, how they had heated in passion when they had kissed and touched and…

Hell, this wasn’t the time to think about that.

But she remained one good-looking woman, even in that sexless light green camouflage uniform and with her soft brown hair pulled back from her face. Her perfect features were a little older but youthful, free of makeup—except for the pink shimmer on those still-kissable full lips.

“You two know each other?” Crandall asked. Alec’s boss, the congressman, was nothing if not observant.

“Back in college.” Nella shrugged slender shoulders. “We didn’t know each other well. Different majors. Different interests. Good to see you again, Alec.”

Half of that was a lie. They’d known each other very well… for a short time. Different majors? Yeah. Different interests, too. But Alec was sure, from the studiedly indifferent expression she assumed, that it was anything but good to see him again.

“Have a seat.” General Yarrow pointed to chairs across from his desk. The guy’s face looked as if he’d been around for a while. He sat, too, and looked at Crandall. “Have you explained to Alec what’s going on?”

“Part of it.” His boss looked toward him, eyebrows raised above narrow glasses. U.S. Congressman Crandall Crowther was a good guy, one who took his responsibilities as a representative of his Wisconsin constituency, and his country, very seriously. But Crandall was also all about appearances. Of course. He was a politician.