“All right, but let me help.” She moved her chair over as he started to type.

  He began the process of matching up names and wondered if, once this case was over, they would ever be together again.

  * * *

  Lara looked over the parking lot of the Serenity Assisted Living Center just outside of Baltimore. It was on a quiet street, but Lara had so recently learned that quiet didn’t mean safe. Just because she was with two men who knew how to defend themselves didn’t mean people couldn’t be hurt. She looked between Connor and his big friend Dax, whom Connor had called in as backup.

  “If you’re nervous, I can go speak to her myself.” Connor put his big, gas-guzzling SUV into park in front of the main building.

  Dax leaned in from where he took up most of the backseat with his muscular body. “I’ll stay out here and watch over you. Connor can get this done without us.”

  “I’m not nervous.” She hadn’t come this far, risked so much, just so she could sit in the car with her massive babysitter.

  She looked around. The parking lot was half full. In an hour or so the sun would set. It had already been a long day, but things had sped up considerably once Connor had gotten someone at the CIA involved. Their pool of names had been run and they’d come up with one. Maxine Sava of Baltimore. She was the right age. Her driver’s license had lapsed but they’d found a copy with the DMV, and the picture matched 95 percent with the facial recognition software despite the years between the photos. Her cheekbones were still strong, her eyes wide and exotic. Though her skin had lost its perfection, Maxine Sava was still a lovely woman.

  He cut the engine and turned slightly. “Fear is nothing to be ashamed of. It’s something to be embraced, as long as it doesn’t hold you back. Fear proves that you’re smart.”

  “I’m sure you’re afraid of so many things,” she said, tamping down the way her heart pounded every time she looked at him.

  “I didn’t use to be. But then fear is mostly about loss, and I didn’t have anything to lose until you so I wasn’t afraid.”

  “And now you are?”

  “Princess, now I’m terrified.” He pulled his SIG Sauer out of its shoulder holster and checked the clip. “Are you ready?”

  “How do we know we weren’t followed?”

  “We don’t. I didn’t pick up anyone on our tail, but that doesn’t mean they’re not there,” Connor said in that matter-of-fact way of his. He’d been so calm with her. So patient. His gentleness was wearing her down and warming her heart. She didn’t want to risk opening her heart to him again but he seemed determined to pry it open.

  What had she been thinking, suggesting they continue sleeping together? Like she could really have sex with him a couple of times and not want him anymore. What a joke. Despite the way he’d set her up and the lies he’d told, she still wanted him. She wanted him today more than yesterday. More than the day before.

  Where this man was concerned, Lara feared her heart was doomed.

  “Let’s get this over with.” Dax opened his door. “I’m more concerned with them following us at night or ambushing us back at the house.”

  “Hopefully we talk to Natalia and end this thing. If she tells us who Sergei is, we’ll take him down and be done.” Connor stepped out and walked around the car. As she unfastened her seat belt, he opened the door and helped her down. She slipped her hand into his, and then he curled his free hand on her waist, easing her to the pavement. “I don’t want you to fall.”

  Everywhere he touched her she felt heat flare. Sometimes all he had to do was look at her and she could feel his hands, stroking her, loving her.

  Yeah, she was totally going to be able to sleep with him and walk away. Not.

  She eased aside, hoping her feet were steady. “Well, if your car wasn’t as big as a tank, I wouldn’t need help.”

  “I’ll go and buy a smart car tomorrow,” he promised.

  “Dude, you weigh more than a smart car.” Dax shook his head. “I don’t think you’ll fit.”

  “How about I look into a hybrid SUV.” He started up the path to the door. “I’m sure Lara knows the best ones. We can use a new car.”

  This was why staying with him was so damn dangerous. She melted when he said things like that. She just wished she could figure out why he was saying them. Guilt? Had he decided that he owed her?

  Or did he really, truly care?

  She was quiet as they walked inside. The front room was cheery but there was an oppressiveness that came with any place like this. No matter how many cutesy signs for bingo they hung, this was a place where people waited to die.

  “We’re here to see Maxine Sava,” Connor said to the front desk clerk.

  The young woman in scrubs gave him a long once-over, and suddenly she seemed to have some sort of back issue because she thrust her breasts out. “Sure. I can find her for you. Are you her son? She talks about you all the time. She said how handsome you are, but she doesn’t have any pictures. She’s right.”

  Lara frowned. By all accounts, Natalia had come here because she’d developed dementia a few years back and could no longer care for herself. Clearly, the woman had forgotten that her son was dead. Or maybe she simply hadn’t wanted to remember. Lara couldn’t imagine how devastating it would be to lose a child.

  She stepped up next to Connor, just barely managing to avoid rolling her eyes at the obvious flirtation. “He’s not her son. He’s with the INS and he has a few questions to ask her.”

  “My lovely coworker and fiancée is right.” Connor’s arm slipped around her. “Could you please tell us where her room is? We just have a few questions for her concerning an immigration issue.”

  They’d decided to say they were here to ask about her visa and possible immigration law violations. Despite the fact that Connor no longer worked for the Agency, someone had kindly provided him INS paperwork to back him up.

  “Oh.” She sounded disappointed. “I’ll need to see your credentials.”

  Connor flashed her a badge. She glanced at it, then looked at her schedule.

  “She’s in 127, but some in that wing might still be in the garden. They sit outside on warm days for an hour. I’ll take you out there.” The nurse’s gaze slipped past Connor, who was still giving Lara PDA, and settled on Dax. She immediately perked up again. “Are you with the government, too?”

  Dax gave her an easy smile. “I am, but I didn’t bring my fiancée along because I’m single, darlin’. Lead the way.”

  Connor chuckled as they started to walk down the gray tiled hall. “Dax is a bit of a player. I should have warned you.”

  “Everly told me he’s a manwhore,” Lara murmured. “Likable, but definitely slutty. But you can’t go around telling everyone I’m your fiancée.”

  “I haven’t given up yet. We should know in a couple of weeks. I’m looking at it optimistically. I think you’re pregnant and we’ll be getting married.” He leaned over and kissed the top of her head. “If not, I’m willing to keep trying.”

  That shouldn’t have warmed Lara’s heart. Damn it, he’d plotted to steal her secrets. He’d deceived her. He’d violated her trust. Yeah, he’d also apologized more than once, comforted her, spoken what was in his heart, and told her that he loved her. Her head warned her that giving in and giving him another chance would be stupid. Her stubborn heart wanted to throw all caution to the wind.

  The nurse stopped in front of one of the rooms about halfway to the outer door. “This is her room. Looks like Maxine is still outside. This is her roommate, Mrs. Simms. She’s recovering from a bout of pneumonia so she stayed inside. Do you need to see Maxine’s license or her social security card? She’s from Ukraine, but she’s been in the States since she was a young woman. I find it hard to believe she’s in some kind of trouble.” The nurse stepped in and opened a nightstand drawer. “Her paperwork is in here somewhere.”

  “We can ask her about that,” Dax said.

  The nurse shook her head. “You might find that hard. Some days her dementia is worse than others.”

  “Hey, come over here.” The curtain that separated the two sides of the bedroom shook. “Come here.”

  “I’ll be there in a moment, Mrs. Simms. I’m helping these people right now.” She moved to the small wardrobe, opening it up.

  Lara glanced around the curtain. “Can I help you?”

  A frail looking woman lay on the bed, reaching out a trembling arm that looked as fragile as a matchstick. “You’re here for Nata?”

  Lara’s eyes widened and she stepped behind the curtain. Mrs. Simms knew that Maxine was really Natalia? “Yes.”

  “They watch her. She says she can feel them watching her. Did they kill her?” Her voice came out on a shaky breath.

  Lara shook her head. “No. She’s fine. Does she think someone’s going to kill her?”

  The old lady nodded. “She’s a little crazy, but who isn’t? She made me promise her if she died I would give the authorities— Wait, are you the authorities?”

  She nodded vaguely. “My coworker and fiancé can show you his paperwork.”

  Since Connor had floated that cover story, she figured she’d better stay consistent. Not that she enjoyed saying that they were engage. Well, not much.

  “Swell.” The gray-haired woman looked around as if to see if they were being watched. “Nata made me promise that if she died I would give the authorities the note.”

  “Note?”

  “Yes, but if she’s fine, I can’t give it to you.”

  Another note. Lara paused, wondering if this woman would nap or head down to dinner soon, something so she could search the room. That note had to be important. Or perhaps they could persuade Natalia to give it to them. What kind of secrets had she kept all these years?

  “I’m going to talk to her now,” Lara said. “It was nice to meet you.”

  “She’s not bad. I don’t know why they watch her. A woman needs her privacy. But they’re always watching and looking. Perverts, I tell you.”

  Maybe Natalia wasn’t the only one with a little dementia. She was still talking to herself as Lara walked back to Natalia’s section of the room. Connor was looking at Maxine’s supposed paperwork.

  He looked back up at the nurse. “This isn’t enough. I’m going to need to talk to her.”

  “All right, but don’t forget I told you so. If she slips into whatever language she speaks, just wait. She comes back to English eventually.” The woman in scrubs sighed and led them back out.

  “What note was the woman talking about?” Connor asked, leaning over to whisper in her ear.

  “I don’t know. She said it was something Nata told her to give up in case she died. According to her, people watch Natalia. Why? If the Russians know where she is, why wouldn’t they take her out?”

  Connor led her through the door and out into the garden. There were several people in wheelchairs, a few caregivers. “Could be a couple of reasons.”

  “She’s out by the pond.” The nurse pointed to a small duck pond where a woman sat on a bench.

  “Thank you.” Connor nodded to the nurse.

  Dax gave her a wink. “Hopefully I’ll see you on the way out.”

  “Count on it.” The nurse sighed a little as she walked away.

  Dax shrugged. “She could be helpful.”

  Yes, she would likely be very helpful to his penis. She shook her head and started toward where Natalia Kuilikov sat. “Ms. Sava?”

  The woman sitting on the bench turned slightly. “Yes? You have my tea?” She might have been in the States for a long time, but she still had a heavy Russian accent. “I hope it’s not cold this time. Tea should be hot. We’re not barbarians.”

  “I’m sorry.” Lara moved to the seat beside her. “I don’t have any tea. May I sit with you?”

  She turned her patrician nose up. “If you must. It would have been more polite if you had brought the tea.”

  Lara studied the woman who seemed to be at the heart of the mystery that had upended her entire life. Her dark hair was now streaked with gray, but she kept it in a neat bun at the back of her head. While many of the other residents wore robes and pajamas, Natalia was dressed in slacks, a neat white shirt, and a tidy cardigan.

  “Ms. Sava, I’m a reporter. I run a blog about politics. I came here this afternoon to ask you a few questions. These are my friends.” Connor and Dax stepped from behind the bench.

  Natalia’s eyes widened and she stood. For a moment, she thought the older woman was going to walk away, but then she stepped forward, and she wrapped her hands around Connor’s arms. “My Sergei, he send you.”

  Lara went absolutely still, the sound of that one name bringing everything to a halt. Sergei.

  Connor had gone still, too. He looked down at the small woman and nodded. “Yes. He sent me. I hope you know he sends you his regards.”

  She smiled like the heavens had opened up. “I knew one day he would come for me. My sweet Sergei.”

  Lara started to open her mouth to ask a question, but Dax shook his head and gestured for her to move away from Natalia.

  Suddenly she felt as if the situation had gotten infinitely more dangerous.

  Connor glanced over at her and gave her an almost imperceptible nod in Dax’s direction, silently telling her to leave this to him. She moved behind the bench and found herself in Dax’s grip. He pulled her close, whispering into her ear.

  “Stay quiet. We don’t want anything to pull her out of the delusion. Let Connor do his thing. He’s good at this,” Dax whispered.

  Connor sat down beside Natalia, easing her back down to the bench.

  She started chatting away, patting his arm as though they were close friends. Unfortunately, she was speaking rapid-fire Russian.

  He held a hand up. “Please, Natalia. You know Sergei would want us to keep our covers. In English, please.”

  She nodded. “His English is very good, don’t you think? He is the smartest of men. It’s how he can do what he does.”

  What does he do? The question was right there on the tip of her tongue. She wanted to shout it, to scream it out, but that would likely give away Connor’s game.

  “Sergei can do anything,” Connor agreed. “But he’s concerned about you.”

  Natalia’s skin flushed and she sniffled a bit. “I still love him. I never stopped. How could I? I also understand that we can’t be together again until he has finished the job he started so long ago. I miss him. Tell him I miss him every single day.”

  “I will,” Connor replied, his eyes steady on Natalia. He practically radiated assurance. “He misses you as well. He wants to thank you for all the work you’ve put in. But we’re a bit worried.”

  He was so subtle. He never said anything that might make the woman suspicious. He was good. He knew when to smile, when to pat her hand. He knew exactly how to play her, but then Lara had seen Connor at work before. He’d known exactly how to play her, too.

  Except he wasn’t always smooth. Sometimes, he could even be obnoxious. He would have played her better if he’d kept up the Niall identity, said the pics he’d shared of himself online were from a few years back and he’d taken up a personal training regimen or something. Why hadn’t he approached her in that fashion? She would have fallen into his hands a lot quicker. She wouldn’t have been so distant in the beginning with him.

  “What does he have to be worried about?” Natalia frowned. “Everyone who could have stopped us has been taken care of. We took care of the woman when we needed to. And that bitch. Yes. It was good to take care of her. What was her name? I should remember.”

  Was she talking about Joy Hayes?

  “This is the problem, Natalia. Your memory is fading and that could be bad for us.”

  “I remember the important things.”

  “That’s for me to decide. I’m going to ask you a few questions and I want you to answer them to the best of your ability. What is Sergei’s last name?”

  Lara reached into her pocket and touched the button on her phone to record the conversation. She’d come prepared so they wouldn’t miss anything, but she’d forgotten about it until now. Connor glanced her way and nodded to let her know they were now being recorded.

  Dax’s stared into the distance, scanning their surroundings. He was there to do what Connor couldn’t while he was so focused. Dax was searching for a threat, ready to defend them.

  “Of course his last name is . . .” She stopped. “They change so many times. My Sergei’s name is always changing right in front of my face. Why do they hide him from me?” She sighed, then continued her rant in Russian.

  Lara fought back disappointment. At least she could take the recording to a translator. They might not know what Natalia said now, but they would know at some point. Anything could be helpful.

  “Natalia, I told you, in English,” Connor said with just a hint of sharpness.

  It seemed to bring her out of whatever place she’d gone to in her head. “I’m sorry. It is so hard because I want to go home. It has been so long. So long. I am getting older now, but my Sergei will still bring them all down. He will destroy this country as he was meant to do. These new people are wrong. They seek to make money, but there is a greater purpose. He will fulfill his destiny because he is a great man. When he stands over the rubble, all will know him and they will understand what we sacrifice for our people. I will watch with pride.”

  Natalia spoke with the fervency of a true believer. Destroy the country? It made Lara’s gut clench. Something terrible was going to happen. Something they had to stop.

  “Are you going to kill me now?” Natalia asked the question with all the emotion of a woman asking about the weather.

  “No. Why would you say that?” Connor asked.

  “Because you always watch me. Because you’re never far from where I am. I do not know if you are here to protect me or to kill me. Perhaps either, as need be. I have, how do you say, insurance policy. If I die, your secrets will not be safe.”