A knock at the door brought two weapons into play. It was totally automatic, like covering her mouth when she sneezed. Both Boone and Seth were ready to react in a heartbeat, ready to kill, if necessary. Professional soldiers without a war. Which begged the question, how could the military let these particular soldiers go?
She knew something about their training. It was the most vigorous, brutal routine there was. Delta Force was focused on terrorism, and these men knew how to handle situations from stopping a sniper to foiling an airplane hijacking. They knew how to use every kind of weapon from knives to high explosives. CIA operatives had nothing on Delta Force when it came to surveillance and tracking. If anything, the army should be begging them to come back, not making them hide.
Nate had refused to talk about it. Even when she’d used her sister card, he kept his mouth shut. She knew, though, that whatever had gone down in the Balkans had been seriously bad. Afterward, Nate, who’d always been meticulous about his appearance, had become sloppy about his clothes. He hadn’t had a haircut, which was totally bizarre, because he thought the ladies loved his cut. The last time they’d talked, he’d been sullen and nervous, and he’d barely eaten, even though he was as thin as she’d ever seen him.
Kate walked in, and she nodded at Christie before she got a cup of coffee. The three of them sat down at the table, Boone to her left. Seth and Kate had notebooks and pens.
“So what the hell happened?” Kate asked.
“Wait,” Boone said. “Christie, why don’t you get something to eat. Refill your coffee.”
She nodded. “Anyone else want cheesecake?”
Seth did, so she served up a couple of slices before she sat down.
By that time, Kate had pulled out a spreadsheet. On it was everything she’d found out about every man Christie had dated.
But before they got to that, Seth wanted to know what had happened at the house.
“The geek knew we were in the living room. He had a scoped rifle, I’m thinking an M24. Laser scope. He had a bead right on my chest, so he wasn’t aiming blind.”
“He had a camera.”
Boone nodded as Seth cursed. He’d eaten half his dessert, but now he pushed it away as if he didn’t deserve it.
“I don’t know how I could have missed it. I went through that house with a fine-tooth comb.”
Boone sighed. “I’m pretty sure he drilled, sent in a pinhole on a fiber-optic cable. I don’t think it was there until after you left.”
Seth crossed his arms. “Then we shouldn’t have left.”
“The point is, we have to find this guy. Now. Not later. He’s accelerating, but he’s not entering. What does that tell us?”
“He’s a coward,” Kate said.
“True. What else?”
“His objective is to terrify and control.”
Boone nodded. “He wants me, us, out of the way. So he can have her to himself.”
“To do what? Own her?” Kate asked. “Or is this revenge?”
Now it was Christie’s turn to push away her cheesecake. It turned her stomach, how they were talking about her, but she knew it was necessary. If they wanted to stop the bastard, they had to dissect his motivations. She just wasn’t sure she was strong enough to hear them.
“You okay?”
Boone was concerned, his hand over hers, that crease above his nose deep.
“I think I’m going to go watch TV with Milo. Call if you need me.” She left the room and went right to the bedroom, to Boone’s sad bed. Milo trotted in, and she coaxed him up next to her. Then she looked around for the remote.
“Is this what you’re looking for?”
Boone stood near the dresser, holding the remote.
“Yeah, thanks.”
He walked it over to her and sat on the edge of the bed. “You should try and get some sleep.”
She shrugged.
“Don’t give up. These are the best people I know.”
“What if he’s better?”
“He isn’t.”
She hugged Milo. “Go on. I’ll be fine.”
Boone looked at her for a long time, then he stood and put his gun on the bedside table. “You can use this until we get back to your place.”
She watched his back as he left the room, then she turned to the gun. It was too much to think about. Guns and what she used to think of as home. She picked up the remote and turned on the TV. She hadn’t thought of TV in weeks, if not months. It was so bright and loud. The people looked happy. Normal. How could the world go on when hers had turned upside down? She lay down, hugging the pillow instead of the dog. And she smelled Boone. His scent was in the sheets. It wasn’t a cologne, it was the man. Completely distinct, she’d know it anywhere.