Rules of Betrayal

73

“I didn’t betray you,” said Connor.

“I know that now,” said Emma, hurrying forward and kneeling at his side. “Sit down. Take a deep breath.”

Connor collapsed into a chair. “How did you find out?”

“I’ve been a busy girl. All those dirty tricks you taught me came in handy.”

“What the hell’s going on? Did we get the bomb? Was Haq inside that goddamned hangar? Is Jonathan alive? They haven’t told me a thing.”

Emma opened his shirt and examined the wound. “Yes, Jonathan’s alive. He’s on a flight to New York right now.”

“What about the warhead and Haq?”

Her eyes rose to his for a second, no longer, then skipped back to his shoulder. “I’m sorry about this, Frank. I didn’t have any subsonic rounds. Usually I would have gone for a head shot, but I couldn’t afford a miss. One of the rounds went right through the bastard.” Emma pulled a wallet from the corpse’s back pocket. “Jacob Taylor,” she said, reading from his driver’s license. “Know him?”

Connor said that he didn’t, but he knew who had sent him.

Emma found the killer’s phone and scrolled through the numbers. “You’re right,” she said. “Goes to show you never can trust lawyers.”

She texted a short message and sent it.

“What did you do?” Connor asked.

“I told the bitch you were dead. Now stay put.” Rising, she went to the bathroom and came back with hand towels. She folded one neatly and pressed it against the bullet wound. “You shouldn’t have used Jonathan.”

“He was the best choice.”

“Even so.”

“He did a good job.”

“He always does.”

Connor tried to sit up, but a wave of pain overwhelmed him. “Why are you here?”

Emma sat back and stared at him. Her cheeks were still wind-kissed from her trek in the mountains, and her eyes shone as if lit from within by an eerie green light. “Insurance,” she said finally.

“What does that mean?”

“You’ll figure it out.”

“You think saving my life is your ticket back?”

Emma shook her head, smiling earnestly. “It’s not about work. We both know I’m not coming back. I saved your life because I like you.”

“I can fix things.”

“Not this time, you can’t. Besides, I want out. I have to stop while part of my soul is still alive.” She stood, handing Connor a clean towel to hold against his shoulder. “You need to get to a hospital. I don’t know where that bullet went, and I think you’ve had a wee bit of a heart attack.”

Connor worked it all through in his mind, and a new and terrible knowledge imprinted itself on his features. If Emma was here, it could be for only one reason. “Haq,” he said. “God, no-you won’t let him do it. You’ll stop him?”

Emma leaned down and kissed Connor on the cheek. “I’ll always be your girl, Frank.”

“Yeah,” said Connor. “That’s what I’m afraid of.”

Emma headed to the concealed stairwell. “You’ll give me a few minutes?”

Connor nodded. He wanted to say “Good luck” or “Godspeed” or even just “Thanks,” but he knew that something had changed. Emma was no longer a prize to be fought over, an asset coveted by every side. She had broken too many rules to go back. She knew that, and her actions said she no longer gave a damn. She had turned her back on all of it. From here on out, Emma Ransom was on her own.

A rogue.

And this, Connor realized with a chill, made her more dangerous than ever before.