Master No (Masters and Mercenaries, #9)(86)

She wanted to believe him. God, he was her father, but she’d never felt for anyone the way she did Tennessee Graham. Smith. He’d lied about his name. How much more would he lie about?

Her father put a hand on her shoulder. “Will you read the file? Can you give me a chance? If you run off after him now, he’ll use his charm on you. He’ll pull you back in. I can’t stand the thought of losing you.”

She glanced toward the balcony. She’d found him out there not ten minutes before. She’d woken up and missed him. Would she wake up tomorrow and every day after missing him? He’d lied to her. They’d all lied to her. Theo and Erin. Ten. All the people at Sanctum. One big lie. She’d thought she’d found a home and all she’d found was betrayal.

“I’ll read it.” Maybe it was better this way. If she confronted Tennessee right then, she wasn’t sure if she would really cut his balls off or cry in his arms and beg him to take her with him. She might melt at his feet and take him any way she could.

She was pathetic and she wanted to believe what he’d said. She wanted to believe that he’d loved her.

She should try to be rational. Logical.

Her father handed her a thumb drive. “Everything you need to know is on here, sweetheart. Read it and we’ll talk about it all in the morning. I can’t tell you how sorry I am that you got dragged into this. I love you. I know we’ve had our problems, but I would do anything to protect you, Faith. When your mother died, I vowed to her that I would protect you. I vowed it on her grave and I failed today. I let that man hurt you.”

Hurt. It was a silly word for what she felt. Hollow. Scraped raw. Her very bones seemed to ache with the loss.

Her father sighed heavily and stepped back toward the door. “I’m going to give you some time. Don’t be surprised if you see more security around the island for a few days. I’m worried about you and Hope. I can’t trust that man not to try to hurt you in a physical way.”

Had he already? Had he been the one to send the man who tried to kill her? Her mind whirled with conspiracy theories. Ten could have hired the assassin and then taken him out himself in an effort to send her right into his arms. He had the backing of one of the world’s elite security companies. McKay-Taggart could have sent agents to set her clinic on fire.

“He tried to burn down my clinic.”

“Bastard. I knew he was going to try something like that. He’s had men working in your clinic for months. I’m sure one of them set the place on fire to hurt you. Don’t you worry. We’ll rebuild what he destroyed.” Her father’s eyes widened. “I should have killed him.”

“Maybe you should have.” She turned away. Now she really wanted to be alone. She would read everything her father had on Ten Smith.

The question was what could she believe when her father had just lied to her?

She’d said he’d tried to burn down the clinic. She’d wanted to see what her father knew and he’d stepped right into it. She hadn’t told him she’d lost a building and yet he knew. Beyond that, Tennessee had zero reason to burn down the clinic. He would have wanted it whole if what her father said was true. He would have wanted those vaccines so she could test them again and begin his nefarious campaign against them all.

But her father hadn’t batted an eyelash as he’d let the man take credit for the crime he’d very likely committed himself. If her father had lied about that, what else was he lying about? She wasn’t an idiot. She knew her father was capable of doing nasty things to keep his position.

“I love you, baby.” The door closed quietly as he left.

And she was left with a million questions and a very broken heart.





CHAPTER FOURTEEN



Well, he’d made it inside the building. It wasn’t exactly the way he’d thought it would be. Far from it. He’d envisioned a covert operation. Sneak in. Sneak out. Not that he would be hanging from a hook, battered and beaten once again.

“Would you like to tell us where your friends are, Smith?” The head of the torture squad was far more slender and refined looking than any man wielding a cattle prod should be.

“I would love to tell you.” He was still feeling a bit feisty. He needed this session to last for a good long while. He thought about how long it would take for Big Tag to get from Dallas to the islands. He might need a week. Could he make this last a week?

Where was Faith? Did she hate him now? The first woman—the only woman he’d ever loved and she would likely go to her grave hating him.

“We’re waiting, Mr. Smith.” The prod in his hand crackled with energy.

Yes, they were all waiting. This was a waiting game now. “I would love to tell you, but I don’t know. They’re probably halfway to Dallas by now.”

“They aren’t. We’re monitoring all aviation on and off the island. They’re still here and your life is going to be so much easier if you simply tell us where they are.”

“I’ve always preferred complicated. So much more interesting.”

“Tell me something. Do you find this interesting?” The * touched the cattle prod to his side.

His whole body clenched, muscles firing off in seemingly impossible patterns, bones threatening to break. At least that’s what it felt like. Sucked to be a cow.