Street Game (GhostWalkers, #8)(107)

She glanced upward, her gaze sweeping the surrounding trees, looking for cameras, before inspecting the roof. Mack could have told her where every one of them was located. She didn’t hurry, but slid under the beams, taking care not to disturb them. Mack was a little surprised that Jefferson had used something so easy to defeat. The beams were crisscrossed, but still a good foot from the ground where someone as limber as Violet could slide beneath them. The woman used her elbows and knees to propel herself forward. She had shed the elegance of her former appearance and wore a black jumpsuit. Her hair was covered with a tight cap and there were no diamonds glittering anywhere on her body.

Mack caught a brief glimpse of a shadow sliding along the lawn, very low, not ten feet from Violet. He held his breath as Javier rolled clear of the beams and into the thick hedge that ran around the house. Violet wasn’t as confident, propelling her body forward with painstaking slowness.

Jacob’s voice brought Mack’s attention back to the house. “Griffen is no danger to us, James. The GhostWalkers are like his kids. He doesn’t want to lose them any more than Whitney does. Once you explain to him that we’re all on the same side, he’ll understand.”

“He’s arrogant.” Dislike was evident in Jefferson’s voice.

Jacob laughed harshly. “Now we’re getting to the real reason you’re upset. You don’t like Griffen.”

“He rubs me the wrong way.”

Violet was at the window now. She reached her arm up and pressed a small object into the frame. Another piece went into her ear.

Jacob helped himself to more brandy. “He rubs you the wrong way because he doesn’t like spooks. You’re recruiting his men for your dirty work.”

“He doesn’t have the balls to make this country strong. We need strong leaders,” Jefferson said. “Griffen’s thinking is linear. Black and white.”

“Still, he not only believes in the GhostWalker program, but he runs one of the teams,” Jacob pointed out.

“He’s squeamish. He talked about women’s rights for God’s sake. Who gives a f*ck? Really, Jacob. We’re talking about having the greatest soldiers in the world and he wants to spout off about women’s rights. We have a chance to make the United States the most powerful country in the world. Imagine if we could send a lone soldier into an enemy camp undetected and he could assassinate their greatest general and no one would be the wiser because the death looks natural. We could change entire governments, put people in office friendly to our country and no one, no one, would be the wiser. Whitney is a man of great vision . . .”

“Yet you don’t listen when he tells you he has plans for one of his GhostWalkers.”

“He has to be protected, even from himself. And Jacob.” Jefferson looked up to meet Jacob’s eyes over his drink. “So does Andrew. His daughter-in-law is as cold as ice. She can’t be trusted. Whitney chose her to be the senator’s wife because she had the least ability to be a soldier, but she has no loyalty.”

Mack watched Violet’s face carefully. There was no change of expression. None. She might have been listening to a bedtime story. She might not have as many psychic talents as the other GhostWalkers, but he doubted if Whitney had sold her to Freeman because of her lack of talent; more likely he recognized her amoral nature. Whitney would have slated her for termination. He couldn’t control her through her affinity for others. If she was loyal to Freeman, it was because Whitney had bound them in some way. Mack would never believe the woman had a genuine care for anyone.

“She’s loyal to Ed,” Jacob pointed out. “And that’s good enough for me.”

“She’s sleeping with Andrew,” Jefferson said. “She controls him as totally as she does Ed. He’ll do anything she wants. And she wants Whitney to back Ed so Andrew will bring his full weight behind what she wants.”

Jacob sucked in his breath. “Are you sure? That can’t be true. Andrew loves his son.”

“Andrew’s a man. Violet was trained to seduce men. It was part of her ‘wifely’ duties. Sleeping with Andrew keeps him in line. She has his ear, and he feeds her the information she wants, so be very careful of what you tell him. She does whatever it takes to further Ed’s career, including f*cking anyone he wants her to. Hell, Ed likes to watch. I’ve got tapes, Jacob. He’s just as sick as she is. Whitney programmed her that way and she’s very single-minded. She came here prepared to sleep with me to get her way.”

“But you didn’t.”

Jefferson shuddered. “I’d sooner sleep with a snake. She’d smile at you while she cut your balls off, Jacob. Don’t ever trust her.”

Abrams regarded Jefferson over the rim of his glass. “I don’t trust anyone anymore, James. We live in shifting times.” He put down his glass. “I’m an old man and need my sleep. Think about what I said about that girl in San Francisco. Leave her to Whitney. And as for Violet, let’s see how it goes with Andrew, whether or not he notices anything different about Ed. Whitney swears he’s the same, just more malleable. If Ed passes the test with Andrew, Whitney may want to strike a bargain with Violet and bring those women in. Especially the one he knows is pregnant. I think he’d do just about anything, including making a deal with that she-devil, if it meant getting his hands on the pregnant woman.”