Street Game (GhostWalkers, #8)(23)

“Tell me,” Jaimie said.

There was no panic in her voice, but there was suppressed rage. Mack’s gaze met Kane’s above her head. “Who are they, Jaimie?” Mack asked.

“You tell me, Mack,” she shot back and for the first time, struggled to get out from under him.

“You little liar.” Mack hissed the words in her ear, bending close, trapping her beneath him. “You know who they are. They aren’t terrorists coming to get you, are they? Not the ones we’ve been following.”

“They aren’t any friends of mine.” She turned her head to glare at Kane. “I’m not going back. Not ever. I don’t care how many you send after me. I will never go back to work for Whitney. I’ve hacked into enough files to know what he’s doing and he isn’t alone in it. He experimented on children. And he’s got a breeding program. The women are forced to pair with a man of Whitney’s choosing. It’s barbaric and illegal and the women are held prisoners with no one to help them.”

Mack saw Kane wince and covered for him automatically, catching Jaimie’s chin and forcing her to look at him. “Does he know you’ve been collecting evidence against him?”

“Get off me, Mack.” She bit out each word between her teeth. “Right now.”

He stayed where he was for a full minute, looking into her eyes. With a sinking heart he realized the truth. “You don’t trust me.”

He had lost something beyond measure if she didn’t trust him. Jaimie had believed the sun rose and set with him. She had believed in everything he did and said. He’d been her hero. He waited but he saw it on her face, in the way she schooled her expression. She wasn’t going to tell him anything about her current life. Not one thing. And that just might get her killed.

“Damn it, Jaimie. This is Mack. You know me. You know Kane. We’re your family.”

The voice in his head whispered again. One is a sniffer, like Jacob. He’s running his hand along the doors and windows and he knows they’re wired to blow them to kingdom come. I could take them out.

We don’t know enough yet, Mack objected reluctantly. He wanted Jaimie safe and the temptation to kill the two men was strong. But if they were GhostWalkers under legitimate orders, Mack’s team had already made one serious mistake when Javier killed the two men earlier. They were trying to identify the bodies fast. They didn’t need to add two more.

He eased his body away from Jaimie. She sat up, her back to the wall, drawing her knees up, staying below the window. They stared at each other.

“We’re family, Jaimie.”

She shook her head and there was a flash of pain in her eyes. “I don’t know what we are anymore, Mack, but we aren’t family. You chose them over me. The GhostWalkers. And they’re evil. I can’t trust anyone who is part of it.”

He swore and turned away from her, his hands itching to shake her. This was his fault. He knew it was. She’d lost faith in him and no longer looked to him or the others to help her. But whatever she was into was definitely trouble.

“We have the same code of honor we’ve always had,” Kane said, his voice calm, much calmer than Mack could have managed. “That’s ridiculous for you to think just because an evil man started the program that it makes us all tainted. Our commanding officers run legitimate missions and we save lives. We specialize in hostage rescue and put our lives on the line all the time.”

“So why are you here, Kane?” she demanded again.

Mack frowned. Jaimie was being very persistent and Jaimie was extremely intelligent. He looked at his best friend. “Do you know something I don’t, Kane?”

Kane sighed. “Do you really think this is the best time to go into it? Of course I knew they’d watch Jaimie; you knew it too. She’s a multimillion-dollar weapon and she’s smart as a whip. Not to mention she can do things no one else can do and no one, not even Whitney, can figure out how the hell she does it. I have no idea what she’s into or why these men are sniffing around her home now.”

Gideon’s voice whispered in Mack’s head again. Superman has joined the party. He’s good, Mack. His camouflage is every bit as good as or better than mine. He’s like a damned ghost. I barely caught sight of him. He moved to get a better angle on the two moving around Jaimie’s house. He’s got the mean end of a rifle on them and looks like he knows how to use it.

Mack looked at Kane over the top of Jaimie’s head, knowing Gideon had sent the information to Kane as well. They had another player in the mix, with no way of knowing if he was a friend or enemy.

Has he spotted you? Kane asked.

I don’t think so, but I’m pinned down. If I move to check out the two below, he’s got a clear shot at me.

Mack turned the information over in his mind. Stay where you are. Javier wouldn’t have left an opening for visitors to come in, and Jaimie’s got this place fully secure. If they break in, we’ll know about it, most likely with a big boom. Keep your eye on Superman. Try to get a good look at him through the scope, but don’t expose yourself. Just watch him.

“Are you going to let me in on what’s going on?” Jaimie asked.

“Like you share information with me?” Mack asked and instantly regretted it. “We’re trying to sort it all out. Gideon spotted the two men moving around the first floor, looking for a way in. They were obviously looking for their friends, the ones Javier took out.”