Destiny Mine (Tormentor Mine #3)(47)

“Just fucking tell us already,” Anton growls. “Seriously, stop it with the mystery. What did Esguerra promise you for this?”

“A life,” I say and glance at the SUVs pulling away from the curb. “The kind of life people like us don’t get.”

“Ah.” Anton’s frown smooths out. “Amnesty.”

I nod. “And immunity from further prosecution. For all of us.”

Ilya’s face lightens, but Yan folds his arms across his chest. “Who said we want it? You think we left Spetsnaz and joined up with you so we could become CPAs and teachers?”

“No, I think you did it so you could get filthy rich,” I say, matching his mocking tone. “Which you now are, congrats. Oh, and in case I didn’t mention it yet, the extra coming from Esguerra is seventy-five mil.”

Anton whistles low under his breath. “Damn.”

Yan stares at me. “A hundred-seventy-five million gig? All in?”

“That, and the freedom to do whatever you want. If you want to carry on with the business, go for it—though you might want to start over under new identities, in case all this”—I circle my index finger in the air—“gets out. Alternatively, you can go legit—open a security firm or some such.”

“What about you?” Ilya asks, tilting his head. “What are you going to do, Peter?”

“As soon as I get the all-clear, I’m going to the States,” I say and grin at their expressions. “Yes, that’s right, to Sara. This time, we’ll be playing house for real.”





39





Peter



Esguerra wants me back at his compound, so after I catch up with my men, I board his Boeing C-17 and accompany Novak and the guards to Colombia. Ilya, Yan, and Anton go separately in our plane. I still don’t completely trust my former employer, so my teammates agreed to provide support in case things go south last minute. I don’t expect a double-cross from Esguerra at this point—for one thing, the seventy-five million is already in our accounts—but it doesn’t hurt to be cautious.

I also got my team to agree to continue assisting me in the search for Henderson. As the last name on my list, he’s unfinished business, and I have every intention of dealing with him in due time.

First, though, I need to get Sara.

She’s more important than anything.





Esguerra himself greets us when we land, his face set in hard, savage lines as he watches the guards drag Novak off the plane. The Serbian is barely walking—they didn’t bother feeding him or treating his injuries on the flight—but it doesn’t matter. He’s not long for this earth.

Esguerra won’t just kill him—he’ll take him apart.

Slowly.

Piece by piece.

I’d feel bad for the bastard, but he brought this on himself. If he’d confined himself to making inroads into Esguerra’s business, he’d have lived much longer—at least another year or two. But he went after Esguerra’s family… after Nora and her child.

There’s no love lost between me and Esguerra, but I do like Nora.

“Where’s Kent?” I ask when Esguerra comes up to me after ordering the guards to take Novak to the shed. “Did he go back to Cyprus?”

He nods. “He left right after you did.” He doesn’t elaborate, and I decide against prying further. I still haven’t forgiven Kent for what happened with Sara, but at the moment, I have bigger fish to fry.

“Did you reach out to them?” I fall into step beside Esguerra as we head toward a waiting limo. “Your CIA contacts?”

He casts me a sideways glance. “I did.”

“And?” I step in front of him, forcing him to stop. “Did they agree?”

His jaw flexes. “Let’s talk about it in the car.”

Shit. That doesn’t sound good. “Let’s talk about it now.”

His eyes glint dangerously. “Fine. Here’s the deal—the only deal they’ll make. You and your team will get amnesty for your crimes and immunity from further prosecution, provided no further crimes are committed. Whoever slips up will be arrested and prosecuted for all crimes, past and present.”

I consider that and nod. “Sounds fair.” I’m almost certain I can live as a law-abiding citizen—or at least give the appearance of one. We’ll need to be careful not to get caught when we finally locate Henderson, but I’m sure I’m not the only enemy the former general has. Alternatively, we can make it look like an accident; there are all sorts of ways to carry out a hit without it looking like— “And there’s one more thing,” Esguerra says. “One other condition that’s nonnegotiable.”

“What?” I ask, my stomach tightening with a premonition as my hands curl at my sides. This better not be what— “That retired general, the one you’ve been hunting,” Esguerra says, confirming my hunch. “You have to let it go. For good. Your immunity is contingent upon his continued health and well-being. If he or anyone close to him so much as gets food poisoning, the deal is off, and all four of you will be on the Most Wanted lists again.”

Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck!

I suppose I should’ve known this was a possibility, given Henderson’s connections, but I somehow blocked it from my mind. I was so focused on eliminating the main obstacle to a life with Sara—my fugitive status—I didn’t even consider that it might come at a price.