Elite Metal-ARE-epub (64 page)

“Doesn’t seem like much security for a secret military base,” she observed pithily.

He didn’t respond. She didn’t need to know that the second they’d appeared on the radar, there had been high-powered rifles trained on them as well as an RPG for good measure. Or that deep below the innocuous surface of their base, the shit was hitting the fan.

She had no idea what was in store for her.

He tried not to let the burn of regret and guilt singe him too much. But while he’d never had trouble compartmentalizing his work before, this felt different. He knew one thing though—he wasn’t just going to hand her over and waltz away. He was in this for good or ill. He felt responsible for her safety. And he would do whatever he could to protect her. Whether she liked it or not.

What really scared him was that the thought of taking her and running had crossed his mind. He’d banished it, but it had been there. Lingered.

That in itself was a huge red flag, because this team, these guys, were his family. He owed them everything—his life many times over. And she was out to destroy them.

He knew he might not be able to save her from inciting her own destruction—she was far too stubborn and outspoken and fierce for that—but he could try. He had to.

True to form, she took in every detail as they passed the airfield, the living quarters and the
man house
, which held the rec room, communal kitchen and boy toys. He didn’t care, because this was the skin of the operation and as innocuous as it could get. The meat of the operation was all hidden beneath the surface.

He parked her car inside the hangar so it couldn’t be spotted from the air, and got out, coming around to take her arm. Her glare made it clear she neither wanted nor needed his help.

But it was more than help and they both knew it.

Though she couldn’t escape—not now that he had her here—she might try. He tightened his grip as a warning to belay any such thoughts.

“Where are you taking me?” she asked as he pushed the button for the elevator down to the command center.

He shot her a dark look. “Where you wanted to go.” He herded her onto the elevator and fitted his key into the slot, then pushed the button marked CC. As the doors closed she pulled away from his hold and crossed her arms. A classic defensive pose. A pointless one too. Crossed arms could not protect her. Not from this.

She blew out a breath as the elevator descended. “I can’t believe you actually kidnapped me.”

“Really, Roni?” He shot her a look. “What did you expect? That I would roll over and tell you everything you wanted to know? Just because you’re phenomenal in bed?”

Her features softened, but only a smidgen. “Do you really think I’m phenomenal in bed?”

He didn’t answer. And not just because he knew they were being watched. Not because he knew every word was being recorded. But because her expression, that flicker of hope and the slash of regret he felt as a result of it, clogged his throat.

When she sidled up next to him and purred, “You were phenomenal too,” he took it for what it was. A ploy. He responded with a disbelieving grunt. Her lashes fluttered. “Well, you were. I just…I just wanted you to know that.”

“Thanks.” Only a hint of sarcasm.

She put out a lip. “You should know, I’d decided not to follow up on the story.” This, she murmured. He doubted even the mics caught the comment, but he heard it, and it made his belly roil. Because shit. If she was telling the truth, he felt like a dick. And if she was lying—which she probably was—it plain pissed him off. She was caught. She was captive. She knew she was in deep waters and would say anything she could to make it easier on herself.

“Because I’m such a phenomenal fuck?” Okay, more than a hint of sarcasm. His words were laced with bitter vitriol.

Her wounded expression haunted him. He reminded himself she was a reporter. Lying was her stock in trade. Playing people was second nature to her.

A tiny little voice mocked him, because the same could be said for him.

He ignored it.

The elevator doors opened onto a long, narrow hall bathed in a flickering fluorescent light. He took her arm and led her to the meeting room near the end, their shoes squeaking on the polished vinyl. But for that, silence enrobed them.

But Sterling knew, beyond those mirrored windows was a beehive of activity. And their every move was being watched.

He opened the door to the conference room and guided her in, gesturing that she take a seat. She glanced around at the white board, the TV in the corner and the long, scarred table, and she quirked a brow. “Hardly what I expected,” she said.

“What were you thinking?” He sat next to her; there was no need to notify anyone they were here. They already knew.

She shrugged and readjusted her sweater. “Secret villain lair. Wall of computer screens. A thousand analysts scurrying around.”

“Sharks with fricking laser beams attached to their heads?” He liked that he could make her smile. Even at a moment like this.

“A bald cat at the very least.”

“We keep all that at our secret base in the volcano.”

“Good to know.”

Her grin faded and silence settled between them. It wasn’t comfortable in the slightest, but at least he didn’t have to suffer it for long. The door pushed open and Chrome and Steele filed in. Their expressions were grim.

They sat across from Sterling, and Steele tossed a file folder on the table. “So. What do we have?” he said.

Sterling pulled her phone from his pocket and slid it across the table along with her wallet and press pass. “
National Snoop
.”

Chrome drummed his fingers on the table. “The alien-baby folks?”

“We do much more than that.” When Steele pinned her with his indomitable stare, she added, “Starlets. Political scandals. Deadly diets… The whole gamut.”

“And this?” Chrome’s tone was clipped. But then it would be. To him, she wasn’t a soft, warm woman with a delicious ass. She was a threat to everything he cared about, his world. Still, it nearly made Sterling wince.

“This?” she quipped, tipping her head to the side.

Chrome held up the phone, open as it was to the incriminating evidence. “This story. What heading does it fall under?”

To her credit, she didn’t wilt beneath his scorching glare. Sterling knew the look, the expression, the vibe. Chrome was ruthless when it came to protecting his own, and this was definitely his ruthless face.

“
Black-Ops: Danger in the Desert?
” He hated the thread of mockery in her tone, because he knew it would just egg Chrome on, and it did. His eyes narrowed in a way that would make a hardened soldier piss his pants. But Roni merely met it with a smirk. “
Backwater Blackwater? All Your Secret Base Are Belong to Us?
”

It took everything in Sterling to hold back a bark of laughter. This wasn’t funny.

But it kinda was. He loved her sense of humor, especially in the face of insurmountable odds.

Neither Chrome nor Steele shared his amusement. They certainly didn’t appreciate her
Zero Wing
reference. But then, only a select portion of the population would even get the jibe, obscure as it was. He wasn’t sure what it said about him that he
did
get it…and thought it was funny. Maybe that he’d played way too many video games as a kid.

Regardless…both his bosses shot him tandem glowers and he attempted to wipe the grin from his face. Trying for a businesslike tone, he said, “She got the assignment from Marcus Morrow, publisher of the
Snoop,
via text message. It’s the first one there. Scroll up.”

They read the message and Steele grunted. “Is that it?” He shot a look at Roni. “That’s all the info you had?”

She nodded.

“How did you piece it together? How did you find us?”

Her lips turned downward. “I don’t reveal my sources.”

“So you had sources?” Chrome clipped.

“Of course I had sources.” She batted her lashes. “Mostly men. They’re happy to share information with the right…incentive.”

Fuck.
Sterling didn’t like the way that sounded. Not in the least. How many guys had she fucked in pursuit of this story? Clearly, he was just the last in a long line of hard dicks panting after her. He glared at her. She ignored him, keeping her attention on Chrome.

Yeah, she had no idea who was most dangerous in this room at the moment.

“You might as well tell us,” Steele said silkily. “Because we’re going to find out.”

“What are you going to do?
Torture
it out of me?”

When Chrome and Steele exchanged a glance, she paled. She glanced at Sterling for confirmation that torture was, indeed, on the table, but he felt no desire to reassure her. Not after her last comment. Not with some weird thing that felt like jealousy and betrayal swirling in his belly. He set his teeth and stared her down.

Her obstinate expression faltered. Her gaze skirted the room, flicking from one face to another, and then she gulped as she realized…they would not back down.

He didn’t know why relief gushed through him as she let out a breath and dropped her adamant stance. “Oh, all right. It’s not like I
cared
about this story anyway.”

“Then why were you doing it?” Steele asked.

The mulish expression returned. She crossed her arms—again, a pointless gesture, but telling. “It’s my job.” Not a lie, but not the truth. Sterling resolved to explore her true reasons for taking this on…later.

“So how did you find the team?”

“It was pretty easy.”

Sterling made a strangled sound.

Her lips quirked. “It was. I had a lead that a couple high-level ex-military operatives were spotted in a bar in Dallas. They both left on motorcycles.”

“Seems pretty vague,” Steele said.

Roni sighed. “Right. But bikers love their bikes. Treat them like their babies.”

Nods around the room.

“They always have their favorite garages. So I dolled up and started visiting bike shops. Cozied up to the mechanics and told them I was looking for my ex.” She pouted. “He owed me child support.” That explained the picture in her wallet. What man with warm blood in his veins could deny a kid in a wheelchair? “It took a while to get a ping. And there were a couple false leads. But then I visited a parts supplier in Deep Ellum. Unlike all the other shops, no one at this one would even talk to me once I mentioned I was looking for a military guy.” She skated a look around the room. “Dead giveaway. So I kind of snuck in after hours and went through their billing records.”

“Breaking and entering?” Steele drummed his fingers on the table. “What is that? Five to ten?”

Roni make a sound that sounded like
pffft
. “I found way too many references to a single address in Deep Ellum. That, and the fact they didn’t want to talk about our military heroes?” She fluttered her lashes. “Too coincidental
not
to explore.” She shrugged. “So I decided to investigate. Got a job at Bone Daddy’s and started asking around.” She shot a look at Steele. “A lot of people in town wonder about your crew, you know. You might need a better cover.”

Steele and Chrome exchanged another glance.

And damn, she was right. If they were this easy to find…

“How much of this have you reported back?” Chrome asked.

Roni sat back in her chair and fiddled with the sleeve of her sweater. “I don’t think I should answer that question.”

To a man, they gaped at her.

“Not until I get some kind of assurance that I’m going to walk away from this.”

Steele frowned. “Honey, we can’t make an assurance like that.”

The veiled threat did nothing but make her features harden. Sterling had the sense that intimidating her would only shut her down. He leaned forward and set his hand on hers; she jumped and then fixed him with a wide-eyed stare. “We can’t afford to let this story leak, Roni. Lives are at stake. Can you understand that?”

It took her a moment, but she nodded. “Yeah. I understand. But I have a lot at stake too.” She frowned at him. “Besides, I already told you I wasn’t going to pursue the story. You’re the one who brought me here.”

“You’re dangerous to us,” Steele said. “Surely you can see that.”

“Just the fact that you know we’re here. That you were able to find us, is a huge issue,” Chrome added.

She glared at him. Which was funny. He was ruthless and intimidating as hell, but somehow she wasn’t cowed. “It’s not my fault your secret base isn’t as secret as you want it to be. If nothing else, you should take from this that you have some holes that need to be filled.”

And hell, she was right.

A sizzling silence swirled.

Steele folded his fingers and studied them as though he’d never seen them before. After a while he said in a low voice, “What did you mean when you said you have a lot at stake too?”

She blew out a breath. Something glimmered in her eyes. “Yes. I work for the
Snoop
. But not because I want to. The…publisher has something over me.”

“Something?”

She sighed. “My sister.”

A suspicion rippled in Sterling’s gut. A suspicion that she was playing them. She’d done it before. “Right,” he snapped, making his disbelief clear.

She glared at him. “You read my texts. Read all of them. He hasn’t exactly couched his threats. And while you’re scrolling through my phone, check my pictures. She’s there.”

“The girl in the wheelchair?”

Her throat worked. She nodded.

“Are you saying Morrow kidnapped your sister?”

“Not exactly.”

“Then what?”

“He’s…” She scrubbed her face. “He’s my stepfather. When my mom died, he got custody of Annabelle. He’s been promising to sign it over to me, but he’s just been dangling it like a carrot. If I don’t feed Marcus something, he’ll…” Her words choked off and she dropped her gaze.

“He’ll what?” For the first time in this interrogation, Steele’s tone was gentle.

Her expression firmed. Her eyes blazed. “He’ll cut me off.” The tears were real now, fat droplets tracking down her cheek. The sight made Sterling ache.
Fuck.
She could be lying…or not. His gut was leaning toward not. There was far too much anguish in her tone. “He’s done it before. Taken her away to God knows where. Not letting me see her for months. He really is an ass.”