Wilder Than the Rest: MacLarens of Fire Mountain (9 page)

******

Chaz Yarbrough left the train station, climbed into the waiting carriage, and instructed the driver to take him to the San Franciscan Hotel, the same hotel where Eva was staying. He wanted to arrange a meeting with her, Mollie, and Pierce soon, today if possible. Chaz had a growing suspicion that there was significance to what the agents were investigating. He had nothing to prove his belief except the burning sensation in his gut that something major was looming.

It didn’t take him long to get settled. He’d sent a message to Eva and was now impatiently awaiting her response. He didn’t wait long, evidence that she and the others were just as eager to learn what was going on.

An invitation had arrived at the hotel from Mr. and Mrs. Pierce MacLaren, inviting him for supper at their home that evening. A carriage would be sent for him. Chaz unpacked his few belongings, strolled to the downstairs lobby, and waited for his conveyance. He’d just settled into a large wingback chair when the carriage arrived for the short trip to the area referred to as Nob Hill.

 “Good evening, sir,” Penelope greeted the tall, slender man.

“Chaz Yarbrough,” he said and handed her his hat.

“Chaz.” Pierce walked in, shook Chaz’s hand, and led him into the nearby parlor where Mollie and Eva waited.

Chaz greeted the women, accepted a drink from Pierce, and took a seat next to Mollie.

“I’m wondering if we may have been sent to San Francisco too soon, without enough information.” Eva’s voiced what all, except perhaps Chaz, were thinking.

“It doesn’t appear that we have much to go on or check out. At this point, it all seems like a waste of time.” Pierce was exasperated with the assignment. Sitting and waiting wasn’t high on his list of things to do, especially in such close proximity to Mollie.

“I have to agree with Pierce and Eva. Besides meeting some of the local bankers and attending social functions, there doesn’t seem to be enough coming from Lee or Noah to keep this going.” Mollie leaned forward in her seat, focusing her attention on Chaz.

“It does appear to be a bit of a waste,” Chaz said as he finished his drink and set down the glass. “There’s little detail, and what we have, is conjecture. Nothing proves anything illegal is happening yet. My guess? There is someone in Cleveland’s government stirring things up to see what happens. He may have his suspicions, genuine concerns, and Noah’s boss may side with whoever has triggered our involvement. Unfortunately, when someone at the stop snaps their fingers, we must jump.”

“But to what end, Chaz? Yes, there are records of large sums of money being withdrawn from one East Coast bank by members of the original investors group, but what does that prove? These same men are original investors in Carlton Benstead’s bank. Perhaps the money is being used for that, or some other very legitimate investment. There must be something more that neither Lee nor Noah are sharing.”

“Perhaps they’re in the same fix we are,” Chaz interjected. “They must respond to an order from their bosses the same as us.” He stood, walked to the liquor cabinet, and poured another drink, offering more to the others, who declined. “And they may not be sharing everything they’ve learned. I will guarantee you, if anything of note occurs, we will be given instructions.” He paused a moment to swallow some of the amber liquid in his glass. “There is one piece of information that may interest you. One of my sources has heard multiple rumors of an American, connected with the government or possibly an actual government employee, who is seeking contact with people my source says are less than honorable men. His sources are distinct, so he believes there is some truth to the rumors.”

“What is he asking? Has anyone given a description?” Eva set her glass down and stood, becoming more intrigued as this new revelation unfolded.

“The rumors are that he is an American connected to the government, that’s it. No one is saying what business he is discussing or services he needs, or what the man looks like. Are they afraid to talk? I don’t know. Nothing more specific, yet it’s a start and confirms that something is in the works. Is it connected to what Lee and Noah have us doing? I don’t know that either.” Chaz knew the assignment would not be cancelled, at least not until Noah was ordered to shut it down. “Right now, all we can do is continue to learn what we can from those in San Francisco financial and business circles. At some point, our endeavors may mean something.”

Pierce turned at the soft rapping on the door. He opened it to find Penelope.

“Supper is ready, sir.”

Chapter Eight

Lee Hatcher looked around his room at the elegant San Franciscan Hotel. He’d been given a suite, one of only three in what was considered the most prestigious hotel in the city. He knew Chaz and Eva had rooms in the same hotel and tried once more to quell both the dread and anticipation he felt at knowing he would be near Eva again after more than four years apart.

He’d seen her a few times since their divorce, or more accurately, since the evening she’d shown up at his hotel room at the urging of Owen Kendall, his partner and close friend—at least until that night. Now, he would not only see Eva, but also be partnered with her until the assignment was over.

He knew she’d be furious and might quit, or refuse to continue until a replacement could be found. It was a chance he’d have to take. Even though she’d judged him and filed for divorce without allowing him to explain, Lee still loved her. He didn’t know if he could ever take her back, not even if she learned the truth and came begging. He’d learned Eva’s true nature—beneath the exotic beauty, keen mind, and charming exterior was a woman incapable of fully giving her heart or her trust. He doubted he would ever be able to entrust her again with his.

Lee stopped his musings at the sound of a soft knock on the door. The hotel messenger handed him a note then disappeared. It was from Chaz, informing him of his room number and that he’d be out that night. He wanted to meet Lee for breakfast the following morning at seven o’clock in a small restaurant two blocks from the hotel. He’d scrawled the address at the bottom of the message. Lee smiled, knowing his fellow agent had picked a place Eva wouldn’t patronize.

He laid the note on his dresser, glad to have a meeting already arranged. Once he met with Chaz, he’d decide what to do next.

******

Penelope had a prepared a wonderful meal. Pierce had overindulged in both food and spirits. It was fortunate he was a man who could hold his liquor.

“We’ll take our dessert and coffee in the parlor, Penelope. Shall we?” Pierce stood and pulled out Mollie’s chair, then offered his arm.

“You’re good at this, playing a role, pretending.” Her comment hit a nerve with Pierce.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You’re a natural at it.”

“At what?”

“Pretending to be someone you’re not.” Her tone wasn’t accusatory, more a statement of fact.

“Do you want to tell me exactly what you’re talking about?” He let her arm slide from his then took a step back to look at her.

“Slipping into a role comes easy to you, like putting on a different shirt, or hat. You’re a natural at fitting into unfamiliar situations and making people believe that’s where you belong.”

“Not any better than you. Your performance at the Benstead’s couldn’t have been better. You had Traxton right where you wanted him.” Pierce clenched his teeth, remembering how he’d felt when he’d seen Traxton’s interest in Mollie.

“I was doing my job, trying to gain his trust. Nothing more. Certainly not as entertaining as watching you and Virginia Traxton circle each other.” She took another step away from Pierce, turning toward the parlor. “Tell me, how far will you let the pretending go?”

“As far as it needs to go if I think she has information we need.” His eyes were like knives, razor sharp and penetrating.

Their sparring had taken an uncomfortable turn and Mollie wished she’d never brought it up.

“Just forget it.” Mollie walked into the parlor and took a deep breath. She’d done this her whole life, opened her mouth before she’d thought through her words. Most of the time, everything turned out all right. Once in a while, they didn’t. Tonight, she was afraid, was one of those times.

Pierce didn’t budge, hands on his hips, looking through the open parlor door, and wondering what was bothering her. Certainly not anything he’d said during supper, they’d hardly spoken. It couldn’t be her part of the assignment. Even though they were all on edge, tired of trying to figure out what they should be doing with so little information, she’d been handling her part for several weeks without incident. He started into the room then stopped.
The Benstead’s supper.
In an instant, he knew it had to do with that night, in her room, and the lousy way he’d handled everything. He should have talked with her the following day, told her it was a mistake and it wouldn’t happen again. Instead, he’d been a coward and allowed the tension between them to build.

He entered the parlor to see Penelope walking out the other door, having finished serving dessert and filling their coffee cups.

“We won’t be needing anything else from you tonight,” he said as he took a seat next to Mollie, who straightened her dress and took the opportunity to shift several inches away from him.

Pierce watched her fidget with her dessert, moving the food one way then the other, but not taking a bite. She set the plate down, picked up her cup, and took a sip. That didn’t seem to satisfy her either and she set it down next to the plate before standing to walk toward the window.

“Whatever is going on between us isn’t going to go away, you know. It’s going to hang there until we figure out what to do about it.” Pierce walked up beside her and slid both hands in his pockets.

Mollie steeled herself and turned toward him. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. There’s nothing going on between us. The other night was just two people reacting to the situation and the job. We’re both stressed from the lack of direction and information. We handled it poorly, that’s all.” She turned her attention back outside, pretending to enjoy the spectacular garden when her eyes couldn’t focus on anything other than the man who stood next to her.

Pierce’s emotionless expression didn’t change while she spoke, even though inside he was reeling from her words. His reaction to their kiss had been devastating, forcing him to turn away and leave before he did something both would regret.

Mollie was his partner, someone he depended on each day and was tasked to protect if her life was in danger. Neither could afford to tangle their emotions with the need to focus on the assignment.

Even though he accepted that they couldn’t get involved, unlike Mollie, he wasn’t about to deny how he felt or the strong desire that continued to draw him to her. She obviously didn’t feel the same toward him. Pierce stared at her a brief moment before making the decision to leave the discussion where it lay. It wasn’t something he wanted to explore further. Letting it drop was the best solution for both of them.

“It’s been a long day. I’ll see you tomorrow.” Pierce closed the door behind him, leaving Mollie and her jumbled thoughts to herself.

******

“Chaz,” Lee said as he took a seat across from the other man in the small restaurant not far from their hotel. He looked around. Chaz had selected a table away from most of the others, offering the two men some privacy.

“Good to see you, Lee. How was the trip?”

“Long and uneventful. Tell me how it’s going here.” Lee signaled a server for coffee.

“We’re making progress, but at a pace that’s not even measurable,” Chaz joked and sipped his coffee, looking over the rim of his cup at Lee. “Does Eva know you’ll be her partner?”

A sardonic look passed over Lee’s face before he masked it. “No.”

“I didn’t think so. The four of us met and reviewed what we’d learned. She never mentioned you. I believe she’s under the impression Owen will be her partner.”

“That would be a wrong assumption.” He set down his cup and leaned back in his seat. “Tell me what you know.”

Chaz took the next half hour relaying what he’d learned from his source, including the rumors about an American seeking contact with those of questionable character. “The man is like a ghost. No one has seen his face or knows exactly what he wants, except that he is looking for some type of resolution to a problem. Under normal circumstances, I’d ignore it as folklore, people making up a story out of boredom, except the same story has filtered out of several cities within a couple of weeks. That’s too much of a coincidence to ignore.”

“Plus, it matches similar information we’re getting from our East Coast team. No one can identify him, not even a description.” Lee’s frustration was obvious. “Whatever the man wants, he’ll either find someone or do it himself. My guess is he’s put too much effort into this to stop now.”

Both men were silent as they dug into their breakfasts. Lee finally pushed away his empty plate, crossed his arms, and leaned them on top of the table.

“I’ll send Noah a message about the man your source mentioned and get in touch with some people I know. My guess is that it’s someone not in the government, but who has access to officials and intelligence, a man beyond reproach and most likely from wealth. He has an unpleasant task to perform and would prefer to find someone else to do it. The question is still why? What is he planning, who are his colleagues, and what resolution is he looking for? You don’t reach out to the type of men you’ve described unless the request is serious and immediate. My gut tells me something big is about to happen. We need to identify what.”