“I rarely watch the news anymore.” She gave a delicate shrug. “Unless it pertains to my work or my friends, I’m content to keep my world knowledge as compact as possible.”
Made sense. While he had no idea of her actual age, he’d always heard Vampires lived centuries. He imagined anyone would get a bit jaded after watching so many humans come and go.
“Let me fill you in then. Samuel Jansson was infected with this virus. We’re not sure how or when, but most likely it was in a bar on the hill where he frequently stopped for a drink after work. He died a horrible death at home in his bed less than twelve hours later.”
She whistled. “That’s a fast-acting virus. But how do you know that’s what killed him?”
“The terrorist group contacted us shortly before his body was discovered. But even then, we had the same doubts. We rushed an autopsy.”
“And?”
“What killed him was a virus never before seen. We have no antidote.”
Another flash of interest lit up her face. “What do they want in exchange? I’m assuming it must be something big, right?”
“Oh, it is. It is.” He’d been instructed not to tell her if at all possible, to gain her assistance without doing so. Once he’d completed a full read-through of her dossier, he’d wondered what his boss had been thinking. A rational, intelligent, professional scientist like Carmen Vargas would want to know everything. If they needed the best, they’d have to give her 100 percent of the info.
“They want our country to go to war,” he said slowly. “Unless we obliterate the entire country of West Latvia, they’ll unleash this virus on our general population. It spreads through the air and kills fast.”
“West Latvia?” She frowned. “Why?”
“They trade heavily with Russia. Whoever these terrorists are, they want something Russia gets instead. They haven’t specified what exactly. We have people working on finding that out.”
“You say this senator was found dead?” she asked. “What about the people who found his body? Have they been placed in isolation to avoid contamination?”
“Yes. The terrorists claim it’s only active while the body is alive. We’ve got people working around the clock to verify this.”
She nodded. “As you know, I’m a damn good scientist. I assume you want me to join one of your research teams?”
“Possibly. Though that’s not the entire reason we need your Shadow Agency—and you. Many on my task force are full-blooded Shifters, too. As you know, only a silver bullet or fire can kill us. Normally.”
Tucking away one wayward blond strand of hair behind her ear, she eyed him. “You aren’t sure if this virus might be another thing that can take your kind out, are you?”
“Exactly.”
“Since I’m already dead...” Her slow smile made his heart skip a beat.
To cover his unwanted reaction, he looked down, pretending to be lost in thought.
“Hey, it’s okay.” When she reached out and covered his hands with hers, he felt a jolt straight in his groin. His inner wolf, startled awake, sat up and took notice.
“I enjoy being useful,” she continued. “What I need to do is get you a full printout of our rates. We charge by the hour, plus expenses. There’s a flat fee—a retainer—that’s payable up front and is nonrefundable.”
Slowly he slid his hand out from under hers. “None of that matters. You’re dealing with a well-funded covert government operation. If you agree to assist us, we can pay you this.” Though doing so felt a bit melodramatic, he opened his briefcase to get a better look at the neat stacks of bills inside. “Twenty-five thousand dollars cash, up front. Another twenty-five once the mission is successfully completed.”
If he expected her to gape, he was doomed to disappointment. She looked coolly from the money to him. “This is most unusual,” she said. “I’ll have to consult with my partners.”
But he refused to accept this. “I happen to know your private investigative business is a start-up. You’ve only had one case, I believe. Cash flow has to be important. You can’t afford to turn this down.”
Stone-faced, she stared at him.
“And this is important,” he continued. “It’s not just a case. It’s your chance to make a difference.”
Watching her, he swore he saw that same flicker of interest in her eyes.
“Fine,” she finally said. “I’m in. Representing The Shadow Agency.” Her chin came up and she held his gaze. “But not just because of the money. I’ve always wanted to make a difference.”
Admiration warred with attraction. He nodded, closing the one briefcase before pulling a manila folder from the other. “We’ve taken the liberty of having a contract drawn up in advance. I’ll need your signature in three places.”
Though she accepted the pen he offered her, instead of immediately signing on the dotted line, she began to read through the contract. “No,” she said abruptly. “This part here is unacceptable.” She stabbed her long, bloodred fingernails at the page. “I refuse to keep my partners in the dark about this job. We’re in this together. Otherwise, you’re not hiring The Shadow Agency. You’re just hiring me.”
Somehow, he sensed this minor issue would be the one thing that could make her walk away. As far as he knew, they didn’t have a backup. “I agree,” he conceded. “Strike through that part and initial it. I’ll do the same.”
Once she’d done as he’d suggested, she finished her read-through and then signed. Handing him back the papers, she held out one elegant, pale hand.
“I should have told you,” Rick said, after neatly filing the contract in his briefcase. Then and only then did he slide the briefcase full of cash across the table toward her. “You and I will be partners for this case.”
She stared. “I work better alone. Plus, I already have two partners.”
“Not on this case, you don’t. You might want to put that somewhere safe,” he added, gesturing at the briefcase. “Once you’ve done that, you’ll need to let your partners know that you have to disappear for a while.”
“Disappear?” She didn’t really protest. “They’ll be used to it. It’s kind of what we Vamps do.”
He laughed, the full, rich sound filling the room.
“I just need to let Maddie know,” she managed to say, sticking to the topic at hand. “She’s the one I was supposed to meet here tonight. She’s probably out there right now, anxious about where I am even though I texted her.”
“Let’s go find her, then. After that, you’re coming with me.”
“Okay. Enjoying this, are you?” she drawled. “You might be pretty, but this is serious business. I don’t need a distraction, and believe me, I could see you becoming a big one.”
To her annoyance, rather than fluster him, her remark made him laugh. “Nice try, Vargas. But it’ll take more than that to make me go away. I’m going to be stuck to your side like glue, so get used to it.”
“Fine, whatever.” She gave in sullenly. “I was thinking I’d start in the lab first. I’m assuming you plan to provide me with tissue samples so I can begin to analyze the thing.”
“That won’t be necessary,” he said. “We’ve already got teams of the best scientists working on that.”
He’d managed to surprise her, and not in a good way. “I am one of the top biological specialists.”
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