Judy glanced over her shoulder at the closed door before leaning forward to whisper, “We have a corporate spy here in Tomanna.”
Tessa could feel the blood drain from her face. It was starting. Shit. Covington was fired, out of the picture. How was this happening?
“You’re kidding,” she said, her eyes wide with real shock.
Judy nodded furiously. “I only wish I were. Mr. Conklin is stunned and very, very upset, I don’t have to tell you. As of this moment, the only people he trusts around here are me, Marcus, Jonas and you. And since the rest of us are busy, I was hoping you could grab the package. I would but I’m already late for Mr. Conklin’s yearly analysis overview. Damn,” she swore as she noted the clock above Tessa’s head.
“Sure, I’ll get it.” Tessa felt as if she were swimming. Her thoughts floated, just out of reach, keeping her from thinking rationally. Visions of a jail cell and handcuffs reverberated through her mind.
“Oh, thank you,” Judy gushed and turned to the door. “One more thing, the courier is downstairs in the lobby wearing a ball cap and a heavy, denim jacket. Sounds very double-oh-sevenish, I know, but this deal could net us millions if we play it right, and that means keeping mum to our competitors.” She grimaced. “That we have to stoop to disguises and secrets is ridiculous. If it weren’t for Mr. Conklin’s insistence on discretion, I’d call the police right now.”
“Right.” Tessa coughed nervously. “Let me get to it, then.”
Judy nodded and left, and Tessa wanted to run to Marcus with her questions. The idea made her frown. Since when had she needed a man to solve her problems? Granted, this situation was unique, but Judy was talking about company intrigue, not wraiths and Djinn.
Tessa rolled her eyes. No, going to Marcus right now was definitely out. If she so much as mentioned the word ‘threat’, he’d simply point the finger at Jonas and demand answers, answers her concerned friend didn’t have. Judy had said Marcus was busy anyway. This worry could keep until later, if she wasn’t arrested in the meantime. Sighing, she left her office and headed for the elevators.
When she reached the lobby, she found it heavily trafficked with people leaving for the day. “Nice to be able to leave at four, like I was supposed to,” she muttered, trying to find the courier. Hell, she felt like a spy picking up Conklin’s ‘package’ in the damned building lobby.
A black ball cap and denim jacket caught her eye and she angled towards the front of the crowded lobby.
“Excuse me, is that for Mr. Conklin?” she asked the tall man with his back to her. He turned and she froze, aware of a sudden humming in her blood. The man was drop-dead gorgeous, with dark hair, a strong nose and firm lips that grinned at the sight of her. His eyes remained a mystery, covered by black sunglasses. Yet something about him was familiar, for all that he looked like a stranger.
“It’s about time,” he said, his voice deep with satisfaction.
“Sorry I was late, but—”
“It’s been a while, but we’ve met.” ‘Sin Garu stepped out from behind the man with a polite grin and her heart pounded so hard she thought it might explode.
The sorcerer wore a conservative grey suit, his hair cut fashionably short, his teeth bright white but no longer sharp and he carried a briefcase—the image of a typical corporate shark. “Don’t worry about the package, Tessa. Conklin doesn’t really need it, and Davis here, well, he wanted some time alone with you. And from the way you and Marcus have treated him, it’s no wonder.”
At five ‘til six, his last meeting for the day wrapped up and Marcus went in search of Tessa. Spying her coat and portfolio still sitting on her desk, he shook his head. He’d warned her earlier he’d be late, and told her to call Cadmus to drive her home.
Most of the floor was deserted, with the exception of Jonas Chase’s office. Bastard. Marcus seethed as he cut across the floor. Knocking politely when he wished to pound down the door, he had just decided to give Chase a piece of his mind for keeping Tessa late when the door opened.
A weary looking Chase blinked. “Yes?”
“I’m looking for Tessa.”
“Tessa? She left hours ago. You haven’t by chance seen Davis out there, have you?” Jonas looked beyond him.
Marcus tensed. “What do you mean she left hours ago?”
Jonas paused, apparently seeing something in Marcus’ stance that made him wary. “I let her go around four. She’s been working so hard lately. Are you sure she’s not still here?”
“Her coat is in her office.” Marcus shook his head. “I’ll check upstairs.”
“I’ll go with you,” Jonas offered.
About to deny him, Marcus changed his mind at the last instant. Better to have your enemies close, he thought. Except that for an enemy, Jonas looked surprisingly concerned about Tessa. In fact, he wore a pinched expression, as if he too feared the worst.
They walked quickly up the stairs and found only a few executives working, Tessa nowhere in sight. After checking and rechecking the opposite stairwells, they returned to Tessa’s office and studied the area, searching for some hint she’d recently been there.
Then Jonas cursed. “I hate to think this might have anything to do with it, but Michael Davis is late on some correspondence I needed, and he hasn’t answered his phone since a little after three.”
Marcus fisted his hands. “Davis, as in the little asshole I knocked into the wall yesterday?”
Jonas nodded, his eyes full of concern. “The same. I’m probably way off base, here, right?”
“Probably.”
“Look, I have more work to do. I’ll stick around here for a while, just in case she shows.”
“Here’s my cell number,” Marcus said as he wrote it down and handed Jonas a slip of paper. “I’m going home in case she’s headed there already.” But Cadmus or Tessa would have called him by now. “Call me if you see her before I do.”
Jonas nodded. “Can do.”
“And Chase?” Marcus paused, aware he might have made a mistake about the man. “Thanks.”
The minute Jonas left, Marcus reached for the phone. “Cadmus, Aerolus, pick up,” he muttered, wishing he had a touch of Darius’ telepathy. What he wouldn’t give now to be reading Tessa’s mind, to know she was safe at home and all his worry was for naught.
“Yo?”
“Cadmus,” Marcus growled, “is Tessa there?”
“No, why?”
“Because I’m standing in her office and she’s not here. She’s not anywhere in Tomanna, and I’ve got a really bad feeling.”
“Hold on.” Cadmus bellowed for Aerolus, and suddenly his brother appeared in the office.
“When did you last see her?” Aerolus asked calmly, while every nerve in Marcus’ body pulsed, adrenaline surging through his blood on wings of fear.
“I saw her at noon today, but according to her boss she’s been gone since four.”
“Two hours.” Aerolus pondered that while Cadmus swore over the phone in several different languages.
“Cadmus?” Marcus asked. “What’s wrong?”
“A vision,” he rasped, “just whacked me upside the head. It’s the Djinn, Marcus, he’s got her. And he’s not alone.”
Chapter Thirteen
Tessa wanted to throw up, the presence of evil around her was so strong. But she held onto a nerve of steel, knowing Marcus would sooner die than show ‘Sin Garu a hint of fear. If the River Prince could do it, then by God his affai could be as brave. And the hot-tempered redhead inside her refused to back down.