Baz shrugged negligently. “Course I do. I read your medical records. When I need a good laugh, I read them again. They’re my favorite bedtime story. You can’t seriously think we don’t still have people at SIS, do you? As for that, I work for a company that has even better access than SIS. Taggart’s crew did a good job hiding your medical records. SIS doesn’t even know you saw a doctor in Dallas. You know, the one who found the issue with your heart. It’s getting worse, isn’t it?”
He thought Adam Miles had hidden those files. The doctors who had saved his life hadn’t found the damage to his heart. It had only been once he saw a specialist in Dallas that the true extent of the damage had been discovered. Taggart had helped him hide it from Nigel, but it looked like the news was out. “That’s really none of your business, is it?”
“It’s all my business. But don’t worry that I’ll tattle. I like the idea of playing this game with you.” He stopped for moment, his eyes looking up and down Damon, making him uncomfortable in a way only Baz ever could. “I meant what I said though. You really do look good.”
He tried to ignore Baz’s personal comments, sticking on the more professional statements he’d made. The thought turned his blood cold. He’d been gone for months. He hadn’t really thought about the fact that there could be more moles. He couldn’t even convince Nigel that The Collective existed. “If you have people in SIS, I promise you I’ll find them.”
“Maybe you already have.” His eyes drifted to where Penelope had disappeared. “She would be the perfect mole, you know. She’s so innocent looking no one would suspect her. Maybe your new girl is really working with me. After all, how else did I find you so quickly?”
If there was one thing he knew, it was that Penelope Cash couldn’t betray a fly, much less her country. “Don’t bother. I won’t believe a bloody thing you say about her.”
“It’s worth a try. Think about it. She really is perfect. She’s smart. She’s always in the office. She could get access to your records and no one would suspect her because she’s such a sweet little thing.”
He wasn’t going to allow Baz to drone on. “I’m going to bring you in. I promise. If it’s the last thing I do, I’m going to be the one who takes you down.”
Baz’s eyes went oddly blank and the smile on his face dimmed. “It would be fitting, of course. You know I didn’t really want to shoot you. I had to. I had to try to keep my place in SIS. I’m not as valuable on the outside.”
His heart was racing, adrenaline beginning to pound through his system. He kept his eyes on Baz, ready for any kind of movement from him. “I’m so sorry to have wrecked your plans.”
“I think I didn’t finish the job because I didn’t really want to. You know the drill. Two to the chest. One to the head. I couldn’t do it.” Baz took a long breath. “I knew it was a mistake the minute I walked out, but I couldn’t make myself go back and finish the job.”
He was supposed to feel sympathetic because Baz had only shot him once? Had only taken out one of his lungs? “What are you doing here?”
He needed to get his hands on him. He could wrestle him to the ground and…what? Get him to HQ? The British Transport Police would show up and he didn’t exactly carry an SIS card on him. They would both get shoved into lockup while things got sorted out.
“I told you. We need to talk.”
That would be a mistake. Baz was a snake. One didn’t sit about and talk to a snake. One stepped on it before it managed to bite. “We have nothing to talk about.”
His smile was back. “I think we do. We need to have a sit-down, and if you don’t give me what I want, I’ll have to do something drastic to convince you. I’ve been watching you. You like the girl. Let’s talk about what happened to the last girl you fancied. Jane. I think that was her name. She was prettier than this one. You’re slumming, mate.”
Damon had been the one to bury Jane. She hadn’t had any family past the one she’d found at The Garden. He’d trained her, hired her to work, allowed her to live in the building. He’d fucked her when it was convenient. He certainly hadn’t loved her, but he’d been fond of the girl. She’d been his responsibility, under his care, and Baz had taken her life because she’d been in the wrong place at the wrong time.
The need to wrap his hands around Baz’s throat was overwhelming. It took everything Damon had not to move on him. He heard the train whoosh in. Penelope would be safe on the train. She would be on her way to the station where Taggart was waiting for them. She could tell him what had happened, and Taggart would come.
And then he could deal with Baz.
“Why don’t we go somewhere quiet and have this talk of yours?” The minute he got Baz out of the crowd, he would pull the knife he had in an ankle strap and slit the fucker’s throat.
Baz’s dark eyes rolled. “I’m not going to be alone with you, Damon. I’m not that stupid, and it wouldn’t go the way you think it would.”
“I’m not going to stand here in the middle of the station and conduct business.” He needed to get Baz away from so many potential hostages.
“Fine. I’ll make it simple for you then. I need you to get me in to see Nigel. It’s serious. We have a major problem, and I’m the only one who can help. Tell him it concerns the assignment on the ship.”
The train pulled away, the sound accompanied by a rush of air.
Penelope was gone, and there was no way Damon would allow Baz into SIS headquarters or within a mile of Nigel.
Baz’s eyes trailed to the escalators, narrowing. They were filled with travelers.
Damon remained still. He would only have one shot at him. The crowd would slow him down. “If you want to talk, this is how to do it. Surrender yourself and we’ll have a chat. The only way you see Nigel is from behind bars.”
Baz’s jaw tightened, eyes hardening. “That’s not going to happen. We will talk, Damon. On my terms. And tell your girlfriend that I’ll be seeing her.”
In an instant, he took off, but not on the escalator stairs. No, he leapt onto the metallic median that divided them and started running up at a near-impossible angle.
Damon followed, gracefully hauling his body onto the median. He stared up for the merest moment before starting to climb.
Everyone was watching, turning, and shouts began as Baz moved easily up toward the station above. The minute he got to ground level, he would be able to lose himself on the streets.
Damon followed but his dress shoes were already slipping.
And he could feel his body failing.
Baz stopped halfway up, turning slightly. “Don’t even bother. These aren’t exactly shoes you can get in a store. One of the perks of my job. Our tech guys are far better than yours.”
He stood there, grinning down as Damon struggled.
“Are your lungs burning already? How’s the old ticker working?”
God, he wished Baz hadn’t found those records. Damon managed to move another three feet before slipping again. Rage poured through him and he pushed on, jumping to the escalator steps when a spot opened. The steps were moving in the opposite direction of where he needed to go. “Move!”
The crowd shifted, trying to get out of his way, but he was fighting an uphill battle.
His lungs burned, his heart pumping. He pushed, dragging oxygen in, forcing it down as he ran.
And Baz just stood there and laughed. “It’s not going to work, mate. You’re done for. You should let them put you out to pasture because I might not have taken your life when I shot you, but I damn sure took your balls.”
He was almost there. Blood pounded in his ears, blocking out everything except the sound of his heart threatening to explode.