Scorch (The MacKenzie Family Book 17) (6 page)

B
oston
, Massachusetts

Maxim Petrovich turned his back on the Navy SEAL standing at attention in front of his desk.

The roses in his garden were in full bloom, blood red and brilliant against the greenery. The silence lay heavy in the room, and he could feel their nervousness at his reaction to the news.

“Why have you come to me without the information I’ve asked for?” he said.

“I apologize, sir,” the SEAL said. “The woman is not as attainable as it would seem. Her security is excellent, and her schedule is erratic.”

“You assured me you’d be able to get her quickly once you returned from this latest mission.”

“I have connections with the MacKenzies, sir. Declan MacKenzie has an open invitation for all the SEALs who do contract work for MacKenzie Security to stay at the compound while on leave. It will be simple enough to get inside the secured areas. It’ll give me a better opportunity to watch the woman.”

“Hmmph,” Maxim said, turning to face the soldier. “My father and grandfather both stood in this very spot. They learned important lessons when they came to America. The first was this: To have money was to have power. Do you know what the second thing was?”

“No, sir,” the soldier answered.

Maxim opened his desk drawer and pulled out the black pistol he kept there. His arm came up and he didn’t blink as he aimed it just to the right of the soldier and pulled the trigger. The guard who stood behind the soldier dropped to the ground, a bullet in his heart.

“The second lesson was that fear breeds more power.” He put the gun away calmly and closed the door. No one moved. The guard was dead, and someone would be in to remove him and clean up the mess later.

“Let me put this in simple terms,” Maxim said. “Don’t be fooled into thinking your country will save you. Russia is alive and well here in the United States. I own members of your congress and give money to your president. Money, power, fear,” he said, checking off each word on his fingers. “MacKenzie Security is feared by your government and powers around the world. How long do you think they will let that stand? They hold classified information that no private company should own. They have the most brilliant minds locked up behind steel walls and armed guards.

“Inside those steel walls is a tool that will create the most superior army the world has ever seen. Fear, power, money,” he repeated again, but this time in the opposite order. “There will be days for you to play hero and pretend you love your country as I love mine. But today is not that day. You will take the money and you will get the information from the woman and get her to hand over the suit. And you will bring her to me. Alive. Her brain is much too valuable to put a hole in.”

“Yes, sir,” the soldier said, still unmoving.

“You will do as I say or you won’t be the only one to pay the consequences of your failure. You have family, yes? A brother and sister? Nieces and nephews? Parents? Is there a woman you love who would scream for you as my blade took pieces of her flesh?”

Maxim found satisfaction in the way the soldier paled. Sweat beaded on his face and he swallowed hard.

“I’ll bring you the woman and the suit,” he said.

“Good,” Maxim said. “Dispose of Gregor on your way out. If I find blood in my hallways I’ll slice open your testicles and let my cats feed off you.”

“Yes, sir,” the soldier said, weaker this time.

He watched as the man hoisted Gregor over his shoulder and took him from the room.

“Ivan and Michel,” he said. “You will follow him to Surrender, Montana. I don’t trust our American spy. Once he’s done the job, kill him and bring the girl and the suit to me.”

D
octor Lacey Shaw
had a feeling she was going to remember this particular date forever.

Every June twenty-second from here to her final breath would be met with a deep sigh and a slight mortification. It wasn’t often she felt like an idiot. Or foolish, for that matter. But in this particular moment she felt both.

She’d walked in from her shift at the hospital just after five. She’d been tired and a headache had been brewing, so she’d stripped off her clothes and fallen into bed. And now she was stuck in a very awkward situation that was bound to get more awkward before it was through.

She and Michael’s schedules rarely lined up. She was always swamped at the hospital. It was her life. And she’d done with it exactly what Declan MacKenzie had asked of her so many years before. Her fingerprints were on every inch of that hospital, in every department. But time and again she remembered that there were certain things work couldn’t do for her, and physical intimacy and companionship was one of those things.

She’d never had a serious long-term relationship in the past eight years. Michael was the longest at six months. But they saw each other rarely, and though he’d moved some things into her home and he had a key, saying they were living together was stretching the truth a bit. In fact, she’d been planning to break things off, but she hadn’t had the time, and something like that needed to be done face to face.

Maybe it had been the long works hours or the need for sexual companionship that had made her unable to stop things before they’d gone too far. But all she knew was she’d been sound asleep when Michael had crawled into bed beside her. But she hadn’t stayed asleep long. Her heart still thudded in her chest as he lay one top of her, the sweat cooling on their skin.

“Mmm, I missed you,” he said, kissing the side of her neck.

She winced, because she hadn’t missed him at all. When she was working, he never even crossed her mind. That was probably a sign they weren’t meant to be together forever. Not that she was looking for someone to fill that role permanently. She had more than enough on her plate.

“Next time we do that I promise to take my time. It’s just been so long I could hardly wait.”

She
hmmmed
noncommittally, since she’d basically decided in the last couple of minutes since they’d climaxed that there wasn’t going to be another time. He lifted up on his arms and the rolled to the side, pulling her with him to cuddle. Lacey glanced at her watch discretely, thinking she could head back to the hospital and get a couple more hours of paperwork done that she’d neglected.

“I think we should get married,” Michael said, nibbling her ear.

She almost
hmmmed
again, then his words finally penetrated and she froze. That was not what she’d been expecting. At all. They hardly knew each other.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” she said, after several awkward moments of silence passed.

“Why?” he said nonplussed. “It makes perfect sense. We’re both intelligent adults with solid careers. We have similar tastes in music and art and wine. We have the things that are necessary to a solid foundational marriage.”

Now he was starting to sound like her father, and that just pissed her off. They had nothing in common other than being intelligent adults with solid careers. They’d met at a function, where everyone had been dressed to impress and expensive wines were poured liberally. Where a string quartet played in the corner and had made her want to fall asleep. Where people like her parents were revered.

Michael didn’t know the real her. He knew the Lacey Shaw that had grown up under the thumb of her wealthy parents. Not the Lacey Shaw that liked cheap beer and classic country music.

“I don’t think we have enough in common to base a marriage on. We barely know each other and hardly get to see each other. What we have is a mutual respect for each other and our careers. There’s not anything more.”

“I beg to differ,” he said stiffly. “I believe you just experienced a little something more.”

“Now, don’t get your feelings hurt. I care for you, Michael. You know I do. But neither of us really wants marriage. I like being married to my job. And you need a wife that isn’t going to work a minimum of one hundred hours a week. I think it’s best we just go our separate ways.”

The house phone and the cell on her bedside table started ringing in tandem, and she’d never been so grateful to get a call from the hospital before.

“I’ve got to take this,” she said, grabbing her cell.

“By all means,” Michael said, sitting up on the side of the bed and grabbing his pants.

Yep, just as she thought. More awkward with every passing second.

She wasn’t expecting the news that came over the line. And she and her staff were always prepared for anything. But losing one of the MacKenzies would be a blow to them all. She’d never seen a family quite like theirs before.

“I’ve got to go to the hospital,” she said, throwing her legs over the side of the bed and grabbing her clothes up off the floor. “Feel free to stay as long as you’d like. And what we’ve had between us these last months has been really nice.”

“
Nice
,” he said flatly. “Not exactly the word I’d use to describe it.”

“Michael, do you love me?”

He hesitated and said, “You and I both know love is a chemical reaction induced by lust and several other qualifying factors. What I have for you is respect and a mutual appreciation. Those are the things that build solid marriages. Not romantic notions that only leave the other partner disappointed when the expectations aren’t fulfilled.

“That’s where I have to disagree with you. I figure if two people are going to commit to a lifetime with each other, there should be a hell of a lot more between them than mutual respect and appreciation. You can have mutual respect and appreciation for a colleague or a stranger you meet at a conference.”

“You’re being ridiculous. You’re not a romantic. You’re a realist like me.”

“Maybe you don’t know me as well as you thought you did. Let’s just call this what it is, and end things before either of us says something regrettable.”

She figured it would probably all go downhill from there if she kept speaking, so she ran into the bathroom so she could grab a quick shower. She’d remind him to leave his key on the table on her way out.

* * *

F
ifteen hours later
, she faced a room of people she respected immensely, and wondered how to give them devastating news. Speaking with the families of victims was something she’d always done herself. She never passed it on to other doctors or nurses.

The nature of the hospital didn’t always allow for the family to know the truth of how their loved one had been killed or injured in the line of duty. Many didn’t know their loved ones were working special ops or working for the government at all. They were regular people, living their normal lives before getting the call anyone would dread getting about a loved one. They had no idea why they had to come to a hospital in the middle of Montana, or what their loved one was doing there. Accident reports were oftentimes falsified to not blow the agent’s cover, even after death.

But that wasn’t the case with the MacKenzies. They were all involved and aware of what was at risk. They put their lives on the line each and every day. And those who served, and the people who loved those who served, knew there was a chance that they might pay the ultimate sacrifice.

The MacKenzies would also know a bullshit answer to their question if they heard one. They’d all seen the severity of Shane’s wounds. And they had to know, at least in some part of their mind, that his chances of survival were slim.

Lacey had seen Shane off and on during the last eight years, though they’d never been introduced. She’d always tried to keep her distance from the family, even though they’d tried to take her into the fold. She turned down dinners and party invitations on a regular basis, wanting to keep her relationship with them strictly business. She could admit the self-imposed distance was mostly out of fear of the unknown. She had no idea how to assimilate to family dynamics like theirs. In theory, she knew what family was supposed to be like, but experience had taught her that theory didn’t always mean reality. She figured she was better off keeping her distance.

But there’d always been something about the MacKenzies that had drawn her interest. The way they treated each other. The way they always had each other’s backs. Their love seemed genuine and there weren’t ulterior motives or expectations of payback for that love. There had always been a pang of envy as she’d observed them. She’d never seen another family like them, which made her think maybe they were the anomaly instead of the norm.

Lacey would have never admitted it to anyone but herself, but she’d found her eye wandering more than once toward Shane MacKenzie. There was something about him that commanded attention, even as much as Declan himself did. He was one of those men who could walk in a room and everyone knew he was in charge. It wasn’t because he was louder than the others or because he thought himself more important. It was because his presence demanded respect and authority.

She’d watched long enough to know that not everyone in his family gave him the credit he deserved. They saw him as the youngest. As someone who liked to joke around and never took much of anything seriously. As a man whose favorite pastime seemed to be women. All of those things were true. To a degree. But there was great intelligence behind the façade he showed his family. There was bravery, valor, pride, sacrifice, and the demons that only a soldier who’d experienced unspeakable horrors had to combat. He piqued her curiosity like no one ever had, and she admired the quiet inner strength that often went unnoticed by others.

The private waiting room was full, and she recognized many of the faces she saw there as being immediate family members. Faces that were filled with worry and grief. Mary and James MacKenzie, Shane’s parents, sat at the center, their children, grandchildren, nieces, and nephews gathered around them for support. There were no tears or hysterics. Just stoic, grief-stricken people who were counting on each other for the support they needed.

“I’m sorry for making you wait so long,” she told them, stepping into the room. A dozen or more anxious faces stared at her with hands clasped as they waited for the news. Lacey looked straight at Mary MacKenzie. “He’s just out of surgery and has been moved to the intensive care unit.”

Mary let out a shuddering breath and hope filled her eyes that hadn’t been there before. She’d prepared herself for the worst. And the worst might still be yet to come.

“We lost him twice on the operating table,” she said, “but he’s strong and he’s a fighter. The blast caused some internal bleeding and there was shrapnel embedded around the heart that made things very touch and go. Once we stabilized all the internal injuries and stopped the bleeding we were able to assess the external damage to his body.”

Declan took a step away from his mother and stuck his hands in his pockets. She knew soldiers. She’d been one. And she knew what the loss of limbs could mean. Declan knew it too.

She turned her attention to Declan and said, “We had to take the leg. There wasn’t anything we could do to save it.”

He nodded curtly and his lips formed a thin line.

“We’ve only taken the one leg for now. The other is in bad shape as well, and he might never have full use of it. We’ll keep an eye on it for infection and let you know if we think it’s best to take that one as well.”

Lacey looked back at Mary and saw the tears streaming silently down her cheeks. “He’s not breathing on his own, but there is brain activity.”

“When will he wake up?” she asked.

“That’s what we need to discuss,” Lacey said.

It was best to get this part out of the way as quickly as possible. Delaying or softening it wouldn’t ease their pain. And it wouldn’t ease hers. Whether she’d wanted to be brought in to the fold or not, she was here in the thick of things. She cared about this family.

“He’s not out of the woods yet. His chances for survival are still at the fifty-fifty mark. In seventy-two hours we’ll be able to upgrade his condition if there have been no changes. He’s going to need you when he wakes up. He’s going to comprehend and accept the damage done to his body, but he’s going to have a difficult time accepting the loss of his leg. To a soldier like Shane, the loss of that limb is going to signify the loss of everything most important to him. He’s going to be resistant. He’s going to be angry.”

“We’ll do whatever we need to do to get him through this,” Mary said. “All of us will.”

“Once he’s healed enough, physical therapy is going to be essential. It’s going to be painful and he’s going to hate every minute of it. But unless he wants to be confined to a wheelchair forever he’s got to get the leg he does have in working order. I just want you all to know that he’s not the only one who’s going to have a rough road ahead of them. I’d also recommend counseling.”

“Thank you, Doctor Shaw,” Mary said, coming to her feet and taking both of Lacey’s hands in hers. “We owe you our son, and we’ll always be grateful. I know you were there every step of the way, even though you didn’t have to be.”