Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 69330 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 347(@200wpm)___ 277(@250wpm)___ 231(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69330 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 347(@200wpm)___ 277(@250wpm)___ 231(@300wpm)
She gave him a level look. “How could I say something with Doumar in the car?”
“He’s not in the car now. Anything you’d like to say?”
Thinking quickly, she faked a calmness she didn’t feel. “It was the watch.”
“What?”
“The weapon. You asked if he carried a weapon.”
“Why the watch?”
“He had nothing else. He gave me his jacket to wear. I felt through the pockets. There was no phone. His jeans fitted snugly. I would’ve seen the shape of a phone if he carried one. He knows his team is after me. He wouldn’t have come unarmed. It’s too dangerous. He may want me, but he’s not a fool. That made me think about what else he was wearing, and there was only that watch. Then I remembered how different it was, not your average watch.”
Godfrey regarded her thoughtfully. “Describe it to me.”
“It’s square with an electronic face, much like a smart watch, but thicker.”
“A wrist pad.” He tapped a forefinger on his chin. “Advanced piece of technology. Difficult to come by.” A smile cracked his face. “Good work, Miss Val. This is the key to the success we’ve been looking for. The device works via satellite, but it’ll be too well encrypted for me to break through their code. Inside that piece of equipment is a chip that, if hacked, will give me access to all of Cain Jones’s secrets, to everything I need to know.”
“Good. Then my job is done?” she asked hopefully.
“Your job is far from over. You need to steal the chip.”
“Steal it?”
“Copy it. They can’t know we have it until it’s too late.”
“I’m not sure I can help. I’m not good with electronics.”
“All you need is to create the opportunity. I’ll show you what needs to be done. We will copy the chip, and when I have all the information, I will strike when Jones expects it the least.”
“Why waste your energy on a futile mission? They’re all going to die anyway.”
“Oh, but I want to see them die. I want to watch Jones and his team suffer. Yes, it will be slow and agonizing. Finally, I shall triumph. The fact that you’ve seen it in their future only confirms I will succeed.”
How could she lie to Bono more than she already had? She’d seen the hurt in his eyes last night when she’d kissed Doumar. He didn’t deserve it. She couldn’t face him again. “Wouldn’t it be easier to simply follow him?”
“I already have. This time, I’m one step ahead of them. I know exactly where they are.”
“I don’t understand. Why don’t you just take them out if you already know where to find them?”
“Because I need Jones’s information. I need a list of the names of the people he protects and the ones who protect him. Once I have my hands on that chip, I will pull his organization out by the roots.”
“Can’t you steal it from where they’re staying?”
“Their environment will be protected with self-destructing devices. Once their security is breached, the building and everything electronic will blow up. Trust me, I use the same drastic measures and, unfortunately, have first-hand experience of such an event.” His eyes grew hard. “It was the day Jones’s assassin killed my daughter.”
If she was trembling before, now she was shaking. The extent both parties were willing to go to was testimony of the seriousness of the war. “What will you do when his team is dead?”
He gave her an incredulous look, as if the answer was obvious. “Take world power, of course.”
Who would be hungry enough for world power? It seemed like too big a burden for one man to control everyone on earth. Her gut warned her to heed caution, but she couldn’t help herself from asking, “Why? Except material wealth and a whole lot of stress, what can you possibly gain from such power?”
He stared at her for a while. “Immortality.”
A shocked silence followed. When she’d gathered her wits, she risked another question. “For who?”
“Me.”
“What about the rest of us?”
“Only the toughest will survive.”
She itched to read his palm so she could have a glimpse inside his deranged mind. Leaning forward, she reached for his hand. “May I?”
“Careful, Miss Val.” His look was cold. “You’ve seen what I do with disobeying whores. You don’t want to know what I do with traitorous whores.”
She retracted her hand. Not much of Godfrey’s talk made sense except that he wanted the whole of Jones’s team dead. A sudden insight tightened her gut. “You knew they’d come after me, didn’t you? You used me as bait.”
He shrugged. “At the time, I thought it would be your greatest value to me. I have to admit, it worked out better than planned. I knew if Doumar flaunted your talent enough, they’d come for you, thus I was always prepared, but I never could’ve guessed you’d bring me right into the heart of their organization.”