Page 85 of Rescuing Mia
“Not interested in a pissing contest.” Ethan gives me a hard look. “What you need to know is the Chinese government is after her, and the U.S. Embassy doesn’t want them to succeed.”
“She was afraid of that.” I figure it’s time to extend a bit of trust. “I assume this has to do with Red Phoenix Pharmaceuticals?”
“It might.” Ethan exchanges a look with Blake and the others, then turns to me. “What do you know about Red Phoenix?”
“Only that Mia discovered they were doing something they shouldn’t.”
“Fair enough,” Ethan concedes with grace. “They sent an assassin. That person killed Mia’s contact in Manila.”
“Agent Torres.”
“Correct.” Ethan’s expression remains grim. “We’ve been tracking her ever since.”
“The assassin or Mia?”
“The assassin didn’t survive. I’m talking about Mia. The embassy tracked her to theSerenity. Evidently, she used Agent Torres’s credit card for the purchase, but we’re not the only ones who know that and are looking for her. If the embassy thought to track his credit cards, you can bet Red Phoenix assumed the same. We were hired to extract her before another assassin could finish what the first one did not. They want her dead.”
“Over my dead body.” My muscles tense, my protective instincts surging.
“That’s why we’re here, brother.” Blake’s eyes meet mine. “To make sure it doesn’t come to that.” He claps a hand on my shoulder, his grip firm and reassuring. “Now, if you don’t mind, let’s see about your girl.”
Ethan takes control of the boat, and Walt, a certified medic, pushes me out of the way and focuses on Mia, checking her vitals and wrapping her in silver heat blankets. I watch him work, my mind racing with possibilities and plans.
“Your girl’s got herself into some deep shit,” Ethan says.
“Hypothermic and unconscious but stable,” Walt reports on Mia’s condition.
A knot of tension loosens in my chest.
“You’re looking a bit peachy,” Blake says.
“Peachy?”
“Like a drowned rat.” He flashes a shit-eating grin.
Fucker’s having too much fun with this.
“Fuck you, man,” I retort, but a grin tugs at my lips. Even in the middle of all this chaos, it’s damn good to see a friendly face.
“Why don’t you get down there and snuggle with your girl? Share some of your body heat with her,” Blake suggests. Walt shifts, making room for me by Mia’s side. “Unless you want me to…” His voice trails off, and that shit-eating grin is firmly in place.
“No fucking way are you cuddling with Mia.”
“Well, we’ve got about an hour’s ride to the trawler. So either you get comfy, or I’m snuggling with your girl.”
“Fuck that.” I shove him out of the way and do my best to snuggle with Mia. I cradle her head in my lap, brushing the wet hair from her face while Walt does a quick assessment.
“Come on, sweetie, open your eyes,” I whisper, my voice cracking with emotion, but she remains still, her skin pale and clammy in the dim light of the RIB. A surge of panic rises in my chest, a fear that I might already be too late, but Walt wouldn’t be this calm if she was in any real danger.
“She’ll be fine.” Blake kneels beside me with another blanket in his hands. “She’s hypothermic. We’ll do everything we can to help her. I promise.”
“Thank you.” My throat is tight with fear and gratitude. “By the way, I took your advice and got out when it came time to reenlist. Felt I needed something different.”
“I take it that’s why you’re cruising with the Aggressor fleet?” Blake smiles.
“Something like that.”
“How did you meet Mia?”