next to me in the bathroom. I stood in front of the sink, the water going full blast, and our eyes met in the mirror. He reached forward and shut off the faucet.
“We’re going to walk out of here and we’ll say you’re ill, that we have to leave,” he said. “Don’t say a word, understand?”
I was cowed into obedience, his anger frightening me. I nodded again.
“Great. Now, look sick.”
Taking my hand, Parker led me out of the bedroom. I didn’t have to try very hard to look sick. I’d royally screwed up. Not only had I gotten caught, but also Ryker believed Parker was in on it. He was going to know for sure that Parker was aware of the authorities’ suspicion.
“I’m sorry, Viktor, but I’m afraid we need to continue this in the morning at my office,” Parker said, his voice calm and a far cry from the icy way he’d spoken to me. “Sage is ill and I should get her home.”
Viktor glanced from Parker to me, then back. “Of course,” he said easily. “I will see you then.”
“Thank you.”
Viktor motioned to Tania, who gathered Parker’s things and fastened his briefcase before bringing it to him. A moment later, his bodyguard held the door for us, scrutinizing us on the way out.
Parker had my hand in a vise grip and led me to the elevator. We didn’t speak until we were in his car and driving away from the hotel.
“Now tell me what the hell you were doing in there,” he said.
I swallowed. “I-I can’t.”
He’d been driving down the street at a pretty good clip. At this, he suddenly swung the car onto a side street and whipped into a parking lot, where he slammed the transmission into Park. He turned toward me.
“Ryker gave those to you, didn’t he,” he accused.
I didn’t answer, but it didn’t appear I had to. Parker might not know my deepest secrets, but he knew me well enough to know that he’d guessed correctly.
He snarled a vicious curse that had me wincing. Digging in his pocket, he rolled down his window and tossed the baggie and bugs out into the street.
“Do you have any idea what Viktor would have done to you if he’d caught you planting those?” He nearly yelled it at me and I cringed away from him. “I swear to God, I’m going to fucking kill him.”
Parker slammed the car back into Drive and took off. Alarmed, I watched and hung on for dear life as he tore through the streets.
“What are you doing? Where are we going?”
But Parker didn’t answer me. His jaw was clenched tight, his hands gripping the steering wheel as he drove with single-minded purpose.
I recognized Ryker’s house when we squealed to a stop in front of it.
“Parker, no, wait!”
But he was already out of the car, not even turning off the engine or shutting his door. I stumbled in my haste to follow him, terrified of what he was going to do.
“Parker!”
He was beating on the front door and I was still ten feet away when it swung open. Ryker stood there, looking surprised.
“You son of a bitch,” Parker snarled, before smashing his fist into Ryker’s face.
Chapter Seventeen
Ryker came back at Parker full-force and before long they were on the ground, fighting.
“Stop it!” I cried, cringing as I became every cliché there was for a girl watching two men in a fistfight. But I couldn’t intervene. As hard as they were hitting each other, I’d break something if I got between them. So I stood by, helpless to do anything.
I thought McClane would go crazy at Ryker being attacked, but it appeared he really did have a mind of his own. He sat on the porch watching, his tongue hanging out and his ears perked forward as though it was entertaining to him.
They both seemed to be getting in some pretty good blows, and I winced at the sound of knuckles on bone. God, men were stupid. What was this going to solve? And I didn’t even know why Parker had gotten so angry. Had he thought the police weren’t going to be watching men they knew to be part of the Russian mob?
Back on their feet, Parker swung and connected a vicious right-hook to Ryker’s jaw. He went down. It seemed to disorient him, because although he managed to get onto all fours, he didn’t stand. Seeing my chance, I rushed over and crouched down beside him.