With Every Breath (Slow Burn #4) - Maya Banks Page 0,83
could talk to you and we could come up with a plan of action. You matter to them, Eliza. Every bit as much as they matter to you and if you don’t think so then you must not have a very high opinion of the people you work with.”
“They can’t be here,” Eliza said, her voice shaking, tears welling in her eyes. “Oh God, Wade, I can’t lose them. I can’t lose you. Can’t you understand that? It would kill me if anything happened to any of you.”
“And you think you’re expendable? You’re wrong. Dead wrong. You matter a hell of a lot to a lot of people and there is no way in hell any of us are going to stand back and let you take the fall for something you hold no responsibility for.”
She buried her face in his chest and wrapped her arms around his neck, clinging desperately to him.
“What do we do?”
“Now that I have a better handle on the situation, I’m going to call Dane and tell him to be very fucking discreet and not to barge into town asking a bunch of questions that will raise suspicion. Their job will be to shadow Harrington once he’s released from jail and monitor his movements. They’re the best. He won’t know he’s being watched. But I want to know what he’s doing, where he’s going, so we’re prepared for any eventuality.
“As much as I fucking hate the idea of you going into town, you’re right in that it will be you he goes after and if he knows you’re with me then he’s not going to think you’re an easy target and that’s precisely what we want him to think. So you lay the seeds, leave a trail so you are not hard to find and with DSS trailing him plus my own team here for your protection then he’ll be walking right into our hands, which is exactly what we want. But you will not face him. You will not confront him. He’s mine, Eliza.
“But you aren’t going anywhere alone. I’ll be there, you just won’t see me. My men will be there but you won’t see them either. They’re the best at what they do and no one will ever see them unless they want to be seen. That’s all I’m willing to compromise on. If you can’t deal with that, then we go with plan B.”
“What’s plan B?” Eliza asked fearfully.
“Plan B is me handcuffing you to this bed and me leaving my men to protect you while I go into town and make it known that you’re with me and making sure Harrington gets wind of it.”
“Not much of a choice,” she muttered against his chest.
He smiled. “No, but it’s the only two choices you get.”
She sighed. “Then we’ll go with plan A. I need to get up and get into town early. The diner is crowded for breakfast and with Thomas being released in a day, the town is a flurry of activity. All the locals are out. Most know I’m back and they don’t want to miss any drama unfolding. The media will be rolling in as well. It’s going to be a circus.”
Wade scowled because the very last thing he wanted was that kind of exposure for Eliza. She’d suffered the judgment of others for far too long and they’d crucify her, not only in town but in the media as well. It went against every grain for him to allow his woman to be hurt and tormented like that, but he also knew he had no choice if he wanted to permanently remove the threat of Thomas Harrington so Eliza could finally achieve the peace she so greatly deserved.
“I need to check in with Dane and make damn sure he knows what he and his team are to do and nothing more. They’ll be on the move shortly. I expect them to arrive by this afternoon and I need them in place. You want coffee?”
Her face softened at his offer but shook her head. “I’ll just shower and get dressed and head to the diner and have breakfast and coffee there. Go ahead and make your call and then let me know what’s going down.”
She paused a second, sorrow flashing in her eyes.
“Tell Dane . . . tell him I’m sorry I let him down.”
“You didn’t let anyone down,” Wade said fiercely. “They aren’t angry with you, Eliza. They’re worried sick about you.”