file. “I wasn’t the only one in those advanced classes.”
Linette tapped a finger on the table. “Some of our students went on to agencies that needed those types of skills.”
“You mean the government?” Sasha thought of Amelia Hofmann.
“There are government agencies all over the world.”
Sasha voiced what she’d always assumed. “Spies.”
Linette held all emotion in. No denial. No validation.
“I suppose that would explain why my search for some of my old classmates has come up empty.”
Linette placed a hand over Sasha’s file. “Names change. People get married.”
“People lie.”
“Something we’re all guilty of, I’m sure.”
Sasha flipped through her file and read through a list of accomplishments she’d achieved in the underground education at Richter. “I was an orphan, skilled, without any family. I would think my profile would have been one sought after.”
She looked up to see Linette smiling. “You were promised to return to Alice.”
“And therefore not recruited.”
“No job would have earned you what Alice set aside on your behalf. Financially, you’re much better off than most of your classmates.”
An understatement if there ever was one. Alice had set aside millions for Sasha. A bankroll she wasn’t even aware of until after the woman died.
“Money isn’t your motivator,” Linette said.
“Which is why I returned searching for something.”
Linette leaned forward. “And are you finding it?”
Sasha nodded, glancing around the locked room full of secrets. “I feel closer than I did yesterday.”
An hour later Sasha sent an encrypted text message to Reed, spelling out AJ Hofmann.
The bar was much busier than it had been the night before. AJ sat at the far end, nervously watching the door. He’d gotten a text from a number he didn’t recognize. He assumed it was her.
Hoped it was her.
The text had simply said I’m thirsty.
So there he sat, waiting for a woman who never gave him her name, while the beer in front of him grew warm.
He ran his fingers along the condensation on the glass, his nerves nothing but raw tentacles, exposed and jumping around in a state of madness. He’d been at a dead end going on two weeks, completely out of his element, sitting in a pub in Germany with very little of the language inside his brain. The police had rummaged through Amelia’s condo in their half-assed attempt at finding her killer. They questioned him and his parents about a trip that his sister had apparently planned to fly to London. Since Amelia flew for work all the time, he hadn’t thought much about it. When he took the time to look through his sister’s home, he found a calendar with the dates circled and the words Keri’s funeral in the center of the trip. That’s when he followed his gut and flew to Europe. He spent less than forty-eight hours in Wales, realized the common bond his sister had with Keri, and flew to Germany. He really should have gone to Richter with Amelia. Then he’d have a better chance at getting on the inside.
Only he hadn’t taken that opportunity.
The chair on his right scraped against the floor, drawing him out of his thoughts, and Sex on a Stick turned it around and straddled it like a man.
His mouth went dry.
Her hair was pulled back in a single ponytail. Eyes framed with eyeliner she didn’t need and full lips painted red.
He ignored the stirring in his jeans and cleared his throat. “Where did you come from?”
“There’s more than one entrance.”
He glanced behind the bar. “You came in through the kitchen?”
“You must be new.”
AJ scooted his chair closer and tried to keep their conversation to just the two of them. “What’s your name?”
She lifted her chin, waited a beat. “You can call me Sasha.”
“Is that your name?”
“Sometimes.”
Damn, she was a piece of work. “I wasn’t sure you’d call.”
She looked at his glass, took her time moving those dark eyes to him. “What are you drinking?”
He pushed the warm beer aside. “Whatever you want.”
Sasha flagged down a waitress and ordered in German. AJ had no idea what.
Much as he liked to watch her, AJ wasn’t there on a social visit. “Did you find out—”
Sasha leaned forward and stopped his question by placing one long finger on his lips. Her eyes followed her fingertip as it slid off his lips and rested under his chin. She drew him close until their lips were a breath apart.
His entire frame tightened.
“First things first.” Her eyes looked at his lips. The tip of her tongue licked a tiny portion of her upper lip.
His cock stood at full