Striking Distance. Debra Webb

then they would be even...finished.

      Leberman leaned closer and sniffed. “You’ve been with a woman. I smell her perfume.”

      He didn’t bother to respond to that comment, either, though a tendril of uneasiness slid through him. He banished it with the same indifference he displayed for his unwanted guest now. Theirs was not a relationship based on friendship or fondness of any sort. They had only one thing in common. Sheer hatred for the Colby name.

      “Did you fuck her?” Leberman inclined his head thoughtfully. “I think not. Perhaps that’s the reason for your foul mood.” He smiled grotesquely. “She must have seen you for what you are. Pure evil...a beast. Did you let her live in spite of her rebuff?” He sniffed again. “You’re not getting soft are you?”

      Seth locked down all emotion and moved a step closer to the bastard, his fingers fisting tightly to resist the urge to wrap around that scrawny throat. Only with him did he still struggle with the human weakness of baser emotions. “Unless you came here to provide additional instructions, we have nothing to discuss.”

      Leberman peered up at him, studied his face, seemingly oblivious to the hatred radiating in his direction. “I trained you so well. You don’t show the first hint of emotion. Anger now and again, perhaps, but nothing more.”

      This was a waste of time. “Say what you came to say and go.”

      “Pain, death, none of it touches you, does it?” Leberman persisted. He smiled. “You are magnificent.” He shook his head slowly from side to side. “You have no idea how proud I am. Every moment I’ve waited will have been well worth it.” He sighed mightily. “You’re prepared for tomorrow?”

      The question was unnecessary. “Of course.”

      “Good. I’m looking forward to this step more than you can know.”

      Seth said nothing.

      A beat of silence passed. When Leberman would have gone, Seth reluctantly issued a warning of a different sort, “They’re watching me closely now. I don’t think I was followed, but it’s a possibility.” Though he didn’t really care if Leberman was caught or not, it would ruin his own plans at this stage.

      Leberman cocked his head. “Really? I’m surprised you let them that close.” His eyes narrowed. “That’s not like you. It’s her, isn’t it?”

      “I’ll create a diversion so you can go undetected,” he offered and walked away, leaving the bastard to think what he would and not bothering to answer his question. He didn’t give a damn what surprised him.

      If Lucas’s men were out there, as he suspected, all he had to do was set a course for Victoria Colby’s private residence, and they would follow.

      He glanced back at Leberman once more and warned, “Don’t come back.”

      “Just so you know, I will be watching tomorrow,” Leberman told him, an underlying threat in his tone. “I’ll be very careful to stay out of sight, but I will be watching.”

      Seth just wanted him out of his sight. If he chose to watch tomorrow it was of no consequence to him as long as he stayed out of the way and away from him. The death of Lucas Camp only served one purpose as far as Seth was concerned.

      To torture Victoria Colby.

      Chapter 18

      Tasha lay in bed at midnight with no sign of sleep in sight. She couldn’t stop thinking about what Lucas had told her. The package had contained a small boy’s shoe. One of the shoes Victoria Colby’s child had been wearing eighteen years ago when he’d gone missing.

      Victoria had been devastated then and today.

      Tasha thought of the woman she’d met briefly when she delivered the package. Strong, steady, still very attractive at fifty or so. But that woman had been brought to her knees by a horrible reminder of the past.

      Why would Seth do that? Tasha felt certain that he was following Leberman’s orders. Lucas had told her that they suspected this man named Leberman of having taken the child. Once he’d disposed of the body he’d obviously kept souvenirs for later.

      Leberman wanted to make Victoria suffer before he ended her life. Lucas was sure he had more dirty tricks up his sleeve. Tasha also fully understood Lucas’s personal ties now. Victoria Colby.

      Tasha’s thoughts turned to Seth then. Was it about the money? She’d turned the uniform and the bills he’d given her over to Maverick for fingerprinting in hopes of finding Leberman’s or anyone else’s who might be connected. She wondered how much a man like Leberman would pay to hire a man as skilled and ruthless as Seth to carry out this well-planned drama that was supposed to end in death.

      She wondered at the brutalities Seth must have suffered to make him the kind of man he was. She flopped over onto her other side. Why the hell did she care? He was a killer. It didn’t matter what made him that way. Her only job was to stop him once they’d located Leberman.

      Tasha pushed up from the bed and shuffled into the kitchen for a drink. Sleep wasn’t coming. She might as well give up and do something useful. Maybe some yoga. She could definitely handle some relaxation exercises.

      The telephone rang, startling her.

      She blew out a breath. Damn, she was going to have to get a grip here. She strode over to the table next to the sofa and picked up the receiver. It wouldn’t be Maverick, he’d knock on her door.

      “Hello,” she said softly as if she’d been awakened, though she really didn’t expect to hear from Seth again this soon.

      “There’s a cab waiting outside.”

      Seth.

      Anticipation seared through her. “A cab? Where am I going?” She glanced at the clock, 12:35 a.m.

      “I think you know.”

      An audible click told her he’d hung up.

      She lowered the receiver and dropped it back into its cradle.

      For a while Tasha simply stood there trying to decide if she could take this step or not.

      She knew what he wanted.

      Had felt the primal urgency in his kiss that afternoon. Had also felt his resistance. He didn’t want to want her.

      She closed her eyes and ordered her heart rate to slow. Sleeping with him was supposed to be a last resort. But nothing was as it should be with him. She needed that closer connection with him. She needed him to need her. Seduction was her only option.

      Rather than stand there rationalizing further, she did what she had to do.

      She dressed for the occasion.

      Short black skirt, matching thong, even shorter gold top, no bra, no hose. She slid her feet into strappy black sandals and looked herself over. The hesitation she saw in her own eyes was unlike her...she shouldn’t hesitate. This wasn’t personal. It was business—essential to the mission. She’d known going in that it might come to this. She shook her head and looked away from the lie in her eyes. Somehow, stupidly, she had waited for this moment. She hoped like hell her motivation was grounded in the mission. But she had a very bad feeling that it wasn’t.

      Tossing her toothbrush and other essentials into a bag, she glanced at the gun she’d left lying on the toilet tank. But she couldn’t risk him finding it. She had mace. That would have to be sufficient. He was a lot bigger than her, but she could fight as well as any man. On second thought she removed the patch and tossed it into the trash. Maverick knew his location. She wasn’t going to risk having to explain the patch to Seth. Or worse, have him detect its signal if he chose to do a body sweep.

      As he’d said, a cab waited at the curb. She climbed in, and the driver pulled out onto the street without asking for directions. Maverick would be furious, but it wasn’t like they didn’t know where Seth lived now. Her