Page 3 of The Bachelor Spy
Her dark auburn hair was pinned back from her face beneath a stylish, fitted straw hat with a single flower at one edge that matched her rose-colored day suit. Those sharp, perceptive eyes—so deep blue they were nearly violet—swept the room in an instant, taking in her brother, then Blake with his gun raised, then the body on the floor.
She was easily as clever as her brother. Dangerous when thwarted. Looked absolutely devastating in rose, which was really quite unfair considering the circumstances.
“Evie, thank God.” Montgomery’s entire demeanor transformed, his voice tensing with barely controlled panic that would have fooled anyone who hadn’t just seen him commit cold-blooded murder. “It’s Blake. He’s the traitor.”
Blake spun his attention back to Montgomery. “I’mwhatnow?”
“He’s the one we’ve been looking for, within our ranks all along. I followed him here—he killed Stein before I could stop him. Before I could gather any intel. He was about to shoot me when you arrived.”
Blake’s stomach dropped to somewhere near his boots. Possibly lower. He was fairly certain it was attempting to relocate to the floor below. He’d walked directly into a perfect trap. “That’s not—Evie, you can’t possibly believe—” He kept his voice steady, his eyes locked on hers. “You know me. You know what I am.”
Something flickered across her face—doubt, perhaps, or pain—but her brother moved between them.
Montgomery, curse him, must have seen it too.
“Don’t listen to him, Evie. He’s been playing us both. Why do you think he was so interested in your work? In getting close to you?” Montgomery’s voice dripped with manufactured hurt. “He knew I suspected him. This was his way of keeping tabs on our investigation.”
“No, Evie—” But how could he compete with the silver-tongued words of her own twin?
“Look at him!” Montgomery gestured at Blake’s drawn weapon, his voice breaking with false anguish. “He’s pointing a gun at meright now.He would have killed me too if you hadn’t come. My own partner. My friend.” He shook his head as if heartbroken by the betrayal. “How long have you been working for them, Blake? How many of our operations have you compromised?”
Evie’s revolver swung toward Blake, but her expression remained carefully neutral. Too neutral. That mask she wore when processing information at lightning speed, when deciding whether someone was lying or telling the truth.
“Evie,listento me.” Ignoring Montgomery entirely, Blake fixed his attention on her. “I heard everything. Your brother was meeting with Stein. They were discussing the Midnight Angel—a female spy embedded in the hospital network. She’s moving to England now, to a convalescent hospital. Your brother shot Stein to silence him before I could get further intelligence.”
“Very creative,” Montgomery said smoothly. “But we both know the Midnight Angel is a ghost story—a rumor the Germans started to keep us chasing shadows while their real operatives slip by unnoticed.” He turned to his sister. “Isn’t that what the briefing said last month?”
“It did.” Evie’s voice was cool, professional. But her eyes—her eyes held a question Blake couldn’t quite read.
Because his mission—thismission—had been privately assigned. Director Lark had feared there was a mole in the division.
And he’d been right. Horribly right.
Montgomery tsked and shook his head. “You’re in a bad spot of it, old chap.”
“I know what I heard.” Blake lowered his gun just enough to encourage Evie to listen. “Your brother was smoking his cigarettes while conducting espionage, Evie. Can’t you smell it? Evidence he’s been here longer than me.”
“Or proof you were confident enough to wait for your mark,” Montgomery countered.
“I’m a cigar man, Montgomery.” Blake arched a brow. “I have standards.”
“Standards don’t pay as well as treachery, it would seem.” Montgomery’s lips curled, his eyes mocking.
There was a distinct difference in the two scents. Evie would know that, surely.
“That may describe you,” Blake shot back, “but it doesn’t describe me.” He turned his full focus on Evie, though his peripheral vision stayed alert. “Ask yourself—why would I kill Steinbeforeextracting his intelligence? That makes no tactical sense.”
“Unless you were his contact,” Montgomery challenged, twisting his own plan and placing Blake in the part. “Unless you knew we were closing in and decided to destroy the evidence.” He sighed heavily. “I never wanted to believe it, Evie. You know how I admire Blake. But the facts are damning.”
Blake’s jaw tightened. Montgomery was good—he’d give him that. Every lie contained just enough truth to make it plausible.
A sound outside snapped all three of them to attention.
“We need to move,” Evie said quietly, though her gun never wavered from Blake’s chest. “Someone might have heard the shot.”
“First, we need to ensure there are no loose ends.” Montgomery grabbed a satchel from the desk, stuffing Stein’s documents inside, and then looked at his sister meaningfully. “You know what needs to be done with atraitor.“
Evie’s composure faltered for the briefest instant, barely a flicker, but Blake caught it. She hadn’t expectedthatorder.
