Chapter Three

      Juliet heard the words that came out of Burgamy’s mouth as if from far away. She searched for a response inside herself—knew she should have some sort of explosive negative comment—but could find only silence.

      She couldn’t go back undercover as Lisa Sinclair. She wasn’t ready. It would be a disaster.

      It ended up she didn’t have to give an answer, anyway. Her brothers took care of the explosive negative comments for her.

      “There’s no way in hell, Burgamy,” Sawyer, her normally laid-back younger brother, said grimly.

      The expletive that came from Cameron should’ve had her smacking his arm or at least telling him to chill out. But Juliet still could find only silence.

      Both brothers stood, now in an open argument with Burgamy, listing the reasons Juliet couldn’t go back undercover as Lisa Sinclair. She wasn’t ready, Burgamy couldn’t force her, she hadn’t had the needed prep time... Juliet just tuned them out as they continued.

      She knew her weaknesses, knew she was a coward. She didn’t need to listen to an active discussion of those facts.

      Juliet looked up from her folded hands to find Evan staring at her across the table.

      She could find no pity in his gaze. Nor disappointment. He actually shrugged and rolled his eyes, gesturing casually with his hand to all the chaos. As if the yelling currently reverberating through the conference room came from preschoolers throwing temper tantrums about sharing their favorite toys, rather than Juliet’s boss asking her to do something that would probably get both her and Evan killed.

      How could Evan take it so lightly?

      Juliet rubbed a hand over her face. There was no point in letting her brothers get in trouble with Burgamy—again—over this. The choice belonged to her and she already knew her answer.

      She stood up, but didn’t try to yell over her brothers, just waited for them to realize she had something to say. Over the years she had perfected that practice.

      Eventually everyone grew silent and looked at her.

      “No. I won’t do it.” Juliet said it plainly, not raising her voice in any way.

      “Juliet,” Burgamy began in his nasally tone, “it’s evident that the mission has a greater chance for success if you are part of it.”

      “I disagree,” she said.

      Burgamy had no intention of giving up so easily. “But Vince Cady and his people will be expecting you to be with Evan. Bob and Lisa Sinclair are a known couple.”

      Juliet held up a hand to silence her boss. “My initial presence might be an asset, I concur. But for any longer term I would just be a liability. Evan can’t babysit me and successfully complete the mission.”

      Now it was Evan who spoke up. “Jules—”

      She turned to him, could see the anguish in his eyes. “No, Evan. I’m not of any use to anybody in the field right now. Trust me.”

      Burgamy was determined to continue his argument. “But—”

      Juliet decided to put a stop to it right now and save them all the trouble. “Respectfully, Burgamy, I’m not an agent anymore. You can’t force me to do this. So let’s not pretend like you can, okay? I’m not going back in the field as Lisa Sinclair.” She turned to Evan. “I won’t risk your life that way.”

      Burgamy wisely didn’t say anything further. He knew Juliet’s words were true. After what had happened to her the last time, no one at Omega would ever try to force her into an undercover assignment. If she ever went under again, it would be her own choice.

      Juliet didn’t see that happening anytime soon, say, for the next twenty years.

      She noticed both her brothers sitting down, evidently accepting the battle was over. Which it was.

      “I’ll help Evan in any way I can,” Juliet said. “I’m willing to be the support team leader, so I can use my experience to assist him.”

      She spoke to Burgamy as she said it, but saw Evan’s surprised look out of the corner of her eye. It was no wonder; for the year that she’d been working as a handler, she’d never volunteered to oversee any of his cases. She’d done some strategy and analysis support for him, but never anything that would keep them in daily contact.

      Working as Evan’s handler would definitely bring the two of them in regular contact. She’d just have to deal with that. Juliet frowned and rubbed the back of her neck. Maybe she was too much of a coward to go back out in the field, but she could at least help him from the safety of Omega Headquarters. She knew staff support wasn’t what Evan really needed from her. Plenty of people were qualified to act as his handler, her two wounded brothers being prime examples. What Evan needed from her was in the field.

      Disgust with herself pitted her stomach.

      Burgamy, having evidently failed in his purpose for being at the meeting, excused himself and left. His assistant trailed after him. With them gone, some of the tension left the room, and quiet conversations started up.

      Juliet looked over at Evan’s handsome face as he spoke to Sawyer about Vince Cady. Evan’s brown hair, cut short and stylishly, and his beautiful hazel eyes, were in sharp contrast to her brother’s darker looks. A small scar marred Evan’s cheek, hardly a centimeter from his left eye. He’d gotten it during a case they’d worked on together, three years ago.

      Evan had fought the bodyguard of a drug lord they’d been investigating. The huge, muscular guard, having found out the two of them were law enforcement, had decided Evan needed only one eye. The thug would’ve been successful in that little venture if Juliet hadn’t helped wrestle the knife away.

      She still smiled a little whenever she thought of that case. Evan had joked a few weeks later, at a Branson family barbecue, that the scar was okay because it finally made him as ugly as her brothers. As if any of them could be called ugly.

      It had been a long time since Juliet had been to one of her family’s barbecues. She wondered if Evan still went, even without her there for the past year and a half. Probably. Her brothers were his best friends.

      The next couple hours were spent discussing details of the case. Evan would meet Vince Cady two days from now, at a place yet to be determined by Cady in Baltimore, which was less than an hour away from DC. There were a lot of unknowns in the case, things Evan would have to figure out on the fly, not unusual in undercover work.

      The primary objective of the case wasn’t the arrest of Vince Cady. Leaving him in play in order to get information on his other contacts and pipelines took precedence. So, although they’d all like to see him behind bars as soon as possible, that wouldn’t happen immediately. Instead, recovery of the surface-to-air missiles—the SAMs—that Cady wanted to sell would be the primary objective. Omega couldn’t allow them to be sold to enemies of the United States.

      And Evan would be the sole person stopping that from happening.

      Juliet ignored the tiny voice inside her that said this mission was too much for one person, even someone as capable as Evan, to handle on his own. Evan would be just fine. And he wouldn’t be alone; he’d have plenty of support from the team here at Omega.

      Juliet pretended that was enough. Because what else could she do?

      Eventually, the meeting wound down as they worked out as many details as they could. The team trickled out one by one, each sure of his or her own assignments. Sawyer and Cameron both hugged her as they left to go back to their own cases, wishing Evan luck, offering their support whenever it was needed.

      Juliet grabbed her own items, preparing to go to her office.