Page 21 of Jack

Astrid paced the large room that somehow seemed small now. “You know there is, but I promise you it has nothing to do with Eidolon. It’s all to do with my past.”

“At the CIA? Is this to do with your sister?”

Astrid stopped pacing not sure what to do. If she told him, she risked him and his men, but if she didn’t, she risked them anyway. “Is the Queen secure?” she asked stalling for time.

“She is.”

Astrid nodded slowly and flexed her fingers in a nervous gesture she thought she’d lost.

Jack stood and came towards her slowly, giving her ample room to move but not enough to run from him. Reaching out, he slowly and tenderly drew her into his arms and held her tight, her head against the firm, steady beat of his heart. Astrid accepted his arms around her and tried to absorb some of his strength into herself.

Astrid wasn’t weak; she was strong, but she was also tired and even if she didn’t want to, she’d brought this to Jack’s door. The right thing was to be honest and upfront with him. “They’re after my sister. They think I can find her.”

“Is that why you believe she’s alive, because the cartel told you?” His lips ruffled her hair as he spoke against her head.

Not wanting to, but knowing she needed space to explain this, she pulled from his hold and immediately felt the loss of his body bolstering her bravery.

Jack pulled some slack into his tux pants legs and leaned against the dresser, folding his arms.

“When I went undercover with Ravelino, it was for intel on his drug and arms trade shipments. The longer I was there, the more I realised my handler was more interested in a previous undercover mission, but he wouldn’t give me any details. Then one day Iago visited the house. I hadn’t seen him before, I’d just been dealing with his brother but Iago took a shine to me.”

“What did your handler say?”

“He told me to play along, give him what he wanted and to find out about his previous girlfriend. I didn’t want to do it, that wasn’t part of the job. I signed up as a maid, not to play the part of whore for the Ravelino brothers, but they kept pushing.”

“So, you gave in and played the part.”

Astrid hung her head, the shame of the job she’d done burning a hole in her chest. “Yes.”

She saw Jack’s jaw twitch and could almost hear the grind of his teeth from where she stood as she glanced at him.

“What led you to believe your sister is alive?”

“A picture of Adeline was in one of the rooms beside the bed. She was dressed differently, but it was her, and she was with Juan Ravelino. I started asking around. When I got the chance, I asked my handler about it, but he got angry and said I wasn’t to ask questions, just get the answers he wanted.”

“And those were?”

“He wanted to know the location of one of the brothels in the south of Mexico.”

“Did he say why?”

“No, but when I kept asking questions, they got suspicious, and the agency burned me.”

“Iago found out you were CIA?”

“Yes.”

“Someone tipped him off?”

Astrid sat back on the bed, suddenly exhausted. “I think so, yes.”

Jack’s brows drew together in a straight, stark line; his body taut with what she recognised as his pissed off stance. “Are you going to let me help you now?”

“Yes.”

He opened his arms. “Good. Now come here.”

The stubborn part of her wanted to resist and tell him no man would ever tell her what to do again, but Jack was different. He wasn’t ordering her around because he thought less of her as a fighter or that she was weak, he was, in his own way, trying to offer comfort. Whether that was for her or him, she didn’t know.