Deceptive Treasures: Slye Temp Book 5 (9 page)

She said, “Seven, maybe eight kilometers.”

One of the physicists grumbled at hearing that. Probably Har.

Tanner ignored them. Reaching the other side of the river wasn’t the problem. It was how to get his group a hundred miles south of Pyongyang to a bridge near Panmunjom
where they could cross the DMZ. The possibility for success of this mission was dropping by the minute.

The last thing he wanted to do was share what he and his team planned with any of the North Koreans, especially Jin, since he knew zip about her
. He told her, “Wait over there with the other two until one of us comes to get you three.”

Her eyes flared at that order
.

He’d insulted her by grouping her with her co-workers
? That was the least of his concerns.

The minute she was out of earshot, Nick volunteered, “I’ve got an idea.”

When Nick offered an idea it had equal potential to be a highly successful magic act or a major clusterfuck, but this was the kind of night that they needed to pull a rabbit out of somebody’s backside.

Tanner qualified the offer by asking, “How much of Pyongyang will still be standing when we leave?”

“Is that mission critical?”

Tanner didn’t have to look at Dingo or Blade to know they were thinking the same thing he was. “Not particularly.”

Nick grinned. “Then this’ll be fun.”

Chapter
Ten

Jin watched Bo stride toward her with a confidence she envied. What would it be like to have been born a man who had a choice in his life? She didn’t know, but was going to find out about having choices one day if she survived this escape.

He stopped and dropped into a squat beside where she sat
. “Go with my men and do as they say.”

She was wet and cold and she’d hit her fill of orders, but she’d learned a long time ago that men didn’t care what a woman thought
. “Where are you going?”

“That’s not your concern, just do as you’re told.”

“Perhaps I could help you with whatever you are going to do.”  Why did she even offer? Let the arrogant man get his head blown off. But the vision of him shot and bleeding bothered her. More than she wanted to admit. Her head should be checked for caring what happened to a man standing in the way of her getting to the US.

“I don’t need your help.”

She asked, “What will you do if you are caught or shot?”  Clearly her head had not been checked, because she did care.

His eyes lit with the devil
. He leaned down so close only she could hear his words. “Worried about me again, Jin?”

She crossed her arms and gave him a look she hoped sliced through his cockiness
. “Of course I am.”

When his lips twitched with the start of a smile, she added, “You are my way out of here. Even a cowboy knows a live horse is of more use than a dead one.”

He huffed out a growl and stood. “Just stick close to my men. They won’t be understanding if you step out of line.”

She stood up beside him
. He was not joking.

“I’ll be a good little woman,” she snarled.

He shook his head and walked away with the tall, dark one called the Italian Stallion.

She knew what that term meant, but that one was not as attractive as the cowboy.

What was wrong with her? How could she find that arrogant, oversized mountain attractive?

“Let’s go,” Dingo said, but not as an order
.

She rubbed her eyes with the heels of her hands and followed him
. He led their five-person group from gap to gap along the waterfront, slipping between trees, then buildings that were closed for the night. During the half-kilometer trek, she struggled not to look over her shoulder for the irritating mountain.

Only a fool would care what happened to him.

She finally looked back. And again.

Confirmed. She was a fool. Had to be exhaustion. She’d been up for most of the past two days
.  

When they reached the point on the Taedong River where a canal split off to the right, Dingo directed them to wait beneath the north end of the Yanggak Bridge where the tall support structure offered places to sit.

They were safe for the moment.

But only while it was nighttime
.

Come daylight, they would have to find a real place to hide. This was going to take
much longer than she’d expected. If someone had not located the evidence against Pang’s boss so quickly, this team would have used its resources to take Pang and Har out of here by now.

The damage to their exit plan was her fault.

But only because the soldiers had been too quick. She had waited as late as she’d thought safe to plant it, but in this country suspicion ran high and the leader expected all his men to watch for evidence of traitors.

But mistakes sometimes had an upside
. Would this team have allowed her to stay with them so long if she hadn’t proved to be useful?

Doubtful.

Still, what if they did not take her ...

She’d worry about that if and when it happened
. As her calculus teacher had once told her, “Worry
often gives a small thing a big shadow.” 

Her worries had many large shadows, such as the soldiers who’d been waiting at her apartment. By now, they knew she’d either aided Pang and Har in escaping or that she was with them.

She didn’t believe Pang’s superior in the lab knew that she’d been the one carrying messages for this defection, or for other escapes, but it wouldn’t take long for someone to make that leap.

Or torture that information from someone.

Stop wasting time on what you cannot control.

It was nice to have a place to sit while they waited, but she needed to get up and pace. Anything that would ward off the cold seeping through her damp clothes and into her skin, robbing what heat she’d gained from the last hike.

Har started coughing again.

Blade, the medic, rushed over and squatted down to give Har something again to keep him silent.

Pang chose that moment to rise from where he’d been squatting and walk over to Jin.

Her muscles tensed automatically, ready to fight
. Blade cast a look her way that would have eased her tension if not for the way he dismissed her and went back to treating Har.

Pang waited until he was close to once again ask, “Why are you here?”

But his tone bordered on pleasant this time.

She wasn’t sure what he was up to, so she kept her voice as soft as his, saying only, “If I were not, you would be captured right now.”

“I am not so sure. Maybe you told the soldiers we were leaving.”

There was a kernel of truth in what he said, but she had not betrayed the plan for their exit
. She had merely planted the information about Myong so the bastard would not get his hands on a thirteen-year-old girl. She had dodged Pang’s sexual advances for weeks until she’d been cornered, but she’d broken free before he could do real damage. The worst he’d dealt her since then was spewing poison about her. Pang might believe she was stupid enough to seek revenge, but her chance to get to America was too important to ruin it just because she hated him. Too much was at stake.

There were many things she wanted to shout at him
. Now was not the time. She moved the conversation away from talk of soldiers and pointed out, “You give no thought to what I have had to do tonight.”

He scoffed, a nasty sound from a nasty man. “If you did not betray us, then you came
to save yourself. Not for me.”

He was almost correct
. She would not waste her life protecting him, but she would die for her sister and to prevent many other innocent people from dying. Jin had carried a grudge against American men for her whole life, but she would not hold an entire country of people at fault for one man’s actions.

Jin would never agree to participate in harming others
. And neither would her sister, but her sister had no idea that she would soon be manipulated to do something horrible, and that she would not live long enough to suffer regret. If she did know and could not avoid her role, she’d never forgive herself.

Pang’s eyes narrowed with hatred
. “I do not want you here.”   

Jin would no longer allow him to treat her as he had in the past
. “I risked all to help you and still you antagonize me and try to make me feel lower than dirt. You should take care who you choose as an enemy.”

Pang’s chin went up another regal inch. “Your blood is tainted. You are less than dirt
. You are nothing.”

Dingo appeared almost instantly behind Pang, his exposed eye taking them in with harsh judgment
. “Settle your differences later.”

Pang jammed his mouth shut and glared at her as if it was her fault the operative had castigated him. As the senior physicist in his department, Pang was considered the golden one upon whom everyone showered attention and praise
. He believed himself as significant as an elite and tolerated no one talking down to him.

He might need these American operatives now, but his arrogance would be in full bloom again once the time came to show what he knew
.

She had warned him that she was his enemy
. He should not be surprised by what she intended to do once she arrived in the US. The world would be a better place had Pang’s father invested in condoms, and used them.

But to keep the peace for now, Jin swallowed her disgust.

Dingo moved to step away and tensed, listening with a finger to his earpiece.

The Aussie told Blade, “They’re on the way.”

Did he mean Bo?

Glad to finally be somewhere with enough ambient light to see what was going on, Jin’s gaze wandered to the water when the bow of a boat came into view as it passed the dock where a fishing trawler was tied up.

Blade said, “That beats walking.”

Bo and his friend had found a boat? Jin started to smile until she realized what kind of boat was coming.

A DPRK patrol boat cruised down the river.

Toward her group.

Bo was insane. She had picked the wrong person to take her out of North Korea. These men would not make it beyond the next bend in the river before they were captured. Did they think they could just drive away in a stolen DPRK patrol boat?

Her mountain would die a painful death, because the military in this country would abuse them badly before accusing America of stealing their physicists.

And she would be captured with them. She kicked that thought away, prepared to argue with her rocks-for-brains mountain.

The patrol boat rumbled and belched diesel fumes as it moved slowly toward the bank
near the bridge supports.

Bo stepped around the cockpit and waved them forward
. The man even waved his hand like an order.

Her sense of survival warned her not to climb on that boat, but what was her second choice?

Walk away and let her sister fall victim to men like Pang?

Pang hurried past her and one sneer from him was all the motivation she needed to rush over and take Bo’s hand. He yanked her up and onboard as if she weighed nothing
.

She would keep Pang in sight at all times
.

As much as she hated it, she needed him.

Chapter Eleven

The only positive to stealing a patrol boat on the Taedong River was the additional weapons and ammo onboard.

The immediate downside was that Tanner’s team would very likely need that firepower before they got off this tub.

He squatted on the deck to minimize his silhouette as much as possible. Propping his weapon on the transom at the back of the boat, he pointed it toward Pyongyang to cover their asses as they cruised away from the city and toward the Yellow Sea. The deck smelled of dried fish and diesel. His clothes were drying out from the tunnel diving, but not fast enough.

Damned cold air.

Dingo snuck down beside him, using the transom to prop his weapon, too. “How long before they report this missing, mate?”

“With any luck, not until daylight. We gave the two men guarding it a lights-out tap and locked them in the back of a truck that looked to be out of commission. It was parked way off to the side with weeds growing up around it.”  Tanner wouldn’t leave someone to starve to death
. The truck was close enough to the delivery area of a nearby building for someone to hear two men yelling.

That was, once they woke up, figured out how to untie each other and got their gags off.

“Har’s helping Nick figure out the controls.”

Tanner glanced over his shoulder to see Har wrapped up in a life jacket, translating as Nick pointed at different gauges and kept the boat at quarter speed. “Har’s being Mr. Helpful because he’s terrified of this thing sinking
. He doesn’t realize Nick won’t be cruising this slow any longer than it takes Har to explain everything on the dash.”

Dingo chuckled in agreement.

Pang stood on the passenger side of the cockpit, staring out at nothing, shoulders drooped in a sulking pose.
Not a glamorous extraction like in the movies, huh?

Cutting his gaze back at Dingo, Tanner said, “We should put those two down in the cabin.”

“I’m on it.”  Dingo was up and gone.

Tanner watched the lights of Pyongyang shrink into the distance.

“Hold on,” was all Captain Nick called out before he kicked it in the ass.

Tanner heard a shout that was too high-pitched to be male.

He flipped around and grabbed a fistful of Jin’s clothing just before she would have taken a nosedive over the transom.

She locked her fingers on his arm and dropped down beside him, swinging around to face forward.

Nick cut the running lights and the boat morphed into a black ghost ship riding the waves. Jet engines rumbled even at this slow speed, but another point for stealing one of these was that jet propulsion didn’t require propellers.

Loud, but dependable on this type of boat.

Jin was breathing fast by the time she settled with her back propped against the aluminum transom.

Tanner returned to his watch position, asking, “What are you doing back here?”

“Wasting my time most likely.” 

Why’s she annoyed at me?
I just kept her from going swimming
. Waiting to reply paid off. She grumbled, “Your man is not a good boat captain.”

“He’s doing a great job.”

“He does not check to see that everyone is seated before taking off and he has turned off all the lights. How will anyone see this boat?”

“First off, you were told to stay in the cabin when you boarded the boat.”

She made a noise at that. “The cabin stinks. Filthy men live on this boat.”

Did she mean
all
men were filthy or just the men who had operated this boat? Hmm. Tanner continued, “Number two, the lights are out specifically so no one sees us.”

“What if another boat approaches?”

“We won’t hit them, because they’ll have their bow lights on.” 

“You hope.”

Did she have to challenge every word out of his mouth? “I
know
. What civilian in this country wants to risk pissing off a DPRK patrol boat by running with no lights?”

What? No more questions
? Mission accomplished. He ordered his gaze to stay on the water and stop darting over to see her nibbling on her bottom lip. She had sweet lips. Kissable.

But so had another scientist.

There you go, Tanner
.
Perfect way to kill any sexual interest.

“This is your plan for escape?” She grumbled to herself before her gaze pinned him with accusation
.

“Yes.”  That wasn’t exactly the truth, but he’d had enough of questions
.

Next she’d want to know what he planned to do about the thunderstorm that blocked out what little moonlight they’d had. This boat was tough enough to handle rough seas, but a tall-enough rogue wave in the open sea could toss a much larger craft. At this point, a fair amount of his
plan
depended on luck.

He searched beyond the wake frothing bright in his monocular and settled in for the fifty-mile ride down the river to the Yellow Sea
.

They might make it that far
if
they managed to pass through the locks at the dam without any incident.

Nick had the boat cruising at thirty knots
. With no delays, they’d reach the sea in about eighty minutes.

North Korea had built a dam that prevented the Taedong freshwater from mixing with the saltwater so they could use the river for irrigation
. That had probably looked better on paper.

Now the contained water had no way to naturally purify itself, so the dam had not only flooded farmlands but the water was contaminated
. Just another way to screw the poor citizens trying to survive here.

“They will attack a patrol boat if they realize who has control of it, even if their own men are onboard,” Jin said loud enough to remind Tanner that she was still sitting inches away
.

He hadn’t forgotten
. His body hadn’t either, in spite of his remembered history with Allie. Studying the night skies had done nil to send Big John back into hibernation. Weird to have this reaction to a woman just because he was sitting close to her.

“Don’t you see the beauty in taking a patrol boat?” he said, and smothered a smile at
her scowl.

He’d never admit that he’d had the same reservation when he and Nick had found this boat shoved up against the bank
. Nick had taken one look, grinned and suggested, “What better boat to drive down the middle of the Taedong River than one that belongs to the military? Who’s going to bother us?”

Nobody, or maybe the entire fucking DPRK naval fleet.

Nick had made a valid point, even if a Vegas bookmaker wouldn’t take this gamble for all the money in China
. Tanner shrugged at Jin, who shook her head and muttered, “We’re all going to die.”

She huddled into herself
. Had to be cold. She didn’t weigh enough to keep a mouse warm, but she wouldn’t admit being uncomfortable. Not when she could berate Tanner some more.

“What if you run out of fuel
? Did you even check?”

“There’s fuel.”  To be honest, he and Nick had guessed at which control indicated fuel level, but Nick and Har should have that figured out by now.

Jin wasn’t done chewing on him. “What if you meet another patrol boat and they call you on the radio? What will you tell them?”

“I don’t know.” There were so many ifs at this
point, Tanner needed a spreadsheet to keep up with them. He finally gave her his full attention, and it was loaded with irritation. “If I stop to wonder about every possible problem, I would’ve thought twice about bringing you with us.”

Her lips opened in a small O before she snapped them shut and looked away
. “I should have known better.”

Better than what?

Had he hurt her feelings?

He was too freakin’ tired and on edge about getting out of here for her to push him constantly
. Women would forever be his downfall. He couldn’t let one face a threat alone. He couldn’t leave this one to face the fury of a military they’d outmaneuvered, with her help.

And he couldn’t tolerate answering to anyone other than Sabrina when he was in the middle of an op, responsible for getting his team—and his own ass—out of the fire
.

Jin’s fingers touched his arm
. “I am sorry. I am saying that this is madness. There must be a better way.”

She had that right about this being madness, but Tanner had been stuck playing the only hand left on the table
.
There must be a better way.
He’d heard those words before from another woman who hadn’t appreciated the sacrifice he’d made.

Screw that
.

If Jin didn’t like the way he and his men were getting them out of Dodge, she didn’t have to stay for the ride
. He caught her chin with his fingers and turned her head to him to make sure she heard him. “You were the one who decided to join us. Say the word and I’ll drop you off somewhere.”

He knew she couldn’t see his face, but he sure as hell saw the stricken look on hers
. She snatched her chin from his hand, wrapped her arms around her knees and stared at nothing.

“I cannot go back.”

He barely heard her words over the roar of the jet engine beneath them. The desperation in those four words slugged him and forced the truth to surface.

He’d never leave her in the middle of nowhere.

Instead of hammering on him further, she explained, “After I saw Pang’s boss dragged away, I ran home. Soldiers were waiting outside my apartment. No place will be safe for me anywhere in this country, or for anyone who associates with me, if I go back. I was lucky to get away when I could.”

Maybe she was telling the truth about everything and she really did just want to defect
. “So their boss is the reason someone got to our truck.”

She looked away.

Tanner’s conscience played handball with his suspicions. “Jin?”

“I heard him admit that he knew Pang and Har were defecting. He said something about the truck. That was all I heard.”

But she’d known the truck had been part of the exit plan and where it was parked. “How is it that you knew so many details about tonight?”

She raised that stunning gaze at him
. “I told you that I carried messages.”

“Who gave—
”  Tanner banged his elbow when the boat bumped over a wake from a craft going toward the city. He repeated, “Who gave you the messages and who did you give them to?”

“I am not told names.”  She looked away
. Again.

Hadn’t she been taught how that was the wrong body signal for telling the truth?

Evidently not. “So you just accepted what some stranger told you to do then did whatever he or she said to do? That sounds pretty ... naïve.” He exchanged stupid for naive at the last moment.

She wasn’t stupid by any definition, but she was naïve.

Insulting her would shut her down faster than an antagonized clam.

But she didn’t miss the subtle cut. “It is more complicated than that, cowboy
. Why must you be so suspicious? You are most annoying. Your intelligence people must have been satisfied with the information they received or you would not be here.”

“We were told to confirm two defectors and extract them. We confirmed Pang and Har. Not you
. I shouldn’t have to tell you that you won’t be treated the same as those two since your name was never in any information related to this.”

Reality of her situation hit straight between her eyes, which clouded with worry. She turned away, refusing to engage any further.

It was the truth. So why did he feel like he’d broken her favorite toy?

The boat leaned into a hard curve on Tanner’s side of the deck and Jin slid into him
.

He caught her with one hand again.

Her face was right up next to his. Those eyes flared with an awareness that bloomed in her face and the first thing that popped into his mind came out of his mouth.

“How old are you?”

“Why do you care?”

“You don’t look old enough to be doing any of this.”

“I am twenty four. How old are you?” she countered right back, then her eyes shone with mischief and she added, “You look too
old
to be doing this.” 

“Thirty one.” And some days he’d agree that he was getting too old to be doing this
. He put his time in at the gym when he was in a city for more than a week or two, but all the exercise in the world couldn’t cure years of being knocked around, shot and cut.

She cocked her head to one side in thought
. “How long have you done this kind of work?” 

An innocent enough question, but this was not the time to get social with the one person on this boat who was more mystery than asset
. He said, “That’s more than you need to know about me.”