CHAPTER
1
WALTER NASH WAS JOLTED AWAKEas the jet he was on en route to Hong Kong encountered some rough air. He turned to see his employer, Rhett Temple, sitting next to him.
Nash’s now-alert gaze then moved to Lynn Ryder, who was asleep in a forward seat on the privately owned plane soaring westward toward Asia. Ryder was in her thirties with long white hair that was either colored or natural, he didn’t know which. She was also an emissary for Victoria Steers, one of the most dangerous criminals in the world. They were currently aboard Steers’s jet and were traveling to see the woman, at her behest.
He next glanced out the window and saw his image reflected back. That spurred Nash toreflecton his life. He used to be a mild-mannered, law-abiding business executive, tall and skinny, with no discernible muscle, a full head of hair, and nary a tattoo within a mile of him. Out of necessity Nash had shaved his head, grown facial hair, and transformed himself into a muscled and tatted fighting machine, complete with a new identity: Dillon Hope, personal security expert. No one—not even his wife, Judith—now recognized him.
He had gone from reviewing business plans and acquiring companies and flying on corporate jets, with not a whiff of intrigue or danger in his life, to playing a deadly game of cat and mouse and having to fool everyone around him into believing he really was Dillon Hope. Because he knew that Lynn Ryder and Victoria Steers wanted nothing more than to kill Walter Nash because he had been recruited by the FBI to help bring down the Steers criminal empire.
I truly am living in the upside-down world. And I seriously doubt I will ever get back to my world, if it even still exists.
He turned to Temple, the CEO of Sybaritic Investments, Nash’s former employer. The man had been across the aisle when Nash first shut his eyes, and Nash wondered why he had changed seats. It was a small detail, but Nash sensed that even seemingly trivial acts clearly mattered right now.
As Dillon Hope, Nash had dexterously placed himself in a position to be employed as his old boss’s personal bodyguard, without Temple having any clue as to Nash’s real identity.
Speaking in the slow, deliberate tone he had adopted as Hope’s voice, Nash said, “Is there a problem?”
Temple replied quietly, “Look, Dillon, it’s delicate, but Victoria Steers is not. . .completely on the up-and-up.”
“Okay,” said Nash cautiously. “Meaning what exactly?”
“She’s. . .well, dangerous. And I don’t want you to slip up and get yourself in trouble when you meet her.”
Nash thought it far more likely that Temple didn’t want Nash to gethimin trouble with the villainous Steers.
Though he well knew the answer, Nash asked, “Exactly how is she not on the up-and-upanddangerous?”
“She’s into illegal drug distribution on a global scale. And she has people killed.That’show.”
Nash stared back in feigned astonishment at his boss. “What the hell, Mr. Temple? Why is a rich guy like you involved with her?”
“It’s a long story, Dillon. My father. . .he was working with her to recoup his fortune and he got me involved. I wish I had an out but I don’t. I really don’t. Trust me, I’ve tried.”
“So she wants to meet? Why?”
Temple leaned in closer and said in a near whisper, “The FBI has tried to make some inroads at my company, finding a mole—a spy there to help them.”
Nash let his jaw go slack. “The FBI! Jesus, Mr. Temple, I didn’t sign up for this.”
“Then you shouldn’t have come,” said a voice.
Both men looked up to see Ryder standing in the aisle, scowling at them. “In fact, as I made very clear, I did not want you to come.”
Nash glanced at Temple before saying, “As his personal security guard, I insisted on coming because I was concerned with Mr. Temple’s safety. But, frankly, I might have declined if I had knownallthe facts.”
Ryder gave Temple a withering look. “And now that you have been providedsomefacts, we will see what happens when we arrive in Hong Kong.” She walked back to her seat.
Temple glanced at Nash. “Dillon, I’m sorry you got caught up in all this. I really am.”
He returned to his seat, where he closed his eyes and started taking deep, calming breaths.
Nash looked out the window, his heart heavy but his spirits coalescing around a possible opportunity.Well, Nash, this might be the end of you. But if I go down, I’m taking others with me. Starting with Victoria Steers.
CHAPTER
2