Raven's Prey

business. The shattering of the illusion had been acutely painful, physically and emotionally.
    “Why did Prager convince Garrison to take you along?”
    She glanced at him sharply and then looked away. [_”Nick _]and I were seeing each other whenever he was in Phoenix. He wanted me with him.” How much of this was Judd going to believe?
    “A long-distance romance?” Judd asked derisively.
    “Damn it! You said you wouldn’t interrupt!”
    “Just trying to get the story straight.” But that hard, unreadable expression in his eyes didn’t give Honor any clue as to whether or not he really was buying a single sentence of her tale. “Were you sleeping with him, then?”
    “No, as a matter of fact, I was not sleeping with Nick,” she told him tightly. “But we were becoming very close… Never mind. At any rate, I was elated at the idea of traveling. Taiwan was a fantastic experience and I got a chance to see how Garrison and Prager worked abroad. They’re both consummate businessmen. They know the ins and outs of doing business in that part of the world like the back of their hands. And they have an incredible number of friends and contacts. I was very impressed. Then came Hong Kong.”
    “I sense the punch line coming up,” Judd growled.
    “Hong Kong ” Honor explained very carefully, “was where I learned that in addition to their legitimate work Nick and Leo went into an interesting sideline.”
    “Which was?”
    “Gunrunning. They buy and sell illegal arms all over that part of the world. Their regular business makes an excellent cover and provides them with countless contacts. It was my bad luck to stumble into the middle of a transaction involving several crates of automatic rifles and small arms.”
    “You just [_stumbled _]into the middle of such a deal?” Judd asked wryly as he sipped the strong coffee he had made.
    Honor bit her lip as she realized how wild the whole thing must sound to him. “Leo and Nick had left me alone at the hotel while they supposedly went out one evening to a business dinner. While they were gone an important call came in from one of our best clients. He needed some information that I knew was in one of the files in the Hong Kong office. Eager to show my initiative and dedication I grabbed a taxi and rushed down to the office myself to get the information. Leo and Nick weren’t due back until very late and I thought I’d impress everyone by taking care of the matter myself. Shows what initiative will do for a woman,” Honor added caustically, remembering.
    By now she had the horrible feeling she’d probably lost her audience entirely. Judd wasn’t giving any outward indication of his reaction but she sensed his remote cynicism as if it were a tangible thing. There was nothing left to do but plow on with the story. In a flat, bleak tone she did so.
    “I let myself into the building and went straight up[_ _]to the third floor where Garrison and Prager had their offices. I was in the hallway just outside, about to insert my key in the lock, when I realized there was a light on inside and heard the sound of voices. It was the voices which scared me first. There was a terrible argument going on and I could hear Nick and then Leo. They were threatening a couple of other people. Something about a shipment that hadn’t been paid for. The other voices claimed the rifles and small arms hadn’t come with proper ammunition. Nick and Leo claimed that the others were lying and said they wouldn’t okay delivery on the next batch of arms until the first had been paid for. I was terrified and shocked and in panic. I knew I was overhearing far too much for my own good and that if Nick and Leo realized I was outside in the hall my life probably wouldn’t be worth much. So I ran. As I started down the stairs I tripped. They must have heard the noise because by the time I reached the first floor I could hear them yelling on the staircase. As I dashed out into the street I beard Nick call my name. He was leaning out of the second-story window.”
    “What did you do?”
    She could hear the disbelief in his voice. There was no point going into all the details, reliving the terror of that horrible night. I started running and I haven’t stopped since,” she said in a flat tone.
    “But first you went home to Phoenix?”
    She nodded. “I had to go home, but I knew I would be a sitting duck in Arizona. Nick and Leo would be able to take their time hunting me down on my own