into the flow of traffic into Gamla Stan and she was left trying to absorb the surreal—she’d just had a gun pulled on her in broad daylight. Trembling started in the long muscles of her thighs.
Bax turned to her with a face like thunder. “What the hell were you thinking?” he snapped. “You could have gotten yourself killed.” Then his eyes narrowed and he took her arm.
She pulled away from him. “Don’t grab me.”
“Sit,” he ordered, “now. You look like you’re going to keel over.”
She stood, face mutinous. “I’m fine.”
“You almost weren’t.”
“He wouldn’t have hurt me,” she retorted with more confidence than she felt.
“He had a gun on you, Joss.” He took a few steps away and swung back to her.
“He was trying to scare me.”
“And you’re a fool if he didn’t succeed. He doesn’t mess around.”
“He wouldn’t have done anything here in public,” she insisted, clinging to it. “Too many people could have seen him.”
Bax gave her an incredulous look. “You have no idea who you’re dealing with. I once saw him shoot a man in a crowd of people and just walk away.”
Her jaw dropped and she closed it with a snap. “I don’t believe you.” But in her gut, she knew it was true.
“Joss, accept it,” Bax said wearily. “You’re out of your league trying to deal with him. You don’t know what he’s capable of. I do.”
“But you said you saved his life. How could you save the life of a killer?”
“Because it wasn’t my place to say he should die.”
“That sounds like a line from a bad TV show.”
“It’s anything but TV, which you have got to realize if you’re going to go any further with this. And you have got to start listening to me or this little game is over,” he said, coldly furious. “I thought we’d agreed that you weren’t coming out here.”
And now they were getting to the heart of it all. “We never agreed to anything. You just gave the orders and assumed I’d go along. Well, it doesn’t work that way, Bax.” She stood nose to nose with him, glaring. “This isn’t about just you. I’m a part of this too, remember? We’re a team.”
“Then act like it. You can’t just go off and do things on your own without telling me.”
“And you can’t just arbitrarily run the show and order me around,” she retorted.
“You hired me because of what I know.”
“I hired you to help, not to wade in and be John Wayne. I told you from the beginning I was going to work on this project, too.” Her voice rose.
“This isn’t a game, Joss. You’re not some character in a novel.”
“I know that, but I’ve got to be a part of this.”
“Why?” he demanded in frustration.
“Because it was my fault,” she burst out.
On the bridge leading to Gamla Stan, horns rang out. Bax stood staring at her.
Joss swallowed. “The one-penny Mauritius isn’t just a valuable stamp, it’s a big part of my grandfather’s retirement. And it was my screwup that let it get stolen.” She turned and sank down on the bench behind her, putting her face in her hands. Bax sat beside her.
“You had a lot of very driven people after those stamps. One way or another, they were going to get them.”
“It doesn’t matter. Reality was, I was the one who made it easy for them.”
“And how, exactly, was that? Did you hand them over?”
“No.”
“Did you insist the stamps be kept in the safe instead of a bank vault where they belonged?”
“No, but I just as good as handed Jerry the key. He’d come to work for us because I didn’t want to work alone. He and I were the only ones in the store when he stole them. Gwen was out of town—she’d given me the key and combination to the safe. I locked them in the desk and went out for lunch.” Joss turned to look out at the water. “That was all it took.”
Let her deal with it, Bax told himself, but he found himself reaching out to rub his hand comfortingly over her back. “If he was a
Bax turned to her with a face like thunder. “What the hell were you thinking?” he snapped. “You could have gotten yourself killed.” Then his eyes narrowed and he took her arm.
She pulled away from him. “Don’t grab me.”
“Sit,” he ordered, “now. You look like you’re going to keel over.”
She stood, face mutinous. “I’m fine.”
“You almost weren’t.”
“He wouldn’t have hurt me,” she retorted with more confidence than she felt.
“He had a gun on you, Joss.” He took a few steps away and swung back to her.
“He was trying to scare me.”
“And you’re a fool if he didn’t succeed. He doesn’t mess around.”
“He wouldn’t have done anything here in public,” she insisted, clinging to it. “Too many people could have seen him.”
Bax gave her an incredulous look. “You have no idea who you’re dealing with. I once saw him shoot a man in a crowd of people and just walk away.”
Her jaw dropped and she closed it with a snap. “I don’t believe you.” But in her gut, she knew it was true.
“Joss, accept it,” Bax said wearily. “You’re out of your league trying to deal with him. You don’t know what he’s capable of. I do.”
“But you said you saved his life. How could you save the life of a killer?”
“Because it wasn’t my place to say he should die.”
“That sounds like a line from a bad TV show.”
“It’s anything but TV, which you have got to realize if you’re going to go any further with this. And you have got to start listening to me or this little game is over,” he said, coldly furious. “I thought we’d agreed that you weren’t coming out here.”
And now they were getting to the heart of it all. “We never agreed to anything. You just gave the orders and assumed I’d go along. Well, it doesn’t work that way, Bax.” She stood nose to nose with him, glaring. “This isn’t about just you. I’m a part of this too, remember? We’re a team.”
“Then act like it. You can’t just go off and do things on your own without telling me.”
“And you can’t just arbitrarily run the show and order me around,” she retorted.
“You hired me because of what I know.”
“I hired you to help, not to wade in and be John Wayne. I told you from the beginning I was going to work on this project, too.” Her voice rose.
“This isn’t a game, Joss. You’re not some character in a novel.”
“I know that, but I’ve got to be a part of this.”
“Why?” he demanded in frustration.
“Because it was my fault,” she burst out.
On the bridge leading to Gamla Stan, horns rang out. Bax stood staring at her.
Joss swallowed. “The one-penny Mauritius isn’t just a valuable stamp, it’s a big part of my grandfather’s retirement. And it was my screwup that let it get stolen.” She turned and sank down on the bench behind her, putting her face in her hands. Bax sat beside her.
“You had a lot of very driven people after those stamps. One way or another, they were going to get them.”
“It doesn’t matter. Reality was, I was the one who made it easy for them.”
“And how, exactly, was that? Did you hand them over?”
“No.”
“Did you insist the stamps be kept in the safe instead of a bank vault where they belonged?”
“No, but I just as good as handed Jerry the key. He’d come to work for us because I didn’t want to work alone. He and I were the only ones in the store when he stole them. Gwen was out of town—she’d given me the key and combination to the safe. I locked them in the desk and went out for lunch.” Joss turned to look out at the water. “That was all it took.”
Let her deal with it, Bax told himself, but he found himself reaching out to rub his hand comfortingly over her back. “If he was a
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