“Axel’s here, so go back to sleep.” Lachlan pressed a quick kiss to her lips. “Stay out of trouble.”
She closed her eyes. “Not like I asked to be attacked or kidnapped, Lachlan.”
Another kiss, this one to her shoulder, and then he was gone.
Rowan dozed but didn’t drop back into a deep sleep. Finally, she decided it was time to get up and see if she could help in any way.
Once she was showered and dressed, she found Axel sitting on the couch, tapping on a laptop.
“Morning,” she said.
He looked up and smiled that slow smile of his.
She shook her head. The man was way too attractive. It oozed out of his pores. “Don’t smile like that until I’ve had some coffee,” she grumbled.
His sexy smile widened.
Rowan made a beeline for the coffee machine. Once she’d taken a few sips of her mocha—sweet, sweet caffeine hitting her system—she headed in Axel’s direction.
“Any news?”
He shook his head, frustration creasing his brow. “Bunch of random sightings. Lachlan and the team are checking them out.”
“Sorry you got stuck babysitting.” She dropped down beside him. He had a map of Las Vegas on the television screen. It was covered with a smattering of glowing dots.
He grunted.
“These the sightings?” she asked.
He nodded. “One at the MGM Grand, one at the T-Mobile Arena, and the fountain at the Bellagio. Frozen solid, by the way.”
She sipped her coffee. The sightings all seemed pretty random. She stilled. “Wait. Nat lives at the MGM. She told me about a show that’s on there. A magic show on ice.”
Axel frowned. “So?”
“So, the Bellagio’s fountain froze, and there was a sighting near a show on ice. What’s on at the T-Mobile Arena right now?”
Axel quickly tapped in a search. “Shit. The Vegas Golden Knights are playing. The ice-hockey team.” He tapped again. “You might be onto something, Dr. Schafer. Brooks?”
Brooks’ face appeared on the screen. He looked tired and rumpled, and clearly hadn’t slept. “At your service.”
“Rowan noticed something,” Axel said.
“All the sightings have been near water or ice,” Rowan said. “Are there any other places with ice around the area?”
“God, you’re right.” Brooks tapped his tablet. “With the artifact on, Airman Kowalski must be attracted to cold and ice.”
“Brooks, where else has a large body of ice in the area?” Axel asked.
“Hang on.” A blue dot appeared on the screen. Right in the center of the others.
Rowan sucked in a breath. “What is that?”
“The rooftop ice rink at the Cosmopolitan,” Brooks said.
Axel jumped up. “You’re with me, Rowan. Brooks, contact Lachlan and the team.”
Axel grabbed a duffel bag and shoved a Kevlar vest at Rowan. “Put that on.” He pulled his own on, and she caught a glimpse of his high-tech rifle in the bag.
As they left the condo, Rowan trotted beside him to keep up with his long strides. As the elevator doors closed, Axel pulled a handgun out of his bag. “You know how to use this?”
She took the Glock and nodded. “Since I’m often on research trips in foreign countries, I took some lessons at a local range.” She checked the Glock over and then tucked it into the waistband of her jeans.
“The others all prefer the SIG Sauer, but I’m a Glock man.” He winked.
In the parking garage, they jumped into one of the team SUVs and took off. Rowan gripped the door. Axel drove like he had a trophy to win.
They zoomed through the traffic at what she guessed was twenty over the speed limit. It wasn’t long before they roared down the Strip, and pulled up in front of the Cosmopolitan.
Rowan stared at the casino. There were no screams or fleeing people. Everything looked normal.
As they exited the SUV, she looked up. The giant hotel towers of the Cosmopolitan speared into the sky, but much lower down at the front of the casino complex, she saw the ice rink and bar area, several stories above South Las Vegas Boulevard.
“You should have stayed at the condo.”
Lachlan’s voice made her drop her gaze. He and the rest of the team were striding toward them.
“You need all the help you can get if we’re going to subdue Airman Kowalski,” Axel said. “And Rowan’s safer with us.”
“She almost got shot in the head last time,” Lachlan bit out.
“Boys,” Blair murmured. “Rowan can actually look after herself pretty well. Why don’t we head up and take a look around?”
Lachlan gripped Rowan’s arm and they headed for the entrance to the casino. The lobby was all glitz and glamor, with a polished tile floor and several large columns with screens on them. Right now, the columns were lit up with images of a snow-covered forest. She wrinkled her nose. How appropriate.
They casually made their way to the bank of elevators and entered one.
“Hold the door.” A man in a Hawaiian shirt appeared, about to squeeze in with them.
Lachlan gave him a hard stare. The man froze and slowly backed away.
“Uh, I’ll get the next one.”
Blair pressed the button for the Boulevard Pool Area, where the ice rink was located, and they moved upward.
When they stepped out onto the rooftop, Rowan’s heart was beating hard. It was fairly quiet at this time of the day. There were only a few people on the ice, and some in the adjacent heated pool.
The place had a killer view of the Planet Hollywood Casino and the Paris Casino’s replica Eiffel Tower across the road.
Rowan scanned the ice rink and her shoulders sagged. There was no sign of Airman Kowalski. “Guess I was wrong.”
A piercing scream filled the air.
They all spun. At the end of the ice rink, one of the skaters was frozen mid-movement, like a statue made of ice. His mouth was open and one hand outstretched.
“Or not,” Lachlan said.
People were falling and stumbling to get off the ice.
Rowan’s heart pounded. She didn’t see Airman Kowalski anywhere.
“Let’s move,” Lachlan said. “Rowan, stay here and do not move.”
*
Lachlan skirted the ice, his team behind him.
There was no sign of Airman Kowalski on the ice. But she was here, he could sense it.
“We need to lock Kowalski down.” He made eye contact with his team. The last thing he wanted was for Kowalski to tear through Vegas and hurt more people. Or get caught by the wrong people.
They moved past the small groups of tables arranged for patrons to sit by the ice and have drinks. Suddenly, he spotted water and melting ice on the ground. Lachlan pointed.
With their hands resting on their holstered weapons, they followed the trail toward the bar area. Lachlan saw one male bartender cowering. Lachlan jerked his head and the man took off.
The bar felt like a ghost town.
There was a door leading into a storage area and it was ajar. Smoothly, he pulled his SIG and kicked the door open. He looked inside, Seth right behind him.
Stacks of chairs, shelves of glasses, no woman under the influence of an ancient device.
Then he heard Blair curse. “Lachlan.”
He stormed out of the storage room, and his heart stopped.
Out on the center of the ice rink stood Kowalski…facing off with Rowan.
Rowan held one hand outstretched, and looked tiny compared to Kowalski’s altered form. His heart started beating again. A heavy pound that hurt. Dammit, he was going to lock Rowan in his bedroom and never let her out.
“Move in slowly,” he said. “Callie, you have the tranqs ready?”
“Ready. I’ve increased the dosage.”
“Seth?”
“Got the net.”
“Don’t spook her.” Lachlan couldn’t risk Rowan getting hurt.
Moving quietly and quickly, his team stepped out onto the ice. They hadn’t gone far, when Kowalski’s head snapped up.
The woman’s enhanced body tensed.
“No,” Rowan cried. “Stay back.”
Suddenly, the roar of a helicopter rushed overhead. Lachlan looked up at an unmarked chopper hovering above them in the sky.
A second later, several soldiers leaped out of the aircraft, rappelling down. They were all armed. Bullets slammed into the ice.
Fuck. “Team 52, engage.”
He lifted his SIG, shooting at the newcomers.
Then Rowan screamed.