“Oh, shit.”

“That’s not going to happen. He can find someone else to get her out.” He pushed the photos on top of the manila envelope aside. “I don’t take his orders. I have a life. He thinks he can just dangle the damn name in front of me and I’ll jump and do his bidding? He didn’t even care about the game tomorrow.”

“It would have had to be an immediate extraction?” Mallory was picking up the photo of Lara Balkon and gazing at it. “That’s bad news.”

“No, it isn’t. I’m not doing it.”

“Yes, you said that. What name was he dangling in front of you?”

Tanner didn’t answer for a moment. “Sandrino.”

“Shit.” Mallory inhaled sharply. “He knows something?”

“No, he only said he could find out. And I’m supposed to trust the bastard? Kaskov’s one of the biggest crime bosses in the world. If I haven’t been able to turn up anything during the last eighteen months, why would he be able to?”

“You tell me. You went to him in the first place. He’s powerful as hell.” His gaze returned to the photo of Lara Balkon. “Personal? Is she his mistress?”

“No, it’s something else. He’s hard as nails, but somehow she managed to…reach him.”

“That could be even worse.” Mallory reached over and picked up the manila envelope. “This is the extraction info? Do you mind if I go through it?”

“Be my guest. But it’s a waste of time. We aren’t going to use it.”

“It’s my time to waste.” Mallory glanced up from going through the documents. “Look, you wouldn’t have even been involved with Kaskov in the first place except for me. I put you through a hell of a lot of trouble, and there was a chance I could have gotten you killed. I still feel guilty about it. And now he’s pulled Sandrino into it, and that’s going to rub you raw and might be even more dangerous for you.” He grimaced. “I’d far rather this extraction you’ve refused was Kaskov’s sex object. In my experience, people get more emotional about the ‘personal.’ I just want to be prepared for anything that comes along.” He’d pulled out a DVD. “What’s this?”

“I assume it’s the DVD that Kaskov ordered me to watch,” he said caustically.

“And you’re fighting doing it.” He tossed the DVD on the desk in front of Tanner. “Because you’re pissed off with Kaskov, and you don’t want him to pull your strings. Well, it’s me pulling your strings now. Watch the damn thing.” He got to his feet. “I’m going to settle in the living room and go through this file. I’ll come back after I’ve finished, and we’ll talk about it.” He suddenly grinned mischievously. “Am I fired yet?”

“Very close,” Tanner growled. He took the disk and slid it into his computer. “It’s still a waste of time.”

“And you’re a stubborn asshole,” Mallory said as he headed for the door. “I don’t know why I’m trying so hard to keep you from getting killed.”