Mark Vincent has risen from senior special agent to Director of Interior Affairs in the WBIS. Lately, life has been sweet for him -- in addition to his promotion, he's found a partner in Quinton Mann, who can almost match his ability in the intelligence field, in spite of the fact Quinn's CIA. Mark has also found a condo in Alexandria with the help of Portia Mann, Quinn's mother, and it's closer to Quinn's town house than Mark's present apartment. Sweetest of all, Mark plans to take Quinn to his island in the Caribbean for the holidays.<br><br>Quinn's glad he has the holiday with Mark to look forward to -- something is going on at Langley, and he feels he's being kept out of the loop. To make matters even worse, useless missions and sleepless nights filled with nightmares are leaving him exhausted. But then his mother's life if threatened, and Quinn discovers the accident that resulted in her hospitalization was no accident. The obsessively self-absorbed Senator Wexler is involved, and while Quinn considers himself a civilized man, now he's out for blood.<br><br>Up until this point, Mark has stayed out of Quinn's CIA business. But hurting Quinn and those he loves isn't a smart move, and Mark has every intention of seeing Wexler pays. Quinn demands to come along, and while Mark isn't happy, he finally agrees, and they set out together to deal with the senator. There's just one catch: this will be the first time Quinn sees Mark at his deadly best, and Mark isn't sure how his lover will react.

Forever

“I’d better find Mother.” He sighed. “Wexler has been making it abundantly clear that he wants her and won’t take no for an answer.”


“The man’s a…” I started to say “fool,” but then I noticed him pausing to chat with a man whose back was to me. “I’ll see you around, Mann.”


“What’s he…” He was frowning. “Hmm? Oh. Sure thing, Vincent.”


Wexler wasn’t talking to Holmes, as I’d first thought. This man was unfamiliar to me; he had to be a newcomer to DC.


I’d looked into the background of everyone on Senator Wexler’s staff and in his family. His sons-in-law were all nonentities, fitting matches for the daughters his wife had popped out every year until she’d smartened up and found a doctor who would take care of any future little inconveniences.


I’d wondered why she hadn’t taken advantage of the Pill when it came on the market, especially since the senator was so rabidly pro-life. He’d almost strangled on his righteous indignation, according to my source, when Roe v. Wade was passed.


Chapter 53