by India Kells
Captain Sullivan Thorne, Navy SEAL and now an undercover agent in deep shit, never ceased to analyze the situation. So far, the guards didn’t have a steady round pattern, neither the same men come and go with any regularity. New faces, new times; sometimes they stayed longer, or they left after a glance. The only consistent men were his torturers. Same three bastards, same questions, same beating. Over and over again, for three days now, if his calculations were accurate. There were no windows or any outside light apart from the blinding neon swaying above.
So far, he knew he could endure this for a while longer. In fact, he had suffered worse in his career, and for the information he gathered for the Admiral, he would push himself even past his breaking point. Whatever it was. What worried him most was not the pain, but the lack of water, food, and sleep. He could withstand a lot, but without vitals, he would become weaker, more susceptible to mistakes and slips.
Leaning back against the wall, he extended his legs. His jeans clung and pulled his skin due to the heat and dried blood. One by one, he moved and stretched his muscles, making sure he didn’t get too stiff or sore.
Warmed up, he closed his eyes and tried to catch a power nap before anyone would notice. As he leaned back his head, he heard loud voices and some kind of commotion in the hallway. What forced him to react was a female voice. Definitely female… in hysterics and tears. What the—
The door crashed open and a very blonde, teary, and pregnant female barged into the room.
The guards followed suit and it took everything in him not to smile at how they seemed desperate to get her out of here and calm her down.
Did he know her? Beyond the tears and reddened face, he was pretty sure she was a total stranger. What’s she doing? And more importantly, how did she get in here?
Then, the teary fury turned to him and froze. “Baby? Is that you?”
Baby? Her southern accent was so thick he almost blinked. She hugged her enormous belly with one hand and reached for him through the bars with the other.
“Babycakes! It’s me, your wife, Jenny Lee. Don’t you recognize me? It took me so long to find you!”
Sully was about to frown when he saw the blonde wink her baby blues at him. Was this a trap?
“Come on, sweetheart, how could you forget me? Please, honey bee, grab my hand, and let me touch you …”
Warily, he got on his knees and reached for her. If it was a trick, the blonde woman would pay for it. When she grabbed his hand, he was surprised by her strength. She cupped his head to awkwardly kiss him through the bars, and he felt something slide into his hand. A key.
When the blonde kissed him lightly on the lips, the softness made him forget the pain in his body, and the harsh conditions surrounding them.
The two guards grew restless and pulled her back. She winked at him again, but before he could draw a breath, she punched one guard on the windpipe, silencing him, while breaking the neck of the other. The blonde turned back and then sliced his throat open. Each movement was done with outstanding precision. She was a seasoned operative, no doubt about it. As she grabbed the guard’s phone, he used the key to unlock his cell.
“Captain Sullivan Thorne, I’m Gabrielle, your rescue party today.”
Well, well, gone was the accent. Now, it was more difficult to know where she came from. She seemed to have a non-descript accent.
“Who sent you?”
“The request was made by Admiral Feander.”
The Admiral? He’d thought he would send a SEAL Team for help, not a single operative.
“You work for him?”
“More or less.”
Frowning, Sully was about to ask for whom she worked when she removed her flower dress over her head.
His brain blanked for a moment as he noticed all the white skin and curves, but mostly the attached pouch. She wasn’t pregnant after all. How he’d believed this in the first place, he didn’t know.
The woman named Gabrielle, now in white lace boy shorts and bra, dropped the pouch on the ground and unzipped it, revealing more firepower. “I wasn’t sure the guards would have what we need to defend ourselves while getting out.”
Sully grabbed one gun and checked the ammunition before tucking it into his waistband and grabbing another one.
“What is our escape route?”
After putting her dress back on, the woman slung the backpack over her shoulders before taking one gun. “Two doors down the hallway, there’s a storage room. It’s supposed to have an exit door.”
“Supposed to?”
The woman grimaced, her eyes turning to ice, and he guessed it wasn’t a good sign.
“I’m sorry, sir, but the situation is sketchy, and all available information even more so. Would you prefer to wait back in your cell, so I can find an escape and bring your limo around?”
Whoa, she caught fire fast, that’s for sure.
“I know how a rescue can be. Now can we move on?”
Without a word, she opened the door, looking around before motioning him to follow her. Less than ten seconds later, they were both in the storage room.
“Shit,” Gabrielle muttered.
“What?” Sully tried to keep his voice as low as possible.
“The escape route is blocked. The door’s been sealed.”
He examined the area. “What door?”
“According to the plan, there was supposed to be an emergency door opposite this door. Do you see a door?”
He walked to the wall and gently knocked on it. “It seems to only be sheetrock. There may be a door behind it.”
Gabrielle shook her head. “No good. If the door is nailed shut, it would be too tricky, and we would make too much noise trying to open it.”
“Do you have a plan B?” She better, because walking out of here all guns blazing was out of the question.
Gabrielle checked around and smiled. “I think I have an idea.”
***The alarm was blaring so loudly Gabrielle was unable to hear Captain Thorne’s voice over the noise. Guards were running all around, ignoring them, exactly as she had planned. It wasn’t easy to come up with something on the spur of the moment, with an angry SEAL behind her. As if all of his ops went as planned. She refrained from reminding him that if his own mission had gone to plan, she wouldn’t be there trying to save his hide.
The smoke became thicker by the minute. The old mattress in the storage room did the job without a glitch. They were in the basement, and since smoke goes up, it was an easy feat. The extra bit of luck was finding a black coverall and cap. It fit snugly on him, but ultimately appeared more like a uniform. It hid his blood-stained pants and shirt, and the cap tucked low on his face hid most of his features and dark short hair. The final touch was her getting back into pregnancy mode, being carried in the arms of this man. As expected, her blonde hair, flowery dress, and imposing stomach drew attention away from the captain. In the complete chaos, they were able to exit the building through the front door.
Gabrielle lifted her head to whisper close to his ear, “Go right around the block. My jeep is parked there. The black one.”
The captain nodded and continued walking. It must have hurt him to hold her weight. She suspected the guards wouldn’t have gone easy on him. In fact, he was lucky not to have been transferred to a more secure facility. It had probably been in their plans, and if it had been the case, she would have needed more time, and a lot more resources to accomplish the rescue. The police station holding him had extra cells in the basement but was not as secure as a prison.
From a distance, she detected sirens. Firefighters, no doubt. They would be long gone by the time the station did a head count and saw the two dead guards and their prisoner gone.
As they arrived at her jeep, the captain gently put her down, and she unhooked the hidden backpack.
Reaching for her keys, Gabrielle unlocked the door and hopped in. The captain sat in the passenger seat without a word. Were all Navy SEALs so temperamental? She knew women
with fewer mood swings than him.
She drove around, making circles to be sure they were not followed. The captain glanced back several times when he was not examining her profile. She didn’t see it, but she could sense his gaze on her.
Once reassured they were alone, she headed for the secured house located in a gated community Bea had arranged for them. Gabrielle had already installed all her gear there. Damn the jetlag and other plans, it had become too risky to leave the captain in the police station any longer. There were too many variables.
Once on the highway to Pretoria, she reached for the black bag on the backseat and dropped it on the captain’s lap.
“What is it?”
“Civilian clothes, clean and free of blood. And I hope in your size. We will soon arrive at the gates of a secured compound and the guards won’t like to see blood on you. Too many questions. As I wasn’t sure how badly they would have beaten you, I chose pants and long sleeves.”
Gabrielle couldn’t hear what he answered apart from a deep muffled thank you. The man twisted in the tight confinement but was careful not to bump her or the wheel. He unzipped the coverall and removed his blood-stained shirt. Damn, he was a gorgeous man, with his dark short hair, stubbly square jaw, and intense light green eyes. But it was the darkening bruises on his torso and abs which caught her attention. The guards didn’t go easy on him, and he must be in a world of pain. It dawned on her that he’d carried her in his arms for almost a quarter mile without even blinking. She knew Navy SEALs were a tough bunch but given his condition she felt newfound admiration for the man. She had been in tight spots herself and even if being beaten up was not necessarily the first form of torture for a woman, sustaining a great amount of pain while keeping a level head wasn’t an easy feat.
Out of respect, she kept her gaze fixed on the road, but from the corner of her eyes, she could see the tanned expanse of the skin of his thigh … and upper thigh. Damn, the man was riding commando! Even badly bruised and in a foul mood, he could raise her internal temperature in a heartbeat.
Once seated back down again, his muscled thighs clad in dark jeans and a long-sleeved T-shirt defining his sculpted chest, his gaze went back to her.
“You said you were sent by the Admiral. Why didn’t he send my team to get me?”
“I don’t know.”
“Why you? Where is your team? We’re going to them?”
“No, sailor. I’m your only army.”
Her statement seemed to make him ponder for a moment and he smiled. Too bad his gorgeous mouth dripped with sarcasm when he said, “Admiral Feander assigned a single woman to get me back? You’re that good?”
Gabrielle angled her head at him. “I got you out and am bringing you to safety. What other proof do you need?”
“Wow, I insulted you and you kept your cool. Impressive.”
“You think you’re the first asshole to make this type of remark to me? I save people, I don’t change people. I was asked to get you out of trouble and back to your daddy. That’s all, Captain.”
With that comment, the captain fully turned to her. “You were asked, not ordered. Nice choice of words. It means you’re a hired mercenary.”
Hired mercenary. Gabrielle smiled at that thought. She was way beyond mercenary—she had a purpose.
“Captain, you’re making major assumptions. I’m no longer a mercenary, trust me.”
“Lady, I only trust who and what I know. And you, I don’t. Unless you’re generous enough to give me more info.”
“Knowing your Admiral sent someone to save you isn’t enough?”
“My Admiral, as you say, sent a single woman to help and it’s not standard procedure.”
Gabrielle pondered how close he was to the Admiral. Only one way to find out.
“Are you a friend of Admiral Feander, Captain?”
The man glared but did not confirm nor deny. He was in protective mode.
“I would say your lack of an answer is an affirmative. If you’re a close friend of James Feander, he perhaps told you about Purgatory.” Bea hadn’t told her not to tell the captain who she was, after all.
“Purgatory? You mean he wasn’t kidding when he told me about this independent organization, offering rescue services? I didn’t know he was crazy enough to ask that bunch of wannabes for help.”
“Wannabes?” Now Gabrielle laughed. “If only you knew who those wannabes were, you would shit in your pants, sailor.”
The Captain scoffed. “You can fool yourselves, but cute girls are not sent on rescue missions.”
“Mmmm. I haven’t been called a girl in a long time. I think they hit you on the head too many times. You need to take a nap, sailor boy.”
“And even if your group is legit, most of what you do is completely illegal … even unsanctioned by the government.”
“Yeah, right. As if all you do is legal and sanctioned by your government.”
“It is.”
“Dream on. Or you’re simply deluded, I don’t know. You wouldn’t be the first one to be. Don’t worry, as soon as we reach the compound, I’ll call in the cavalry who will be delighted to take you off my hands.”
“Fuck you, lady.”
“You wish, sailor boy.”
Read To Fool an Assassin
Also by India Kells
Women of Purgatory Series, a Romantic Suspense:
To Fool an Assassin
To Blind a Sniper
To Trick a Hacker
Breaking Point
Women of Purgatory Boxset
Chicago Vigilante Novels:
Night Justice
Urban Justice
The Sanctuary Chronicles, a Paranormal Romance:
Broken Magic
Blind Magic
Hidden Magic
Dark Sparrows/Bastards, a Dark Romantic Suspense:
Lost Bastard
Cold Bastard
Wild Bastard
A Dark Sparrow Box Set – Books 1-3
Erotic Romance:
The Debt Collector, An Underground Bad Boys Romance
The Traitor, An Underground Bad Boys Romance
The Inheritance, The Story of an Unlikely Submissive
Romantic Fairytale:
The Wolf Malediction
The Alliance Agency by India Kells and Maddie Wade (Romantic Suspense)
Deadly Alliance
Knight Watch
Hidden Obsession
About the Author
India Kells is a romantic suspense and paranormal romance author from Montreal, Canada. Her idea of heaven is cozying up on her sofa during cold winter nights, and reading lots and lots of books. Inside her wild imagination, she weaves stories filled with the adventures of kickass women and courageous alpha men. When India’s not writing about sexy thieves, dashing soldiers and cunning villains, she’s traveling the world to find inspiration for her next stories. Human nature is her greatest muse!
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