by Amy McKinley
We were headed to Ahmed’s, and ultimately to my execution.
I’d faced worse odds. We would get out of this.
Our chances would be better if we didn’t cross over Ahmed’s property line. Every few seconds, my gaze strayed back to Kara. I thought I’d seen a twitch from her but wasn’t sure. In case she was coming to, I had to keep Jamal’s focus on me.
“Ahmed hired you. For what?” Jamal’s dead eyes bore into mine, the antagonizing question not making a bit of difference. I had to keep trying. “To be an errand boy?”
“Kara will go back to her father. She is his problem. You, on the other hand...” A malicious smirk curled his lips. “Hugo had his chance. I’ll own you again.”
Interesting that Kara didn’t belong to the Dark Wings. “Ah, so my fate is in your hands. Is that it?” It was never going to happen. I created my own destiny and had since the day I escaped Jamal’s camp.
He inclined his head, answering my question.
“Hugo’s close by?” Chris had said he cleared customs. I wanted to make sure he hadn’t returned to Venezuela.
“He’ll be back.”
“My debt to you is paid.” My uncle had worked a deal with Jamal when I was a kid, locking me into a contract of sorts with the Dark Wings—basically, they owned me until I turned sixteen. Then, my uncle wanted those rights over my life to revert back to him. But I’d escaped days before my sixteenth birthday. Hugo owed Jamal for those stolen days, not me. “The agreement is no longer between us, but between you and Hugo.” I needed to ensure his thought process wouldn’t extend to us when we escaped.
“True.” He smirked. “But fortunate nonetheless. There are assassinations you’ll fulfill when the time is right. As for Hugo, I’ll deal with him when the time comes. His life has always been mine.” He slapped the side of my cheek in a rough pat. “Nothing for you to worry over.”
“And the drones?”
“Why do you care?”
“Passes the time.” Conversation wasn’t Jamal’s favorite pastime. Torture was.
Jamal shrugged. “Those are Hugo’s responsibility. Delivering his daughter ends my obligation with Ahmed.” His gaze shifted to Kara for a brief moment. “Pity. I could have used both of you as my soldiers.”
“We’re not mindless servants.” I made a point of visually tracing the reopened scar on his face—the original wound from my handiwork years ago. “I doubt things would work in your favor.”
“Perhaps, but everyone has a breaking point.” He pursed his lips. “We would find yours… again.”
I bared my teeth and jerked toward him, stopped short by the seat belt. Neither he nor the driver wore theirs. Jamal laughed, and the driver glanced at me in the rearview mirror.
Kara came to life and grabbed the driver’s gun. With force, she slammed it against his head. A dull thud sounded as she struck him. He slumped, and then we swerved.
Kara pushed on the unconscious man’s leg. We careened forward. The soldier’s body leaned against the wheel, keeping us marginally on the same path, at least for the time being.
Jamal’s focus was on me. He lifted his gun and aimed. I had to do something, quickly.
I ducked to the side as much as I could as he pulled the trigger. The heat from the bullet burned along the side of my head. For half a second, I fumbled with the seat belt. It released. There was only a matter of seconds before he shot me. I could see Kara’s hands swinging toward the back. No! I didn’t want Jamal to shift his attention to her. Jerking my hands up, I knocked into the hand that held his gun.
The next shot went wide. Kara fired as Jamal did so again. Her shot hit home, but off-center. Blood pooled near Jamal’s collarbone. It hadn’t been a kill shot.
Jamal took aim at her head. With a roar, I launched myself at him. We tumbled from the vehicle just as Kara kicked the driver out then took his place.
The SUV sped a short distance forward before Kara slammed her foot on the brake, and the vehicle came to a screeching halt. I landed on top of Jamal. Delivering a swift right hook to the underside of his chin, I pushed off him. Blood sprayed from his flayed wound, and his eyes rolled back.
Jumping to my feet, I flung myself into the SUV. Kara wasted no time. She reversed the car, and we ran over Jamal’s body. I arched my eyebrows and held her gaze.
“What?” A sheepish smile curved her lips. “Now he doesn’t have any hold on you.”
Laughter roared through my chest as I threw my head back as she hit the gas, jolting forward and running over my enemy once more.
“Where to?” Her voice was lighter with Jamal as road kill behind us.
“We’re about five miles out. Head toward the ocean, then I’ll direct you.” We would be on our way home soon. My only concern was that our transportation wouldn’t arrive for a while.
After fifteen minutes, we pulled up to the small alcove amidst trees and bushes. As I suspected, the boat hadn’t arrived, but I was confident it would. Lifting my backpack from the vehicle, I withdrew my cell and connected to home. Liam answered on the second ring.
“We’re at the exit. Any news?” He knew what I meant.
“Couple hours out. Hang tight.”
We made ourselves comfortable to wait it out. Neither Jack nor Hawk had had a single problem leaving. We would be okay.
Kara spat blood on the sandy dirt, and my gut dropped. Stepping close, my hands skimmed along her ribs to her stomach, gently prodding. She slapped my hands away. “I’m fine. It’s a cut in my mouth.”
“Let me look.” I set down my pack with the intent of getting the med kit out to clean the gash on her forehead.
Kara sighed but complied, sitting on the ground and leaning against a tree. “Okay, Doc.”
I knew she wanted to roll her eyes, but her head injury must have prevented the motion. Doing that while nauseous and dizzy could have been the thing that pushed her over the edge to puking. With care, I cleaned then bandaged the wound on her head. It would be a while until we could get ice on the bump to reduce the swelling. Instead, I gave her some pain meds.
She popped them into her mouth and swallowed them with the water I handed to her. “When is this boat supposed to arrive? Or are we bait?”
“No, we’ll be safe. They’re probably waiting for it to get darker. Best guess, I’d say they’ll be here around two in the morning.” Jamal’s comment nagged at me. “You were never initiated into the Dark Wings?” I had to make sure for her sake and for Lily’s, should one of the other men rise up and take over.
“No.” She scooted closer and leaned against me. “Ahmed insisted they train me only. He hired Jamal for the messier jobs he didn’t want any ties to.”
“Murder.”
“Basically. I worked alongside the Dark Wings a few times, but I’m not officially a member.”
“And Hugo? What is his connection to your father? Has he been at the house often?”
I worried about Lily’s exposure to him.
“I met him once, briefly. That was fairly recent. Ahmed kept his business as secreted away as possible. I was only to execute his orders, not be included in the reasons why. The last one was simple: recover the pack Hugo had and him, if it was convenient.” She shrugged against me. “I don’t know if they go way back or if the connection was through Jamal.”
“What does your father stand to lose, should the National Security Council have the Venezuelan president assassinated? Does he want to insert himself in that position?”
“As president? No. He has the best of both worlds, just enough freedom to do whatever he chooses, in business and personally, with the position he holds now. As a favored advisor, he will do what he’s required by the president or on his own to ensure things remain as they are.”
“Chris uncovered a deposit made from one of the Venezuelan president’s accounts into Ahmed’s.”
“Makes sense.” Kara sighed then tangled our fingers together. We both needed the contact, the connection. “Ahmed will hire the muscle
, and the dirty work will not touch the president.”
My blood sizzled. We were running out of time.
29
Keegan
The boat had finally arrived, and Kara and I fled Caracas to Aruba. From there, we boarded a jet flown by the pilot who filled in when Trev couldn’t transport us. We had a few hours before we touched down on the airstrip in Maine. Kara stood and stretched. She’d changed into jeans and a long-sleeved black T-shirt that rode up and revealed a sliver of enticing skin above her jeans. I ran my thumb over her exposed skin before tugging her to me by her hip.
A slow, sexy smile curved her lips as she lowered herself onto my lap. We were both sore from the car crash and the ensuing fights, but that didn’t stop either of us from getting as close as we could. All my injuries faded at the feel of her as her arms wound around my neck and she leaned against me. Her fingers toyed with the hair at the base of my neck.
We didn’t need words. I wrapped my arms around her waist and held her tight, neither of us needing words, too exhausted from everything that we’d been through. She relaxed into me even more and a sense of peace came over me as her breathing deepened and I realized she’d fallen asleep. There was so much she and I had been through, and even with the bad, we trusted each other enough to be vulnerable.
I dozed on and off until we landed. She never woke. Transporting her to the car went smoothly, I didn’t want to let her go. Not now, not ever.
Kara slept as I drove along the roads, pressed against my side, and I let out a breath of relief that she was safe and with me in the States—away from her father. I turned onto the driveway that lead to Savage Wind Farm, where Liam and Liv lived. It was also the Gray Ghost Security home base.
We’d left Caracas under cover of night and arrived in Maine close to dinnertime. My stomach growled at the thought of a home-cooked meal. Then there was Lily. On the flight, Kara and I had strategized about how we would tell her about me being her dad. We wouldn’t do it right away. There were too many changes going on, and neither one of us wanted to cause her any further stress.
Kara seemed to be under the impression that she would have to find somewhere else to live when the whole thing was over, but that wasn’t happening. They would stay with me. It could take a while to convince her, but I knew she would come around and see my point. It was time to establish roots in Maine, where the majority of our team was. It would be the best place to protect Kara and Lily from Ahmed, should he entertain ideas of retrieving them.
After shutting the engine down, I gently nudged Kara then gave into my need to touch her and tucked a few strands of dark hair behind her ear. “We’re here.”
She jerked awake. “Wha—” She suddenly seemed to realize she wasn’t in danger, and her body relaxed. Her gaze roamed over the sprawling farm and large home. She turned to me, and a huge smile pulled at her lips. “Lily’s here?”
I nodded.
That was all she needed. She scrambled from the car and raced to the door that someone flung open. Mari stood at the threshold, her long black hair draped over one shoulder. I got out of the car, and as I rounded the back bumper, I saw that Kara had stopped short.
I climbed the three steps then stood behind her. My hand curled around her hip, tethering her to me. “Kara, this is Mari, Chris’s wife.”
“Mama!” A high-pitched shriek echoed from somewhere in the house, and Kara shuddered. I released her as Mari stepped to the side. Kara didn’t need any prodding. She rushed inside as Lily rounded the corner from the direction of the kitchen with a smudge of what looked like flour on her cheek.
“My baby girl.” Kara dropped to her knees as Lily launched herself into her mom’s arms, sobbing.
They needed a few minutes, as I was sure Lily had been just as scared for her mom as Kara had been for her daughter. At only four years old, the separation and being in a new place had to have been a huge shock.
Their dark hair mingled, the shades an identical match. I squeezed Mari’s shoulder as I stepped in, noting the softening of her eyes as she watched the reunion of mother and daughter. “Good to see you.”
Mari gave me a quick hug. “You too. You have a few hours, then the guys are heading out.”
“We have a lead?”
“We do,” Mari answered before touching Kara’s shoulder. “Lily and I are making cookies. Do you want to help?”
Kara agreed then stood and gave me a quick kiss on the cheek before she turned back to her daughter. With Lily’s hand in hers, she followed Mari. As they walked away, Lily turned and gave Mari and me a tiny wave, despite her sniffles and the crocodile tears still rolling down her face.
“Save me some cookies, Princess.”
She giggled then skipped beside her mom as they rounded the corner. With Kara next to her, she recovered quickly, and I knew the reason. She was accustomed to her mom having to leave for dangerous missions, even if she didn’t know why. Her time in Ahmed’s house hadn’t been what a typical little girl encountered. When Lily was out of hearing distance, I dropped my easygoing façade. “What are we dealing with?”
Jack appeared at the end of the hallway and motioned for us to join him in the back of the house. Mari shut the door behind us, and we met him in the family room. I wanted the whole thing to be finished. Despite the exhaustion clinging to my bones, I would rather get back out there if it meant swift closure. Ever since Chris had told us Hugo wasn’t in Caracas any longer, the need to put him behind bars—or better yet, in a box six feet underground—felt urgent.
“Where is everyone?” I asked Jack.
The door to the patio opened, and in walked Hawk and Stella. Chris came through from the direction of the kitchen. If I looked close enough, I could see Liv’s outline through a window in the oversized shed that Liam had turned into an art studio for her to sculpt in. That left several still unaccounted for. I’d hoped we would have a fairly full team.
“We’re short by a few. Matt, Connor, Trev, Hayden, and Mike aren’t here and won’t be able to get to DC in time to help,” Jack explained. “It’ll just be us.”
We’d had worse odds. I told myself everything would be fine. I dropped to the couch, tired from all the travel, and my arm ached where Jamal had stabbed me. Kara had patched me up while we waited for the boat, but I needed to change the dressing and get another antibiotic shot. God knew what had been living on Jamal’s knife.
I dug through my bag then handed over the box with the drone and the thumbnail drives Kara had stolen. “We only need to recover five drones now.”
Jack whistled as he opened the box and got a peek at the realistic-looking mosquito. “I’ll let Rich know. His military connections will help him get it into the right hands.”
I nodded, glad to get it out of mine. “Where’s Hannah?” Jack’s wife, the former Russian spy, would be a welcome addition, and I hoped she would be a part of our team for this mission. Hugo was a slippery fucker, and she could help us take him out quickly—and, of course, help to stop the robot insect attack and the subsequent unnecessary deaths.
“She’s working with her Russian recruits and won’t be able to help.” Jack waved to my arm.
I’d changed shirts, but blood had seeped through the bandage and stained the new shirt too. “Knife wound. What recruits?”
“Russian defectors. She’s expanding the program Rich started with her, and now the girl Hannah stashed in the Cook Islands is a part of the team to help discover other sleeper agents in the States.”
I grunted at his response. I would deal with that information another day. Yanking on my sleeve, I tore the shirt from shoulder to elbow. “I need a med kit.”
Chris got up and went in search of one. When he came back, Stella sat next to me and got to work on fixing me up. Hawk shifted so he was closer to his wife’s shoulder. She winked at me, and I smirked at our sniper, who was observing everything she did. I didn’t blame him. She was pretty great. Even so, I couldn’t resist getting a rise out of Hawk. “You going on th
is one with us, too, Stel?”
Hawk’s intense blue eyes bored into mine. “Came back with a death wish?”
Stel shook her head. “Knock it off, both of you. Of course, I’m not going. I’d rather spend time with that cute little girl who looks awfully like you, Keegan.”
“Only her eyes, and we’re not saying anything yet.” I wasn’t ready to have that conversation. I wanted to have a serious one with Samir, though. I wasn’t exactly sure how I felt. Even though I recognized that my slow-simmering anger stemmed from envying that he’d had all those years with my girls, I’d been too stubborn to tell Kara five years before, when I’d had the chance. It was all because I’d wanted to distance myself completely from my old life, even though my heart had only ever belonged to Kara. I’d been too stupid to recognize it at the time.
“We need to get back on track,” Jack said.
“Right,” Chris said, opening the laptop on the coffee table.
We gathered around.
“David Meyer, the owner of the ancestry-slash-DNA company, confirmed that he does have genetic data from almost all the members of the National Security Council.”
Two more members taken out would stall the vote indefinitely. Even when new members were appointed, there was a good chance the deaths wouldn’t point back to Ahmed or the Venezuelan president, and the new members wouldn’t vote against them.
“Do we know for a fact the database information was stolen?” Jack asked Chris.
Chris shook his head. “Not a hundred percent, no. But there is a good chance the hacker got what he was looking for. The backdoor entrance he established for the handful of minutes he was in before they locked down their security could have been enough.”
“The meeting is set for tomorrow morning at nine. We need to go in assuming the secretary of the army and the secretary of energy have been infected with a virus that’ll change into a secondary airborne contagion that’s deadly to the others.”
