by Roma, Laurie
All eight targets down…
The constant thud of her heartbeat her only companion, Mikayla made her way to the balance beam. She breathed out as she began to cross the beam, squeezing the trigger so she hit all three targets on the right. Without slowing her stride she switched the gun into her left hand, hitting the targets on the left as she crossed the beam.
Six shots, targets down…
It felt good, hearing the ping of metal hitting metal, but the mission wasn’t complete. Phases one and two were just a faded memory now as she moved onto phase three. She set the gun down on the table and braced herself for the pain of the climb. Like she had been taught, Mikayla focused on one specific row of rope and used it to ascend the cargo net. Her teeth clenched in defense of the pain shooting through her leg, but she wouldn’t stop. Pushing herself, she climbed faster, wanting the arduous task to be over with and reached the top of the tower. It was there she let herself smile as she saw the two sniper rifles.
After a quick glance she chose the manual action rifle and lay down on her stomach, legs spread for perfect balance. In no time she had the rifle loaded, the stock tight against her shoulder and the target sighted down her scope. It wasn’t like her own modified personal weapon she liked to use, but it would still do the job.
Mentally she calculated the wind velocity by eyeing the flag waving heroically in the wind from a pole attached to where the sandbags were hung. She took a few more precious seconds to slow her heart rate that had sped up from her climb. She waited and waited, then, in between breaths, she fired.
One shot, one kill…
The sandbag felt to the forest floor. Before the bag hit the ground Mikayla was already pulling the bolt action back, extracting the empty cartridge then chambering a new round into the rifle for her next shot. She moved scope to cover the distance and found the final target, approximately a mile away, already shot full of holes. At that distance the target was small and difficult to hit, but not for Mikayla.
Aim small, she reminded herself. Mikayla allowed herself a deep breath before regulating her breathing once more. Then she took aim and fired, watching as the bright-red center of the target splintered from the impact of her bullet.
Mission complete.
She extracted the fired cartridge and unloaded the rifle automatically and stood holding her hands in the air to signal she was finished. As she looked down Mikayla could see the grins on her friends’ faces and smiled back at them. It was at times like this that Mikayla could think of her talent as a gift and not a curse.
She could see the pride in their eyes and knew they were thinking about all the times she had saved their lives with her skills as she watched over them from above. They had fought together, bled together, and she knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that they would kill for each other. They had been soldiers together, and over the years their bond had strengthened until it would never be broken. Sure, they had their differences. They argued, they disagreed, but through it all they were family.
Her smile faded as she took in the shocked expressions of Gage and his family. Where nerves never affected her when she was in the zone, they came to life with a vengeance now. Even from this distance she could see the accusation clear in Gage’s dark-green eyes.
Well, hell. Maybe she should have taken her time.
* * * *
Mikayla rinsed the soap from her hands in the bathroom as she thought back over the last half an hour. Her time on the course had been by far the best of the entire group. The only one even coming close was Slade, who was also rated an elite sniper, although he couldn’t shoot with the same accuracy she could with both hands.
When she had gotten down from the tower Katie, Dylan and Nick had been suitably impressed by her skill. Katie and Dylan had asked her for private lessons while Nick spoke to her about maybe teaching a special class for the sheriff’s department while she was in town. She told Nick she would consider his offer and, much to their glee, promised both Katie and Dylan a private lesson.
There was a sinking feeling in her gut from the way that Gage and Sebastian had watched her after she had completely blown everyone else’s score away. She could see the tension in the men and her heart had bled a little as she saw the hard gleam in Gage’s eyes as he had excused himself from the group and disappeared. It wasn’t outright disgust, but it had been damn close. Still, she had felt the impact of his look like a fist to the solar plexus.
It had been the ultimate rejection.
She’d put on a brave face, not wanting her friends to pound him into bloody dust if she gave any indication that she was hurting. And she was. It was over. She could feel it. Giving Gage a glimpse of who she really was had been the right thing to do, but she lamented the fact he would never look at her the same way again.
Sighing, she opened the door to the bathroom and prepared herself for what was to come. To her surprise it wasn’t Gage who waited for her in the empty corridor. It was Sebastian. She cleared all expression from her face as she approached where the man was leaning against the wall, arms folded over his chest. She met his stare of steely determination with icy calm and raised a single eyebrow, waiting for him to speak.
“You’re not good for him.”
Awesome, so much for pleasantries. “And you’ve determined this because…?”
“I know who you are, Lynx. You’re a killer.”
Ouch, she thought and held back a wince. “That’s sort of hypocritical of you, isn’t it?”
“It’s the truth. Sure, I was a soldier, too, but Gage deserves more from a woman than you can give him. He’s been through enough shit in his life and he sure as hell doesn’t need to deal with the kind of baggage I’m sure you’re packing.”
Condescending son of a bitch…
“Message loud and clear, Sebastian.”
Sebastian ran a hand over his short dark hair. “Listen, I know that sounded harsh, but let’s be real here. I have my own demons to deal with from what I’ve seen, what I’ve been through. I think you’d appreciate honesty instead of some line of bullshit. Gage is looking for a sweet, gentle woman who will bend to his will, his needs. That’s not you.”
“No, it isn’t. And I’ve been pretty damn clear to him about that since the beginning.” Fuck this, she thought. If he wasn’t pulling any punches, neither would she. “The truth is you don’t think I’m good enough for him. Apparently from his reaction, neither does he. Fine. Believe what you want, but I’m not planning to beg and plead for anyone’s approval.”
Sebastian nodded slowly. “Then I think we understand one another.”
Her smile was ice cold. “That’s where you’re wrong. I may be a killer, but don’t think for one fucking second you know me. You don’t.”
“Fair enough. I think you should leave now.”
“Trust me,” Mikayla said in disgust, “I am.” She pushed past him, striding quickly down the corridor and rounded the corner, almost bumping into Gage. Refusing to look at him, she tried to walk past him only to come short as he grabbed hold of her arm. She let her eyes frost over as she turned her head slowly. “Get your hand off me.”
“Mikayla…?”
She didn’t wait for him to comply and jerked her arm out of his grasp but didn’t leave. Oh no, she wouldn’t leave just yet. She had things to say to him and it was better if she said it out of hearing distance from the other IAD agents.
“What the hell is wrong with you? You’re pissed? You’re not the one who was lied to!” Gage snapped.
That was it. Mikayla felt her control slip as her temper bubbled to the surface. “When exactly did I lie to you, Gage?”
“From the moment I met you! You knew I thought you were some security consultant!”
“I am a security consultant!”
“With that kind of training that’s not all you are. Jesus fucking Christ, they said you were a sniper in the Army! You didn’t think that would be something I might want to know?”
“When exactly wou
“What the fuck?” Gage raged. “Can’t I have a fucking moment to think about this after you throw this shit at me?”
“Take all the damn time you want, Gage. I’m leaving.” She turned away again and this time she evaded his hand when Gage tried to stop her.
Chapter Ten
It took some fast talking and a lot of begging to get her friends to give up the idea of killing Gage.
One look at Mikayla’s face told her friends that the afternoon of fun was officially over. She had paused long enough to say goodbye to Katie, Dylan and Nick before she walked out of the building, feeling like she was leaving a part of her heart behind.
Once they were back inside the SUV the other IAD agents knew her well enough not to ask questions until she was ready. The silence in the vehicle was deafening. Back at the cabin Mikayla left the men to go take a hot shower where she could shed her tears of loss in private. When she came back out to join them she knew she hadn’t done a good enough job of hiding her emotions when she heard Slade curse softly.
“I’m going to kill the son of a bitch,” Rock said, almost conversationally.
“Not if I get to him first,” Adrian replied. “You got to beat up Tara’s boyfriend. This time it’s my turn. You can’t always have all the fun.”
Mikayla gawked at the men, but to her surprise, the twins weren’t the biggest threat. After cursing Slade had simply grabbed the car keys from the table, stood up, and then stalked to the front door. She hurried to block him from leaving by standing in front of the door.
“Move, Lynx.”
“No. You are not going back there,” Mikayla said.
Slade shook his head slowly. “We left there and came back here to make sure you were okay. You aren’t. Now I’m going to go back there to break that little shit into pieces.”
“You can’t do that.”
Well, hell. Of course he could, she just didn’t want him to. Knowing the quickest way to make Slade bend, Mikayla wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him. His arms immediately surrounded her with the warmth and comfort she needed.
Slade was one of her best friends and he was as protective of her as he was his real sister. His baby sister Evelyn was a ballerina, living far from the life of danger they led. Very few people even knew of Evelyn’s existence, but Mikayla loved the younger woman just as fiercely as she would if she were her blood sister. She had often seen Evelyn work her brother and Mikayla took advantage of that knowledge now with no shame.
“You’re the best brother a girl could have,” Mikayla whispered into his chest.
Slade sighed. “So you and Evie tell me.”
He pressed a kiss to the top of her head then led her back into the living room where Rock and Adrian still sat on the large couches. Mikayla sat down then looked up in concern as Slade remained standing. He gave her a sarcastic smile then set the keys down on the table in front of her then made his way over to the bar to pour them all drinks.
“You aren’t gonna let us hurt him are you?” Adrian asked.
“No.”
“Aw, hell.” Adrian leaned back and propped his feet up on the coffee table. Mikayla had to smile at the sulky look on the man’s face.
“Tell us what happened,” Rock ordered quietly.
Mikayla sighed then told them what had happened in the hallway back at the Stark shooting range. The men remained quiet through the telling, but she could sense the anger boiling beneath their calm facades. “So,” she concluded. “It’s not like he told me to fuck off or anything like that. I just don’t think we are right for one another.”
“What I think is that cousin of his deserves the ass kicking,” Rock said after he took a sip of his whiskey.
“Agreed,” Adrian said. “I don’t know about Gage agreeing with you about you not being right for one another. He seemed like a pretty decent guy, although I still want to fuck him up, just a little,” he added with a smile.
Mikayla rolled her eyes at them as Rock and Slade agreed. There was no point in arguing with them.
“He seems to care about you, Lynx, but I don’t think he’s good enough for you,” Slade said and Rock grunted in agreement.
“Funny, that’s what his cousin said about me,” she said with a small laugh.
“I’m gonna kill that motherfucker,” Rock practically growled.
“No, you’re not,” Mikayla replied firmly then relented enough to soften her voice. “It’s what family does. Look at the three of you, practically foaming at the mouth because you want to go over there and bust heads.”
“Damn right,” Slade said.
“But that’s what I mean. Sebastian is just looking out for his cousin. They don’t know me,” she added before anyone could argue. “They don’t know the real me or why I do what I do or what I’ve done in the past. If the roles were reversed I could see how that would be a problem. Not everyone can deal with being in a relationship with a soldier. We all know that more than most.”
Slade paused for a moment then said, “Yeah, it’s hard for people like us to have real relationships. Mac and Tara were lucky to find partners who truly understand them, but there is no guarantee that we will. The truth is that no one is ever going to be good enough for you in our eyes.”
Mikayla was touched when Rock and Adrian quickly nodded. “I love you guys, even if you are a pain in my ass most of the time.”
“Ditto, sweets.” Adrian grinned. “I may like the guy, but he has some major ground to make up for if you decide to keep seeing him. Not to mention, he’ll still have to deal with us.”
“He called your phone five times while you were in the shower,” Slade said softly.
Mikayla wanted to curse as her heart skipped a beat. Things were too complicated between her and Gage, and she just didn’t know what she wanted to do about it right now. She blew out a breath. “I don’t want to think about this anymore right now. Why don’t we work on your case for a little while instead?” She could tell her friends wanted to argue, but Rock finally nodded.
“All right then, we’ll work.”
* * * *
They moved the party down to the security center below the cabin and brought the information about the Cryton Dynamics job up on screen to review. Most of the information seemed pretty cut and dry to Mikayla, but there was something in the back of her mind that kept bothering her.
“We have most of the protocols reorganized and here are the blueprints for the new security system,” Adrian said as he brought their notes and schematics on screen.
Slade rubbed his chin between his thumb and forefinger as he studied the data. “Seems to cover everything. What about the theft? Have you figured out who is behind it yet?”
Rock shook his head. “No, that’s the thing that has us stumped. We’ve watched the police interviews, read the reports and have spoken to everyone with access ourselves. We don’t know who is involved yet, but it had to be an inside job. They had numerous purchase orders properly filled out, but the doctors that supposedly filled out the request never knew about them. If someone is lying, we don’t know who yet.”
“Whoever it was they have to be working with someone who knows the current security system. The cameras were deactivated and the badges were duplicated to allow whoever it was entry into the building with no hint of who the fuck or why,” Rock concluded. “It’s pissing me off.”
“This is the list of what was taken?” Slade pointed to one of the screens. “Shit, that’s a lot of synthetic drugs. You need to be a scientist to understand this shit. I hate science.”
“Yeah. Whoever did it knew the protocol. There are safeguards that an outsider wouldn’t know about that were followed to the letter,” Adrian added. “The bogus orders as well as a lot of other inventory were taken. Some of the shit was even top-secret clearance level. Only someone who worked in that building would have known about these projects and how to get around all the security measures in place.”
“Or someone familiar with the company…” Mikayla said quietly.
All three men turned to her. “Talk it out,” Slade encouraged, knowing that she was working something out in her head.
“What if…” she began, then something clicked. “Wait a second. Can you pull up that data on that investigation the LA office was working on?”
“Which one?” Adrian asked dryly.
“The missing scientists,” Slade said, following where she was going now.
Adrian turned the computer and tapped a few keys bringing the data up on the main screen. A few months ago, six scientists and doctors went missing in California, causing a team of IAD agents from the LA division to help track their whereabouts when the local federal agency came up with no leads. The threat level was decreased when all of the missing doctors were found murdered, two of the bodies burned beyond recognition. The local police had figured they were dealing with a serial killer targeting individuals in the medical field, but now Mikayla wasn’t so sure.
They all scanned the information as Mikayla pointed at one of the screens. “See, right there. Dr. Diana Wu. She was an expert in toxicology.”
“Son of a bitch,” Adrian said. “She worked at Cryton Dynamics. So did this guy, David Henley, the pharmacologist. Henley was one of the two bodies they couldn’t identify. It didn’t pop because she was from the LA office and he’s from San Jose. Christ, those doctors died hard. Tortured to death then burned. Let me do a search for other missing Cryton employees.”
“I’d focus on North America for now,” Slade suggested and Adrian nodded before turning back to the computer.
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