Covert Vengeance

by Kaylea Cross

  “Clear,” Amber whispered after a moment.

  Time to get the hell out of here.

  “This way.” Jesse turned and ran for the van he’d left in a back alley nearby, confident that Amber would follow now that he had her friend.

  The woman on his shoulder hissed in a breath at being bounced around and braced her hands on his back.

  “Sorry. It’s not far. Hang tight.” His and Amber’s footsteps thudded on the pavement as they ran.

  The van was still there, parked behind a row of garbage cans, the sickly sweet smell of sun-warmed garbage filling the air. Holstering his weapon, he pulled out his keys and hit the unlock button. “Get in,” he said to Amber, ripping the back door open to slide the other woman inside as gently as he could.

  Amber climbed into the front passenger seat as he jumped behind the wheel, started the engine and took off. She was scanning the road in front and back, her weapon still in her hand. He hoped she wasn’t considering shooting him after all the trouble he’d gone to. “I don’t think anyone’s following us,” she said after a few seconds.

  Let’s hope. He’d had more than enough excitement for one day.

  “I have to get my gear,” she said. “I can’t leave it behind.”

  All her electronics, he guessed. “Where is it?”

  The address she gave him was a few minutes away. The drive out of the neighborhood was tense. No one spoke as he turned back and forth through the winding streets, heading for the building where Amber had left her stuff. It took her less than two minutes to grab it and get back into the van.

  “Any signs that someone was in the room?” he asked as he drove away.

  “No, it was secure,” she said, reaching into the back to cover her friend with a blanket.

  The woman’s mouth was compressed into a thin line, her hands pressed to her side. “You can sit back there with her if you want.”

  “Nope.” Amber eased back into her seat.

  He lifted an eyebrow. “Still don’t trust me?”

  “Nope. And I broke cover to contact my sister about you while I was inside getting my stuff. I’m waiting to hear back from her. If she doesn’t vouch for you, you and I are gonna have a serious problem.”

  One side of his mouth pulled up in amusement at the thinly veiled threat. “What more does a guy have to do to earn your trust?”

  “Dunno. It hasn’t happened yet.”

  She was quiet, keeping watch around them until they finally reached the highway without incident. As soon as he merged onto it and there was still no one following, she fixed him with an intense stare. “All right, who are you.” A demand, not a question. And if he thought she was attractive on paper, she packed one hell of a punch in person. She had a magnetic presence that was impossible to ignore.

  “Jesse Cordova. And if I’d wanted you dead I would have killed you already.”

  She snorted. “Right back at you.”

  There was nothing remotely funny about this situation and he hurt all over, and yet he found himself biting back a grin at her cockiness. He glanced in the rearview at the other passenger. She was lying across the seat now, eyes closed. “She’s out.”

  “That’s probably a blessing.”

  “She’s not the woman you were trying to find. Was Hannah Miller the dead woman?”

  Her brows drew together. “How do you know that?”

  “Megan. Now Answer the question.”

  She looked away to focus back on the road. “Yes.”

  “So who’s this?”

  “An old…friend.”

  Another Valkyrie? There had been no mention of another one being involved in this. “How bad is she hurt?”

  “She’s got lacerations on her back, maybe some broken ribs. Not sure about internal damage. But we can’t take her to a hospital.”

  “No,” he agreed. The men they’d just killed worked for Rahman. He had all kinds of people on his payroll throughout Damascus and the rest of Syria. If they took her to a hospital, they’d all be in more danger. “I’ve got medical supplies at the safehouse.”

  “Which is where?”

  “About six miles away.”

  “How do you know Megan?” she demanded.

  “I don’t. I’ve only spoken to her on the phone.”

  “Why did you chase me yesterday?”

  “Because that bike was my only way of tracking you.”

  She snapped her head around to stare at him. “No way. I checked for bugs.”

  He shrugged, covered a wince as the muscles in his back and shoulder pulled. “Guess you missed that one.”

  He could practically feel her eyes shooting sparks at him, and he kind of liked it. Her innate intensity drew him. It was weird, they’d only just met, yet after memorizing her file and following her for the past couple days, he felt like he already knew her.

  She opened her mouth to say something else, but stopped when a beeped sounded. She pulled her phone out, slanted him a look, then typed a message back and slipped the phone into her pocket. “My sister says you’re legit.”

  “You’re not going to talk to her?”

  “Later.”

  Meaning, once they were in the clear, and not in front of him.

  She glanced at him, that wary edge to her softening now that Megan had confirmed his identity. “So, how did you get involved in all of this?”

  “We’ll talk once we get your friend taken care of. What’s her name?”

  “Kiyomi.”

  The lingering tension between them eased a bit more as Jesse drove them to the safehouse. It wasn’t the greatest neighborhood but tenants came and went every day here and there was enough criminal activity that the residents kept to themselves and tended to mind their own business. Perfect for their purposes.

  He carried a half-conscious Kiyomi up the stairs to the unit he’d rented, through the stale-smelling kitchen with the peeling linoleum and wallpaper, to the second bedroom. A narrow twin bed sat against the interior wall, covered with a fitted sheet. He laid her down on her stomach and moved to the tiny closet to get another blanket and his medical kit. When he turned around Amber had already begun an assessment.

  She’d pulled the first blanket and was gently easing the tattered remains of the golden gown away from Kiyomi’s skin. Amber hissed, and Jesse’s gaze immediately shot to the bloody stripes that marked the woman’s back, from her waist to her shoulder blades. Some were so deep he could see muscle tissue.

  “Assholes,” Amber spat, and pulled a multi tool out of her backpack to unlock Kiyomi’s cuffs. She set them and the chains aside on the floor and glanced up at him. “Can we have a little privacy?” There was a bite to her tone.

  His instinct was to refuse. But she wasn’t going to take off and ditch her friend here. Whoever Kiyomi was, she clearly meant enough for Amber to protect her. He could leave the room without worrying Amber would try to escape. “Sure.”

  He waited out in the living room, texting Trinity to confirm he had Amber and Kiyomi safe with him. Amber emerged a few minutes later, stopping at the entrance to the living room to measure him with a guarded stare. “I started an IV and gave her antibiotics. She’ll need something for the pain and fever when she wakes up, maybe something light to eat if she can handle it,” she said.

  He nodded and ran a cursory gaze over her. She had more curves than he’d expected, her hips and breasts fuller. Knowing her capabilities just made her that much sexier. “Are you hurt anywhere?”

  “No.” She looked down at her clothes. “It’s not my blood.”

  Good. “You’re supposed to update Trinity asap. Go ahead and shower if you want.”

  She didn’t move. “Who are you, really?”

  “Already told you. And Alex Rycroft brought me on board.”

  “Why?”

  “Because someone wants you dead so bad they’ve put a two million dollar bounty on your head.”

  She stared at him a moment, then arched a chocolate-brown eyebrow. “W
ho?”

  “We don’t know. But two others and I were offered the contract. Something didn’t feel right, so I reached out to an old acquaintance. Miguel Bautista. Married to your acquaintance Georgia, apparently.” Who was friends with Trinity, and therefore linked to Rycroft and the taskforce he’d put together.

  At that Amber stiffened. “How much do you know about me?”

  “Enough. More than enough. They gave me a whole file on you.”

  Her jaw tensed. “So you know what I’m doing here.”

  “I know you came to rescue another Valkyrie, and now she’s dead. What about her?” he nodded at the closed bedroom door. “Is she one of you too?”

  “Yes.”

  “What was she doing here?”

  “I don’t know.”

  He shifted on the couch, couldn’t quite cover the grimace as his back flared up in protest. “We need to get you both out of the country.” How was another matter. With Rahman hunting them, it would be even harder.

  “How bad are you hurt?” she asked.

  “I’ve felt better.” He gave her a sardonic look. “That was one hell of a chase you led me on.”

  “I thought you were trying to capture me.”

  “I was trying not to lose you, and if I caught up to you I would have explained everything and given you Hannah’s location. Trinity called me with it yesterday morning.”

  Amber folded her arms and leaned a shoulder against the wall. “Did you break anything?”

  “I’ll live.” He wouldn’t admit that he was basically a massive, black-and-blue contusion from his shoulders to his ass, and his neck was a giant, painful knot. “How’d you know I’d stop?” On his own, he meant. Because if he hadn’t, she’d have dropped him with a series of bullets to the chest. But somehow she’d guessed he would dump the bike rather than risk hitting her.

  “I didn’t for sure.”

  “But you thought I might.”

  She shrugged. “Had to find out for sure whether you were going to kill me or not.”

  A reluctant grin tugged at his mouth, and he let out a low chuckle. So ballsy. “Hell of a gamble, belleza.” The urge to get up and cup her cheek was almost overwhelming. But she’d probably knee him in the balls for trying.

  His phone buzzed in his front pocket. He glanced at the screen. “Rycroft’s sending a jet for us. It’ll land at an airstrip two hours west of here at oh-six-hundred. We’ll need to be out of here in three hours, tops.”

  Amber glanced at the closed door of the room where Kiyomi was resting. “Let her sleep as long as possible.”

  “You know her well?”

  Those pretty green eyes came back to him. “Used to. We were trained together initially.”

  More than her closed expression, something about her tone told him there was quite a story there. But he wasn’t going to press. She was putting on a brave front, but after everything that had happened she had to be exhausted, and the adrenaline crash coupled with finding Hannah Miller dead would be hitting her hard.

  “Go shower, then talk to Trinity and your sister. You’ll feel better,” he added when she gave him a stony stare.

  With a tiny nod she finally relented and disappeared down the hall to the bathroom.

  Jesse expelled a long breath and gingerly leaned back into the couch, a low groan escaping him as his pummeled back touched the cushions. This was maybe the strangest situation he’d ever been in. But definitely one of the most interesting.

  Amber didn’t know it, but he was hooked on her already and sticking by her side until she was safe. He couldn’t wait to see how the rest of this played out.

  Chapter Seven

  Amber paused on her way to the bathroom to check on Kiyomi. Her old friend was still asleep, hadn’t moved at all since Amber had patched her up and tucked her in.

  Cordova was another matter. While Amber didn’t fully trust him, Megan had vouched for him. He had intervened on her behalf twice, and she and Kiyomi were as safe here as they were going to get.

  She left Kiyomi to rest and retreated into the bathroom. A razor, can of shaving cream and a toothbrush sat on the glass shelf above the sink. Little reminders of the man she was essentially partnered with for the foreseeable future.

  The name he’d used earlier had thrown her. Carly. It was Megan’s real name, before the Valkyrie Program had changed it. That more than anything had convinced her he was on her side.

  Her heart thudded as she perched on the edge of the tub and called her sister. She hadn’t spoken to Megan since the night her sister had helped her escape the London holding facility weeks ago. Amber had vowed to find and rescue Hannah, as a way of making amends for her possible mistake, and to prove herself to her sister and the others. But she’d failed, because Hannah was dead.

  “Hello?” Megan answered.

  Just the sound of her sister’s voice made Amber’s throat tighten. “It’s me. Is this line secure?”

  “Yes. Are you okay?” Megan rushed out.

  “I’m fine.” Physically, anyway. Emotionally? She wasn’t even going to go there in her own head.

  “What happened?”

  The constriction in her throat increased sharply, as if a rock was stuck there. She rubbed her fingers over her eyes and pushed out a breath. “Hannah’s dead.”

  A beat of silence passed. “I heard. Trinity texted.”

  Cordova must have contacted her. “They killed her.”

  “You know who it was?”

  “Fayez Rahman. He captured her and Kiyomi somehow.”

  “Trinity sent me the file you had on her. What was Kiyomi doing there?”

  Amber had hacked all the personnel files from the system before they could be erased when officials scrambled to shut down the Valkyrie Program. “Not sure. And I can’t ask her because she’s currently passed out. They worked her over pretty bad. She’s hurt, but not critical. Vitals are strong. I’ll have to wait until she wakes up to do more of an assessment.”

  “Rycroft’s bringing you all here to the manor. Trinity’s flying in too. You’ll all be safe here, and we can take care of Kiyomi together.”

  Together. It was a lovely sentiment. “Yes.” Exhaustion pulled at her, the result of too many sleepless nights, high stress and adrenaline crash. She was an expert at blocking thoughts and emotions, but right now she felt fragile inside. “I…couldn’t bring Hannah out.”

  “But you got Kiyomi out.”

  Not really. Not without help. “Cordova did.”

  “You both did.” Another pause. “What’s he like, anyway?”

  “He’s good.”

  “Is he hot?”

  A startled smile spread across Amber’s face at the abrupt shift in topic. He was definitely hot. “I guess. He’s relentless and he hits what he shoots at, so that’s pretty hot.”

  He was also built, with bronze-toned skin and deep brown eyes that were surprisingly warm when they looked at her—even though she was an assassin who’d left him for dead at the side of the highway yesterday and he’d risked his life again for her today. She didn’t deserve any warmth from him.

  Megan laughed softly. “Trinity says Bautista considers him one of the best. And skill set aside, he’s apparently a really good guy, considering what he does for a living.”

  Damn, she felt even worse now. “He’s had my back a few times here.” Amber didn’t think she would have made it out of that basement tonight without him. Definitely not if she’d been trying to carry Kiyomi. She owed him her life, and that was a strange dilemma she wasn’t sure how to handle.

  “I’m looking forward to meeting him, then. But mostly I’m looking forward to seeing you again.”

  Hot prickles needled the backs of her eyes. They’d lost so many years together. Years that could never be replaced. All they could have now was whatever time remained. “Can’t wait to see you either. How’ve you been? Still with Ty?”

  “Yes. He threw me a surprise Christmas last week. And he also gave me a promise ring.
”

  Amber’s eyebrows shot up. Valkyries were notoriously solitary creatures. For Megan to jump into such a serious, committed relationship so fast surprised her. “Really? So soon?”

  “We’re not engaged or anything,” Megan added quickly. “But we might be one day. He’s stuck by me since day one. And he’s given up a lot to be here with me.”

  He’d also helped Amber escape—because of Megan. “So he’s staying there?”

  “Marcus gave us the gatehouse.”

  Marcus, former SAS, owner of Laidlaw Hall and the two-hundred-acres surrounding it in the Cotswolds. Megan had rescued him from certain death during an op here in Syria two years ago. And when the Valkyrie Program had been exposed in the media a few months ago, forcing all remaining operatives to go to ground, Marcus had taken her in, no questions asked.

  “So…you’re happy?” Amber asked.

  “Yeah, I’m happy.”

  She could hear the smile in her sister’s voice, and it made her ache inside. Megan deserved happiness after everything she’d lost and been put through. People like them didn’t get happy endings all that often, but maybe the universe would make an exception for Megan. “I’m glad to hear that.”

  “I’ll meet you guys at the airstrip in a few hours, okay?”

  Relief and anticipation swelled inside her, mixing with the fatigue and guilt. “Can’t wait. Bye.”

  She got up and turned on the shower to hot before stripping out of her clothes. The fabric was stiff with dried blood. She bundled everything into a plastic bag to throw out later and stepped under the forceful spray.

  Leaning one palm against the dingy tiles, she closed her eyes and bowed her head under the rush of water. The second she did, her head got in the way. The memory of that fateful night in Rome replayed in her mind, as fresh as if it had just happened.

  She’d been in the empty apartment, manning comms and various video feeds on Lady Ada while the others carried out the op. Everything had gone as planned, without a single snag as Hannah, Zoya and the others had captured their target—a rising star within the Bratva network.

  Zoya wasn’t even breathing hard from dragging the man into their waiting vehicle. “En route to the RV point,” she reported to Amber. “Stand by for transfer. I gotta wake him up first.”