“Owen’s handing our wireless comms to your guys now,” Jessica said to Carter, who followed her gaze to where Owen and Carter’s men were together, prepping.
Luke gave a command over his comm and sent Liam, Knox, and Asher into position. Asher strode their way before moving to his post, though. He gave his wife a long, lingering kiss—not giving a damn about onlookers—then hurried off.
Well, that was hot.
“Rory, you’ll stay back with Jessica,” Luke instructed.
What? No! “I need to be there. I have to be included.” She wouldn’t back down. “And if there are animals in there, I can help.”
“And we have no idea if we’re going up against tigers or puppy dogs,” Luke reminded her.
“Based on the heat signatures, we’re dealing with animals much smaller than lions,” Rory remarked.
“If we need to use someone to draw out Cutter, you can use me,” Carter offered.
“He won’t be satisfied with only you,” Rory said with a shake of her head. “He’s still in love with me in his weird, stalker-like way.” He’s been watching me for years, she thought in revulsion. Hide me in a hole to keep like a pet? “I’m trained in martial arts and weapons. I’ve infiltrated seventeen compounds in the last three years. And then before that—”
“She can handle it.” Jessica set a hand on Luke’s arm. “Give her a comm and a gun.” She looked at Rory. “And a vest.”
“Jessica,” Luke admonished. He may have been team leader, but the only person Rory truly needed to convince was Chris. If he were on her side, then surely, Luke would come around.
“One second.” Chris tipped his head, motioning for her to follow him.
“Please don’t ask me to stand down,” Rory said when he grasped her hands in his. “I need to be in there.”
“Do you really want to take the kill shot?” Chris looked down at the grass beneath his boots. “Sebastian may be right.”
“I don’t need to kill him myself, but I do need to face him. That door, or window, whatever I thought I needed to shut . . .” How could she articulate what she was feeling?
“Okay,” he said with a nod, not forcing her to find the words, and that meant more than she could possibly express to him. His faith and trust in her spoke volumes.
“Thank you.” She flung her arms around him for a tight hug. “This is poor timing to tell you, and I promise I’m not saying it because I’m worried I’ll die, but you should know I’m really, really falling for you,” she said around happy tears. More than just falling. I fell.
He brought both palms to her cheeks and swiped the few stray tears that escaped her eyes, and he returned her smile. “I know this isn’t a goodbye thing. And I fell for you, too.” He kissed her, surprising her by slipping his tongue into her mouth in a more erotic kiss than she’d anticipated. “Now,” he said when their lips parted, their mouths still drawn close like magnets, “let’s go take this fucker down.”
Chapter Thirty-Six
“Delta Two, do you copy?”
A.J. reserved Delta One for his wife, but I’d love nothing more than for you to become Delta Two. Chris recalled his words to Rory just before Asher breached the compound, and all hell broke loose. Fortunately, that “hell” was of their making, and it was raining down on Cutter’s men.
Knowing Rory was in the compound with Bear at her side had him checking on her every few seconds, even though she was in visual range, only twenty feet ahead of him alongside the exterior of building one.
“This is Delta Two. That’s a good copy. Again.”
“Just checking,” Chris replied with the same response he’d used thirty seconds ago, and the thirty seconds before that. He was fairly certain he’d never been so on edge during an operation.
A crackling sound had Chris setting his focus on a small speaker positioned next to a floodlight at the corner of the building. The light was broken, but a little static could be heard coming from the square speaker.
“I didn’t expect you to come.” The words flowed out of the speaker now, interspersed by more static. “This is a surprise.”
Cutter?
Rory halted and flinched at the sound of Cutter’s voice, and Chris watched as she tracked the voice to the speaker.
“I can’t see you since someone cut off my cameras, but it’s you, right? It’s my Rory. I had planned on bringing you back to the city where it all started for us, but you found me yourself,” Cutter went on, sounding more creepy stalker than corrupt smuggler right about now. His tone was deep and eerie and disturbingly calm. Cutter was the kind of crazy that Chris knew could transform into a psychopathic killer within a blink of an eye, though.
Cue dramatic music here. Chris closed the space between him and Rory, then set a hand to her shoulder to let her know he was with her. He didn’t want any more space between them from now on.
Thankfully, they had Liam on overwatch, and he’d cut down any enemies before Chris even knew there was a threat. They were safe with him out there. Plus, Asher and the others had the perimeter secure from all possible entry points. No one would be getting out. Carter and his men wanted to be the first to clear the building, though, and Luke hesitantly agreed.
“We had a great life. Five years of adventures,” Cutter went on. “Five years of fucking.”
Chris’s stomach grew sick at Cutter’s words. It was bad enough Chris had seen those photos of Cutter and Rebecca, naked in bed together. But to have to ask Rory to identify the scumbag’s naked body . . . he did not need to draw up any thoughts of Cutter with Rory.
Rory looked back, and even in the dim lighting, he knew there was an apology in her eyes.
“Building one secure,” Carter announced a few seconds later.
“I found the animals,” one of Carter’s men spoke up. “Asiatic black bear cubs. Ten of them in cages.”
Yeah, that was also fucking horrible to picture.
“Where the hell is our target?” Carter rasped.
“Given his monologuing, I’m checking the security room,” one of Carter’s men said.
Cutter’s performance had stopped, though. What did that mean?
“Continue to hold your positions, Delta Two and Echo Three,” Luke instructed. “Wait to proceed until we know both buildings are clear. If the target isn’t inside one of those buildings, he has to be nearby.”
“We’ve got a tunnel!” Carter yelled. “I think he’s already outside the gate. Don’t let him get away!”
That’s what Chris was worried about, damn it. Cutter was distracting them with his creepy talk.
And they hadn’t had time to do a thorough sweep of the area prior to the time-sensitive mission before the sun came up. But the property was smack in the middle of ancient ruins, and now Chris knew why. Cutter had an escape plan if needed. The tunnel had probably existed for hundreds and hundreds of years. But where was the exit?
“We’re on it,” Luke responded in a level tone.
“Second building is secure. All enemies are down,” another one of Carter’s men said. “No more tangos in sight.”
Chris relaxed at his words, but they still needed to find Cutter. “He can’t be far if he was able to talk over the speaker from outside the fence.” Or maybe he’d been talking over the speaker before he’d entered the tunnel, and he lost the signal once he went underground. Fuck. “We gotta get you out of here. Too much high ground around us.”
“I’ve got you in my sights,” Liam reminded them he had their backs. “And my guess is he’s on the north side. It’s like a maze over there. The walls are high in some areas, and he might know I can’t put eyes on him in every spot.”
Carter emerged from building one, and Rory signaled Bear to move. The rest of the team fanned out to search the property outside the fenced area, focusing on the north side.
“Alpha One. Hold back. Let my people handle this,” Luke instructed Carter, and it felt so damn odd to have Carter included with a call sign on this op.
Chris didn’t have time to think about that now, though.
“I think we might need to send Bear into those ruins,” Liam said from somewhere on the hilltop, flat on his belly behind his long gun, watching them.
Bear? Sort of ironic given the actual bears on site.
“I don’t know.” Once outside the fence, Rory stopped and looked to Chris, then to Bear.
Chris set his rifle aside and crouched before Bear. “You got this, boy. Right?” He scratched Bear behind his ears. “He can track him. I know he can do it. He was meant to do this, be a Team dog. What you said to me in Virginia, well, you were right.” That felt like forever ago, but it was fresh on his mind.
“Okay.” Rory knelt next to him and clipped a small tracker to Bear’s collar, then she reached into her pocket for one of Cutter’s handkerchiefs she’d selected for the just-in-case moment that was about to happen.
Rory let Bear get a good scent, then she issued the command, and Bear hurried off without a second thought.
Born for this.
She retrieved the small black GPS device from the pocket of her vest the team had given her to track Bear.
Chris and Rory rounded the fence and kept their heads low as they followed Bear’s signal on their GPS device as he disappeared into the ruins, the zigzag of crumbling walls.
“Bravo Four, what’s on the other side of the ruins?” Chris asked.
“The river,” Liam answered. “I assume that’s his escape plan.”
Luke diverted a few of his men to head along the sides of the ruins to get in place near the river.
Carter and his men hung back a few feet, closely following behind him and Rory.
Rory provided Bear’s movements as she and Chris followed the little blinking light of Bear’s tracker, every left and right turn Bear quickly made as he traversed the maze-like ruins.
“We’re moving in,” Chris said, his heartbeat fast and furious.
Carter was at his six, and he felt oddly comforted by his presence.
Bear’s roar traveled loud into the air as he barked continuously.
“He found his target. Cutter’s still inside the walls, then,” Chris told his team, but then the barking abruptly stopped.
“He’s immobilized.” Cutter’s voice shattered the air and echoed off the walls. “I had a feeling you’d have an animal with you, Rory. He’s been tranquilized. He was about to rip out my throat,” he continued. “I had no choice but to knock him out. If you don’t want me to put a bullet in him next, then I want to talk to you. I know you’re close. I can feel it. But only you, Rory.”
“You’re out of options!” Chris called out to the sick prick, and if the man hurt his dog, so help him. He’d go John Wick on his ass. “Nowhere left to run! It’s over.”
Carter advanced on Chris’s left, and Chris wasn’t sure if he could stop a man focused on revenge. Carter might just walk into a trap and get himself killed because one thing Chris knew for certain about Andrew Cutter—he was a master at setting traps. He’d tricked a genius like Rory for years, which was no easy feat. Granted, he’d been her mentor and probably taught her all the tricks in the book, so he knew her moves before she even made them. Plus, he’d had Danny and Rebecca doing his bidding and steering her along a path he’d designed.
Chris’s blood boiled as he considered it all. He needed to get his team closer and position Cutter somewhere in Liam’s line of sight, where the walls weren’t as high.
“I’ll go. I’m not letting Bear die.” Rory faced Chris. “Please. He won’t hurt me. Danny said he’s obsessed with me, remember? Still in love with me. He could’ve killed me at any point over the years, and he didn’t.”
“Absolutely not.” Chris allowed his sling to catch his rifle as he grasped her forearms, terrified she’d run toward danger. “I’ve also heard of crazy-ass people killing those they love so no one else can have them.”
“We don’t have time for your argument,” Carter said, starting to walk past them, but Chris whirled around and grabbed him by the arm. “I don’t want your dog to get hurt, either, but we’re not trading a human life for an animal.”
“That dog put his life on the line for us tonight.” Rory’s voice broke, and Chris felt like someone had grabbed hold of his heart and squeezed. “He’s worth saving.”
“I know that. Believe me,” Chris began, “but I can’t lose you. Please don’t walk away from me.” And fucking A, this isn’t my mom messing with me. No, no, no. Not my issues talking, he told himself. This was about saving the life of the woman he wanted to . . . marry. Yeah, he wanted to marry her. And he planned on doing it.
“The man from the gala. Is that you out there? Are you with her?” Cutter called out. “You should know Rory always runs away. Runs from everyone and everything.” Cutter was trying to taunt him, the son of a bitch. And they had to be close if they could hear him so clearly.
“What’s your status, Bravo Four?” Chris quickly asked Liam, ignoring Cutter. “Eyes on the target yet?”
“He stepped into my view for only a second, then ducked away,” Liam responded. “Two right turns and hang a left, and you’ll find him.”
“Roger that.” Chris looked at Carter. “You heard Bravo Four. He’s in position. We don’t need to advance. Let him take the shot.”
“And you heard him, too. He doesn’t have a clear one yet.” Carter started to walk, and Chris grabbed hold of his vest and yanked him backward.
“Stand down,” Chris hissed the order, then checked behind him to see more of Carter’s men coming. “You’re way outnumbered!” Chris yelled out to Cutter. “Give up or get a bullet to the head.”
“He’s getting a bullet to the head from me, regardless,” Carter insisted.
“Don’t be an—” Chris dropped his words and let go of Carter at the sight of blonde hair flashing out of the corner of his eye.
Rory.
She was running.
“No!” He shoved Carter against the wall and started after Rory, hoping to catch up with her before she traded herself for Bear.
Just as he was about to round the last turn, Chris pinned his back to the wall when he heard Cutter’s voice.
“You ran from your home in Alabama. Ran off with me until you got bored and left to chase down antiquities buyers. And then you gave that up, too. You trade in one thing for another. Never satisfied. Always running.” Chris realized Rory was now face-to-face with Cutter.
Chris stole a look to see her hands up, the muzzle of a gun aimed her way. Then he focused back to see Carter and his men on approach. He held a gloved palm up, signaling for them to stop. He would not let them get Rory shot.
He loved that stubborn, headstrong woman. And he hadn’t used the words out loud or even to himself before this moment, terrified it was too soon, but now . . .
“Nothing ever satisfies you, does it? But for some crazy reason, I thought you’d make a full circle and run back to me one of these days,” Cutter went on. “Does the man you’re with, the one who looked like he wanted to kill me at the gala, know you’ll run from him, too?”
Chris went stiff at his words, and he bit down on his back teeth. Cutter needed to die. Now.
“Let me check to make sure Bear is breathing,” Rory demanded, and knowing her, she wouldn’t wait for Cutter’s permission.
“You got a clear shot yet?” Chris whispered, hoping Liam could hear him. He aimed his rifle on Carter as a warning not to dare round that wall and go for Cutter.
Carter’s nostrils flared as he observed Chris, but he remained still, probably knowing if he made a move, Rory might get hit.
“I have Rory in my sights,” Liam told him. “Cutter’s head keeps moving out of view, though.”
“I can draw his fire and put him in the open for Liam to shoot,” Carter said in a low voice so Cutter couldn’t hear him, practically
mouthing the words.
“Wait,” Chris whispered, still not lowering his rifle.
“You see, he’s breathing. And now you’re my ticket out of here. Step over him,” Cutter commanded, and what the hell was he planning? Some hostage situation?
“No,” Rory shot back. “Tell me the truth first. I don’t believe Rebecca would willingly do what Danny said she did.”
Carter flinched at Rory’s statement and took one step too close, nearly setting his chest to Chris’s rifle, and Chris didn’t give a damn five armed men stood behind Carter. No one was getting past Chris until Rory was out of danger.
“You know what makes me sleep well at night,” Cutter began, “knowing an uptight woman who wanted to be First Lady died believing she had an affair with me. She died without knowing the truth.”
Chris lowered his weapon and set both palms to Carter’s chest when the man attempted to move forward out of rage. “Please,” Chris begged. “Do you want Rory to die by this fucker’s hands like your wife? Please, help me save her,” he added in a low voice, and Carter closed his eyes but slowly relented and backed up.
“What do you mean?” Rory asked.
“My celebrity status had women dropping their panties for me. Married women, too. I’d wine and dine wives of CIA officers and DEA agents. Tell them some fun stories, get them drunk, and the next thing I knew, I had an in to their husband’s organization. The women had no choice but to feed me intel or risk their husbands finding out.”
The sick fuck. Chris reached for his rifle again and listened closely, hoping Rory would be able to draw Cutter into the open.
“It didn’t work with Rebecca. She was too in love with her husband. I spiked her drink. Had my guys take photos staged to look like we’d had sex. I’m not a rapist. Gotta draw the line somewhere.” He laughed a little, and Carter snapped his hands into fists.
Chris wished more than anything he could let Carter loose on the bastard, but he had to get Rory out of there first—a woman who put her life on the line for Bear. For truth and justice.
Chasing Fortune (Stealth Ops Book 8) Page 37
