“Go. Cross the street. Don’t stop.” She nudged his back, and he dashed across the street.
The light changed, and the waiting cars honked as they raced pass. When they reached the opposite side, he peeked back to see Tony glaring across the busy traffic, his phone to his ear. He’d been on Marshall’s security detail for over three years. How long had the man been an enemy?
Lena’s head whipped back to look behind them. “We have to hurry.” Rushing to a beat-up single-cab pickup, she jerked the driver’s door open and motioned for them to get in. He scooted across the bench seat, pushing empty fast-food trash aside and climbing over a toolbox.
“Get on the floorboard and stay down.” Lena tossed her backpack onto the bench. “I need you to get my hat out of there.”
He tucked Carter underneath him and scrunched onto the floorboard. There was barely enough room for them both to fit. He adjusted his legs, trying to get more comfortable, then reached for her bag.
She grabbed the toolbox on the seat, rifling through the contents and pulling out a screwdriver and hammer. What did she plan to do? She placed the screwdriver in the ignition. There was no way she could hot wire the truck. Shouldn’t they keep running, maybe look for a cop or something? Marshall pulled out her hat and set it next to her, doubt clinging to his throat as he tried to catch his breath.
“Daddy, me scared.” Carter trembled under him, curling his little body against Marshall’s.
“Hey, squirt. It’s okay.” He rubbed his hand over his son’s curls. “We’re not letting anything happen to you.”
A loud metallic whack jerked Marshall’s head up just in time to watch Lena slam the hammer a second time against the screwdriver’s handle. She turned the tool jutting from the steering column, and the truck fired to life. Where in the world did she learn that? He was pretty sure they didn’t teach that in the army.
“I’m giving you a raise,” he blurted out over the loud country blaring through the speakers.
Her lips tweaked in the most adorable way as she twisted the volume down. If she knew he’d just thought that, she’d probably throat chop him like she had Tony. She ripped off her T-shirt, revealing a white tank top underneath, yanked her hair tie from her ponytail to let her long raven hair spill down her back, and slammed the hat on her head.
“You might want to wait on that raise.” She threw the truck in gear and sped out of the parking lot. “I haven’t gotten us to safety yet.”
The words sobered the amazement coursing through him. How did she plan to do that? She took a turn, and Marshall grunted as he slammed against the door. His five-ten frame was not meant to fold into such a compact space. Lena’s gaze darted to him, then back to the road.
“Strip.”
“Excuse me?” He stuttered.
“You have the Supersuit Zeke gave you on under your polo, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Then strip out of your polo and get on the seat. Changing your shirt will help disguise you.” She glanced at the side mirror. “I need you up and watching for a tail.”
He set the toolbox on the floorboard and clambered onto the bench seat. Then he tucked Carter onto his feet. Was it safe for him to be on the floorboard like that? It’d be better if he was in a seatbelt. He pulled Carter onto the middle spot on the bench seat and buckled his son in.
Marshall then tore off his polo, the button catching in his hair and ripping a chunk out. He cringed as he remembered the Captain America shirt he had on over the formfitting suit, glad he’d put that on but also wishing he’d chosen something less childish. He never imagined anyone would actually see the shirt he wore as a boost to his ego. Not that his embarrassment mattered at the moment.
“Hey, buddy. Why don’t you lay your head on my lap for a while?” Marshall rubbed his son’s small shoulder and eased him to his lap.
What else could he do to help? He grabbed the knitted beanie stuffed in the dashboard’s corner. It smelled of sweat and dirt, but if Lena said they needed a disguise, he’d follow suit. He put the sunglasses on that had been next to the beanie and turned to her.
“What do you need me to do?”
“Watch the mirror. If you see someone continually taking the same turns as us, let me know.” She pulled out her phone, the screen coming to life.
Marshall growled. “Did anyone listen to me about leaving their phones?”
Lena rolled her eyes. “Oh, thank God you haven’t left yet.” The relief in her voice was unexpected as she slid the phone in the holder clipped to the truck’s vents and turned on the speaker.
Just who was she talking to?
“You missed me that much?” The cocky tone grated on Marshall’s already fraying nerves.
He watched in the mirror as she took a turn, scanning the scant cars behind, his ribs seeming too tight as his breathing slowed. He was ill-equipped for this. He should have done more training instead of relying on others to protect him. All he knew about watching for tails he learned through movies. He doubted his lessons were thorough enough for the nightmare they were now in.
“I’m heading your way. We need an escape that’s off the books.” Lena turned down another side street.
“What happened?” The man’s arrogant voice turned to steel.
“I’ll fill you in when we’re in the air. Text me the address. We’ll be there in less than thirty, and you better be ready to take off.”
“Dang it, Len—”
She disconnected the phone and peeked at Carter before pulling her gaze up to Marshall’s. “See anything back there?”
Marshall peered behind them one more time before shaking his head. “No. At least, I don’t think so. Everything I know about enemy evasion, I learned from Jason Bourne.”
Lena laughed as she turned from Hastings Avenue to 15th Street. The sound tinkled in his ears and skittered along his skin. Had he ever heard her laugh before? Maybe, but never in a way that sounded so unguarded. She stopped at a red light, scanning all three mirrors and surrounding vehicles before her eyes slid to Carter.
“He fell asleep?” Lena’s soft expression captivated Marshall as she slid her hand down Carter’s arm and curled her fingers around his hand.
How had he thought she was void of emotion? Why did she hide behind the wall of aggravation when she was with him? But, more importantly, why did it suddenly matter so much to Marshall that her reactions to him change?
“I’ll get us out of this, Marshall.” His name on her lips spread warmth through his stomach like he’d just taken a shot of espresso. “I promise. I won’t let anything happen to him.”
“Thank you, Lena,” he whispered past the lump in his throat and set his hand over hers that still held Carter’s.
She looked at their hands, her eyebrows squishing together the way Carter’s did when he was confused. He wished he could read minds to know if her heart was racing as fast as his. It was probably just the adrenaline still coursing through him. She swallowed, pulled her hand free, and focused on the road as the light turned green.
The interstate loomed before them, and Marshall’s growing respect for Lena doubled. “How did you know where to go?”
“I studied a map of the town before we left and memorized exit plans.” Lena shrugged like escaping murderous traitors was an everyday event.
“You’re amazing.” He couldn’t keep the awe from his voice.
“No, just paranoid.”
She took the interstate west, pulling in between two minivans like they were just another family heading somewhere for the weekend. The steady hum of the tires speeding along the pavement eased the tension bunched in his muscles, and he gripped Carter’s hand in his own. She may chalk it up to paranoia, but hiring Lena Rebel may have been the best decision Marshall had ever made.
Seven
Making this job personal may have been the stupidest thing Lena had ever done. She breathed deeply through her nose to calm her still racing heart. She peeked at Carter sleeping peacefully on Ma
rshall’s leg, and her pulse ratcheted right back up. What if she wasn’t good enough? What if she made a mistake that got Carter killed?
As the what-ifs wrapped fear tighter and tighter around her chest, doubt clouded her thoughts and made it hard to think straight. Why had she ever thought she could take this solo assignment? She couldn’t wait to get to Bjørn and get in the air. Maybe when there were ten thousand feet between them and their attackers, she could stop freaking out.
She turned into the dirt drive her phone indicated and pulled up to the metal hangar at the end of a private runway. Bjørn stepped from the building with another man and lifted his hand in greeting as he dashed to the helicopter and tossed in his pack. Her chest eased at the sight of him, and the relief pinched her pride.
She had trained hard for half of her life, if not more, for situations like what they had just gone through. She shouldn’t need anyone else. If she was good enough, she could do this on her own. But she wasn’t, and she didn’t know where that left her.
She threw the truck into park and turned the screwdriver to kill the engine. “Come on. Let’s get in the helo.” She opened her door but paused as she took in the huge lumberjack of a man with her brother. “Stay behind me until I assess the situation, okay?”
Marshall’s eyes widened as they bounced to the guys approaching the truck. “I thought you knew them.”
“I do, well, one of them.” She sighed. “Remember, I’m paranoid.”
She tried to make the comment light by adding a smile, but she feared it came off as more of a grimace. Snagging her pack and jumping from the truck, she hurried around the hood so she’d be in front of Marshall and Carter in case the worst happened. Her brother ruined her cautious plans when he raced up and grabbed her into a hug. She squeezed her eyes shut, relishing the physical connection that filled her tank that she wasn’t aware was bone-dry.
“Lena.” Bjørn set her down and grabbed her shoulders, shaking her. “Are you kidding me? Do you know what I’ve been going through the last half hour?”
Her lip twitched up at the reprimand. “Sorry about that. I had to focus.”
Movement caught her eye behind Bjørn, and she straightened. How had she let her guard slip again? She had done it in the park when Carter’s joy had distracted her and allowed Tony to get the drop on her. Now she’d done it again with her brother’s welcome. Why was it so hard for her to keep her emotions under control? She’d never had this problem before, not even on the mission that killed Ethan.
Bjørn pointed his thumb over his shoulder. “You remember Tank from the Night Stalkers?”
Tank? As in Zac “the Tank” Smith who flew with Bjørn in the 160th SOAR for the army? She didn’t recognize him with his face covered in a thick, unruly beard and his long hair pulled back in a man bun. Lena hardly had time for the information to process before Bjørn was blazing forward.
“Hey, I’m Bjørn. Looks like I’m going to be your captain today.” Bjørn nodded at Marshall, still behind Lena. She snapped back to what needed done.
“Right.” She motioned to the Rands, pausing at the pinched expression on Marshall’s face. “Mr. Rand, this is my brother, Bjørn, and our friend Zac. Guys, that’s Mr. Rand and Carter.”
“It’s Marshall.” His face relaxed as he nodded, then fixed his gaze on Lena. “Just Marshall.”
Her chest heated, and she furrowed her forehead. Why was he suddenly informal? And when had she started thinking of him as Marshall? If she didn’t move this reunion along, her entire face might break out in a sweat. She had no reason to flush over Mr. Rand and his confusing expressions. Both of their emotions were running high on adrenaline at the moment, which meant she couldn’t put meaning into anything either of them did.
She pushed everything down but her irritation. That, she knew and was comfortable with. “Are you ready to go or what?”
“Bossy, bossy.” Bjørn chuckled as he motioned to the helicopter. “We’re ready. Just waiting on you.”
“We were here hiding out and were found.” Lena pointed behind her with her thumb in a move that mirrored Bjørn’s at the truck. Man, she’d missed being with family. “I had to borrow a truck.”
“She hotwired it with a screwdriver and a hammer.” Marshall’s awestruck voice slid like melted dark chocolate down her ragged insides. “She was amazing. I’ve never seen anything like what she did back there.”
“She’s a keeper for sure.” Bjørn’s smirk made Lena want to deck him. “Aren’t you glad I taught you how to do that all those years ago?”
“You taught me?” She rolled her eyes at the memory of their camping trip when Bjørn had somehow lost the keys to the truck and their father had had to start the vehicle like she had. She turned to Tank. “I’m really sorry to dump this all on you, but we need the truck to be wiped clean of any evidence of us being in it.”
He shrugged. “That won’t be a problem. I’ll make sure it’s clean before I park it somewhere.”
She pulled her phone out of her pocket and clicked on the app Rafe had installed that ran a kill code, erasing everything on the phone. She couldn’t take any chances that the phone had somehow been traced. She typed in the passcode, set the phone so it wouldn’t lock up, and handed it to Tank.
“Is it possible for you to take this down the road a bit?” She rubbed the back of her neck. “If they somehow traced it, I don’t want them coming here and bothering you.”
“Got it.”
“Just click on that execute button and the phone will wipe clean.”
He nodded and pulled her into a hug she wasn’t expecting. “Stay safe.”
Her throat closed with stupid, unshed tears, so she jerked her head in acknowledgment. She had to get herself under control. Had to get safely in the air so she could just breathe and lock everything that threatened to burst from her back into its rightful place. She’d let her feelings lead her once before and look where that got her—with a dead fiancé and a shattered heart. Hadn’t she learned her lesson?
She stomped after her brother, who was leading the Rands. Carter skipped next to his dad with Marshall clinging to his hand. The cute kid glanced back to her with such excitement shining from his face that her heart melted all over again. How would she ever put herself back together if she stayed with Carter?
If she didn’t, what other feelings would sneak in and bombard her heart?
Her eyes flicked to Marshall as the memory of his touch on her hand rushed back. The sparks that had shot up her arm had left her with a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach. Problem was, she couldn’t tell if it was revulsion or attraction. It had to be the former. She wasn’t attracted to him. Well, she shouldn’t be attracted to him. He’d been part of what led to Ethan’s death. On top of that, he piecemealed his time and love out to his son like some fiendish guard at a concentration camp. The poor boy starved for his daddy’s attention, but never got enough moments to truly satisfy his hunger.
Her jaw ached as she clenched her teeth at the well-known bitterness that welled within her. She just had to keep all that fresh in her mind until she contained this situation and she could get another assignment. If she had any hope of pulling herself back to where she’d been comfortable, she’d have to distance herself emotionally from Carter.
“Come on, Eena.” Carter ran up and tugged on her hand, the motion wrenching open the chinks around her heart even further. “Me going on a elicoper.”
His big brown eyes, filled with such trust and love, beamed up at her. How could she cut herself off from the person who meant so much to her? Her indecision during the attack and the panic that had filled her threatened to fray her senses again. When his safety was on the line, how could she wall herself up so she could protect him better? It had everything to do with keeping him safe, and nothing to do with the confusing emotions churning within her. She helped Carter climb into the helicopter and swallowed the bitter lie.
Eight
“Zeke, it’s Lena.” Lena sat on the
edge of the hotel’s bed as the call connected to the secure line back home, exhaustion weighing her muscles down.
After much arguing, she’d agreed to Bjørn’s insistence that they take the Rands to Alaska, and they had spent the next eight hours flying over the Canadian forest. The excitement of the flight had kept Carter entertained for the first leg, but each one after became harder for the child to stay happy. Lena was glad she wasn’t a real nanny. Cranky kids were not her cup of tea.
“What’s wrong?” Zeke’s question shot through the phone like he’d never left the military, quick and efficient.
“Marshall’s head of security ended up being in with the people pressuring him.” Lena hadn’t meant for his first name to slip out, wanting to keep things between them formal, but since the attack and his insistence, she just hadn’t seemed to care much.
“Are you okay?” Zeke’s worry hadn’t been a product of the military, but of the family he’d created within Stryker Security Force. To him, family was everything, even if he’d had to create it himself.
“Yeah.” Lena sighed and rubbed her sore lower back. “Thankfully, June’s Supersuit worked perfectly.”
“You were shot?” The words echoed in surround sound as both Zeke and Marshall said them, startling her gaze to Marshall emerging from the bathroom.
His wet hair stuck up in all directions like he’d run the towel over it and hadn’t bothered with straightening it. She put her index finger over her lips to quiet him. She couldn’t have two conversations at one time.
“Yeah, I may have left a mess in a park in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.” She tried not to watch Marshall as he stepped over Bjørn, already conked out on the floor, but fatigue gnawed at her brain. She’d chalk it up to keeping tabs on everyone. “I took out two of the attackers before we escaped.”
“What are your plans now?” Zeke’s confidence in her loosened the nerves that had tangled in her stomach while she had sucked up the courage to call.
“Bjørn was picking up a helicopter in Spokane.” Lena sighed, doubt at what they were doing creeping back in. “We’ve decided to take them to my parents’ place in Alaska. I worried with Mr. Rand’s and June’s companies collaborating, the people after him would think Stryker was hiding him. From my parents’ place, I’m taking them to the mountains. If my cover held, there shouldn’t be any way for Mr. Rand’s enemies to make the connection.”
Honoring Lena Page 4
