Page 83

Dagger.
Langford typed, eyes glittering.He’s going to walk right into it. I’m the bait.Quinn thrashed against the horror. Muffled screams buried beneath the duct tape. But rage burned brighter than fear now.I’m not just bait. I’m a spark. They have no idea what kind of fire they’re about to unleash.
Kade…Her heart fractured under the weight of dread.He’ll come for me. He’ll tear them apart with his bare hands. Please… don’t let him die because of me.
But her captors held tight. All she could do was stare while Langford used her phone, her most sacred connection to Dagger, to lay the trap.
16
Dagger rubbeda rough palm over his face, inhaling the humid Venezuelan night air in short, ragged bursts. He stood in the small courtyard outside the makeshift barracks, a strip of cracked concrete, a few potted shrubs, and a dim security light overhead. The moon hung low, bathing everything in a muted glow that did nothing to soothe the turmoil in his chest.
He stared at the curling edge of one leaf, trying to anchor himself.Did I just lose her?The question gnawed at him, fear coiling around his lungs. His conversation, no, argument, with Quinn replayed in agonizing loops, every harsh word echoing in his mind. He still felt the heat of her body against his, yet the bitter tang of her anger lingered on his tongue.
A light shuffle of boots on concrete made him glance up. Flash stepped around the corner, one hand shoved into his cargo pocket. He wore his usual crooked grin, an expression that faltered the instant he caught sight of Dagger’s face.
“Hey, man. You all right?” Flash asked, voice gentler than usual. No glimmering mischief in his eyes.
Dagger forced a tight exhale. “No,” he admitted, scrubbing his hand over the back of his neck. “Not really.”
Flash frowned, his tone losing any hint of teasing. “Aw, shit. What happened with Quinn?”
For a moment, Dagger closed his eyes, picturing her, wet hair plastered to her skin, eyes shimmering with both longing and fury. “We got into it,” he said finally, voice low. “We…” His jaw worked. “We were together. Then I pushed her too hard about Brian. She snapped. Said some…things, said that she might not be able to forget the past and move into the future,” he said gruffly, his eyes stinging. “I walked out.”
“That was ballsy.” Flash let out a low whistle, his hand going to Dagger’s shoulder and squeezing. “Damn. So, what? You think you lost her?”
Dagger’s shoulders sagged, the weight of his teammate’s hand comforting. “Maybe.” The word stuck in his throat. He’d never been so direct about his fears, but he’d run out of places to hide. “I’ve been trying so hard to be gentle, to let her set the pace, but it felt like she was stuck. I couldn’t stand it anymore. So I—” He paused, shaking his head. “I gave her some tough love.”
Flash rocked on his heels. “Even if you do lose her, you walked out on your terms, man. You’ve been showing that girl your easy side for too long. A little tough love goes a long way.”
A hollow laugh escaped Dagger’s chest. “Easy side,” he echoed. “Feels like nothing about this is easy.”
Flash huffed. “I know. But sometimes you gotta force the conversation. Otherwise, you’ll both be drowning in all the what-ifs.” He lifted his chin, studying Dagger. “You love her, don’t you?”
Dagger swallowed, the truth lodged so deeply it hurt to speak. “Seems like forever,” he said, voice betraying him with quiet vulnerability.
Flash’s usual grin softened. “Then you did the right thing. You pushed her to see that you’re here and Brian isn’t. We allloved the guy, and I know what he meant to you, but dead is dead. No coming back from that. I’m proud of you.”
Dagger let out a shaky breath, the tension across his shoulders easing by a fraction. “Feels messed up to say it, but it’s true. Brian’s gone. Quinn can’t keep living like she died with him.”
Flash bobbed his head in agreement. “Exactly. She’s gotta face it.” Dagger knew that Flash would understand. As SEALs, they lost brothers all the time, and maybe that was why it wasn’t easier for Dagger, but he understood the consequences of the kind of jobs he and Brian had.
They stood there for a moment in a companionable silence, broken only by the distant hum of night insects. A wave of conflicting emotions surged in Dagger’s chest, worry, guilt, hope. He hadn’t expected Flash’s quiet support to mean so much, but it did.Maybe I’m not as alone in this as I thought.
Suddenly, his phone chimed. Both men glanced down at it. Dagger fished it from his pocket, eyebrows shooting up when he saw Quinn’s name on the screen.
“She wants me to meet her by the pool,” he muttered, surprise filtering into his voice as he read the terse message. He scrolled a moment, checking for anything else, but it was just a single line. “That’s…weird. She hates the pool here.”
Flash leaned forward, peering at the phone. “Think she wants to talk things out?”
Dagger tucked the device back into his pocket, heart pounding a little quicker. “Yeah, maybe,” he said, though a sliver of unease prickled the back of his mind. Still, relief overshadowed it.She’s reaching out. That’s a start.
Flash clapped him on the shoulder. “Then go. I’ll follow in a bit, in case…y’know, it’s bad news.”
A faint smile tugged at Dagger’s lips. “Thanks, man. For everything.”
“Always,” Flash said, stepping aside to let Dagger pass. “But if you two get into round two, try not to break anything.”
Dagger managed a short laugh, though his gut twisted. He nodded and strode off, phone burning in his pocket, mind full of Quinn. The lingering fear that she might still turn him away warred with a flare of hope.Meet me by the pool.Maybe she’d decided she was finally ready to talk.