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He tried three more times to connect before he disconnected the phone and dropped it back onto his desk. It was possible that there was no satellite reception at the moment where his men were. There was also the possibility that his men had been taken out by the same source that had killed the last teams. He wished he hadn’t been quite so hasty in ordering Hyder’s termination now.

Picking up his desk phone, he punched in the number for the operator.

“How may I direct your call, sir?” the Operator greeted in a pleasant voice.

“Disregard this call,” he stated.

“Yes, sir,” the smooth feminine voice replied without hesitation. “Will there be anything else, sir?”

“No.”

He disconnected the call and lowered the receiver back to its cradle. Sliding his hand into his pocket, he retrieved his cell phone. In seconds, he had typed out an encrypted message and hit the send button.

The definition of insanity was repeating the same actions relentlessly, only to experience the same disastrous outcomes. Two teams had already been lost by him. He wouldn’t risk losing another.

No, this called for an elite group of soldiers. It also called for the most extreme secrecy.

The Knights of the Dii Bellatores, known far and wide as the epitome of excellence in warfare, were the soldiers he knew he could rely on. They were unrivaled, known for their unwavering loyalty and ruthless tactics when the situation demanded. There were ten shifters, a diverse group comprising both men and women, each possessing their own unique set of specialized skills.

On his way back to the map, his eyes lingered on the white pin, almost as though he thought it could reveal all the solutions he was looking for. He considered it dispassionately. In certain situations, taking matters into your own hands was the only way to ensure a job gets done.

Chapter 18

Jayden snuggled back against the heater curled around her. She was enjoying her dreams too much to wake up. After yesterday, she wasn’t sure she would ever feel warm again. Right now, she was nice and toasty. Her bed wasn’t super soft, but it was soft enough that she didn’t want to leave it.

The only problem was her bladder. She groaned, hating the idea of getting up, but realizing she had little choice unless she wanted to have an embarrassing accident. With a sigh, she forced one eye open, then the other.

A frown of confusion caused her to blink and rub at her eyes. She didn’t remember building a shelter. In fact, she wouldn’t have unless she was in dire straits. Building a shelter like this would make it too difficult to conceal her tracks.

She stiffened when the heavy band around her waist and the heater pressed against her back moved. Her eyes widened as memories that she had thought had been dreams came flooding back.

Van and Peterson—They had found her.

She slid her hand down to the weight holding her down. Yep, it was an arm. A large hand was curled against her belly, reminding her that she needed to visit a tree or bush soon.

She carefully lifted the hand without waking the man. Gingerly scooting out from under the blankets covering her, she rolled onto her knees and glanced at the sleeping man. Her breath caught at the beauty of Van’s face relaxed in sleep.

He mumbled in his sleep. Worried that he would notice she had risen, she pushed the pillow they had made using a shirt and moss up against him. It was still warm.

Pushing off the ground, she rounded the firepit, grabbed her boots, and exited the makeshift tent. Shivering, she pulled on her boots before her feet could get cold, then hugged the oversized jacket she was wearing closer to her body. She stuffed her hands in the pockets. It felt like another storm was moving in.

She glanced around the ledge, searching for Peterson. Another blast of cold air hit her and she grimaced. She would worry about finding Peterson after she relieved her aching bladder.

Spying her lance, she grabbed it and worked her way up and over the rocks until she was a good hundred yards from the camp. Scanning the surrounding area to make sure she was safe and alone, she squatted and breathed a sigh of relief.

“Nothing like a bit of frigid air in the nether regions to wake a girl up,” she muttered.

“Jayden!”

Her head jerked up when she heard Van’s panicked shout. She muttered an oath before she rose, pulled up her pants, and fastened them. She blanched when he shouted her name again.

Nothing like letting the bad guys know where they were! she thought with dismay.

Grabbing her lance that she had dropped next to her, she hurried back the way she came. She was rounding the rocks when she heard Peterson’s voice. He was livid!

“What do you mean you lost her? How the hell did you do that?” Peterson snapped.

“She snuck out while I was asleep,” Van retorted.