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He looked like he couldn’t breathe. “Amelia, this is bigger than we thought. Bigger than Romano. If we don’t stop it—”

“I don’t care!” I shouted, voice trembling. “I don’t care if the world ends, Kabir. We’ll figure out another way. I’m tired of choosing between survival and love.”

He pulled me into a tight embrace, holding me like it was the last time.

Maybe it was.

“I’ll come back,” he whispered again, his voice raw. “But you need to cancel the op. Please. If I’m right…”

“I’ll try,” I said against his chest, barely holding it together.

I felt his lips on my forehead. A light brush.

Then he stared at me like even looking at my face was breaking him.

He planted a hard kiss on my lips and then, just like that—

He was gone.

Again.

???

“Where is he?”

I asked Sebastian the moment everyone gathered in the conference room the next morning, just before the team was scheduled to head out to Virginia.

Maverick was missing from the bullpen.

Sebastian didn’t look up from the mission board. “The slammer.”

I frowned. “And where exactly is that? Don’t tell me you’ve got a dungeon hidden somewhere in this facility.”

“What the fuck, Ranger?” Zarek muttered, exasperated.

Seb’s eyes widened like he’d been accused of war crimes. “Relax. It’s far, far away from your pregnant wife.”

I blinked. “Wait. What?”

My stomach twisted—half joy, half dread.

“Leora’s pregnant?” I whispered.

Zarek looked like he’d been caught mid-sentence and forced to give up a secret. He glanced at the rest of the op team—Delara, Dylan, Sebastian, and Zane—then finally met my gaze.

“Yeah. Four months.”

A soft rush of emotion hit me. The kind you don’t expect. Hope, maybe. But also fear.

I looked around, scanning instinctively. “Where’s Logan?”

“He’s staying behind with her,” Delara said. “Kaylan too. Logan’s still not cleared for fieldwork after Operation Tantalus.”

I nodded. That made sense. But it meant we were going in short.

Just Zarek, Zane, Dylan, and Delara.

Fuck.

And I couldn’t stay quiet any longer.

“I think we should hold off on the attack.”

All heads turned to me.

Here we go.

Zane narrowed his eyes. “Why?”

I took a breath. “Because I think it’s a trap. The Doom Switch has been hidden for years. Suddenly we find a perfect lead, in a location tied to Romano himself? It’s too easy. Too convenient.”

Sebastian let out a long breath. “Even if it is… we still have to try. I have confirmation Romano will be at the estate today. If the Doom Switch isn’t there, we capture him.”

Zarek raised a brow. “You’re suggesting we kidnap the US Secretary of Defense?”

“That was Plan B,” Zane muttered.

I closed my eyes for a moment, bracing for what was coming next.

This was spiraling.

And Kabir was right.

“I’m serious,” I said, more firmly this time. “We need to cancel the op. Or at least delay it.”

Zane’s eyes didn’t move from mine. But something behind them shifted.

He folded his arms slowly. “And where exactly is this sudden concern coming from?”

I held his gaze, heart pounding. “Instinct. Intel doesn’t feel right. You said it yourself—the lead came too clean.”

His jaw tightened. “That’s not an answer.”

“Zane—”

“Did Kabir contact you?” he asked bluntly, voice low but sharp.

The room froze.

I could feel the air shift. Even Delara stopped flipping through the mission plan.

I didn’t respond right away.

That was enough.

Zarek stepped forward, voice clipped. “He did, didn’t he?”

My silence betrayed me.

Zarek scoffed. “You can’t be serious. Kabir’s gone rogue, Amelia. We’ve marked him. He’s not one of us anymore.”

“That’s bullshit,” I snapped, rising to my feet. My legs still trembled under me, but I didn’t care. “You’re writing him off because it’s convenient. He risked everything to come here. He warned me.”

“Or manipulated you,” Zarek shot back. “You of all people should know how dangerous he is when he wants something.”

“That’s enough,” Zane said sharply.

But the damage was done. My hands were shaking.

“He was trying to protect us,” I said, voice firm. “He told me Romano’s estate is a setup. They’ve upped security on his property—unlogged. Quiet. You don’t do that unless you’re waiting for someone.”

“And you believed him,” Zarek muttered. “God help us.”

I turned to Zane. “You know I wouldn’t bring this to the table unless I was sure. If we walk into that estate tomorrow, we’re walking into a kill box.”

Zane looked at me, torn. I saw it on his face—conflict, hesitation, that flicker of doubt he didn’t want to name.

I looked at Dylan for support but he remained silent as ever. His expression blank.

Zarek’s voice was quiet, almost mechanical. “He shouldn’t have come here.”

I turned to him, surprised. “You’re saying we shouldn’t even listen?”

“I’m saying,” he said without looking at me, “he made a choice. And so did we.”

The room sank into silence.

Until Sebastian, who had been watching everyone like he was measuring their weight on a scale, finally stepped forward.

His tone was flat. Final.

“We’re going.”

I blinked. “Seb—”

“We can’t afford to backpedal every time emotions flare,” he said. “We’ve got one confirmed location, one confirmed target, and an opening we may never get again. Kabir’s warning could be real—or it could be a delay tactic. Either way, we go.”

“Who is ‘we’?” I narrowed my eyes.

“Me, Zarek, Delara, Dylan, and Zane,” Seb replied, arching a brow like he was daring me to push back.

“You’re going too?”

He hesitated, glancing between Zarek and Zane.

Then, quieter, “I’ve been sober a month, Amelia.”

I exhaled hard. We were still short-handed. Still going in blind.

This was going to end badly.

“If we could just wait—”

“We’re going,” Seb said again, firmer this time. “That’s the call.”

He looked to Zane, who said nothing. Then to Zarek, who nodded silently. Delara didn’t speak at all.

My chest ached.

I wasn’t just losing this fight.

I was watching the seams of our team tear open one by one.