Page 30 of Raven’s Claw (Raven’s Cliff #2)
Chapter Fifteen
Kash stood in Bodie’s office, brooding. A mixture of anger and fear and, damn it, love burning beneath his skin as his teammates stood beside him, looking as if they found it equally hard to breathe. To work past the part of the plan where Jordan gave Rook exactly what he wanted.
Her and the intel.
Alone.
Kash understood her reasoning. What seemed like a compromise between her going solo and having that backup they’d talked about. Except where there was a thousand ways the plan could backfire, and very few where she didn’t end up sacrificing herself.
Miller stood next to her, occasionally nodding. The only one among them who seemed onboard with any of it. What was obviously a spy mentality because even Cannon and Jericho frowned, shifting restlessly on their feet as if they couldn’t quite contain the nervous energy strumming through the air.
Miller paused for a moment and scanned the room before chuckling.
“If I ever needed proof that operatives and military blokes see the world differently…” He gestured at how everyone, but him and Jordan, had gathered together, leaving them isolated.
“I’ve got it. Kash. You look like you have an opinion you’d like to share, mate. ”
Kash glanced at his teammates, then focused on Jordan. “Everyone already knows my opinion. I hate the plan.”
Zain nodded. “You’re not the only one, brother.”
Cannon shuffled as he blew out a rough breath. “I gotta admit, I’m not fond of it, either. We’re just assuming Rook will hand Atticus over instead of simply shooting everyone point blank. Call me crazy, but I’m not that trusting.”
Miller held up his hand. “Granted, I’m not chuffed about it, either, but Jordan knows Rook better than anyone. We need to keep that in mind.”
“I’m not suggesting we don’t.” Kash took a step forward, his gaze locked on Jordan’s. “But there’s got to be a better option than a string of Hail Marys all stitched together.”
The room fell silent, Kash’s last statement lingering in the air. Hanging like a mist about to rain down over them.
Jordan scanned the meager bits of intel Becca had unearthed about the cave, then focused on him. Mouth pinched tight. She looked as if she wanted to say something, then sighed, defeat rounding her shoulders.
Kash closed the distance. “Jordan…”
She huffed. “I don’t like it either.”
“Perfect. Then, we’ll scrap it.”
“But it’s the only way to get Atticus back.” She held up her hand. “I know. You don’t want me to face Rook alone. Don’t trust that he won’t grab the intel, then put a bullet between my eyes. And I get it. That’s what you’d do. You all neutralize the threat, then move on. Except, he’s not like you.”
“The man was a Ranger and a Green Beret. That kind of mentality doesn’t get erased just because he moved to Shadow Ops.”
“That’s not what I mean.” She raked her hand through her hair. “I’m not a threat. Not in the way you’re thinking. He doesn’t want to kill me.”
Zain snorted. “So, blowing that cabin…”
“His men were close enough to track me. They knew I wasn’t inside.
The same thing with my rental. They didn’t fill it full of holes until the first team failed, and Kash and I were clear.
I’m not saying if they’d terminated me, Rook wouldn’t have shrugged and gone on with his life.
But now that he has Atticus — has that leverage over me…
” She blew out a heavy sigh. “I’m worth more to him alive. ”
Zain shook his head. “That’s great in theory, but you rebelled once.
What’s to keep you from simply bailing? I get that in his eyes, he’s invested twenty years in your training, and it’s obvious you’re his go-to agent.
But how could he ever trust you to complete a mission when you’d likely bolt at the first chance? ”
Jordan stared at Zain before her gaze skipped over to Kash.
Kash cursed. “Me.”
She simply smiled.
“You honestly think he’d be able to sustain a threat on my life for the next twenty years?”
“It wouldn’t just be your life. Zain, Chase.
Foster and Mac — anyone else who happens along.
Rook has virtually endless resources. He’s the type of guy who’d have a handful of men infiltrate the community, just waiting in case I ever went rogue.
” She walked over — took his hand. “You’re all willing to die for me.
How can you expect anything less in return? ”
“Getting killed while executing a sound plan is one thing. This…” He leaned into her palm when she rested it against his cheek. “This feels like a surrender.”
“That’s because you’re choosing to overlook the part where I’m counting on all of you to save my ass.
I know Rook. He’s not going to grab me, then hop on a boat or a chopper you could easily follow.
He’ll drag my ass through those tunnels to that giant cave in the center.
He’ll be expecting me to have a plan, and that’s where he’ll try to outsmart me.
Where you’ll all be waiting to stop him. ”
“That’s assuming those tunnels still exist. That they haven’t caved in.”
Jordan pointed to one of the few images Becca had found online. “That photo was taken last fall. I see at least three openings. And Becca did a search. She couldn’t find any evidence of seismic events that suggest there’s been any large-scale cave-ins.”
“Which is great until you’re standing in that chamber, waiting for us to pop out, but we can’t make it more than twenty feet down the tunnels.”
“I know this isn’t how you like to plan your ops. Rook’s a lot of things, but he’s a man of his word. And if we don’t follow his instructions, he’ll kill Atticus, then hold true to his other threat. And I can’t…”
Tears glistened in her eyes, and she turned, but not before a few slipped free — one shattering on the floor the way Kash’s heart cracked at the thought of how much this cost her. That this wasn’t her running. It was her begging them to help her stay.
He moved in close, pressing his chest to her back. “Sweetheart.”
“I’ve never had a family. Never felt as if I belonged…
Until now. Until you and your team.” She glanced at him over her shoulder, cheeks damp.
Eyes glassy. “There’s nothing I won’t do to protect this.
I’m not asking you to give me up. I’m asking you to bring me back.
Because I know, no matter what odds you face inside those tunnels, you’ll come out on top.
And you’ll be there, waiting, just like we planned. ”
Kash pursed his lips, glancing at his teammates then back to her. “You’re sure he’s not going to kill you?”
“As sure as I can be. He’ll want me to suffer. I can’t do that if I’m dead.”
“And we’re confident we’ll be able to receive the tracker signal underground?
” The thought of Chase putting it back in place irritated him.
Knowing Rook would be tracking her, too.
But having that invisible lifeline definitely eased a bit of the rawness raging inside Kash’s head.
What might edge the odds in their favor.
Becca chimed in. “Are you doubting my ability to hack that thing? I’m actually hurt.”
Kash sighed. “I’ll assume that’s a yes.”
Becca merely stared at him. “It’s good to go. I’ve increased the strength of the signal, and I’ve sent the tracking app to everyone’s phone. As long as you don’t stray more than half a mile away, it should work, regardless of where you are.”
“Then, we’d better finalize this because we’re out of time.”
Cannon shook his head but scoured over the map with the rest of Kash’s team, divvying up their resources.
The somber mood followed them out as they headed for their respective trucks.
Mac would take Chase and Greer with Jordan, leaving Foster and Bodie to man their overwatch as the rest of them rendezvoused with Saylor — made a beeline for the tunnels south of the where Rook would be waiting.
Kash held up his hand as everyone piled into the vehicles, holding Jordan’s gaze. She pursed her lips, then launched herself at him, eating at his mouth when he caught her — held her until he was sure he’d used up all their extra time.
She wiped her thumb across his mouth. “Don’t die.”
“And risk having you kill me a second time? That’s crazy.” He held on a bit longer when she went to push free. “I know this needs to end, but you living is worth more than Rook dying.”
She smiled, though it didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Don’t be late.”
She jumped in, still watching him as Foster drove off. Kash climbed into Zain’s truck, absently stroking Nyx as they headed for the marina.
Saylor stood beside one of her boats, arms crossed, toe tapping the dock. “Just once, it’d be nice if these life and death missions didn’t crop up with a storm front baring down on us.”
Zain grinned. “What’s the fun in that? Besides, I think you miss the adrenaline rush you got in the Coast Guard.” He leaned in close. “Face it. You love this shit.”
She rolled her eyes, waving everyone onboard.
Miller cast them off as Saylor worked the throttle, got the boat through the surf then headed south.
White caps rolled across the ocean, the beginnings of the incoming front already kicking up the wind and the spray.
Clouds thickened around them as the vessel cut through the water, rising and falling with the increasing swells.
Nyx pressed against Kash’s leg. She obviously sensed his unrest, staying closer than usual.
Alert. Ready to react at the first hint of trouble.
He tried to tamp it down, but all that looped through his head was the look in Jordan’s eyes as she’d disappeared into the night.
That the kiss they’d shared outside Bodie’s office would be their last.