Page 143 of Red Fury

I wish she could come with me. That I could keep her safe. That… I shut down the thought.

“I wish things could be different, Draiger.”

Her eyes turn hazy. “Me too, Red.” She smiles, and it’s so sad that my heart fucking stutters. “I’ll fetch my bag and then we’d better get going.” She stands.

I jump to my feet. “I’ll get it for you.” I sprint off before she can argue.

Then we’re loading everything up into my SUV and heading for the airport. No sooner am I behind the wheel than my cell phone rings.

I check the caller ID and it’s Webb, so I ignore it. He probably wants to know if I’ve managed to secure him a meeting with Roman.

We drive in stilted silence, the tension building with every mile.

My phone rings again.

“It’s Webb,” I tell Shadow. “I feel sorry for the guy, but I can’t help him.”

“Nope,” Shadow says, turning on the radio as my phone blows up a third time.

At the next red light, I put my cell phone on vibrate. There is nothing I can do for the male, and so I let it ring.

The radio fills the silence between us with some mindless pop song that I couldn’t give a shit about.

“This music is giving me a headache,” Shadow says, reaching for the radio.

The song cuts out mid-chorus, replaced by the crisp voice of a news anchor. Shadow’s hand freezes on the dial as the words register.

“…breaking news coming out of Washington, DC, this hour. Secretary of Defense William Harrison has died in a car accident while en route to a meeting. The incident occurred when Harrison’s official vehicle collided with a concrete barrier on Interstate 495.”

My foot eases off the gas pedal without me realizing it. The car behind us honks impatiently, but I barely hear it over the roaring in my ears.

What. The. Hell!

“Although there were other passengers in the vehicle who sustained minor injuries, Secretary Harrison was the only fatality,” the anchor continues in that detached, professional tone. “At this time, officials do not suspect foul play, but a full investigation will be conducted.”

Shadow and I stare at each other in stunned silence. Her face has gone pale, her lips parting in shock.

“We go now to our field correspondent Jessica Martinez, who has more details from the scene. Jessica?”

“Thank you, Tom. I’m standing approximately fifty yards from where the Secretary’s vehicle came to rest after what witnesses describe as a sudden, violent swerve into the concrete median. Early reports suggest—”

Shadow’s hand shoots out, cutting off the radio with a sharp click. The silence that follows is deafening.

For several long moments, neither of us speaks. My mind is racing.

“Holy shit,” I finally breathe.

Shadow’s voice comes out as a whisper. “It had to be Kozlov.”

I nod, my jaw clenched tight. “Agreed. He said he was going to handle Harrison. That he’d take him out of the picture permanently. I think that the bastard actually did it.”

“He made good on his word,” Shadow says, and there’s a mixture of awe and horror in her voice. “Holy shit, Fury.”

“Maybe he’s telling the truth about all of it,” I say, still reeling.

“I think so,” Shadow mutters. “What do—?”

My phone starts buzzing insistently in my pocket. I glance at the caller ID and feel my stomach drop.