Page 16 of Renegade (The Santini Assassins #2)

CAROLINE’S SURPRISE

GREYSTONE

G reystone was furious.

Not even that five-hour flight could settle him down.

En route, he’d uploaded the photos of the three dead men into Langley’s system.

Within minutes, the database identified them as soldiers in the Haqazzii terror cell.

He hated that they’d stolen Sherry’s life.

But they’d gunned down a protective agent.

One of their own. Vengeance ran deep in his bones. Now, he was out for blood.

In the doorway of the BLACK OPS conference room, Greystone acknowledged the team with a nod before eying the mugshots displayed on the screen.

A growl shot out of him. “The mission went sideways.”

“Do we need to take a break?” Dakota asked.

“Depends,” Greystone replied. “If this is my team, they gotta hear about it.”

Dakota flipped on the lights. “Greystone Santini, meet your team.”

Greystone strode to the bulletin-board wall, slapped up each of the photos.

He was too fired-up to sit, too damn ready to take these thugs out.

But he knew he couldn’t go off half-cocked.

This was a strategic mission that required planning, skill, and cunning.

The motherfuckers were winning, but it was this team who would stop them.

He regarded the mugshots flashed on the back wall, this time recognizing the ones in the photos from Sherry. Time to take his anger and frustration down. Today was day one. No need to piss anyone off, especially his team. Better to dial things back.

He sat at the head of the table.

“Have you met everyone?” Sin asked.

“Good to see you again, Develin,” Greystone said. “I read your file. You’re the Fixer. Here’s hoping I never need you.”

“But if you do, pray I like you,” Sin replied, and the group laughed.

Ice broken.

“I appreciate that you read our files,” Dakota said. “Shows real leadership.”

“In addition to heading up BLACK OPS, you own a successful real estate company,” Greystone continued.

“That’s my cover,” Dakota said. “My long-term business partner runs it.”

Next, Greystone acknowledged Hawk. “Fellow pilot, Nicholas Hawk. How’s it goin’?”

“You’re an airman,” Hawk said. “What’s your poison?”

“F-18s,” Greystone replied.

“So, I shouldn’t say Go Army,” Hawk replied.

More laughter filled the room.

“Only if you wanna piss me off,” Greystone replied. “Are you former Air Force?”

“No military,” Hawk replied. “I just like to poke the bear.”

“That makes me the grizzly,” Greystone said, and group cracked up .

“Greystone was a Navy SEAL,” Dakota said, “then a decorated aviator, before accepting a temporary assignment at Langley.”

“Aren’t you special?” Hawk’s sarcasm made Greystone chuckle.

“Impressive,” Sin said.

Greystone liked the ribbing. Creating a team was critical to their success. While he’d just met them, they knew each other well. Their comfortability, along with their trust, could be the difference between a mission win or an epic fail.

Failure’s not an option.

“Addison, I read you jumped off a fifteen-story building onto a helicopter rope,” Greystone continued.

She nodded. “That was a stressful day.”

“My badass wife,” Hawk said, and the two exchanged smiles.

Greystone regarded the woman farthest from him, and his pulse skyrocketed. “Austin.”

“Hey, Grey.”

As he peered across the table at her, everything shifted. Determination calmed the rage, confidence replaced the frustration. With her by his side, they’d get it done.

“We hand-picked Caroline Austin,” Dakota explained. “You requested her for every mission. I read a report where someone assigned you a different handler. You appealed. They said no. You refused to work the mission, threatened to return to the Navy, and forced their hand.”

“That was my last assignment in Karakistan,” Greystone said. “I’d be a dead man if it wasn’t for Caroline. She got me out. If she hadn’t been in this meeting,” —he slid his gaze to her— “I woulda asked for her.”

“He’s knows I’m the boss,” Caroline teased.

“I trust her, one-hundred percent. ”

As they peered across the table at each other, the air shifted, the energy palpable.

Working with her wasn’t a matter of choice. It was a necessity. Her skills were second to none. She was lightning fast, able to switch strategies in seconds, and she stayed calm when the insanity raged around him.

Bella—his Bella—was the perfect choice… and also the worst. He didn’t need a distraction. If anyone could take him off center, it was her, especially since they’d gotten close in the past twenty-four hours. A very naked, very sexy Caroline splayed on a bed clouded his thoughts.

After pushing it out, he said, “Good to have you onboard. Are you my second?”

“Your call,” she replied.

“That’ll work,” he said trying to keep things chill.

In truth, he was damn thrilled to see her.

Focus up.

Greystone eyed the team. “Lemme update you.”

He began by explaining the set-up with his most-recent mission. “We got ambushed. One of the protective agents and the asset were taken out.”

“Where did you meet the asset?” Caroline asked.

“San Diego,” Greystone replied.

Caroline followed up with, “Were you made?”

“No idea,” he replied. “We saw security cams on some of the houses.”

“We?” Caroline asked.

“I had a partner.”

He pushed out of the chair, walked to the front of the room, and pointed at the screen. “These three are dead.” After eyeing the photos of the terrorists, he singled out one of the mug shots. “This is Muhammed Haqazzii. He’s the son of slain Haqazzii leader?— ”

“Abdel Haqazzii,” Addison interjected. “Years ago, I was the one who found him and I knew the SEAL who took him out.”

“Nice work,” Greystone said. “Muhammed is Abdel’s youngest son. He’s their current leader.”

Greystone had spent the flight committing their faces to memory, but the photos from Sherry were old and not the best quality. “The asset was married to this man.” He pointed. “Sajid Haqazzii, Muhammed’s cousin.”

“Sajid looks a lot older,” Caroline continued.” Do we have ages?”

“Muhammad is thirty,” Dakota replied. “Sajid is forty. The spec sheet I’ll forward you has the deets.”

“Team, check me,” Greystone said. “Is that a shadow on the photo or a scar next to Sajid’s left eye?”

Caroline walked over and stood so close her arm brushed up against his, her sweet scent drawing him in. Though he should have moved away, he didn’t. Being this close to her energized him.

She peered at the photo, then pinned her gaze on him. “That’s a scar.”

He couldn’t look away, the intensity in her eyes mesmerized him. A bolt of energy passed between them, and he tossed her a nod. Working with her in person was a million times better than the phone conversations they used to have.

“Scar it is,” he said dragging his attention to the team. “Thanks, Austin.”

She offered a little smile, returned to her seat.

He moved to the bulletin board. “These photos are from the asset. They could have changed up their looks to blend in. Shaved off facial hair or added eyeglasses. Even switching up their hair color makes a diff.”

He paused, his gaze floating over the group. When he got to Caroline, she was waiting. Like earlier, he lingered for an extra beat .

“Are we meeting weekly?” Addison asked.

“I’ll be workin’ here,” Greystone said. “Time is tight, so we’ll sync up on the reg with video calls. I’m available twenty-four-seven. This is my life until we get the job done.”

“Ditto,” Caroline said.

“Based on what happened with the asset,” Sin said, “we’re all targets, so we’ve got to watch our backs.”

“Agreed,” Dakota said. “Addison and Hawk, you have children?—”

“We’ve got a security team from Maverick Hott’s company, ThunderStrike, ensuring their safety,” Hawk said.

“Same,” Dakota replied, before he changed the picture on the screen to a single shot of a man. “This is Jerod De Clerq. Alias, Dante. Former ATF who spearheaded the mission to bring the terrorists into the country.”

Anger burned through him. What happened to some damn allegiance. “Where is he?”

“He was taken out, but the Day of Destruction was already set in motion,” Sin explained. “All the terrorists have to do is blow up the buildings.”

“That’s not so easy,” Greystone pushed back.

“Neither was getting into the country,” Hawk said, “but they did.”

“Good point.” Greystone pulled out his laptop. “I stumbled on some videos on the dark web.”

After Dakota plugged Greystone’s laptop into the network, Greystone logged into the chat room, pulled up the videos and hit play.

A man dressed in black with a black scarf over his head and wearing sunglasses stood in front of a white wall. In his arms, he held an assault rifle.

“The Day of Destruction is coming,” said the man in the video.

“No one can stop this from happening, not even law enforcement. We take responsibility for this attack on American soil. We are ghosts in the night. We are amongst you, skilled to take you down.” A terrifying smile split his lips.

“You can’t see us, you will never find us.

You can’t stop us.” He raised his gun in the air. “Revenge and power are ours!”

The video ended.

Thundering silence filled the room. The energy shifted, all eyes on him.

Greystone flashed the group a smile. “I can promise you one thing. Takin’ ‘em out is gonna be fun.”

More silence.

One by one, he regarded everyone in the room. “Questions?”

Still nothing.

“They’re taunting us,” Caroline said, breaking the silence.

Greystone’s confidence filled his soul. “When we’re ready, we’re gonna taunt ‘em right back,” he said. “How do you fight fire?”

“With fire,” Addison replied.

“They have no idea who they’re dealin’ with,” Greystone said. “I read your dossiers. Some of you are ruthless.”

Sin and Dakota exchanged glances.

“I’ve got the ear of the President, so if you need to brief him, I’ll make that happen,” Sin said.

Greystone nodded before turning toward Caroline.

“I’m workin’ here. You in?”

“Absolutely,” she replied.