Page 31 of Stranded with the SEAL
He laid on his back and stared up at the foreboding red tag. Who would leave something like this, instead of fixing the problem? It was potentially deadly and just sitting here waiting for someone to turn the gas back on and adjust the thermostat.
He ran his finger over the crack while his mind considered the possibilities, then inhaled quickly when his finger was sliced open by a sharp metal edge.
What the hell?
A cracked heat exchanger shouldn’t have a sharp edge like that. No, the “crack” in this cylinder was only made to look like it was naturally occurring. In fact, it had been deliberately punctured with some kind of sharp tool.
Trevor sucked on his bleeding finger and made his way back upstairs. Olivia was standing in the kitchen, wiping her hands on a towel.
“Any luck on the furnace?” she asked.
“No.” He told her about the sabotaged heat exchanger and explained what it meant. “Someone did this on purpose, to fill this place with carbon monoxide.”
“Why would someone do that?” she asked.
“The only reason I can think of is murder.”
She stared at him several beats too long, the color seeming to drain from her face.
“Olivia, are you okay?”
Her eyelids fluttered and he moved to grab her, catching her just as she went limp and passed out.
20
Jax Andersson benthis six-foot-four frame and peered into a retinal scanner. A metal door opened to a long, lighted hallway and he entered with the heavy stomp of his military boot.
He took a sip of his coffee, the hot brew mixing with the acid in his stomach that had begun churning when he called Logan to have him track Hawk’s cell phone.
He should have known the shit was going to hit the fan when Logan first told HERO Force about the intel that Steele was taking another shipment, more than a month ago. Hawk had gone ballistic, nearly lunging across the conference table. “This is our chance to get that son-of-a-bitch,” he’d said, his eyes shining with eagerness.
Jax had matched Hawk’s enthusiasm with a level gaze. “No. The intel’s unconfirmed. We can’t dedicate our resources on some half-assed report that Steele’s involved in human trafficking.”
Hawk had stood up, meeting his stare. “It wouldn’t be the first time he’s done it, Jax. You know that.”
Did he ever. He knew it better than anyone. He knew Trevor Hawkins was hurting from the loss of his friend years earlier, but Ralph’s death had been Jax’s responsibility. It was he who made the call to send HERO Force in, and Ralph’s blood was on Jax’s hands.
He wasn’t about to make the same mistake again. Besides, his hands were tied. There was a reason he couldn’t go after Steele. A reason he wasn’t permitted to share.
Jax braced himself on the table. “Of course I know it. I also know the risk involved in sending a team up that mountain. Steele’s resources are too great for one squad to take him down.”
“So send two squads.”
Jax slammed down a folder. “I can’t justify that from this report, Hawk, and you damn well know it.”
Hawk shook his head, his face reddening. “Two years we’ve been waiting for this, and you’re just going to let it go?”
“It’s my call.” He turned to leave the conference room, but Hawk’s voice stopped him cold.
“Then you’re a coward.”
Jax pivoted on his heel, taking deliberate steps back to Trevor Hawkins. They were friends. Brothers in arms. Had been through more together than most men would go through in a lifetime. But Jax was the leader of HERO Force, and Hawk had just crossed the one line Jax couldn’t allow him to cross. “You just started your vacation two days early, Hawkins. Without pay.”
Hawk said nothing, his eyes piercing Jax’s across the room.
“When you come back to this team,” said Jax, “you’d better remember who is where in the pecking order, or you won’t be on this squad at all.”
Yep. He should have seen it coming a mile away. Jax passed a woman in a formfitting business suit without making eye contact, then turned down another corridor. Several people walked toward him, and he nodded in greeting, his expression discouraging conversation.