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E very part of my being is completely focused on getting to Hunter and making sure she’s okay.

The idea that Torres might have hurt her shrouds my vision with a red haze.

Even though she’s tough, and that’s one of the things I admire about her, Alejandro Torres is a shit human being, and I don’t want my sparrow anywhere near him.

I have a feeling he’d take great pleasure in clipping her lovely wings.

I’m practically jumping out of my skin on the ride over, and after what feels like forever, we arrive at the mansion’s entrance. Our plan is fluid, not completely solid, but at this point, there isn’t time to dick around and run through every possible scenario.

We’re relying on our experience and guts to get this job done.

To save my girl.

Because she is mine. Maybe she doesn’t realize it quite yet, but she will when I pull her into my arms and kiss the holy hell out of her. I’m not letting her go. If she runs back to California, then I’m going, too. There’s something special between us, and I’m going to make her see it.

I’m jumping out of the car before Brighton comes to a complete stop. Normally, I’m the cool, confident one, but right now I’m strung tight and doubt threatens to pull me under. I have the most terrible feeling that Hunter’s time is running out and she needs me now .

“Be careful and I’ll see you soon,” Brighton says.

While Brighton goes to park the SUV along the back wall of hedges and wait for Ryland and Saint, we walk up to the front door which immediately opens. Two hefty-looking men with guns stand on either side of Alejandro Torres.

“Check them,” he orders.

The guards step forward, pat each of us down and confiscate our weapons. We expected this. They miss my knife, still secure in my boot, so that’s good.

“Where’s Hunter?” I demand as we step inside the foyer.

“Where’s my emerald?” Torres fires back.

Addie pulls the emerald from her pocket and lifts it. Sunlight streaming in through a window reflects off its facets, making it sparkle, and I notice a matching gleam—pure avariciousness—appear in Torres’ eyes. When he reaches for it, Addie moves it out of his range.

“Where is Hunter?” I grit out again, my patience razor thin.

“I’ll need to verify its authenticity first,” Torres says. “Follow me.”

“Do whatever you have to do,” Addie replies easily, “but it’s the real deal.”

We go into a nearby room where a man waits beside a desk with a refractometer.

Ryder has one, too, and I know the small black machine can identify a fake gem fast. He extends a hand, taking the gem and lifts a jeweler’s loupe to his eye.

While the expert inspects the emerald, Torres keenly focused on him, we launch into subtle, clandestine action.

Ryder turns, using me and Linc for cover, and pulls out the fake emerald hidden down his shorts—what can I say?

It’s a great place to hide a gem the size of your fist—and discreetly passes it to Addie, who scrunches her nose, palming it.

They accomplish the move so fast, so smoothly, literally between eye blinks, that neither Torres nor the gem expert notice.

“Well?” Torres asks impatiently.

“It looks to be real, but I need to examine it under the refractometer to make sure,” he responds. While he fiddles with it under the machine’s lens, we exchange looks.

My patience is just about gone.

“It’s in the range for natural emeralds,” the expert confirms.

“Wonderful.” Torres takes the emerald back, slipping it into his pocket, and sending us a satisfied, smug smile. “I’m going to put this in a safe place before we conclude our business.”

I move into Torres’ path, blocking him, and take a threatening step closer, balling my fists. Pretending I’m on the verge of hitting him. Or, at least considering it. The coward jerks back, moving closer to Addie. Just like we want.

“Make it fast,” I hiss between clenched teeth.

Torres’ nostrils flare in anger. “What’s the hurry, amigo ? There’s absolutely no rush, so relax.”

The insidious way his mouth curls up tells me one very important thing—we should be in a big fucking hurry.

I glance over at Addie and she gives me the subtlest of nods.

“Keep an eye on them,” Torres tells the guards. “I’ll be right back.”

As Torres walks away, I exchange a look with Deck indicating I’ve got the guard on the right, closest to me. I’m done waiting around, and my crew knows it.

Three…

Two…

One…

I take a flying leap toward the nearest guard, tackling him down hard, while Deck does the same to the other one.

Meanwhile, Addie and Ryder order the gem expert to sit down and shut up.

While they keep an eye on him, Deck and I subdue the guards fast. It’s honestly not that hard.

They underestimated us, likely thinking we didn’t know how to fight, and that was a serious oversight on their part.

A hard punch to the throat then an arm wrapped around the neck…

squeeze…and it’s lights out. They both slump forward and we grab their guns and jump up.

“We need to split up,” Addie says. “Linc and Ryder, cover the main floor. Knox and I will head down a level. Stay in communication.”

I touch my earpiece and take off at a jog, forcing Addie to run alongside me or be left behind. Time is ticking down fast, each precious second echoing in my ears, and the need to find Hunter drives me forward.

“She’s in trouble,” I say, my voice full of the doom my heart feels. “I know it.”

Addie doesn’t comment, just races forward with me. As we pass by the huge glass wall leading out to the back patio and the upper pool where Hunter and I swam, I swear I get a whiff of her soft vanilla scent.

Hang in there, Sparrow, I’m coming.

No one is around and it’s far too quiet. My internal alarm bells are clanging. Something isn’t right, and my gut is screaming at me as I rush down the closest staircase.

“Knox!” Addie hisses.

Not stopping, sorry. Yeah, maybe I’m being careless, but the overwhelming need to find Hunter, to hold her in my arms and make sure she’s safe, propels me forward.

I lift the gun I stole off the guard and hold it like a divining rod as I race forward.

If anyone dares get in my way, I won’t hesitate to shoot.

At the bottom of the stairs is a long hallway and I hurry forward, stopping at a closed door with a panel beside it. Locked. I’m deciding how best to open it when Addie reaches me, out of breath.

“We need Linc,” she states, reaching up to touch her comms.

“No, we don’t.” I lift my gun and fire once…twice…blowing the door wide open.

Before she can criticize my impulsive move, I’m already pushing through, my gaze darting around some kind of mini museum filled with various art.

And then I see her.

Eyes shut, forehead leaning against the glass, Hunter is locked up in some sort of circular chamber meant to display art. Relief, quickly followed by worry and then a wave of fury, rolls through me as I run over to her.

Her head slowly lifts and surprise flashes across her face.

Her mouth moves, and I think she calls my name, but I can’t hear her.

The tube is sealed shut and no sound escapes it.

Instantly, I know something is wrong. Her skin has a bluish cast to it and her eyes are slightly unfocused.

She lifts a shaky hand, pressing it to her chest, and mouths, “No…air.”

“No air,” I repeat, and Addie curses beside me.

No. Air.

Fuck. Me.

Panic rears within me and I try to force it down and focus. Getting Hunter out is priority number one. Motioning for her to watch out, I lift the gun and fire off a shot. Nothing happens. It’s bulletproof glass.

“Dammit! We have to get her out!” I zero in on the control panel, needing the code in order to open the door. Only Torres will know the code, but there’s no time to search this entire house for him. I touch my earpiece. “Deck! Get down here!”

I can hear the panic in my voice.

“I’m a little busy up here,” he answers, and I hear gunshots.

“Hunter is locked up in some kind of tube and running out of air fast. I need the code to open the door. Do you have eyes on Torres?”

“I did, but he ran.”

Fuck . “I need that code! Or I need you to come down here and bust this thing open.”

“On my way.”

I place my hand against the glass barrier, hating how helpless I feel. “Hang on, Sparrow.”

Her hand touches mine through the glass and our gazes lock. “I’m sorry,” she mouths, and I shake my head. She has nothing to be sorry for. Not a damn thing.

A crackle fills my ear and then Deck says, “Ryder and I are pinned down. I’m going to need a few minutes.”

“We don’t have a few minutes!”

Addie grabs my arm. “We need to start entering number combinations. You’re good with numbers and codes, Knox. This is just like one of your puzzle books.”

She’s right, it’s exactly like one of my code-cracking problems. Except it’s not. I have no idea how many digits I’m dealing with, and this is a life-or-death situation.

I meet Hunter’s molasses eyes, feeling an unbearable pressure building in my chest and crushing my heart. She’s going to die if I don’t get her out.

Her hand pulls back from the glass. She lifts four fingers and points to the keypad.

She’s telling me it’s a four-digit code. Then she blinks slowly, looking out of it, and gingerly touches her head. My heart cracks as she slowly sinks down to the floor.

“Knox! Punch some fucking numbers in!” Addie cries.

Pulling in a deep breath, wishing I could share some of my air with Hunter, I turn my attention to the keypad. Zero through nine. No letters, no symbols. A simple four-digit code. That’s ten thousand possible combinations.

I could solve this in my sleep.

But can I solve it in under two minutes? Because I think the carbon dioxide in that tube is making Hunter dizzy, numb, confused. She’s going to suffocate, Knox, a voice in my head tells me. Unless you use that brain of yours and figure it out like I know you can.