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"That night the wind was howling almost like a wolf and there were some real wolves off to the west giving it lessons." — George R. R. Martin

Axel

Hunt slaps my face, tapes my IV needle to my forearm, then hands me the attached fluids bag. “C’mon, Sleeping Beauty. Up and at ’em. I shot you up with adrenaline. How’re you feeling?”

“Like a million bucks.” If I were to tell him the truth, he’d take me to the nearest hospital.

Ignoring my sarcasm, the forty-ish agent cuts open my jeans and rips them off at the thigh. “Hmm… the bullet creased your quadriceps. Lucky for you, the area is mostly flesh, no major arteries.”

“Yeah, I’m so damn fortunate, I’m going to buy me a lottery card.” I grit my teeth as he staples the hole together.

“That should hold. Care to take a ride?” After he helps me to my feet, he slips a hand around my waist while I limp to the passenger seat.

As I walk, my brain goes off in a million directions. By the time he slides behind the wheel, I have my questions ready to fire. “Gwen? Do you have eyes on her?”

God, I pray I read the situation right. Otherwise, things are going to go belly-up fast.

Hunt glances over the cup holder before putting the vehicle in drive. “Yeah. No doubt, Dolly’s driving your wife to the RF lab in DC. From what you said earlier, I’m guessing you didn’t want me to stop them, but we can at any time.”

“Did our team find the fucking EMP bomb?” I still can’t believe our government security was so lax we allowed someone to steal a game-over weapon.

Once the car roars to life, he turns to me and sighs. “Not yet. Lewis lawyered up. He hasn’t said squat since.”

Dammit. I can’t see any way around this. I need to keep my spouse in play. Picking up my phone, I bring it to my mouth. “Call Dr. Calliope James.”

Before the ringtone starts, Lucky’s wife picks up. “Axel? Did you find her?”

Her anxious tone makes it difficult to stay detached. “The FBI put a drone on her, but we haven’t picked her up. I have to ask you a question. Would Gwen have access to the EMP database?”

She hesitates. “I’m not sure if you have clearance… Whatever. I’ll deal with the fallout later. Your wife recently added some functionality. However, she couldn’t roll back code if that’s what you’re asking.”

My paradigm shift happens so fast, I get a sense of vertigo. “Is there any way DeClaire could use her to activate the EMP device?”

“I suppose. It would take a while and would not be easy… What’s going on, Wulf? What are you not telling me?” Dr. James is a brilliant scientist. She knows the score but wants to hear it from me. It’s too damn hard to say out loud, so I don’t.

I'm using my wife as bait.

“Can you lock her out of the network?” Perhaps, together, we can stop this insanity. My heart races as I consider possible alternatives. Unfortunately, my mind is a blank.

“I could. However, Dolly would have no reason to keep her alive. Or am I wrong?” Her assessment, the same as mine, makes my stomach roll.

“Of course, you’re right.” Realizing I’m letting emotions rule, I bury them deep to focus on the mission.

Because I’m still flying blind and missing essential details, I drill for more intel. “So, what would be your next step once the old code is reverted?”

“In real life, we would do mock simulations.” Her words strike a chord, and my brain synapses fire with possibilities.

“During this test, do you send data to the bomb?” Praying for a solution, I hold my breath and let it out when she responds in the affirmative.

That’s it. This must be Gwen’s plan!

“Callie, how soon can you get a team to trace the signal?” No longer tired, energy surges through my veins.

My enthusiasm must be catching because her voice brightens. “I can do it right now, remotely.”

“Great. Stand by. I’ll call you back.” After I hang up, I turn to Hunt while pondering my future with the FBI.

Am I willing to put my career at risk? “How much does the deputy director know?”

Swallowing hard, the senior member of my team grimaces. “I had to let him know that Dolly took Gwen, but I lied when I said we haven't found them yet. I hope you know what you’re doing, boss.”

“Me too.” My wife is a brilliant strategist. I’m going to trust her. Otherwise, the results are too horrifying to consider.