Cade
Piper fell face-first, and I squeezed off two shots to the head. Ryan teetered backwards, and I was at Piper’s side before he even hit the ground.
“Are you okay?” I searched her for injuries, my hands brushing over her hair, her face, her body. She had a swollen lip and a burn mark along with a purple bruise forming on her temple. Other than that she looked whole.
“I’m fine.”
“What the hell are you wearing?”
Piper laughed, grabbing my arms as I lifted her to her feet. “It’s a long, weird story.”
I pulled her close for a hug, inhaling her vanilla scent. “You scared me to death.”
“Yeah, I’d rather not repeat that performance.”
Holding her out so I could see her, I smiled, hoping she could see the love in my eyes. I didn’t know if she’d meant the words she’d uttered right before she’d elbowed Ryan in the side, but I knew we were going to have a long talk when this was over. Which reminded me that it wasn’t over.
“You did good, but we’ve got to get to Chavez before he gets away.”
The helicopter was so close, the grass and trees were bending under its fierce wind.
“Let’s go.” Piper grabbed my hand as we raced towards the house. As we hit the front steps, Levi yelled over the loud thundering of the helicopter.
“Cade! Over here!”
We redirected to the treeline where Levi was crouched down. “What the hell are you doing?”
“Going after Chavez.” I motioned to the roof. “He’s getting away.”
“Your comm must be down. Oscar has it under control.”
The drone. Piper and I crouched down next to Levi inside the treeline but far enough away from the fireworks that were about to go off. We waited, watching with bated breath.
Oscar’s drone rose over the roofline, climbing higher and higher until it was just a speck in the sky. Then we watched as something fell from the belly, falling rapidly to the helicopter and house. Boom! The helicopter exploded, fire and debris raining down on the ground beneath.
“Let’s go!” Levi tapped my arm, and we retreated back to our vehicles.
I gathered Piper in my arms on the floor of one of the vans, eager to hold her, to know she was safe. Her head rested against my chest, and I felt her exhale as she relaxed against me.
“My head hurts.” Her voice was soft, almost childlike, and I stroked her hair that had fallen from its style and was a mess of tangles and wild waves, like a tattered halo surrounding her head.
“We’ll get you something when we get home.”
Home. It was a word I’d not been able to use most of my life. Home hadn’t meant much when your own parents had given you up and you’d been shuffled around the system until it was clear no one else wanted you either. At the age of twelve, I’d hit the streets, getting food from shelters or stealing from convenience stores. At fourteen, Will had found me pilfering some candy bars from a Minute Mart. He’d followed me out and told me that he’d paid for the candy bars himself.
“Why?” I’d asked, confused as to why he hadn’t turned me in.
“ ’Cause you look hungry. And cold. You need a place to stay?”
I’d been immediately suspicious. He was a man, after all, and I’d heard stories of what some men did to young teenage boys.
“No. I’m fine.”
“I’m a foster parent. I have a twelve-year-old foster daughter. Well, she’ll be thirteen in a couple of months. But I’m not a creep.”
I’d still been skeptical, so he’d taken out his phone and shown me a picture of Piper. I had fallen instantly in love. So, I’d decided I’d try it out. See if she was in any danger. It was my duty to protect her, after all. We had to stick together.
Will had opened the door to his Mercedes Benz, and I’d sat in the front seat as we’d driven across of the city and out to one of the suburbs surrounding Atlanta. He lived in a custom-built home, almost cottage-style, with gray siding and black shutters, and a bright-red door. It looked like a house you could call home, and for four years I had. For her. Even from a young age, I’d known Piper was it for me. She was my future. Right up until I’d ruined it all by pursuing my dream to be a fighter and had left her.
“I’m sorry.” I whispered the words so only she could hear, and her moss-green eyes found mine.
“Why are you sorry? None of this is your fault.”
I shook my head. She wasn’t understanding. “No, I know. I’m sorry for leaving. All those years ago. I never should have left.”
Piper’s soft palm cupped my cheek, and she leaned forward and pressed her lips to mine. When she pulled away, she smiled sadly. “Everything happens for a reason. These experiences have shaped us and made us the people we are. Who’s to say we would have lasted had you stayed all those years ago? We’re different now, Cade. And it’s the life events we’ve journeyed through that have molded us into strong individuals who fight for what they want.”
I wrapped her tighter in my arms, not ready to ask her about her words in the backyard of Chavez’s house. It was killing me, not knowing if she’d used the words as a distraction or if she meant them. But I would wait till we were alone.
We went straight to the conference room when we returned to the gym, leaving the DEA and FBI agents to hang out in the arena. Only Gene Kennedy and Will Fuller followed us into the room where we could debrief and talk over what had happened.
“So, it was Reynolds?” Kennedy sat down, his head heavy in his hands. It was hard being in charge and having a mole in your command.
“Yes.” Piper answered the question before any of us could speak. “He bugged your office. That’s how he knew about things.”
“Dammit. Well, at least he’s out of the picture. Did he say why?”
Piper shrugged her shoulders, clearly feeling the fatigue from the night’s events. “Money. He was taking me to hand over to Chavez in exchange for money. Varga came looking for him to settle the score since Reynolds had been responsible for his sister’s death. But Varga didn’t expect him to turn the gun off me and kill him with no warning. How did he get away?”
Levi’s face colored with embarrassment as he hung his head, placing his hands over his face. “Varga got the drop on me—clocked me in the head. I fought back, catching him with the butt of my gun against his temple, but gunshots rang out from inside, and I was distracted.”
Piper’s face fell as she whispered the words, “He died trying to protect me.”
I scoffed. “Don’t be mistaken, Piper. Had you been caught in the crosshairs, Varga wouldn’t have shed a single tear for you. He just didn’t want his path to hell paved with another innocent person’s blood.”
“Well, still, had he not interfered, you never would have made it to me in time. I’d be on my way to be delivered into Chavez’s hands.”
“Thank God that didn’t happen.” Will Fuller stood, pacing the floor of the room. “It makes me crazy to think we could have been too late.”
Piper reached behind her and stopped Will’s pacing with a hand on his arm. “I’m fine. I knew my team would come for me.”
Oscar gave her a huge, crazy grin, Cruz placed his hand over his heart, Levi nodded in her direction, Ryder blew her a kiss, and I pulled her chair closer to mine, opting to sit next to her rather than down the table next to Levi per usual. She laughed at our displays of affection, just as Jolie Phillips stormed into the room.
“Was anyone going to tell me that you’d returned?” Her southern accent was especially thick when she was angry, something we were all learning.
Ryder’s face turned bright red. “Sorry, Jolie. I meant to call on our way back, but I was trying to recover the drone feed from the explosion.”
“Explosion? I missed an explosion? I’m starting to wonder if I like this job. I think you guys get to have all the fun, while I stay here and play house.”
“Jolie, if you’re unhappy with the circumstances, I apologize. I thought you understood this was an admin job, not an operative position.” Ryder fidgeted in his seat, clearly not comfortable talking back to the feisty Tinker Bell.
Jolie waved her hand in the air as Kennedy and Fuller watched on in amazement, grins plastered on their faces. “Nonsense. I’m not trained to be an operative.” Ryder visibly relaxed until she added, “Yet.”
Piper laughed, startling us, and turned to hug Jolie around the waist. “I’ll start training you. You’ll be doing undercover work before you know it.”
“Really?” Jolie’s squeal was ear-piercing.
“Really.”
Jolie squeezed Piper so hard, I heard her grunt beside me. Then Jolie waved at everyone and walked out the way she’d come. “I’ll be in my office if you need me!”
Levi cleared his throat. “Sorry for that, um, interruption.”
Will chuckled. “Seems like you’ve got your hands full.”
Levi tugged at his collar. “Something like that. Anything else we need to know, Piper?”
“I guess it’s been assumed already, but Chavez knew about Shadow Force. I’m assuming Reynolds must have overheard conversations and put two and two together. It was vague information, but he was onto you.”
“I was afraid of that. Our cover’s blown, but I guess that doesn’t matter since Chavez is dead.” It felt like months of work had just exploded in our faces, quite literally.
“Actually, he’s not dead.” Henry Washington stood in the doorway of the conference room as everyone pushed to their feet. “Have a seat.” He strode in and propped himself against the wall since all of the chairs were taken. I stood to give him mine, but he waved me off. “Our guys just cleared the scene. Only one body—the pilot—was found. No one else was on that roof.”
“But that’s impossible.” I couldn’t believe Chavez had escaped. How?
“I’m afraid it’s not only possible, but it’s definitive. We’ve searched the grounds. There was a small garage at the edge of the property. Two sets of tires there. So, it appears they had two vehicles stored. There’s also a trapdoor in the floor of the garage that leads to a tunnel. We assume that leads somewhere inside the house, but we haven’t had an opportunity to explore that. We have to wait until the house is considered safe to enter.”
“There was a hidden panel inside Chavez’s office. Juan Carlos and Santiago disappeared behind it when we came in.” Levi slammed his fist on the table. “Dammit. I can’t believe he got away.”
“We’ll look into it. Meanwhile, Levi and Cade, can I have a word with you alone?”
The team got up to leave, and Piper squeezed my hand. “I’m going to find some pain reliever, and I’ll be in Jolie’s office.” I squeezed her hand in return and moved up to take my usual seat next to Levi.
When everyone had left, Washington closed the door and sat down in one of the chairs.
“I’ve had one of my tech guys looking into Angel Rubio. It’s almost as if he didn’t exist before the last five years. And we’ve found out why.”
“Why?” Levi and I asked at the same time.
“Because he didn’t. It’s an alias he started using five years ago. Before that he was Marco Primera. A no-name kid from a no-name family. Nothing special. A few priors that were misdemeanor-type crap. Then five years ago he changes his name to Angel Rubio, and suddenly he’s buying large amounts of heroin, cocaine, meth, as well as tons of AKs.”
“Is he tied to someone else? Ryder didn’t find any connections.”
“There’s rumors about another organization, but it’s just rumors. We don’t have a name, a purpose, nothing.”
“So what do you need us to do?”
“Keep pulling at the thread. My gut tells me there’s something bigger at play here than just a man with a fake name who’s an arms and drugs dealer.”
“We’ll get Ryder on it.”
Washington nodded. “Now, about Chavez. Obviously your cover is blown, but how much does he know about the rest of the team?”
“Just the faces he’d recognize—me, Cade, Oscar, and Blake. His guys would come to our fights, but he’s never been to one. Cruz was obviously present but never in the spotlight, like we arranged when he came on.”
Washington folded his hands on the table and leaned forward. “A friend of mine from Miami, a prominent doctor in the community, just contacted me to tell me his daughter is engaged to Chavez, but he hasn’t been able to reach her to speak with her. He received a phone call the night she went missing telling him she’d accepted Chavez’s engagement. It was completely out of the blue and her car remained at the clinic. No one knows for sure, but he’s convinced she was taken against her will. Word on the street is that Chavez is looking for a bodyguard for her. I’d like to send Cruz in. This is what he’s trained for—deep cover.”
Levi contemplated the proposal for a moment and then looked to me, the silent message being, “What do you think?”
I dipped my head in agreement. Cruz was the best choice.
“We’ll run it by Cruz, but my gut says he’ll be game.”
“Good. Seems like Piper is a good addition to the team.” He directed the comment to me, and it hit me that Washington had picked up on the undercurrents of our relationship.
“She’s the best. Excellent observation skills and tough as nails.”
Washington grinned. “Good to hear. Seems like you two are a perfect match.”
I could feel my face turning red, and I seldom blushed. It just seemed so far-fetched that one of the president’s closest advisors was commenting on my love life. “Yes, sir.” It was the best I could do under the circumstances.
Washington stood and slapped my shoulder. “See you guys later. Keep me posted.”
“Will do.”
I followed him out into the hallway and saw Piper and Will talking quietly by the office suite’s door. She smiled and threw her arms around him, drawing him close. Will’s eyes closed as he hugged her tight. The man truly loved her like a daughter.
An idea sparked in my mind, and I strode over to the pair, hating to interrupt their reunion, but there was an urgency to what I needed to do. Piper pulled away, eyeing me warily—I must have been smiling like a crazy person. I tried to soften my grin, but when she cringed, I realized that hadn’t worked. I shrugged it off and turned my attention to Will.
“Can I speak to you, please?” Will stood back, crossing his arms over his chest, his expression guarded. Piper moved closer to him, and I shook my head.
“Alone, please.”
I hated the look of betrayal and hurt on Piper’s face, so I attempted to make it better. “We have some things we need to talk about. Man to man.”
Oops. Her eyes narrowed, steam seeming to blow out her ears. Wrong choice of words, but, with an eye-roll, she relented, squeezing Will’s arm. “I’ll see you tomorrow before you head back to D.C., right?”
“Absolutely.”
When she was gone, Will looked me over from head to toe.
Shock rocked through me at his words.
“I was wondering when you were going to get around to asking me.”