Baylor had his guys swim up to the beach at one of the houses not owned by Whitestone after they’d jumped from the helicopter that’d brought them three hundred yards offshore. If anyone was home, they were asleep since the house was dark, luckily making the beach dark as well. Whoever was using the main house at the center, they were important or valued their privacy enough to need a lot of guards, who were scattered throughout the six properties. The sliver of a moon provided a bit too much light for Baylor and what his guys had to do, but the cloud cover was helping.
“Do you think anyone’s inside?” Tito asked as they lay in the dunes. There were more men in North Korea, but these guys appeared to not want to take chances, and their positioning meant they had some military background.
“We need to find out, but there’s way too many pit bulls in the yard,” he said as he glanced at the house that was abandoned because of beach erosion. The place was leaning into the Atlantic, had no windows, and its stilts stood in at least two feet of water. Whoever owned it had abandoned it years before.
Wiley had come along as their guardian angel and made her way up there, but she’d been quieter than usual after Cletus found a file that had a black dragon with its wings spread on the outside. None of them had read it, but Cletus told Baylor to give Wiley the opportunity to put a bullet in Chandler’s head if it came to that, since she deserved that right more than anyone out there.
“Do you want to thin the herd?” Tito asked.
“See if you and KO can grab one of these muscle necks, and let’s find out who we’re dealing with. The front is your best bet. The majority seem to be back here, like they’re waiting on something.” They all flattened themselves to the ground when the sweeping spotlights started. “Fuck, it might be showtime. Eyes open, guys. This might be the opening act.”
“Everyone hold,” Tito said so they would pass the message along.
“Do you see any opening to move closer?” Baylor asked as he made another sweep with the night-vision binoculars. “We need to get in there and see who’s in the house before we call in Captain America and she blows this place to shit.”
They were on radio silence, but the activity was definitely picking up, so they would have to start communicating. “The fence line has a break fifty yards from here,” Tito said. “Right over there.”
“When the sweep light moves to the left again, we go.” The strong beams paused on the water, and Baylor stopped to determine exactly what they were trying to see. He didn’t have time to notice anything, since the lights went out—all of them. The place suddenly appeared as if it’d been sucked into a black hole.
The strange pier-boathouse facility offshore was large and extremely out of place, but the sudden sound of something breaking the water reached the shore. “Son of a bitch,” Tito said softly, but the phrase was appropriate. It wasn’t every day you saw a Los Angeles-class fast-attack nuclear sub surface off the North Carolina border in a vacation spot.
“Do you have a clear view?” Baylor asked Wiley, taking the chance to use the radio.
“The hatch opened, and a few people climbed out. They’re on a crew boat headed to the beach.”
“We need to get closer and take a look in the house at the center,” he said, not really worried about Wiley and what she’d read in that file. She wasn’t prone to emotional, murderous outbursts that would compromise her fellow team members.
“Get ready to move,” Wiley said, and Baylor heard the boat motor, the sound seeming to hold the guards’ attention. “Go.”
Half the team slipped through the cut in the fence, and the other half raced to the front. Wiley watched them go and made sure no bad surprises would cost them a man. It was tempting to look back at the boat to see who was coming ashore and start picking them off one by one, but she stayed focused on Baylor and the guys.
The file Cletus had found contained information about the people responsible for driving her away from Aubrey in order to keep her safe. Their determination to kill her had cost her so many years with Aubrey and all those years with their daughter. Granted, she and Tanith had a special bond that grew stronger every day, but what would it have been like to be there the day she was born, the day she took her first step, taught her to ride a bike? It was an endless list, and nothing she could do would turn back the clock, thanks to one man.
Dick Chandler had cut a deal with the Columbian cartel, and it had cost her not only the time with her family, but it’d also forfeited the lives of every one of the team members she’d worked with during that last mission that had changed her life. Worst, Chandler had used the murder of all those innocent people to prove his point about women in combat. In his pea-sized brain, she was too good at her job, and she had to die for it.
Karma was a bitch, as the old saying went, and now all she wanted was to pay him back with a bullet to the center of his forehead.
At least she now had the targets she needed to eliminate any threat to her future. She wanted her family to have a happy life, never having to look over their shoulder in fear of something or someone she hadn’t eliminated because she’d had no clue where to begin looking. After all this was done, she’d work on her list with or without permission from General Greenwald or the military.
Tonight, though, Berkley had promised that one shot, if the opportunity presented itself, and she was grateful her old friend understood what losing your love meant and how much it hurt.
“Everyone stop moving,” Baylor said, and Wiley aimed right at Baylor. No guards stood around him or his companions, so she waited. “Shit, there’s like a million trip wires out here. One wrong move and they can serve us all on a chopped salad.”
“They rigged land mines with all the civilians around?” Wiley asked.
“These guys must be here all the time to keep everyone not affiliated with them clear, because all this shit’s been here a while.” Baylor backed away through the same hole in the fence. “We’re going to have to get some of the neighbors out of here. If we blow this spot and they’ve added their own hardware, some of the other houses will be collateral damage.”
“We evacuate the wrong people, and we lose this asshole again,” Wiley said. “Let’s call the boss.”
“We hold for now.” Baylor moved back to the dunes with his men. The boat had hit the beach, where a group of men jumped ashore, and Wiley took her eyes off her team to see who they were. “US Navy uniforms,” Baylor said. “This must be our missing Captain Liskow.”
“Hold your position. If we see the removal of warheads or Chandler’s vessels, we’ll have to up our timeline for the ultimate home makeover,” Wiley said, since she saw no sign of Chandler now.
“Cover us,” Baylor said as he belly-crawled to the edge of the dunes. “We need some men back out by that pier to put a leash on all these assholes.”
“Make sure you’re clear. If you get blown up, I’ll never be able to eat another chopped salad again.”
“Do you eat a lot of it?” Baylor asked and laughed.
“No, but I’ll never get to develop a taste for it if you become chum, so get your ass out fast. Fireworks are always more enjoyable from a distance.”
“Trust me. I want to finish my popcorn so I can sit back and enjoy the show.”
One guard started walking to the beach and raised his hand to radio in but fell when Wiley took him out. It appeared to be Tito who dragged him into the water with them. The men who’d gotten off the boat started up to the largest house in the center, and the guards returned to their patrols.
“Zookeeper.” She made a call, knowing it’d take Baylor some time to get back to the pier in the high surf.
“Go ahead,” Aidan said.
“We have eyes on our missing sub, but we’re in a holding pattern. Stand by until we see the missing party members from the land of vodka and caviar.” She noticed the lights in the neighbor’s house come on and a man walk out the back door. “Hold, Zookeeper.”
The man wore fatigue pants and boots, and when she noticed the rifle in his right hand, she realized the area contained more than land mines. “Goose,” she said and aimed at the overweight Rambo in the tight black T-shirt and camouflage pants. “Hold your position. You have an armed neighbor coming up to you. The next house on the beach has to be part of this group.”
The guy placed his rifle against his shoulder but didn’t aim at Goose and the guys around him. He seated the weapon and aimed toward the abandoned house where Wiley was positioned. She didn’t wait and shot through his scope, sending the bullet right through his head and out the back of it.
“Cleanup on aisle five. Clear the deck,” she said, and Goose and his guys scooted as fast as they could on their abdomens. They dragged the guy back inside and closed the door behind them.
“You were right,” Goose said. “This place is full of bunks on the first floor and enough New Horizon’s uniforms to clothe another battalion. He had motion sensors in the dunes and in that house you’re in. I wonder why that guy didn’t call his buddies?”
“He’s probably seen one too many action movies and thought he’d play the hero. Guess he didn’t learn the lesson about there being no I in the word team. Bring backup and clear the second floor.”
A horn-type sound went off from somewhere offshore, and she moved to take a look. “Wiley, we have two more vessels,” Baylor said softly.
“Clear out. You need to beat Cletus here.”
“Call in the big dog,” Baylor said. “We’re swimming back.”
“Zookeeper, we’re a go. Make it fast, and follow the guideposts the guys laid out for you.”
“Make sure you stay clear of the work area,” Aidan said.
“Yes, ma’am, and tell our friend not to spare any hardware.”
* * *
The nurse had put a tight bandage on Berkley’s wound for more mobility and to help with the pain. She wasn’t cleared for duty, but Aidan wasn’t going to keep her out of the cockpit. They’d spoken before the SEALs and Wiley had left, and Berkley had nodded when Aidan told her it was time to finish what they’d started together. Aidan wanted her to have a part in this since Berkley had gladly followed her on the mission that had kicked off this crazy year. It was only fair for her to be there at its conclusion.
“The targets are in sight and painted. Don’t hesitate, and don’t forget your way home,” Aidan said as a deck crew locked them into the jet.
“Let’s do this for President Michaels and President Khalid,” she said as the jet powered on. The bombs the crew had put under her wings had Peter and Eva’s names on them as a way to honor the late president and his wife.
She took a breath before she punched it forward and got them airborne, wanting to remember every minute of this night. This wasn’t about revenge but about justice. Finishing this would hopefully make her father and her future father-in-law proud of the job she and Aidan had done during their tenure of service.
“Let’s give the neighbors something to talk about, people,” Berkley said as she leveled off.
They headed toward the coast with Vader, Killer, and Poncho right behind her. “Black Dragon, you and the team clear?”
“We’ll be out,” Wiley said.
“Tiger One?” Berkley said.
“We’re out and close to the beach. Don’t hesitate,” Baylor said, and Berkley figured she’d be there in five minutes.
“See you in a bit.”
“Roger that,” Wiley said, and the gunfire started from the house Goose had entered. “Goose?” She radioed him but kept her attention on the closest guards. They were looking in that direction as well. “Try to get one of their radios.”
The first guy to pick up the small walkie-talkie as three of his friends started to run toward the house was the one she started with. They had to keep someone from warning Chandler. She thought about how long this asshole had in a way held them hostage, and Cletus was right. It had been way too long, so letting him get away wasn’t in her plans.
She took aim and killed the guards now sprinting toward the house that would’ve made the seventh in the stretch of beach Chandler controlled. The mistake on the investigators’ part could’ve cost them dearly, but they’d have time enough later to discuss every aspect of this mission.
In the rush to help his comrades, one of Chandler’s men ran through the yard and stepped on a land mine. That noise almost made Wiley miss the sound of the boat out in the water.
“Wiley,” Baylor said.
“Are you clear of the water?” The boat had turned back to the subs when the land mine went off. Wiley adjusted the scope and aimed for the large motor. She wanted to stop them while they were closer to the shore than their getaway vehicle.
“Yes,” Baylor said, and Wiley pulled the trigger. The engine stopped dead about fifty yards from the beach.
Another couple of men pushed the first boat she’d seen from the beach and started the engine, as if going out to rescue whoever was in the disabled one. That wasn’t going to happen, and she shot through that engine as well. If it was Chandler, he was going to have to crawl to the shore and beg for his life in order to see the morning.
“We’re going in to give Goose a hand,” Baylor said.
She kept staring at the first boat she’d shot at but couldn’t really make out the faces of those aboard. Chandler’s death had to be a certainty, so she kept trying to focus. Two people on the first boat started paddling, trying to reach the subs, and she was about to pull the trigger again when she heard the sound of a jet, so she waited.
“Let’s see if your rowing skills can beat Cletus to that sub.”
* * *
“Junior, do we have our targets in sight?” Berkley said as she flew five thousand feet over the water. When the clouds cleared she could see how rough the water was, which would slow the Jefferson’s trip back to port.
“We’ll be in range in twenty miles. We’re locked into the beacons Baylor’s team painted,” Junior said. “And the sky is clear. No bogeys around to slow us from our plans.”
“The subs gave us a problem last time,” she said, turning more toward the coast. “Keep your eyes open for anything they shoot at us.”
“You got it.” Junior started their countdown, and she hoped that Baylor’s guys really were clear of the water. “Ready,” Junior said and waited a beat, “fire.”
The night sky lit up when their first target was hit. Another blast, from Vader, followed, while Killer and Poncho had their backs in case they had unexpected company. She just needed to circle and fire again, and she smiled because the next shot would cut off Chandler’s escape route. “You ready, Junior?”
“Three, two, one—fire,” Junior said, and she fired the next missile. “Shit.”
“We can’t have missed,” she said, starting to climb.
“You didn’t, but the last sub had a chance to fire back,” Junior said, talking fast. “Ten o’clock, they got a missile away.”
“Cletus, you down another plane, you’re going to get fired, or they’ll dock your pay until you’re two thousand years old,” Vader said. “You need to dive, then come back up.”
“If you fire on me, make sure you hit the missile,” she said when she dove as low as she could and still recover.
She pulled back on the throttle and went straight up. The sense of self-control she usually felt in the cockpit was gone. If her men missed, she doubted she would have time to recover and eject. The explosions made her bank to the left to avoid the flying shrapnel.
“Thanks, guys,” she said as she tried to exhale all her tension.
“The beer’s on you, Cletus,” Vader said.
“No problem. I could use one myself.” She flew back over the area, and saw that the pier, along with all three subs, was still on fire. “Wiley, everything okay?”
“Great. Just waiting for my ship to come in.”
* * *
“I’m in position,” Tito said.
It didn’t take long for the boat Wiley figured held Chandler to finally make it to the beach. The first two men off held automatic weapons and started firing as soon as their feet hit the sand. Wiley guessed Tito had killed the first one when he went down, and she had a clear shot at the second guy. Quiet returned, since Baylor had gotten most of the guards under control.
“You want me to check the boat?” Tito asked.
“No. Put a line of bullets across the hull, but aim low.”
Tito followed orders again, and two grenades came flying out when he finished firing. They landed short of Tito’s position, but Wiley didn’t want to take a chance their aim would get better. She reloaded and aimed toward the boat where she figured someone would be crouched. This wasn’t how she wanted to put a bullet into Chandler, but she’d take what she could get. In reality not many people in her career needed killing, but Chandler was the exception to every rule she could think of.
A yell broke the night, and it sounded like a man who made it. “Stop,” the man screamed, and two hands came over the edge. “Don’t shoot.”
The top of a head appeared, and she recognized the white, wispy hair and jowly face. “Tito, get ready, and Baylor, move to the beach.”
“Stand up with your hands behind your head,” Tito said. “Move, or I’ll finish the job.”
Dick Chandler stood up, and another man from the second boat jumped into the water and ran over to help Dick down. Whoever the guy in the navy uniform was, he defined devoted convert from the way he stood in front of Chandler. The naval officer had a side arm, but he didn’t make any move to grab it, so Wiley waited.
Chandler might have deserved a bullet to the head, but she refused to kill an unarmed man. “You shot my son—get him some help,” Chandler said. Tito stood in the dunes with his weapon pointed at them, and Baylor walked down and moved across the beach. “Do you know who I am?” Dick said as if Baylor should fall at his feet and plead forgiveness for trying to stop him.
When Baylor reached the halfway mark between the dunes and the boat, Chandler yanked his protector’s gun free and aimed at Baylor. It was Wiley’s cue, and she pulled the trigger. If the revolution depended on Dick Chandler for its survival, the revolution was over.
“Zookeeper, this is Black Dragon,” she said, taking pride in the code name. “The snake’s head has been severed. We’ll need backup, an explosives team for a field of land mines, and cleanup for all those damn subs. Some of the personnel has been terminated, but we’ll need some bodies on the ground to help with the rest.”
“Thank you. We’re right off your position, and Captains Washington and Greer will be sending people in as well,” Aidan said.
“Ma’am, you might want to block the road out to the mainland,” Wiley said as she climbed down to the water. A lot of the homes now had their lights on, except for a couple that appeared empty. “The number of houses they own or at least have access to goes beyond the six previously mentioned. The team finished clearing out one, but we’ll have to check the others.”
“I’ll get in touch with Command and let them take care of that.”
“We’ll hold our position then,” Wiley said as Baylor walked toward her.
“Is the captain sending backup?” he asked as he removed his helmet and wiped his forehead.
“On their way, but we need to get into the main house. It’s occupied, and I want to know who’s inside. Believe me when I tell you about the dangers that can follow you home. It’s a bitch.”
“We’ve got it surrounded, and the guys are watching for anyone trying to leave by car,” Baylor said as he moved to the dunes. “Who else do you think is in there?” He pointed to the boat.
“According to Dick, his son is wounded, but there was more than that,” she said, glancing through her scope again but seeing nothing. In the distance they saw the multitude of helicopters headed their way, as well as boats. “Zookeeper, can you have one of our birds sit on the boat beached onshore as well as the other craft dead in the water? We need to see who’s left on it before we approach.”
“We’ve got you covered,” someone who sounded a lot like Cletus said, and the Apache sat on the boat with their spotlight a few minutes later. When someone raised a weapon and aimed at it, Wiley shot through their hand. That’s what prompted the rest of the men to stand and take the position of surrender.
Berkley was the first one out of the helicopter, followed by Aidan, and Wiley and Baylor left the dunes to meet them. Wiley smiled when Berkley shook her hand and slapped her on the back once they were close enough. “Thank you,” Berkley said as she glanced at Chandler’s body. “I’d drag his ass out to sea, but I don’t want to poison the fish.”
“Who’s in the house?” Aidan pointed to the sprawling structure with a huge outdoor deck that faced the beach.
“I don’t know, ma’am. We found land-mine trips on the northern section of that house.” He pointed three houses over. “We were waiting for morning before we head up to the big house. Someone has to be up there since it was lit up like now, but the lights went out when the first sub surfaced,” Baylor said.
“Where were the guards most concentrated?” Berkley asked.
“Here and the place next door,” Wiley said, indicating the house on the left, which was smaller but no less impressive.
“The mines can’t be on the main path then,” Berkley said, walking to the naval officer who’d been in the boat with Chandler. His name tag said Liskow, so she motioned him forward with the help of Tito and his weapon. “Let’s go for a walk up to the house,” she said. “You’ll be twenty feet in front of us, and if you make any stupid moves, my friend here’s going to shoot you through both kneecaps. I’d kill you, but I wouldn’t want to mess up your court-martial for you.”
“Tell me the status of my men,” Liskow said, turning his head to where the sub had been.
“You left them out there to die because you were planning to give a traitorous asshole a nuclear weapon. Hopefully some survived and are in the water, but every soul lost is on you.” Berkley was pissed that this bastard had the gall to act like he cared about the people in his command. “Were they at least on the same page when it came to your love of Chandler?”
“I wasn’t here for Chandler,” Liskow said, taking a step toward her, and Berkley hit him so hard the blow knocked him backward on his ass.
“What, you ran out of gas and ended up next to two enemy subs? Did you show up here because your communications were down? Did you run across a reef that knocked off all your locator devices?” Berkley hit him again, and no one stepped up to stop her. “Get up and get moving, dumb ass. You’re no different than Chandler and every other guy who followed him in betraying their country.”
Liskow held his hands over his head as if expecting her to hit him again, but eventually he got up and started toward the house, trudging slowly up the sandy slope. When he reached the deck, the back door opened suddenly, and Liskow took off, making it through the opening before Tito or Wiley could get off a shot.
Berkley turned and tackled Aidan toward the dunes. “What are you—” Aidan stopped talking when Wiley fell right next to them and a barrage of gunfire erupted from the house.
“Keep your head down,” Baylor said as his team fanned out.
KO threw three grenades in succession at the house, ripping holes in the outer wall, which showered them with bits of wood and glass. She pressed herself over Aidan and put her hands over her lover’s face.
“Cletus, are you hurt?” Aidan asked when she winced hard enough that Aidan obviously noticed.
“I think I got a big splinter in my hip, but you keep your head down, or else your father will kick my ass.” Aidan laughed, and Berkley raised her head when the shooting stopped.
“Stay here,” Baylor said as his guys moved forward and fired as they went through the hole they’d made.
“What were you saying about finding new places to take a walk?” she asked Aidan as they moved to better cover in the dunes.
“I’m beginning to see you’re a magnet for trouble,” Aidan said and winked. “Now pay attention before both of us get shot. If that doesn’t scare you, then remember when I had the flu and what a great patient I was.” That made Berkley shiver, and Aidan hit her on the arm.
The silence stretched out, and Wiley went to the top of the dunes and set up as best she could. “Man, I hate sand unless I’m on vacation with a girlie drink and a beautiful woman,” Wiley said.
“Don’t we all, but save it for later. See anything?” she asked.
“Tito’s by the entrance, but I don’t see the others.”
Berkley moved next to Wiley and peered toward the house as she radioed Baylor. “You okay?” Behind them more soldiers appeared on the beach as the boats arrived, and Wiley warned them about the explosive booby traps along the shore.
“Give us five more minutes,” Baylor said. “We’re clearing the rooms one by one.” Baylor had just finished when some more shots were fired, and he didn’t say anything for ten more minutes. “I’m sending Tito out to walk you all in, and you’re not going to believe this,” he said finally. Whatever it was, it didn’t sound good.
They stood and followed Wiley, navigating around the holes in the deck that the grenades had ripped open. “I don’t know who these guys are, but they put up a good fight,” Tito said as he pointed to the dead guy next to an equally dead Liskow. “Baylor recognized this guy,” he said to another man on the other side of the room with a missing arm. “He’s a SEAL.”
“Where are the stairs?” she asked, and Tito called over another guy to stand post to watch the beach side. They went up the stairs and into the room where Baylor was standing in the entrance.
When they reached the door and Berkley looked inside, her mouth dropped open like she was trying to find the words to explain what she was seeing. A few dead men were scattered around the room, and a woman who appeared vaguely familiar had a bullet wound in the center of her chest and a gun in her slack hand. Whoever she was, she hadn’t died without a fight. “Who is that? I feel like I should know her.”
“Isn’t that the woman who works for Marcus Newton, the CIA director? A Joanna something,” Aidan said as she stared at the dead woman.
“I guess we can ask him,” she said when she noticed Newton wounded in the bathroom.
“He tried to shoot Goose when he broke the door down. If he tries to claim otherwise, I’m going to shoot him in the other leg,” Baylor said.
“Now North Korea and the team waiting on us, as well as all our setbacks in the last year make sense,” she said, and Aidan nodded.
“You think you’ve done a good thing tonight?” Newton yelled as he kept both hands on his leg. “This was our last chance to regain our standing in the world. Me and Chandler would’ve been unstoppable.”
“Next time,” she told Goose, “aim for the head.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Goose said with a smile.
“Baylor, I hate to ask, but does this place have a basement?” she asked, putting a hand on her healing wound. The dive into the dunes had ramped up the pain again.
“We’ve opened every door, but once we get all these people out of here, we’ll start on the walls and closets.”
“Let’s head back and send in a report,” Aidan said.
Newton started to sweat from what Berkley surmised was his wound, since the house was cool. “Tell that fraud Michaels there’s plenty more like me,” he shouted. “We won’t stop until we take back what’s ours.”
“What’s that?” Berkley asked, leaning close to him and looking him in the eye. “Are you going all the way back to before the Civil War, or do you have a specific date in mind?”
“You can make fun of me, but once Washington burns, they’ll come running to us.”
“Washington burns, huh?” She glanced back at Aidan, shaking her head in disbelief. “You did happen to notice what went down here tonight, right?”
“Captain Liskow can’t be stopped,” he said, his breathing becoming more rapid when she leaned on his leg.
“Liskow is dead in the kitchen, and his sub is on the bottom out there,” she said, smiling. “This bitch made the shot.”
“And this bitch took Chandler out,” Wiley said, pointing to her own chest.
“No, you’re lying. Our plan was perfect.”
The medic that had arrived injected Newton with a sedative before he could continue.
“Make sure you check for anything he could use to end our misery before he stands trial,” Berkley said.
“Yes, ma’am.”
“We need to round up every single person who was working here, and we need to expand our search of the houses along the strip. Make sure Robyn Chandler gets back to the Jefferson under heavy guard,” Aidan said. “No one gets away.”
“We’ll take charge of getting that done, Captain,” Baylor said, then pointed at Berkley. “Take her with you, and have someone check to see why she’s bleeding again.”
“Cletus wants to keep the ship’s nurse busy,” Aidan said and laughed.
“Very funny. Get going, and we’ll be back as soon as we contact Command,” she said and placed her hand on Baylor’s and Wiley’s shoulders. “Great job, guys.”
They walked outside, finding it now lit up with floodlights, and the closest helicopter started as they approached. It was over for the most part, but this time they weren’t repeating the end of the last mission. They were staying aboard the Jefferson until Aidan docked it. It was her ship, her command, and Aidan had done enough to earn the right to see it through.
“You ready?” she asked, running for their ride with her head down.
“For what?” Aidan asked.
“We did what we promised, baby, so we’re done. I hope you’re ready for the picket fence and everything that comes with it,” she said, glancing toward the beach houses as they lifted off. They’d put in so many hours to get here, and the conclusion was going to take some time to sink in. But the nightmare was definitely over, for them at least. “We have some sailing to do before then, and I want to see your parking skills.”
“You’re a romantic at heart, Cletus, and I love you for it,” Aidan said right into her ear.
“Only with you, and that’s because I love you more than life,” she said softly, knowing she had a lifetime to say it over and over again.