Total pages in book: 153
Estimated words: 144571 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 723(@200wpm)___ 578(@250wpm)___ 482(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 144571 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 723(@200wpm)___ 578(@250wpm)___ 482(@300wpm)
“What is he planning on doing in Russia?” TJ asked.
“Probably make it his base,” Kenzie replied. “We know he’s interested in shaking up Southeast Asia. There are some soft targets that would disrupt western supply chains if they were hit. And we always have the threat of losing Taiwan and the supply of semiconductors. The Canadians are specifically worried about that.”
“But not worried enough to send Ben Parker,” Tristan quipped.
Tris was an asshole. “I’m sure he was on an important op.”
Kala snorted. “Sure he was. It was super important that he avoid my sister. He’s still butt hurt because he thinks Coop has the hots for her.”
“For Ms. Magenta,” Kenzie corrected.
“Well, he can’t tell the difference, and Coop lost his shit,” Big Tag complained.
Her hand came up, covering his, and her head tilted so he could see her shake her head.
“I thought she was dead. Damn straight I lost my shit,” Cooper said as she winked at him and resettled. He was going to murder Huisman.
And he wished he could murder Julia Ennis and all the bastards who’d worked for her. Maybe in the next life.
“Well, I’m her dad and I didn’t lose my shit,” Big Tag shot back.
Charlotte snorted. It was funny that he knew exactly who’d made that sound.
“Well, it’s for the best,” Kenzie said, and he could practically see her chin come up in that “I’m going to martyr myself for the sake of the team” way. “It’s done and we don’t have to worry about him anymore. So now that we all have our assignments, let’s talk about the important thing. There are bets at The Hideout that Cooper’s going to come back from this assignment as Kala’s sub.”
“I’ll take that bet,” TJ said.
And they were done.
Day Six
Cooper was almost sure they hit paydirt when they saw the small cloud of smoke coming over the ridge. “Maybe the hiker was right.”
They’d met with a hiker early this morning. She was walking the Continental Divide trail and had been more than happy to join them for a coffee when she’d come across their camp. She’d told them about the older lady she’d met the day before about four hours walk to the west in one of the remotest parts of the trail. She’d called herself Joyce and had given the young woman some granola and filtered water and a place to rest for a couple of hours.
And she’d mentioned the woman’s handsome son, who’d shown up at the end of their visit. Though she hadn’t been introduced, she’d gotten a glimpse of the man before Joyce had hustled her off.
Tall. Dark hair. When they’d questioned her she’d said she couldn’t be completely sure it was Joyce’s son, but she’d given her impression of his age—roughly thirty.
Zach. Zach was here.
Or someone Joyce met in the mountains. One of the things her dossier included was her penchant to make new friends wherever she went.
It also mentioned she might be developing early stage dementia.
“You think she was talking about Zach?” Kala asked.
She’d lost her relaxed humor the minute they’d realized the mission was truly starting. He was dealing with the operative part of his baby, and she could be intimidating. This wasn’t the woman who’d spent a shit ton of money on a sat call comforting her sister because her Canadian crush hadn’t met with her. Big Tag would try to send that bill to the Agency. Good luck with that. No, this was the woman who’d once left the very same agent her sister was in love with on a plane filled with people who wanted to kill him while she’d used the last parachute.
The trouble was he was attracted to both the kind, loving sister and the deadly operative. “I think we need to be ready in case it is. Our main objective is to bring Zach in.”
A brow rose over her blue eyes. “It is?” She frowned. “You called my father.”
Worse. “I couldn’t get hold of him. I talked to Drake. Baby, you know we’re supposed to report in. This could go wrong, and the guys in Bliss need to be ready for an evac if we need it.”
“I would rather have had the option, Coop,” Kala argued. “This isn’t a military op. I don’t need instructions.”
“We do need guidance.”
“I don’t. I need to have some flexibility in the field.” She sounded irritated.
He stood by his action, but he maybe should have kept it to himself. The truth of the matter was Kala would do what she thought was right, and damn orders. But they needed backup if bad shit went down. He moved into her space, putting his hands on her hips. “I wanted us to have backup. Forgive me.”
She sighed. “That’s not fair, McKay. You know I can’t say no to puppy eyes.”
He curled his lips up. “Excellent. Then let’s take a break right here.”