ALASKAN HERO'S RETURN
LILY HANN
The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.
Isaiah 9:2
To the heroes that made the ultimate sacrifice and those that loved them.
CHAPTER 1
Kam King undid the top button of his dress shirt. He had ditched the tie. The tightened collar rubbed his scars. He didn't need a constant reminder of the prison in which he found himself. He adjusted the wig one last time and leaned toward the mirror to make sure the contacts changing his eye color were in place.
Tonight he was Ryan McNite. Another name. Another mission. This life was wearing on him. He needed out.
Straightening, he gave himself one last look over. It wasn't Hollywood-level disguise, but his job today was to keep to the shadows and observe. Someone on the Senator's payroll was conversing with Lysander. His handler told him to leave it alone, but if he could find a way to connect Lysander to a crime on US soil, he could finally shut down Spartak for good and leave this life behind him.
Taylor, sitting on the back porch swing at her parents' house sobbing, flashed in his mind. He closed his eyes and let the pain wash over him. She was never far from his thoughts. One day, he would take down Spartak and be able to return to his life. To her.
He shook his head. Who was he kidding? She probably didn't want anything to do with who he had become. He huffed. First,he would get out of the mess he woke up in, then he could worry about what happened next.
He took a deep breath and stepped onto the elevator. "Here goes nothing."
The elevator music hummed softly, but did nothing to soothe the buzz in his veins. He leaned into the adrenaline, allowing it to sharpen his senses. The elevator dinged.
It was time to sniff out a traitor.
The chatter of voices and strum of classical music filtered their way to him from behind the large banquet hall doors. McNite was a wealthy businessman who donated to the Senator's campaign, or so his dossier read. Kam put on his brightest smile as he reached for the door handle.
The door launched at him, and he jumped back as a tall man in a black suit barreled into him. He had to use all of his restraint to not put the guy on the ground. The man turned toward him, and then he had to check his reaction again so that the recognition didn't show on his face. Paul VanKirk. What was the FBI agent doing in Seattle?
"Sorry about that, sir," Paul said as he took a step away from Kam.
"Not a problem. Hope she's alright." Kam winked.
Paul stared at him.
"You were running out of there fast. I know only two things that could make a man run that fast. An emergency or a woman. Since there's no screaming, I assumed you're either chasing after or running from a woman." Kam smiled. Why was he engaging VanKirk? He should be making his way into the shadows. He was supposed to find a traitor, not try to make friends with the FBI agent he had beaten. He had done his best to pull his punches, but he had to make it believable. It was better than what Ian had planned for the agent.
Paul grumbled something about people with money while he turned from him. If Paul was here, Taylor could be here too. He had avoided confronting her last month when the Seward Field Office team took down Ian Volkov. Seeing her even from a distance made his desire to fight for his freedom burn brighter. She had no longer been a part of his dreams and memories, but there in the flesh. He couldn't put her at risk until he got himself out of this world, though. He would get Lysander, then he would be done. He more than paid his debt to his country. It was time for him to retire and find out if Taylor could love the broken man he was now.
The room was warm as people sat and ate their dinners. Kam's phone dinged.
You're at table 14.
Kam smirked. He knew that his handler couldn't resist the opportunity to take down Lysander. He wove his way through the tightly packed tables, looking for something. He wasn't sure what exactly, but he would know when he saw it.
Table 14 was on the edge of the room, partially in the shadows. Perfect. He could see and not necessarily be seen.
The string quartet packed up for the night as a DJ started to play an upbeat song. Looks like he missed the meal. It's just as well. He'd eat when he got back to his hotel. Now, he needed to focus on the room.
His gaze stopped at the edge of the dance floor. The woman looked like she'd be anywhere but talking with that guy, but that wasn't what made his eyes stop their searching. The woman had short blonde hair, but he knew that face. It was still the face he saw in his dreams. The only one that kept him from going too deep into the darkness.
Taylor.
If that guy didn't take the hint that she was giving, Kam would have to break every rule tonight and go to her. His phone pinged with another message. Kam tore his eyes away from Taylor long enough to see that his handler sent him a picture.
This is the target.
