Page 65 of Jonas

“I’m telling you I need a face-to-face with you by the end of the day, and under no circumstances are you to get on Air Force One.”

“And the men in my office? What am I telling them?”

“Nothing. Let them chase the Houthi lead.”

“You want me to⁠—”

“Not be assassinated, yeah, Trent, I want that.”

The tension in the room was getting harder to breathe through. Just when I thought Zane was going to explode, the president gave in to his demands.

“You have until the end of our meeting to convince me not to take this intel to my team.”

“Name the time,” Zane ordered.

I wasn’t sure snapping at the president was the way to go, though neither did I think giving orders to him was smart. But what did I know?

“Nine.”

“We’ll be there.”

“Who’s we?”

“The team that’s going to keep you alive.”

With that, Zane hung up on the President of the United States.

“You hung up on POTUS,” I breathed out my thought.

“How else would he know the conversation was over?” Zane shot back.

“Um, maybe he’d know if you said goodbye?”

“My way’s more efficient.”

And rude, but I didn’t point that out.

“We’ve got ten hours before we leave for DC,” Zane announced, glancing around the table. “Cooper, you’re on the road back to Annapolis. Once you help Layla get the families to Kentucky, you and Kevin are with your team. I’m sending Blue to Three Mile Island. Gold will hit Wyoming.”

“Black’s already there,” Cash interrupted.

Zane pinned Cash with an ominous stare. What he didn’t do was speak actual words, yet Cash understood his non-verbal communication.

“Right,” Cash muttered.

“What about Gold’s families? Do you want them in Kentucky or Tennessee?” Cooper asked.

“Tennessee. Bridget and Aria go with Blue to Kentucky.”

With Zane’s instructions, Theo and Smith visibly relaxed.

Zane being Zane didn’t miss this. “Go call your women, explain what’s happening.”

Smith and Theo quickly stood and went for the stairs.

“Walk me out, baby.” When Kira didn’t immediately push away from the table, Cooper plucked her hand off her keyboard.

They, too, left.