Page 75 of Her Defiant Warrior

Ely paused and Jase saw he was getting pissed. He used the toe of his dress shoe to prod at Gideon from time to time.

“I don’t care what Ephram tells you to do, you listen to me. It was his idiot plan to have you put the C-4 on one of those trucks, wasn’t it? Make him and his team find it.”

Everybody in the room could hear her high-pitched yammering. They couldn’t make out exactly what she was saying, but her tone was unmistakable. She was angry.

“I take your point. You’re right, he wouldn’t go through with the job, and we would be out the money. Don’t kill Braxton yet. Use him. Kill him after you’ve reacquired the explosives and positioned them where we want them.”

That must have pacified her, because now she was talking softly.

“I’m keeping Bull with me.” Ely pulled out a deadly looking dagger from a sheath underneath his pant leg. Gideon froze. He was ready to attack if Ely made any move against the three SEALs.

Ely stepped over Gideon to where Rob was still rolling around in agony. “I’m going to pull in a few more men,” Ely told Amanda.

He paused as he looked at Rob and listened to the human icicle.

“Yes, more than our hit team. I want more good people around me when the lights go down.”

He kept his phone up to his ear, looking bored at whatever else Amanda had to say. In a swift move, he jammed his shoe on the side of Rob’s neck, forcing his head against the floor.

“Yes. If you think you need to pull in a couple of more, by all means, coordinate that,” he smiled. He positioned the point of his dagger into the tender flesh of Rob’s temple. Rob jerked, trying to get away, and Ely smiled, then shoved the dagger through the man’s brain.

“Amanda, I have a couple of things I need to clean-up here. Call me when you reacquire the C-4.”

He paused. “What?”

He smiled and chuckled softly. “Me? No, I wouldn’t handle things the way Sergei is.”

Jase saw his face get soft. “I know you love me, Amanda.”

She said something else.

“I’m just saying that besides making the man suffer, I would make sure my woman got what she deserved as well.”

Oooops, bitch, better not give the game away.

“Enough of this Amanda. I have things to do, and so do you.”

Ely straightened up, pocketing his cell phone and leaving the dagger lodged in Rob’s brain. “Bull, I need you to call Lawrence and Gil. They need to bring the new recruit they’ve been training. I want them here immediately. They’ll come with us tonight.”

Bull looked lost.

“Earnhart! Pull yourself together, otherwise I’ll kill you as well. I need you to call Lawrence and Gil. Tell them to bring their new recruit. I want them here in twenty minutes.”

“But they’re in Dubai, Sir. That’s a ninety-minute drive.”

“So, you do want me to kill you? Or do you want to do what I ask you to do?” Ely questioned his not so smart employee.

“I’ll get them here,” Bull said as he scurried out of the bedroom.

“And here I thought I was going to kill you,” Ely said as he looked at Ryker. “Instead, I’m thinking you might fill in for Spider tonight. It wasn’t the lead role, but it was going to be a memorable one. Think Macbeth.”

14

Jase looked down at his expensive watch. It was fifteen hundred thirty-three. He and Gideon were in an air-conditioned limousine with Ely. They were back in their expensive suits.

“You saw your man make his phone calls to his counterpart. Your families are safe for another day. If you don’t do exactly what I say, there will be no call tomorrow. Do you understand me?”

Jase did a head bob, and Gideon nodded.