Page 79 of Her Defiant Warrior

They got jostled by a group of French tourists. They were all really excited, and if they didn’t have cameras in front of their faces, they had binoculars.

Jase squeezed his eyes shut for a second. Then opened them and tried to find a good mark to steal a set of binoculars. The kid looked to be about thirteen. His binoculars were laying on the ground beside him, as he had his smart phone glued to his face as he took pictures. Jase swiped the binoculars and then swiftly moved away.

“I’ve got mine,” Gideon whispered as he held up his set of stolen binoculars.

They were both taller than most of the tourists so they could look toward the east landscaping above the entrance.

“Check out that tree. I think I see movement,” Gideon pointed.

Jase looked but saw nothing. “There’s nothing there,” he told Gideon.

He slowly did another sweep of the vast amounts of grass and then looked at the few thin trees. So much grass.

How many landscapers did they employ?

And why would a landscaper bring grass clippings to a job?

Huh?

Jase thought back to the white truck he saw Ryker drive away in. Green grass clippings had fluttered out the back.

“They’re hiding under grass clippings,” he yelled at Gideon.

“What?”

“Trust me. Look for a lump of grass that looks a little uneven. It’ll be a sniper hiding under grass clippings.”

Jase got out the cell phone to report to Kostya.

15

The music came to a crescendo, and the Prince walked up to the dais.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

Kostya wasn’t on the phone with them. He was on the phone with Linc. Pray God that he would find the shooter.

“I see him,” Gideon yelled out.

“Great. Then Kostya found him too. Now we have to find Ely.” Jase yelled to Gideon over the music.

Gideon didn’t miss a beat. He turned his attention to Jase. “I’ll take the east. You stay on this side.”

Jase nodded. Ely was as tall as Jase was. Seventy-five percent of the men were wearing a keffiyeh, so now he just had to look for a man with light brown hair and his height. He did a slow sweep with his binoculars.

Nothing.

He pushed his way through a throng of people to get a new position to look again. The music stopped, and the prince began to speak. Most people would have heard only one shot, but Jase heard two. His head jerked over to the left and he did a quick sweep of the grass on the west lawn with his binoculars. He saw a glimmer of red mist and grinned.

He immediately started looking for Ely again. But now it was tougher. The crowd was jostling one another. A voice boomed over the loud speaker.

“This is just a drill. Do not be alarmed. This is just a drill.”

The words were being repeated in ten different languages and being displayed across the eye of the building. The prince and his family were long gone. Jase continued to look for Ely.

You fucking son-of-a-bitch, be on my side of the entrance.

Still nothing.