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“Darcy, what the fuck? Where have you been?” Agent Frost’s voice is closer to a grumble, and he clears his throat. He’ll have been grabbing a few hours of sleep, no doubt. He doesn’t get much rest since he got this case.
“I’ve missed those sexy tones. Guess what? You owe me twenty bucks.”
He pauses. “Cage is a cop?”
“He’s definitely not a baddie. Anyway, our timeline has moved up a bit. Shit is hitting the fan up here.”
I can hear him moving around, probably dressing. I’ve never met Agent Frost in person, but I met his partner, Julia. After I was picked up during a traffic stop orchestrated to get me to talk, I told her who I was and what I was prepared to do to take down the Maddox family. I’ve worked with Julia for years, slipping her information, helping her get other women out. But she’s on maternity leave, so I’ve been dealing with Frost.
“You’re at the compound?”
“Yep. Oh, and Christian Delmont is dead.”
He sighs. “Did you kill him?”
“No! He slipped and fell.” I wink at Sunday. “So did his bodyguard. Terrible tragedies. Anyway, we need you, Frosty boy. Can you send some people in with big guns and night vision thingies?”
“We? Who else?”
“Sunday…” I gesture at her.
She clears her throat. “Winters.”
“Sunday Winters, me and Cagey Boy. But his real name is Cole—”
“Knox,” Sunday says quickly.
“You hear that?”
“Yes. Lock yourself in a room and do not move.”
I cackle. “Yeah, okay.”
“I’m serious, Darcy. There’s only so much I can protect you from.”
“How heroic. I’m good, though. See you soon.” I hang up and help Sunday to her feet. She wobbles a bit, and I keep her steady. Her cheekbone is a little red, and I wonder if that was from Christian or me. Either way, I touch her cheek gently. “I really am sorry that I hit you.”
Sunday smiles weakly. “I believe that now.”
I beam at her. “Good. Ready to save your boyfriend?”
Chapter 17
Cole - Now
All hell breaks loose.
Blood spills from Felton’s throat, and Darcy yanks out the poker, laughing as her fiancé stumbles back. While he clutches at his throat in a fruitless attempt to stop the bleeding, Darcy reaches into his inside jacket pocket and pulls out his gun. Crouching, she slides it across the floor to me.
“Game on, Cagey Boy,” she winks at me.
What the fuck is going on?
Snatching up the weapon, I check it’s loaded. This could be one big game to Darcy, playing both sides or maybe playing neither. Maybe she just loves causing fucking chaos. But the gun is loaded, and as one of Felton’s bodyguards barrels toward her, I shoot him. I figure I’d rather have her on my side than not.
A bullet whips by me and I duck as it slams into a nearby vase. It explodes, pottery bursting free and skidding across the floor.
I guess not every weapon was fucking confiscated.
