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And that was just what I did.
I called Gain once I’d hidden the car and raced into the woods. “I’m here. You have your night vision on?”
“Yes. Come east,” he whispered from somewhere near the house. “He’s wearing a t-shirt, jeans, sneakers, slightly shorter than me, maybe weighs twenty pounds less than you.”
Keeping low, I moved swiftly, listening to Gain in my ear as I approached our visitor.
“I see you.” I heard him moving, probably to see better. “He’s just to your left.”
“Got him.” I took in everything as I raced along a few yards behind him. His sneakers were not meant for the woods, so I ran wide and came into his side view, steering him into thicker terrain. Darkness was creeping up on us, and he yelped as he tripped then started to run faster, unsure who I was and what I wanted. I ducked and jumped the ditch. I was prepared for it. I knew what was in front of me. I knew where I wanted him to go, and he was following my plan perfectly.
Jeans were hard to run in, which was why I lived in dress pants. They were light and weren’t restrictive. You never knew when you’d have to move fast, and I was always prepared. In our line of work, it could mean the difference between life and death.
Shadows were becoming deeper, and an owl above us started his night call. The moon was bright and provided a sliver of light through the forest, just enough to keep eyes on the man.
Again, I used my body to steer him in a different direction. Quickly, I gained ground, closing the distance between us.
Yes, keep running, because…He tripped and flew forward right into the thick sludge that always gathered in this small area. It had nearly caught me a few times when I was scouting the terrain.
I raced into the mud while he was off balance and wrapped my arm around his neck. I yanked him backward, using the sludge to hold his legs down.
“What were you doing at the house?” I grunted in his ear as he wrenched to get free. “Tell me or I’ll snap your neck.”
“I came here for Mikey!”
“Who?” I wasn’t sure if I’d heard him right.
“I don’t know—” He gasped when I punched his ribs. “I got a call from my boss,” he coughed, “saying he got a lead that this Mikey was here, and I was to bring her back to him.”
“Her?” Mikey was a woman?
“What else do you know?” I fixed my grip, tightening my arm around his neck.
“Just that she was siphoning money from my boss, and I’m not allowed to return until I have her.” He fought to breathe.
Bang!The shot echoed through the woods. I strengthened my grip on the man and bent him back as I got low to the ground.
I got a quick glimpse of one of my soldiers. He moved his flashlight at a man across the way from me who was now lying face down over a rock. He must have been sneaking up on me. I gave a quick wave and went back to the man in front of me.
“There’s no one left to save you now,” I huffed.
“You think we’re the only ones coming?” He half laughed. “My employer alone hired a multitude of men, and that’s just us. I don’t know who the hell this woman is. I just want to get paid, but the word’s out and spreading fast thatMikeyhas surfaced, and they are out for blood. There’s a lot of money to be made for whoever gets her.”
Mikey is here?
“How do you know who you’re after?”
“You should know. She’s in the picture with you.”
“What?”
“Phone.” He struggled to speak. He awkwardly reached for his phone, and I let him open it. What I saw made my blood run cold.
No.Confusion tried to cloud my brain. Whoever Mikey was, I knew he or she had been making deals for years. Whoever they were, they would have to be much older than me.
“She’s pretty, but orders are orders.”
I saw black as I squeezed with all my might and jerked his spine to snap it at the base of his neck. I tossed him aside, scooped up his phone, removed the password setting with his limp thumb, and hurried back toward the house with my soldier protecting my back as I went.
