AllFreeNovel
Share Us
There she was standing right in front of me.
Watching her run devastated me. After calling for her and realizing she wasn’t slowing down at all, my composure drained out of me.
Hunter moved toward the door to set off the explosive, and the three of us backed off the porch for the detonation, but I didn’t stop there.
Before considering my options, I broke all protocol and bolted around the side of the house as fast as I could. As I rounded the first corner, the front door blew, and I saw Grizz on the porch, nearing the corner toward the back.
Chatter in my earpiece picked up, and I knew she had cleared the house and was running.
The sound of wood breaking caught my attention as the porch collapsed beside me, taking out my team and making me the closest to her in pursuit. I picked up my pace at the thought I could lose her again.
She was halfway across the backyard, but she still had a long way to go before the tree line. Her eyes locked with mine, but she didn’t slow down.
Blood pumped fiercely into my head as she continued to run.
I knew then that she would keep running until I caught her.
And I will catch her.
At once, I remember our shooter in the trees. I gave instructions to shoot anything getting away, and the realization snaps me out of my thoughts.
Yelling at Eagle through my earpiece, I keep my pace. “Stand down. Do not shoot. DO. NOT. SHOOT. She’s mine.” The fierce determination with which I growl my last words startles me.
With an internal force I’ve never felt until this moment, one thought rages through me and fuels me on:
She is mine.
Then I chastise myself for claiming her out loud. I’ll be answering to Logan for that later.
“Please, don’t…” It’s one of the first things she’s said to me in ten years.
Her fear ignites my rage, and I don’t back down.
She should fear me right now.
I see it in the whites of her eyes. She knows I won’t stop. As she turns to try and keep her pace, I call out her name.
She’s more fit than I remember. Even through her clothes and by the way she moves, I can tell her body is toned. Her arms are defined.
Link’s voice breaks through my earpiece. “The drone is picking up a boat just past the trees. She’s heading straight for it.”
My heart tightens. It will only be a matter of time if we both remain on foot. I can’t let her get to the boat.
“Female target on foot at the back of the house. Do not let her get to the trees. Eagle, on my mark,” Logan commands through our open comms. I quickly glance over my shoulder to see him moving around the side of the house, well behind us.
There’s no time to process how I need to handle this now.
All I see is her closing in on the tree line, and my whole body heats up as blood and anger feverishly pulse through me.
“No. Don’t. I’ve got her. Hold your fire.” I contradict my fellow team lead with the ferocity of a beast unhinged.
We have one of the best sharpshooters on our team, but the mere thought of a bullet accidentally hitting Jessa makes me want to rip Eagle’s head off through his asshole.
“Spook her, Eagle. FIRE!” Logan’s tone is detached, and I know the order will be carried out before he finishes speaking.
The crack of the shot echoes against the sleepy countryside as the dirt in front of Jessa kicks up, and her legs physically react as she trips and attempts to recover.
My body relaxes as I take my final few steps toward her.
