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“Wh—what time is it?”
“That’s right, rise and shine, princess. You’ve been there all night.”
“Shit, why didn’t someone wake me?” He took his feet off the coffee table and straightened up with a groan. His back responded like it was a two-by-four: stiff, rigid. No, it was beyond stiff. Every muscle was bruised.
“Cain said to let you sleep.”
Dane cursed. “Sorry, guys. I should’ve—"
“Drink this,” Jace said as he handed Dane a cup of black coffee, “and shut up. You needed the sleep. We all saw you take that fall with Mac. You took the brunt of yours and Mac’s weight on your back. That shit had to hurt. Bet it still does.”
Dane wanted to deny it, but there was no way they couldn’t tell how much pain he was in.
Tac put the Advil on the table in front of him and went back to his chair at the end of the coffee table. “We all know this case is personal for you.”
Dane blinked. Shit. Did they all know about him and Mac? Hell, that would be bad. “Well, I…”
“Owens was an asshole and caused your accident,” Tac continued. “There’s a lot wrapped up in this for you. We’re all here for whatever you need.”
Dane didn’t quite know what to say. It was true. This case was personal for all kinds of reasons. “I… It’s been a long time since I had a real team. So, thanks. It means a lot.”
“No worries. Get some breakfast.” Tac pointed to the plates of food on a room service cart by the window.
Dane stood and then bent at the waist and reached for his toes to stretch out all the aching muscles. The pull was harsh on his hamstrings.
Koa walked in and headed straight for the food. “I’m starving.”
“Do I have time for a quick shower?” Dane asked.
Tac nodded. “Cain and Cass are outside on watch. You’re good.”
Dane took a shower. It wasn’t as quick as it should have been, but he needed the heat on his back to help him loosen up. Twenty minutes later, the room was empty, and he was just standing by the curtained window rushing through breakfast when Cain and Cass walked in.
“Shit. Sorry, I’m moving,” Dane said as he set down his fork.
Cain waved him to stand down. “No rush. Tac and Jace are already out there. I want you to stay and run through things again with Mac. She up?”
“I am,” she said as she walked into the room. She was wearing a pair of black cargos and a Kelly-green T-shirt. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and she was carrying a file folder in her hand.
Dark shadows ringed her eyes, but she was moving okay. Probably not much sleep, but her body rested at least. Dane pointed to the food, and she nodded.
“I spent the night thinking about the whole situation and still didn’t come up with much.” She helped herself to some juice. “But then when I pulled out the file I had in my bag on Owens and the one on Dane’s accident. I found it.”
“Found what?” Dane asked.
“The reason they want me dead.” She turned to Cain. “At my place, where was the bomb set up? By my computer?”
He nodded as he chewed on a piece of bacon.
“Thought so. Lucky Rutledge—I mean Sinclair—didn’t see this file, otherwise they’d want him dead, too.”
Dane narrowed his eyes. “You’re not making much sense.”
Cass handed Mac a coffee. “Thanks,” she said and put the file on the table. “Come check it out.”
They gathered round the table, and she opened the file. She set out the pictures, lining them up in order on the table. “Casper took these pictures by himself. In the report, he said no one was available to help since CGIS was down a few members. Everyone took that at face value. Rutledge… Sinclair started the following week, and I started the week after.”
Dane took a deep breath. He hadn’t seen the pictures before. He’d asked to see them, but Casper had refused. He had been airlifted to the hospital before these were taken. There was debris on deck from the medics who had given him an IV and saw to his wound. The first few pictures showed the debris and a pool of his blood where the bolt had gouged his back. The next group showed the ladder he’d come down. He looked closely. The rungs looked normal until the third picture in that group. It was a close up of three of the rungs. Two glistened in the sun. The one below it didn’t.
