by Cynthia Eden
Cassidy tried to push in front of Cale. He pushed her right back behind him. The men needed a warning. “If you hurt her, in any way, I’ll make sure you regret it.” That was really more of a promise than a warning.
He could disarm the men. Easy enough. But...would he then be able to turn the men against their boss? Be able to get them to give him Genevieve’s whereabouts?
Cale wasn’t sure. In cases like this, some men never turned on their bosses. Death was an easier route than betrayal for them—and for the families that they would leave behind.
If this was their chance to take down the Executioner, then they had to be taken inside the killer’s lair.
The men laughed at Cale’s words. “You don’t get to give the orders.” The guy on the right pointed his gun at Cale’s head. “You aren’t the hero.”
He also wasn’t the victim. But he could play one, for now.
When the masked men told him to, Cale climbed into the van. He stayed right next to Cassidy. After all, that had been Mercer’s order—stay close to her. Every moment.
He’d take down the Executioner and he’d do his job.
The Shadow Agents didn’t let innocents die, and he wasn’t about to let the killer escape from Rio.
The van’s side door slammed closed.
And they sped away.
* * *
LOGAN QUINN WATCHED the black van race down the narrow road. The men had taken the bait. Now...
He pulled out behind the van, making sure not to tail too closely. After all, he didn’t want to spook their prey.
He and Gunner were backup for Cale, so that meant they’d follow him...any place that he went.
“Is the tracking device working?” Logan asked as he slanted a fast glance toward Gunner.
Gunner had a laptop open in front of him. The beacon was flashing on the screen. “Working like a dream. You know Sydney would never send us any equipment that was less than perfect.”
No, she wouldn’t. Sydney would never risk the lives of any of the Shadow Agents.
Every EOD agent had a small chip implanted just beneath the skin, a precaution that Mercer had insisted on after a particularly brutal mission in which they’d lost an operative.
As long as that chip was in place, they’d be able to track Cale.
Tracking Cale meant tracking the Executioner.
Like Cale, Logan was more than ready to take the man down.
* * *
THEY WERE TOSSED into a dark room, a basement holding room that was about twelve feet long and ten feet wide. The gunmen locked them in with only a small lantern left for light.
Locked them inside and walked away.
Cassidy stood completely still in the weak light of the lantern. “I didn’t mean for you to get taken with me.” Guilt whispered through her words.
Her back was to him. Cale wanted her to face him. “But you did mean to get taken yourself.”
“Yes.”
Now they were locked up, their weapons had been taken and... “What do you think will happen next? Are you going to disarm the men who come back for us? Going to take them out and make them lead you to their boss?”
Actually, that was his plan, but Cale was curious as to what Cassidy had in mind.
She glanced over her shoulder at him. “I planned to trade my life for Genevieve’s.”
He laughed, then realized the woman was dead serious.
Bad plan, Cassidy. Bad.
He stalked toward her, anger making his muscles clench. “That’s not happening.”
She spun to fully face him. “I’m not letting her die. I have...value that the Executioner doesn’t realize. I can make this work.”
“Because you’re an asset?” An EOD asset. Just what intel did she possess? Others had tried to take down the EOD before—those who’d been clever enough to discover the division’s existence. Agents had been targeted, killed, but the EOD had still come out on top in the end.
No one had destroyed them.
Yet.
“Yes. I have value because I’m an asset.”
And she thought to betray the agents. Men and women who were his friends. “I won’t let you compromise the EOD.”
Her hands had fisted at her sides. “Maybe there are things that are more important than the EOD!”
His fingers curled around her arms, but he made sure not to touch her bandage. He didn’t want to hurt her. Shake her, maybe, for the risks that she seemed so willing to take, but not hurt the woman. “Do you have any idea how many agents are undercover right now? If you compromised their work, they’d die. Do you want that on you? All those deaths...on you?”
She blinked away what he was pretty sure were tears. “I don’t want any deaths on me. That’s why I’m here.” Then she shoved against him. He kept forgetting how deceptively strong she was. “And why you shouldn’t be here! This is—”
The basement door opened. Light spilled inside, falling down the narrow staircase.
Cale instantly grabbed Cassidy and pushed her behind him. He couldn’t see the face of the man waiting at the top of those stairs.
But it was all too easy to see the gun in his hand.
“Cassidy Sherridan...” That voice—it was the guy from the ballroom. The boss? Or one of his flunkies? “So good to finally have you here.”
“Where’s Genevieve?” Cassidy called out. “Have you hurt her?”
The man didn’t move down the steps.
So Cale started moving toward him.
“I’ve only hurt her a little,” the man said. “Not too much—I still have to give proof of life. Can’t do that if she’s bleeding all over the place. Families doubt when there’s too much blood.”
Cale was at the bottom of the steps.
Logan and Gunner would have followed him to this location. They were probably outside, trying to figure out the best way to storm inside and take over. Cale just needed to buy them time.
“You’ve made a big mistake,” Cale told the man.
“No.” The gun lifted, pointed right at Cale’s chest. “You have. You should have left the girl alone. Just let her come to me in that ballroom. It would have saved you a world of pain if you’d stepped aside.”
He was going to fire. Cale knew it, and he moved in an instant, lunging to the right even as the bullet blasted out of the man’s gun.
Cale just didn’t move fast enough.
The bullet thudded into him. He jerked back, twisting, and fell onto the dirty floor.
Cassidy rushed toward him, and her fingers flew over his body. “Cale!”
“Don’t worry, I wasn’t shooting to kill. That was a warning, Ms. Sherridan. You see, I’m not playing games. I will destroy anyone who gets in my way. And next time...unless you do exactly what I say...the bullet will kill your lover.”
The door squeaked as it closed. Then the heavy bolt was thrown into place once more.
“Cale?” Cassidy’s voice was broken. Carefully, slowly, she rolled him over. “Please, Cale, tell me that—”
He opened his eyes. “I’m fine.” He caught her hands. “The bullet barely grazed me.” Because he’d moved quickly.
“But—but I heard it hit you.”
So he was lying. The bullet was in his side, burning him, and he was bleeding a little more than he’d like, but the wound wouldn’t kill him. He’d had much worse. “I’m fine,” he said again.
She was on her knees beside him. “I didn’t want you hurt.”
His blood wasn’t on her hands. “I chose to go after you.”
“You were following orders.” Her trembling fingers slid down his cheek.
He caught her fingers. Rose up toward her and ignored the pain. Their captors thought he was weak now. A mistake on their part. “We’re getting out of here, and we’re getting your friend out.” Because that guy had confirmed that he had Genevieve. It was doubtful that he had two separate prison locations for his victims. So Genevieve was probably somewhere in the building. They just ha
d to find her.
He realized that his mouth was just inches from Cassidy’s. She hadn’t backed away when he’d risen. Her fingers curled around his shoulders. “You knew all this would happen, didn’t you?” There was a new understanding in her voice.
“You mean following you after you decked me...that it would lead us to the missing woman? To the killer?”
He heard the faint click of her swallow. “My hit didn’t knock you down, did it? It didn’t take you out any more than that bullet did.”
He smiled and wondered just how much she could see in that weak light. “I was always a pretty good actor.”
The sound she made was half laugh, half sob. Then her arms were tightening around him. “Thank you!”
Because he’d gone against orders?
Or “bent” those orders?
For her.
Her mouth was too close. She was too tempting, and the knife edge of adrenaline and fury weakened his control just enough that he had to—
Take.
His lips closed over hers. Not easy. Not soft. He thrust his tongue into her mouth and savored her taste. Cassidy’s taste—it was so sweet and hot. When he kissed her, he craved things that he shouldn’t.
He forgot the mission.
Forgot protocol.
Wanted.
Her. Naked. Beneath him, in bed.
And I will have her that way.
“So I guess your seduction worked,” he murmured against her lips.
He felt the ripple of surprise that trembled through her. She pulled her head back, shook it slightly. “I wasn’t...”
“When we’re out of here, you’ll owe me.” A sensual promise. He’d make sure she paid exactly what was owed.
Cassidy didn’t speak.
Cale forced himself to let her go. Their captors would be coming back soon. They needed to be ready. “Look for a weapon.” Something small they could use against their enemies. They just needed the element of surprise on their side.
They’d get it, especially with Gunner and Logan working nearby.
She eased away from him and began searching with the lantern’s light. “There’s nothing here.”
No, not a damn thing. Except...the lantern.
The bolt slid free upstairs. The door began to squeak open.
He took the lantern from her.
The door opened more, spilling light.
Cale lifted the lantern. He waited just a few more precious seconds. Then he threw down the lantern, shattering it. Even as a voice swore at the top of the stairs, Cale was picking up a chunk of broken glass. Not the knife he liked to use, but it would get the job done.
Because when it came to close-contact warfare, he was the best.
The men wouldn’t have a target down there now. There wasn’t enough light to see. They couldn’t shoot from above.
He wrapped his left hand around Cassidy’s arm, pulled her back.
Then he smiled up at the silhouette that waited on that staircase.
Come and get me.
* * *
“WHAT THE HELL do you mean?” Mercer roared into the phone. “She’s taken? Cassidy? Damn it, Logan, I gave your team an order. Cassidy was to be watched, protected at all costs!” The EOD director’s furious voice blasted in Logan’s ear.
Logan kept his own voice calm as he replied, “She’s not alone, sir. Cale is with her.”
That didn’t seem to reassure him. “He better make sure that she’s not so much as bruised. Do you hear me?”
Actually, Logan was hearing a whole lot of emotion in the director’s voice—emotion that had never been there before, and he’d worked on plenty of cases with Mercer during his time at the EOD.
“Cassidy is the priority. She is the mission.” Mercer sounded like the words were being torn from him. “You do whatever is necessary to get her out alive. Do you understand? There are no restrictions on this case. If the enemy gets in your way, you take them out. All of them.”
Mercer’s words were too ragged. There was too much fury—and fear—in his orders.
This wasn’t just about some asset.
What are we involved in? What is Cassidy to him?
The director had always told him that cases weren’t supposed to get personal, but right now Mercer was crossing all the lines that he’d drawn himself.
“If anything happens to Cassidy Sherridan, I will destroy your team.”
Logan stiffened at that guttural vow. “Don’t threaten me.” He didn’t care who he was talking to.
“Then don’t screw up! You had an order—bring her in. You think I don’t know what this is? Your team is too good to let this happen unless you wanted it to happen.”
Logan didn’t reply. His gaze was on the darkened building that waited less than a hundred feet away. The building that he’d soon be storming.
“You wanted to take out the Executioner, didn’t you? And you thought you’d use my—use Cassidy to do it.” The slipup had been brief, but Logan had heard it. “When Cassidy is back, there’s going to be a full accounting. Do you hear me? Your whole team will be up for review with me. Now do your job—get her out of there.” Mercer swore. “I’m sending the others who’ve been on standby. I won’t risk her.”
The line went dead.
The others?
Mercer has more agents down here. They’ve been watching us. So that meant that backup would be coming their way. Even if those agents didn’t have eyes on them, Mercer could track Logan—the same way that Logan and Gunner had tracked Cale.
Logan shoved his phone aside, picked up his weapon and got ready for the battle that was waiting.
* * *
SHE HADN’T PLANNED to pull Cale into this mess. He wasn’t supposed to be a hostage.
If anything happened to him because of her, Cassidy knew she’d feel the aching guilt every day for the rest of her life.
No, Cale is strong. He’s probably been in and out of every hellhole on earth.
But he’d been shot moments before. He was weak. He couldn’t handle these men while he was hurt.
Despite what he might think, the man was only human.
“Stay behind me.” Cale’s words were the barest whisper.
He had a weapon, of sorts, clutched in his hand. A broken shard of glass. She’d grabbed a chunk of the glass, too. She wasn’t going to be defenseless, no matter what was coming her way.
She should have told Cale the full truth about herself—that there had been no need for him to be captured.
Not when the cavalry always had a direct linkup to her...and her location.
She’d had a plan in place. The minute she’d vanished from Cale’s sight, Mercer should have been alerted.
Her hand rose to her shoulder. The smallest spot of raised flesh was there, hiding her tracking device. Mercer had made sure she had the device implanted. When she’d vanished, he would have been notified immediately. He would have gotten a GPS lock on her—he would have sent in his men....
And then the Executioner could have been taken down.
The plan had seemed so perfect, mostly because the only threat had been to her.
But now Cale was a hostage with her. He was wounded, and he was about to launch himself at the men coming down the stairs.
Four men were rushing toward them. Cale just had that broken glass. He couldn’t defeat them all.
He doesn’t have to defeat them. Mercer will have learned about my abduction by now—the other agents who’d worked with Cale would have reported to him. So Mercer had probably already started tracking her.
Cale didn’t have to risk his life.
All they had to do was keep their captors distracted.
I have to keep Cale alive.
Because while the Executioner might be planning to use her, Cale would be disposable to him.
And if Cale came out of that darkness fighting...
His body was tense. Ready to spring out and attack.
Cassidy couldn’t let him do it.
She couldn’t let him risk himself that way.
She ran away from him, racing toward the stairs.
“Cassidy!” Cale shouted.
But he hadn’t been prepared for her move. So he couldn’t stop her.
She nearly collided with a man in a black ski mask.
His hands flew out and locked around her.
The chunk of glass fell from her fingers. “Please don’t hurt him!”
The man’s fingers tightened around her, and he yanked her against him, spinning her so that her back pressed against his chest. “Why ever not?” His voice was deep, rumbling, terrifying. “I enjoy hurting people.”
But the Executioner had never taken a man hostage. In all the time that she’d been following him, he’d never picked a male for his prey.
Until now.
“It was a mistake. You wanted me, not him.” Her breath was ragged, and the trembling in her voice wasn’t an act. The fear was real. “You’ve got me. Let him go.”
Cale had lunged forward. He waited now, at the foot of the stairs, his hands clenched into fists. The light from the top of the stairs barely illuminated him.
“I’m not letting him go. Your hero nearly ruined everything for me.” Her captor’s breath blew over her ear. “So I’m going to make sure he suffers.”
“No!” Cale suffering wasn’t part of the plan. “You have me—let him go!”
“Get him,” the man said to the others as he climbed back up the stairs, pulling Cassidy with him.
The bodies of the other men shoved against her as they ran for Cale.
“No!” Cassidy yelled.
Only...
There was the thud of fists connecting with flesh. Three men had closed in on Cale. Three against one.
One of the Executioner’s guards fell down, groaning. A second joined him moments later.
Cassidy saw the flash of Cale’s weapon as he sliced out at the third attacker.
Vicious. Fast. Deadly. The fight happened in a matter of seconds, and all three of Cale’s attackers wound up on the floor, groaning and immobile.
“Now I’m coming for you,” Cale said as he started to make his way up the stairs. “So you need to get your hands off her.”
But her captor’s hands had tightened, and Cassidy felt the sharp slice of a blade on her neck.
“Can you see the knife in my right hand?” the man holding her demanded. “Because it’s at her throat. You take one more step, hero, and I’ll slice her from ear to ear.”