Page 117 of Queen of Spades

Grady laughs. “Yeah, me too. At least, the kind that can subdue a full-grown man.”

Maverick kneels down next to the still-living asshole. “Where is the omega?”

Gunner squats, patting the other dog. “Scent.” He offers the dog the T-shirt Lyra brought that belongs to her sister.

The dog buries its nose in the material and whines. I have no idea what that sound means, but its powerful haunches flex, and the beast bounds off down the hallway.

“How the hell do they know who is an enemy and who’s on our side?” I ask, absently watching Maverick interrogate the suspect for information on Laken.

“It’s clearly the masks,” Grady jokes, slapping me in the stomach. “Come on, we need to clear the second floor.”

I nod and follow him as he jogs toward the stairs.

My head peeks around the doorframe, and I toss up a hand to tell Grady to hold. I can hear something, but I’m not sure who or what is making those sounds.

“I’m going to need explosives,” Ranger says, but he’s not talking to the two of us.

I pull my hand down, waving for Grady to follow as I push off the wall, aiming for Ranger. We make it into the room, and Ranger aims his Smith & Wesson at my head. He lowers the barrel as he spots us.

“Lucien hunkered down.” He nods to a door that clearly leads to a safe room.

“I’m pretty sure these things are supposed to be explosive proof.” Grady frowns, raising a hand and flipping off the camera.

“I’ve got Merrick looking into the manufacturer,” Ranger says, shaking his head. “What a shit show.”

Now, that’s the truth.

“On the plus side, every police officer in Boston should be responding to the warehouse district.” Ranger smiles at the camera a little ferally. “And all communications on and off the property have been blocked, except for ours. Good luck trying to call for help.” He turns back and glances between us. “I’ll have Merrick send the others our actual location. Why don’t the two of you go clean up any stragglers? I’ll wait here to see how this plays out.”

My eyes fly to Grady, and he nods.

If Annika is on the way, then we need to be there to meet her.

Chapter Forty

Annika

The area of Boston that we drive to is shady as hell.

Ward turns at an abandoned gas station, and the road we end up on is so bumpy, I’m convinced no one has been down it in years.

“Well, this isn’t shady or anything,” Tanner says, like he can read my mind. He’s in the front passenger seat, and I’m pretty sure Ranger purposely left him behind when he headed out with Kane and Grady. He chuckles darkly. “Are you sure they aren’t leading us to slaughter? Exactly how expendable are you, Annika?”

“Shut the fuck up,” Ward growls, studying the road. “I will pull over and toss your ass out.”

“Just trying to lighten the mood.” Beefcake shrugs. “You’re all so uptight, it’s making my elbows itch.”

I snort, but truthfully, this doesn’t feel a damn thing like the Boston I remember from when I was growing up.

It’s dark, and the streetlights barely offer any glow. My heart races as my hands shake, but I cross my arms to hide the tell.

I’m stronger than this.

I’m supposed to be, anyway.

I’d like to think I am.

It’s hard to settle my impulses.

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