Page 132 of Relentless

“Target is 100 feet and closing,” Brody said. “Status, Sawyer.”

“Green light,” came the reply.

Liam kissed Piper’s temple. “I’m trusting you with her life,” he whispered to the other sniper.

“I’ve got her.”

“Liam,” Piper whispered.

“We’ll be fine. Follow the plan and remember how much I love you.” He nuzzled her cheek, shifting to more fully protect her with his body.

“Fifty feet,” Brody said. “Weapon in his hand. He’s still on the move, checking for traps.”

“Locked on target,” Sawyer said.

“Thirty feet.”

“I love you, Liam,” Piper whispered.

Liam settled his mouth on hers for a quick, intense kiss before he pulled back far enough to look into her eyes.

“Show time,” Brody murmured.

Liam cupped her face between his palms and waited for Spencer to make his move. He didn’t have to wait long.

“Well, isn’t this cozy,” a raspy voice drawled. “The traitor and the fair maiden.”

Liam stiffened. He slowly removed his hands from Piper’s face and turned to his nemesis, careful to keep his body between Spencer and Piper.

“Jerome, what are you doing here?” Piper’s voice conveyed the perfect amount of shock. “Do you live around here?”

A harsh laugh escaped as he lumbered a few feet closer. “Aren’t you the sweet one? No, honey, I don’t live around here. I followed you.”

He stared at Spencer. Prison hadn’t been kind to him. Yeah, he had bulked up, having nothing but time on his hands. Spencer must have skipped the stretching part of his regimen because his dexterity had suffered. Lack of sunlight had left his skin pasty. On top of that, his hair had thinned. He looked fifty instead of thirty-three.

“His name isn’t Jerome, Sunshine. Jared Spencer was in my Marine unit.” Liam scanned the man, noting at least two handguns, one in his right hand and one at his waist in a holster. A large knife was strapped to his thigh. Probably more weapons were hidden on his body. Jared had come prepared for a fight.

He should feel flattered at the indication of how dangerous Spencer thought Liam was despite his injuries.

Fury and hatred gleamed in the eyes of the man who had targeted Piper to draw Liam into a trap. To achieve his objective, Jared wouldn’t have hesitated to hurt Piper. That was something Liam would never forget. “What are you doing here, Spencer?”

“What? No warm welcome? I just got out of prison, McCoy. A prison you put me in. You’re the reason I lost five years of my life.”

“Your choice to steal antiquities and profit from selling them to the highest bidder put you in that cell.”

A slow nod. “I’ll give you that. I did choose to profit from a few black market deals. You should have ignored the transactions. No one was hurt.”

“You stole Afghani history. You hurt every citizen of that nation by stealing their heritage.”

“They’re nothing but a bunch of sand eaters. They don’t know anything about heritage or loyalty.” Spencer tilted his head. “Kind of like you, McCoy.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“You forgot the Corp’s heritage and loyalty. We watch each other’s backs. We protect our brothers in arms. But what did you do? Stab me in the back and sell me out. You cost me everything, man. My job, my career, my freedom, and my woman.” His gaze drilled into Liam. “I’ll take all of that from you.”

Liam’s blood ran cold at the implication of Spencer’s words.

Piper gasped. “You’re crazy.”

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