Page 117 of Shadow Operative

Nia nodded back. “Good night.”

Nia wanted to tell Gage that there was no way she would need anything from him tonight.

Because the last thing she needed was to let her guard down and wander out toward him in the living room.

The last thing she needed was another explosive kiss like that.

That had been surprising. And nice.Reallynice.

Who was she kidding? It was more than nice.

It was something she wouldn’t forget for a long time . . . if ever.

The kiss had been a nice oasis of delight in the middle of otherwise harrowing circumstances.

A moment of guilt washed through her. This seemed like a poor time to be enjoying herself. Especially considering everything that had happened. Considering Rob. Considering Brittany. Considering Sophia.

Her guilt deepened a moment. Yet she couldn’t seem to keep all her warm and gushing feelings at bay either.

There was something about Gage that was different—different in a very good way.

She slipped into her bedroom, knowing she needed some time by herself to recover from that kiss.

She had no idea what it meant. What her and Gage’s future would look like, especially considering that Gage didn’t even live around here.

She still had so much more she needed to learn about him.

Yet hope persisted. It had sprung up quickly, like a poor rancher discovering a hearty well of oil.

She sat on the edge of the bed. She needed to look through all the information she’d gathered and see what she could figure out. See if she could figure out this cyber key.

The answers were there somewhere.

But the day’s events now messed with her head. Really what she needed even more was to get some rest and to rethink this in the morning.

The countdown was on, and she needed to figure out what she’d tell these guys in order to get her sister back.

She pulled off her shoes, deciding justto sleep in a T-shirt. Then she curled under the covers, determined to get her racing thoughts under control so she could fall asleep.

But before her head even hit the pillow, her phone buzzed.

Something internal told her to ignore it. But she couldn’t. What if it was about her sister?

She glanced at the screen and saw that it was that same unknown number those demands had come from.

But this time, the message was different.

It read:

He’s not who you think he is.

Then a picture was attached. A picture of Gage with his gun to the back of a woman who had tears streaming down her face. The hard look on Gage’s face made him seem like a different person . . . someone evil.

chapter

fifty-eight

Gage wokeup the next morning with a surprising spring in his step.

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