Daniels leaned over and kissed her, cutting her off before she got herself into more trouble. He couldn’t suppress the smile. Reyna was never going to be easy. There would always be a part of her that didn’t want to submit. He looked forward to that dance. He released her and tossed her his shirt.
Anton held up his phone. The screen glowed in the dim light. A name. A location.
Daniels’ blood ran cold.
"It’s not Reyna," Anton said grimly. "She’s not the final target."
Daniels took the phone, scanning the information. His grip on the device tightened.
Reyna swung her legs off the bed. "Who is it?"
Daniels lifted his gaze.
"Me," he said.
Silence.
Reyna went still. "What?"
Anton snorted. "Artemis isn’t after Reyna or Archer. She’s after you, Daniels."
The realization settled over him like ice.
Artemis wasn’t running anymore.
She was coming forhim.
Daniels clenched his jaw. His mind shifted instantly, recalibrating. He wasn’t the kind of man who waited for death to come knocking.
He went to meet it head-on.
Reyna stood, gripping his arm. "We stop her."
Daniels looked at her, fire burning behind his eyes. "Damn right we do."
Because this wasn’t just a murder investigation or an op anymore.
This was war.
CHAPTER TWENTY
REYNA
Daniels was pacing. He never paced.
They had returned to the Cerberus war room which was now thick with tension. The air was electric with frustration and something darker—something Reyna didn’t want to put a name to. She watched Daniels move, his jaw locked tight, hands fisting and flexing as if he was debating whether to punch a hole through the wall or through someone’s face. Preferably Artemis’s.
“We’re not playing defense anymore,” he growled. “I’m done reacting. It’s time we end this.”
She crossed her arms, forcing her voice to remain steady despite the adrenaline coursing through her. “We end this. You’re not walking into this alone.”
Daniels turned on her, his dark eyes blazing. “Like hell I’m not. I’m the target. She wants me, not you.”
Reyna took a step closer, refusing to be intimidated. “She wants more than you, Daniels. She wants to burn Cerberus to the ground. You might be the one she says she wants to kill, but it’s Archer and me that she wants to hurt. Think about it, she kills me, my pain and suffering are over. She kills you? It eats mealive for the rest of my life. You walk into her trap; you give her everything she wants.”
“Then what do you suggest?” he snapped, running a hand through his short hair. “We let her keep the upper hand? Keep playing cat and mouse until she decides to take another shot at us?”
“No,” she said, steel in her voice. “We set the terms. But you don’t go in alone.”