Page 92 of Phoenix Rising

He knew Audria wasn’t a chicken, but she’d taken the cowardly way out when she’d left him.

Packing the Virginia townhome he’d purchased after his divorce took little time. He’d never bothered to move in. A realtor he’d contacted assured him it would sell quickly.

As he climbed behind the wheel of his SUV and shifted into drive, he couldn’t help but smile at what the future held. Sure, there would be obstacles. But he was confident he’d be able to overcome each one.

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Audria checked her gun, satisfied that it was in working order. She was in the midst of laser war games, which was one of the COBRA Securities training exercises, but also extremely fun. Usually. Today, however, she didn’t feel like participating. All she wanted to do was stay in bed and pull the covers over her head. Sadly, she didn’t have a choice. It was mandatory. Super.

She adjusted the headgear each participant was required to wear, along with a vest that erupted in lights if they were hit. She turned to her partner, Christian. “Have you talked to Reese lately?” Audria tried for a nonchalant tone.

“This morning, as a matter of fact.”

It’d been a week since Audria had walked out of his hospital room and not looked back. It had gutted her. She’d wanted to be by his side as he recovered from not one but two gunshot wounds. It was a physical ache that had yet to subside. Instead, it was Genevieve doing her job, tending to his injuries, making sure he ate to keep up his strength. “How is he?”

“Didn’t you hear? He and his ex-wife are getting remarried.”

“What?” Audria shoved her facemask out of the way, jumped to her feet from her hiding position, and was instantly shot dead. She didn’t flinch. “Are you serious?” Red and yellow lights flashed on her vest, but she didn’t care. She felt like throwing up.

Christian yanked her back down, reset her vest, and shook his head. “Of course, I’m not serious.” He crawled to a different location, forcing her to follow if she wanted to hear the rest of what he had to say. It took him so long that she slugged him on the shoulder. Hard.

“Ow.” He rubbed the spot. “We’re on the same team.”

“I don’t care. Talk.”

He sighed like it was a chore to answer her question. She cocked her arm back, fully prepared to punch him again, but he held up his hands. “Chill out, Laila.” She assumed he was referring to Muhammad Ali’s pugilist daughter, which was a good analogy because she wanted to pummel him right now. “Reese is not getting back with her. He’s head over heels in love with you.”

Audria gasped and sprang to her feet again. More lights erupted on her chest, but she ignored them. “He told you that?”

“Get down here.” He jerked her off her feet again. “Not in words, no. But I have eyes.”

“Hey, Giroux, what are you, a cat?” Kayne Serruto shouted. “How many lives you got? I’ve done shot you twice now.”

“Shut up, Serruto.” She sprung up, aimed her gun, and fired.

Kayne glanced at his vest in shock. “I can’t believe you did that. You are not following Geneva Convention protocol.”

“Sue me,” she tossed over her shoulder, and he chuckled.

Christian tugged her down again. “What’s it to you, anyway? You didn’t even stick around or care enough to see if he’d recover.”

Oh, low blow, Christian Zamora.She cared more than he’d ever know. She’d talked to his doctors and nurses regularly, even after she left, keeping tabs on him. They’d given her the information she’d needed to assure herself that he would be okay. “Are you taking his side now?”

He raised a brow. “I didn’t realize there were sides. But, no, I’m not favoring anyone. I stayed and hung out with him. He’s a great guy. We made plans to catch a game. Drink some beer.”

Audria wanted to punch her coworker again, this time on his solid, square jaw. She hadn’t been able to eat or sleep for a week, ever since William Rian Farmington had fired those bullets that had struck Reese. She’d been a zombie, going through the motions but not feeling anything.

“Put your visor down. We’ve got a game to win, and I’m going to need backup.” After someone had been shot three times, they were out, and their partner had to continue solo. She wasn’t sure it had ever happened before. “Gear up, Fibbie. I do not feel like losing today.”

Audria wanted to question Christian more. Had Reese said anything about her, and if so, what was it? He was all she could think about, both during the day and in her dreams at night. Instead, she settled the mask over her face and looked for tangoes to eliminate. Christian needed her teamwork, and she didn’t want to be the first agent to leave their partner alone to face the enemy.

The warehouse was vast and dark. Occasionally, a fake shooter would pop up, and you were docked points if you fired. It kept your senses sharp. An attack could come from any direction. Usually, Audria relished the chase. It kept her reflexes honed.

There was one, trying to be stealthy as they crawled along the wall. Audria sprang up and squeezed the trigger. Their vest erupted in lights. Ha! She might be in a major funk, but she could still take out a bad guy.

The person dropped their weapon and stood, shoving the mask off his face. Audria choked on an inhale and fell backward on her behind. Her gun clattered to the floor. “Reese!”

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