Page 51 of Cooper's Command

Just their luck, the damn entrance opened into the main section of the factory. Old machinery covered half the floor, making the section more of a maze than a room. Dark silhouettes disappeared into the shadows, the other men noticeably separating.

Cooper twirled his finger then headed right, his teammates all fanning out beside him. Whiskey stayed close, her ears twitching with every small scuff or creak. Nova was already talking on his comm, each word a verbal countdown until the meeting would reach its inevitable end. And Cooper knew Simmons wouldn’t let Nova walk away, even with her dangling the second ledger out as leverage. The guy was too cocky — probably thought he’d be able to source it out. Which meant dealing with these assholes quickly so Cooper’s team could move on to the others.

Cooper reached the corner of some of that machinery moving fast, his focus on the armed tango creeping across the floor in front of him. The guy was pausing every few feet and cocking his head. What Cooper guessed was him listening to either Simmons or the rest of his crew. Maybe waiting for their cue to engage.

The bastard wouldn’t get the chance.

Two steps and he was in Cooper’s crosshairs. Another two and the guy was down, writhing on the floor from the shots to hisvest and leg. Cooper raced forward, cold-cocking him with the butt of his rifle before he could do more than grunt.

A pair of zap straps and a piece of tape, and the asshole was incapacitated. Cooper wasn’t sure how much blood the bastard would lose before this situation had been wrapped up, but with any luck, the man would still be breathing.

Whiskey tensed beside him, growling at something off to his left. Mostly likely that fifth guy circling back. Maybe he’d heard the low thud of the suppressed rounds. Or maybe the tango Cooper had downed had muttered something into his comm before he’d been knocked out.

Having the guy materialize out of the shadows a second later, hadn’t been the plan, but Cooper adapted. He grabbed the guy he’d just hogtied and lifted him up, using him as a shield when the other tango opened fire. Not that it helped with Cooper’s pledge to keep some of them alive, but it beat him getting killed.

The mercenary froze for a second when he realized he’d hit his teammate and that was all the opening Cooper needed. He dropped the guy as he drew his pistol, catching the other man twice in the chest and once in the shoulder — knocking him onto his back. He guy rolled from the impact, staggering back to his feet and sweeping his weapon toward them.

But Whiskey was already two steps away. A leap and a bite and the guy’s arm was in her jaws as he hit the ground, again, tossed left and right when the dog shook her head. He didn’t even have time to reach for that K-Bar on his vest before Cooper had covered the distance, booting the guy in the head.

He stilled, blood already pooling from the hit to his shoulder. Cooper repeated the process, tying the guy up and silencing him then sweeping forward, when Nova’s voice changed. Not that Simmons would notice, but Cooper did. A slight edge that indicated she was quickly running out of time.

Which meant no more worrying about how he downed any threat, just that he eliminated it. His team was already at the hallway when he came up behind them, moving fast. He gave them a quick hand signal, and they darted ahead, once again fanning out. Those other men Simmons had brought with him were positioned in a lopsided semi-circle around Nova. All waiting just out of sight, ready to blindside her once Simmons gave them some kind of sign.

Rusty, Ethan and Bellamy moved off to Cooper’s left while he went right. Circling around until Simmons was directly in front of him. He trusted his buddies to deal with the others, readying himself when Nova finally said their trigger word.

He released Whiskey and stepped into the fray.

CHAPTER 16

Nova took a deep breath,shoving any doubts so far down she’d need a map to find them, then she inched forward, sticking to the deep shadows lining the factory’s main floor. The sun had already set, just a hint of moonlight shining through the windows along with a single bank of lights they’d hooked up to a generator. It cast a circle of light in the center of the room, leaving enough darkness both teams could skulk around. Hunt really. Because that was Cooper’s team’s objective. Eliminate Simmons’ backup until it was just her and him.

Blue lights reflected in the glass, cutting off a moment later as doors slammed shut just outside the entrance, followed by heavy tapping that got steadily louder. The door creaked open and Simmons walked in. No fear. No clearing the area with one of the weapons she knew he was packing. He just opened the door and stepped inside.

Nova took his unspoken challenge and moved into the light, arms crossed over her chest. Her M9 clearly visible in the holster by her left hip. The ledger was in a bag on her other side. The outline through the leather impossible to miss.

Simmons glanced around, looking way too cocky and she knew the bastard thought he had the upper hand. That the sheernumber of men he’d brought along would outmaneuver anyone she’d convinced to back her up. And that one assumption would be his undoing.

Nova held up her hand, stopping him a good twenty feet away. “That’s close enough.”

Simmons laughed. “What’s wrong, Martin? Afraid I might not miss this time?”

“You didn’t miss last time. You’re just a lousy shot.”

“Maybe I wasn’t trying to kill you.”

“Or maybe Paulin set such a low bar of what to expect from a DEA agent, you underestimated my resolve. I promise you. I’m nothing like him.”

“Good because he was a whiny suck up who thought he was irreplaceable.”

“Well, I guess you showed him.”

Simmons laughed, again, scanning the room. “If you think you’re going to trick me into saying I killed the guy, you might not be as different as you think.”

“I don’t care who killed Paulin. What I care about is being framed for it.” She held up her hand when he snarled. “I know. You’re not going to comment. But that misunderstanding was the catalyst that brought us here. Because you want to deal, right?”

“Assuming you have something that interests me.”

“I’m betting I do. I’m reaching for one of the ledgers. So, don’t get twitchy.” She opened the flap and removed the book then tossed it over. “Go on. I won’t shoot you while you’re bent over. You’re no use to me dead.”

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