Page 214 of Silver Elite

“What? You don’t trust me?”I said bitterly.

“It’s not about trust. It’s about sincerity. Your reactions. The entire operation was exactly what we needed it to be. You were going in to investigate a fallen aircraft. If you’d known it was a decoy, you might’ve tipped them off.”

“I’m better than you think.”

“And worse thanyouthink. You’re young and you’re arrogant. With that said, there are some things coming down the pipe. We’ll need your help with the Jubilee.”

Anticipation tightened my gut.“What are you planning?”

“We’ll be in touch,”was all she said, and I haven’t heard from her since.

I try to act nonchalant as I trail after Cross at a discreet distance. Like a lovesick puppy.

My spine stiffens when he stops to speak with Jones’s father. The man is clearly livid. Whatever Cross is saying, Mr. Jones is not having it. When the volume of his voice rises, Travis touches the man’s arm and leads him away from his brother.

Nearly fifteen minutes pass before Cross breaks away from the crowd and stalks toward the entrance of the building.

Anxiety flutters through me. I need to talk to him. He has to knowI had nothing to do with that ambush. I stride after him, watching him disappear through the door. I’ve lost sight of him, but I know where he’s going. Our war room isn’t in this building, but his office is.

I reach that door—Captain of Operations—in time to hear glass breaking. I’m about to push it open when I realize he’s not alone.

“How the hell did you let this happen?”

Travis.

“What thefuckis the point of your godfucking elite unit if you let your own people die in a fucking ambush?”

“You might want to take a look in the mirror, Colonel.” Cross’s voice is pure ice. “You’re the head of Intelligence.”

“You’re my boots on the ground! You should have known about this. How am I supposed to explain to Wexton Jones that his only son is dead? Died because my brother walked him directly into a trap.”

Cross doesn’t say anything.

“Fix this,” Travis snarls.

“I’m sorry that this is inconvenient to your friendship with Wexton Jones.” Cross is mocking him now. “I know you had big plans for him for when the General retires and you take your place at the helm. Is that still your dream, Trav?”

His brother doesn’t answer.

“Because you’re fooling yourself if you think the General will ever hand over the reins to either one of us. For someone who outlaws God, his God complex sure is big enough. He thinks he’s the only one who can lead the people. Keep the order. Contain the Aberrant.”

“The hell are you babbling about?Fixthis. Find the people that stole our plane. Do your job.”

At the approaching footsteps, I duck into the open doorway nearest me. I wait until Travis’s angry footfalls disappear around the corner.

There’s a moment of silence, then another crash from Cross’s office. More broken glass.

I bite my lip. It’s evident this isn’t the time to talk. Maybe that’s for the best, though.

There’s something I need to do first, anyway.

Chapter 48

The sun has set by the time I find the courage to go to his quarters, and a part of me is surprised that he lets me in. Without a word, he holds the door open. I walk inside and he closes it behind me.

I’m in civilian clothes. I shrug out of my jacket, leaving me in jeans and a tank top. His gaze flicks toward me before he sinks into the chair by the sofa.

Anxiety mingles with frustration and squeezes my throat. This is unbearable. It hurts knowing that Wolf—Cross—is mad at me. I’m still struggling to shift the way I think about him. But I’m going to have to evolve because he’s not quite Wolf anymore. Wolf is my childhood friend. Wolf is a boy. Cross is a man.

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