Page 97 of Playing with Fire

I especially didn't tell him that I had already decided what I would do if he didn't come back from that meeting. I had made my promise, but some promises were made to be broken. If Xavier fell, Phoenix wouldn't live long enough to celebrate his victory. That wasn't vengeance. It was a simple fact.

Because Xavier had shown me parts of himself he'd never shown anyone. Had claimed me as his in ways that went beyond possession into something sacred. Had loved me in his own complex, ferocious way.

And I would do anything to protect what was mine.

TheSUVcutthroughdarkness, headlights carving a path along the winding rural highway. I watched pale fingers of mist drift across the road, my mind cycling through contingencies, variables, potential escape routes—anything to avoid thinking about what might happen when we reached our destination.

Each mile that passed brought us closer to the abandoned Ironton Steel Works, where Felix Burns waited. Where Algerone was being held. Where this would finally end, one way or another.

Commander Reid drove, eyes constantly scanning the road ahead. Maxime sat beside me in the rear seat, back military-straight, face expressionless despite the slight tremor in his hands. He hadn't spoken since we'd left the Sentinel, his focus entirely internal. Preparing himself for whatever waited for us at the mill. For seeing Algerone again, possibly for the last time.

The rear-view mirror showed the second vehicle following at a precise distance, carrying Leo and the rest of Reid's tactical team. My chest tightened at the thought of Leo, remembering his face as we'd separated at the vehicles. The resolve in his eyes. The way his fingers had lingered on mine for that extra second, unwilling to let go.

I love you.

The words still echoed in my mind, unfamiliar and powerful. I hadn't imagined how three simple words could feel like both armor and vulnerability simultaneously. Like something worth fighting for. Worth surviving for.

My earpiece crackled, Lieutenant Dawson's voice cutting through the silence.

"ETA seven minutes. Alpha team in position at the rendezvous point."

"Copy that," I responded, checking the time. Exactly on schedule.

The plan was straightforward by necessity. I would enter alone as Felix had demanded, Maxime waiting at the designated exchange point outside. Reid's team would maintain perimeter surveillance, while Leo coordinated communications from the support vehicle, safely away from any potential conflict.

Clean. Simple. Controlled.

And almost certainly inadequate against whatever Felix had prepared.

My phone vibrated once in my pocket. A text from Leo, sent despite protocols against unnecessary communication. I checked it quickly, making sure Maxime couldn't see.

Leo: Thermal imaging shows six heat signatures inside the mill. One stationary (likely Algerone), one moving between rooms (likely Felix), four others positioned at strategic points (guards). Be careful. I love you.

I resisted the urge to respond, to offer reassurance I couldn't guarantee. Instead, I memorized the information, adding it to my mental map of what awaited me. Six signatures. Four guards. More than expected, but not unmanageable.

The highway gave way to a series of increasingly neglected side roads, civilization thinning out with each turn. The last few miles to the mill ran through ghost towns—the forgotten casualties of American industrial decline. Abandoned houses lined potholed streets, their windows blank eyes staring into nothingness. Corner stores with faded signs advertising products that hadn't been sold in decades. A playground overtaken by rust and weeds, swing sets creaking in the night wind.

These towns had burned too, in their way. Slower. Less spectacular. But just as completely as any fire I'd ever set.

The mill appeared on the horizon, its massive silhouette darker than the night sky behind it. Smokestacks rose like monolithic fingers, reaching for stars that offered no salvation. Chain-link fence surrounded the property, topped with barbed wire long since overcome by neglect and rust. The main structure loomed larger as we approached, a cathedral to dead industry, to America's forgotten heartland.

The SUV slowed as we approached the agreed-upon drop point, a clearing about fifty yards from the mill's main entrance.

Maxime broke his silence at last, voice tight. "Remember our agreement. You get Algerone out safely, no matter what else happens."

"I will."

"And Laskin?" He hesitated, jaw working. "Whatever our differences... bring yourself out, too. He would want that."

The admission seemed to cost him, acknowledgment that my survival mattered to Algerone—and perhaps, in some complicated way, to him as well. I nodded once, the closest thing to understanding we were likely to reach.

The vehicles stopped. Reid emerged first, scanning the surrounding area before signaling it was clear. I checked my earpiece again, making sure the connection to Leo was solid. His voice came through immediately, steady despite the tension I could hear beneath the surface.

"Comms check. Reading you five by five."

"Copy," I replied, drawing comfort from the familiar rhythm of his breathing through the connection. "Maintain position. Monitor channels three and four for any unusual traffic."

"Will do." A pause. "Xavier..."

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