Page 25 of Deadly Hope
“You’re not going anywhere. Griffin and Zara will handle the setup. You can direct them via video feed.” His tone made it clear this wasn’t up for discussion. “No unnecessary exposure until we know what we’re dealing with.”
She looked like she wanted to argue, but something in his expression must have convinced her. She nodded, shoulders slumping slightly.
Axel watched her settle into a chair at the command center, already adapting to the situation with remarkable composure. The urge to touch her shoulder, to offer comfort, hit him hard enough that he had to turn away.
That’s when it hit him—the real reason he’d been soresistant to her attempts at therapy. He didn’t want her professional insight. Or her clinical understanding.
He wanted her. All of her. In ways that had nothing to do with therapy and everything to do with the way his chest tightened when she looked at him. In ways that were completely impossible given their situation, their roles, the dangers surrounding them.
Kenji’s voice pulled him back to the present. “Where do you want to start?”
Axel forced his focus back to the mission. Back to keeping her safe.
“Start with airport personnel records,” he ordered. “Anyone with the skills to pull this off. Then work outward.”
He didn’t look at Olivia again. He couldn’t afford to.
The command center buzzed with focused energy as the team settled into their tasks. Axel kept his attention on the re-booted security feeds, deliberately not watching Olivia as she spoke quietly with Izzy about office setup requirements. Her voice carried just enough for him to catch fragments–something about client files and proper soundproofing for confidentiality.
“Got preliminary findings,” Zara announced, gesturing to her screens. “The code signature is ... interesting. Whoever wrote this knows military-grade systems. And—” she paused, frowning. “There’s something familiar about the structure. Like I’ve seen this style before, but I can’t place it.”
“How many people have that kind of expertise?” Axel moved to study the scrolling data.
“US-based? Maybe a dozen. But with these specific markers ...” She shook her head. “This is specialist work. Black ops level.”
The implications of that hung heavy in the air. “So we’re not dealing with some random threat. This is professional.” Ronan voiced what they were all thinking.
“Which brings us back to why,” Griffin added from his position by the door.
Axel caught the slight tension in Olivia’s shoulders at that question. She was still listening while discussing setup details with Zara, multitasking like she did everything else—efficiently and thoroughly.
“Doc,” he called out, keeping his voice neutral. “Any former clients with that kind of connection? Military or intelligence background?”
Her bleak look said it all. “Connections, I can’t say, but lots of my clients have special forces backgrounds. Some even current military. But I can’t disclose client names,” she said firmly. “Even in these circumstances, I’m bound by confidentiality laws and ethical guidelines.”
“We need something to work with,” Axel pressed, but his tone acknowledged the professional boundary. He got it. He did.
She considered for a moment. “About eight months ago, I had a new client. Former Delta Force. Or so he claimed. Turned out, he’d stolen an active-duty soldier’s identity. I only saw him once. An odd session. He was way more interested in digging into my protocols for handling classified material than talking about himself. Not unheard of with my clients, but it sure caught my attention. Never showed for his second appointment. A few months later, the DOD contacted me asking questions, but that was the end of it.”
Or not. Axel caught her gaze. “Would you recognize him if you saw him again?”
She scrunched up her face. “Maybe. But there’s still client confidentiality to consider. Just because he lied about his identity doesn’t mean I can call him out.”
“Doesn’t mean we can’t do our own digging, though,” Zara said, fingers flying across her keyboard. “I’ll pull allsecurity footage from surrounding buildings in that timeframe, run facial recognition against known operatives.”
Olivia nodded, obviously relieved that they’d respected her professional boundaries while still finding a way to investigate.
Izzy and Deke returned with food. The smell of DreamBurgers filled the command center, but Axel noticed Olivia barely touched hers. She was staring at nothing, that familiar therapist’s look of deep analysis on her face.
“What is it?” he asked, keeping his distance but maintaining visual contact.
“He asked a lot of questions,” she said slowly. “About my other clients. My methods. I thought he was just nervous, feeling out whether he could trust me. But now ...”
“You think he was fishing for information,” Axel finished.
She paled.
Ronan wiped his mouth with a napkin. “Could be they’re after information they think you have. About one of your clients.”
