Page 129 of Make Them Cry
“Unknown. But she’s got an identity change kit loaded into the system. Fake passport, new name. ‘Theresa Voss.’ We dig into that alias, maybe we can figure out her timeline.”
“Or we cut the legs out from under her before she ever leaves the city,” I mutter.
My fists are clenched so tight they’re white-knuckled. I feel River’s hand land lightly on my forearm, grounding me, like she always does.
“You’re not alone in this,” she whispers.
God, I love her. I fucking love her so damn much.
Dean lifts his chin. “Gage. You know her better than anyone. If we feed her the right piece of bait—something she can’t resist—what would it be?”
“She likes control,” I say. “Power. Her biggest weakness is pride. She always wants to win. Make her feel like she's already won, and she’ll come out of hiding.”
“Good,” Dean says. “So how do we do that?”
“I tell her I’m surrendering,” I say. “I call her, say I know she set me up, but I’m done running. I offer to meet her somewhere quiet. Say I’ll delete whatever evidence River has if she gives me a clean break.”
“Risky,” Knight says. “She might just show up with a sniper and take you out.”
“But I gotta try,” I reply grimly.
Dean walks around the table slowly, considering. “We’ll control the environment. Get her to pick the location, but we’ll prep it with surveillance, weapons, and backup.”
“Where’s the best place for a setup?” Rae asks.
“Pier 47,” I answer without hesitation. “She’ll like the water. It’s off-grid and always has ships coming in and out.”
Sawyer types quickly, bringing up drone images of the pier. “Yeah. There’s enough cover for extraction teams. Let’s plant charges on the rear exits. Keep the perimeter tight. I’ll call in the rest of BRAVO team.”
Dean nods, then points to Rae. “You’ll run surveillance. Knight, Arrow—you’re on the roof for overwatch. Ranger, Jaxson, Sawyer, Riggs—secondary perimeter. I want shooters in three different locations. Miller. Hayes. Colton. They can perch with rifles. Make the calls.”
Sawyer nods. “On it.”
“And me?” I ask.
“You’ll bait the trap,” he says. “We’ll be in your ear the whole time. But don’t try anything slick. She’s smarter than she looks.”
River shifts next to me. “I want in.”
“No,” I say immediately. “You’re staying here.”
“I’m the reason she’s doing this.”
“That’s exactly why you’re staying put,” I say, looking her dead in the eye. “If anything happened to you?—”
“I’m not a damsel, Gage.”
“I know that. But you’remine.And I don’t let what’s mine walk into a warzone.”
The room is quiet for a beat.
Even Dean raises an eyebrow, but says nothing.
River’s cheeks flush pink, but her expression softens.
“You better come back to me,” she whispers.
“I will.”
