Page 64 of Undercover Shadow
The sound of the helicopter grew louder as it approached. I grabbed my go-bag and headed for the door.
Douglas fell into step beside me. “Do you want me to come with you, sir?”
“No. Stay here. Secure the estate.”
“Roger that.”
I emerged onto the east lawn as the blade touched down, whipping the Highland grass into a frenzy. I ran toward it, bent low, and climbed in. “Go. Push it as hard as you can,” I shouted.
The pilot nodded once. “Aye, sir. Arran in twenty minutes.”
As we lifted off, Glenshadow was swallowed by darkness.
I turned up the comms and patched into the response Typhon was coordinating. Multiple voices overlapped—team leaders checking in, Viper coordinating with MI6, Typhon directing the assault.
“Infidel here.” Con’s voice was steady and calm. “Tag, if you’re listening, Lex is with me.”
Good. I registered it distantly. Lex—we’d need her if this went sideways.
“Savior and Orion inbound.” Ash’s voice carried the same controlled readiness. Knowing him and Gus the way I did, the two of them were probably pushing their helicopter to its limits.
“Renegade, Prima, and I are approaching the castle perimeter.” Archon’s transmission crackled with interference.
“All teams, converge on Brodick Castle,” Viper commanded. “Stealth approach. The gala is still in progress, which means we have civilian presence to consider. We need this contained.”
“Archon, your priority is finding Vanguard,” said Typhon. “His signal went dark, but he’s still on premises.”
“Roger that.”
Through all the chatter, my mind got stuck on one thing. This was my fault. If I hadn’t pushed her away at Dunravin. If I hadn’t thrown what we had back in her face. If I hadn’t been so terrified of becoming my parents that I’d destroyed us both, then she wouldn’t have gone behind my back. Wouldn’t have taken this risk.
Except that was bullshit, and I knew it.
This wasn’t about me. It had never been about me.
This was about justice. About stopping the people who’d killed Idris. She would have gone after Dalgleish whether I’d broken her heart or not.
I closed my eyes.Keep her alive. Let me get there in time.The prayer surprised me—it had been eighteen years since myfather’s funeral, when I stopped believing in a higher power. Now, though, I meant every word.
“Sir, Arran’s ahead. Five minutes to landing.”
I opened my eyes and looked to the island that rose as a dark mass against darker water. The castle was visible on the eastern shore.
The comms crackled again. “Archon here. We’re in. Moving through east wing.”
“Infidel, your ETA?” Typhon’s voice demanded.
“Four minutes.”
“Savior here. Six minutes out.”
Everyone was converging like we always had. A team. Except this time one of our own—my own—was in peril.
The chopper descended toward the eastern lawn, away from the main entrance. I unbuckled before we’d fully landed, the rotors still spinning as my feet hit the ground.
Another blade touched down thirty meters away. Con emerged first with Lex right behind him, both in tactical gear with weapons ready. Con’s eyes found mine across the darkness. No words were needed.
A third chopper landed, and Ash and Gus jumped out.
