Page 36 of Nuclear Option (Owens Protective Services)

“She still has one good arm to shoot.”

I whipped my head around and glared at her. “We’re not giving Eva a gun.”

“Oh, so you want to just let her run around unprotected while they try and kill us?”

“No, but that’s what we’re here for.”

She laughed, pushing up from the bench. “Boss, she’s going to have to learn, especially if she’s going to be with you. Are you really telling me that you’re going to have this woman in your life and not show her how to protect herself?”

“I didn’t say that, and who said anything about us being together?”

“Right.” Her shoulders shook with laughter. “After the way you looked at her, it’s pretty clear that you’re not letting her go. You know that, and so does everyone else at OPS.”

“Everyone knows?” I asked, rubbing the back of my neck.

“Well, some of them might be slightly unaware of what’s going on around them. I’m pretty sure IRIS is only thinking of the next thing to blow up.”

I sighed and sat back on the bench. “This is going to be a problem.”

“Why?”

“Because…she doesn’t know me, or what I’m capable of.”

“I think she has a pretty good idea. Besides, I filled her in while we were waiting.”

My head snapped up. “What do you mean? What exactly did you tell her?”

She examined her nails, acting so nonchalant, as if this wasn’t my life at stake. “Oh, you know, just that you’re a crazy sniper, and when that comes out, she needs to watch it.”

“Fuck, why did you have to do that?”

“Because she needed to know. But hey, it’s not like she ran—not that she could. We were trapped in a room, but still, she didn’t really seem all that concerned about it. I’d say you have a good shot at making things work with her.”

“Gee, thanks for giving me a shot,” I said sarcastically.

A loud gasp sounded from New Guy’s cell as he jerked upright, staring straight ahead as he took deep breaths. I got to my feet and walked over, shocked that he was still alive.

He turned to me with a grin. “See? I told you I can’t be killed.”

12

EVA

I satin the padded room where they tossed me an hour ago. What did they think I was going to do, kill myself? I pulled my knees up to my chest and rested my head against them. It felt like the world was against me, that I would never escape this hell. Every time I got a break, the tides turned against me and I was back in the same position as before. Screwed.

Looking around the room, it didn’t seem like there was any way out for me. The only thing I had was this cot to sleep on, and it wasn’t even that comfortable. It squeaked whenever I moved. I sat up, quickly shuffling off the cot before grabbing it with my good arm and hauling it onto its side. I didn’t know much about killing or protecting myself, but if I could find something on the cot to use as a weapon, I might just stand a chance of getting out of here.

I laughed to myself, realizing that would never really happen. There were too many of them, but I couldn’t give up. Cash wouldn’t give up on me, and I had to start thinking like him, otherwise, I was no match for him. I quickly got to work, pulling the mattress off the cot. I grinned when I saw one of the metal pieces no longer attached to the frame. I grabbed it, twisting it back, but it didn’t break. If I twisted it enough, the metal might snap. I worked on it for a good fifteen minutes before it finally gave way under my fingers. It clattered to the floor and I grabbed it, holding it up in victory.

There was a rustling outside the door that had me scrambling to put everything back in place. Hauling the cot back up was more difficult than I thought, and as the door started to open, I decided to go with it. I screamed, kicking at the cot as I shoved the metal piece into my sling for hiding.

“Throwing a fit won’t get you out of this facility,” the man said as he stepped inside.

Panting hard, I turned around and examined the man. He was dressed in a nice suit with slicked hair and a clean-shaven face. He didn’t walk like any of the men around here. Even the way he stood, it was with authority, but not like he was in the military.

“I’d like you to come with me so we can discuss what you know about Governor Walton.”

“You can kiss my ass,” I hissed, not wanting to let on how badly I wanted out of this room.

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