Page 46 of Marked for Danger

The voice in her head was right. She needed to try not to stress and trust Grady and his team to take care of business.

Her phone rang, the sound she’d been waiting to hear nearly making her jump out of her skin. Snatching it from the kitchen table—where she’d forced herself to stop and sit in an effort to calm her nerves—Izzy answered it on the second ring.

“Grady?”

“It’s me.”

His voice was soothing to her soul. “Hey. Has it started? Is Olly there yet?”

“Olly isn’t here, but we’ve still got about forty minutes to go-time. I just wanted to let you know we’re here, everything’s set up, and we’re just waiting.”

“Okay. Thanks for letting me know.”

“It’s going to be okay, Iz.” His deep voice rumbled. “I’ve got a good feeling about this one.”

That meant a lot, coming from him. “Thank you for saying that.”

“I’ll call as soon as I can.” There was a slight pause and then, “I love you.”

Her chest warmed with emotion. “I love you, too.”

Grady ended the call, sending her back into the land of torturous purgatory.

Over the next hour, Izzy passed the time by trying to read, watch T.V., and even taking a long, hot bath. But nothing worked.

If anything, she was even more ramped up than before Grady had called. Because an hour had almost passed since then, and there was still no word.

The waiting is the worst.

She glanced at the clock again. Eleven fifty-five.

It’s going to be okay. Grady promised it would be okay.

Once again, the ringing of her phone startled her. Sitting on her lounge chair, she picked it up and looked at the number. With a frown, she slid her thumb across the screen and put the device to her ear.

“Olly? Why are you calling me? Aren’t you supposed to be at the—”

“You need to get out of there!”

The alarm in his voice had her jumping to her feet. “Get out? Olly, what are you talking about? What’s going on?”

“Valdez knows! He knows everything. He sent Tony after me, and—”

“Tony? Are you okay?”

“I am now. Tony, not so much. But listen, you need to get out of there right fucking now. If Valdez knows about me, he’s probably got guys on their way to you right now.”

“O-okay. I’m going. But where are you?”

“On my way to you. But I don’t know if I’ll get to you in time, so…please. Just go. Take your phone and get someplace safe. I’ve already called Grady, and he and his partner are on their way to you now. When you get to where you’re going, call Grady and tell him where to find you.”

What the…

“Okay. I’m putting my shoes on now, and—”

“Forget the shoes, Iz. Get the fuck out of that house right n—”

A loud pop reached her ears from somewhere outside. It was a sound Izzy would recognize anywhere.

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