Page 9 of Code Name: Phoenix

“We know you’re in there. The place is surrounded, and you aren’t leaving the property. Why don’t youladiesopen the front door, and we’ll have a little chat. Tell you how this is going to go,” a man calls from outside. It isn’t the voice I feared hearing today, and I release tension I didn’t realize I was holding.

But how do they know there are women in here?

Nearing the top of the stairs, I pause to listen to the conversation. Dana is trying her best to stay calm, but the man at the door is pushing her buttons.

I’ve known Dana forever. She has the biggest heart out of anyone I’ve ever met, but she is a force to be reckoned with. Her loyalty is fierce and often overrides her common sense, and I hope she doesn’t sink herself into a world of problems trying to stand her ground.

I know the front door will hold until I’m ready to open it.

Before stepping down the stairs, I slip my phone from my pocket and check the cameras on the property once more. Sure enough, the two remaining men have spread out to cover the back corners of the house, leaving the back door unguarded. I just hope it’s enough space for us to get past the back porch. Then I can let my trap take care of the men, and we’ll be clear to run for the trees.

I open the apps I’m going to need. Then, palming my phone in my hand, I head down the stairs to join Dana.

It’s time to assess our escape route and pull her back to help me destroy the computers in the basement.

Turning the corner, I address Dana, knowing they can hear us through the intercom. I go for a taunt to try to throw them off their high horses. They’re more likely to make a mistake if they’re flustered, and a direct hit to their ego should do the trick.

“There was one around the side of the house. I think I knocked him—” But the rest of my words drain from my thoughts as my gaze settles on Dana’s.

Her eyes are wide, and she looks like she’s seen a ghost.

I turn my attention to the door in search of what sparked her fear.

The air is sucked out of the room, and everything stops as my gaze lands squarely on him.

As if I’ve been cast into an alternate reality, memories pummel me from all sides. My heart lurches into my throat, and my stomach immediately knots around itself as my body shuts down on me.

Years slip away, and I’m back in high school with my friend.

The boy who was my first.

The boy who told me he would be my only.

The boy who disappeared without a trace.

“Jack?” The name I’ve refused to say out loud for years leaves my lips on a whisper.

“Jessa?” His voice is soft, confused, and everyone stands still as the depth of the shit Dana and I are in begins to hit home.

The man standing in front of Jack looks slowly between him and me as a carnal sneer creeps across his face.

“Jay.” Dana, using my nickname, snaps my gaze back to hers, and she gawks at me with eyes as big as saucers.

Clearly, we are both out of our element.

“Well, well, well. If this isn’t the definition of killing two birds with one stone, I don’t know what is. Or should I saycatchingtwo birds?” The man in front of Jack has an unsettling sense of confidence. Leaning to the side, as if brushing Dana out of the way, he squares himself on me. His gaze turns predatory, and his sneer deepens with each word. “Why don’t you open the door, and we can all sit down and have a little chat—Jay.” The hair on my arms stands up at his intimate use of my nickname. “Or you could try to run, little blue jay. I like things that run.” He ends with a suggestive wink, and I swallow hard as I try to keep my face frozen.

Jack remains still, watching me as my heart pounds into my rib cage.

I have no time to analyze what any of this means. I was never supposed to see him again. He is happily married, with two kids and a white picket fence, and he’s an accountant.

But he’s not an accountant.My stomach sinks at the lie I was told.

“Jay.” Dana’s panicked voice pulls me from my trance.

I slipped away for a moment too long, and my lapse is going to cost us. I just hope it doesn’t cost us everything.

Quickly looking around the room, I revise our plan.

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