Page 37 of Covert Obsession

At the door, he grabbed the walking stick and tossed it to her.

Her reflexes weren’t that fast, and it dropped. She grabbed it off the floor. “Is there a point to that?”

“Yep.” He popped the ‘p.’ “Assessing if you can make it to the gas station without me carrying you.”

She pointed the end of the stick at his balls. “Get moving, soldier. I’m right behind you.”

“There’s the woman I love.” He seemed to catch himself, turned, and grabbed the shotgun from over the door, checking the barrels. He draped the M4 over her neck. “Ready?”

She secured the weapon in front of her with one hand and jabbed the stick into the floor with the other. Hearing his declaration made her feel woozy all over again. He’d more than proven himself to her on this mission, and she felt a layer of guilt. Would she ever stop underestimating him? “Ready.”

He gently dropped the hat on her head and ushered her through the door.

TWENTY-ONE

“Good to hear your voice,” Beatrice said to Moe. “I’m with the team. Tell me you have Jett.”

Behind the counter of the gas station, he squeezed the old plastic handset of the phone. She was here, on the ground in Colorado, and some part of him was relieved. He was equal parts blown out and high on fear-laced adrenaline over Parker, and yet, knowing she was nearby steadied his fraying nerves. “She’s here, but she needs medical attention ASAP.”

“I do not,” she yelled across the dusty counter. She motioned at him to share the receiver. He shook his head. Didn’t stop her from continuing to yell. “I’m sure the others told you that I took a bump on the head, but I’m fine.”

Fine was pushing it, but he’d checked her pupils, and they weren’t dilated or unequal. He suspected her weakness was more dehydration than a concussion. At her glare, he caved, holding the phone between them.

“Why are you here?” Parker asked.

Beatrice’s voice sounded tinny coming from the handset. “Extenuating and unforeseen circumstances. We’ve had to regroup since you last spoke to the others but we can pick you up. We’re a few miles north of the quarry at a lookout on the mountain. Our sat phone signal is weak, and if we lose you, call back. We’ll move closer to a tower.”

Were they giving up on Charmaine? “Whatever you do, keep everyone out of the mine. Romalov plans to blow it. Do not let our guys go in there.”

Road noise filtered through the connection. “Itisa trap, but our going theory is that they want our package alive. If not, they would have already taken him out by sniper.”

Moe frowned at Parker. She frowned back. “They have crates of explosives in every tunnel,” he told Beatrice.

That caused the queen to pause. “Leftovers from the mining operation, I’m sure.”

“No.” Parker shook her head, even though no one on the other end could see her, and then grimaced from the action. “They’re fresh and strategically placed. Like Henley said, they plan to blow that place off the map.”

Emit came on the line. “If so, it’s to create a diversion so they can escape. We’ve been over every scenario and odds are still in favor of option one—they want me to work for an enemy government.”

“Russia?” Moe asked.

“Unsure, but likely.”

Rory joined in. “We can’t rule out any at this point.”

Parker removed the hat and gun before leaning heavily on the counter, supporting herself on her elbows. She was far too pale for Moe’s liking. “What about our target? You still believe they’re using her as bait?”

“Not exactly.” Beatrice spoke softly to Rory, then returned. “We’re currently working with another organization to sort this out.” The way she saidorganizationmade Moe and Parker exchange another frown. “I’ll explain once we’re at the ranch and you’ve been checked over by a physician, Jett.”

“Don’t spare any of the team to rescue us.” Parker rubbed a hand over her face. “We’re safe. You need to rescue our target.”

Rory spoke and there was a pause as Beatrice and the others discussed something before Beatrice returned. “There have been several unexpected developments since your last check-in. She’s out of the mine, but not accessible to us at the moment.”

Moe leaned closer to the speaker. “What do you mean? Is she safe?”

“We’re getting this info secondhand, but the terrorists have strapped some of those lovely explosives to her and she’s currently sitting in the central part of the quarry. Their last directive stated that if our CEO doesn’t show, they’ll dispose of her.”

Parker reared back, a soft groan escaping her lips. “Oh, no.”

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