Chapter 20

chapter

twenty

Zak, Donovan, and Sawyer piled into the helicopter with Rylan for the flight to the hospital. Rylan was also surprised to see Izzy there in the co-pilot's seat. She offered him a faint smile that sent an inappropriate bolt of lust straight down to his cock. He'd been so close to kissing those gorgeous lips just moments ago…

No.

Focus.

He yanked his gaze away from her and watched a man in a rumpled suit running across the grass to them.

Callum Holden jumped into the helicopter, his blond hair tousled by the wind from the rotor.

"What are you doing here?" Rylan asked, genuinely surprised to see the defense attorney.

"In case Pierce needs a lawyer," Zak said.

Given what they'd found out about the guy this week, it was probably a good call.

There wasn't room to bring the dogs, save for Sawyer's seeing-eye dog. Zak's dog Ranger was particularly perturbed at being left behind. His annoyed barking followed the helicopter until it lifted over the trees, and Redwood Coast Rescue disappeared.

When they touched down on the hospital's landing pad, Sheriff Ash Rawlings was waiting for them.

The team disembarked quickly, with Rylan's eyes inadvertently seeking out Izzy as she gracefully exited the cockpit.

What was it about the woman that kept drawing his gaze?

He forced his attention back to the sheriff, whose grim expression had his stomach dropping like a rock.

"They're gone," Ash said without preamble.

"What do you mean they're gone?"

"Pierce and Rhiannon," Ash clarified. "Someone took them but left Raszta."

"How is that possible?" Zak demanded, his voice sharp with disbelief. "Didn't you have them under guard?"

Ash nodded, his jaw so tight it looked as if he was grinding his molars to dust. "We're reviewing security footage now, but whoever they are, they're good. Military good."

"Jesus, this keeps getting worse. We need to see that security footage," Zak said, already moving towards the hospital entrance.

They followed Ash through the sterile corridors to a conference room. Raszta was in there and got to his feet, letting out a questioning whine.

"Sawyer—" Zak started as he gave Razzy a comforting head rub, but he didn't need to finish the thought.

Sawyer was already slinging his laptop bag off his shoulder. "Yeah, I'll pull up the security video."

He had it on his screen in moments, and everyone gathered around to watch. A small group of men appeared in the hallway footage, pushing another man who looked unconscious in a wheelchair. Next came a man with his arm draped casually around Rhiannon's shoulders like they were old friends.

God.

Rhia.

She looked like hell, bruised and battered, exhausted and scared.

Pierce appeared beside and didn't look much better. Another man was guiding him with a hand planted on the center of his back. The gesture looked innocuous enough, but his hand was positioned in such a way that it could easily conceal a weapon.

"Can you zoom in on their faces?" Zak asked.

Sawyer obliged, enhancing the image. The men's features came into sharper focus, revealing hard, expressionless faces that screamed professional operatives.

"I don't recognize any of them," Zak muttered, frustration evident in his tone.

Cal leaned in, squinting at the screen. "Wait a second. That one there—" He pointed to a tall, imposing man with chiseled features. "I've seen him before. I know this guy."

Rylan's head snapped up. "You do?"

"How do you know him?" Zak asked.

"He was in the Hope's Embrace compound," Cal said without a shred of doubt. "He was their head of security and went by Vigil there, but he told me his name was actually Trent. He didn't give a last name, and he disappeared right before the shit hit the fan. Ash looked for him and?—"

"He was a ghost," Ash finished. "No record of him anywhere."

"Who the hell are these people?"

"That's the million-dollar question," Zak muttered. "Whoever they are, they've got serious resources and training. Look at how they disabled the security cameras." He was silent for a long moment before he finally sucked in a sharp breath and straightened. "All right. I'll call HORNET. Maybe they'll know something about who these fuckers are."

He dug his phone out of his pocket and hesitated for a long moment. His jaw clenched as he dialed the number. He put the phone on speaker and set it down in the middle of the table like he couldn't bear to touch it.

The line rang twice before a gruff voice answered. "Bristow."

"Gabe, it's Zak Hendricks. You're on speaker."

"So are you. Two calls in less than a month? To what do we owe the pleasure?" Gabe said dryly.

"He misses us, fo'sure," Jean-Luc Cavalier's voice chimed in from the background. "Bet he's tired of chasing lost hikers and pulling cats out of trees. Maybe now he's ready to come run with the big dogs, join up with HORNET, eh?" His voice came closer, like he'd leaned toward the phone. "Oh, and FYI, I voted for synchronized swimming for our next team-building. You think you could rock a sparkly swim cap, mon ami ?"

Despite everything, Rylan felt his lips twitch into a smile because the mental image of Zak wearing anything sparkly was just so ridiculous.

Rylan had briefly met Jean-Luc Cavalier when HORNET helped them storm the Hope's Embrace cult compound a few weeks ago, and he liked the guy. Cavalier was as quick with a joke as he was with a gun.

But right now, Zak wasn't in the mood for levity.

"Shut up, Cajun," Zak said at the same time as Gabe and several other voices.

Jean-Luc sighed. " Mais , y'all don't know how to have a good time."

"We have very different ideas of a good time," one of his teammates muttered. Rylan thought it might have been HORNET's medic, Jesse.

"Cut the chatter," Gabe said, sounding every bit the war-hardened leader he was. "What's going on, Zak?"

Zak's expression remained grim. "We've got a situation here, Gabe. Remember Pierce St. James, one of the guys you helped pull out of the cult's compound?"

"Yeah, I remember. He's the engineer who went AWOL from Project Iron Horizon."

Everyone in the room froze and stared at each other for so long, Gabe eventually said, "Shit, did I lose you?"

Zak sucked in a sharp breath and sank into a chair. "How the fuck do you know about Pierce's work on that project? We just found out a few days ago."

"C'mon, Hendricks. Did you really expect me to send my men into that compound without doing my homework? Our tech guy dug it up when we were prepping for the op. It's classified, but we have connections."

Zak ran a hand over his face, his expression a mix of frustration and resignation. "Right. Of course you did. Well, Pierce and Rylan's sister, Rhiannon, were just found under several tons of rubble from the earthquake. They were taken to Redwood Memorial to recover, but they vanished before we arrived."

"They were taken by someone who wants Pierce's knowledge of the project," Rylan said, leaning toward the phone. "My sister is innocent. She has nothing to do with Pierce and his secrets."

"Then why would they bother taking her, too?" Gabe asked. "The more hostages, the more complications, and generally, hostage takers like to keep things as simple as possible."

"She's an ASL interpreter."

"And your man uses sign language to communicate. Understood," Gabe replied, his tone softening slightly. "Do you have any leads on who might be behind this?"

Rylan opened his mouth to respond, but Zak waved him back and answered, "We think it might be a PMC called Halston. Know of them?"

"Halston? Fuck," Gabe muttered. "If it is them, you've really stepped in it this time."

"No kidding," Zak said. "We have security camera photos of one of the potential abductors. Can you find out if he's actually with Halston?"

There was a pause, and then Gabe spoke again. "Yeah, send me whatever you have."

Zak nodded and snapped his fingers to get Sawyer's attention. Sawyer nodded and slid on his headphones, tapping away at his laptop keyboard for a few seconds. Then he nodded again. "Sent."

There was another pause and some shuffling as Gabe and his men presumably looked over the photos.

Finally, Gabe came back. "I might know who you're dealing with, but it's not Halston. Are you sure you want to go down this rabbit hole? Because once you do, there's no going back."

Rylan spoke before anyone else could answer. "We have to. My sister's life is at stake."

Gabe exhaled long and slow. The background noise lessened as if he'd taken them off speakerphone and walked away from his men. "The man in your photos? His name is Trent Dalton. He's ex-military, now working with a covert ops team. They're… well, let's just say they operate in the shadows even darker than we do."

Zak's brow furrowed. "I've never heard of them, and I worked in some pretty fucking dark corners."

"You wouldn't have," Gabe replied, his voice low and tense. "They're ghosts, Zak. The kind of unit that doesn't officially exist."

Rylan felt his chest tighten. "What does that mean for my sister?"

"It means," Gabe said slowly, "that if they have her and Pierce, they're in more danger than you realize. They are ruthlessly efficient. They don't leave loose ends."

"Rhiannon's innocent," Rylan said again, his voice cracking. "They can't hurt her."

Gabe's silence on the other end of the line was heavy. When he finally spoke, his voice was grim. "Innocence doesn't matter to them, Rylan. They'll do whatever it takes to complete their mission, and if Pierce is their mission…" He didn't finish the thought.

"We need to talk to them," Rylan said.

Everyone looked at him like he'd lost his mind. And maybe he had, but he was out of good ideas.

After several tense seconds, Zak nodded and asked into the phone, "Gabe, can you make that happen?"

Gabe groaned softly. "All right. Let me make a call and get back to you."

The line went dead, and the team exchanged glances.

"What the fuck are we getting into?" Donovan muttered.

"I think we've already been in it for a while," Cal said and leaned back against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest.

A knot of tension hardened in Rylan's gut. Whoever these people were, they were dangerous enough to have HORNET nervous.

The tension in the room ramped up to unbearable levels as they waited for Gabe's call back. Rylan paced restlessly. His prosthetic arm whirred with each movement—loudly to his ears, though the others didn't seem to notice.

It was driving him crazy.

He wanted to rip the fucking thing off and throw it across the room.

Izzy sat silently beside Ash, watching him pace with a worried frown. He had the inexplicable urge to go to her, to seek comfort in her arms.

But that was ridiculous.

Rylan forced himself to stop pacing and took a deep breath. He caught Izzy's eye and gave her a small nod, trying to convey that he was okay. She returned the nod, but the concern didn't leave her face.

After what felt like an eternity, Zak's phone buzzed. He snatched it up and put it on speaker again. "Gabe?"

"I've got someone here who can help," Gabe said. "Ethan, you're on with Zak Hendricks and Redwood Coast Rescue."

A new voice, deep and authoritative, came through the speaker. "We've met."

"Have we?" Zak asked even as Sawyer's head snapped up, his unseeing eyes wide.

"Well, I've met your man, Sawyer."

"I don't need to be here for this. Good luck," Gabe said to nobody in particular and hung up.

"Ethan?" Sawyer breathed as if suddenly connecting a bunch of dots. "What the fuck? We thought you were dead."

There was a pause. "Hello, Sawyer. I'm glad you and Lucy made it off the mountain okay."

Sawyer pushed to his feet. "No thanks to you."

Rylan's gaze darted between Sawyer and the phone. "You know him?"

"Yeah, he said he was a fire watchman stationed on the mountain. We stayed in his lookout tower after the quake. But that was all a lie, wasn't it? You left us up there with a bunch of lunatics."

Ethan's voice remained steady. "I did what was necessary to complete the mission. I lost an operative, and I owed it to her to get her home."

"Maya was one of yours?" Sawyer asked, the anger fading from his voice and posture. "That's why she gave us a fake name when we found her."

"She was. We were separated during the quake. I appreciate that you and Lucy took care of her when she was injured. Thank you for bringing her back to me. I owe you one."

There was an almost imperceptible softening to Ethan's voice. The others might not have heard it, but Rylan was a trained listener, and he did, loud and clear. Ethan had cared deeply about this Maya woman—and as more than a fellow operative. He was heartbroken by her loss.

"We have your man, Pierce St. James," Ethan continued, his tone once again all business. "And the woman, Rhiannon Cross."

Rylan's heart leaped into his throat. "Are you going to hurt my sister?"

"Ah. Rylan Cross, former SEAL turned trauma counselor," Ethan said, his voice cool and assessing. "Your sister is unharmed. For now."

Rylan's jaw clenched at the implied threat. "She has nothing to do with this. Let her go."

"I'm afraid I can't do that," Ethan replied. "Ms. Cross is our only means of communication with St. James. Until we get what we need from him, she stays with us."

"What exactly do you need from him?" Zak asked, his tone carefully neutral.

There was a pause before Ethan answered. "That's classified. What you need to know is that Pierce St. James possesses information vital to national security. We're simply retrieving that information."

"By kidnapping and interrogating him?" Rylan snapped.

"We're having a conversation," Ethan said evenly. "One that's long overdue. They are both safe and will remain so. You have my word."

"Then let me talk to her," Rylan demanded. "I need to know she's okay."

There was a pause, then some muffled sounds of movement.

"Rylan?" Rhiannon's voice came through, shaky but clear.

"Rhee!" Rylan exhaled in relief. "Are you all right? Have they hurt you?"

"I'm okay," she said quickly. "They haven't hurt us. They've been nothing but kind. Really. They actually?—"

Her voice cut off abruptly, replaced by Ethan's. "That's enough. As you can hear, your sister is fine, and we have no intention of hurting her."

"We know about Project Iron Horizon," Rylan said, deciding to lay their cards on the table. "And Tectra-X."

Another pause, longer this time. When Ethan spoke again, there was an edge to his voice. "Then you understand the gravity of the situation. St. James possesses knowledge that could destabilize entire nations if it falls into the wrong hands. We can't allow that to happen."

Rylan's jaw clenched. "And who decides what the wrong hands are? You?"

"We're not the enemy here, Mr. Cross," Ethan replied, his tone measured. "We're trying to prevent a catastrophe." He paused for a heartbeat. " Another catastrophe."

Rylan's mind raced, trying to find an angle. "Look, I get it. You're trying to protect people. So are we. Let us help. We can work together to?—"

"This isn't a negotiation, Mr. Cross," Ethan cut him off. "We're not looking for partners or consultants. We're containing a threat."

"Pierce isn't a threat," Zak said. "He's been trying to keep that knowledge safe."

"By going AWOL and joining a cult?" Ethan's tone dripped with skepticism. "Forgive me if I don't share your confidence in his judgment."

"He didn't join the cult," Cal interjected. "He was only there to protect me and my fiancee."

"Callum Holden," Ethan said with a note of annoyance. "Defense attorney, engaged to podcaster Ellie Summers, who is the sister of Hope Summers."

Cal stiffed. "You know a lot about us."

"It's my job to know. Your presence at the Hope's Embrace compound put my operative at risk. He had to scrub the op after being undercover for two years."

"You were looking for the weapon, weren't you?" Rylan said, directing the conversation back to the matter at hand. "You thought the cult had it."

Ethan didn't confirm or deny.

"Did the weapon cause the earthquake?" Zak asked.

Ethan's silence stretched for several tense seconds. Finally, he spoke, his voice tight with barely contained frustration. "This conversation has gone far beyond what I intended. You need to understand that this situation is far more complex and dangerous than you realize. For your own safety, I strongly advise you to step back and let us handle this."

"Not a chance in hell," Rylan growled. He wanted to reach through the phone and throttle the man. "That's my sister you've got."

"And our teammate," Zak added.

Sawyer spoke up. "You said you owe me one for Maya? I'm calling it in. Let us help."

"You said you owe me one? I'm calling it in. Let us help."

There was a long pause on the other end of the line. When Ethan finally spoke, his voice was strained. "You don't know what you're asking."

"Then explain it to us," Zak pressed. "We're not going to back down, Ethan. These are our people."

Ethan growled softly. "You want in? Fine. Choose four of your men—not Sawyer. I respect the hell out of him and trust him more than I do any of you, but I need someone who can see. And definitely don't send Sheriff Rawlings. I see him, we disappear. Have your men ready for pick-up in front of the hospital tomorrow morning, dawn." He hung up before they could question him further.

"Deputy Delgado is going," Ash said, his tone brooking no argument.

Rylan's head snapped toward him. "What? Why?"

"Because I need someone I trust on the inside," Ash replied firmly. "Izzy's one of my best deputies and she's got military experience. She goes."

Izzy met Rylan's gaze, her expression resolute. A mix of emotions churned in his gut—concern for her safety warring with relief that she'd be there to watch his sister's back.

"I'm going too," he said, turning back to Zak. There was no way in hell he was sitting this out when Rhiannon's life was on the line.

Zak nodded. "Agreed. You and me, for sure. That's three. Cal," he said after a moment's consideration. "You have inside knowledge of Hope's Embrace that could be useful."

Cal nodded grimly. "I'm in. Let me call Ellie."

"Yeah," Zak said and picked up his phone from the table. "We should all call the wives and let them know we won't be back tonight."

As the others made their calls, Rylan hung back, feeling suddenly adrift. He had no one to call—no wife, no girlfriend, not even a dog waiting for him at home. The familiar ache of loneliness settled in his chest.

But, no, that wasn't entirely true. He did have someone to call.

His parents.

He pulled out his phone and dialed his dad. They'd be in the air now, but he left a message so they'd know what was going on when they landed in California. He'd also make sure he was there at the airport to meet them this evening.

His gaze drifted to Izzy as she spoke quietly in Spanish into her phone. Who did she have to call? He knew a bit of Spanish, but all he caught of the conversation was "te amo"— I love you.

Shit.

Was she in a relationship?

Rylan forced himself to look away from her, tamping down the irrational surge of jealousy. It wasn't his business who she was calling. He needed to focus on the mission ahead and getting Rhiannon back safely.

He stepped out into the hallway, needing a moment to clear his head. The hospital's antiseptic smell assaulted his senses, bringing back memories of his own time as a patient after losing his arm. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, centering himself.

When he opened them again, Izzy was standing in front of him, her dark eyes filled with concern. "Are you okay?"

Rylan swallowed hard, fighting the urge to reach out and touch her. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just needed some air."

She nodded, not looking entirely convinced. "It's all a bit nerve-wracking. We're going into a dangerous situation with very little information."

"I used to thrive on that." He rubbed his prosthetic arm. "The adrenaline rush of an op."

Izzy's gaze followed the movement of his hand on his prosthetic. "And now?"

Rylan let out a slow breath. "Now… I'm not so sure. I'm not built for combat anymore."

Izzy opened her mouth to respond, but she didn't get the chance.

"Rylan! Izzy! Stop making googly eyes at each other and get your asses in here," Zak called. "We have a mission to plan."