Chapter 28

“Hello, you beauty!”

Paige’s exuberant shout echoed through the room, jolting Avery awake.

Muzzy-headed and disoriented, she lifted her head from her arms, blinking in the soft light of Bridger’s kitchen, trying to clear the nightmares from her head.

She’d fallen asleep at the breakfast bar.

A glance at the clock above the stove made her stomach twist. It had been two hours since Paul’s abduction. Two hours of helplessness and fear.

At the table by the window, Paige shot to her feet. “I have a location on that text,” she shouted, her voice ringing through the house. “We’re a go.”

Footsteps clattered. The team rushed into the room, their faces tense with anticipation.

Extraction was the most perilous part of any kidnapping. But Mason and his team were experts. And while the Bureau had to play by the rules, Mason and his crew made their own.

As the others pressed forward, their bodies coiled with muscled intensity, Avery hung back, her mind racing. She’d been dreaming, her thoughts tangled in a web of disturbing, disjointed images.

But there had been a thread, a message hidden in the chaos. If only she could recall it before it dissolved in the harsh light of day.

An inside man.

The words echoed in her mind, a cold, insidious whisper. The bad guys had been one step ahead of them from the start, anticipating their every move. There had to be someone on the inside, feeding them information.

She glanced at Mason, his face hard and vengeful, his eyes burning with a fierce, barely-contained rage. She couldn’t voice her suspicions, not yet. Not until she was certain.

If she was wrong, if she sent them chasing after a false lead, it could cost Paul his life.

She had to be sure, had to find the evidence that would confirm her fears.

Paige and Tai hunched over a laptop, their fingers flying across the keys as they zeroed in on the location of the text. “It’s the original Rain Bay Trucking warehouse,” Paige said, her voice tight with concentration. “There’s a cluster of cargo containers in the back lot, stacked two or three high. Probably fifty of them.”

Tai pointed at the screen. “There’s a power cord snaking to one of them. It’s plugged into the cement base of a streetlight in the lot.”

Fenn snorted, his face twisted with disgust. “Sloppy,” he muttered, shaking his head.

Kate pulled her blonde hair back into a ponytail with quick, sharp motions. “What if it’s a trap?” she asked, her voice low and urgent.

Mason shrugged, his face hard and unyielding. “Of course, it’s a trap. We plan for that. Go in expecting the worst. Tai will deploy drones long before we get close enough to engage the enemy,” he said, his voice steady and confident. “We’ll know exactly where Paul is, and how many guards are on him. Plus, we have Paige’s Phantom. That’ll help level the playing field.”

Avery stepped forward, desperate to help. “What can I do?” she asked, her voice soft but insistent.

Mason turned to her, his face softening for a moment. “I need you to stay put in the safe house,” he said, his voice gentle but firm. “We can’t risk you being seen by law enforcement. And I can’t spare the personnel to get you out of trouble if something goes wrong.”

Avery nodded, pretending reluctance even as relief washed over her. This was exactly what she wanted: a chance to investigate her suspicions without interference.

If she was right, she’d read the team in and get their help handling it.

She watched as the team geared up, their faces set with grim determination. They moved with a fluid, practiced efficiency, checking their weapons and strapping on their gear with silent, focused intensity.

These were the people she had come to care for, the ones who had risked everything to help her seek justice. And now, they were putting their lives on the line once again, for one of their own.

Looking tense and focused, Mason strapped on his tactical vest. “Stay off the computers,” he ordered her. “Stay quiet. We’ll be back in a few.”

“Right. Makes sense.” Not that she was going to obey.

He smiled faintly. “A few extra prayers couldn’t hurt, though.”

“Consider it done.” That part she had every intention of carrying out.

As the team headed out into the night, their footsteps echoing in the stillness of the house, Avery settled in to wait and pray.

The minute the SUV disappeared, she made the call.