Chapter Eighteen

Aidan forced himself to stay sitting when all he wanted to do was run into that fucking house and put bullets into people until he found Carys and Tris.

It wasn’t an impulse he’d ever thought he would have. He saved lives. He didn’t take them, but he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt, he would do it if he had to.

“Adam, what have you got?” Big Tag sat in the driver’s seat, Adam beside him. They’d flown down, but it had taken hours to get things into place. Unlike Huisman, who’d been prepared.

Every minute had felt like a damn year. He wasn’t sure how the team kept their cool. They’d left Tasha, Charlotte, and Kenzie behind, Big Tag unwilling to allow the latter two in the same room with Ben Parker. Tara had stayed behind, too, helping Tasha clear out her and Parker’s rooms and briefing their bosses at Langley about what was happening.

“I don’t think they brought the boys in at the same time as the women.” Adam was in the back of the Sprinter that Parker had managed to procure despite the fact they’d landed before dawn. “I’ve tracked the plane I believe they were on, and I found the car I think they were picked up in. It’s too small for four bodies. I think he brought the women on the plane and drove Tristan and Zach down.”

“Keeping them together would potentially give the men a chance to save the women or vice versa.” Parker sat beside Cooper, wearing similar clothes. They looked ready for war. “He’ll split them up until he can secure them all in the house. But I assure you, he’s in there.”

“Someone’s in there,” Lou confirmed. “I have definite movement in the house. He’s got a lot of security, from what I can tell, but I think he’s got the system off right now. I think they’re waiting for something.”

They were parked half a block down from the house in question, nestled in a super-wealthy neighborhood in Toronto. One Parker knew well. He’d explained to the group he’d grown up here, too, his childhood home close to Dr. Huisman’s.

There was a knock on the sliding door and Cooper opened it, revealing TJ. He’d changed into sweats and a T-shirt, a bandana around his head and sunglasses on. He looked like a dude out for a jog.

TJ climbed in. “They’re subtle, but there’s at least two guards on the grounds. The garage door was open, and it’s definitely the car Adam caught on the CCTVs coming from the airport. Whoever was on the plane is in the house. I don’t see any signs of a vehicle they might have brought Tris and Zach in. It looked like they were getting ready for something. I’m not sure. I can’t get close, but I did see a park that might have a view. It didn’t look like the place had anything more than those drapey things.”

“Window treatments.” Lou looked over at her boyfriend, adjusting her glasses—the ones that worked again and would allow Kenzie and Charlotte some form of information about what was going on. From what he’d been told, they would be making their way to Toronto via one of the SUVs they’d rented and would find a hotel to hole up in while they waited. Lou’s glasses would be their only connection to the mission.

How hard was it for Charlotte to stay out of it, to stay with Kenzie when Kala was in trouble?

I don’t know what your sister is going through, but the last thing she’s going to need if she survives it is to come out and realize her career is over. You chose this, Kenz. You had the idea of building Kara. You don’t get to burn her down now.

Ian had been in a hell of a mood earlier. While Cooper and TJ kept Parker busy, Ian had gone up to the attic, and Aidan had overheard the conversation while he’d helped pack up. Conversation might not be the right word. It had been a straight up lecture.

He wasn’t sure Ian was right. The world might have changed in an irrevocable way.

If she survives.

If Kala survives.

If Carys and Tristan survive.

“We’ve got a van coming up the street,” Lou said, staring at her laptop. “Uncle Adam, I think it’s yours.”

Aidan sat up straighter, trying to get a view out of the tinted windows. Sure enough, there was a van coming up the street, moving with some speed, as though it was late for an important meeting.

Was Tris in that van?

“I need a plate,” Adam said.

Parker put a set of binoculars to his eyes and called out the plate number.

Aidan watched as the van drove by.

“That’s it.” Adam closed his laptop and pulled the pistol from his holster, checking it. “They have to be in there. Let’s go.”

Ian held out a hand. “Not yet.”

“It’ll be easier to take them out as they’re transporting Tristan and Zach from the van than when they get them securely in the house,” Adam argued.

But Aidan knew what Ian’s point was. “We tip them off and they either kill the women or move them.”

“The doc’s right,” Parker agreed even as he was also checking the arsenal he carried. “There are numerous ways in and out of that place. We can’t cover all of them. I would wait for my team, but we don’t have time. Manny is hurting the women. It’s what he does. If we wait too long, he’ll kill them, and we’ll be getting body parts delivered for the next ten years.”

“You’re a fucking delight, Parker,” Ian said with a huff. “So we wait until they’re all inside and then Lou loops the security cams. You have that ready?”

Lou nodded. “Yes. But it means I can’t see anything. I don’t have time to send the real footage to my system while the server inside has the loop going.”

“It’s okay,” Ian promised. “We’ll get it done no matter what. I want you to monitor local authorities and let me know if they get any calls. Do you have anything right now?”

“I have Huisman walking up the stairs. He went to the second floor, but I lost him there. There aren’t security cameras outside of the halls and shared spaces.” Lou’s eyes never left the screen.

TJ was maneuvering in the back, pulling a long-sleeve black shirt over his head. “Are we planning on walking down the street carrying rifles? I mean we kind of look like a military team. It could freak out the neighbors, you know.”

Parker had explained they shouldn’t call the police. Huisman owned too many people in the government. According to Parker, CSIS was dragging its feet about everything when it came to Huisman.

Aidan had overheard Ian and Adam discussing the fact that they believed CSIS’s excuses were just that. The Canadians didn’t want to upset Huisman until someone had incontrovertible proof.

They were doing CSIS’s dirty work.

Aidan did not care. All he wanted was to have Carys safe and sound and in his arms. He wanted to know Tristan was all right, and they could all be together again.

He wouldn’t be able to breathe until they were together again.

“I’ve got confirmation Zach and Tristan are alive and conscious,” Lou said, her voice tight. “They were in the van, and they’re being taken into the house through the garage right now.”

“All right.” Ian started the engine. “We’re going in the back to avoid the whole freak-out-the neighbors thing. Follow Parker’s lead. Retrieving our people is the mission. Am I understood? If someone has a chance at taking out Huisman, take it, but not at the risk of our people.”

Aidan’s everything was in that house. He agreed with Ian.

“You have your mission and I have mine,” Parker said, a stoic expression on his face.

“You go your own way, Parker, and don’t expect us to save you if you get in trouble.” Ian eased off the brakes and maneuvered the van down the road. These houses were all massive, with huge yards and walls surrounding the estates.

“I don’t expect you to save me at all, sir,” Parker admitted. “You deal with your people, and I’ll handle Manny.” He turned to Cooper, who had been damn-near silent all night long. He’d flown the plane and kept to himself, speaking only when required to. “You’ll find her?”

Cooper’s hands tightened on his rifle. “I’ll find her.”

Parker sat back, huffing a breath. “All right. Does anyone have any questions about the layout of the house? After Manny’s father was killed, his grandfather closed the place up. I think it’s roughly the same as it was when Manny was a child.”

“We all studied the blueprints on the flight,” Adam replied. “Ian and I will go in via the servants’ entrance on the west wall. That should lead us through the kitchen and into the great rooms. Cooper and TJ are going to cut out the window in the study and enter through there. The hallway will also lead them to the great rooms but from the opposite side. We quietly take out anyone in our way. Parker…”

“I’m going in through the roof. There’s access to the attic on the eastern side of the house,” Parker explained.

“And if it’s locked?” Ian asked, turning the corner to round the block so they had access to the back of the estate through the alley that ran behind it.

“I’ll get through it.” Parker seemed supremely sure of his abilities.

Aidan wished he was. “I think I should go with Ian and Adam. I’ll stay behind you.”

The van stopped, and Ian turned off the engine. “It’s better if you don’t. I promise I’ll give Lou the go-ahead for you both to come in as soon as possible, but I can’t watch over you properly.”

Because he had to do anything he could to save Carys. “I’ll wait.”

Ian opened the door and slid off the seat, reaching for his vest. “We’ll get them out. I promise. Or I’ll die trying.”

Adam did the same on his side. “I will absolutely get them out or let Ian die trying.”

Ian huffed out a laugh. “I bet you will, buddy. Adam…”

Adam finished zipping his vest. “Say something sarcastic and get it out of the way.”

“I’m glad you’re here,” Ian said.

“Fuck.” Adam closed his eyes, taking a long breath. “Only one man I’d rather have watch my back.”

Ian reached up and pulled a black balaclava over his head. “Yeah, well, Jake’s gotten lazy in his old age. He’s probably sitting somewhere with Li complaining about his gout or something. Old men.”

Adam did the same, joining Ian. “Speak for yourself. I’m aging backward, man. I’m way sexier than I was twenty years ago.”

“That wouldn’t be hard. You were a nerd,” Ian shot back.

“Sir, you should go now. I’ve looped the cams.” Lou sent them a pointed look.

“The young are impatient,” Ian said, putting a hand on Adam’s shoulder. “Let’s go get our people.”

They disappeared behind a big bush running along the wall demarcating the property.

“Take care, baby,” TJ said, leaning over to kiss his girlfriend before he followed Cooper out.

“You, too. I love you.” Lou watched as they started to make their way around to the other side of the property.

Parker wasn’t wearing a balaclava. He nodded to Lou. “If I don’t see you after, it was a pleasure as always, Louisa. And if I don’t get the chance to talk to her, tell Maggie I’ll see her soon.”

He quietly closed the Sprinter’s sliding door behind him.

Aidan was left alone with Lou, who climbed into the front and slid into the driver’s seat, balancing her laptop on the dashboard. “Can you hear them?”

Lou glanced at him through the rearview mirror. “The comms are working. Aidan, it’s going to be okay. We’re going to get them back.”

He wished he could believe her. “How long do these things usually take?”

“Ten minutes. Ten hours. It doesn’t matter. It’s always too long,” Lou said with a shrug. She touched the side of her glasses. “Yes, they’re off. It’s me and Aidan. I’m sitting in the driver’s seat ready to get us out of here if I need to. Kenz, I know what I’m doing.”

Aidan took a deep breath, trying to force down his panic. It was fucking torture to sit here knowing Carys and Tris were so close. They were in the house and the house was right there. Only a wall and some doors and space kept them apart. He put a hand on the kit Cooper had given him. It was basic, but he could work with it.

He prayed he didn’t have to work with it.

Lou continued to quietly talk to Kenzie and Aidan sat, the minutes feeling like hours. How long had he been here? They were parked in what appeared to be an alley.

How was everything so fucking normal? When he looked out the window, the sky was blue, and in the distance, he could see people walking around what looked like a park. They had no idea the life and death situation going on so close to them.

What was happening to Carys? To Aidan? Was Kala even alive?

There was a tap on the window, startling Aidan out of his thoughts.

His heart rate shot up as he caught sight of a tall man in all black standing at the passenger-side window.

“Hey, is anyone in there?”

“Stay quiet,” Lou said in a whisper. “Don’t move. He can’t see inside.”

The Sprinter had come from someone Parker had called Tim, who’d assured them it was fully kitted out. One of the features was the window tinting. They appeared normal, but when put into secure mode, they darkened and couldn’t be seen through from the outside.

The guard tried to stare inside and then attempted to open the passenger-side door.

Aidan reached for the gun Cooper had given him. This must be one of the two guards TJ had seen doing patrols of the grounds. They’d been lucky he hadn’t seen the team as they’d gotten out and worked their way inside.

They were inside now, right? They had to be.

The guard stepped back and seemed to think about what to do. His hand went to the radio on his belt.

And then a familiar figure stepped in behind him. Aidan felt his eyes widen and heard Lou gasp.

Zach Reed was covered in blood and had handcuffs dangling from one wrist. He also had a big knife in his hand. A knife he used on the guard’s throat, slicing into the man’s jugular and spraying blood against the window.

“Zach’s out. He got away but he looks hurt,” Lou was saying over the comms.

Aidan slid open the door as the guard hit the ground. Zach looked primal standing there, his eyes on the guard and blood dripping from his hands.

“Hey, Zach.” Aidan kept the words quiet. He felt like he was in the presence of a dangerous predator.

Zach looked up suddenly and seemed to realize who was talking to him. “Aidan.”

“And me.” Lou had rolled the window down. “You need to get in the van and let Aidan look you over. The team is inside the house. We need to be ready to go.”

Zach seemed to shake something off, stepping back. “Good. Huisman sent half his guards with me. They’re dead now, so it’ll be a fair fight. Doc, Kala’s going to need you. Carys, too, if Huisman decides to fuck around with Tris. I have to go.”

“Go?” Lou scrambled out of the van. “Go where? You’re hurt.”

A ghost of a smile hit the captain’s lips. “Back to hell, sweetheart. Should’ve known I wouldn’t belong here. Take care, Lou. Aidan, you can get in through the garage. No one’s guarding it anymore.”

And with that, the captain jogged off looking like the final survivor of a horror film.

“Yes, that was Zach,” Lou was saying. “I don’t know, Aunt Charlotte. He ran away.”

The fact that she’d called Charlotte aunt let him know how shaken Lou was. Aidan couldn’t be. He couldn’t let panic take over. Zach’s words rang in his head. Carys might need him. Kala definitely needed him. He secured the pack over his back and made sure the safety was off the gun. His heart thudded in his chest. “Lou, I have to go in.”

She nodded. “I heard him. I’ll update the uncles…Ian. I’ll update Ian. Be safe, Aidan.”

Aidan took off, trying to remember the schematics Parker had attempted to drill in all their heads the night before. He retraced Zach’s steps. It wasn’t hard. He followed the blood.

Was Zach hurt? Should he have tried to stop him? A head injury could have made him do irrational things.

Aidan stopped as he rounded the corner that brought him to the open garage. It was set back from the road, and that seemed like a good thing now since there were bodies everywhere. Zach had put the knife he’d had in his hand to use. Aidan stepped over them, trying to avoid slipping.

He entered the kitchen and could hear someone talking.

“Don’t.”

Tristan. Tristan had shouted the word. Aidan inched down the hall and then felt a hard hand on his elbow.

Cold blue eyes stared down at him. Big Tag was not happy.

“Zach got away and told me Kala needs me,” Aidan whispered.

A brief nod was all he got, and then Adam moved around him with Ian following.

“Carys!”

Tristan’s shout threatened to shake Aidan’s world. He didn’t think. He ran toward the sound, evading Ian and Adam.

He stopped at the edge of the living area, and the sight threatened to take his breath. Carys was sitting in a chair, her arms held down with zip ties and her finger in a straight cutter, tears rolling down her cheeks. Tristan had two guards on him, both with guns at his back.

Huisman was going to take her finger and likely more. He said something, and his lips curled in an evil smirk.

“You mean here, Manny?” Ben Parker stood on the balcony, his rifle trained on his enemy.

The world seemed to slow down as he realized Cooper and TJ were coming from the opposite direction. Aidan lifted his gun because that fucker wasn’t going to hurt Carys. He moved in as he heard the first gunshot.

Huisman put the gun he held to Carys’s head. “You might be able to get me, Benjamin, but are you willing to bet her life on it?”

Aidan stopped because Carys wasn’t the only one with a gun to her head.

“Stay calm, son,” Adam commanded.

“I’m not moving.” Tristan’s hands came up. “Dr. Huisman, you’re surrounded. Just let Carys go and we’ll all survive this.”

Huisman wrapped a hand in Carys’s hair, holding her in place. “What would be the fun in that?”

“Parker, do you have the shot?” Ian asked.

“Ah, we’re all here then,” Huisman said. “You better have a bead on all of us or you’re certain to lose at least one of your teammates. My men will execute that one if I die. Maybe we’ll get both. As for Benjamin, I wonder what’s more important to him. Taking me out or the fact that he’s standing in front of the door where I’m holding the woman known as Ms. Magenta. I don’t know how much longer she’ll last. I gave her a little something. Maybe she’s already dead. What do you want more, Benjamin? My head on a platter or your whore? You know how I took care of the last one.”

Parker blinked twice, his body stiff. Cooper was already looking for the stairs.

Parker dropped his gun and went through the door behind him.

“How the hell do I get up there?” Cooper sounded panicked.

“You don’t,” Ian said. “You do your job. Parker’s getting her. Huisman, you’re surrounded. There’s no way out.”

“There’s always a way out.” Huisman looked more relaxed now. “Ah, there they are. Mr. Taggart, I believe you’ve won this skirmish of ours, but I’ll win the war. Right now, though, I think it’s time for some chaos. Let’s see who you care about more. Jean-Marc, do it.”

Huisman ducked behind Carys as Ian tried to take a shot. Aidan turned to Tristan, terrified he would see one of the guards put a bullet in his head. Instead, the guard held up some kind of device and pressed a button. Tristan kicked out, forcing the other guard to the ground, and the fight began.

“Get down,” Ian yelled. “There’s a bomb.”

Aidan ran for Carys, not caring what could happen. All that mattered was protecting her.

He threw his body on hers as the world exploded.

* * * *

Carys felt the chair fall back when Aidan leapt on her. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Huisman running, heard the sound of bullets, and then the blast of a bomb going off. Her head would have banged against the marbled floors if the back hadn’t been so high.

“Stay still,” Aidan whispered. “I’m going to get you out of here.”

“Tris,” she said. They’d had guns on him. The ground was shaking, and she could see the chandelier above her rocking back and forth.

The sound of gunfire was added to the chaos.

It was obvious the guards weren’t running like their boss had. They also weren’t going down without a fight.

She gasped as she felt a bullet fly by her cheek, heat searing her skin.

“That was close.” Aidan moved so he covered her completely. “I have to get you out of here.”

“TJ, don’t you fucking dare,” Ian was shouting. “We don’t know where that bomb was or how many more he has. We retreat.”

“I have to get Kala,” Cooper insisted, his voice tortured.

Where was Tris? Was he dead?

“Use this.” Then Tris was there, offering Aidan a knife. “We have to move. That chandelier is going to come down, and Ian’s right. We don’t know what else he’s going to blow up. If he prepped for this, he could blow the rest of it sky high once he’s out of range.”

Aidan nodded and then her hands were free.

“Cooper, Parker has her. Get your ass out of here,” Ian shouted. “TJ, get to Lou. Make sure he doesn’t take her on his way out.”

She got a glimpse of combat boots running by.

The chandelier shook and dropped a few feet.

Tris hauled her up, taking her into his arms and moving right before the chandelier dropped, shaking the floor. It cracked the table in two, spraying glass and dust everywhere.

“Get her out of here,” Adam yelled. “The ceiling is going to come down. Get out of the house.”

Tristan started running, Aidan at their side.

Carys held on to him, her wrists aching, but she didn’t think about the pain. Tris was alive. That was all that mattered. He ran out into the sunlight, forcing her to blink at the brightness.

Tristan moved out to the middle of the lawn before setting her on her feet. “Aidan, look her over.”

“What happened?” Aidan was in her space, staring into her eyes. “What did he do to you?”

“They drugged me, but I’m fine. It’s Kala I’m worried about.” Everything had happened so fast. “Did they get away?”

“I took out the guards he left behind.” Cooper stared at the door. “They didn’t run fast enough, but Huisman did.”

There was the sound of rattling as the roof began to collapse.

“Aidan, I’m fine.” She felt weak, but it wasn’t anything she couldn’t handle. Where was Kala? “They gave her a paralytic. She won’t be able to walk on her own.”

Through the smoke she saw Ian walking out and then Parker. The big Canadian carried Kala. She was slack in his arms, unconscious.

Or worse. What had the drugs done to her? Tears blurred her eyes as Parker carried her cousin closer.

Cooper hit his knees, and the sound that came from him threatened to wreck Carys. She looked over and tears streamed down his cheeks. Parker stopped in front of him, looking down at Cooper.

“But she’s not your girlfriend,” Parker said, no inflection in his tone. “She’s alive.”

“Give her to me.” Cooper lifted his arms, taking Kala into them and cradling her to his chest. He’d lost any sort of situational awareness because every cell of that man’s body was focused on the woman in his arms. He smoothed back her hair. “Wake up, baby. You gotta wake up for me.”

Carys moved in, taking Kala’s wrist in her hand. Her pulse was steady. She worked around Cooper, who wasn’t giving her up and checked her vitals. “I think she’s passed out, but we need to get her to a hospital.”

In the distance she heard the sound of sirens.

“Parker, I think you should sit down,” Adam said, a frown on his face.

“I’m fine. I need to call my boss.” Parker pulled his cell from his pocket even though his eyes were still on Kala. He stopped, and that was the moment she realized his hand was covered in blood. “Shit.”

“Aidan,” Carys called out. She managed to get to Parker as he started toward the ground. He’d been hit during the gunfire, and the adrenaline of the situation had gotten him through. But now the injury was taking over. “It’s a GSW. Damn it. I’ve got two entry wounds on his back. It might be in his liver.”

Aidan dropped to his knees beside her, a calm presence among the chaos. “All right. Let’s get him stable.”

She nodded and they got to work.

Twelve hours later Carys sat in Ben Parker’s hospital room, watching the man who’d undoubtedly saved her cousin. If he hadn’t chosen her over taking out his enemy, there wouldn’t have been time to get her out. Cooper and Uncle Ian would almost certainly have tried and likely died when the house came apart, falling in on itself. Parker had saved more than one life.

The rest of the team was meeting with CSIS, but she couldn’t sit through another round of what Uncle Ian called debriefs.

She would rather sit here and wait for Parker to wake up. It had been a close thing. He’d been in surgery for hours, the doctors working to save his liver. She’d been told he would come through with minimal damage, but he would have to rest.

Carys rather thought the Canadian operative wouldn’t listen to doctors.

She’d been surprised no one had visited him. Only a young man who’d introduced himself as Tim. He’d checked on Ben and then he’d gone off to the debrief, too.

Was Ben Parker a lonely Captain Ahab, constantly chasing after his white whale? How much had he given up to try to take down Huisman?

Of course after spending some time with the doctor she rather thought Parker was right.

“Hey, is he still out?” Aidan walked in carrying two coffees. “I checked his chart. All of his vitals are strong. He’s a tough son of a bitch. He carried her down a steep flight of stairs with two bullets in him.”

“The man deserves some rest. I want to stay here until he wakes up. I don’t want him to wake up alone,” she whispered back. “Any word from Tris?”

In the chaos she hadn’t had a chance to really talk to him. She’d been working with Aidan to save Parker’s life, and then the team had met with CSIS to clear up all the details that came with a house blowing up in the middle of Toronto. And there were all the bodies…

“I think they’re finishing up,” Aidan replied. “He said he would be here within the hour. Ian wants to leave this evening. Hopefully Parker wakes up soon because I got the feeling they’re planning on picking us up and taking us all straight to the airport.”

They’d been left out again, though this time they’d chosen to stay in their world—the hospital—rather than going into Tristan’s. This time it didn’t feel like he was leaving them behind. They’d been given the choice, and it was easy to trust him now. “Any news about Zach?”

The whole team seemed sick at the idea of Zach’s betrayal. Though Tristan hadn’t exactly put it like that. He’d said Zach was in trouble.

They just didn’t know what the trouble was.

“He didn’t say,” Aidan replied. “We’re going to have to sit down and talk, Carys. I know you’ve been through a lot, and if you need some time, we’ll give it to you.”

The door came open and there was Tris. He’d showered and changed clothes and still looked tired and rumpled and so beautiful. “Hey. Is he doing okay?”

She needed to make a few things plain to him. To both of them. She walked straight up to Tristan and wrapped her arms around him. “Parker is okay, but I’m not. Tris, I should have been exactly the woman you said I was. I should have found you and dragged your ass back home. At least then we would have talked. I shut down because somewhere deep inside I always thought we would fail. I always thought something as amazing as what we have couldn’t possibly last. You should understand I’m never letting you pull this shit on me again, Master.”

A long, shuddering sigh went through Tristan, and he held on to her tightly. “Never. I told you, I’m done playing the spy. I’m a happy tech who will hang with Lou and Tash and make sure Ms. Magenta gets out alive.”

“Is she?” a deep voice asked.

Aidan immediately moved toward the bed where Parker was waking up. “Go slow, man. You’ve had a serious surgery. One of the bullets lodged in your liver. The good news is you didn’t lose it, but you’ve got a long recovery ahead.”

“I heal pretty quickly.” Parker groaned but shifted so he could see Tristan. “I ask again. Is she alive?”

Carys started to let go, but Tristan’s arms held her. “Ms. Magenta is alive, thanks to you. I’m sorry to say Dr. Huisman is gone. We believe he left the country a few hours ago. We were minutes behind him.”

Parker nodded, scrubbing a hand over his head as though trying to clear it. “Yeah, he had a way out. I should have… Well, let’s say he knew exactly what buttons to push. He knew I wouldn’t leave her behind.”

“How much did you hear?” Tristan asked.

The amount of information about the team Parker might have learned from the conversation Huisman had been having with Tristan was of some concern.

“Uhm, I managed to get into place when Manny went off on his misogynist bullshit. I couldn’t see well. Was he going to take her fingers off?” Parker coughed and put a hand to his chest.

“I don’t even want to think about that. Ever again.” Aidan shook his head.

“Yes, he was going to do exactly that.” Tristan rubbed his cheek against her head as though he needed the closeness to remind him they were alive and whole. “You saved more than Ms. Magenta. You saved my fiancée, and I’ll be eternally grateful, Parker. Anything you need, all you have to do is ask. I think you’ll find the Agency is now taking the threat seriously. CSIS as well. My boss is meeting with yours right now. I believe he’s planning on coming down to Langley in a couple of days to talk further.”

“I’ll be there if they’ll let me,” Parker vowed.

So stubborn. “Or you could rest and let your body heal.”

“See, that would be reasonable, and I happen to know he’s not reasonable.” The door had come open again, and her cousin stood there.

Kenzie not Kala, because she happened to know Kala was already on her way back to Dallas. Cooper had bundled her up after she’d woken and Carys had decided she was stable enough to travel. She was on her way home where they would assess her to try to figure out what Huisman had given her and if the experimental drugs had any long-term effects.

So it was Kenzie walking in, looking lovely in slacks and a silk blouse. Her heels clicked across the floor as she entered and moved to Parker’s bed.

“You look no worse for the wear.” Parker sounded wary.

“Oh, I assure you I’ll never forget what he did to me.” Kenzie stopped at his bedside. “Or what you did.” She leaned over, brushing a kiss over his forehead. “Thank you, Benjamin Parker. I can’t imagine what it cost you to let him go.”

When she started to move away, he caught her hand, bringing it to his chest. “I would make the same choice again, Maggie. I don’t care if you think you belong to Cooper McKay. I would still come for you.”

Kenzie’s lips curled up, and she nodded. “I’ll remember.” Then she disentangled her hand from his and moved back to the door. “Try to get some rest, Ben. You’ll need it the next time we meet.”

Parker’s eyes never left her. “How about you try not to kill me next time?”

Kenzie winked his way. “I won’t. Promise.” She looked to Tristan. “We’re wheels up in half an hour, so we need to get to the airport.”

Aidan took Carys’s hand and Tristan the other. They followed her cousin out.

It was time to go home.