Delta Salvation (Phantom Force, Book 1) (8 page)

“I’m afraid we got some issues on the inside here. Oz is down, but Sully has him. Gotta go.”

The sound of tires squealing and gunshots could be heard.

To give him credit, JoJo nodded, quickly pressing buttons. The snick of locks going into place were reassuring.

Tay looked up from his laptop. “I got the van. They dumped it about two blocks from here. Two figures got out. I’m guessing they left Blake inside. Let’s go.”

“You’re coming with us. Any stupid moves, kid, and I’ll kill you without blinking an eye. Feel me?” Kai didn’t raise his voice, letting the threat show in his eyes. He’d killed many in the name of his country and if he had to kill a fellow officer, he’d hate to do it, but he’d do it.

“Trust me, I’ll kill for Blake. We’re on the same side, Captain.” JoJo shrugged out of the suit jacket he wore as a concierge, leaving him in the fitted black shirt and slacks.

Kai and Tay had on their fatigues, looking much more suited for the operation, but knew JoJo was every bit as much up for the task as them. He nodded and waved him forward. “You got a rig?”

“Oh, yeah.”

They followed out the side and into the garage, looking each way before entering. All three slid out silent as wraiths. The midnight Hummer wasn’t exactly going to blend, but Kai approved none the less. The blacked out windows would keep any from seeing who was inside, but he paused as did Tay.

JoJo sighed. “Fuck, you are some untrusting ones.”

“You’ve no clue. Open the doors, and make it quick. Times a ticking.” Kai waited, his gun in hand, with Tay at his back.

“Keys.” Kai held his hand out.

“Dammit. Why can’t I drive?” JoJo groused but handed them over.

“Let’s go. I have the coordinates. What’s going on with our team?” Tay climbed into the back, his phone in hand.

“Oz is hurt, but Sully has him. Coyle is in pursuit of the shooter. Get a lock on him while you’re at it.” Kai swore under his breath. This was supposed to be an easy in and out mission. Check up on the girl and find the bad guy. What was so important about Alexa Gordon?

He followed Tay’s directions, finding the van in the alley he’d seen on the footage was easy. Kai scanned the perimeter before getting out. “Tay, I want you on my six. JoJo, I need you to stay here until we know what we’re facing.”

“Fuck that. He’s my partner.”

“Which is why you will stay here and guard our backs. Don’t argue, JoJo.” Kai pushed open the door at the same time as Tay, their guns were out as they approached the vehicle. As Kai looked around, Tay ran a bomb detector along the entire van. “It’s clear,” Tay announced.

Finding the back doors locked didn’t surprise them, what did was the lack of tinting. He could see the downed Blake lying inside, his chest moving up and down, but the amount of blood pouring from his head worried him. “Call for a bus,” Kai yelled over his shoulder.

He and Tay made eye contact, then with efficiency, he got the door open. Tay stayed outside, back to the vehicle while Kai climbed in. He felt a pulse, thready but there. A glance around Blake’s body and he found no other wounds, but they weren’t sure what had been injected into him. “He’s alive, but we need to get him out of here.”

The inside of the vehicle had been hollowed out except for the two bucket seats in the front, making Kai wonder why they’d abandoned it.

Sirens getting louder had Kai hopping down. “Damn it. We don’t have time to waste. JoJo, I need you to stay with Blake.”

JoJo nodded. “Yes, sir.”

The operative did as told without argument, meaning he cared more for his downed team member, or it was a testament to the fact he was dirty. Either way, Kai figured they’d find out sooner rather than later.

“I’ll return your rig when we can.”

Again, JoJo nodded.

Kai and Tay climbed into the Hummer, making tracks to the building where his own team was. “You realize this has become a shitfest, right?”

Kai turned the corner, passing an ambulance in route.

“Yep. Think that was a set up?” Tay tilted his head backward.

“Well, if it was, they fucked their own guy in the process, and JoJo was a supreme actor. Like Oscar material. I tagged both men, so we can keep tabs on them.”

“What about Lee, can we trust him?”

The Commander was the highest ranking officer, but for Jase Tyler to have escaped from a federal prison, he had to have had help. At the very least, Kai needed to think anyone could have been in on it. He and his teams lives depended on him being prepared for all situations.

“We will trust him until we can’t. For now it’s us five, and keeping Lee abreast of the situation as well.” Using the voice command on his phone, he had Commander Lee’s secretary on the line moments before they pulled into the underground car park across from the Steinem Building.

“What the hell is going on? I got a call from A1 Apartments informing me you locked it down, and that one of the other team members is down, and enroute to the hospital. This was supposed to be a covert op, not a mission our entire nation is gonna hear about.”

He pinched the bridge of his nose. “Commander, this was not what I wanted either. I’m calling to apprise you of the situation. I’ll give you an update when I have one, sir.”

“Status?”

The barked order made Kai want to tell the man to go fuck himself, but self-preservation won out. In as few words as possible, leaving out his emotions, he explained what happened, and what they knew.

“Is the woman in league with Tyler?”

Kai met Tay’s eyes before answering. “That is what we plan to find out, sir. I’ll keep you abreast of what we find. You need to send backup to the hospital. This was a professional hit on Blake. We need to know what the hell we’re facing. Tyler may have his hands a lot deeper than we’d initially thought.” Kai wished he could see the Commander’s face when he dropped that bombshell.

“I’ve already figured that out, soldier.”

To be called soldier, was taking him down a couple notches. Or, he was reminding Kai he was in charge. Either way, Kai didn’t give the man the satisfaction of a response. Silence tended to unnerve most people.

“Keep me updated, and for fucksake, don’t blow up anything we can’t blame on a natural god damn disaster.” Commander Lee hung up.

Tay laughed as he slapped his thigh. “I hate that asshole.”

Grunting, Kai pulled the rig into the underground garage, using the access badge they’d secured the day before.

“Can you locate our girl’s car under all this concrete?”

Tay gave him a droll look as his finger was already moving over his computer. “Childs play, Captain.”

He listened to the directions his friend gave him, locating Alexa’s little Honda amongst the expensive vehicles. Kai gazed around the packed lot, finding a larger space near the elevator, and backed into the spot with the rear end as close to the concrete wall as possible. He made sure he and Tay had enough room on both sides to get in and out easily. They were always prepared for any situation.

“Let’s try to get in and out without anyone seeing us.”

Tay looked at both their attires, then raised his blond brows. “Kai, we’re in fatigues. Pretty sure everyone in there is in suits.”

“Shit, you know what I mean.”

Raising both his hands, Tay smiled. “Hey, Oz and Coyle are the ones who like to shoot first. I always make friends.”

Kai grunted as he opened the door, scanning the parking area.

“I won’t remind you of that one time in Belize.”

“Now, that is just rude. I don’t bring up all the times you’ve...” They both went quiet as the elevator pinged.

He and Tay slid along the side, becoming as silent as mice, watching two women get off and walk down the rows of cars, disappearing out of sight. They waited until they couldn’t hear or see either before moving toward the elevator. Using the access card, they stepped inside and pushed the button for Alexa’s floor.

Nerves jumped in his stomach, but he assured himself it was from anticipating the thrill of the mission, and nothing to do with seeing the woman again.

Each man stood on one side of the elevator, using the small bit of the opening as protection. Kai was the first to step out once he felt sure there was no imminent danger to him or his teammate. The young woman at the front desk didn’t spare them a glance, and Kai took note of her name and appearance. Tay’s unobtrusive picture taking went completely unnoticed as well, making Kai shake his head. How the hell this was supposed to be a secure building he had no clue.

Tay shrugged, strolling after Kai. “That was too fucking easy, man.”

“Yeah. My neck is itching.”

Never a good sign.

“Think the girl is in on it. Our girl, not just the girl at the desk?” Tay tilted his head to the side.

Kai’s gut said no, but he hadn’t made it to thirty-one years of age by not thinking of all possibilities. “There are no metal detectors. No security guards. And the chick at the desk didn’t even look up. I mean her conversation was about her boyfriend, but still...”

The offices they passed had glass walls with the doors open. Most were occupied, and the occupants paid no mind to them as they passed.

“She’s in the large open area at the end. Sounds like it’s full of civilians. Feel like doing a remake of the movie where you sweep her off her feet and whisk her off into the sunset?” Tay whispered.

“I’m not in the right outfit.” Kai stopped at the front of the area, scanning over the partitions, looking for one dark haired beauty with amethyst eyes. The cubicles were chest high, but from his vantage he could see most everyone. After a few seconds, he found the one he was searching for, and began to move in her direction. Whispers started, but he and Tay ignored them.

****

A
lexa stared at her screen. She wasn’t sure how she could stretch out the work to last a full eight hours without going crazy. Her boss had said she could bring a book in to read surreptitiously, and for that she was grateful. Tonight she’d head to the library and check out a few. She loved to read, but hadn’t had time or money to do so in a long time.

She smiled as she thought of the ones she hoped would be available. An increase in noise had her looking up, but the three walls around her kept her from seeing anything. The others had decorated their little spaces with family photos, making her ache for things she didn’t have. Alexa pushed aside old hurts and concentrated on what she’d do to make her cubicle more cheerful.

Realizing people were getting more excited, she rolled her chair to the entrance and looked out, nearly falling over backward when she saw the last man she’d ever thought to see again, striding toward her. His long legs eating up the space like he owned it.

God, he was gorgeous with a capital G. Alexa licked her lips, and realized he was coming right to where she sat ogling him. It took her a minute to bring her eyes up to his face. Damn it she had to stop drooling. His own dark eyes were fierce as they took her in.

Why the hell was he angry? “Hello, guys. What can I do for you?” Alexa was proud she didn’t stutter once.

Kai blinked. “We need to speak with you in private, Ms. Gordon.”

She sat frozen as he stopped a couple inches from where she sat. With his legs braced apart, his arms held loosely at his side, he made quite the intimidating picture. “Um, I don’t know.”

“That wasn’t a question, but a statement, Alexa,” Kai said.

Hell, she wasn’t sure what to do or say. Her first thought was
Yes, sir. May I have another?
But that seemed totally inappropriate, especially when he looked ready to do serious harm to her person. “There’s a break room around the corner.”

Alexa waited until he took a step back, then stood up. She straightened her pencil skirt, grabbed her purse from under the desk and then led the way, feeling both men’s eyes on her the entire way.

Once inside, she placed a table between them. “Okay, what’s going on? Did Danny contact you? Is he back? Oh, god, did he do something to Marley?” Her knees got weak thinking of the only woman who’d ever helped her.

“No on all accounts,” Kai answered.

“Thank you, Jesus. Then why are you here?” She placed her palm over her heart, feeling like it was about to pound out of her chest.

“What do you know about Jase Tyler?” Kai fired the question at her.

That was the last thing she’d expected him to ask her. “I’ve already told you everything I know about him the last time you questioned me. What has he done now? Who is he? I mean I thought he was Ma’am’s number one thug?” She shrugged. “He was nice enough, but always watchful. I don’t think he actually liked the leader, but they worked together. I tried to stay out of both of their way, and do as I was told. I wasn’t there long enough to know more than that.”

“Did you ever talk to him?” Kai placed his hands on the table, bringing his face closer to hers.

Alexa reared back. “Listen, I don’t know what you think happened there, but I was not in the know on anything. I was lucky to survive with my life.” She hated that her voice quivered. Hated that they were bringing back memories she was trying to bury.

Kai turned away. “That man is a traitor to our country.”

She swiped a tear away. “Seriously? He seemed nice. I mean...” She stopped at the fury blazing from both Kai and Tay’s faces. “Hey, I don’t know his history. All I have to go on is the fact he stepped in and saved me when Ma’am almost beat me for not keeping up in an exercise training the second day. Do I have Stockholm syndrome? Hell, I don’t think so, but who the hell knows. I’m pretty sure I need a therapist, but you are not one, so leave me alone please.” She collapsed in a chair, glad one was behind her.

“Kai, let’s look at it from her side here. She has been through a lot in a short time.” The other man said.

“Leave her alone? Her life, our lives may depend on something she may not even know she is aware of. I’m sorry, Ms. Gordon, but you’re going to have to come with us.”

She looked up to see Kai had walked around the table and now stood right in front of her. She had to stop taking her eyes off the big man. Shaking herself out of the stupor she regained her feet. “Listen, I’m a U.S. citizen, and as such, I have rights. You can’t just waltz in here and take me away without my consent.” There, that made her feel better. She wasn’t out in the middle of nowhere on some property where no one would hear her screams for help.