Chapter 11
ALEX
Alex flicked his gaze sideways to eye his wife as she rode next to him. His fingers reached out to wrap around her hand, squeezing it. She twisted to face him, offering him a soft smile.
The news he’d received about the secret she’d been hiding hadn’t been at all what he’d expected. He’d spent so much time thinking Ava would leave him for someone else, he’d never stopped to consider a universe where she’d leave him because she was sick.
But clearly something was wrong with her. Something happened that had been big enough for her to report it to Kyle, to ask for his help.
Alex’s mind spiraled into dark places, imagining a future where he might have to face life without Ava. The thought alone was paralyzing. What if this was something serious? What if he couldn’t protect her, not just from The Board but from whatever was happening to her body?
Facing this potential crisis was enough for both of them, particularly when they had just started a new phase in their relationship, but coupled with dealing with The Board…it seemed even more daunting.
He didn’t like the daring new plan they’d come up with in a desperate attempt to locate and retrieve Sebastian Bancroft–a man he never liked nor trusted.
“I wouldn’t be surprised at all if he’s not behind this. If this whole thing hasn’t been some kind of set-up,” Alex had argued when they’d discussed how they would move forward.
“Why would he do that?” Ava shot back. “Ace, I get that you don’t like him, but this makes no sense. Why would he go through all of this trouble to lure us all to this location now? He could have easily done this when Miranda had you hostage.”
She had a good point, he had to admit, but his dislike for the man was so strong, it blurred his crystal-clear vision about anything surrounding him.
“She makes a good point,” Kyle said. “Sebastian has–for the most part–helped us and given us no reason to doubt him.”
“Miranda, on the other hand, has given us every reason to doubt her.” Ava crossed her arms. “Which is the only reason I’m questioning this. I’m afraid of what she’s trying to pull here, but we can’t leave Shadow.”
Alex grimaced, crossing his arms tightly. “I mean, we can. He was literally her boss.”
“And now she’s trying to pull a coup over on him.
Alex, if we rescue him, we may be able to turn some of the tides here.
He could take out the part of The Board that’s loyal to Miranda.
She’s one of our biggest threats because it’s personal for her.
If we can get her out of the picture, we may have a shot at taking down the rest of them. ”
Alex plopped onto the couch, rubbing his forehead. “You’re right. Miranda is a bigger problem. At least we can half trust Shadow. We can’t trust her at all. She’s blatantly out to get us.”
“Yeah, she hates me, and I think she actually hates you too,” Ava said, poking a finger at Alex. “But she totally would have used you to get you to do her bidding.”
“I know, I know,” Alex answered. “I just don’t like charging into this place when we have no idea what’s going on.”
“We’re not charging in,” Ava said. “We’re sending Chris to charge in with a camera so we can assess and plan.”
Chris raised a finger in the air. “Does anyone care that I’m not super cool with this plan?”
“No,” the other three answered at the same time.
He slumped back in the chair. “Right, of course not.”
“Come on, Chris,” Ava said with a sigh. “You’re the only option here. Believe me, if I could do this, I would.”
“But you can’t, Avs,” Alex answered. “Not only are you not a supposed member of the new coven of The Board, but also you hate her, and you two fight all the time.”
“I can’t help it. Anyway, yes, Chris is the only option.”
“I’m just…can I have a gun?” Chris asked, his voice a little whiny.
Ava tugged her chin back. “A gun? Will she let you have a gun?”
“She has a gun,” Chris retorted.
“Duh, but I don’t see her letting you plow in there with a gun.” Ava pressed her lips together as she assessed the statement.
“What am I supposed to do if something goes wrong? I mean, what if this is a trap?” Chris asked, his voice growing more panicked with each word.
“You didn’t think it was when you got off the phone with her,” Alex shot back. “You were all excited that you pulled your coup, and you were being invited back into the inner sanctum.”
“Well, now, I’m not, okay? I’m allowed to change my mind.”
“We’re going to have to camera him. We need to keep tabs on this and be ready to go in there if we have to.”
“Or not,” Alex said with a shrug.
Ava shot him an unimpressed glance. “Alex…”
“Joking,” he said with a shake of his head. “But no guns for me because I can’t deal with that. I will provide topside tech support and let you and Doc do the shooting.”
“Sounds good to me. Do you think we need Grant?” Ava asked.
“It wouldn’t hurt to have some extra fire power,” Kyle said with a shrug.
“All right,” Ava answered as she rose. “Then we have our plan. Get the van ready, I’ll grab the guns and bring Grant up to speed. We leave in ten.”
Alex’s mind snapped back to the present as he followed Chris’s car at a safe distance. With any luck, they’d soon have information on Sebastian. Hopefully they wouldn’t need to burst into the facility, guns blazing, but they were prepared if that’d to happen.
A quick assessment showed a veritable black box.
He’d barely gotten a look at the sprawling but nondescript location from the satellite he’d quickly commandeered to spy on the address.
They were going in blind, and he didn’t like it at all, but there wasn’t much they could do.
Hopefully, whatever they got from Chris’s camera would provide them with enough information to use in the future.
He pulled his hand from Ava’s, tightening his grip on the wheel until his knuckles turned white as he glanced in the side mirror, spotting Kyle following the van in his SUV.
A moment later, Chris’s car turned off. Ava shifted in her seat as she watched him head toward to location as they continued down the road, heading for a discreet hiding spot where they’d be close, but remain hidden.
“There he goes,” she murmured.
“Yeah,” Alex answered, his jaw tight.
She snapped her gaze to him. “Alex, tell me you’re not still upset that I care if he dies or not.”
Alex flicked his gaze to her before he returned it to the road ahead, his foot lifting off the gas a little. “No. I’m not upset. I think it’s amazing that you still care about him. Annoying, but amazing.”
“Sorry, Ace,” she said, leaning over to kiss his cheek.
“I’m not upset about that…it’s all this uncertainty. The Board, our strategy with them, and this weird health thing with you.”
“If it helps at all, I’m feeling okay. No weird hot flashes or black vision even when things were tense earlier.”
“Let’s hope it stays that way.”
She rubbed his shoulder, offering him a warm smile. “Or that it’s just something simple. Like a vitamin deficiency.”
He eased off the accelerator again and pulled the van off the road into a grove of trees. Kyle followed behind, tucking the SUV out of sight, too.
He and Grant climbed from the car as Ava and Alex left their seats and headed for the back of the van. Alex climbed inside and plopped into the chair in front of his laptop, tugging it open.
As he toggled on his monitoring, Chris’s voice filled the back of the van. “Hellooooo?”
Alex rolled his eyes. “Yes, we’re here. Give me a minute, will you?”
“Well, I can only pretend to stare at my phone for so long before this becomes suspicious.”
“Chris, just get going. We’re in position and ready,” Ava said.
“Wait, wait,” Alex said, his voice rushed. “Turn on the device I gave you. I want to try to get into the security system there.”
“Yeah, no problem. I’ll risk my life so you can have a bird’s eye view.”
Alex detected the device as a notification flashed onto his screen. “Got it. Okay, let’s hope it works because this gives us way more than a bird’s eye view.”
“I know. I’m–” His words cut off as the doors to the facility burst open.
Miranda strode toward Chris, her features set. “You’re late.”
“Not exactly,” Chris shot back. “You barely texted me the address in time for me to get here.”
“You’re supposed to be proving yourself–”
“Stop there,” Chris said. “I’m not supposed to be doing anything. You’re the one who dropped the ball here. I’m giving you the chance. Not the other way around.”
“He’s going to get himself killed,” Alex said with a pucker of his lips.
Ava leaned over Alex’s shoulder, eyeing the expression on Miranda’s face from the camera on Chris’s collar. “You’ve got to give him props, though. He apologizes to no one. Not even a woman he knows is capable of kidnapping and killing.”
“Not so sure that’s a good thing right now,” Alex murmured.
“It’s keeping him alive. Let’s hope it stays that way,” Ava said.
“Well,” Miranda said as she motioned toward the door, “I think you’ll be pretty pleased with what I have to show you then.”
“Lead the way,” Chris said
As he followed behind Miranda, Alex’s fingers flew across the key, activating the monitoring device he’d sent in with Chris. With any luck, he could crack their system and they’d have no more need for a man on the inside.
“So, uh, how are you feeling? You know, after you got shot?” Chris asked as they entered a starkly lit hallway.
“Fine,” she answered, her voice a little strained.
“Okay, they’re making a right at the first hallway,” Ava noted. “Ace, are you getting anywhere with getting into their system?”
“Not yet,” he said with a shake of his head. “I didn’t think this would be easy, and of course, it’s not.”
Every second felt like a ticking bomb as Alex’s fingers flew across the keys.
The security system was more sophisticated than he’d anticipated, layers of encryption that he hadn’t seen before.
Sweat beaded on his forehead as he pushed harder, knowing that every moment wasted was a step closer to disaster.
Ava rubbed his shoulders. “You got this, Ace.”
Chris sighed audibly through their earpieces.
“Something wrong?” Miranda asked as they hung a left in the labyrinthine passages of the building.
“Just wondering what you’re taking me to see. I’m getting a little irritated with all the secrecy.”
“Sorry, not sorry that our clandestine organization has secrets.”
“Yeah, well, you promised me a top spot. I expect there to be no secrets from me.”
“And there won’t be,” Miranda said as she stopped outside a door and twisted to face Chris. “After you have proven that you deserve that spot.”
“Whoa, whoa, wait a minute. Here we go ahead with me proving myself. You’re the one who has to prove yourself to me.”
“And I will,” she answered, raising her chin, “with what’s on the other side of this door. Once you see it, my loyalty will be proven. Then you’ll prove yours. And then we’ll move forward together, with you in the top spot. Got it?”
Chris heaved another sigh. “I guess so. Lead the way.”
Alex’s heart hammered in his chest as hard as his fingers pounded against the keys. Time was running out. He needed to get into the security system before Chris was faced with an impossible decision.
“Chris, don’t agree to anything, okay? And use the call sign if you need us to come in,” Ava said as Miranda typed a code into the keypad.
Chris shifted so they could catch the tail end of it in case they needed it.
The door swung open, revealing a darkened space. Miranda flicked the lights on. They shone down on a figure huddled on a cot in the corner. A thick metal cuff was clamped around their ankle and attached to a bulky chain that attached to the floor.
Alex’s stomach clenched as he recognized Sebastian Bancroft. Ava had been correct. Miranda had the man prisoner.
“I give you our mole,” Miranda said as she stepped inside and swung the door shut.
“The mole?” Chris asked. “Was Sebastian?”
Miranda bobbed her head. “Yes.”
“Who else knows about this?”
“Just us and those loyal to us right now.”
“What information did you get out of him,” Chris asked.
“None. And not for lack of trying as you can see. He’s useless to us.”
“So, what you want me to do? Get information out of him as my show of loyalty?”
Miranda shook her head before she withdrew a weapon and held it out toward him. “I want you to kill him.”
Alex’s heart stopped for a second at the words. They were asking Chris to do something impossible. How would he get out of this alive?