Chapter 23
Twenty-Three
Logan
Logan Black stands in the middle of the dusty street, his body rigid with barely contained rage.
A semicircle of soldiers surrounds him; their assault rifles trained on his chest. His finger twitches against the trigger of his sidearm.
These men don't understand who they're dealing with.
Walker was right there. Right fucking there.
After years of searching, the ghost had materialized before him, and now these idiots are preventing him from following.
Logan counts silently. Six soldiers. He could take them all out in seconds. Three headshots before they even register movement. The others would hesitate. They always do, giving him time to drop the remaining three. To most, violence was a moral problem. For Logan, it was math.
"You need to move out of my way," Logan says, his voice unnaturally calm despite his rage.
"Sir, we have orders not to let anyone through," the lead soldier responds, his voice betraying a slight tremor.
"Fuck your orders. I’m charged with finding her and bringing her back. That’s what I’m going to do." Logan takes a half-step forward, and all six weapons adjust their aim in unison.
The whirring of helicopter blades cuts through the tension. Logan doesn't need to look up to know who's arrived. The soldiers' postures subtly shift.
Seconds later, a sharp female voice slices through the standoff. "What's going on here?"
Isla Graves stalks toward them, her tailored suit somehow immaculate despite the swirling dust. Her eyes move between Logan and the soldiers, assessing the situation with cold detachment.
"Director Graves," the lead soldier acknowledges, not lowering his weapon.
Logan turns to face her, contempt written across his features, and the soldiers tighten their grips on their weapons. "These men are preventing me from completing my mission. I'm going to kill them if they don't move."
"That would be unfortunate," Isla says coolly. "Particularly since these men are under my direct orders not to let anyone through."
Logan's eyes narrow. "I do the job until it’s done."
"I gave you the job. You do it the way I say."
"They were right here," Logan snarls, gesturing toward the diner's smoking remains. "I had them. Walker was five feet from me before he triggered those explosives."
"Walker? Who’s Walker?”
Logan sighs. He’s given away too much. Graves’s eyes narrow, piecing it together. Logan doesn’t say anything. He doesn’t need to.
She turns to the soldiers. "Give us the room."
The men hesitate, exchanging glances.
"Now," Graves adds, her tone brooking no argument.
The soldiers reluctantly lower their rifles and back away, disappearing into the chaos still trying to be extinguished.
"Walker Cole," Isla says once they're alone, testing the name on her tongue. "I thought he was dead."
“People thought the same about me. We’re not easy to kill. He's helping the girl. And you're letting them slip away by keeping me from chasing them."
"You had a whole country in which to find them, and you failed," she states, her tone flat.
Logan’s fists clench at his sides. "I didn’t know someone like me was helping her. That changes everything."
“Someone better than you?” Graves says with a raised eyebrow.
Logan grits his teeth. “Not better.”
“Well, he seems to keep outwitting you.”
“I could have already had them. I would have blocked these tunnels if I had known about them so he wouldn’t have been able to escape. Where do they go? What is this place?”
Graves assesses him coolly for a moment. “This country is addicted to violence. Getting high. Sex. We simply provide that while being able to track who and where it happens. A lot of useful information is gathered and possible threats tracked and solved before they grow into bigger problems.”
Logan’s eyes narrow. “You traffic people?”
“We did. We paused when Ms. Barrett made her discovery. We were just transporting weapons and drugs.” Graves looks outside at the wreckage. “We’ll have to put that on hold as well now.”
“Then get these men out of my way. I’ll have them within a couple of days.”
Graves looks Logan up and down. “I can’t risk having you in Mexico."
Logan stalks toward her. Graves doesn’t flinch. “Maybe I don’t care. Maybe I’ll kill all your soldiers and go through that tunnel anyway.”
“And then what? You get your revenge…” Graves moves closer, looking up at Logan but not at all intimidated by him or his size.
“But I’ll cut you loose. No more missions.
No more sanctioned killing. You’ll have to run and hide.
” Logan just glares at her. Graves smiles.
"I know what you are, Logan. You need the violence. It’s your medium.
And you can’t practice your art in the way you want to without. Me."
Logan’s voice is low and lethal. "I want Walker. And if you want the girl, you need me. This is only a taste of what he’s capable of. If you think these men can capture them, you’re mistaken. He will chew through whatever you send his way.”
Graves smoothly raises an eyebrow. “Unless I send you?”
“I’m the only one who can.”
Graves scoffs and shakes her head. "Here, we just control a town," she explains coldly. "There? The cartel controls an army."
“It’s going to take one to stop him.”
“We’ll see,” Graves says dismissively. “Get this place cleaned up,” she orders the men outside. She levels Logan with a glare. “And then clear out anyone who doesn’t belong here.”