Chapter 58 Carter
Carter
The plan was simple on paper. Get in, cut Graves off at the knees, burn down the network before another contract went out.
But nothing about this was simple.
I studied the map one more time, committing every angle and exit to memory. River and Gideon debated logistics quietly, and Cyclone checked weapons and ammo. The rhythm was familiar—pre-op hum, the calm before the storm.
Except this time, the storm had Harper’s name on it.
I looked at her across the table. She sat straighter than I expected, her hands folded tight in her lap, but her eyes didn’t waver.
She was listening to every word, memorizing every detail.
She didn’t flinch when River talked about probable body counts.
She didn’t blink when Gideon laid out backup plans.
She wasn’t a civilian in this moment. She was part of us.
And that terrified me more than anything.
When the meeting broke, the others slipping into their quiet rituals of preparation, I lingered by the door, waiting until she came to me. She slid her hand into mine without hesitation, tilting her head back to meet my gaze.
“You’ll come back to me,” she said. Not a question. A demand.
My throat tightened. God, I wanted to give her that promise. But I’d buried too many men to lie with easy words.
So I pressed my forehead to hers, my voice rough. “I’ll fight like hell to make sure of it.”
Her breath caught, but she nodded, accepting it for what it was.
As she pulled away, I felt the familiar steel settle over me. The soldier snapped back into place. The man who loved her would have to wait.
Because in a few hours, Graves was going to find out what it meant to threaten Harper.
And I’d make damn sure he regretted ever saying her name.