Chapter Thirty-Two #2
Aiden looked at us both. “Sophie, I think this is a shit idea. I'm not going to try to stop you but—”
“Aiden, we don't have time for this,” Cooper reminded him.
“I know. Give me a minute with Gage.” He looked to me, then to Cooper. “Get her suited up. I'll get Gage on board, and then we'll go.” He walked out the front door, leaving me alone with Cooper.
“For the record,” Cooper said, “I don't like this idea much better than they do. But we need some help to take him down. And if anyone else goes in there, he'll shoot on sight.”
“I can't let him hurt Amelia,” I said. “I can live with a lot, but I can't live with that.”
“Then let's get to work,” he said, scanning me from head to toe. I wore a long sleeve button-down, jeans, and a pair of white canvas sneakers. “Go change into a sweater. Something thick and loose fitting. Be fast.”
I took off down the hall to my room, unbuttoning my shirt as I ran.
By the time I got back to the front hall, Aiden and Gage had returned, and Cooper had a long black duffel bag open on the floor.
He pulled out a stiff black thing that I guessed was the bulletproof vest and handed it to Gage.
“Get this on her. The wire is already attached.”
Without a word Gage crowded me into the corner of the front hall, shielding my body from view with his bigger frame and said, “Pull your arms out of your sleeves, and lift up your sweater.”
I did as he instructed and stood still, letting him fasten the vest over my shoulders and around my torso with efficient motions that told me he’d done this more than once.
I opened my mouth twice to say something. Anything. No words came out. Gage couldn't seem to look at me.
When he was done, he tugged my sweater back into place and turned to join the others. I followed, surprised to hear him say, “I'm taking the shot.”
“Gage, I've got a guy in position –”
“I'm taking the shot, Cooper. You're not sending her in there and leaving me sitting in a van two blocks away. Fuck that. I'm taking the shot. You don't have a single guy on your team better than me.”
“You're not a sniper,” Cooper argued.
“You don't need a sniper. You need a guy who can take a shot through a window at medium-range without endangering hostages. What the fuck do you think I've been doing for the last ten years?”
Cooper lifted his chin in the direction of the stairs and said, “Change out of that rig and grab what you need. The clock is ticking. Meet us in the car.”
Gage flew up the stairs. I barely had my seatbelt on when he came out the front door and slid into the backseat of Cooper's oversize SUV beside Aiden. He'd changed into a muddy green, long-sleeved T-shirt, khaki cargo pants, and was carrying a gun.
Gage didn't say a word as he buckled his own seatbelt. Cooper had me sitting in the front so he could spend the drive giving me instructions, most of which revolved around not getting myself killed.
Aiden and Gage sat in the backseat in silence, the weight of their disapproval pressing on me. My chest ached, worse every time Gage refused to meet my eyes in the rearview mirror. I didn’t know if he’d forgive me for this.
If I were in his shoes, I’d be furious. I don't know if I’d understand. I'd like to think I would, but the idea of Gage putting himself in danger turned my stomach. I understood why he was angry, why he might not forgive me, but I had to do it.
I couldn't let Anthony hurt Amelia any more than he already had. Maybe he would shoot me. It was possible, but I was pretty sure that wasn't his plan. I doubted he'd guess I'd called for help. Anthony would think I'd done as I was told, too scared and too stupid to defy him.
I was scared, but I wasn't stupid. And I was done with doing what I was told.
Amelia had been right. I'd endured, and I'd waited for a chance. My patience had been rewarded, and I'd gotten that chance when Anthony had played dead. I wasn't giving it up.
If Anthony wanted me back badly enough to kidnap Amelia Winters, he wasn't going to stop. This had to end now, and I wouldn't let it end with Amelia's death. Not if I could help it.
My hands were shaking, and I felt sick to my stomach, but I knew what I had to do. I looked down at the tablet Cooper had shoved into my hands. On it was a rough sketch of the garage, showing the lines of sight from the windows and Amelia's position.
The rear window, where Cooper's guy kept watch on Amelia, was the only one without a camera. Probably because the approach was blocked by another building and the window was high on the wall. Anthony must have assumed no one could get up there anyway.
Gage would. As I studied the sketch, I saw exactly where I needed to move Anthony so Gage could take his shot.
We got there with thirteen minutes to spare. Cooper stopped the SUV two blocks away, behind a midsize tan sedan. A man dressed in black combat gear got out of the sedan and walked to the driver side door of Cooper's SUV.
Cooper rolled down the window and accepted a set of keys and the man in combat gear jogged off.
Cooper handed me the keys and said, “We can’t approach from the front.
We’re going to leave you here. Get in the sedan, count to a hundred, and drive up two blocks.
The garage will be on your right. Number fifteen eighty-two. ”
I nodded and took the keys, unfastening my seatbelt. I turned to face Gage before I got out. His eyes finally met mine, and their remote expression chilled my aching heart.
“I love you,” I whispered.
He didn't answer. Tears pricked the back of my eyes, and I blinked, forcing them back. This wasn't the time. I could fall apart later. First, I had to save Amelia and hopefully, myself.