Ryan studied Carson across the table.

She wouldn’t look at him and she hadn’t spoken to him since their conversation in the office. He’d never lied to her, but he also hadn’t told her how dangerous this was. There was nothing to be gained from that. Fear would make her indecisive and he needed a confident Carson to carry this forward.

“Any questions?” Agent Walker asked at the end of the op briefing.

A few of the supporting officers from Seattle PD had some points to clarify, but everything else was fine. Except that Carson was still ignoring him.

“Okay, I want everyone in place in ten. Go.” Agent Walker shooed at them like chickens.

Ryan disliked that man intensely, but right now he had other things to worry about.

He circled the table to where Merida and Carson stood with their heads together. Merida held the bullet-proof vest Carson would wear in one hand and tugged at a strap with the other.

“I can take it from here.” He placed a hand on Carson’s shoulder.

Both women glanced up at him with chilly expressions.

“Thanks, Merida.” He took the bullet-proof vest from Carson and undid the left side strap.

The two women shared a look before Merida pasted on a smile.

“I’ll be right over there,” she said.

“Ready to put this thing on?” he asked.

“I think I can manage.” Carson tucked some hair behind her ear.

“I’ll supervise then.”

She stared at the vest in his hands for a few moments before taking it from him. She turned it this way and that before sliding her arm into it from the side he’d unfastened. She ducked her head into the hold and the vest settled on her torso. It wouldn’t stop every bullet and there were still plenty of vital organs exposed, but it could make all the difference in a bad situation.

“There. Is that right?” She looked down at herself.

“Close. May I?” He held out his hand.

She studied his palm for a moment and he honestly didn’t know if she’d say yes or no.

“Sure,” she mumbled.

“I get it. You’re pissed because I didn’t tell you how bad this could be.” He grasped the strap at her waist and adjusted the fit on both sides.

“How am I supposed to make an informed decision if I don’t understand the situation?”

“This isn’t a mathematical equation. You can’t line the facts up and come out at a solution you’re happy with, Carson. Will you look at it from my side? You’re under a lot of pressure. You’re stressed. You’re scared. This whole thing is alien to you and you don’t know how to react. You haven’t been trained for this. People don’t make the best decisions in a state like that. And that’s why you have me. That’s what we do for people in your situation. We handle it. We train for this regularly.”

“But what if this can’t be handled?”

“Then we do the best that we can do.”

Carson stared off after Merida standing with Ian and the others. There was a tiny crack in that wall. He could see his Carson in there, scared that at the end of the day she’d be alone.

“What if they don’t come back?” she whispered.

“Don’t think like that.” He wrapped his arms around her. “You can’t think about that outcome. Tell yourself it’ll work out and let us worry about the rest. Okay?”

Ryan kissed the top of her head and squeezed her.

He wished they could stay like this, but those last ten minutes were ticking away.

“Tell me one more time what you’re going to do?” He let go of her and grabbed the loose over shirt.

“Be calm. Drive there. Make the exchange. Drive my family out of there and keep going.” She tipped her chin up a bit.

“And you’ll hear us in the comm. There is an FBI tracker on the money and in that pin they had you put on the cuff of your jeans. I’ve also got this.” He held out a stretchy, plastic wristband in dark grey. “Looks like a bracelet, but it’s a tracker.”

She slid her hand through the bracelet.

Ryan leaned in and whispered, “The FBI want our guys back beyond the perimeter, but they’re going to be at a secondary capture site in case things go wrong at the end. Okay?”

Carson nodded.

He cupped her face until she had no choice but to look at him.

“I’m going to be right here, okay? If anything happens, I’m here. Got it? Okay?”

“Okay.”

“I want you to come back so you can be pissed at me later.”

“I’m not pissed.”

“You’re scared, and that’s okay. Be angry if it helps focus you on getting back safe.”

She nodded.

Fear made people do and say things. He wasn’t going to press for more, not until this situation was resolved. Even then he might lose her, but that was out of his control. The only thing he could do now was wait and watch her back.

He bent and kissed the tip of her nose.

She shook her head and a brief smile curved her lips.

“There’s my girl,” he whispered.

She let him tilt her head up until he could press his mouth to hers.

He wouldn’t let anything happen to her. He’d watch Walker like a hawk in case he tried to pull something.

“Ryan,” Owen called out from where he stood with Agent Walker. “It’s time.”

Not yet.

He hadn’t told her everything. There had to be more to tell her.

“I’m going to be sick,” Carson said.

“No, you’re not. You’re going to be fine.” He placed his hands on her shoulders. “Look at me? You’ve got this.”

CARSON STARED INTO Ryan’s eyes.

She wasn’t mad at him, but she was angry. At this situation, the FBI, these people who killed Ben. She was powerless in a complicated situation. Or had been until Ryan shouldered the burden.

“We’ve got to go,” Agent Walker called out.

“Go. I’m here waiting, okay?” Ryan leaned in and kissed her forehead, then whispered, “I love you.”

She hoped she did come back. That I love you stuff was a thing they had to work out. She sure as hell had feelings for him, but was it love? How could she not love a man who put himself out there and on the line for her?

Ryan placed his hand on her lower back and guided her toward the door of the empty store they’d set up in for this op. Owen handed her a rolling suitcase containing the fake money and her keys.

“Good luck,” he said.

Carson glanced over her shoulder at Ryan.

“Hurry up and get back to me, okay?” he said.

She nodded.

“You’re going to be late.” Agent Walker unlocked the front door.

“I’m going.” She jostled the keys in her hand, their familiar weight and sound giving her some measure of comfort.

She was just taking a drive and a little walk. That was all.

Carson pushed her shoulders back and exited the store.

The four door blue sedan sat in the closest parking spot. She wrestled the case into the trunk back then climbed behind the wheel.

The store front was completely blacked out. There was no sign of the light or activity inside.

She started the car and reversed onto the empty road. This late at night there was no one around, not even a shadow. She made the left at the intersection then the slow drive down the street to the meeting spot.

“You’re looking good on camera,” Ryan said through the headset. “We’ve got men around the spot so you’re covered. You aren’t alone out there.”

“Do you see them? Are they there?” She tightened her grip on the wheel.

“Nothing yet, but that doesn’t mean anything.”

She eased the car off the road and onto the gravel at the waterfront meeting spot. A warehouse sat on her left, the doors shut up tight for the night.

“What do I do?” she asked.

“Sit and wait. Everything is fine.”

The minutes crawled on.

No one spoke.

And no one arrived.

The agreed upon meeting time came and went, and still she waited.

What if Kawa saw the FBI? What if that had scared him off? What if something had gone wrong? What if her family was already dead?

She had to do whatever it took to get them back safe.

“Something’s not right,” she whispered.

“Everything’s fine. This happens. They’re probably sitting back watching you to make sure you didn’t bring friends,” Ryan said.

Carson tilted her head.

What was that?

She twisted to look behind her, then peered around her at the empty yard.

“I hear something,” she said.

“It’s probably nothing.”

“No, that’s a phone.”

She pushed the driver’s side door open and stood.

The sound was louder now.

“Get back in the car,” Ryan said.

Carson caught a glimpse of something flashing on the ground a dozen yards away. She ignored Ryan’s repeated order and crossed to the phone lying on the gravel.

The screen flashed the name Answer Me.

Coincidence?

No way.

She clicked the green button and pressed it to her ear without the comm.

“Get back in the car,” Ryan said in one ear.

“We need to hear what’s on the line,” Agent Walker spoke over Ryan.

The line clicked.

“Hello?” Carson turned in a circle, as if she could see where the other end of this call led.

“Carson. Friend. It is good to hear your voice.”

“Where are you?” She turned in a circle then began backing toward the car. She was exposed out here.

“What’s he saying?” Agent Walker asked.

It was hard to concentrate on two conversations at once. There were too many voices in her head.

“I’m not there,” Kawa replied.

“Where are you? I thought this was what you wanted, me coming to you.”

“It is, but without the entourage. Your friends from the garage are there, aren’t they?”

“Carson, talk to me,” Ryan begged.

“What do you want me to do?” She swallowed.

“These men are smart. They put a tracking device on you did they not?”

“Maybe.”

“Lose it. Now.”

“How will you know if I do?”

“I will.”

“Carson? Answer me,” Agent Walker demanded.

She had to give up something. The tracker on the money would take too long to dig out. That left the comm or the bracelet.

The ear piece was FBI.

The bracelet connected her to Ryan and his friends.

“Babe, what’s going on?” Ryan asked.

Carson trusted Ryan more than the FBI.

She reached up and plucked the comm out of her ear, then dropped it on the ground.

“Good,” Kawa said.

“You can see me?” She shivered and peered into the closest shadows.

“I can. Now, you and the money need to walk to the waterfront. You’ll get more instructions when you get there.”

“That’s not what we agreed to.” Carson glanced over her shoulder.

“It’s our new agreement, or I start cutting pieces off your sister.”

“Don’t!” She stopped and sucked down a breath, finding her calm. “I’ll do what you ask.”

“The clock is ticking.”

The line died.

Ryan and the others would be able to follow her, she just couldn’t hear them. Everything was fine.

She got in the car and drove it closer to the water front. Once there she popped the trunk and got out. She studied the street she’d driven down. Were those figures moving in the darkness? She had to get out of here before they got too close.

Carson dragged the suitcase out and rolled it to the concrete edge. She peered down at the water below and the small boat with two men.

One had a gun pointed straight up at her.

She froze, panic rising in her.

They could shoot her, take the money and kill her family.

The man didn’t fire.

She swallowed down the fear and straightened her spine. She could do this, for the family who’d worked so hard to make her whole, love her, give her a safe space to grow up in. This was for them.

“I-I have the money,” she said.

“Toss it down,” a deep voice ordered.

This was it. No going back. If she was going to save her family and put everything to rights, this was what she had to do.

RYAN WATCHED THE VIDEO feed of Carson’s slow drive toward the waterfront meeting.

It was too quiet. Too perfect of a spot.

He didn’t like this.

Something wasn’t right.

He hit the unmute button on his headset.

“You’re looking good on camera. We’ve got men around the spot so you’re covered. You aren’t alone out there.” He hit mute again and glanced at Owen. “How many do you have out there?”

“Do you see them? Are they there?” Carson’s voice wavered with fear.

He unmuted himself to reply. “Nothing yet, but that doesn’t mean anything.” Ryan quickly put himself back on mute as Carson’s car reached the gravel lot at the end of the road.

“There’s four guys on the roof watching,” Owen said.

“Four? On the roof? That’s it?” Ryan’s blood went cold.

“We can’t risk spooking them,” Walker interjected.

“What do I do?” Carson asked, her voice pumped through the speakers for the whole room.

“Sit and wait. Everything is fine,” Ryan said to her, then muted the line again.

They all watched the seemingly still shot of the car, the girl and the water. The only way Ryan could tell it wasn’t a picture was the lights twinkling across the channel.

“They should be here by now,” he said.

“Maybe not. These are small time guys, easily spooked,” Owen said.

That didn’t put Ryan at ease. Lesser experienced guys might get nervous and decide to cut their losses. They were gambling with Carson’s life here and he didn’t like this long stretch of nothing.

The minutes passed and no one spoke. He listened to Carson’s breathing speed up, then slow down as she worked through her cycle of nerves.

He wished he was out there with her so she wasn’t alone. Letting her go out there was killing him.

“We should have seen or heard something by now,” Ryan muttered.

“Hold your horses,” Walker replied.

“Something’s not right,” Carson whispered. Even she knew it.

“Calm her down.” Walker nodded at the screen.

Ryan closed his eyes.

He was going to have to lie to her to get her through this.

He cleared his throat and jabbed at his comm. unit.

“Everything’s fine. This happens.” He forced himself to smile to keep his tone lighter. “They’re probably sitting back watching you to make sure you didn’t bring friends.”

Fabric rustled.

What was going on in the car?

Ryan couldn’t see more than shapes.

“I hear something,” she said.

“It’s probably nothing.”

“No, that’s a phone.”

On the monitor Carson pushed the driver’s side door open and got out. Ryan could almost make out the chime of a ringer. It set off all his warning bells.

“Get back in the car,” Ryan said. This could be a lure, bringing her into a trap.

She glanced around, twisting her body left then right.

“Carson? Carson, please get back in the car,” he said.

“Hold that thought, maybe she should go look?” Walker asked.

“No, babe? Please—get back in the car?” Ryan watched as she strode across the gravel.

She bent down and picked something up.

“What is it? Is that a phone?” Walker leaned toward the screen.

“Get back in the car,” Ryan begged. In the car she was reasonably safe, and she had a way out. Away from it, she was exposed and vulnerable.

“We need to hear what’s on the line,” Agent Walker unmuted his comm. and spoke over Ryan pleading with her.

“Hello?” Carson said.

“Who is that? Where’s it coming from?” Walker turned and snapped at the techs manning laptops nearby.

“Where are you?” Carson turned and began backing toward the car. Ryan was willing to bet she’d just realized her mistake.

“What’s he saying?” Agent Walker asked.

“Carson, please?” Ryan whispered.

“Where are you? I thought this was what you wanted, me coming to you.”

“Carson, talk to me,” Ryan pleaded, but she was engaged with the other end of her conversation.

“What do you want me to do?” Her gulp was audible. “Maybe.”

“We need to know who is on that call, people,” Walker said.

“How will you know if I do?”

“Carson? Answer me,” Agent Walker demanded.

She stood there, frozen by the car.

“Babe, what’s going on?” Ryan should never have agreed to this.

“What is she doing?” Walker asked.

Carson reached up. Static poured out of the speakers, then nothing. They heard the sound of her feet crunching in gravel in stereo.

She’d gotten rid of her comm.

“Get someone down there, now,” Ryan ordered.

He sprinted for the door, ripped it open and ran to the corner. Whatever these men had planned it was going down right under their noses. His arms pumped at his sides as he raced down the street to the gravel.

By the time he reached the yard the car sat next to the water and a small boat chugged away from the shore.

Carson was gone.

KAWA CLOSED HIS EYES and listened to the boat engine chug closer.

They had the girl, and she had the money. Cash would be hard to move but at least they’d have something to work with. It was better than what they had before. His main concern was, how many people knew? How airtight were Ben’s records? Could they trust that he’d coded everything in a way that it couldn’t be cracked and led back to him?

“En route to the boat. Twenty minutes,” the man said.

Kawa ended the call and said a silent prayer.

Something was finally going right.

He climbed the stairs leading to the deck of the ship. They’d held this plan together with nothing but hope and it was going to pay off. He stood on the deck and watched the water reflecting the city lights and stars back to him while the cool breeze soaked into his skin.

This was only one leg of a longer race, but it was nearly finished.

Once he had the money, he could dispose of the loose ends and push forward. He wasn’t as certain they could keep their Aerospace, Inc. connection completely quiet, but so long as he made the right friends perhaps they could mitigate the investigation. Rescuing the senator’s sister would hopefully balance it all out.

A small, white shape in the water grew closer until the boat’s engine died and the small craft drifted up to the dock.

His men wouldn’t step foot on the dock, not with this much heat on them. Kawa had made an arrangement with the captain of a Chinese cargo ship. So long as they remained on the ship they were not technically on American soil. Even being in the water was a risk.

The men tied the small boat directly to the freighter, below where Kawa stood at the rear of the ship.

Kawa stepped back while his other man tossed a metal ladder over the side rattled. It clanged against the sides of the ship, but other than a few crew keeping their distance there was no one to hear them.

The minutes dragged on as first the suitcase was hauled up on a rope.

“Take that. Count and check the bills.” Kawa’s English was the best, therefore it fell to him to handle the prisoners.

A man’s head came into view at the edge of the boat. He grabbed hold of the railing and hoisted himself up and over. He turned, reached over the side under the railing and hauled a woman up after him. A pale hand grasped at the rail and a young woman hauled herself up onto the deck. Their eyes locked, and she froze.

When Kawa had first come face to face with Carson, he hadn’t paid her much mind. It was Ben he wanted. She was simply part of that package. But now she was the key to everything if he could believe what she and Ben had said.

“We found two tracking devices besides the one she gave up. One on the money, the other on her,” his man said.

“You took care of them?”

“Yes.”

“Good.”

“Hello, Miss Adair, it’s nice to finally talk,” he said.