Page 35 of A Fine Line

She’s staring into my eyes with such intensity that the weight in my chest becomes crushing. I grind my teeth together and swallow the lump in my throat as I give her a curt nod. “Okay,” I say through gritted teeth. “I promise.”

She stares at me for a few more moments, her hand turning over to grip mine as she presses her lips together and gives me a small smile. She nods and then turns her attention back to the people watching us curiously.

They continue to discuss the plan around me as I sit here battling the silent war happening in my gut and chest. I’m so far out of my element I don’t even know where to begin unraveling it. Carolina tugs on my hand, and I relax in her hold, allowing her to pull my hand over until she’s pressing my palm against the top of her thigh. She rests her palm on the back of my hand, the firm pressure a small lifeline that tethers me to my promise.

She’s not paying me any mind as she interacts with everyone in the room, but every once in a while, her thumb strokes the side of my index finger, and with each soft touch, the pressure in my chest eases.

And little by little, I let it go.

Chapter Thirteen

Tony

Ittookmetwodays to pinpoint the location of the little girl.

I was hoping I’d be able to go and retrieve her on my own without anyone else being the wiser, but after a brief conversation with Anton, I realized the impossibility of the scheme. So, begrudgingly, I allow Darius to take the lead on planning the mission, knowing that any hope of keeping Antoinette and Carolina out of it is lost. If nothing else, we can hope to move them both out of harm’s way once we locate Flora.

The facility where she’s being held is in a remote location, so we decide a small group of us will hoof it in in order to secure a perimeter while Anton and his men wait a safe distance away for us to give word that we’re ready for them. We have no idea what we’re walking into or what conditions await us. We don’t know if there’s one child or a hundred or if it’s all a trap, and we’re all going to die.

I did mention the latter to Nettie and Carolina in the hopes I could talk them into staying behind with Anton, but they weren’t having it. I wasn’t necessarily surprised by this, just greatly disappointed that they won’t see reason.

Anton drops us at the safest location, which is also the shortest distance to our destination, so it should be around dusk by the time we get there. It’s a somewhat strenuous hike, but we manage to make good time, and we arrive at the facility shortly before Carolina is due to come for the pickup.

Jayme got them to agree to allow someone to accompany Carolina into the facility, and we knew it would have to be someone less recognizable than me or Dare. Agatha and Erik seemed to be the next best in line, given that we needed Anton to run cleanup crew, and the shortlist of people we trust to be able to roll with various contingency plans is exceptionally short. I’m also hopeful having people with her increases her odds of coming back out of the building quickly and on her own two feet, my recent promise to her lingering in my mind as I consider how easily this could all go wrong.

My normal cool focus is nonexistent, the pressure on my chest increasing with each passing moment. Nothing feels right, and as I watch Agatha and Erik accompany Carolina inside the building, my blood pressure spikes.

As soon as the door closes behind them, their COMS goes out, something we expected but hoped wouldn’t happen. There are four exits to this building, and we have been placed on all sides in case anyone attempts to flee.

Suddenly, Agatha and Erik exit out the door they entered, and Agatha comes over the COMS, “They wouldn’t let us go up with her, and she insisted we leave. We didn’t want to, but there wasn’t any choice in the matter.”

I curse loudly and look at Dare, who has a concerned expression. “I fucking told you. I fucking told you this was a mistake.”

“Her choice,” he says calmly. “That was her choice to make.”

The door opens again, and a small child scurries out. She stops a few feet from the door, staring at the group of people curiously until Agatha breaks away and walks over, kneeling down in front of her as she asks quietly, “Flora?”

The little girl nods, saying nothing for a few moments as she looks toward the group behind Agatha. “Mama told me to find Tony.”

I jerk to attention immediately, pushing off the tree I was leaning against and exiting the wooded area before walking toward her. I stop in front of her, but I don’t kneel as I look into her eyes and ask, “I’m Tony. What else did your mama say, Flora?”

She blinks slowly, her throat working as she swallows and then says, “She said sorry. And you promised.”

“Oh, she did, huh?” My words are calm and quiet, totally at odds with the rage burning in my chest when she nods in confirmation of the message she delivered. The demon inside me vibrates, threatening to erupt, so I take a calming breath through my nose and exhale it through my mouth.

“Can you do me a favor, Flora?” I ask as I kneel in front of her. Her eyes search mine, and she reaches a small hand out and touches my cheek as she nods. So, I say, “This here is my friend Aggie. She’s a real good friend of your mama’s. I need you to go with her. Can you do that for me?”

She drops her hand, cocks her head, and then looks at Agatha curiously before looking back at me and giving me another nod. “Good,” I turn to Agatha and add, “Get her out of here, please.”

Agatha holds her hand out to Flora, who takes it easily, and then Agatha turns back to me and asks, “What are you gonna do?”

“I’m gonna do what I do best,” I reply as I pull my favorite leather gloves out of my back pocket and slide my hands inside. “I’m gonna go fuck around and find out.”

Knowing where all this is headed, Darius and the rest of the men are already standing with me, waiting to find out what’s next. I wait a few moments for Agatha to disappear with Flora, and then I turn to the men before me, switching on my COM to speak to the men surrounding the other parts of the building. “You’ll have a choice,” I say clearly, wanting them to understand my words for what they truly are—a warning.

“It’s highly likely that refusing to allow Carolina to exit the building with Flora is a trap. I’m going in to get her regardless of this fact, but none of you are required to follow me inside. If you do choose to continue with this mission, keep your eyes and ears open at all times, and at the first sign of a problem, you are to abandon the mission. You don’t worry about me, you don’t worry about Darius, you don’t worry about anyone but yourself. You have two minutes to prepare yourself one way or the other.”

I switch off my COM, step over close to Darius, and say, “Same goes for you, man. You’re not required to follow me into another death trap. Lord knows Nettie will be extra pissed if we both get ourselves killed.”

---