Page 36 of K-9 Confidential

“You’re letting your emotions for Charlie get in the way of your assignment, Granger.” Ivy kept her attention out the windshield, completely devoid of personality when faced with whatever waited for them at the end of this field trip. “You need to be prepared for the worst-case scenario.”

“You’re right. Iamemotional, especially when it comes to her.” Granger did what he did best: keeping his voice even while every cell in his body threatened to break apart. “It was my emotions that led me to take a chance on Henry Acker’s daughter and turn her into a confidential informant. Without Charlie, Homeland Security never would’ve gotten the intel about the Alamo pipeline attack and dozens more people might’ve been injured or killed in the process. It was also my emotions for her that kept me from turning into someone I didn’t recognize after I lost my position with the government. She’s the one I had on my mind when I heard about a private military contractor looking for operatives, and the one I thought about when I found Scarlett at the wrong end of a knife on that base four years ago. I let Charlie down when she needed me the most, and I promised I would never fail anyone else again. So yeah, I’m letting my emotions for her get in the way of my job. Because she’s the reason I fight for people in the first place.”

Ivy didn’t respond to that and turned her gaze out the passenger side window.

“I know you believe our emotions shouldn’t have priority when we’re in the field, Ivy, and that policy might’ve worked for you to some extent when you were with the FBI,” he said. “But if we’re going to dismantleSangre por Sangrefor good, we can’t be like them. We have to keep the parts of us that make us human, that make us better.”

They drove the rest of the miles in silence.

Granger rolled up to the barbed chain-link fence standing as a warning to those who entered and surveyed the property.Sangre por Sangre’s headquarters had been built at the bottom of a manmade crater, a protective layer meant to mask the structure from satellite imagery and keep the cartel off law enforcement’s visual radar. He could barely make out the curve of the roof from this distance, but something in his gut told him Charlie was still inside.

She was the key to this whole puzzle, and no matter what Ivy or the rest of his team believed, or how determined Charlie had been to undermine her father’s army, she’d never put anyone’s life at risk to achieve that goal. The pain of her past mistakes wouldn’t let her, and Granger loved her for that. Loved every fiber of her stubborn, perfectionist, passionate being. He was pretty sure he’d never stopped loving her, but these past three days had driven that reality to a point he couldn’t shove it down anymore.

Because when it came right down to it, she would sacrifice herself to save someone else. How many operatives on his team would do that for the strangers they tried to protect? Charlie fought for what she believed in, but more importantly, she was afraid of being as corrupt as Henry Acker, and there wasn’t a single cell in his body that could believe her responsible for this mess. Whatever was going on, she was just as much a victim as the innocent lives taken the night of the Alamo pipeline attack.

He loved Charlie, and he would do whatever it took to give her the future she deserved. One with him and a fat bull terrier at her side. If she would have him.

Granger let the SUV crawl forward, every instinct he owned on high alert. The south side of the building came into the windshield’s frame, and his gut clenched. “This place is on its last legs. If Charlie’s in there, she doesn’t have long before the whole structure comes down on top of her.”

“Then we better get moving.” Ivy hit the dirt, using her door panel as cover until they cleared the path leading down into the manmade dust bowl.

Unholstering his weapon, Granger followed her lead as they skidded down the incline. Large chunks of debris and metal scattered across the eighth of mile between the edge of the crater and the building itself. A minefield perfect for an ambush. Except the closer they got to the building, the chances of a surprise attack decreased. “Cash sure made a mess of this place.”

And Granger couldn’t fault his teammate for that. Not anymore. Socorro’s forward scout had literally torn apart an entire building to get to the woman he loved. And Granger would bring the rest of this place down if that was the way to get Charlie back.

They worked their way to what looked to be the remains of an underground parking garage. It was a miracle the structure hadn’t collapsed in on itself in this condition, but he would take every second they had left. He and Ivy moved as one, her taking up the rear in case they were attacked from behind. He broke through the perimeter of the garage, dodging massive sections of cement twice his height, and scanned what he could see of the interior. “Clear.”

Ivy carved a path over broken asphalt, debris and puddles of water. “There’s an entrance on the back wall.” She didn’t wait for him to acknowledge, cutting across the remains of the garage, and took position at one side of the door. She waited for him, then nodded.

Granger raised his weapon at an angle. The battle-­ready tension he’d relied on as he and Charlie had crossed the border into Vaughn snapped into place. Working the plan, learning who the players were and getting the upper hand—this was what he’d been trained for. What he was good at, and up until three days ago, he’d done his job on autopilot. Now he had a goal: to find the woman who made him want to keep going.

He whistled low to call Zeus to heel as the building seemed to swallow them. Hitting the power button to the flashlight along the barrel of his weapon, Granger lit up the few feet ahead of them. The scent of death and humidity burned down his throat. “Find Charlie, Zeus.”

The dog trotted ahead, nose to the ground, his belly swinging back and forth with every step. There were so many competing smells in Granger’s senses, he wasn’t sure how the K9 would manage to pick Charlie out from among them, but Granger trusted his partner to make the connection.

A low ruff tightened the muscles down the bull terrier’s back.

“He can’t pick up her scent.” Damn it. He’d known that was a possibility, but the stakes were higher than ever. Granger caught up with Zeus and scratched the dog between his ears. “There’s too much interference.”

“Then we’re on our own.” Ivy maneuvered ahead, coming up short of a T in the maze. “Which way?”

One wrong turn and they could lose Charlie forever. Granger wasn’t willing to take that risk. “Every time we second-guess ourselves, Charlie is in more danger. We can’t wander around in the dark. We need a plan. We need to split up. We’ll cover more ground that way.”

“And if you’re wrong about this whole thing and Charlie is the one pulling the cartel’s strings? We still don’t know whatSangre por Sangreis planning.” Ivy searched down the right corridor for signs of a threat. “Who’s going to save your ass? Because the way I see things, your K9 would rather eat you than protect you.”

“That’s ridiculous. He’s not a cannibal. He just has no control over what goes in his stomach and shaming him isn’t going to speed the process along.” Granger was avoiding the question, and they both knew it. He didn’t want to acknowledge the possibility Charlie had led them into a trap, but he’d be a fool not to account for his own blind spots. “If you’re right, and Charlie is the one behind this, I’ll do what I have to. Until then, I’m going to operate on the belief she needs my help.”

Ivy lowered her weapon and stretched out one hand. “That’s one of the reasons I hired you. See you on the other side, Agent Morais.”

“Agent Bardot.” He shook her hand, knowing that his superior had been fighting her own internal battle since receiving the cartel’s surveillance photos of Charlie. The man she’d known as her partner during her stint with the FBI hadn’t resurfaced, despite the crumbling ofSangre por Sangre’s organization, and Granger couldn’t help but think that meant one of two things. Either the agent had chosen to remain loyal to the people he was investigating, or she’d find him dead.

Ivy nodded before heading down the right corridor, leaving Granger to search the left.

“It’s you and me, kid.” He took the lead. The building seemed to come alive with a groan as they traveled deeper into its heart. Whatever waited for them at the end, Granger was ready.

His future was with Charlie.

And he’d fight like hell to keep it.

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