Page 85 of Zain

She closed her eyes, holding that pledge close to her heart. “I—”

“That’s enough.” Asshole moved forward and reached for the phone.

Dana dodged out of his grasp. “No! I’m not done. Zain—”

He seized her arm, and his fingers bit into her flesh. She cried out. Zain’s furious shouts bellowed through the phone. She needed to do as Zain said—keep the call going.

Grabbing the device from her fingers with her free hand before he could tear it away, she slid the phone as far as she could.

The device skittered across the concrete floor and into the hallway. “Christ!” He shoved her toward the ground.

She flung herself at his ankles, taking him down to the floor. “Sonofabitch!” He flung his hand backward, and his knuckles caught her mouth.

Pain exploded across her cheek. Her head shook with the force of the blow, and a high-pitched ring sounded in her ears.

Her captor pushed himself to his feet. “Fucking bitch.”

She watched as he limped across the room and into the hall. He slammed the door behind him. He’d make her pay for that stunt. She just hoped to hell she’d given Zain enough time.

***

Pride coupled withfear arced through Zain. Hearing the bastard hit Dana had nearly made Zain’s head explode. The whack of knuckles on skin and her sharp cry of pain would live in his mind forever.

A blow to her delicate face that never should’ve happened.

He’d thought it was over. That surely the call had been too short to trace. But then the crackling on the speaker and distant voices told him she’d sent the phone across the floor.

Brilliant.

If the action didn’t get her killed.

He swiped his hand over his face then stared at Brick and Taschen. “Was it enough time? Did we get ’em?”

Taschen looked up, his brows raised. “We got a location.”

“Yes.” Zain slammed his palm against the table, making the equipment shake. He let out a loose laugh and paced a few feet. “Holy shit.” He wheeled back around. “Where are they?”

“A neighborhood in the northeast.” Brick turned the computer screen in Zain’s direction.

He studied the little red flag on the map and snapped his fingers. “Ghost got a reading of the license plate in the same neighborhood.”

“Well, now we’ve got a house to ambush.” Taschen was on his feet. “Let’s go.”

Zain was one step ahead of him.

“Hang on a minute,” Brick said, chasing them. Zain already had the office door open. “We need a plan. Don’t forget, Maxine is waiting for the information you promised. She wants to make a trade.”

Rami and August entered the hall. “What’s going on?” Rami demanded. Micha, likely sensing the shift in energy, trotted down the hallway, her nails clicking on the floor as she made her way to Rami’s side. He patted her head, and she sat obediently.

Zain quickly explained what had unfolded, but every second he stood there was a second wasted. A second that could determine whether he found Dana alive or dead.

August’s green eyes flashed with urgency. “Sounds like we’ve got the fucker, but Brick’s right. We can’t go in half-cocked.”

Rami gave a stern nod. “Don’t forget, we do this shit for a living.”

Zain threaded his hand through his hair. “All right then, what’s the deal? Because any minute Maxine’s going to call and expect me to meet her guy.”

Taschen shrugged. “When Maxine calls, tell her we’ll meet. We’ll split into two groups. One goes to the house, the other to the meeting point. If something changes, either group can head in for reinforcement.”

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