Page 115 of The Saint

“Zulu One. You’re a go,” Zulu base command ordered.

An eternity crawled by before Camden saw the men push from the back of the van. Their action was obscured by a sign and cars in the parking lot. From their rooftop vantage point, they saw Zulu One spread out and attack. He lost a line of sight on each, but the updates poured through the earpiece.

He finally heard, “Tangoes section A and B neutralized.”

“Good work, Zulu One. Zulu Two, in place and ready?”

“Ready for a green light,” Tyre said.

Time ticked by. Camden’s pulse jumped with each second, but his attention had never been so hyper-focused.

“Zulu Two. You’re a go.”

Tyre held up his hand for their countdown. Camden’s pulse kept count of the seconds until his team leader said, “Go.”

Down they dropped. The booming sound of four men on the walkway was like thunder. Zulu Two operated as if they’d practiced together a hundred times. Mikey and Rogers flanked him and Tyre. They converged on two tangos and quickly disabled the threats.

Tyre moved into place. “Ready?”

Fuck yes.He raised his chin and his weapon, ready to take down anyone in their way. Tyre didn’t use much force to knock the door in. “Hands up. Hands up.”

They pushed in. The room was empty.God damn it.Thentwo hands rose from the other side of the bed.Amelia. Camden hustled across the small space and lowered his gun. “You’re okay.” He flicked the safety and pulled a terrified Amelia into his arms. Camden breathed her in and never wanted to let go. “It’s okay. Everything will be okay.”

Her arms wrapped around his neck. “I knew you’d come.”

“Opening up the gates of hell wouldn’t have stopped me, sweetheart.”

“Target located,” Tyre’s voice crackled in the earpiece. “Send medical.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

Amelia wouldn’t let go of Camden. The urgency to talk to him, to explain what had happened and who Esme was, was making her mind rush. “Cam—”

“Ma’am.” The man behind Camden gestured for her to step toward him. “Can you walk okay?”

“Yes.” Amelia didn’t know what to say. She had to stay with Camden but couldn’t tell everyone what had happened. Esme had said to trust no one, and at that point, Camden was the only person on Earth who could get her to recount the last few days.

“Careful,” Camden said.

“It looks worse than it is—I have to talk to you,” she whispered.

He touched her cheek. Emotion clouded his eyes. She needed him to know the truth, but he offered her toward the other man. “Go with Tyre. They’ll get you checked out—”

“Ihaveto talk to you.”

Camden tucked her hair behind her ears. His fury was evident. Tricking him wasn’t fair. Amelia had to tell him what was going on.

“Please,” she whispered against his ear, begging. “Before they take me. You need to know what happened—”

“Ace,” the other man barked. “It’s time.”

Camden took her hand and stepped back. “It’s all right. I’ll find you.”

No. This wasn’t going well. What would happen when their doctor checked her injuries? Could they tell how her eyes had swollen? Would they know she felt a third as bad as she should? Or would they ignore it all and toss her back into jail? She didn’t trust anyone except for Camden. “Where’s Esme?”

“Maybe in fucking prison where she belongs.”

This wasn’t good.

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