Page 79 of The Team

“Thanks.”

“Where’s your little pain-in-my-ass sidekick?” Harry scanned the faces behind Rhett, but Jay came over to shove his face in front of the screen.

“My favourite cranky tank.”

Harry glowered but then Asher was there, smiling. “Hello, darling,” he said cheerfully. He slid his left hand onto Harry’s shoulder, his wedding ring glinting. “You boys have been busy.”

There was a strange sound gurgling behind them and both Rhett and Jay turned. Azrael’s face was red, and Sid nudged her, concerned. But Jay laughed and grabbed Azrael’s arm. “Asher, this is Anna Masson. She’s a huge fan.”

Azrael waved like a starstruck fangirl meeting The Beatles; short, jerky hand movements, stupid smile, wide eyes, and flushed cheeks. “Bonjour Monsieur Garin. Je suis une grande fan de votre travail.”

And she spoke French?

She reallywasfreaking out.

Asher put his hand to his chest. “Agent Masson, is it?” he asked, and she nodded eagerly. “Your work in Tehran was very good. Three shots for three kills; four hundred metres, crosswind and twenty-one-percent humidity. Nice work.”

She made that weird noise again and patted down her hair. “Je suis une énorme admiratrice.”

Jay laughed. “Look, Harry, Asher has a fan.”

Harry’s big hand slid the laptop around so his face filled the screen. “Yes, thank you. I’ll be sure to never hear the end of it.”

Jay blew him a kiss and Rhett shoved Jay out of view. “What have I told you before about pissing him off.”

Jay just laughed. Meanwhile, Director King cleared his throat, and Sid pulled Azrael back at the same time Yunho pulled the laptop back to focus on him. “The reunion and fan-club meeting can wait until your return.”

“Agreed,” Rhett mumbled.

Then Yunho scanned the people behind Rhett. “Where is Agent Yin?”

Rhett turned to Yin, seeing him pale and swallow hard, as if expecting bad news. And for all Rhett knew, that’s what he was about to get. Rhett gave Yin his chair.

Everyone went quiet.

Yin sat woodenly. “I am Yin Tao.”

“Oh Yunho,” he replied. “Nice to meet you.”

“Yes, yes. Same.” He cleared his throat, wiping his hands on his thighs. “Have you any word...?”

“She’s alive, and we have a location,” Yunho said, and Yin let out a rush of breath, hands running through his hair. Rhett didn’t realise he’d been holding his breath until then, and he could feel the relief roll through all of them.

“Thank you. Thank you,” Yin said, nodding and swallowing back his tears.

Yunho gave him a nod. “I’ll be sending through the coordinates in a moment. It’s not an easy drop and we’re going to depend on all the help the authorities can give. My access on the mainland is very limited, and while I probablycouldaccess China’s military satellites, I’d rather not start an international incident. Having CommanderZihao’s influence will hopefully pull the right strings. But,” he hedged, “if you meet resistance, please let me know and I’ll do what I must.”

Yin nodded again, eyes still teary. “Thank you. I will be forever in your debt.”

The laptop turned around to Harry’s not-smiling face. “If anything happens to Ouston or Lin, I will be the one who collects on that debt. Are we clear?”

Chen bristled at that, but before it became a different kind of international incident, Jay stuck his face in front of the screen. “I knew you loved me, Harry.”

Harry growled. “Correction. If anything happens to Ouston?—”

Jay gasped at the same time Yunho pulled the laptop around. He looked like an irritated schoolteacher. “Information incoming, Director King.”

“Thank you,” King said. “Please stay in touch.”

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