Page 82 of Wicked Ambition

There were so many things she would need to learn, but Ayla’s lips curved, anyway. Being a single parent wouldn’t be easy, and she didn’t even know where Oz lived, but when her sister was in Los Angeles, she’d lend a hand.

She and Io were a team. Always had been, always would be. Her sister would have her back.

Just like Ayla had her twin’s back now.

Her focus returned to the house. Part of her view was obscured by the trees and bushes. She wondered if this area had been cleared; the bench placed here as a meditation spot. She bet it was pretty in the morning, a nice tranquil place to ponder life before the world awoke.

Her stomach rolled over, and Ayla swallowed hard again. She couldn’t start throwing up, not now. She had to be strong, had to be ready to help her sister when Oz brought her outside.

Rusty froze, and his hand hovered near the pistol he had strapped to his leg.

Ayla forgot about her queasiness and glanced around. What had he seen?

It took her a moment to look at the street. Two cars were parked in front of the house now, and as she watched, a third one joined them. Men spilled out of the vehicles. Ayla counted ten, but they were moving around, so she could be off with her number.

Men came around the side, into the backyard. They moved stealthily, sidling closer to the house. Terror stopped the need to vomit.

She couldn’t see much. Although she’d pushed the binoculars Oz called NVD off her face because the green glow was weird, Ayla knew what was happening. Sheknew!

The mobsters were going into the house. Oz, Ski, and her sister would be cornered. They were outmanned and outgunned. Not even two Green Berets could survive this.

Oz exchanged a glance with Ski.They were thinking the same thing. It was a trap. This was the perfect place for a trip wire.

If Ayla were with them, she would have rushed to her sister’s side. Making it through the house unscathed would have led to overconfidence in someone without the training he and Ski had.

From the hallway, he could see less than two-thirds of the room. Ambush was another possibility. They would have to move slowly and carefully.

With a few gestures, he and his teammate were on the same page.

They would need to handle the room as if there were enough C4 inside to put a crater on the moon. Or a gunman waiting inthe closet. They should have put on the vests with plates that could stop a round from an assault rifle. He’d taken this whole thing lightly, believing Ayla was imagining things, that it was nothing but some ordinary family home.

The doorway and the area inside it were clear. Oz signaled he’d take lead. This was his mission, his mistake; he should go first.

As he entered, Oz immediately turned to the largest uncleared sector, pistol in hand. Ski came in behind him, and he knew his teammate would take the smaller corner they were unable to see from the hallway. “Clear,” Oz reported.

“Copy. Clear here.”

“Copy that.” The closet was on his side. Oz studied it, searching for some sign it would go off if he opened the door. It looked clean. Jerking the door open, he checked both sides. “Clear,” he said. Nothing was inside, not even a hanger.

Yeah, it definitely looked as if someone had bugged out before they got here, leaving the furniture, bedding, and dishes behind.

And Iona Desmond, of course.

But Oz wasn’t making any assumptions and he sure as hell wasn’t dropping his guard. With only two of them, someone could come into the house behind them and they’d be fucked, trapped in this room.

The bed was a mattress on a wooden frame. It would be a simple thing to put some C4 under the base.

He and Ski were both large. It would be hard for either of them to look. His mission. Signaling his intentions, Oz got on his back on the wood floor and moved until he was under the frame. Taking his time, he examined everything, every joint, every seam.

“Clear,” he reported. Oz slid out and stood.

That left explosives below Iona’s body.

It was risky. If she moved, she could set them off. The kidnapper might not even have time to get out of the house.

Unless she was dead.

His chest knotted up. It would kill Ayla to lose her twin.

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