Page 10 of Hunter's Game
Hunter had a split second to make a choice that would change everything. The smart play was to maintain his cover. Let Eden be exposed. Complete his own mission.
Instead, he moved.
The first guard went down hard, Hunter’s fist connecting with his jaw before anyone could react. Eden was aware of his attention on her as she took down another attacker, her heel connecting with the man’s grizzled face. She could handle herselfin a fight. She’s made she sure would never be viewed as some damsel in distress.
“The servers!” she shouted over the chaos. “We have to—”
“On it.” Hunter grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the hidden door, bullets sparking off the wall behind them. “But you’re explaining everything later.”
“If we survive.” She yanked him left as another guard appeared, her dress hiking up to reveal a thigh holster that drew Hunter’s hungry gaze despite the chaos unfolding around them. “Absolutely.”
They burst through the door just as Romano’s laptop started smoking—a failsafe to destroy evidence. But Eden was already moving, her fingers flying across the nearest keyboard.
“Download initiated.” She flashed him a fierce grin, and his answering one did dangerous things to her pulse. She shook off the inconvenient reaction. “Told you I was good with computers.”
“Less bragging, more running.” He took down another guard, and she tried not to admire how smoothly he moved, keeping her focus on multitasking between hacking and combat. “Also, we’re going to talk about why you didn’t tell me you were DEA,” he added.
“Says the man who still hasn’t mentioned who he really works for.” She grabbed the backup drive and her gun, both equally deadly in her capable hands. “Ready to get out of here?”
Hunter looked at her, probably taking stock of her torn dress, wild hair, eyes bright with adrenaline and the spark of something darker she could feel simmering underneath it all. In that moment, she knew with bone-deep certainty that he was going to be the death of her.
She couldn’t wait.
“After you, Agent.” He kicked down the door as alarms began to blare. “Try not to get us killed.”
Her laugh was pure adrenaline and dark promise. “No guarantees. But I’ll make it worth your while.”
They ran, and behind them, Eden’s father’s roar of rage echoed through the clubhouse. The sound carried years of betrayal and broken trust. Blood versus duty. Family versus justice.
Through it all, Eden moved with lethal grace, her earlier façade of MC princess completely gone. This was the real woman beneath the masks—dangerous, competent, and absolutely ruthless when necessary.
They made it to the basement level just as the first explosion hit. Eden stumbled slightly, and Hunter caught her automatically. The contact sent electricity through her that she knew he felt too.
“Looks like Daddy started the party early,” she managed, already moving toward another hidden door. “The real vault’s through here. Everything that’s too hot to keep upstairs.”
“Define ‘too hot.’” But Hunter was already following her, covering their six as she worked on the electronic lock.
“Remember those tablets Romano was so interested in?” The lock clicked open under her expert touch. “They’re not just valuable artifacts. They’re ledgers. Records of transactions going back decades. Every dirty deal, every corrupt official, every crime the organization’s ever committed.”
Understanding flared in his handsome face. “That’s why your father’s been collecting specific pieces. They’re not just art—they’re insurance.”
“And evidence.” Eden’s smile was fierce as they entered the vault. “Which is exactly what we need to—”
More gunfire cut her off. They dove for cover behind a display case as bullets shattered priceless artifacts around them.
“You disappoint me, baby girl.” Merrick’s voice carried clearly over the chaos, deadly and determined. “Your mother would be ashamed.”
Eden went still beside Hunter. When she spoke, her voice held the pure, murderous rage she’d been keeping leashed for far too long.
“Don’t you dare talk about her.” She was moving before Hunter could stop her, returning fire with deadly precision. “Don’t you dare say her name after what you did.”
This wasn’t just about bringing down a criminal organization. This was about revenge.And now was the time to deliver everything her dearest father deserved.
“Eden!” Hunter shouted behind her, providing covering fire as she advanced on her father’s position. “We need to move!”
But she was beyond hearing, his voice lost in the buzz of personal hell her father’s words had triggered. She lifted the hand that held the gun and swung, engaging the man who didn’t deserve the title of father in close combat, each move speaking of her years of training and bottled rage.
“She tried to stop me too.” Merrick’s laugh was ugly as he blocked Eden’s attack. “Right up until I put a bullet in her head.”
