Page 56 of Tag
I tightened my grip on my gun. “I don’t run from people like you.”
Tag took a step forward. “You want the drive? You come through me.”
The silence that followed was razor-sharp—then she stepped out.
Close now.
No scope.
Pistol in hand.
“That can be arranged,” she said, and the air between us snapped taut.
46
Tag
The second she stepped out, I knew talking was over.
Her stance, the angle of her weapon—Sable wasn’t here to posture. She was here to end it.
She moved first.
Two quick shots, center mass.
I twisted, felt the burn in my shoulder flare as I shoved Aponi behind a rusted container wall. The rounds sparked off steel, close enough to feel the heat.
“Stay low,” I growled.
Her reply was flat. “Not without you.”
Sable rounded the corner, fast and low. I fired twice—she ducked the first, deflected the second with a glancing shot off her forearm guard, and came in swinging. The butt of her pistol clipped my jaw, snapping my head sideways.
I answered with a hard elbow to her ribs. She grunted but didn’t give ground. And then we heard a shot and she fell dead before she hit the ground. I looked around and was shocked that one of their men had killed her.
Aponi
The area reeked of gunpowder and smoke. My ears still rang from the last burst of fire. Sable lay sprawled in the middle of it all, eyes glassy, blood pooling under her head. The shooter—a man from her own team—stood over her, gun still in hand, his expression unreadable.
No one moved. No one breathed.
Tag’s voice broke the silence. “Grab the drive. Now.”
I shook myself out of the frozen moment and dropped to my knees beside Sable’s body. Her fingers were locked around the small, battered flash drive as if it were worth her soul. I pried it loose, every muscle screaming for me to hurry before her men decided we were next.
The shooter glanced at me, then at Tag. “We’re done here.” Without another word, he walked away, boots echoing on the concrete until the sound disappeared.
I shoved the drive into my pocket and pushed to my feet. Tag’s hand found my lower back, steering me toward the exit. The rest of the Golden Team closed in around us, a living shield as we moved.
Once outside, Tag gave a sharp nod to Gideon, who fired up the SUV. I climbed in beside Tag, my pulse still hammering.
He held out his hand. “Drive.”
I hesitated for half a beat, then dropped it into his palm. He studied it, jaw tight, before tucking it into his vest.
“This goes straight to Intel,” he said. “If Graves is on it, we’ll find him.”
I stared out the window at the retreating building, my chest tight. “And when we do?”
