Page 60 of Broken Trust
“Best guess? Days. Maybe a week.” Dante’s fingers flew across his keyboard, pulling up maps with red dots scattered across multiple cities that Sophie found in that cryptogram. “If Kent already found a replacement for the Canadian handler—”
“Then we could be looking at simultaneous detonations in eleven, maybe twelve cities,” Con finished. “Casualties in the tens…twenties…possibly hundreds of thousands.”
The room fell silent. Elin stared at those red dots representing potential mass graves. New York. Chicago. Los Angeles. Seattle. Atlanta, and so many others. How many people would die if they didn’t act?
How many will die if this is a trap and we walk right into it?
She would die. And good men from the Blackout Charlie team.
Con’s voice held the weight of command. “If we don’t move, we’re gambling that we can find and stop every bomb before they go live. Those aren’t odds I like.”
“So we send someone to meet Kent.” Sophie looked at Elin.
She’d placed herself in the trenches more than once. The last time when she was supposed to hand off important intel to Liam that day.
“I’m the one he’s expecting. I’ll go.”
No one spoke.
This was going to go bad. The only question was how bad.
A step sounded behind them. Elin didn’t have to turn to know who it was. Liam’s presence was both a worry and a comfort.
“What’s going on?” His voice was rougher than usual, and when Elin finally looked at him, she saw the tension in his jaw, the way his hands flexed at his sides.
He’d been avoiding her since this morning. Or maybe she’d been avoiding him. Hard to tell when they were both doing the same dance.
Con looked to him. “Elin made contact with our Pentagon target. He’s agreed to meet.”
Liam’s sharp gaze landed on her. “When?”
“Tomorrow. Location to be determined.”
“You’re sending her in alone.”
It wasn’t a question. Elin bristled at the assumption she couldn’t handle it, but before she could respond, Con spoke up.
“With overwatch support. It’s the best option we have.”
Liam stepped into the room, and Elin felt her pulse kick up. He studied the message from Kent, and she saw the moment he came to the same conclusion Sophie had.
“It’s a trap.” His voice was flat. Final.
“A trap we’ll be ready for,” Con said.
“We don’t have a choice.” Her words came out soft, resigned.
He turned to face her fully, and the intensity in his eyes made her breath catch. “We’re not sending you into a kill zone.”
The room went quiet. Elin stared at Liam, the man she never quit loving even beyond the world’s limitations. Underneath the anger and rigid control he kept so tightly leashed, he looked like…
Like he was terrified of losing her.
And God help her, she loved him even more for it. But jumping into the fire of loving Liam after she’d already been scorched wasn’t something she was willing to do again.
But she couldn’t watch innocent people die because someone made the safe choice instead of the right choice.
“I’m going.”
