Although Grayson will never admit this, he is one of Cameron’s many victims. She exploited his naturally ingrained protectiveness to coerce him into an illegal activity so she could frame him for the drugs she’d taken.
Cameron stole Blake’s car. That wasn’t a lie. But instead of using the keys Blake always left in his gym bag during a game, she hot-wired his pride and joy to make it seem as if she were carjacked while attempting to return the missing drugs.
Her crocodile tears about a falsified sexual assault worked Grayson up so much that he didn’t notice the numerous empty cocaine brick wrappers in the back seat.
If Grayson’s father hadn’t pieced together the evidence as quickly as he had that night, and put steps into play to protect his eldest son, Grayson would have faced far more dangerous charges than malicious damage of property worth millions.
He could have had the cartel after him as well.
After a quick breather, I get back into game mode. I move further into the compound, senses on high alert. Scorch marks line the walls, and the air is heavy with loss. Bad stuff happened here. You can feel it.
I hold up my hand, alerting the agents surrounding me to freeze, when voices sound from beneath my feet. At least one ofthem is female, and she has a foreign accent. I’ve heard it before, and it spikes my pulse.
“We’re in the right location.”
I realize I spoke my thoughts aloud when Grayson hums in agreement. I bring my blood pressure down before reminding my team of our game plan. “No one is to make a move until I say so. If you move before ordered, I’ll expect your badge on my desk first thing tomorrow morning. Target is to be brought in alive. I repeat, India is to be brought in alive.”
My eyes bounce wildly when a disgruntled groan sounds out of my earpiece. It isn’t the response of an agent, not even a rogue one. It is the reply you’d anticipate from a man hell-bent on revenge.
“Maddox… is that you?” He doesn’t answer, but I trust my gut as much as Grayson trusts me. “I need you to listen to me, okay? Your meeting with India is a setup. She knows who was behind the messages. Dimitri’s crew is one of the loose ends she wants to tie up. I need you to leave now. Seek shelter in the tree line. I’ll be there in a matter of minutes.”
He proves my intuition accurate when he replies, “I can’t. It’s too late.”
Fear takes hold of my senses. I understand his pain, wholeheartedly, but if he kills India as I believe he wants to do, she will take all her secrets to the grave with her.
“It isn’t too late, Maddox. It’s never too late.” There’s silence, then nothing. “If you go through with this, you will start a mafia war. This is part of India’s plan for world domination. She’s pitting the Petrettis against the Popo?—”
My words shift to a groan when pain shreds through my midsection. Several minor nicks set my skin on fire and send me flying backward so fast my earpiece knocks from my ear, and I waver between semiconsciousness and unconsciousness.
The world explodes around me. Agents shout, and gunfire ricochets off the concrete walls as the sharp tang of blood floods my tongue. I need to move, to seek cover, and the faint trickle of my name breaking through the ringing of a blast in my ears gets my feet moving.
As Grayson’s panicked shrill of my name sounds from my earpiece, I duck behind a crumbling wall. My heart is pounding, and my breaths come out fast. I scan the premises, expecting to see the shadows of my enemies darting through the smoke. I can’t see anyone.
Even with my earpiece several feet away from me, I respond to Grayson’s request for an update. “Booby trap.”
I fight to fill my lungs with air while peering down at my blouse. A circular object pierced my abdomen, thankfully inches away from anything dangerous. Coughing, I signal for my team to retreat. We can’t risk detonating another trap, so we will need to bring in detonation experts before we can continue.
“I’m injured but okay,” I shout at my earpiece while creeping toward the exit.
I continually scan for targets. My hands are steady, and my focus is razor sharp. I can’t afford to hesitate. Not now. Not with more than my life on the line.
I’m about to slip into the open when a flash of movement to my left gains my attention. I pivot and then raise my gun, preparing to fire. My bullet remains in the chamber when I recognize the orange hair of the man darting toward the tree-studded forest.
“Maddox…” My voice is weak, leaving me no choice but to follow him.
I’m not sure how I am moving. Adrenaline must be driving my strides. Or perhaps revenge. Even though we’ve never met in person, I only need one glance to recognize the face of thedeceased woman in the underground bunker Maddox just raced out of.
He killed India.
He killed the only person capable of disclosing my sister’s last known location.
He killed my only chance of getting my sister back.
And now he appears minutes from killing himself.
For a brief second, I’m tempted to let Maddox’s demons overwhelm him. That’s how devastated I am that he allowed evil to win. But then I’d be no better than him, and it would take me months to even my balance sheet. So instead of permitting him to take the cheat’s route, I raise my gun, then demand he get on his knees and put his hands behind his back.
Stubborn and perhaps heartbroken, Maddox shakes his head. He isn’t a killer. His grief just got too much for him to bear. “I can’t go back there. I won’t survive it without her.” Tears stream down his face as he cranks his neck to me. “It isn’t what you’re thinking. Your sis?—”
