“Good. Because I have a new team I’m putting together. You would be working with three other men that I consider to be some of the finest people I’ve ever had the privilege of meeting.” He shook his head. “I won’t sugarcoat it. This team will have a very difficult job. You’ll be responsible for tracking down and capturing—or killing if necessary—some of the worst predators in the world. Killers, rapists, terrorists, and worse. Some will be everyday, run-of-the-mill psychopaths. But others will be shifters who have gone rogue.”
Damn.“Does that happen a lot?”
“Not too often, but when it does, the average cop, federal agent, or soldier isn’t prepared to handle it. That’s where you and your team will come in.”
Declan shifted on the stool. “I’m not sure I could kill someone—shifter or otherwise—no matter what they’ve done.”
Loughlin regarded him thoughtfully. “I know what happened the night Marissa left you, Declan. You exposed yourself to protect her, even though you knew it might cost you.”
Declan didn’t say anything.
“Something tells me you would have done the same thing if it hadn’t been Marissa—if it’d just been some random stranger,” Loughlin said. “Am I right?”
Declan didn’t even have to think about it. “Yes.”
“That’s all I’ll ever ask you to do—save a person you might not even know, regardless of what it might cost you.”
When Loughlin put it that way, the job didn’t sound half-bad. And maybe helping people would be a way to atone for what he’d done that night when he’d protected Marissa. He weighed the pros and cons of the job offer, going back and forth between them while Loughlin patiently sat there drinking his water. This was a big decision and he should sleep on it for a couple days, but it wasn’t the kind of choice that could be made with his head. He had to go with his gut, and it was telling him that this was the right thing to do.
“Okay,” he finally said. “I’m in.”
Loughlin smiled. “And I didn’t even have to mention benefits and pay—both of which are damn good, by the way.”
Neither of those things had even occurred to Declan.
Loughlin walked over and held out his hand. “Welcome to the Department of Covert Operations, Mr. MacBride.”
Chapter 1
Seven Years Later
After ten years of writing performance reviews, training schedules, and after-action reports, Kendra Carlsen was finally going on a mission. She was so excited, she was practically bouncing in her chair. But getting all geeked up wasn’t going to get the work on her desk done—and she had a ton to do before she left.
She was just finishing up the semiannual performance evaluation on Trevor Maxwell’s team—outstanding as usual—when intel specialist Evan Lloyd stuck his head in her office.
“Some of us are heading out for lunch. Want to come?”
Kendra was sorely tempted, but she was heading to the airport in—she looked at her watch—three hours. Yikes!
She shook her head as she kept typing. “Thanks for the invite, but I can’t. I have way too much to do before I leave.”
Evan frowned. “You going on vacation?”
Kendra had a hard time keeping the silly grin off her face. “Mission in Costa Rica.”
His eyes went wide. “Seriously?”
“Uh-huh. John wants me to evaluate a big international, interagency training exercise down there.”
“You’re going down there alone?”
She printed out the report on Trevor’s team and signed it, then attached the secret cover page on it and slid the document into an envelope. “Of course not. I’m going with Tate’s team. They’re taking part in the exercise.”
“Oh.” Evan shook his head. “Damn, that sounds cool.”
Kendra grinned. “Yeah, it does, doesn’t it?”
“Well, I’d better let you go then,” Evan said. “Watch yourself out there, okay?”
