The man behind him shifted nervously.
“They cleared the facility,” the man said. “Every position. Clean. Professional.”
Thomas didn’t turn.
Of course, they had.
Rangers didn’t panic. They didn’t gloat. They corrected mistakes with bullets and moved on.
“What about the woman?” Thomas asked.
“Alive,” the man replied. “Injured, but alive. She fought.”
That earned a slow smile.
“She would,” Thomas murmured. “You don’t put steel into concrete unless the concrete is already cracked.”
The man swallowed. “We lost three guys.”
“Yes,” Thomas said calmly. “And we learned.”
He finally turned, fixing the man with a gaze that had ended careers—and lives.
“Did they move her?”
“Yes. Off-grid. Forested region. Limited access routes.”
Thomas nodded once. “Good.”
The man blinked. “Good?”
“They’re confident,” Thomas explained. “Confident men get predictable.”
He crossed the room and set the glass down untouched, then picked up a tablet from the desk. On the screen was a grainy still image—thermal, pulled from a drone feed no one knew existed.
A cabin.
A clearing.
Heat signatures that told him exactly how many men stood watch.
And one that mattered far more than the rest.
“There,” Thomas said, tapping the screen lightly. “That’s her.”
The man leaned closer. “You sent someone in?”
“Notin,” Thomas corrected. “Near.”
He zoomed the image slightly. “I didn’t need access. I needed confirmation.”
“And?”
Thomas’s smile sharpened.
“She’s not just a target anymore,” he said. “She’s my revenge.”
The man hesitated. “The Rangers won’t negotiate.”
