Jamie rocked them both to a halt some distance away and turned to face his father. “You need to cancel therally.”
Richard stared at him, mouth parting in shock, before he let out a disbelieving laugh. “You have to be joking. I’m giving my speech in less than thirty minutes after youintroduceme.”
“It’snotsafe.”
“I was under the impression you’d secured the area. Are you discounting yourabilitiesnow?”
The slight sneer coming through his father’s voice, the way he stared down his nose at Jamie, shattered the tight hold Jamie had on his temper. The realization that his father would put his reputation and desire to win the ultimate prize above the safety of their family wasn’t the cluster bomb it should have been. Deep down, Jamie hadalwaysknown his father would make thischoice.
That didn’t make it any easier toswallow.
Jamie leaned in close, almost nose to nose with his father, and said, “I’mleaving.”
Richard was the one who blinked first, rearing back at the vicious anger in Jamie’s voice. “You have an obligation to yourfamily—”
“Fuckyour idea ofobligation.”
“Jamie!” Charlotte admonished, keeping her voice low to keep from being overheard. “What isgoingon?”
Leah finally caught up to them, a little out of breath from her quick jog in sky-high heels, glancing worriedly between their parents and Jamie. “The press iswatching.”
“I don’t fucking care,” Jamie said as he stepped back, never taking his eyes off of Richard. “Two members of my team are being held prisoner by the enemy in an unknown location here in Boston, the same enemy who most likely tried to kill you yesterday, Father. I’m leaving to get them back. If you won’t take my advisement under consideration, then that’s on you. I’m done trying to please you for the sake of your career when my family is indanger.”
“Weare your family,” Richard snapped back harshly, losing the calm expression on his face in favor of affrontedanger.
“My team has stood by my side right from the beginning. The same can’t be said of you, Father. I’mtiredof pretending you’ll come to your senses and put your family first above your desire to claim the White House. You want to stay here and give a speech while risking your life after I’ve warned you of the threat multiple times? Then be myguest.”
Later, maybe, he’d regret the words, but in the moment, Jamie meant everylastone.
He turned his back on his family and walked away, heading for the street. Heart pounding in his chest, Jamie opened up his comms on the private encrypted channel they used in thefield.
“Sitrep,” he ordered, only dimly aware of several security personnel hurrying to catch uptohim.
“ETA ten minutes,” Katie immediatelyreported.
“How did youfindout?”
“Facial recognition of anyone on the premises of the parking garage tower and the surrounding streets got a hit. Pair of college students who may or may not be full-fledged members of the Sons of Adam, but they were in deep enough to help out with thekidnapping.”
“Phaedra managed to get us a general location,” Kyleadded.
Jamie let Kyle’s voice wash over him, finding comfort in the sound. “She’s a minor. We legally can’t requestherhelp.”
“Yeah, we know, but we didn’t ask. Sheoffered.”
Jamie wasn’t going to argue the legal ramifications of letting it happen, not when it looked like it was turning out to be their only chance to rescue Alexei and Sean. “I’m leaving Boston Common and heading to thedocks.”
A man Jamie recognized from his family’s private security caught up with him. Corey Larson’s gaze was direct and serious as he jerked his thumb to the right. “This way, sir. We have a vehicle on standby. Sergeant Ovechkina said yesterday you might need what’s in thetrunk.”
The tension in his shoulders loosened, even if it didn’t completely disappear. Jamie had no doubt Katie must have somehow sent his gear into the field in advance of him coming to Boston on a just-in-case basis. Trust his second-in-command to know what heneeded.
The Secret Service wasn’t soobliging.
“You’re not leaving us behind,” Burwell stated flatly when he caught uptothem.
Larson held open the SUV’s front passenger-side door for Jamie, signaling to his own men to get in the vehicle as well as the one idlingbehindit.
“I don’t need your protection,” Jamiesnapped.
