Wolfe motioned for Jethro, who nodded. Wolfe took the one on the left and Jethro the right, dropping them with no shots fired. They were both unconscious, so Wolfe tied their hands and feet before dragging them out of sight.
Jethro slapped duct tape over their mouths, stood, and jogged back toward the hill. When they reached the top of the one they wanted, Wolfe crouched down and pulled out his binoculars. He pointed. “There.” Adrenaline percolated throughout his veins, providing focus and a buzz that would help keep him alive.
A patrol of two men walked by what looked like an entrance into the adjacent hill.
Jethro watched them go. “Hello, underground lab.”
“I hope our intel is good.” Wolfe was fine destroying any drug lab, but this had better be the one working with Gary. The combined sources of the Deep Ops teams were good, and more than a couple had directed him here.
It was around two in the morning and wouldn’t be dark for long. The lab was probably as empty as it was gonna get. “Let’s clear it,” Wolfe said, shimmying down the hill.
Jethro followed suit. They reached the bottom and crouched, running full bore for the metal door set into the rock. He counted to three and opened it.
Wolfe darted inside, gun sweeping. Nothing. Empty corridor, cold and wet.
Jethro shut the door. “Let’s move, mate.”
Wolfe took point, inching down the corridor and drawing on his mask to protect his lungs from any chemicals. He’d dealt with enough drugs in his system lately. They reached a lab that was empty but well stocked. Then another empty lab.
Voices came from up ahead, and he hurried, finally reaching a working lab. He motioned for Jethro to move past the entrance without being seen, and Jethro nodded.
Wolfe did the same, coming to a storage room. He forced open the door and sucked in air. Stacks and stacks and stacks of bagged heroin. Millions and millions of dollars’ worth of the deadly opiate. He stepped inside and drew off his pack.
A guard appeared from the other side of the stack, starting and gasping, his body tensing. He lifted his weapon.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Dana stretched out on Wolfe’s sofa after a dinner of delicious beef Wellington with Pippa and Mal. If Mal didn’t marry Pippa, Dana was going to. That woman could really cook. As if conjured by the thought, Pippa knocked on the back sliding door before stepping inside, holding a stack of glass containers in her hands.
“Hi,” Dana said, standing. She couldn’t eat anything else tonight—she was happily stuffed.
“Hey.” Pippa moved to the fridge as if she’d done so a hundred times before. “I have leftovers and some goodies for the upcoming week.” The stunning brunette took a moment to organize the rest of the fridge’s contents as if she couldn’t help herself.
Dana had followed her into the kitchen. “I kinda love you.”
Pippa laughed, the sound free and happy. “Ditto.”
Dana’s friends were a small and select group, and it felt good to add Pippa to that number. Pippa was always nurturing Dana and Wolfe with food, and Dana wanted to reciprocate. What did Pippa need? A thought struck Dana, and she reached out for Pippa’s hand. “I have an idea. As soon as all of this craziness is over, let’s get hold of my sister Katie.”
Pippa tilted her head. “Okay?”
“Yeah. She’s a shoe buyer for Neiman’s. We can either take a weekend and go visit her, or we can talk her into bringing a boatload of samples here.” It was well known that Pippa loved boots. She also suffered from social anxiety but was branching out more these days.
Pippa’s eyes lit up like those of a kitten seeing its first goldfish. She grabbed Dana’s other hand. “A buyer forNeiman’s?”
“Yes,” Dana said, laughing. “It kills her that I’d rather wear tennis shoes than anything else, but she’s gonna love you.”
Pippa impulsively pulled Dana in for a hug in a rare show of trust. “Oh, thank you. I can’t wait. Can you imagine seeing the next line before it’s public?”
Dana wasn’t sure what a line was, but she hugged her new friend back anyway.
The slider opened and Malcolm, looking ripped and dangerous, paused outside. “Um, what’s the hugging about?”
Pippa released Dana and turned, actually hopping once. “Dana’s sister is a buyer for Neiman’s, and she can bring thenext season’ssamples here sometime. Can you believe it?”
Mal’s strong eyebrows rose. “I, ah, I don’t know what that means.”
“Shoes, boots, sandals,” Pippa said, moving excitedly toward him. “All here, all new. All mine.”
