“The day I arrived, my trainer and mentor, Viktor Rousseau, told me that I never had to be a victim again. He taught me everything I needed to know about defending myself, something that, until Viktor, I hadn’t been able to do on my own. I hadn’t been able to protect my little sister or myself. With his training techniques, I was able to show up, get my message across and feel like I’d done something to help myself and my country. We were given a purpose. They told us that our mission was vital to national security because we could eliminate threats. Only they weren’t all threats. Some were inconvenient witnesses, potential whistleblowers and journalists getting too close to the truth.”
“When did you discover this?” Rogue asked.
Keira glanced out the window. “I started seeing through the lies several months ago. I was collecting data, watching, taking it all in. It wasn’t until they tasked me with eliminating Senator Morales that it sank in for good. You see, they brainwashed us to focus on the mission. Everything else was static.”
“Why didn’t you complete the mission?” Rogue asked softly.
“I was in Morales’s apartment, standing outside his bedroom door, when I overheard him talking to someone on the phone. He said he was going to expose Strickland and Kaufman. That he had evidence that Strickland was using government black ops funds to build a private army to eliminate his opposition and clear a path for Kaufman and his illegal contracts.”
“Deputy Director Alan Stickland works for the governor of Texas,” Rogue said.
Keira nodded. “Many of the missions we worked on were at his direction. Some of them were linked to cartels, which made it easy for us to believe we were doing the right thing. But other targets were questionable. When I overheard the senator, it hit home. We’d been used to do the dirty work for people even more evil than those we’d taken out. The senator was going to expose them. He had evidence. I wanted him to. I was tired of them lying to us, sending us on missions for their own selfish greed. I left an SD disk on the counter in the kitchen. The evidence I had been collecting for him to add to what he had. I was done being used. Done with the brainwashing. So, I left.”
“But someone killed the senator.”
Her mouth tightened, and her nostrils flared. “Apparently, they really wanted the senator to die that night and initiated a backup plan to make sure the job was done.”
“And the stone they found on the counter?”
She shook her head. “Their backup plan left a calling card that would point to Onyx. Me. Thing is, I’ve never left a calling card. Ever. We were trained to be ghosts. No one should ever know we’d been there. Leave no traces. No fingerprints. No images on surveillance cameras.”
“The news had footage of a person dressed in black sneaking into the apartment complex around the time of the senator’s death.”
“Onyx wouldn’t have let that happen. It wasn’t me.”
“It was their backup plan.”
She nodded, took another bite of her sandwich and swallowed before continuing. “Since leaving Onyx, I’m now a thread they want to tie.”
“And by teaming with you rather than turning you in, I’m in the same boat—as well as my boss. We’re in this together.”
Her brow dipped. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. We suspected something wasn’t right with this case. And since our mission was directed through the government, albeit unofficial channels, we knew the dangers if we sided with the target.”
“You could walk away now and tell them I escaped,” she offered.
Rogue shook his head. “A senator is dead. The killer is still running free, and I’m not letting that slide. I figure you know more about this than I do at this point.”
“All my data was in that motel room,” she said. “And my laptop.”
His lips twitched. “I might be able to help you with that.” He tipped his chin toward her plate. “Finish up so we can get out of here. I’m not sure how safe we are sitting in one place for too long.”
She glanced out the window, a crease forming on her forehead. “You were able to find me. I’m sure the other task force is using the same methods.”
“I thought you said Onyx knew how to be ghosts,” Rogue’s eyes narrowed.
She nodded. “Part of me wanted to see who would come after me. If they were some of my sisters from Onyx.”
“So far, all I’ve seen is men in combat gear.”
She nodded. “Same.”
“And part of the problem is your burner phone. We were able to find the number and track it whenever you used it. If you haven’t already, you might ditch it.”
“I did after we set the time and place of our meeting.”
“Good.” Rogue finished his burger and shake.
