“Since we’re empty-handed, maybe we need a new one,” she shot back, frustration pulling the knot tighter.
“You’re underestimating Rhys,” he said, tone even but firm. “I get this is personal, but operations like this take time—and patience.”
She was running dangerously low on that commodity and took a breath to tell him so when the door slid open. Dev climbed in, Rhys right behind him. In his dark suit, he gave off a composed, utterly unshakable James Bond vibe. Everything she was not.
“What now?” she asked, unable to mask the strain twisting her words.
“We wait,” Dev answered.
As next steps went, she didn’t like it much. Waiting was never her strong suit.
“I’m sorry. I just—” Her voice broke before she forced it steady. “We gave him exactly what he’s been chasing for ten years and got nothing in return. No invitation. No contact information. Not a single opening.”
“That’s not true,” Rhys said, calm as stone. “I gave him Blackwood’s card.”
She thought she’d watched his every move, but she must have missed that. Still… “That doesn’t guarantee—”
“He’ll reach out, Gaby,” he interrupted. Not dismissive but with rock-solid certainty.
“When?” The question slipped out before she could stop it. He couldn’t possibly know, which was the problem.
“Soon,” Rhys replied anyway. “He won’t be able to resist proving himself to a man who let him win.”
She inhaled, striving for the calm the men around her wore so easily. It didn’t take.
Already hunched, too tall to stand upright in the van without bending, he crouched in front of her. The hard-edged operative gave way to a gentler side he didn’t often let her see. “I know this isn’t easy, Gaby. But you can’t rush a man like Álvarez. He doesn’t invite just anyone into his inner sanctum. He evaluates, challenges, and tests. If he thinks I’m too eager, we’ll never see the inside of his world.”
She glanced toward Dev, trust in Rhys written plainly across his face. Then at Leland, who wore an I-told-you-so expression.
When her gaze returned to Rhys, his confidence that everything was unfolding as planned didn’t ease her tension completely, but it gave her some space to breathe.
“You’re sure about this.” It wasn’t a question.
“I am.”
“How?”
A corner of his mouth lifted. Not quite a smile, discerning seemed to fit. “Because I showed him I understand his obsession. He thinks we’re kindred spirits or some such bullshit.”
She huffed, more of an exhale than a laugh, her frustration still coiled tight. “This is beyond infuriating.”
He leaned closer, his hand coming to her knee for a reassuring squeeze. “Trust me on this.”
“I do,” she admitted, meaning it. “But it’s been sixty-seven days since my sister disappeared, and I’m teetering on the edge.”
“Hold on a little longer,” he urged softly, fingers flexing again. “We made progress tonight.”
Gaby wished she could crawl into his lap and feel the reassurance of his arms. But that wasn’t them, no matter how badly she wanted it to be. So she nodded, sounding a bit desperate when she whispered, “I’m holding on as best I can.”
What hung between them, she kept to herself, that trusting him and the team was all she and Natalie had left.
Chapter 10
She didn’t hate Rhys being right nearly as much when he walked into the conference room three days later. She and Callan were buried in cross-checks and intel. Even as Natalie consumed her thoughts, there were other girls out there to save. Other terrified families to fight for.
“Looks like we’re going to San José this weekend,” he said without preamble.
“Hot damn,” Callan crowed, flashing a grin. “Love it when a plan comes together.”
