Page 284 of Operation: Defiance

Chapter Eighty-Nine

Raine

Siren Coffee has a drive-thru line six cars deep. I pull Asher’s sedan around the back. The dark SUV with the plate number Inara texted me a few minutes ago is already there. A woman leans against the passenger side, arms loose, gaze scanning the street, while the man next to her looks like he was built to walk into burning buildings with no gear and emerge unscathed.

The woman straightens when I get out of the car. Shorter than me. Dark hair with gray threaded through it. Brown eyes that take me in completely in under two seconds and don’t look away.

“Natasha,” she says.

“Raine.”

The man extends a hand. “Doc.”

Panic crashes over me, and I take a step back. My heel finds the edge of a pothole and the stumble gives the panic somewhere to land.

When I find my footing, I force myself to meet his gaze. “I don’t…touch. Only Asher.”

Doc nods, his hands sinking into his pockets without a word.

The large truck at the drive-thru window peels out with a roar. My shoulders hike up. This…I’m too on edge.

Breathe. In for four. Hold. Out for six.

Natasha moves to the back of the SUV, raises the liftgate, and motions me closer. A black, metal box is already open. “This is from Inara. The ear plugs are small enough your hair should hide them. We have a comms unit if you want it, but⁠—”

“No. If I don’t make it out of there, I can’t have them using it to track you down.”

“We don’t scare easily,” Doc says. “You sure?”

Yes. And no.

In the end, yes wins. “Ear plugs only.”

“And there’s this.” Natasha passes me a slim, ceramic blade. “You shouldn’t go in there with nothing. This won’t set off metal detectors. We can tape it to your forearm. Or put it in your pocket.”

I test the weight. The mechanism. It’s quick. Easy. Light enough for even my weakened fingers to operate. Doc watches my hands. Every movement.

“Shoulder?” he asks. “Grip strength?”

The breath hisses through my teeth. “Compromised. Right shoulder. Both hands. Two ribs.”

“Fuck,” he mutters softly. “I’ll be close. I’m not as fast as I used to be, but if Inara or Nat say the word, I can be inside in less than sixty seconds.”

“Last resort only,” I manage. “You don’t know these people.”

Natasha reaches for Doc’s hand. A moment passes between the two. Her next words are quiet. Almost a whisper. “We’ve had our run-ins with evil.”

“And the flash bang?” There’s nothing left in the kit.

Natasha pulls something out of her jacket pocket. “Press the button—here—then count to three.”

“That’s…not an M84.”

“Nope. Hidden Agenda has all the cool toys.” Doc chuckles. “That’s custom.”

It’s small enough, it almost disappears in my closed fist. “Effective range?”

“Seven, eight feet. Tops,” Doc says. “You’ll want to be close to the targets.”