Page 2 of Stolen Salvation

Granger seemed pleased, his shoulders leaning forward just the slightest bit. “I’m putting together a team of men and women who’ll live and work together for the most part. Your old life will be erased from any database, and you’ll cease to exist. Whether you walk out of here alive, or we tell the world you’re dead is up to you, but all records of you will be gone. The team will answer to a lead who’ll answer to me. It will be autonomous and highly secretive.”

“That’s fine, I have nobody in my life but don’t put me down as dead.” No matter how much he now hated the woman he’d loved, he didn’t want her to believe she’d killed him. Some small part of him still cared and he hated himself for the weakness. Focusing back on what Granger had said he asked, “What will this team do?”

“There are far too many instances where red tape and politics allow injustice to happen and for dangerous people to go back into positions of power. We’ll cut through that tape and handle it. There’ll also be occasions where we travel abroad to take out threats that nobody has the balls to handle. We’ll let them carry on twisting their pearls in worry over the consequences while we actually deal with it.”

Bishop considered Granger’s words. He knew the man to be a good operator and that he worked directly for the Monarchy but not the details of him or his team. It seemed he had more power than anyone realised, even MI5. “Why me?”

Granger cocked his head, his hands hanging loosely between his knees. “You’re one of the best in your field. You have an excellent close and success rate on your cases and an impressive list of assets. We need someone like you, and I think you’d be a good fit for our team.”

“Tell me more about them?”

Granger paused and seemed to consider his words. “Some of them are people who’ve led a pretty grey life according to the law and then there are others who’ve just damn right broken it. But they’ve done so for the right reasons or because of a path they were put on that they couldn’t get off without some help. We offered that help, and they give us the knowledge and resources we need. Others are former special forces who fell afoul of the leadership. It’s a mixed bag, but they’re all good people at heart and want to help. They’re highly skilled and will be the best of the best by the time we finish training them.”

“Who’s the leader you mentioned?”

“A man named Niall O’Scanlan, but you might know him as Bás. He, along with a woman named Nadia Benassi, known as Duchess, will lead this team.”

Bishop had heard of them both and they were like night and day, but Granger wasn’t lying about their backgrounds or the skills they had.

“I take it once you walk out the door the offer goes with you?”

Granger smirked. “You know the drill, Bishop.”

He leaned his head back against the pillows and considered his options. He had fuck all to lose and maybe a challenge and purpose would stop him from swallowing a bullet, which had been the first thought in his head when Charlie walked away.

Rolling his head on the pillow, he looked at Granger who was cool and controlled. No emotion on his face in the slightest. He was used to working with people like Granger, who cut to the chase and showed nothing to the outside world. “I have one stipulation.”

“What is it?”

“I want Armand Vernier dead.”

Bishop didn’t have it in him to harm a hair on Charlie’s head but the man she’d left with, who she’d gotten mixed up with, needed to die.

Granger dipped his chin, as he leaned back and crossed his ankles. “I can agree to that, but you won’t be part of the mission. I won’t have revenge getting in the way of this team. Eidolon will handle him.”

“I can live with that.”

Granger smiled and stood abruptly, forcing Bishop to wonder where the hell he was because this sure as hell wasn’t an NHS hospital. “Hey, where the hell am I?”

Granger smirked. “At my headquarters. You took quite the beating and Dr Decker spent four hours trying to dig that bullet out of you while you kept trying to die.”

“From the bullet wound?”

“No, internal bleeding from the beating. The bullet was more of a deep scratch.”

Bishop shook his head, a grin twisting his lips at the thought a bullet in the shoulder would be considered a scratch. “How long have I been out?”

“Two days all told.” Granger pointed at him. “Get some rest and recuperate because once training starts you’re going to wish for death. I want this team to live and breathe in tandem.”

“I won’t let you down, Jack, and thanks.”

“I know you won’t and don’t thank me yet. You might regret handing your life over.”

“No, I won’t. I have nothing left for me in my old life.”

Granger offered him a closed expression as if he wanted to say something, but he kept his mouth shut, and nodded. Which left Bishop to contemplate his future, one without the other half of his heart.

Charlie had ripped his heart out and stamped on it, turning on him in a way he’d never seen coming. Well, that would never happen again. He’d never trust another person with his heart like that. Charlie was dead to him and so was the love they’d shared. It had been an illusion and he had no place for it in his life going forward.