“More like he won’t mind dying, if he can take everyone else with him,” I corrected. “Something we need to keep in mind as we’re laying out this plan. We
have to be ready for Ellery to try and take us all with him.”
“Delacourt wants him alive,” Kayden said.
“I want world peace and a shitload of chocolate,” I snapped. “I’m not so sure
he’ll give us that option. And if that’s how he wants to play it, I’m okay with that.” Especially if it let me face down Kelsey’s memories without choking on my guilt. “Besides, you can’t tell me if the choice is him or the info, the order
won’t be to go for the info.” Once the words were out, I tried not to grimace. It
was never smart to question your CO in front of the other team members, but right now my emotions weren’t the most stable where Ellery was concerned.
Before he could respond, Wolf stepped in. “Cyn.” He waited until I looked at
him, the eerie color of his eyes reflecting light as if lit from within. A gentle, but steady pressure built in my mind. “You still with us?”
Son of a bitch! “Get out of my head,” I gritted out, trembling with the effort not to leap out of my chair and attack him. I threw every bit of strength behind
my mental walls and slammed them tight. “What the hell are you doing?”
“Making sure Bosch’s commands weren’t still active.”
His answer sucked the fight right out of me. “I thought we broke his hold.”
“Until your latest little rant, so did I,” he drawled.
Damn him for making me wonder. I poked and prodded, examining my response, looking for things that didn’t fit.
Yes, the need to hurt Ellery for what he did to Kelsey throbbed under my anger and guilt, but it wasn’t all-consuming. I ran scenarios in my head, checking my thinking. There were no more whispers, no black-edged thoughts of revenge, nor were there any strange doubts about Delacourt or the team.
“Ellery killed my sister,” my voice was low, but level. I held Wolf’s gaze with no problem. “I want him to pay for it, but not at the risk of the team or the
mission. I know the score, Wolf, personal feelings have no place in the field.
Doesn’t mean I don’t want to wipe him out.”
For a moment he didn’t say anything, just studied me. Finally, he must have
spotted something that reassured him. “Just checking.”
“You know,” Bishop broke through the moment. “We could use Bosch’s
orders against him.”
“How?” Kayden asked.
“He wants Ellery dead, and anyone else that’s around. What if we set Cyn up
to give him what he wants? If he thinks he has control of her, he’s going to be
watching us. Once Ellery is out of the picture, he’ll expect her to take out the team.”
I was shaking my head before he finished. “No way in hell could I take out
an entire team on my own.”
“Aww, sugar, don’t worry,” Rabbit said. “You can’t hurt us.”
I ignored him and pressed my point. “How could he expect me to survive?
One person against five? Six? He’s stupid to think it would work.”
“He doesn’t need to you to survive, just cause enough havoc so he can get the drive.” Kayden crossed his arms over his chest. “It might work, Bishop.”
“What will work?” The two men’s behavior made me nervous. “Hello, care
to clue me in?”
“Wolf,” Bishop turned to the other man, excitement and caffeine visibly
chasing away his earlier exhaustion. “Do you have enough time to work with her?”
Now all three were watching me. It wasn’t cool, it was more like being a rabbit at a hawk convention. “What the hell are you guys up to?”
Kayden’s grin was all teeth. “Hunting.”
CHAPTER 25
