At one time, he was the big brother I needed, pushy and protective. I

believed him without question, trusted him to cover my back for years in some

of the biggest hellholes on earth. Until the day I sat in a cold courtroom, alone,

answering the unanswerable in a flurry of accusations. Now, when I needed his

honesty the most, he wouldn’t talk. “What the hell is really going on here, Thomas?” I bit out the question.

Tag slowly straightened to his full six foot four, his face blanking into a familiar stonewall. “It’s classified.”

“No.” I shook my head slowly, never breaking eye contact. “No, you don’t get to pull this shit on me again. The two of you are going to level with me.”

“Or what?” Kayden’s question jerked my head around. He pocketed his cell

phone and came closer.

I raised my hand to hold him off. “Or I walk away.”

He stopped a few feet from me.

“Ellery is hunting me.” Just saying it out loud choked me with fear. “You don’t have a goddamn clue where to find him, or you wouldn’t have tracked me

down.”

With one man on the porch and one on the steps, I shifted my position so I

could watch them both. If they were trying to pin me in, it wouldn’t work. I tucked my gun into the back of my waistband to combat the temptation it presented. My control wasn’t as strong as I’d hoped. “You’re here because you

have no other choice, and you need me as bait. As of right now, I can’t think of a

single reason I need you.”

Kayden’s expression turned stony. “I can think of three, Elizabeth Gaskey, Michael Layton and Nathan Visic.”

Each name of my former teammates hit like bullets, tearing through half-

healed wounds. The impacts left me speechless and leaning against the low porch railing.

“What the hell, Shaw?” Tag growled behind me.

“As of five minutes ago, the orders have changed. Now that we know for

sure it’s Ellery on her ass, she needs to know what we’re dealing with before she does something stupid.”

Kayden’s comment burned, but it restored my voice. “What happened to

Liza, Mike, and Nate?”

“They’re dead.” Too much emotion existed in Tag’s answer. Way too much.

It scared me.

“Dead?” The question escaped on a harsh whisper. “How?”

Instead of answering me, Kayden snapped, “Give her the file. Let her see what Ellery’s become.”

Grabbing his wrist as he went to step around me, I asked, “File?”

He stopped and looked down at me, “You want to help hunt Kelsey’s killer,

you need to understand who you’re going up against.” Something uneasy

hovered behind his words. “Maybe it’ll make you rethink playing bait.”

“I’ve seen his handiwork, Kayden.” The words slipped out as brutal

memories hovered close. “Just because no one wanted to listen the first time, doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. I haven’t forgotten what he’s capable of.”

“He’s changed,” Tag added. “Killers escalate.”

“Read the file, Cyn,” Kayden’s voice stayed gruff. “Then maybe you’ll

understand.”

Goosebumps pebbled my skin at his ominous tone. “Fine.”

For the first time I wondered what I was getting myself into. Fading sunlight

glinted off Kelsey’s car. Did I really care? Ellery needed to pay for what he’d taken from me. Tearing my gaze away from the trunk with its heartbreaking baggage, I could only manage one word. “Thanks.”

“Don’t thank me, it wasn’t my decision.” Kayden studied me, then shook his

head. “We need to get moving.”

“What about Kelsey?” I was proud how steady my voice was.

The stern lines of his face softened for a moment. “She’ll be taken care of, I

promise.” He covered my hand with his and squeezed.

His show of compassion snuck under my guard and pierced deep, but I

shored up my defenses. I gave him a jerky nod and pulled away.

Kelsey deserved answers, even if the end result left me buried in truths better