to have them all together when she took her revenge. It suited her to have the terrorist plan his little plots and kill her enemies. In the realities of Darko’s world, the SEALs barely registered on the scale, and then only if the whole, international scope of the gang was taken into consideration.
For her, Darko had dealt with Angar Said and given him a premium price on a shipment of opium. Set up his money man and started a whole beautiful network of thugs and spies. Too bad Anna Keegan had gotten away. Mad Max’s sister had been nothing short of amazing in her rescue of her brother in Paraguay, messing up her plot, but Zasha was making her life a living hell right now.
The Corta Cartel had screwed her over. They had let Shea and the SEALs go instead of capturing them for her. But their benevolence regarding their damn money and honor made her sick.
Darko had done something stupid—he’d let her in, then fallen in love with her. But it hadn’t made him happy. So, he fought it with the pride of his fortune, with the strength of his mind, and with the frosty detachment of his most contemptuous scorn.
And yet he was there, always…for her.
She took a breath and held it, then slowly released it quietly back into the night. “Load them up and be careful not to damage them. I have plans.”
Darko was a part of her, too, for better or worse, and there wasn’t a doubt in her mind that it was going to be for worse, that someday he would demand a price it would kill her to pay—and she would pay it.
She, after all, had been just as stupid and given her his heart.
Epilogue
After the Darko Stjepanić attack that had taken the SEALs by surprise on the way to the airport in Prague, Dodger had woken up in the hospital with a broken wrist, concussion, cuts, bruises, and contusions. Fast Lane, Pitbull, and Hemingway had been in the lead vehicle and only sustained minor cuts and abrasions. They were the ones who had taken up their weapons and defended the rest of the team. Max had dislocated his shoulder and Dragon had been shaken up along with Jugs, but all three of them had been treated and released from the hospital.
When all the smoke had cleared, they found 2-Stroke and Chry’s SUV smashed, the driver dead, the vehicle upside down on its roof, their teammate and CIA liaison gone. Devastated and full of rage, he and his team were hell-bent on revenge. The guys had gone home, but Dodger couldn’t face his empty flat and went back to London to rest and recover with assistance from his parents. Kat had called him personally to thank him for his efforts and to report that both the Fort Bragg and the New York Stock Exchange attacks had been thwarted by the tireless and quick action of the FBI. He’d also heard from LT that Saint was doing well, and they expected to release him soon.
The good news that Saint was mending was a temporary high.
Dodger was in a bad place, worried about 2-Stroke and Chry in the hands of Darko. How could he rest when they were in terrible danger, probably being tortured? If they weren’t already dead.
He closed his eyes, thinking about 2-Stroke, a damn fine SEAL, so bloody young, and Chry, her delicate face and confident personality. What were they doing to her?
He wanted to hit something, his frustration building every day.
His mom drove him to the doctor’s office five weeks later to remove the cast. On the way home, he took the wheel and she settled into the passenger’s seat. When they got home, he started for the stairs, but she touched his arm to stop him.
“I have something I want you to have. Come with me.”
He followed her into the study, perplexed. She went to the safe and punched in the combination, then delved inside. When she closed the door, she had a small, square, blue velvet box in her hands.
His heart softened and he walked to her. When she opened the box, a beautiful sapphire blue ring caught the light with a blaze of color. It was surrounded with a circle of diamonds.
“This is your grandmother’s sixtieth wedding anniversary gift from your grandfather. She cherished this along with her wedding rings, but of course, the wedding rings already went to your brother.” She tilted her head, her face soft and