Gracie - Sherry Foster Page 0,38
leave and sent a box ahead. He either suspects something or he thinks we are on to a trafficking ring.”
Gracie interrupted him, “And since we are strictly forbidden to operate in the United States he is trusting us to take care of the situation quietly with no fuss and no muss. So in and out, gather information and return. You know, if we hadn’t gone off on a scouting mission twice before, without permission, and brought back valuable information which in turn had Telu sending teams out to take down the leaders I would be more nervous about the box.”
Halo grunted. “I am still nervous. Remember I have worked for this organization years longer than you. Cross the wrong line and they will retire you. We have no way of knowing if we crossed the wrong line until we open the box.”
“Eat first?” Gracie asked.
“Yeah. Eat first.”
Six hours later Gracie dropped the curtain. “I think we should have checked sunrise and sunset for this time of year.”
“Hey, at least it is light most of the night. Hard to sneak up on someone in the dark if it isn’t dark. I am in favor of light for as long as we can get it when hunting creatures that may or may not see in the dark.” Halo stroked the barrel of the rifle before setting it on the table. “I would be happier if he had sent more ammunition, maybe some body armor.”
“You ready?” Gracie dangled the keys in front of his face as she picked up the second rifle from the table and holstered the pistol she had claimed.
As he stood up Gracie caught the worried look on his face as he eyed her stomach.
“I am not pregnant, Halo, don’t even think about it.”
Chapter Sixteen
Hendrix titled his head back and stared up at the sky. No moon, too much sun, not the time of year he enjoyed most. He could feel Mia watching him but he didn’t want to be the first to break the silence. Gammon hadn’t been happy about the drone and as the days had passed and nothing had surfaced on the internet, in the news or on the dark web tensions had risen. Not only in Gammon’s pack but in the other packs as well. The curse had been, perhaps broken but it would be years even decades before they knew. Marcus still had nothing on the drone and didn’t think he would get anything. In the past if someone saw something they shouldn’t they were taken care of in a most permanent way, but the technology of the present was making secrets harder to keep and finding the people who discovered those secrets proved almost impossible.
Gracie still hadn’t replied to his last text or any of the ones he sent since leaving Tanzania. He was worried about her. As he walked beside Mia his thoughts drifted to the smile Gracie wore when she thought she had an advantage. The smirk she wore when she thought she could evade his tickling. He thought of the anger she wore like a shield when she talked about her sister and how she got in the business.
“Who is she?” Mia’s voice broke the silence.
“Who is who?”
“Don’t do that. You know exactly who I am talking about. Who brings the slight smile to your lips while your eyes hold a look of sorrow.”
“No one. It doesn’t matter.”
“It matters to me.” She reached out a hand to snag his sleeve. He stopped but didn’t turn. Mia had been the one to scoop him up when he was six and run with him. She had used her body as a shield to protect him. She had sprained her ankle getting him to safety. Gammon had taken the bullet meant for him. He owed the couple his life but they couldn’t change his past. They changed his name, they gave him a future, made him heir to a fortune, but none of that could change the past.
Mia started walking again. “We have the strangest allies now. Did you ever imagine we would rank aliens as friends or have witches on the payroll. I mean, technically Casey is not on our payroll but she does profit from using her plane to fly Trey around. Royalty who can break curses. Who would have thought that could happen.”
“Drop it Mia. I love you. You know I do. Gammon showed me the paper. They knew the exact words used to curse our race. They could pick through