Say I Do (Wilde Ways #10) - Cynthia Eden Page 0,37

now.”

She hadn’t spotted them—and she’d been looking—so his team had to be very, very good.

He motioned toward his ear. “I’ll turn my comm link off when I go inside. What I need to talk about with Roman is classified.”

Of course, it was. This was Dex, after all.

“But if there is trouble, I’ll turn it back on, and I’ll call you and the rest of the team through the link.” He stepped toward her. Her head tipped back. His gaze had dropped to her mouth, and she could have sworn that he was about to kiss her.

While they were on the mission, about to meet up with the bad guy? Someone was being a rule breaker. She swayed toward him and—

“Get your gun out, Lacey. If someone attacks you, shoot the bastard in the heart.”

Well, all right then. Not a kiss. Just a fierce warning.

Dex turned on his heel. His boots crunched over the snow as he marched for the cabin.

She blew out another breath, ignored the chatter of her teeth, and prepared to get down to business. She would protect Dex’s back. They’d end this mission.

Then she’d finally discover the truth about her family.

***

“I see you,” the shooter whispered. Staring through the scope, there was no way to miss the target. It would be such an easy shot. Like so many others had been over the years.

The wind was just right. The direction perfect. The bullet would fly through the air without so much as a whistle of sound, and in the next breath, the target would be down.

It was supposed to be a heart shot. Head shots were preferred, but this time, the client had been very, very specific.

Heart. To send a message.

When the bullet hit, it would tear through skin, muscle. Bone. It would sink into the heart and blood would explode. The victim would fall back, and the white snow would turn red.

It would be a beautiful sight.

Just wait…

It was almost time.

Another glance through the scope. This time, a slow sweep around the full area.

Ah…Dex was entering the cabin.

Wait…Just wait.

He’d be coming out again soon enough.

***

When he opened the cabin’s door, Dex already had his gun in his hand. He had a key to the cabin—one he’d taken from the lodge—and the door creaked as it slid open.

Darkness waited inside. Gaping and cold.

Lacey had been right when she’d noted that there had been no signs of footprints outside. And Larry had assured him that no one had gotten into the cabin since dawn.

That left before dawn.

In order for Roman to have been there that long, sitting in the cold…well, that was unlikely, given what he knew about the fellow. Roman was dangerous, deadly, but he didn’t exactly rough it on any cases. The arrogant asshole tended to think he was too good for shit like that.

Still…

“I’m here,” Dex called out. “So if you’re hiding in the dark, come out now before I get all jumpy and shoot your ass.”

Nothing.

He hit the light switch. The place was supposed to be supplied with power via a generator but—

The lights didn’t come on.

Bad sign number one.

Dex’s shoulders tensed a bit more. The windows were covered with heavy drapes, so no light slipped inside. He used his left hand to lift up his phone. He tapped the screen to access the flashlight option, then swept it carefully over the floor.

Was that a drop of blood? Over near the closed door—the door that led to an old storage room. Because, yes, he’d gotten schematics of the cabin. He’d wanted to know what waited for him.

Always three steps ahead.

He advanced toward the door. That wasn’t just one drop of blood. It looked like two. Maybe three.

Bad sign number two.

There wasn’t a good reason for blood to be on the floor. And it was fresh. Not faded by time. Someone had been bleeding fairly recently in that cabin. Could have been an employee who’d gotten cut while doing maintenance but…

He didn’t think so.

His heart wasn’t racing. His hands weren’t shaking. As per usual on a mission, he was stone cold. Dex’s mind and emotions became detached as he focused on the goal. He’d learned long ago that there was no room for error on a case like this. Emotions led to mistakes.

He stared at the closed door. Made sure his body wasn’t in front of it. The last thing he wanted was for bullets to fly through the wood and sink into him. Even though he was wearing a bulletproof vest beneath his coat,