Shadow in the Desert (Shadow SEALs #3) - Becca Jameson Page 0,4

need was to worry about this feather of a woman. No way. Not a chance. “That’s a dealbreaker,” he told Charley.

Serena flinched and shot him a narrowed look that could have melted a cast-iron pan. She may not have had any intentions of going either, but she sure didn’t like the decision coming from him.

“Nonnegotiable. Serena goes with you. I’ll overnight you the details in a few days. Plane tickets and all the information you’ll need to get started. When you arrive, you’ll stay in a hotel in Addis Ababa the first night. After that, you’ll meet up with my contact and be given further instructions.”

Ryker slapped his hands onto the table again, fingers wide, fingertips white from gripping the surface. “How do we know this isn’t a trap intended to get both of us killed so that whoever fucked up this mission can wipe their hands clean of possible loose ends?”

Serena leaned forward and pushed the top piece of paper in the open manila folder to one side, her fingers moving slowly to reveal the second page.

Ajax's breath hitched and caught. “Motherfucker,” he breathed out. He yanked the entire stack of pages off the table and started flipping through them while Ryker did the same with his set of documents.

“Fuck,” Ryker muttered.

The first several pages were pictures of the rest of their squad. They were grainy and black and white, but there was no mistaking the images of their comrades. Recent images. Their brothers looked like shit. Three months of neglect.

Fuck.

Whoever this Charley woman was, she had them both by the balls. There wasn’t a chance in hell either of them would leave men behind for any reason. Even if Charley was fucking with them and intended to have the two of them killed the moment they stepped off the plane, it was a risk Ajax would have to take. And he knew Ryker would too.

Plus, why send Serena with them if Charley intended to have them both killed? That part made no sense.

Apparently, Ajax was headed back to Ethiopia.

Chapter 2

“I still can’t believe it’s you,” Ajax said as he followed Ryker into his hotel room and dropped his duffle on the floor.

Ryker turned to stare at Ajax, shaking his head. “It’s like I’m looking at a ghost.”

“Yeah.” That was an understatement. Ajax had shed tears over the loss of his brother. Lots of them. And here he was. Not dead. He lifted both hands, held one palm open, and punched it with his other fist. “I swear to God, if I ever get my hands on whoever created this entire lie…” He didn’t need to finish the sentence. Ryker would know exactly what he intended.

“Get in line.”

“Should we call Dad?”

Ryker shook his head and gave a half-grin. “No. I say we fly back together tomorrow and show up.” He glanced down, fisting his hands. “Man’s been out of his mind with sorrow. Mom too.”

Ajax ran his hands over his head and through his ridiculously long hair. He hadn’t cut it since he’d arrived in the US. Apparently, Ryker hadn’t either. He had no interest in sitting down. Too much pent-up energy.

“Why didn’t you contact them?” Ryker asked, his voice lower.

Ajax knew who “them” was. Mom and Dad. Frank and Nancy Holt, their foster parents, the people who took Ryker in when he was five and Ajax when he was twelve. The people who loved him and turned him into a man.

Ajax started pacing. “Navy fucked with my head, man. Told me inexplicable shit about that mission. Made it seem like I’d be shunned if I ever showed my face to Mom and Dad.”

Ryker was breathing heavily. “Sounds about right. Only I didn’t have anywhere else to go. Not with my head on backward. Not gonna lie, I’ve thought about taking my own life a few times.”

“Me too.” Ajax stared at his brother for long moments.

Fuck. The anguish was indescribable. “What did you tell them? What did Dad say?”

Ryker swallowed. “Told Dad the truth. That I had no memory of the mission. That the Navy insisted I had gone rogue and that my entire team had died because of it.”

“And Dad? Was he disappointed?”

Ryker scratched his head. “Funny thing is he wasn’t. I don’t think he believed it. He didn’t say as much, but his brow was furrowed while I told him the absurd tale. He stood a few feet away, arms crossed, eyes narrowed. Never said a word while I told him. When I was done, he took