“Blitz attack,” he said. “Four men hit me on a city street in the split second while I was out of public view—they came in shooting. I took a stun to the face.”
That explained the spreading bruise on the right-hand side of his face. “They respected your skill more than mine.”
“That’s why you’ve always been so dangerous. People see you and think woman first and soldier second.”
“I used to think my shape a hindrance before I realized the effect it had on males.” At a height of five feet and two inches, she was relatively short, and while she was in lethal shape, her body tended toward curves rather than straight lines. “Now I see it as camouflage.” The soft, unthreatening exterior hiding a razored blade that could cut your throat and not blink.
“Good.” Aden put his hand on her forehead. “Your temperature is slightly elevated. Rest.”
Tired from the continued pain in her gut and aware she had to become stronger if she was to function as his backup, she didn’t argue. “Will you take first watch?”
When he said, “Yes,” she closed her eyes and went to sleep. Because Aden was the one being on the planet she trusted never to harm her. He was too irrational to be sensible.
Chapter 4
“IT’S CONFIRMED? THE Arrows have escaped?” That was the last thing the organization needed.
“They won’t get far,” said the blunt-faced man who was the leader of the cleanup squad. “At least one is badly injured, from the report we received before it went to shit. Bandage we found inside was soaked with fresh blood. She’ll die soon and save us the trouble of hunting her down.”
“Arrows don’t worry about camaraderie so she’s probably already been dumped to survive on her own.” The group of elite assassins was composed of piercingly intelligent and highly trained rabid dogs who’d do anything to complete a mission—or to survive capture. Leaving an injured squadmate behind wouldn’t even be a question. “The retrieval of her body isn’t a priority.” Zaira Neve was no longer useful. “Concentrate on Aden Kai.”
The human male on the other side of the screen chewed the tobacco he insisted on using, and spit out the yellow-brown residue in a disgusting display. “Yeah, well, he won’t survive long, either. Massive storm front’s about to hit the mountains and he’s got nowhere to go.”
That, at least, was true. The group had chosen the location in part because of the privacy afforded by its inaccessibility. “Continue tracking.” The only way to be certain an Arrow was dead was to see the corpse.
“I will, but I need to know if I have authorization to take terminal action if necessary.”
“Yes, but only if you can’t contain him.” Once broken, Aden Kai could be a critical intelligence asset. “Do not use the fail-safe solution. Not yet.”
“No offense,” said the tobacco-chewing subhuman creature, “but I was told real strict to only take orders from the whole group when it came to this kind of a decision, never just one of you.”
There wasn’t time for a group meeting, but he was right. This groundbreaking and brilliant organization worked only because each member believed himself or herself equal to the others. That equality was a carefully constructed sham, but the belief was important for the end goal. “The others will contact you within the next five minutes.”
There would be no dissension, not on this point. Because if it was a case of a live Arrow with vengeance on his mind or a dead one, the equation was simple. Should Aden Kai prove problematic, the organization would have to live with the loss of data, change plans accordingly, adapt.
Adaptation was the key.
Chapter 5
ADEN SENSED ZAIRA fall into a deep sleep, her breathing even. Her skin, when he checked it after about what must’ve been an hour, was no longer as clammy. Though they were in a cold climate, which the rising wind was turning even more bitter, they were well clothed and had enough food to last another day. After that, they’d be in trouble, and Zaira was already dangerously weak as a result of blood loss.
Making sure the hood of her jacket covered her head, he curled his body around hers in an effort to keep her warm, his mind alert. However, that mind was bound in chains he had to force himself not to test. It went against his instincts, but he couldn’t afford to do any damage that might debilitate him—his knowledge as a medic told him that whatever implant they had in their heads, it was unstable.
Technology this advanced could be created underground, but the Arrows worked in the shadows, worked in that underground. They would’ve picked up hints if this had been a long-term project. No, what he suspected was that the implant was some nightmare combination of the Human Alliance implant that shielded against psychic intrusion and the “hive-mind” implant developed by Ashaya Aleine while she’d been under the control of the Council.