Ready for Anything, Anywhere! by Beverly Barton

Author:Beverly Barton [Barton, Beverly]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Harlequin (UK) Limited
Published: 2011-09-15T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter 9

The coded signal came in just as Mike Callahan was about to turn the control desk over to his relief.

It was only a little past four in the afternoon, D.C. time, but it was late evening on the coast of Normandy. Mike had taken Slash’s report several hours ago. He’d figured on grabbing a few hours sleep while his field operative did the same.

His pulse kicking up a notch at the unscheduled contact, Mike nudged his relief aside and brought Slash’s digitized image up on the screen.

“Thought you were locked down for the night, buddy.”

“I was. I am.”

Sliding into his seat at the console, Mike noted the rigid set to Cutter’s jaw. Someone or something had gotten to him.

“What’s up?”

“I want to read Dawes in on the op.”

“Roger that.”

Callahan didn’t question the abrupt change in plans. He trusted Cutter Smith’s instincts implicitly. He should. The two of them went back a long way. Over the years they’d shared ops, beers and the occasional night out with whatever females they happened to be involved with at the time.

Those years had forged bonds that went beyond friendship. Danger had further hardened the bonds to tempered steel. On one memorable occasion, Slash had manned a Black Hawk helicopter’s 20mm cannon to hold off more than fifty enraged rebels while Mike scrambled for the hoist cable that would extract him from the sweltering jungle. On another, Mike had jumped in a Navy jet and flown halfway across the world to accompany Slash on the agonizing medevac flight home after a certain traitorous bitch had left him bleeding, burned and unconscious.

Neither of them talked about that long, horrific flight. Or about the woman Cutter had later tracked down. Some things didn’t need discussing. Reading a target into an operational mission with such top-level interest, however, did.

“I’ll have to run this by Lightning.”

“I know.”

“He’s going to want to know the rationale.”

“Tell him … ”

Slash’s hesitation was as uncharacteristic as his scowl. Mike waited a beat, wondering what the hell had happened in the scant hours since his last report.

“Tell him I’m convinced Dawes didn’t know the disk was in her suitcase. I want to work with her, see if she can shed some light on how it got there.”

“You sure she’ll cooperate? She might not take kindly to learning that you’ve had her in your sights all this time.”

“She’s already tipped to the fact that I have more than a friendly interest in her.” He paused again, then added a gruff postscript. “Considerably more, as it happens. Things, uh, got personal tonight.”

Mike had spent too many years undercover to react to that bit of news, but he had to work to hold back a low whistle. The only other time Cutter had led with his dick instead of his head, he’d wound up in a burn ward.

“You sure you know what you’re doing, buddy?”

“Yeah, I’m sure.” Cutter stared straight into the camera. “Get back with me as soon you talk to Lightning.”

“Will do.”

Mike didn’t need to check the electronic status board to know Lightning wasn’t on site.

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