Assassin's Promise, The Red Team Series, Book 5 (38 page)

He looked at the huge ravine in front of them. It was an odd geographical feature that seemed to appear out of nowhere. There wasn’t a river causing the draw to develop. It was just a massive crack, about a half-mile wide and several miles long. Maybe at the bottom, there was a small creek running through it. Trees and sage had claimed tenuous spots on either side of the rocky walls.
 

The heat made George’s skin itch. He scratched his forearm. The collar of his golf shirt rubbed his neck in an irritating way. He scratched there, too, then held the ice-cold water bottle up to his forehead. He was feeling just a little queasy. He looked over at King, who was watching him with concerned eyes.
 

“Sorry. This heat,” George mumbled. “I have a hard time with it. It’s much better when Colorado’s cold than hot.”

King smiled. It was a kind smile. “I understand. It’s the heat, you think?” He looked over toward the ravine. George followed his gaze. “Or is it the vultures?”

George looked on in shock as huge turkey vultures flew out of the ravine. Three of them. Their six-foot wingspans kicked up dust as they perched on the ravine’s edge. It was a beautiful and horrible sight.

“Drink some more water. It will cool you down. The smell of sweat attracts them. Drink.”

George lifted the bottle to his lips and drained the remaining liquid in it, all while watching more and more vultures pop out of the ravine. One came close. King calmly shooed it away. He was brave. Shit.

“Remind me, when did we first meet?” King asked.

George laughed. “You forgot? You came to me. The Senate ethics committee was launching an investigation into my alleged misuse of official resources. You made it go away. I’ve been your faithful servant since. Even my son is in your debt. He’ll serve you as well.”

King smiled. “That pleases me.”
 

“I’m not the only high-ranking official in your service, but I was the first.”

“Ah. And who are the others? Tell me their names.”

George did, pleased he knew so much. He knew too much to be easily disposed of.
 

King stood and took his folding chair, then the cooler and put them in the black SUV. George swiped his forearm against his forehead. One of the vultures hopped toward him, then spread its wings and flew closer, landing only a couple of feet from him.
 

George shouted and jumped up, then backed away. He tripped and fell, scrabbling away as he kicked backward. King put his chair into the black SUV as well.
 

“King! Help me!”

King waved the demon vultures away.
 

George was going to say something, but just then, a vulture landed on King’s shoulder and ripped his ear right off his head in its massive beak. George screamed. King screamed. They ran to George’s car. King leaned in and started the engine.

“Get in, quick!” King ordered, saving George before himself. “The only way you can disperse them is to drive toward them. Do it! Do it now! Hurry!”

King was pleased George didn’t hesitate. He watched as the senator floored the accelerator. Dirt spun out from his tires. He weaved about, as if running off the imaginary vultures conjured by the LSD trip. As he neared the ravine’s edge, he had to be going close to ninety. His pretty Mercedes soared into the air, then nose-dived to the bottom with a loud explosion. A black ball of smoke shot up from the rim of the canyon.

* * *
 

Remi followed Greer into the den. She sent him a nervous glance, wondering why Owen had summoned them. She’d been away from the team for most of her quarantine, and she’d forgotten how intense the bosses were. Kit nodded to Owen, silently giving him the floor.

“I wanted to bring Dr. Chase up to speed,” Owen said. “Your help in uncovering the hidden reality inside the Friends Community has been invaluable.” He looked around the table. “As you know, most of the people we discovered in the Quonset huts were the missing teenagers from the community, though some were Jane and John Does, taken from the streets elsewhere. There were forty-five in all, twenty dead, twenty-five very close to death.”

“What were they doing to them?” Remi asked. She’d heard some of this news from Greer, but not the official version.

“The investigators found evidence of slow- and fast-acting bio agents, from brucellosis to hemorrhagic infectants in the labs and in the dead in the mass grave. They were testing bio weapons.”

“On the kids?”

Owen nodded. “Seems the nature of their tithes changed from committing crimes to being victims. The living patients have been moved to Denver, the dead to special labs for analysis. DNA from each corpse is being matched to those in the Community so that their families can be notified.”

“Will the ones who survived pull through?”

Owen lifted his shoulders. “Time will tell. They are receiving the very best care now. I don’t know whether you’ve heard, but Senator Whiddon has evidently committed suicide.”

“He killed himself?” While it was a relief he was no longer a threat to her, Remi had a hard time getting her head around that news. Men as arrogant as the senator rarely felt remorse for their crimes.

“It appears he was overcome by guilt. He enumerated his crimes in a detailed suicide note.” Owen gave Greer a penetrating look.

Greer shrugged. “I can’t say that’s much of a loss. He and his son had been under FBI scrutiny for some time.”

Remi couldn’t help the shiver that ripped down her spine as she remembered his whispered promise,
I will end him
. Greer was smiling at her.

She shifted her gaze to Owen. “Do you think the WKB will leave me alone now?”

“The WKB have their hands full dealing with the FBI and the CDC and various other agencies. You’ll be the last thing on their minds for a long time,” Owen told her.

Remi reached for Greer’s hand, realizing what the other side of the coin meant; she was now free to go. Free to return to her old life. She looked to see if Greer had made that connection yet. If he had, it didn’t show on his face. Her heart hammered uncomfortably in her chest as they left the den.

She was quiet as they walked down the hall. “I never thought I could open my heart the way you’ve shown me to. Now that I have, if you aren’t in it, I’ll just feel broken.”

He smiled and stopped to face her. “Go on.”

“I need you to be with me. Here. At my place. Whatever.”

Greer touched her cheek. The humor slowly slipped from his face. “I wouldn’t have it any other way, Remi. I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

He caught her hand and pressed it to his chest. “Marry me.”
 

“We have complicated careers. How will we make it work?”

“I think my team’s going to be here a long while. And it sounded like your university’s never going to let you go. I’ll put you first. You’ll put me first. We’ll make it work.”

She smiled at him. “I like that.”

“I do, too.” He laughed and kissed her. They walked down to the living room, where everyone was gathering for supper. Kelan’s phone rang.
 

Greer smiled as Kelan said, “Hi, babe. What’s up?” There was a pause. “Fiona? Fiona?” Another pause. The guys went quiet, hearing a note in Kelan’s voice that set them on edge. Remi felt the tension that rippled through the room.

Kelan straightened and frowned. “Who is this?” He lowered the phone slowly, then looked at Greer. “They have Fiona.”

Other Books by Elaine Levine:

~Red Team Series~

(This series must be read in order)

1
The Edge of Courage
(2012)

2
Shattered Valor
(2012)

3
Honor Unraveled
(2013)

3.5
Kit & Ivy: A Red Team Wedding Novella
(2014)

4
Twisted Mercy
(2014)

4.5
Ty & Eden: A Red Team Wedding Novella
(2015)

5 Assassin’s Promise (2015)

~ Men of Defiance Series ~

(This series may be read in any order)

1
Rachel and the Hired Gun
(2009)

2
Audrey and the Maverick
(2010)

3
Leah and the Bounty Hunter
(2011)

4
Logan’s Outlaw
(2012)

5
Agnes and the Renegade
(2014)

Acknowledgments

As always, I owe a debt of gratitude to my secret group of amazing beta readers. They see through the rawness of my work to the story hiding inside. I bow to you, my friends.

I was fortunate with this story to be able to consult with my friend, Jeni Cross, Ph.D., Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology at Colorado State University. She’s so much fun to talk to. Her stories are addictive, and her love and respect for the field of sociology shines through everything she says. While I strove to honor her and do the field of sociology justice, any errors in the story are mine alone.

I want to make a special shout-out to my in-laws, Mel and Evelyn Levine. They are the best parents and cheerleaders a girl could ever want. And GiGi—I did use the dreaded “C**k” word, maybe too freely. I hope you’ll forgive me (just clearing the air so we won’t have to chat about it at Thanksgiving).

Dedication

For Barry, my best friend, my shelter, my everything.
 

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher. To obtain permission to excerpt portions of the text, please contact the author at
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Published by Elaine Levine

Copyright © 2015 Elaine Levine

Last Updated September 28, 2015

Cover art by Hot Damn Designs

Cover image featuring Colin Wayne © FuriousFotog Photography

Editing by editing720

Proofing by Carol Agnew

All rights reserved.

About the Author

Elaine Levine lives on the plains of Colorado with her husband, a middle-aged parrot, and a rescued pit bull/bullmastiff mix. In addition to writing the Red Team romantic suspense series, she is the author of several books in the historical western series Men of Defiance.
 

Visit her online at
ElaineLevine.com
for more information about her upcoming books. She loves hearing from readers! Contact her at
[email protected]
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