About This Book
What happens when the very men—trained to make the hard decisions—come up against the rules and regulations that hold them back from doing what needs to be done? They either stay and work within the constraints given to them or they walk away. Only now, for a select few, they have another option:
The Mavericks. A covert black ops team that steps up and break all the rules … but gets the job done.
Welcome to a new military romance series by USA Today best-selling author Dale Mayer. A series where you meet new friends and just might get to meet old ones too in this raw and compelling look at the men who keep us safe every day from the darkness where they operate—and live—in the shadows … until someone special helps them step into the light.
Killian is called up to retrieve a woman who’s been kidnapped, then escaped, only to be captured again. With a sketchy SOS coming in, Killian’s tracking her from Vancouver to the far reaches of the Yukon Territory in Canada, right next door to Alaska, where the intel finally stops.
The apple of her father’s eye, Stacey was a late gift in his life. But, when it counted, he wasn’t there for her, leaving her alone and unprotected. On the run from her abusive husband, she’s kidnapped a second time by a seasoned negotiator, who can see she’s in trouble. Only he plans to auction her off to the highest bidder.
With several threads running together on this mission, Killian must find the predator in the middle and take him out, or Stacey will never be safe again.
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Prologue
Killian Nordstrom walked along the beach, picked up a piece of driftwood, and threw it out into the ocean. He had come for a run, and now he was staying because, well, it was just so damn beautiful. He stood for a long moment, smiling at the world around him. When he turned to head back, he stopped because a figure on the cliff watched him. He walked up to see his sister. “Hey, sis. How’s life?”
“It would be better,” she said, “if it weren’t for these phone calls.” She held out her own phone. He looked at it and asked, “Who is it?” But she didn’t answer, just thrust her phone at him. He grabbed her phone, frowning, putting it to his ear.
“It’s me, Jerricho,” he said. “You didn’t answer your phone.”
“I left it in my room,” he said. “It’s just been so beautiful here on the beach.”
“I’m enjoying a different beach,” Jerricho said.
“You’re not that far away,” he said.
“Nope, but you will be soon.”
At that, Killian stilled. “Where am I going?”
“How do you feel about Vancouver Island?”
He frowned. “Canada?”
“Yeah, Canada. And a woman who’s got an issue.”
“Yeah, but that’s not exactly pirate country.”
“Nope, it isn’t, but a woman was kidnapped from a transport ship, and, when they got to the Vancouver docks, she escaped somehow. Even though the longshoremen were more stunned, I think, than anything, she sent out an SOS for help on Vancouver Island.”
“How the hell did she go from Vancouver to Vancouver Island?”
“I don’t know,” he said. “And her story is a little bit far-fetched. However, we have to consider it legit because of who she is.”
“And who is she?”
“She’s the daughter of the New York governor, who just retired.”
“Daughter?”
“Yes, she was one of those late-in-life children. He was fifty-five when she was born.”
“Wow, that has to be tough.”
“The apple of his eye. She has been traveling the world. She’s a chef and was picked up and tossed onto an overseas carrier, where she somehow ended up in Vancouver. Now she’s lost on Vancouver Island.”
“But Vancouver Island’s tiny,” he said. “That’s a hard place to get lost in. Besides, Canadians? … How hard can it be?”
“One SOS came from Vancouver Island. But the one after that came from farther up the coast.”
“Alaska?”
“It didn’t come from that far north, but we’re afraid that’s the direction she’s going or traveling, so it could very well be where she ends up.”
“Did she ask for help? Did she ask for a pickup? What the hell’s going on?”
“She sent out the SOS, but the last one came in as a kidnapper’s note for ransom.”
“Shit. So did they find her again? Is that the deal?”
“Or somebody else found her and decided to take advantage of her circumstances.”
“I hate people sometimes,” he said.
“In this case, the governor doesn’t have much influence, outside of the fact that he’s still connected. I’m not sure what could be the issue here, but he did say that her ex-husband is a possible suspect.”
“Why?”
“Apparently he was involved in a few things that weren’t quite kosher, and she left him. As part of her leverage to make sure that he didn’t take her to the cleaners and that he left her alive, she apparently took some material with her.”
“Uh-oh,” Killian said, “that’s never smart.”
“No, never smart. In this case, it may have backfired, but apparently he’s quite an asshole, and she needed something in order to feel like she could get out of the situation safely.”
“The governor couldn’t do it?”
“Father and husband were really close. Until she went to her father with all the evidence on her hubby, so now her father believes her.”
“Well, that’s something. Isn’t it a little bit too late?”
“Which is why he’s pulled in all the chips to see if he can get her back. He feels responsible for not having given her his trust and security back then.”
“How long has she been missing?”
“The ransom note came in an hour ago.”
“Shit.” He looked one last time at the beauty surrounding him and said, “I’m packed.”
“Good,” he said, “because, if you walk up that cliff, you’ll find yourself at the road, where a car’s waiting for you.”
“And my bag?”
“It’s already in the trunk,” he said. “Have a nice trip.” And, with that, Jerricho hung up.
His sister looked at him and said, “I gather you’re leaving?”
“Sorry, sis. I figured I was only here for a couple days.”
She shrugged. “Honestly I’m just glad to have seen you that long,” she murmured. “Go off and save the world. It’s what you’re good at.”
He smiled and said, “How did you know?”
“I heard part of that conversation,” she said. “And, if she needs a place to relax afterward, she’s always welcome here.”
“That’s just because you think I’ll come home with her.”
“Hearing the little bit you’ve told me about the company you work for,” she said, “I wouldn’t be at all surprised.”