Sierra
Six months ago…
My cell phone rang in the dead of night, and I almost ignored it, but it was Raquel’s ring, which meant it had to be an emergency. “What’s wrong?”
“You have to come home,” she rasped.
“Oh my god.” I sat up, throwing the covers off my legs. “Has something happened to Wrath?”
“No,” she sobbed. “Scrappy.”
“Oh, god.” I squeezed my eyes shut. “How bad?”
“Dead, honey. He’s dead,” she whispered. “Wrath needs you.” She sniffed. “I need you.”
Scrappy was Wrath’s closest friend. Closer than a brother, so I knew in my soul that Wrath would be spiraling right now.
Not to mention, Scooby. Oh my god, Scooby. He’d lost his brother.
“Okay,” I breathed out. “I’ll come as soon as I can.”
I hung up and glanced around my dorm room. I was on assignment with a special ops group in the FBI, which admittedly, had been over for ages, but I was avoiding going home. My boss, Taxi, had given me an open-ended return ticket, mostly because, with my hacking skills, they could use me at Quantico, but we both knew it wouldn’t last forever.
I dragged my hands down my face, then headed for the shower. It was only four a.m., so Taxi wouldn’t be up for another hour. There was no reason to wake him, in my opinion, so I took the time to center myself, then pack.
* * *
Walking into Taxi’s office at just after five, he raised his head and sighed. “Got the call ten minutes ago.”
“What call?”
“Sundance.” He leaned back in his chair. “You’re goin’ back.”
“Why would he call you?” I asked.
“Because, contrary to what you think, Jette, you still belong to the club, and Sundance wants you home.”
I rolled my eyes.
Taxi waved his hand. “Before you start in with some anti-male chauvinist diatribe, you know that’s not what it’s about.”
I sighed, wrinkling my nose. He was right, but I still didn’t like that Sundance called him to demand I come home.
“Technically, Colorado isn’t even home,” I pointed out. “If I were going home, I’d be going back to Savannah.”
“Yeah?” Taxi raised an eyebrow. “You’d leave your man and your best friend and go back to ‘the podunk, backwoods, hillbilly town’ you hate?”
“I should have never told you that,” I muttered. “And he’s not my man.”
He smirked. “I’m not your priest or your counselor, Jette, so I’m gonna let that lie. But I’ve got you on the first flight back to Denver. Orion and Raquel are gonna pick you up.” He leaned forward. “And you’re done. You need to work your shit out there. I’ve let this go on long enough.”
“What about your taskforce?”
“You’re not losin’ your place,” he said. “You’re still a Cabbie, but, as you well know, you don’t need to be here to work your magic. In fact, you do better when you’re surrounded by your people. Your chakras or energy or whatever moon landing crystal you wear around your neck, works better when you’re close to Wrath.” He cocked his head. “Whether you like to admit it or not.”
“Um, I’m gonna call bullshit on that.”
He chuckled. “Then it’s all about Raquel.”
I shifted in my seat. “Well, that’s true. She keeps me centered.”
“Sure, whatever. Go pack. Tackle’s taking you to the airport in an hour.”
Tackle was a giant of a man, and like me, the only other one on the team who hadn’t gone home after the assignment had ended.
“I’m already packed,” I said.
“Then go eat.”
I nodded and rose to my feet. “Um, thanks, Taxi. For everything.”
“You’re welcome. Now, go home.”
I headed to the kitchen and made breakfast, trying not to let the panic set in before the long flight back to Colorado.
* * *
“Gonna miss you, sweetheart,” Tackle said, pulling me into his beefy arms at the drop-off point.
“I’m going to miss you, too. And I’m not going to stop looking for your sister.”
His sister had been kidnapped ten years ago, and he’d only agreed to work with Taxi if the team would help find her.
He gave me a squeeze. “I appreciate that.”
“I’ll call you the second I find anything.”
He released me and met my eyes. “You gonna get rid of Wrath?”
I sighed. “It’s complicated.”
Stroking my cheek, he smiled. “If he doesn’t fuckin’ see the beauty that’s you, never ever forget that I do, yeah?”
I bit my lip, feeling my cheeks pink as I nodded.
He kissed my forehead, then released me. Grabbing my bag, I made my way into the airport, only to find my flight had been cancelled. I’d been booked on a later one, but it conflicted with Scrappy’s funeral, so I called Raquel.
“I’m still coming to pick you up,” Raquel said.
“No,” I argued. “I honestly don’t want to pull focus and you know Wrath will cause a scene if he has a whiff that I’m coming. I’ll grab a car.”
“We’ll send a recruit.”
“He’ll know you’re doing that.”
“Honey, you’re not getting in some rideshare for an hour—”
“Razzle,” I hissed into the phone. “If you send a recruit, he will know, and no one wants that. I’m quite capable of grabbing a car.”
She sighed. A loud, dramatic one.
“I’m serious, Raquel, just leave it alone. I’ve got this.”
“Fine, but I don’t like it,” she said.
“Noted. Now, I’ve gotta go find a better flight.”
“Okay. Love you.”
“Love you, too.” I hung up, then found a quiet corner where I could pull out my laptop without prying eyes. Canceled flight, my ass. I’m Jette fucking McCormick, for God’s sake. I’d hacked more than my share of ‘unhackables,’ a tiny airline was child’s play.
Less than ten minutes later, I had a first-class seat on a flight leaving in thirty minutes. Only, this flight would be landing in Colorado Springs instead of Denver. No driving an hour or more in traffic to Monument. The hedge-fund CEO I’d bumped wasn’t going to be particularly happy, but after doing a quick dive into his personal background, he’d been a very naughty boy last tax season, so he deserved it.
I had to make a run for another gate, so I packed up my computer and headed that way, arriving just in the nick of time. I texted Raquel to let her know I’d be landing in Colorado Springs instead of Denver, then settled in for the long flight from D.C.
* * *
Landing early, I disembarked to find a biker I didn’t recognize waiting outside the security area. I pretended I didn’t see him and tried to walk past but he was having none of it.
“I was warned you’d try to evade me, Sierra,” he said, jogging to catch up to me. “I’m Healy, and I’m your ride.”