Dusted Star

“She had an emergency appendectomy several years ago. I assume that’s when the tracker was inserted. I’d just started with the Agency, and Cam stayed with her after the surgery until I could get there.” Fucking hell, Lakyn was going to go ballistic when she learned his career had cast such a long shadowover her life. He had no idea how he was going to tell her, but he wasn’t going to shove the burden onto anyone else’s shoulders.

Returning his attention to the men on the other side of the window, Cooper shook his head when Parker Andrews threatened to shove Cox’s ass out the front door and let the vultures have him if he didn’t start talking. Cox leaned back in his chair, his legs stretchedout in front of him, and crossed his beefy arms over his chest, the man’s confidence unshaken by the Police Chief’s threat.

Parker pulled his phone from his pocket, a grin spreading across his face as he studied the screen. When the Chief stood and moved to the door, Cox sat up in his chair. For the first time since the interview started, Cox looked uncomfortable, and Cooper almost laughed outloud when Cameron Barnes stepped into the room. Cooper heard Kent West chuckle beside him.

“Bet you twenty he just pissed his pants.”

“Jesus, you’re as bad as Tobi, I swear I’d send the two of you to finishing school if I wasn’t afraid of the lawsuit that would follow.” Kyle’s words might have been critical, but amusement danced in his eyes. Cooper felt himself beginning to relax for the firsttime in months.

“Well, he obviously knew who Cam was—hell, did you see how he paled? He’s fucking white as a sheet. It does my heart good to see terror in his eyes.”

“Call it a preview of coming attractions.” Cooper hadn’t meant to say the words aloud but when the other men in the room howled with laughter, he was reminded he was dealing with a group of former Special Forces operatives who didn’tmiss anything. Parker joined them a few minutes later, leaving Cox with Cam—yes, indeed, things are about to get interesting.

“It’s probably a violation of some ethics clause to leave the son of a bitch with Cam, but in my opinion, Cox signed his life away the minute he accepted the job.” Parker turned up the volume of the audio system, and they listened as Cameron Barnes worked his magic.

“Your decision to harm the younger sister of a CIA operative was a critical error—one I can assure you was not worth whatever paltry sum you were paid.” Cam sat forward in his chair, leaning his forearms on his thighs, and sighed. “You need to make a very important decision, Mr. Cox. You need to decide whose life you value more. Yours? Or the person who hired you? I’m quite sure your handler didn’tmention Lakyn Storm’s connection to Cooper Hicks and probably didn’t mention the young woman is also a personal friend of mine and under the protection of the Prairie Winds team of contract Special Operatives. Long story, short—they threw you to the wolves, Mr. Cox, and all of those beasts are nipping at your heels.”

Cooper wanted to laugh at the ashen look on James Cox’s face. Cam hadn’t raisedhis voice, he’d simply outlined the situation with unerring accuracy. What Cam hadn’t mentioned was he’d already gotten a call from the Agency to bring Cox in—somebody in D.C. wanted their hands on the man sitting in the next room, and Cooper wanted a name.