Relentless (Option Zero 2)

“No problem,” the dark-haired woman answered.

They both whipped out driver’s licenses with their photos and names—the dark-haired one was Jasmine McAlister, or Jazz, as Kate had called her. The brown-haired woman was Serena Donavan.

Opening the door wider, she waved them in. “Sorry to be underdressed. I thought I’d get a phone call, not a home visit.”

“After we chat, you’ll understand why,” Serena Donavan said.

Intrigued, Aubrey led them into her living room. “Would you like some coffee?”

“Yes, please,” Serena answered.

Her eyes roaming the room, Jasmine only nodded.

Aubrey turned too quickly, causing her towel to slip. Wrapping it more securely around her body, she sent the women an awkward smile. “While the coffee’s brewing, I’ll throw on some clothes. Be right back.”

Preparing the coffee by rote, she watched the two women from the corner of her eye. Though they both seemed pleasant enough, she sensed a surprising hypervigilance, as if they anticipated trouble.

She quickly finished and then went to her bedroom. Pulling off her damp suit, she dried herself thoroughly and then threw on a pair of jeans and a white button-down shirt. Since her naturally wavy hair was almost dry, she finger-combed it and decided that would have to do.

Five minutes later, she was back in the kitchen pouring coffee into mugs. Using a tray, she carried three cups of the steaming brew, along with creamer and sugar, and set it on the coffee table.

As they helped themselves, Aubrey settled back into a chair and did her own observing. Ever since they’d arrived, she’d felt as if she were being put to some kind of test.

The scrutiny was understandable to a point. After all, she was asking to be included in a covert human trafficking rescue. They didn’t know her, didn’t know if they could trust her. They could. She would never reveal anything they didn’t want her to make known. She didn’t make films about human trafficking to exploit the victims or their rescuers. She did it to try to save lives.

“I’m assuming you have questions for me?”

“Not at this time,” Serena answered. “We’ve seen your films. You’re very talented. And Kate has vouched for you. Anything else we need to learn from you, I’m sure we will as we go along.”

Okay, this was going to be easier than she’d anticipated. She had been ready for an inquisition.

“That’s great. When is your next one and where do I—”

“You’re getting a little ahead of yourself,” Jasmine said.

“How so?”

“The number one rule of all our ops is that the people we’re saving are our priority. The last thing we need is some untrained neophyte dragging us down and putting people in danger.”

“I would never get in the way of—”

Serena held up a hand. “What Jazz is saying is that we need to make sure you’re ready for any kind of threat that might come your way. Once you’re with us, you’re our responsibility. If something happens to you, it’s on us.”

“I would be happy to sign a document releasing your organization from all liability.”

“It’s not the liability we’re worried about. We go in to save lives. Our plan is for every person to come out alive. We take that responsibility seriously.”

“Bottom line,” Jasmine added, “we need to make sure you’re an asset and not a liability.”

It was becoming clear why they’d shown up in person. While she could certainly understand their reasoning, she was also happy to be able to tell them it wasn’t necessary. “You want me to go through some kind of training course. I’ll do what I need to do, but I’m not completely helpless. I have weapons training and have gone through several self-defense courses.”

“Excellent,” Serena said. “We can give you half an hour to pack. Will that be enough time?”

“Pack? For what?”

“Our training facility.”

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