Merciless (Option Zero 1)

She slid to the floor, knocking against the expensive bottle of brandy, which teetered, almost falling to the floor. A gloved hand reached out to stop it.

Looking up into a familiar face, she tried to form words but couldn’t make her mouth and brain connect.

“Go to sleep, Nora. You failed your mission. Your service is over.”

She lay on the floor, her body frozen, but her eyes were open, watching as the man took the bottle and glass. It took less than a minute to remove the evidence, and though Nora’s eyes were still on him, she was long past being able to see.

Thousands of miles away, a phone chimed. The owner read the encrypted text. After years of decoding such messages, the words were easy to understand. It was done.

Five minutes later, a series of texts went throughout the world. One text was different from the others. That text was read with resignation and then resolve.

A life was over. A new life would begin.

Chapter Forty-Six

Tahiti

Ash closed the door to the bungalow and headed back to the beach, where Jules was waiting. Today, he felt like he had it all—sun, sand, and the woman he loved. An hour after his meeting with Turner, he and Jules had hopped on a plane. They had arrived last night and fallen into bed, exhausted. For the next ten days, they would put the evils of the world behind them and concentrate on being a normal couple on holiday.

Unless something major came up, the entire OZ organization was lying low, running down leads, and working assets. They all needed the break.

When they returned, they’d hit the ground running, as several ongoing cases were about to heat up. But for a while, he and Jules would disconnect from the world and connect with each other.

Ash grinned like a fool at the silly euphemism. Nothing like a man in love to bring them out.

A loud, distinctive bleep told him he had a text message from Kate. As much as he wanted to ignore the world and its worries, his gut told him to read it now.

The minute he read the terse, three-word message, that feeling of optimism and anticipation turned to ash.

Turner is dead.

Skidding to a stop, he punched Kate’s number. She answered with, “I don’t know how yet.”

“No way in hell was this natural causes.”

“I agree. Coroner will have to give the final say.”

“The FBI was right outside her door. How did anyone get in or out without being seen?”

“Another question for which I don’t have an answer.”

Ash didn’t know what infuriated him more. That Turner had escaped the punishment she deserved, or that she had been killed to keep her silent.

“Who the hell is behind this shit?”

“I don’t know, Ash. My contacts are getting more closemouthed. What about yours?”

“Yeah. I’ve seen some signs, but we still have leverage over most of them. At least for now.”

“If you get anything, let me know. I’ll get back to you with the autopsy results.”

“Will do. And, Kate?”

“Yeah?”

“Watch your back. The people we can trust are getting fewer and fewer.”

“Back at ya, pal.”