Maverick (Elite Ops 2)

“I’m sure you are.” Her voice was as tight as her body; a few times during the ride he thought he’d caught a shimmer of tears in her eyes.

“Risa?” He cocked his head and stared down at her as Ian and Kira moved across the parking lot. “Is there something I should know?”

Her smile was brittle. “I don’t know, Micah. Is there something I should know?”

He controlled a frown as Ian and Kira reached them.

“Risa, everything okay?” Kira looked around at the well-tended grounds, the small park across from the parking area, and the well-lit exterior.

“I’m fine.” Risa shrugged as she turned and walked through the door that Clive held open for her.

He nodded at them as she passed. Risa took the time to thank him, to bestow a sweet smile on him. She hadn’t smiled or even chatted since her dance with Mac Knight.

They moved as a group to the elevator. Risa remained silent on the ride up, the tension humming through her reaching out to the rest of them.

She moved up the hall, glared at the door opposite hers, then waited for Micah to unlock the door, check inside, then cover the hall as John moved quickly into the opposite apartment.

Risa stepped inside the apartment, wondering if she was going to strangle on her anger as she turned to the others and pasted a smile on her face. “I’m not much on wine,” she informed them. “I do have beer, though.”

“Beer’s fine, Risa.” Ian nodded, his gaze questioning.

“Great.” Okay, her smile was overly bright, but she wasn’t screaming at them yet. “I’ll get them.”

She moved into the kitchen, took four beers from the refrigerator, popped the lids, and returned to the other room.

When everyone had a cold brew and had found seats, Ian and Kira on the couch, Micah in one of the two easy chairs, Risa perched on the seat of the remaining chair and smiled back at Ian.

“So, how long have you known Micah, Ian?” she asked him.

“About five years.” His look was mildly curious. “Why?”

Why? As though he hadn’t been lying to her, as though he hadn’t been as much a part of the deceit as the others had been.

“You met in the Middle East?” she quizzed him, feeling the tension that threatened to tear her apart from the inside out. “Jordan mentioned that the morning I was told of this little operation. That Micah was a former SEAL. He’d worked with your team.”

Ian stared back at her for long moments before he leaned forward and set his beer on the table.

“Risa, why don’t you just say what’s on your mind?” he said gently. “Don’t beat around the bush with me.”

Her lips nearly trembled. She had to tighten them to hold back the need to cry. Jansen had told her

that she was nothing but a crybaby. That she didn’t know how to handle reality or how to be an adult. That she would always deal with her problems by crying.

It seemed he was right. At least in this case.

“You were there,” she whispered. “In that hellhole Jansen let them take me to. You helped rescue me, Ian.”

He nodded as Micah cursed under his breath.

“I was there, Risa,” Ian agreed. “And I wanted to kill those bastards for what they did to you, Emily, and Carrie. If I’d known what happened later, I would have taken you out of that clinic and made certain you were protected. I would have killed Jansen myself.”

She nodded. She knew that. Ian was like that. He would always try to protect others; it was a part of him.

“I trusted you, Ian. You, Reno, Kell, and Macey. I trusted all of you with my life, because you were there.” Her breathing hitched as Micah jerked from his chair and paced closer to her.

“Risa, why don’t you just tell us what Knight said,” Kira stated then, her voice compassionate but matter-of-fact.

Risa turned to Kira and wanted to scream in rage. The tears were tearing her chest apart. They burned behind her eyes; they choked her as they rose in her chest.