Gunner (K19 Security Solutions 2)

There were several arrangements Gunner needed to make before taking Raketa to his island.

He’d asked Mantis to secure the smaller of K19’s planes so he didn’t have to take her there by the same boat that would deliver their provisions. Once Mantis dropped them off, there would be no way for them to leave other than if Gunner summoned someone to ferry them to the mainland. The island itself was impenetrable. Both he and Shiv had ensured it was a veritable fortress.

He’d likely thrown her off by depositing her with Dutch and Onyx at the airport, but most of what he needed to arrange required phone calls he didn’t want Raketa to hear.

There were two things he needed to accomplish while they were underground. First, he needed to find out what her connection to Petrov was. Once Shiv succeeded in assassinating the evil sonuvabitch, Gunner had to be certain there would be no repercussions from or for Raketa.

Second, he had to find out why she wanted him to believe she intended to return to Moscow and United Russia’s employ.

“Hey, Raze,” Gunner said when his teammate answered the phone on the first ring.

“Wonderin’ when you’d surface.”

“I won’t be up for air very long.”

“Heard you got Raketa.”

“Roger that, but she doesn’t seem too happy about it.”

Razor laughed. “You are an ornery bastard.”

“I need your help.”

“Name it.”

Gunner knew that would be his friend’s response. It didn’t matter what either of them needed or wanted; the answer would always be yes.

“Rocket Girl’s history begins at age eighteen. I need to know who she was before that.”

“Roger that.”

“Thanks, man. I’ll be back in touch when I can.”

Razor didn’t ask where he was headed just like Gunner knew he wouldn’t.

“You want me to send a smoke signal when I figure it out?”

“Affirmative.”

Gunner’s response told Razor everything he needed to know. He had just confirmed he was taking Raketa to Indian Springs Island.

—:—

They couldn’t have been on the road more than two hours when the vehicle they were traveling in came to an abrupt stop and the driver cut the engine.

As she’d anticipated, the back door opened and a man helped her out. It wasn’t Gunner, but whoever it was had a similar physique. They still hadn’t spoken, which Raketa knew was intentional, maybe even Gunner’s orders. He was pissed, which meant he would do everything in his power to throw her off her game.

They’d walked a few feet when she heard a door open and felt a whoosh of cold air hit her face.

The man took her arm and led her inside, backing her against what felt like the edge of a bed. She sat down and waited while he unlocked the cuffs on her wrists.

By the time she shook the tingling out of her hands and arms and removed her blindfold, he was gone, the door of the room shut and locked behind him.

The room didn’t look any different than any other bedroom in any other safe house she’d ever been in. The windows were boarded over, and

the lock on the door was a deadbolt.

She stood and stretched her arms over her head. There was no point in attempting to get out of here. It would be wasted energy. Soon enough someone would come for her, she only hoped it would be Gunner.