Glitter and Gunfire/Bulletproof (Shadow Agents 4)

Cassidy recognized the man in the doorway. Logan—Cale’s teammate.

“Figured you could use some backup about now.” Logan’s gaze slid to Cassidy, narrowed. “Apparently Mercer figured the same thing. He sent in a full detail with guns blazing.”

She could still hear those blazing guns.

Logan inclined his head when he noticed Genevieve’s huddled form. “You saved the girl.”

“And stopped the killer,” Cassidy said, straightening. The gunfire—it had just ended.

Genevieve’s cries deepened behind her.

“The Executioner is dead,” Cassidy told Logan.

“He’d be the blond out there,” Cale added. “The one with three bullets in his chest and his right shoulder carved open.”

“You do like to play rough,” Logan muttered.

“The bullets came from someone else. I’m guessing that full detail you mentioned, because I know Gunner would have only needed one shot.”

Genevieve grabbed for Cassidy’s arm. “Get me out of here!”

Cassidy nodded.

Logan checked behind him. Then he tapped a small, black headset at his ear. “Are we clear?” A pause. “Then I’m bringing them out.”

Cale reached for Cassidy’s left hand.

Did he stumble?

She studied his face. He was pale, far paler than she’d ever seen him before. “Cale needs help! He was shot.”

His fingers tightened on hers. “Baby, I got this.”

How could he sound so calm? So...certain?

But then they were being led back out of the room, and Genevieve’s cries grew worse at the sight that confronted her.

Blood. Death.

“I don’t know how he got these guys here so fast,” Logan mused as he surveyed the team that was making quick work of cleaning up the bloody scene. “I figured when I gave him the news that Mercer would track your unit, Cale, but then he already had these men just mere miles out as Gunner and I were getting into launch position.”

His unit? Oh, Cale had a tracker, too.

They didn’t know about her own device.

Because they didn’t know about her.

“Ma’am?”

Cassidy glanced up and saw a man standing before her. He had close-cropped, black hair and golden eyes. A long scar cut across his right cheek. He wore all black, and he had a gun holstered at his side. He offered his hand to her. “You’re supposed to come with me, Ms. Sherridan.”

Ms. Sherridan? That guy knew her better than that.

Cale immediately shoved that offered hand to the side. “The hell she is, Lancaster.”

So Cale knew him, too. Not surprising. Agent Lancaster had been with the EOD for a few years now.

Lancaster slanted his gaze toward Cale. “You’ll need that wound tended to.”