Evidence of Passion (Shadow Agents 7)

“I’m sure Mercer will want you at the EOD.” There would be questions—dozens of them. Reports to write, a massive interrogation to conduct. Jack was the killer, but he’d been hired, paid for his crimes. The EOD would want the names of the people who’d been in contact with him over the years. Now that he was in custody, Jack would become a tool for Mercer to use.

Rachel knew how the game was played.

She was just tired of playing it.

“I don’t really give a damn what Mercer wants right now,” Dylan said and he put his hands on her. She flinched at his touch because fire seemed to leap through her body.

She’d always been too sensitive when it came to Dylan. Too aware of him. She had to start pulling away from him. The job was done. Dylan had his vengeance.

And she...she could finally stop looking over her shoulder. She could have a real life again.

I never even told my family about Jack. I didn’t want them to be afraid. So she’d kept all of the fear to herself.

“I’ll...um, let you two talk.” Noelle nodded briskly and hurried away.

Rachel didn’t want to talk with Dylan, though. She wanted to escape. To collapse.

I want to start building my life again.

“You’re what matters to me now,” Dylan told her.

Rachel found that she couldn’t look in his eyes. So her gaze swept the scene. So many people were there. EOD agents. Techs. “I thought you wanted to get rid of me. That was the whole point in transferring me to Atlanta, right?”

“No.” His hold tightened. “The point was to get you away from Jack.”

“Then I guess that plan didn’t work so well, did it? Maybe we should’ve stuck to my plan, you know, when I said that Jack might try to take me again.” And he had. “But you wanted to be the bait.”

The plan had gone to hell. They were both just lucky to be able to walk away. “But my idea wouldn’t have worked, either,” she heard herself whisper. “He knew about the GPS chip. He cut it out of me right away.” Her shoulder still throbbed.

“Rachel...”

Enough. She had to get away from him. Rachel pulled from his arms. She started walking blindly. Thomas was gone, but there would be another agent on the scene who could give her a ride home.

“I thought you were dead.”

Her steps faltered. She was so cold and bone tired.

“When I pulled you out of the water, your body was like ice.”

“I got tangled in a rope. Maybe some old netting.” She didn’t really remember for sure. Rachel looked down at her hands. The nails were ripped. Torn. She’d fought so hard to get free.

“I wasn’t coming out of the water without you.”

The chill she felt got worse. Rachel shook her head in automatic denial. He was just talking in the heat of the moment. The old EOD code...they didn’t leave teammates behind. But of course Dylan would’ve surfaced. He wouldn’t have died for her.

With her?

Rachel looked back over her shoulder. Dylan stood, just as she’d left him. His eyes glittered at her. “I wasn’t letting you go then.” He strode toward her and caught her in his arms. “And I’m not letting you go now.” He held her so tightly that she could barely draw in a breath. His head pressed into the curve of her neck, and Rachel felt the shudder that racked him.

“Dylan?” This wasn’t like him. Even during their most dangerous missions, he’d never—

“I can’t let you go, Rachel. I need you too much.” His head lifted. “Come with me. Just...come with me. Because if I don’t keep you close tonight, I think I might go crazy.”

There were questions to be answered, statements to be given. The EOD had to clean up the chaos that Jack had left behind. Since Dylan was in charge of this mission, that meant the EOD needed him.

“You should go back to headquarters.” She needed to crash.

“He’s contained.” His voice was a growl. “Everything else can wait a few hours. You can’t wait.”