Page 68 of Covert Mission

When he looks up and meets my eyes, his expression has gone stone-cold. “If anything happens to me and my team, you need to promise me you’ll take your staff and leave. Get to a safer area as quickly as you can. Don’t fuck around with local security, it could go badly.”

A shuddering breath rushes out of me. “Don’t talk like that.”

“You don’t know their motivations.”

I shake my head. “I was talking about you. Don’t talk about anything happening to you.”

“Remember. Stay with the supervisor.”

He glances at the remains of the stone and concrete building. It was an old building, like most of those in Santa Rosa. There are mountains of broken rubbish everywhere.

A rush of fear chills my insides.

I squeeze his arm one more time, feeling the strong, steady rhythm of his pulse. He’s not even afraid.

“I’ll be waiting.”

He takes in my features, tracing his gaze over me quickly, then pulls away.

“Let’s get this done,” he tells his men.

As a group, they stalk toward the building. A member of the extraction team waves eagerly for them to follow.

Whew.I don’t know how long I’ve been holding my breath, but I feel woozy. My insides are trembling. I’m scared stiff for them.

Belle nudges my shoulder. “I can’t believe they’re just going in there without any special training.”

“Maybe they’ve done it before.” I say a silent prayer. “I’m sure the experts know how to use volunteers like them.”

We watch in silence as Beast, Justice, Evan, Scout, and Truck, climb over a treacherous area. They move fluidly. Quickly, but carefully. One by one, they clamber over a narrow pile of debris and disappear behind a broken concrete wall.

I shiver and lean against Belle. “They’re so brave. I hope they save whoever is stuck and come back in one piece.”

I’m still in the same place an hour later when I hear my name.

“Camile!”

It’s our FamFind guys making their way slowly up the uneven road using the beam of a flashlight to guide their way.

Brian’s winded and damp with perspiration when he reaches us. “We came to help.”

I frown at them. “It’s a little late. They’ve been in there for a long time now.”

They glance between themselves.

Hm. Weird. Were they avoiding helping?

“What have you been doing?”

“We stopped by the trucks to check on things, and while we were there, we went through all the things that were damaged by the fire.”

I pinch the bridge of my nose. “Damn. I forgot to look for some wooden crates with blue straps. Ralph asked about them.”

Pembrook makes a sour face as he wipes his sweaty forehead with the back of his arm. “They’re not toast, but they ain’t good.”

“As in?” I prompt as a ball of lead settles in my stomach.

He shrugs and holds up his palms. “Burnt pretty bad, but still holding together.”