Free In Her Sights by Robin Perini

honest, and that changes things. Somehow, this,” he motioned between them, “feels…off.”
    “Nothing in my past affects today. It shouldn’t matter that I changed my name.”
    “I know you must’ve had a good reason, but I don’t get why you hid it from us. We’re supposed to be family, Jazz. The whole team. Families don’t hide secrets from each other. Not about important things.”
    Family. She hadn’t thought he could surprise her, but his statement did more than that. He’d shocked her. She had no family. She couldn’t afford to care that much. Sure the team depended on her, but that wasn’t the same thing.
    Her gaze slid from man to man. There were a few tentative nods, but mostly doubts. She could see them. After what Tower had said, how could the team not wonder? When they discovered the truth would they trust her to protect them? Had Tower destroyed everything already?
    Old fears bubbled up inside her from a dark place, a dark time, when she’d let down the only family she had—her mother. Jasmine could feel the child’s, Jane’s, presence here in this van—Jane’s limitations, Jane’s insecurity, Jane’s failure.
    Jazz couldn’t afford any qualms right now. Every instinct screamed to protect herself from her own weakness—from Jane’s weakness. Jazz had a hostage crisis to deal with. A small farmhouse and family waited, terrorized by a group of gang members. She had to be confident for their sake. She had to save them, like she hadn’t saved…No. She wouldn’t let the memories intrude. Not now.
    “Gabe, this isn’t the place for this discussion.”
    He leveled a knowing look at her. “Then after. Because we will talk, Jazz. We have to.”
    Carl Redmond’s voice rose above the sound of the van’s speeding tires on the narrow road. “Sarge said these guys are Four Corners Hustlers. That’s not good.”
    “You got that right,” Steve Paretti bit out. “The psychos think they’re hot stuff because they swing weapons around.”
    “Kill someone and you’re a full-fledged member. Kill enough and you’re a bloody leader,” Carl muttered.
    “I’ll bet these yahoos were watching the news about the governor’s daughter and decided to make headlines for themselves. I overheard Sarge say they want a million dollars. Idiots. It’s gonna be tough to back them down,” Gabe added.
    A grumble of agreement filtered through the van. No one wanted this standoff to end with a dead hostage.
    Gabe leaned toward Jazz, his voice dropping just above a whisper. “Forget I said anything. I shouldn’t have brought it up. I can see you’re antsy, and neither one of us can afford to be preoccupied.”
    He sent a pointed stare to her leg bouncing nervously. She reined in the movement.
    “We’ll talk later,” he said. “Once we’ve taken care of business.”
    He’d never shown this kind of deference before tonight, before Luke had pulled him aside. “Why the kid gloves all of a sudden? What did Luke say?”
    Her voice rose in anger, and she caught a few quizzical glances thrown her way. Deliberately she lowered her tone. “He implied I couldn’t handle myself tonight, didn’t he? Well, he doesn’t know what he’s talking about. He doesn’t know me.”
    Gabe couldn’t hide the concern on his face, which annoyed her even more.
    “He still cares about you, and he knows what distractions can do. He’s been through a hell we’ve never imagined. He’s worried, Jazz.”
    “Luke thinks the sniper attack and vandalism’s got me spooked,” she cursed under her breath. “I’m pissed, but I’m not rattled.”
    Gabe clicked his tongue. “I’m not so sure about that. I don’t see the ‘Ice Queen’ sitting next to me, Jazz. Can you push it all aside?”
    The nickname she’d long been proud of fired her fury. He wouldn’t have dared suggest such a thing to one of the guys. Her gut burned. Somewhere in the last few days he’d stopped seeing her as a teammate and started seeing her as