Free Gambled - A Titan Novella by Cristin Harber

discuss schools.”
    “Why not?”
    “For one, we’re here.” He had driven up the road and back, pinpointing with a decent level of certainty the coordinates mapped by the Hummer’s GPS readout. “And second, you need to focus. We both do.”
    Sarah stared out the tinted windows. They were surrounded by thick foliage on both sides of the road. “I don’t see anything.”
    “There should be a house down that driveway. Maybe about a half mile back.”
    “Oh.” Her voice faltered.
    Hesitation. That was his in. “Angel, why don’t you stay? Sit in the driver’s seat. I’ll get the girl. It’ll be easy. We’ll come out. You’ll be the getaway driver.” That sounds adventurous, right? Sarah could get her fix, be part of the rescue op, and Brock would have a better chance of her making it home without a traumatized breakdown. Hell, he’d have a better chance of her making it home alive.
    “Can it, Brock.” Her arms crossed her chest. “I’m coming with you. You said you needed backup. That it’d be safer with a partner. I want to make this job safer for you. You’ve told me what to do, and I’m doing it. I can’t hide.” She glanced out the window and turned back. Her copper eyes were made of steel. “I won’t. It’s a deal breaker. Let me be part of this. Let me see you at work.”
    At work? Weeks ago, she’d had an idea of what he did but nothing concrete. Now she sat next to him, readying for an extraction. His shoulders sagged. The gravity of the evening’s events weighed on his chest, suffocating him. He’d gone along with this charade long enough. “No, this isn’t going to work. I can’t risk you. A million things can happen.”
    “And you’ve explained how we handle those problems.”
    He rubbed his forehead with the back of his hand. The sweat dotting his temples had nothing to do with the island temperature. The reaction was one hundred percent nerves. “Then I won’t do this job—”
    “Think we’ve already decided that you’re saving that teenager.”
    Holy hell, they were going to do this. “You remember our plan?”
    “Yes. You recited it a hundred times before we got here.”
    Sitting less than half a mile from their extraction point, he would explain one hundred and one if he needed to. But she didn’t give him the chance. Unclicking her seat belt, Sarah popped open her door. Brock said a prayer and lumbered out his door, feeling the weight of the Hummer resting on his back. The stakes were too high.
    He met her by the trunk to arm up. Sarah held her Glock, as instructed, then took her pile of flashlights.
    The black night blanketed them. They had a few thousand yards between the Hummer’s location and their first assessment point. “Stay on my six.”
    “Six?”
    “My six o’clock. Behind me.”
    “Behind you,” she repeated. “Just like we talked about.”
    Yeah, he was repeating himself. She had listened. Of course she had. Sarah was smart. Sure wasn’t trying to get herself killed.
    They pushed through the thick foliage. Tiny insects buzzed and crawled over them as he pushed toward the house. No complaints and no reactions from Sarah as she kept pace. By the time his eyes were accustomed to the dark, they were at their assessment spot.
    Brock focused the binoculars. The two-story house was impressive but locally built. That was a bonus. Nothing caught his eye that would be considered high tech in the surveillance department. A basic six-foot perimeter fence wrapped around. A few security guards wandered inside, occasionally popping outside for a smoke break, but they acted as if they were taking it easy. All in all, it was a low-key, averagely protected bunker. Brock had infiltrated hardier buildings with tighter security measures.
    He wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her close. He smeller her hair and whispered against her cheek, “Last chance, angel. Man the car? Let me do this alone?”
    She must’ve remembered his strict instructions not to