Nick rolled his eyes, but Kingsley could still feel a shadow on the man. Shane had told him that his friend had gone through a lot and still needed time and work to recover fully.
His eyes caught on Caitlin Carter as she took Killian, her German Shepard, through his paces. When he had met her, she had been training Killian to replace her last dog, Mayhem, who had recently retired. As a K-9 handler with the LAPD, Caitlin had years of experience to go with her well-earned reputation as one of the best handlers and trainers on the force. Growing up with two prestigious veterinarians as parents had set her in good stead for her job. He watched as she gave Killian—who for shits and giggles she called Kill for short—a series of commands that he obeyed with a blinding loyalty. Knight thought that a few more K-9s on the team would be a good call. That was something to discuss with Shane and Emme for sure.
Over on the assault course, the rest of the team were going through their paces. Malco Aguilar, another member of the group, was stretching his muscles off to the side before he attached the running prosthetic that gave him more absorption and energy return than a regular one. As the hostage rescue expert, he was one of the best and had an unparalleled reputation. Losing his right leg below the knee from a land mine trying to save an eight-year-old girl from her crazy, drugged up father, while working for the Green Berets, had not stopped him in the least.
However, Kingsley knew better than most that people only allowed you to see what they wanted you to see. The new team was a mix of different backgrounds that perfectly fit the diversity of work the Alliance Agency wished to attract.
Emme and Shane wanted to expand hard and fast, and they had a flight out of Miami that night to meet a contact of Shane’s about a contract with the FBI. It was lucrative and would involve them signing an NDA, which wouldn’t be a problem as most of them still had top security clearance from their previous lives.
Kingsley cast an eye at Nick as he watched Alex Webb race Wolf Murdock over the course.
It had been designed by Zack, Emme’s former boss at Fortis, who was also an ex-SAS commander. They were some of the toughest bastards around, and this course showed why. With it built over the hilly terrain at the back of their new base of operations, it meant the operators had to use agility and strength, not just brute force and muscle. It was why Caitlin, Emme, and Mercy—the three women on the team—had some of the best times on the leaderboard.
Wolf raced over the ropes with speed, but Webb had the edge as they crawled through the wet tunnels with barbed wire overhead. It was neck and neck by the time they sprinted for the finish with Webb coming in a split second faster.
Shane, who had been standing on the sidelines away from him and Nick, watching his recruits train, started to walk toward the competitors, a grin on his face as the two men bent at the waist and sucked in oxygen. They had been training together for a month now, and Kingsley could see they were starting to think cohesively as a unit. Kingsley knew Shane wanted everyone to be able to read each other. It could be the thing that saved their lives one day.
Sneak Peek: Hidden Obsession
Alliance Agency: Book 2
Read about Cleo Darwin and Mason Bentley
mybook.to/knightwatch
The crick in her neck was getting worse, and it didn’t improve her temper as Cleo Darwin tried to make sense of the papers on her desk. Since she had become Alliance Agency’s official caretaker, secretary, paymaster, and overall miracle worker, she had her work cut out for her trying to keep track of everyone and everything.
The trouble with secret agents, former soldiers, ex-cops, and the like was they were big babies. They didn’t think about paying their rent, forgot to take care of their taxes, and all the other simple tasks required for everyday life when they were entrenched in a mission. Maybe it was better not to be concerned with mundane things when your life was on the line, but that meant someone had to do it and that someone was her.
Their unsigned forms and half-completed requests were hers to deal with. As well as anything or everything related to the Agency or its team members. Along with the occasional unusual—or impossible—request thrown in for good measure.
Shane Rhodes and his fiancée Emme Wallace had founded the Agency and assembled the team less than a year prior. Much had happened during that time.
The team was made up of a mish-mash of different characters, all skilled and dedicated, even quirky and most definitely likable, but they all had one thing in common—they were loyal, and their commitment to the Alliance Agency was absolute.
Mason Bentley’s face formed in her tired mind. One of the quietest members of the Agency, the former secret service agent and bodyguard was the opposite of the others. Calm, organized, straight as an arrow. She never
