Mia grew annoyed at Lord Override, whose reluctance to physically overpower the old man might result in her death.
“Who were you working for?” she asked as she glared at her captor.
“What does it matter to you?” Shadow Lancer asked. “Your fate will be the same regardless of the name of the person or organization.”
“If I’m going to die, I ought to at least know who’s responsible for my death.”
He sighed. “No one owes you anything. But I suppose if the people who are going to kill you would like to answer that question for you, they will.”
Lord Override continued his attempt at diplomatic intervention, edging closer to Shadow Lancer. “Come on. This isn’t necessary. We’re hackers, not killers. Just put your gun down.”
As Lord Override stepped toward Shadow Lancer, the old man pistol whipped her ally, knocking him out cold. With Lord Override collapsed on the ground, Shadow Lancer turned his attention toward Mia.
“Time to go,” he said, directing her with his weapon.
She eased around from behind the desk, stepping over Lord Override and entering the hallway. Shadow Lancer instructed her to walk down the hall and down into the basement. He tied her to one of the support poles before turning out the lights.
Mia sat in the darkness, resisting the urge to cry. Despite her situation, anger trumped her fear. She was mad at herself for getting into such a compromising situation. She was frustrated that she hadn’t been able to figure out quickly enough who was behind the CIA hack. She was annoyed that Lord Override had the spine of a jellyfish and didn’t forcefully defend her. And now she was all alone with no foreseeable way out of captivity. While the Shadow Lancer had done nothing more than detain her, she knew whoever he worked for would be more violent.
Where’s my brother when I need him?
Tears started to flow as did feelings of regret.
I should’ve never agreed to help the CIA. There’s only been one team that cared about me and protected me … my brother. And he can’t help me now.
She cried until she was sure there weren’t any tears left. Then, she fell asleep from exhaustion.
* * *
WHEN MIA AWOKE, she did so still in complete darkness, but something was drastically different. Instead of being tethered to a basement pole, she was blindfolded and in the process of being dragged across what felt like a forest floor. Twigs and limbs scraped against her body as she bounced along. An owl hooted above her.
For a moment, she tried to resist, twisting and turning in defiance of her captor, but the efforts were in vain. Resigned to her fate, she lay limp.
“Where are you taking me?” she asked.
Nobody answered.
She persisted. “I demand to know what is going on.”
Still no response.
Instead of asking, she screamed, which resulted in a strong hand clamping down over her mouth. She felt hot breath on her neck.
“Don’t make things more difficult than they already are,” Shadow Lancer said.
The dragging continued, resuming the painful trek. She didn’t know where she was going, but she was sure it’d be the last trip she’d ever take. Certainly not the way she imagined it.
About ten minutes later, the two people carrying Mia released her. She hit the ground with a thud, banging her head. She groaned in pain while lying on her back. Without warning, she was pulled up by her collar. Mia teetered before regaining her balance.
“Here’s the girl,” Shadow Lancer said.
“Your money is in that bag over there,” another man replied in a gruff voice. “Thank you for contacting us. Your loyalty will be noted.”
“Thank you,” Shadow Lancer said.
Mia listened as two sets of footsteps grew faint in the cool night air.
“I don’t know what this is all about,” Mia said, “but this has to be some kind of mistake.”
The man grunted. “There was a mistake all right. But it’s one that you already made. And it’s going to cost you.”
“How much?” she said. “I can pay.”
The man chuckled. “There’s not enough money in the world for me to let you off.”
“I can get you millions of dollars.”
“Still not enough,” the man said. “Money’s worthless if you’re dead … just like you’re about to be.”
“Name your price,” she said, her voice quivering. “I know that everyone has a number.”
“Not me, lady. Now, get on your knees.”
Mia didn’t move. “How much?”
Her knee buckled as he kicked her from behind. She staggered to the ground.
“Come on,” she pleaded. “I’ll do whatever you want. Just don’t kill me.”
“If you haven’t figured this out yet, I’m going to tell you straight. This isn’t a negotiation.”
“But it can be,” she said. “You can change this story. I’ve done nothing to you. The world has enough senseless death. Don’t add to it by killing me and doing someone else’s dirty work for them.”
“Who says I’m doing this for anyone?” he asked.
“If you’re going to kill me, at least tell me who you are or who you’re working for,” she pleaded.
“Not a chance.”
She heard the click of a pistol and tried to think of anything to dissuade the man from killing her.
“Say goodnight, princess,” the man said before a shot rang out through the woods.
CHAPTER 19
Washington, D.C.
PRESIDENT YOUNG SAT in a briefing with his press secretary to discuss how to handle the barrage of questions the White House correspondents were about to fire at him. An hour earlier, he watched an FBI spokesperson deliver the story dominating the news cycle: The U.S. intelligence community formed a joint taskforce to determine who was responsible for Omar Ebadi’s death, and the group concluded the failure rested on the shoulders of former Texas senator J.D. Blunt.
The media was briefed on Blunt’s background on the intelligence committee and how he’d managed to put together a team of former special ops agents who engaged in global vigilante justice. According to the FBI, Blunt and
