Page 35 of Twilight Tactics

“Sure. I didn’t mean to press you.”

“It’s okay. And part of it is, I miss Hannah.”

“Your daughter.”

“Yeah.” Piper gave her another smile. This one was sad, but at least it was real.

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. It’s not your fault.”

“But it is. You’re here to protect me when you should be home with your daughter.”

“Again, not your fault. This is my job. It’s what I signed up for.”

“But your daughter didn’t.”

Piper paled and flinched. Then swallowed hard. “No,” she said, her voice soft. “She didn’t.”

Ollie bounced the ball once, twice. “You could go. I’d be okay with Sully.”

“That’s not how this works. We stay in pairs. Protocol.”

The word “protocol” hung in the air between them. Rules. Procedures. The things that kept Ollie alive but trapped everyone around her. “You could get a different agent to take your place.”

“Not happening.”

“Why don’t you call her then?” Ollie pointed to the three-point line. “I’ll just practice my shots.”

“I’m not sure you need much practice, but yeah, I’ll call her. Thanks.”

As Piper pulled out her phone once more, Ollie moved across the court to give them some privacy. She approached the basket, and the numbers flowed through her mind—distance, angle, force. The ball arced through the air.

Swish.

Some problems had solutions as clean and precise as a perfect shot. Others—like family, safety, belonging—those were messier. But maybe, just maybe, this ranch offered a chance to figure some of them out. If she could stay alive long enough to do so.

7

Sully found Piper and Ollie at the indoor basketball courts. Ollie was red-faced and sweating but wore a smile as big as the sky. He hated to be the reason it flipped into a frown. And yet, here he was. Piper met his gaze, then tossed the basketball to Ollie and walked toward him. “What is it?”

He filled her in while Ollie continued to shoot baskets in between sipping Gatorade. She also shot him and Piper looks like she knew something was going on and didn’t like being excluded.

He waved her over. She jogged toward him, bouncing the ball. “What happened? We gotta leave, don’t we?”

“Not yet, but you’ll need to be ready.”

“I’m ready, just frustrated. It’s getting late and I was supposed to start training with Elena today.”

“Basketball and training?” Piper asked. “Isn’t that a bit much?”

Ollie scowled. “No. I planned for some downtime in between activities. You don’t have to treat me like I’m an invalid.”

“I’m just concerned.”

“Well, stop.” She crossed her arms and lasered Sully witha narrow-eyed look. “Tell me what happened and be straight with me. I need to know.” A pause. “Please.”

He filled her in on most of it. “We’re not sure they were talking about you, though. Could have been the intruder.” He pulled his phone out and scrolled to the pictures he’d just taken. “Do you recognize any of these guys?”