Page 226 of Silent Target

“What happened?” he asks.

“Graves’s team never reached Texas. Blaze’s friends blocked the transport aircraft before it left Virginia. The men sent to the airfield found themselves surrounded by a very unhappy collection of Rangers.”

Falcon calls from the next bay.

“I would pay to see that.”

“So would I,” Cobra says.

Caleb closes his eyes for one second.

His brother is alive.

Felicity is safe.

The people Caleb loves survived.

The medic finishes the final stitch.

“Done.”

Caleb looks toward the secure evidence room.

“No. We aren’t.”

I follow his gaze.

He’s right.

Charles Whitmore escaped.

Walter Graves escaped.

And Black Banner remains active.

But for this one breath, Caleb’s brother is safe.

The team survived.

And his hand is still beneath mine.

That is enough to keep us standing.

53

CALEB

The imaging confirms what I already knew.

No broken ribs.

No internal bleeding.

A deep bruise from the armor impact and enough stitches to make movement unpleasant for the next several days.

Evie listens to every instruction.

No lifting.