Page 71 of Sasha’s Secret

“It’s not your fault,” Rocco ground out. “My op, my responsibility. Ghost, I’m going down to the tunnels. I’ll get her back.”

Ghost responded without hesitation. “You’ll need backup.”

As if to emphasize the point, Hollywood joined his captain in drawing his weapon. However, the last thing Rocco wanted was for Ghost and his team to get into serious trouble for what they’d done. “No. You guys aren’t supposed to be here. The police will arrive any time to start asking questions, and I don’t want you around here when they do. Go. You’ve done plenty and I’m grateful for that, but you’re wasting time.”

Ghost glanced at Hollywood, who nodded in acknowledgement of whatever silent communication had passed between the two Delta Force operators, then turned back to Rocco. “Good luck.”

The two men disappeared back into the mayhem. Rocco turned to Sasha, who was pressing a napkin to the back of Monroe’s head. Anguish in her eyes, she turned her gaze on him, looking for answers, yet at the same time, offering hope.

He needed to give her something to do—before she insisted on coming with him. “Sasha, I need you to do something for me. Get the dancers, keep everyone together, and keep them safe.”

“Let me come with you. I can watch your six.”

His fierce woman. He’d have given anything to keep her with him, so he’d know exactly where she was. “I can’t. Please—do this for me. You’re important to me, and… it’s the only way I can protect you.”

Her internal struggle was written all over her face, but in the end, she caved. “Go get Linzi—bring her back safely. I’ll take care of things here.” She glanced at Linzi’s manager and producer, dazed but unharmed, sitting a few feet away from her.

He wanted to go, he had to go, but there was one more thing to do before his feet would cooperate by moving in the desired direction. He framed Sasha’s face with both hands and pressed a fast, hard kiss to her lips. It was all or nothing. “I love you.”

Her hand clamped around his wrist as he started to leave, stopping him in his tracks. “I love you too. Now go get her back.”

Leaving Sasha in the midst of all the mayhem surrounding them was the hardest thing he’d ever done. He’d blurted the words out in desperation, never expecting her to return them. There was so much they needed to talk about, but there simply wasn’t time. He made his pledge in the kiss he placed on her palm. Her gaze clung to his as unspoken questions flew between them, but then he had to let her go.

“Go. We can talk when you come back.”

Rocco couldn’t hear her say the words against all the background noise, but he saw her soft lips form them. He also saw proof of her feelings for him in her eyes and her expression, and took that memory with him as he barged through the doors leading to access to the maintenance tunnels.

Though he’d been expecting it, it was still a bitter blow when he encountered Ram’s lifeless body in a pool of blood—another death on his conscience. He stopped briefly to confirm Monroe’s assessment, then set off again.

The maze of tunnels was lined with pipes and cabling, and seemed to bear little resemblance to the plans Rocco had been able to examine only a couple of days ago. As he made his way through them, he found himself wishing for a loud, hysterical scream from Linzi. Even factoring in the echoes, it would at least let him know he was on the right track.

And that she was still alive.

The hollow silence around him, the haunting echo of his own rapid footsteps, did not bode well, although Rocco couldn’t see Brian killing the golden goose. Not yet, at any rate, and not ever, if Rocco had any say in the matter.

He ran on, slowing on the approach to each junction, so he could check the next stretch for any threats. He should have been getting closer to the exit to the service yard and the loading docks now, with a greater risk of running into innocent bystanders… or Brian and Linzi, and maybe Frank as well, if luck wasn’t on Rocco’s side. He glanced at his weapon and, satisfied that it was ready to fire, peered cautiously around the next corner.

A voice rang out.

“Hey. You look like a man who’s looking for something…”

Chapter 16

He recognized that voice. Knowing there was no point in taking cover behind the wall, Rocco stepped into the open. At the end of the tunnel, against the backdrop of the brightly lit service yard were the outlines of five figures. Two were kneeling, hands clasped behind their heads—one of them favoring an arm, as if protecting a gunshot wound—with a third person behind them, clearly holding a weapon on them. The fourth was on the ground, slumped against the wall, with the fifth crouched at their side.

Had Rocco not recognized that voice, this would have been a trap, and there was no way he’d be walking into it like this. As he approached and details resolved themselves, his assumption was confirmed. Frank and Brian Schofield—the two men on their knees—radiated seething anger in the face of utter defeat. Ghost stood to one side behind them—still wearing his tux, but with the added accessory of a black bandana covering the lower half of his face, a combination mirrored by Hollywood, who was kneeling beside an apparently semi-conscious Linzi. Head moving restlessly from side to side, she moaned softly.

Rocco picked up his pace to join them. “Is she all right?”

“He used chloroform—I can smell it,” Hollywood said. “Only a light dose, just enough to subdue her. She’s coming out of it now, but she should be checked out by the EMTs.”

“On their way,” Ghost said. He turned his attention to the two men with their hands behind their heads. “So are the cops.”

Mention of law enforcement reminded Rocco of what he’d said only a few minutes earlier. “I thought I told you to go.”

Rocco might not have been able to see the man’s mouth, but he could see the grin in his eyes. “Cell signal came back online. I heard this one,” Ghost gestured toward Frank, “was only a couple minutes away, figured you might need a little assistance.”

“And your source for this information? Safe?” Rocco knew it came from the two members of Ghost’s team who’d followed Frank to the venue, but he wanted confirmation that they weren’t in danger of being apprehended.