Page 79 of Under Fire in Big Sky

He would have smiled, proud of her for not turning to the dark side with Sean, but it would’ve hurt his face. “Go call Lauren.”

She stood and started to leave, then turned back to him. “I never thought you treated me like a toy. From the beginning, you were honest about what you were prepared to give. You never strung me along. It’s not your fault that somewhere along the way I wanted more.” She left the room before he could think of a response.

He didn’t deserve someone as wonderful as Liv. Patient. Understanding. Kind. Who accepted him, flaws and all.

Getting up, Eli held his side to ease the pain from movement. His ribs were so sore it hurt to breathe. He peeked through the curtains and scanned the area. They had the exterior lights on, illuminating their surroundings. The sun would be up in an hour. Chance had taken extra precautions when booking the house. It couldn’t be traced back to any of them or IPS. With the homeowner’s permission, Bo had set up motion-activated cameras that would trigger a silent alarm. Eli hoped it would be enough to keep them safe.

Olivia came back into the room. “Lauren is considering my request for the list of Aegis clients here in Montana.”

“She does understand the severity of the situation, doesn’t she?”

“Once I explained Sean’s role in everything, it became crystal clear. She’s grateful for the heads-up and has assured me I’ll be protected. I just don’t know how much stock to put into her word.”

“It’s a gamble for a reason, but you’re not taking it alone. I’ll be with you. Until the end. That’s the deal.”

“I don’t think the ramifications of previous events are covered in the deal you made in the hospital. You could even contend you made it under emotional duress since I was inside the scary-looking HBOT.”

He shrugged. “I stand by the deal and I’m throwing in an addendum that covers any threat Sean presents. If the CIA or Aegis comes for you, I’ll be there with you.”

“I guess I shouldn’t be surprised coming from a man like you. A protector. Defender. Guardian. You’re either in the fight, or you’re thinking about it.” Pressing a palm to his cheek, she smiled, and his heart turned over in his chest. “But it’s okay to let those who care about you protect you, too.”

Chance and Autumn came into the room, and Olivia dropped her hand.

“Takoda and Bo are going to take a break and get some shut-eye,” Chance said.

“Nothing on the news about anything catastrophic happening last night.” Autumn wrangled her black curls into a ponytail. “Please tell me you two are having better luck than us on who the target is because time is running out.”

Olivia shook her head. “I spoke to Lauren and asked for a list of Aegis clients here in Montana. Anyway, as she was giving me pushback, I started thinking maybe I need to look at this differently.”

Eli caught her gaze. “How so?”

“I know Sean. How he thinks. The rest of the projects in the file that Aegis sent are small potatoes in comparison to the resort and the carbon capture facility. No real media coverage. No public outrage. To complete his objective, he would want something that’s going to make a huge splash, dominating the news cycle. Maybe the next target isn’t affiliated with any of those.” Olivia went back to her laptop. “What if the person is connected to the first two projects somehow?”

Eli sat beside her and picked up one of the Ironside tablets while the others gathered around.

“Start with the resort from the beginning of the project,” Autumn said.

“Who had the power to grant eminent domain?” Chance asked.

Eli knew this one. “The Rising Rock Town Council.”

Autumn sat in a lounge chair. “Are any of the members investors in the resort?”

“I’ll check.” It took Olivia a minute to go over a previous Aegis report and cross-reference it against the names of those on the town council. “Nope.”

“Okay.” Eli sighed. “What about the carbon pipeline? Who authorized that again?”

“The Montana DNRC, Department of Natural Resources and Conservation.”

“Let’s see what I can find.” Eli ran a quick search. “The director approved the project. Josie Brown.” A detail in the article struck him as odd. “And she was recently appointed. Sound familiar?”

“Like Fred Lloyd,” Olivia said, “the director of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. Who appointed them?”

“In the article, it says the governor appointed Brown.” Eli looked up the director of FWP. “The same person put Lloyd in his position, too.”

Chance groaned. “Please, don’t tell me Arlo Forrester is the connecting thread.”

“Chip Whitney mentioned the governor planned to attend the grand opening of the resort.” Olivia clacked away on her keyboard, stopped, and perused something. “You’re not going to believe this, but he was also an investor.”