Chapter One
“Confirm. Go, no go.”
“Assault team is a go.”
“I’m a go out here, Top.”
“I have eyes on the target. Go.” Tawni Bolten ignored the sweat dripping down her face in favor of keeping a line of sight on her target. As the rear guard for their SWAT team, she was charged with sniper duty. Yes, she was nearly a crack shot with the M14 sniper rifle, but as the newest member of their team and the only woman, Tawni had the feeling the guys just wanted her out of the way.
They were going after a suspected drug lord in the city. The mission was to arrest all in the area, which intel said was only three, including the main target. If all went well, her services wouldn’t be required.
“Assault team is active.” Grayson Baker and Wyatt Johnson made up the assault team with Sebastian Cross serving as their scout. Bastian had confirmed the intelligence report on the number of men in the small house and also had the men covered with a long-range rifle. Their leader, Nicholas Baker, or Niko, kept a close watch in a position where he was able to get to his team should something go wrong. All of them were top notch in the field. All of them were sexy as hell.
Tawni watched as the two men approached the house. Gray squatted underneath an open window while Wyatt secured the door. Bastian covered the back door while Tawni had a good view of the front door, which Wyatt had readied himself to kick in. Though none of the four men on the team was small by any means, Wyatt was the biggest of the bunch.
With one swift, hard kick, the door exploded inward accompanied by the shout of male voices. Wyatt could be heard over them all shouting, “Freeze! Police!” Naturally, that didn’t do one damned bit of good.
Tawni adjusted her grip on her rifle, making minor adjustments in case her talents were needed. Gray tossed a flash grenade through the window. The thing went off with a flash of light and a loud bang in the dark. More shouts, and Tawni’s heart pounded. Gray and Wyatt entered the building.
“Police!” Gray shouted again. Before he could say more, however, the distinct pop pop pop of gunfire punctuated the night.
“Shots fired, shots fired,” Wyatt’s voice rang out over the radio. He sounded completely calm and in control, as if he did this every day.
“Return fire,” Niko responded, keeping it short. Tawni could hear the implied, “Don’t let those bastards get away,” but Niko didn’t say it. Dispatch was listening, as well as people throughout the city who had nothing better to do than listen to the police scanner.
Immediately, the distinctive sound of the assault team’s Berettas popped from the tiny house. Tawni wondered if the team had killed their targets or wounded them. The rule was not to fire unless you’re prepared to kill, but these guys were better than the average cop on the street. All of them, with the exception of Tawni , were former military. Special Forces. They were good enough to completely take down a target without killing him if Niko told them to.
“I can take out lead target,” she intoned, trying not to sound eager or, worse, nervous, but she wasn’t sure she managed either. It wasn’t that she wanted to kill anyone—she just needed to prove her worth to these battle-hardened men.
“Negative, Snipe. Hold.” Niko effectively called her off, obviously believing the assault team had it under control. Tawni took several deep breaths, trying to calm herself. The heat of the moment was definitely different from training. Adrenaline rushed through her veins with every beat of her heart. If she were honest with herself, it was difficult to tell if it was fear or excitement. Probably a little of both.
Keeping her scope firmly on the house, her target still in the cross hairs, movement to her left caught her eye. Immediately, she warned the team. “Top, movement on the ground to the left of the house. There’s a second target moving fast.” There was
“Confirm. Go, no go.”
“Assault team is a go.”
“I’m a go out here, Top.”
“I have eyes on the target. Go.” Tawni Bolten ignored the sweat dripping down her face in favor of keeping a line of sight on her target. As the rear guard for their SWAT team, she was charged with sniper duty. Yes, she was nearly a crack shot with the M14 sniper rifle, but as the newest member of their team and the only woman, Tawni had the feeling the guys just wanted her out of the way.
They were going after a suspected drug lord in the city. The mission was to arrest all in the area, which intel said was only three, including the main target. If all went well, her services wouldn’t be required.
“Assault team is active.” Grayson Baker and Wyatt Johnson made up the assault team with Sebastian Cross serving as their scout. Bastian had confirmed the intelligence report on the number of men in the small house and also had the men covered with a long-range rifle. Their leader, Nicholas Baker, or Niko, kept a close watch in a position where he was able to get to his team should something go wrong. All of them were top notch in the field. All of them were sexy as hell.
Tawni watched as the two men approached the house. Gray squatted underneath an open window while Wyatt secured the door. Bastian covered the back door while Tawni had a good view of the front door, which Wyatt had readied himself to kick in. Though none of the four men on the team was small by any means, Wyatt was the biggest of the bunch.
With one swift, hard kick, the door exploded inward accompanied by the shout of male voices. Wyatt could be heard over them all shouting, “Freeze! Police!” Naturally, that didn’t do one damned bit of good.
Tawni adjusted her grip on her rifle, making minor adjustments in case her talents were needed. Gray tossed a flash grenade through the window. The thing went off with a flash of light and a loud bang in the dark. More shouts, and Tawni’s heart pounded. Gray and Wyatt entered the building.
“Police!” Gray shouted again. Before he could say more, however, the distinct pop pop pop of gunfire punctuated the night.
“Shots fired, shots fired,” Wyatt’s voice rang out over the radio. He sounded completely calm and in control, as if he did this every day.
“Return fire,” Niko responded, keeping it short. Tawni could hear the implied, “Don’t let those bastards get away,” but Niko didn’t say it. Dispatch was listening, as well as people throughout the city who had nothing better to do than listen to the police scanner.
Immediately, the distinctive sound of the assault team’s Berettas popped from the tiny house. Tawni wondered if the team had killed their targets or wounded them. The rule was not to fire unless you’re prepared to kill, but these guys were better than the average cop on the street. All of them, with the exception of Tawni , were former military. Special Forces. They were good enough to completely take down a target without killing him if Niko told them to.
“I can take out lead target,” she intoned, trying not to sound eager or, worse, nervous, but she wasn’t sure she managed either. It wasn’t that she wanted to kill anyone—she just needed to prove her worth to these battle-hardened men.
“Negative, Snipe. Hold.” Niko effectively called her off, obviously believing the assault team had it under control. Tawni took several deep breaths, trying to calm herself. The heat of the moment was definitely different from training. Adrenaline rushed through her veins with every beat of her heart. If she were honest with herself, it was difficult to tell if it was fear or excitement. Probably a little of both.
Keeping her scope firmly on the house, her target still in the cross hairs, movement to her left caught her eye. Immediately, she warned the team. “Top, movement on the ground to the left of the house. There’s a second target moving fast.” There was
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