Shadows to Light (Shadows of Justice 5) by Regan Black

because we're not all that close and I thought they weren't that close. Apparently, my mom has all kinds of connections, because I woke up in Slick Micky's place."
    "You were smuggled?"
    Mira sent Julia a smile. "Exactly my reaction."
    "Why were you on trial?"
    Leave it to Jameson to ask the one question she didn't want to answer, at least not in front of him. "I'd been accused of exposing what I am. They were concerned that I'd put the order at risk." She met his gaze with as much stoic dignity as she'd used with the Five, refusing to reveal any weakness, but this time she was sure he could hear her heart pounding. She turned back to Julia. "What does Callahan have in mind?"

Chapter 6
     
    Twelve hours later, in the dark tunnels under the University of Chicago, Jameson had to admit the plan was an improvement over sending Mira out as bait. He still didn't like putting her in the middle of the danger, but at least Callahan let him tag along. Sort of.
    Geared up for a stealth intrusion, they parted ways at Dr. Luther's old office. Mira went on toward the lab, while Jameson returned to the office armed with a scavenger list of sorts. He had a comm linked directly to Mira, so he could monitor her progress. Once he had what Callahan needed, he'd catch up to Mira before she got into any trouble.
    He knew it would be dicey. Mira's role was to determine what her father was working on, without getting caught herself. She'd promised she could refrain if she found him injured, but Jameson wasn't so sure.
    Remembering what she'd done to that trace implant, he figured her dad probably handled the bullet the same way.
    It didn't bother him in the slightest that the best advocate for Soldier safety and bio-protection managed to do it because he was fundamentally different. It bothered him that Montalbano was using him against American troops.
    His recon gear came online as he approached the old office. He wasn't sure what Callahan hoped to gain, but Jameson would get the intel he'd been assigned to retrieve.
    The recon gear showed three people, not on his team, ransacking the office and he smiled. Well, Merry Christmas. This mission was looking up. Jameson decided he'd have a little fun, maybe even a little payback in the process.
    His side arm was loaded non-lethal, but there were more painful non-lethal options than the standard rubber bullets. If these guys were tied to whoever was pulling Montalbano's strings, he wanted them alive. And if they were enforcers, he wanted them to suffer. Loading a clip of stingers, he chambered a round and prepared to party.
    At the last moment, he popped out the stealth disc. He wanted to meet these guys head on.
    Only able to get a read on positioning, he watched the 'red dots' as Mira would say, move about on the other side of the wall. He was close enough he should've heard voices, but they were absolutely silent.
    Jameson eased open the access door, watching for any change, listening for any clue. Nothing.
    He paused long enough to envision his preferred outcome, then he entered as if he walked through walls all the time.
    The stinger left his pistol with a pop and hit the closest target in the hip joint. Healer or not, the combination impact and deep nerve shock debilitated him instantly.
    Jameson lost the surprise advantage when the first target crashed to the floor. He fired two more stingers at the next target and then the third. Room clear, he cuffed each of the men with zip ties at wrists and ankles. Let 'em try and roll out of here, he thought, going in search of any other problem-children looking to wreck what he'd considered the easy part of Callahan's plan.
    When the rest of the office was clear and every access secure, he returned to question his prisoners.
    They didn't look like they were in nearly enough pain, which would've been plenty of confirmation they were enforcers, even if he didn't recognize two of the three from their fight in the snow.
    Maybe they weren't as strong mentally as