Dangerous Pursuit (OSI Dark Ops #3)

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

A soft beep filtered through Lucas’s fuzzy mind, and he forced his eyes open. Once he was able to focus, his gaze scanned the room, and it took a minute for him to realize he was in the hospital. His cousin—arms crossed, head back, his long legs extended and crossed at the ankles—softly snored from where he lounged in a chair strategically positioned between the door and the bed. Jonathan still wore his tactical clothes, and remnants of greasepaint dotted his face and neck. His semiauto pistol rested in his lap. At the slightest sound, he would be alert and no one would get past him.

Lucas tried rolling over to his back and groaned when pain lanced through him.

Jonathan’s eyes opened, and he lifted his head.

“Welcome back.” His deep voice rolled across the room.

“Thanks.” Lucas felt like he’d been hit by a truck.

“Do you remember what happened?” Jonathan lifted his weapon, pushed up from the chair, and secured it in the holster on his hip .

“Yeah, I got shot.” He flattened his hand on the mattress and tried levering himself up.

“Here, let me help.” Jonathan hurried over and put a hand beneath Lucas and gently sat him up.

“Thanks.” He shifted his position so he wasn’t putting pressure on his wound. “What about Triano?”

“He got away,” Jonathan said. “Hawk tracked him, but he was long gone.”

“Fuck.” He shifted to a more comfortable position. “Calliope had a shot on him and I—”

“Fucked it up?” Jonathan tucked his hands in his pockets. “Don’t worry. We’ll find him. Sammy’s already searching for any accounts he may have hidden, and a Red Notice has been issued on him.”

“How did you swing that?” A Red Notice was an international alert for a wanted person.

Once the fugitive was located, they could be arrested and held pending extradition, surrender, or similar legal action.

“Burke took care of it.” Jeffrey Burke was the extremely powerful head of the National Security Agency.

“Burke’s involved?” Lucas had never met him but knew he was a critical component in the creation of O’Halleran Security International.

He also happened to be really tight with the Pacific Northwest contingent of the O’Halleran family .

“Yeah, Beck called him.” Jonathan nodded. “He rushed through the arrest warrant and issued the Red Notice.”

“Triano is slimy as hell, and I’m sure he kept cash on hand for situations just like this,” Lucas said. “For all we know, he’s already left the country.”

“Either way, we’ll find him.”

Lucas wished he could be as certain of that as his cousin.

“Is Calliope still here?” He needed to apologize to her for being such an overprotective asshole. “I owe her an apology.” And so much more.

“She came to see you right after you got out of surgery.” Jonathan looked confused. “You don’t remember?”

“Wait …” Lucas closed his eyes and clawed through the lingering haze of anesthesia. “I vaguely remember her saying something about her dad, I think?” He rubbed his fingers across his forehead and opened his eyes.

“Yeah, the biopsy results came back.” Jonathan sighed. “He has cancer and has to undergo surgery to remove the mass.”

“Shit. I need to see her.” He had to make sure she was okay.

“I’m sorry, Lucas.” Jonathan scrubbed his hand over his jaw. “She’s gone.”

“Gone?” Why would she leave without telling him?

“Yeah, Mason is flying her home,” Jonathan said. “She came in to say goodbye to you. ”

“Shit, I don’t remember.” His brows jammed together, and he dug deep in his memory.

“After you were shot, you were pretty out of it and kind of rambling.” Jonathan blew out a long breath. “You said some things that—”

“What did I say?” From the uncomfortable look on his cousin’s face, they must have been pretty bad. “Jesus, Jonathan, tell me.”

“You apologized to Norah, which was totally understandable. But … you also said, ‘I love you.’” He rushed to say, “I don’t know what the deal is between you two, and it’s none of my business. I just thought you should know.”

A dizzying rush of memories flashed through his mind.

His heart stopping when Triano pointed a gun at Calliope.

Him running and tackling her to the ground.

Getting off a shot at Triano.

Collapsing to the ground and staring up at the clouds.

Complete and utter darkness.

“I’m speculating here, but she seemed upset, sad even, when she came out of your room. Cole was there, too, and he said he’d never seen her like that before. She did her damnedest to hide it, because, as I’m sure you’ve figured out, she is one seriously proud woman.” Jonathan leaned his hip against the edge of the bed. “She thanked me for letting her use the corporate jet and left. ”

“No, she misunderstood. When I said, ‘I love you,’ I wasn’t talking about Norah; I was talking about her . I love her. ” Lucas threw back the covers and swung his legs over the side of the bed. “How long ago did she leave?”

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” Jonathan tried to stop him but was hampered by his concern for Lucas’s injury.

“I need to see her, to tell her that I love her .” The heart monitor went bonkers, and he yanked the contacts from where they were stuck to his chest and tossed the cords aside. “Where are my damn clothes?”

He stood and was getting ready to rip the IV from the back of his hand when an older, short and stocky nurse marched into the room like Sherman into Atlanta, with Cole right behind her.

Pain shot through his torso as he struggled, to no avail, against Cole and Jonathan’s hold.

“Mr. O’Halleran, get back in that bed this minute.” The nurse’s tone reminded him of the time his mother caught him playing with his toy cars when he was supposed to be in bed sleeping.

“Lucas, she’s already gone!” Jonathan shouted, then more quietly, said it again, “She’s gone.”

He was drained of what little energy he’d mustered and let them settle him back onto the bed. The nurse pulled the blanket over his legs, reapplied the sensors to his chest and pressed a few buttons on the monitor. The beeps commenced and began to slow to a normal rate.

“Sorry,” he apologized to her.

“Behave yourself.” She pointed at his face. “Or I’m going to strap you to that bed.” She softened her threat with a wink and a smile and left the room.

“I need to get the fuck out of here.” It tore him up inside to think she was hurting because of him. “I need to see her and tell her the truth.”

“They’re going to release you tomorrow.” Jonathan picked up the chair that was tipped over during the scuffle and set it against the wall. “By the time you get out of here and make it to Florida, her dad’s surgery will be over.”

“I can tell you where she lives, but I won’t do that if you’re not serious about her.” Cole sounded like a protective older brother. “Calliope acts tough, but she’s actually very sensitive. She’s just gotten damn good at hiding it.” He added, “Until today.”

“Fuck.” Lucas’s head fell back against his pillow.

“She is passionate about her work, and I don’t see her giving it up for anything or anyone. And she shouldn’t have to,” Cole continued. “So, if you want to be with her, you’re going to have to accept that reality.”

“Yeah, I knew I fucked up the minute she shoved me off of her during the op.” A corner of his mouth lifted at the memory. “She saw Triano getting ready to shoot me and came out of those woods like an avenging angel. She was cool as a cucumber, dialed him in, and was ready to take the shot.”

“She would’ve taken him down, too.” Cole was an intelligent guy who’d been deep undercover in the darkest side of trafficking. His confidence in Calliope’s abilities was powerfully reassuring.

Lucas had just been too pigheaded and terrified of losing her to listen.

“Weather permitting, Mason will be back with the jet late tomorrow afternoon,” Jonathan said. “If you’re out of here and feel up to it, you can fly back with the team, and we’ll make a stop in Florida.”

“Is that job offer still available?” He looked from Cole to his cousin.

“You are serious about her, aren’t you?” Cole said.

“Very.” He gave Jonathan a questioning look. “Well?”

“You’re ready to leave Colombia and relocate to Virginia?” His cousin seemed surprised by his sudden change of heart.

“I’m ready to do whatever it takes to have a life with Calliope.” Assuming she’d have him.

“What do you think?” Jonathan deferred to Cole. “He’ll be on your team.”

“I think he’s a damn good pilot and would be an asset to Dark Ops.” Cole extended his hand. “Welcome to the team. ”

“Thanks, man.” He shook his hand, turned and held his hand out to his cousin.

“Get that out of here.” Jonathan batted it away, leaned down and carefully hugged him.

Lucas was comfortable with the decision to leave Palomino. After Norah died, he’d taken her ashes up in a helo and scattered them across the Caribbean Sea. There would always be a special place in his heart for Norah and the memories they created. But it was long past time to move on.

It was time to start living again—with Calliope.