Chapter 1
––––––––
BOONE LANGFORD SHUTthe door of his large pickup truck, striding across the nearly empty parking lot toward the secure building.The guards at the gate of the compound, fence surrounding the perimeter, and security cameras kept most people away, but the looming structure gleaming before him in the early morning light had drawn the attention of locals during its construction.
Locals who’d never know the truth of what went on behind closed doors.
The West Coast branch of Shadow Security was officially up and running.To the public, the company provided bodyguards and security services to various clients around the country.
And in reality?
The men on the newly-formed Shadow Ops: Bravo Team had spent more than a decade in Special Forces, all highly trained and positively lethal.Boone’s unit in Delta Force had dealt with counterterrorism, hostage rescue, and reconnaissance missions.His teammates came from similar backgrounds, all with the know-how and skills to deploy on classified missions from years of military service.They would now be running Black Ops, taking on jobs the Feds couldn’t or wouldn’t do.The founder of Shadow Security, Jett Hutchinson, ran things out of headquarters in New York.The Seattle office and Bravo Team had their own boss.
Holt Blackwell was as gruff and no-nonsense as they come.He was also extremely skilled at getting the job done, no matter the cost.Running things off the books required toeing the line.Taking risks.Jett had hired Holt after he’d retired from the military, the two men going all the way back to their early Army days.
And Boone?
He’d been brought in through other means, after assisting an old military buddy of his own on a rescue op.Leaving the pool halls to run jobs as a sniper hadn’t been on his bingo card this year, but life worked out in unexpected ways.Being on Bravo Team gave him a purpose.A new set of goals.And damn if he wasn’t ready to right some of the injustices in the world.
His boots squeaked on the freshly polished floor as he crossed the sleek lobby.The space was so new it still smelled of fresh paint.The shininess countered the darkness of the world, the grim reality of the life he’d lived in Spec Ops.But Boone was here—living, breathing, and ready to roll into action, once again taking on some of the evils of the world.
The new office building was state-of-the-art, with a modern design and the latest technology.Surrounded by wooded acres, it was secluded enough to provide the cover and necessary space for any outdoor training needed.The basement housed a gym, armory, and gun range.The main level had secure rooms for briefings and workspace and offices for the team, analysts, and IT staff.It was modeled after Shadow Security headquarters on the East Coast, and as of today, Bravo Team was a go.
Boone felt the eyes of the young, blonde receptionist on him as he walked away.He swiped his badge and pulled open the heavy door, heading into the secure area.Everyone in the building was cleared, and no one got in through the front doors without Holt and security knowing.
No one would get past the front gate either—not without the proper credentials.
Stopping by his boss’s office, Boone said hello.
Holt’s eyes narrowed.“You get the rest of the paperwork taken care of?”
“Affirmative.I even signed on the dotted line, making everything official.Job’s done and I was never there.Yadda, yadda, yadda.”
Holt remained expressionless as he continued.“We’re briefing in ten.Tell the other guys to get their asses in there.There’s a hell of a lot of shit coming our way.”
“Roger that, boss.”
Boone smirked as he moved down the hallway.Only two weeks ago he was giving Jett the key from a little side job he’d handled.Now he was officially in—the newest hire for Bravo Team.Ironic that the other fellas had been out here for months.They’d been training while the finishing touches were put into place on the new building.Evidently, Jett had his eye on Seattle for a while.He had a hunting cabin out here that he’d used as a home base for meeting with contacts on the West Coast and decided the greater Seattle area was good for expansion.Jett had purchased the land and set the entire thing into motion before he’d even begun to hire new staff.
And now Boone was here, too, ready to roll up his sleeves and get shit done.
He moved down the hall to Xaden Wilkerson’s office, knocking on the doorframe as he strode right in.Cooper Davis was beside him, and both men greeted Boone with fist bumps and slaps on the shoulder.
“Good to see you, man!”Cooper said.“Bout time you blew into town.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Boone said with a grin.“Had some side jobs to take care of before making things official here.”
“Side jobs or side pieces?”Xaden smirked.
“Now that would imply I had a woman, wouldn’t it?”Boone retorted.“Can’t exactly have a side piece without a girl of my own—not that I’d cheat.”
Cooper shook his head.“Maybe not, but I’m sure you were breaking hearts all over DC.”
Boone smirked.“Far from it.”
“I heard Gage got into some good trouble over the weekend,” Cooper said with a chuckle, referring to Gage Stratton, another man on their team.“There was a pretty little brunette he met at a bar in the city.Just about broke his heart when she flew back East after a few days of fun.”
Boone snorted.“I give it a week tops before he finds a new love interest.”