Page 110 of Nothing to Fear

Omega hated the ache in his chest. It wasn’t so much that he’d fucked up the mission as it was that he was about to break Daedalus’s heart with disappointment.

The flight attendant asked everyone to please turn off and stow electronic devices.

He needed them to know his status and decided to text Rho.

Stone and Harper are alive. Proceed with exit plan. I’m flying commercial to Dulles. O.

“Sir, I’m going to have to ask you to power down your phone now,” the flight attendant said.

He needed to wait for acknowledgement first. “In a minute. It’ll be off before we taxi.” He threw in a glare for good measure.

Her smile fell, and she took the hint, moving on to nag another passenger.

The phone rang. He didn’t need to look at the number. It was Daedalus. Rho would’ve texted in return.

After the things Daedalus had said to him the last time they’d spoken—conveyed the imperative to kill Stone and Harper—he wasn’t up for going another round with him. Not yet.

The ringing stopped. A text chimed.

Quitting is beneath you. This can be salvaged. We need to go to war, or we’ll lose everything.

They wouldn’t lose each other, but Daedalus wanted to have it all.

Omega ground his molars.

Another text came through.

Will send helicopter to Dulles for you.

Walking away from everything they’d built would be like chopping off a limb. Neither of them wanted to do it, but this was triage. Daedalus was going to get them both killed.

A third chime on the phone.

None of this means anything without you. Come back to me. D.

The viselike tightness in Omega’s chest eased, and the heated sting in his blood lessened.

Love was a fool’s game, but it was the only one he wanted to play with Daedalus. He was the only person Omega had ever hit all six cylinders with. They’d been together many years, were a part of each other, and Omega knew Daedalus would never accept retreat. Not when they could still win, no matter how slim the odds.

And Omega would risk everything for him, time and time again. The strategy wheel in his mind started spinning.

He sent one last text before powering off the phone.

I can’t seem to deny you. Bring more men. Arm up heavy gear. We go to war.

* * *

Somewhere over North Carolina

Monday, July 8, 3:33 p.m. EDT

Soul-shredding screams filled the cabin of the plane. The sound was filtered through Willow’s earplugs but not muted.

She should’ve listened to Gideon and Maddox and not looked, but without work to focus on, how could she not?

The situation was surreal. She sat in a plush leather chair, thick carpet beneath her feet, polished surfaces of the cabin glinting with soft light, but her stomach churned as she watched, horrified, while Gideon did one of the things he did best.

Interrogation.