Amy Rench - Fallen Rogue

That was where she and Rome were headed.

Over a package of surprisingly tasty store-bought cinnamon rolls, they’d decided this morning that they needed to find some tangible evidence of what was going on. They trusted Bobby’s notes, but wanted to see for themselves exactly what they were up against.

She glanced at the timer counting down on her digital watch-4:30 blinked back at her. Rome had been very specific about the timing. And gone over and over it before they’d even left their tawdry motel room this morning.

Mmm…this morning. Waking up with Rome spooning her had been, well, heavenly. The combination of warmth and strength and the vulnerability in his sleep had nearly undone her. When he’d been kissing her the night before, she’d never wanted anyone or anything more in her life than she’d wanted him. Not even an Olympic gold. She still didn’t fully trust him, but my goodness, she was fully attracted to him. But when they made love, she wanted plenty of time to explore his delicious body. And this morning they’d had other things to contend with.

Another glance at her watch-2:10. She had to clear her mind or she’d jump him the second he returned.

As much as she’d initially wanted to claim vengeance on her own, she’d come to realize that she couldn’t do this without Rome. Harper knew nothing about this spy stuff other than what she’d seen in movies and the video games she played. She desperately needed his expertise and endless resources.

And not only was he trained in this kind of stuff, but his steadfast support was beginning to mean a lot to her. She’d lost so much already. She didn’t think she’d survive losing Rome, too. Even if she did have a limited life span.

His betrayal still stung. And she still wasn’t ready to forgive it. Yet she was smart enough to know he was a real asset. She needed him to help her get revenge for Bobby, given she didn’t know how long she had to live.

She knew she should feel something about her imminent death. But somehow, she felt that the moment she’d decided on revenge, she realized it would end in a oneway ticket to mortality. And surprisingly, she was okay with it. As long as she got vengeance first.

A slight rustling of brush to her left spurred her out of her absorbed thoughts. Glancing at her watch, she saw the digitized numbers count down from ten. Rome slipped through the leafy barrier with hushed ease.

“I’m surprised I could even hear you,” she said softly, flicking her gaze back to see the seconds tick down to zero. Amazing.

“It was on purpose,” he said quietly with a smile, hunkering down right next to her. “I didn’t want to scare you.” He placed his hand on her shoulder, warming her through the fabric of the black microfleece coat he’d given her to wear. “Are you ready?”

Sure, she was ready to break into a supersecret underground government facility that, unbeknownst to everyone but the two of them, was being used by a traitorous faction with unscrupulous plans, willing to murder in order to keep their secret.

“Yes,” she nodded, knowing it really didn’t matter whether she was ready. They were doing this. For Bobby. For his research. For the good of everyone. They would put the wrongs of the faction right. “Let’s go.”

He returned her nod, taking her hand in his and pulling her up to stand with him. A light tug on her hand and she followed closely behind him, shifting out of his clasp to rest her hand lightly on the small of his back as they moved quickly yet quietly through the thick covering of trees.

A thrill of anticipation prickled through her blood, much like she experienced just before a race. Adrenaline pumped a sense of purpose into her, eliciting a confidence she knew she was going to need to get through this.

Sooner than she expected, they reached the wellhidden bunker. It surprised her to see just how close it was to the secret entrance she’d used not too long ago to sneak into her brother’s lab.

Rome held up a hand, motioning for her to stay put. Nodding, she watched him move with ghostlike steps toward a rocky area covered with thick green moss.

Harper relished watching him and was impressed at how stealthily he could maneuver, considering his muscular bulk. She imagined it wasn’t much different than the smooth way she cut through the water. They were more alike than they were different. She loved that.

Whoa. Love?

Where the heck did that come from? Wait. At the café, she’d said she loved him. In jest, surely, but she’d never slipped with the L word before. Ever.

“C’mon, we have sixty-five minutes.” Rome’s reminder shook her out of her shock, causing her to jump. “Hey, are you okay?” In an instant, he was beside her, rubbing her shoulder under the backpack she was wearing, sporting a sincere questioning look.

“Um, right. Yes, I’m fine,” she stammered, and gave him a smile she hoped backed up her words. He narrowed his eyes at her, clearly undecided whether to believe her.

“You’re sure?” he asked, his hand roving to her back in comfort.

She nodded crisply, gesturing for him to proceed as she reset her watch timer for the sixty-five minutes he’d bought them by shutting down surveillance. Or whatever he did.

He gave her a long, pointed look before turning toward the now-open door to the underground facility. After a quick shake of her head to clear her muddled thoughts, she followed him into the darkness.

Admittedly, she felt more than a little uncomfortable breaking into a facility like this. The worst she’d ever done was sneak into the living room while her parents were watching Jaws, after they’d forbidden her from seeing it. Yet, at the same time the fear spiked her adrenaline and got her heart pumping as though she were swimming a sprint.

Once again, Harper kept her hand on his firm back as they maneuvered down through the dimly lit corridor. The passage walls pressed in on them and the moist smell of packed soil sifted into her senses. Earthy dust grazed the back of her throat after she took a deep breath.

Every so often lightbulbs, enclosed by caged fixtures that had been secured to the dirt walls, illuminated the way for them. The slope wasn’t too steep, but it was a definite tricky descent, making her grateful for Rome’s sturdy presence just a pace ahead of her.

After a few moments of winding, the natural dug-out walls became smooth gray concrete and squarely structured. Their booted footsteps sounded deafening once on the level surface. Well, hers did, anyway.

This morning she’d hacked into several government provisioning databases to pull up the basic building plans of the facility to give them an idea of the layout. Then Rome had chosen this route when they devised this plan, thinking it would be the most deserted. He explained that the Five Watch was most likely confident in their anonymity and covert surveillance. So, he’d said with a wicked smile, they probably wouldn’t be counting on a seasoned agent and expert hacker to come aknockin’.

After running through several ideas together about where to head once they’d broken in, they’d concluded that the best option was to check out some offices or labs for files and hard evidence, then go through the ceiling’s service ducts to see what they could witness firsthand.

Though their knowledge of the facility was limited, his familiarity with infiltrating secure organizations was considerable, so she didn’t feel like they were going in blind.

But planning was one thing. Actually doing it was another. Especially with a novice like herself.

Rome stopped at a corner and peeked around it. His slow, easy movements were impressive. According to the building plans, offices were down this hallway, but Rome believed that the Five Watch may have made their own modifications by adding more laboratories.