Sworn to Secrecy (Special Ops) Read Free Page B

parties his parents had decided to host. Nobody would ever mistake his family for the Waltons; that was for sure.
     
    He put his mind back on the mission and took it off his family problems. It wasn’t as if his family was going to change. He couldn’t do anything about that, but he could do something about this situation. He was going to retrieve the package. The package, Carissa Jones, was going home and then he was getting back to his favorite nightly relaxation routine of watching the stars above him. He would need all the relaxation he could get if he was going to attend another family party in Dallas. They were planning to do a Fourth of July bash to celebrate Kevin’s success. Alex had nearly laughed at that. Fourth of July had nothing to do with football and everything to do with freedom, which he had actually spent six years in the military helping to fight for, but they didn’t care about that. Fourth of July was over a month away, so he had a little time to prep himself for the event. He was still trying to find a way to get out of it, but he had nothing yet.
     
    Micah and Natalia were going away to Colorado. He had talked her into going hiking so they could celebrate the freedom of the country in the freedom of nature. Jet was trying to salvage what was left of his relationship with Charlie. He had planned to spend the night with her. He hoped for Jet’s sake that the plan worked. Those two were definitely teetering on the edge of breaking up, and since he had gone through a few breakups himself he could state with certainty that they probably would be over by the end of summer if they couldn’t work through whatever was going on with them. Their weekly night out as a group was still happening at the bar and grill Charlie tended bar at, but the tension between the two was so visibly clear it was painful to watch.
     
    Preston, now that was a man of great contradictions. He was single once again. None of them were surprised. It was clear Preston was still very much in love with his ex-wife. Fifteen years hadn’t changed those feelings no matter how many women he tried to replace her with. Ironically, even Preston had plans for the holiday that would not include Alex. There was nothing he could use as an excuse not to go to his family’s party without looking like the jealous brother. He wasn’t jealous; he was just tired. There was only so much a person could take and he was reaching his breaking point. Krystal had pushed him there. There were just some things brothers didn’t do and that was date the ex without permission. Kevin knew what Krystal had meant to him. Alex had been so sure they were going to get married. He had actually bought the ring and was planning to propose when he went out to see her, but then he got that email and everything changed. They weren’t together anymore, but having his brother show up with her, knowing that she was going to be living with him now, was just too much of a betrayal not to hurt.
     
    “Get your head back on this mission,” he told himself. He needed to drop the family issues right now because he had more important things to deal with.
     
    He watched Carissa as she sat on the ground next to several practically naked women. She looked tired, but he noticed she was trying to pay attention to the festivities. She smiled at a few of the kids as they came up to her. She didn’t look as if she were distressed about being held captive, but then again, maybe she was too tired to put up a fight. It wasn’t as if she had the opportunity to run.
     
    He waited all night. He saw her being led into her tent and then being left alone, but the festivities were still going and he didn’t have a way inside their grounds—not without being noticed.
     
    He camped out all night until just before dawn and that’s when he made his way into the village, into her tent, and then he took her. He had his gun in hand just in case any of the locals came after him. He wouldn’t