Page 49 of Cops and Robbers

“Piss off.” The line died.

Raz chuckled and ran his fingers through his hair.

“Why didn’t you give her the other trackers?” Kate asked, staring out the window.

Those weren’t the words he expected. “You don’t care that I called her about it?”

“You have a job to do.” She shrugged. “Sure, I would have liked you to tell me. But if you guys figured out the trackers went missing a while ago, we wouldn’t be in this situation.”

His throat thickened. “You really did all that to get to me?”

“It was a stretch, but if you were a Dragon SEAL, the case would be too hard to resist.”

“What if I hadn’t?”

She pushed back into the car door, arms crossed. “I would have forced your hand sooner. Pulled some strings.”

“You have that kind of influence?”

She wiggled her fingers. “My puppets work in coding.”

Disappointment laced Raz’s tongue, and he gave her a look.

She raised her hands. “I know. Not very chivalrous of me, but I try to stay above the law when I can. Don’t get me wrong. Stealing and hacking are fun. But it’s just a game. When I stole to survive, it was never from those who weren’t deserving.”

“How very noble of you,” he teased, though he actually meant it. He turned his car down the last busy street, heading toward the Dusted Tuck. “Anyway, I thought it might be better for you to ask for immunity in exchange for the other trackers.”

“Oh? I’m the asset you’re looking for?”

He nodded and waved his badge at the guard at the parking garage. The guardrail lifted.

“I guess I’ll finally have an identity,” she said.

It had been quite a surprise to find her fingerprints nonexistent—her identity untraceable. “Why are you so off the grid?” he asked as he parked on the second floor. When he turned toward her, she stared at the cement wall in front of the car.

“I had to make sure Matsuda couldn’t find me.” Black threads flowed across the link, including a twinkle of sadness and regret. Matsuda had killed her best friend, and Raz could only wonder what lengths she had to go through to escape him.

“How were you and Matsuda acquainted?” he asked.

Kate fidgeted and didn’t meet his eyes. “We used to work together before I knew how criminal his activities were.”

Her words spoke of truth, but there was a darkness in her mind that sprawled closer to the link. He was curious about that sensation, and from the way she withdrew from him, he feared there was more to that story, but she wouldn’t be sharing it with him any time soon. He’d give her time even if time was not their friend. With protection and comfort at the forefront of his mind, he reached his hand out and grabbed hers. She startled and looked at him.

“You sure you’re ready for the Hackers Gala?” he asked, fear biting into his tone.

She offered a tentative grin. “I have to be.”

“We can regroup and—“

Kate pulled him into a kiss, shushing his next words. With her hands twined in his hair, she said, “Don’t worry, Raz. I got this.”

He stamped his lips against hers once more. “We got this.”

She grinned and pressed her head against his. “All right. Fine. Me and the Dragon SEALs.”

He laughed, and the burden on his shoulders eased. The two of them exited the car and gathered the gear from the backseat. Together, they headed to the Dusted Tuck.

“So what made you leave our meeting?” Kate asked. “The guys wouldn’t tell me anything and told me to ask you.”