Paired Objective: Matched Desire, Book 2 (21 page)

Epilogue

“The last of my group is out and safe. What’s your status?”

Slater stared down the barrel of a gun, controlling his breathing as he sought to stay as still as possible. The hallway was too narrow to risk rushing the gunman, who aimed the weapon at his head with a smirk. Slater watched the bastard’s finger tighten on the trigger, an implicit warning.

“Gotcha,” Senator Green said.

By now, the last vehicle containing escaped servants would be on its way to the gates. There’d been more people than could fit in one truck. The Shadow Feds had imprisoned people from all walks of life, all the way down to a little redheaded kid who couldn’t have been more than twelve.

Remembering the kid’s fear, Slater narrowed his eyes at the gun.
“I’m compromised. Get out of here, Arden.”

“Who’s got you?”
His brother’s thoughts remained calm on the surface, lending him an anchor he desperately needed. He could sense movement, knew his brother was on his way. That wasn’t good. He’d be caught too.

“Green has me. Get the fuck out of here, Arden. Seriously.”

The senator glared daggers, his plump jowls red with strain. As Slater measured distances and probabilities, he flinched sideways as Green discharged his weapon. The bullet grazed past his shoulder, leaving behind a short burst of pain and a trickle of blood.

Decent shot, then. Slater put his hands in the air, knowing the man was pissed enough to kill him.

“Spies,” the senator spat. “Goddamn spies.”

Oh—this put a whole different spin on things. So this wasn’t about them staging a mass jailbreak by helping the so-called indentured servants escape Headquarters. Green had come to confront them about a different matter altogether.

Great. That complicated matters.

“How’d you know?” Slater kept his voice conversational, engaging. It wasn’t untrue, and the more time he bought for the escaped indentured servants, the better.

“Who else would feed the Complex information? Abby Brooks wasn’t the only person monitoring internal emails. You planted information in there. Thought you were subtle? Think again.” The senator gestured with the gun. “Turn around and walk toward my chambers. Keep your hands in the air.”

“Yeah, they rumbled us.”
Arden sounded rueful.
“I’ll be there in a minute.”

“Seriously. Get lost.”
Slater strode down the hallway. The glory of Headquarters—formerly the White House—was fading rapidly. Its carpets were battered and stained, even in the upper echelons where these so-called politicians lived.

“Why would I leave now? They’d torture you to draw me out. I’d rather skip that step, wouldn’t you?”

Christ on a crutch, his brother had a point. Subdued, Slater entered the senator’s personal quarters, noting with disgust its lavish furnishing, complete with fruit bowl on the ornate table in the center of the room. Its luxury was in direct contrast to the austere servant quarters.

A flicker on the screen set into the wall caught his attention. He did a brief double-take as a hooded figure appeared. Its face was hidden by a thin layer of gauzy material that came across as a bizarre kind of wedding veil. A thick cloak extended from the shoulders to the hands, covering everything save a hand.

Or what
should
have been a hand.

He had a scant few seconds to take in the sight before the senator placed the gun against his cheek. “Turn away from the screen.”

Slater complied. A jolt at the corner of his mind prompted him to mentally reach for his brother.

“Caught. Be with you in a minute, I guess,”
Arden sent.

“Senator Jacobs. You got the other one?” Green said, satisfaction thickening his voice as he picked up his commtab. “Good. Bring the Experiment into my chambers, and we’ll begin their interrogation.”

About the Author

Clare Murray was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, living aboard a boat in her early childhood. She has a degree in Journalism and has worked in libraries in both California and London. In 2006 she moved to England, where she now lives happily with her husband and two children.

Find her online:

Website:
www.claremurray.net

Twitter:
www.twitter.com/kvlmurray

Facebook:
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Warning: Contains the ultimate battle between sex and death. An orgy of pleasure so sinful, so forbidden, readers might need a week to recover. If you get lightheaded, remember to put your head between your knees.

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This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental.

Samhain Publishing, Ltd.

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Paired Objective

Copyright © 2016 by Clare Murray

ISBN: 978-1-61923-456-7

Edited by Linda Ingmanson

Cover by Kanaxa

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First
Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
electronic publication: May 2016

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