Into the Mist (Falcon Mercenary Group #1)(26)

Squaring her shoulders, she walked calmly down the stairs and headed for the French doors leading to the back patio. She stepped outside into the cool morning air and jogged down the path that led to the beach.

She knew despite Jonah’s acquiescence that she was being closely watched. She’d have to be fast.

As she rounded the northwest corner of the island, she slipped between two large rock outcroppings, inaccessible when the tide rolled in. She dropped to one knee to fiddle with her shoelace and carefully looked around to see how visible she’d be from the house or other lookout points.

Feeling that she was as obscure as she was going to get while on the island, she reached into her shorts, slid the earpiece into her ear and palmed the tiny receiver, bringing it to her mouth in a casual gesture.

“Tits, you there?”

There was a long moment as she waited for a response.

“Tyana, my girl. What brings you knocking?”

She breathed a sigh of relief. “How much would it be worth to you to annoy the piss out of Jonah?”

Tits chuckled. “For that pleasure? Consider whatever it is you need on the house.”

“I need a boat on the east side of the lesser island. Tonight. Oh two hundred. Arrange for a helicopter exchange five miles out. I need cash, a fake passport and the first flight you can get me on to Paris.”

“You got it.” There was a slight pause. “You can catch me up on the whys and wherefores later.”

“Will do,” she said before removing the earpiece and tucking it back into her shorts.

She set back out on her run, and just to make it look good, she circled the island twice before she headed back up to the house.

When she walked in, she saw Mad Dog standing at the breakfast bar, rummaging through the M&M bowl.

“You better not be eating my orange ones,” she grumbled as she walked over. “I saved the green ones for you.”

“And I appreciate it,” he said around a mouthful of chocolate as he turned in her direction. “All oranges are accounted for, see?” He pointed at the bowl that now only housed the brown and orange M&Ms.

She reached for a handful and plopped on a barstool to stare at him. “Don’t you ever sleep? I could swear you just went to bed.”

He grunted in response and dug back in the bowl, looking for another green one. He gave a disgruntled sigh and snagged a brown one instead. “I got an hour. That’ll do for now. What about you? What’s got your panties in a knot this morning?”

She lifted an eyebrow. “Can’t I go for a run without you and Jonah on my ass?”

His eyes widened and then narrowed as he looked her over suspiciously. “Get up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?”

“I’m pissed because I tried to go see D and got blocked by two of Jonah’s henchmen.”

“Ahh.” Mad Dog turned back to the M&M bowl and fingered one of the orange ones.

She shot him a quelling glare, and he picked a brown one instead. “Ahh? Is that all you can say? This sucks, Mad Dog, and you damn well know it. Locking him up like a f**king animal? Forbidding me to see D like I’m some kind of goddamn child he has to babysit?”

Mad Dog stared pointedly at her.

She blew out her breath in frustration. “Okay, forget the babysitting part. I know I f**ked up, but the keeping D locked up and me away from him bites, and you know it.”

He reached out and chucked her lightly on the chin. “I know it sucks, baby. But in this…this time I support Jonah’s decision.”

Tyana looked away, trying hard not to be angry with him. It wouldn’t change anything, and she really didn’t want there to be bad feelings between them. Or with Jonah for that matter, though after tonight, she knew there wasn’t a lot she could do about that.

“I want to see him today, Mad Dog,” she said softly. “I need to see him and make sure he’s okay. If I have to fight my way through that goddamn door, I will.”

He sighed. “I’ll make sure you see him after Marcus has been through to check things out, okay?”

She nodded.

“Did you and Jonah make up last night?” he asked in an abrupt change of subject.

She made a face and hoped to hell Mad Dog hadn’t seen her and Jonah get all mushy. “Yeah, we’re cool. That is until he pissed me off again this morning.”

He laughed. “Yeah, well him pissing you off is nothing new and vice versa. When you two start being nice to each other is when I’m gonna start looking for a new job.”

She grinned. Their relationship…well, it just worked. It always had. She had a deep and abiding respect for Jonah that had started as hero worship and evolved as she’d grown older. Which made it so difficult for her to disregard his orders for the first time.

Mad Dog cocked his head to the side. “I think I hear the chopper now. That must be Marcus.”

She stood eagerly, but Mad Dog pushed her back down. “Let Jonah handle it. You’ll only get in the way, start butting heads, and D doesn’t need that right now. Be patient. I promise you’ll get to see him afterward.”

With a resigned sigh, she settled back on her seat and stuffed more orange M&Ms in her mouth. When Jonah rounded the corner, their gazes connected for a moment before he walked out to the helipad to greet Marcus.