Chapter 1689

[ 660 words ]

Barrett was furious with himself for being so useless. Trapped and at someone’s mercy, he could only buy brief windows of freedom by agreeing to sell his body.

Fortunately, guys of his specific build weren’t in high demand here. Plus, since Flora had Silas locked down as leverage, she felt perfectly safe letting him walk around occasionally.

Leaving that marker was the absolute most he had been able to accomplish.

Barrett couldn’t do anything else.

Claire gave him a thumbs up.

“You’re incredibly resilient, Barrett. You knew how to adapt. Leaving that clue was the only way we could find you and ensure your survival.”

As for whether he had to sell his body, that was irrelevant.

Besides, he hadn’t actually gone through with it yet, right?

And even if it came down to the wire and he was forced into it, she doubted a dedicated agent like him would let it break him.

For people in their line of work, completing the mission trumped everything.

Besides, he was a guy-it wasn’t like he was the one taking the worst of it.

Barrett rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “Please don’t mock me. If Captain Carl knew what I resorted to, he’d kick me out of the FIB himself.”

In Barrett’s eyes, Silas had taken the brunt of the damage strictly to save him. If he hadn’t been dead weight, Silas probably could have completed the mission solo.

Now look at the mess. Not only had he dragged Silas down, but he was tarnishing the FIB’s reputation.

If the other departments ever found out about his ‘heroic’ exploits here, they’d laugh the FIB out of the building.

*Ugh, I should just apply for a desk job when I get back!*

A six-foot-tall, muscle-bound operative practically whimpering in the corner was a bizarre sight.

“I doubt that. He’ll probably just be moved by the sacrifices you made to keep him alive.”

Claire thought Barrett was actually highly resourceful.

If he hadn’t made those sacrifices, Silas would likely be dead by now.

“How are your injuries? Do you need me to take a look?”

When she saw Barrett’s photo earlier, his face had been covered in blood. There was no way he healed that fast.

Barrett shook his head. “I just caught the edge of the blast. Captain Carl is the one who took the real damage.”

He had bled a lot, but they were mostly superficial wounds that had mostly scabbed over by now.

Silas, however, was in critical condition.

The underground doctor here was completely unequipped to treat him, and they didn’t have the resources to move him to a proper facility.

Their only hope was waiting for backup from home.

“Can you take us to see Captain Carl right now?”

How to reach Silas without blowing their cover was the real problem.

Flora definitely had guards watching him. She was paying to keep him breathing,

but she had no intention of actually curing him.

If he fully recovered, he might just run off, leaving her with nothing but medical debt.

“That’s…” Barrett really had no idea.

The manager of the Fortune Hotel was from Flora’s hometown. The two were tight and shared financial interests. If they tried to make a run it, the manager would up Flora offinstantly.

Plus, matter

lethal Claire’s

anavily guarded. No Vof heavily arme

rds were, they could

s were, they could st

fight

The reason Flora could run an empire like this was because her husband

commanded dozens of men, all packing serious heat.

They might not have military-grade gear, but they had significantly more firepower than Claire’s small detail.

He knew Claire and Rory weren’t the only ones who came, but they still couldn’t take on dozens of armed mercenaries.

“Then we’ll have to outsmart them.”

“Since Silas is knocking on death’s door anyway, do you think Flora would be willing to sell him to us?”

Claire preferred not to force a direct confrontation.

Although Flora was keeping them hostage for cash, she had technically kept them alive.

If Barrett and Silas had fallen into the hands of the local syndicate, they’d already be corpses.

Sell?

Barrett considered it. That actually might work.

Flora’s only loyalty was to the almighty dollar.

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