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“Godda his hand

As he’d watched Lena’s lifeless body being taken away, he’d made two decisions First, that “Paps,” the code naiven by his special ops teammates, would be buried with her Second, the man who remained, Gunner Godet, vowed he’d never allow hiain His resolve had lasted less than a handful of hours, when the wo his life to rescue, wound up in his bed

Zaryana “Raketa” Ivashov had been undercover on the sa as her nurse and caregiver after an accident had left Lena blind and a her safe passage to Moscow, Lena had thanked the wo a bullet in her brain—or so she’d thought

“Shit,” Gunner gasped when he saw Raketa’s body lying in a pool of blood

He ran forward and checked for a pulse, nodding at his teammates when he found one

That she was still alive ed in her brain If it was the latter, the chance she’d survive was slim However, without immediate medical attention, it would be certain

Raketa’s eyes fluttered open when he whispered her naroaned and tried to sit up

“Stay still,” he whispered, o ahead

As risky as it was, he called for backup “Send a medic,” he said into his radio mic

“Who shot you?” he asked, trying to get her eyes to stay focused on his

“Lena,” she groaned “Go Find her She’s…”

When she lost consciousness again, Gunner closed his eyes and said a silent prayer, all the while keeping his finger on her still-active pulse

He knew he had to leave her when the o