Page 30 (2/2)

“I enlisted right after graduation The only thing both reed on was that I’d made a horrible mistake” He took a breath and leaned down to rest his arht on the Did well in Afghanistan Got recruited to a commando unit Did well there When the international team was started, I was recruited for that too”

“The men in the photo?”

“Yeah Aland,

Ireland, Spain, Australia, and even Turkey We were effective together”

“So what happened?”

The shaking in his hands intensified, so he clasped theether “We were sent into Syria We were sold out by an informant and ambushed Part of the team escaped Five of us were captured and taken to the cell’s safe house Two died there from their injuries”

“What about you and the other two?”

“Tortured”

Her face blanched “For how long?”

“Seventy-two days”

“Seventy-two days Who let it go on that long?” He loved the way her horror gave way to fury and he wished so toe to toe with her like that—eyes flashing, body taut with rage—would have thought twice about calling bureaucratic bullshit like they had

“Our teas complicated We weren’t exactly what the paperwork said ere So it took longer”

“Clearly you escaped,” she said She was also shaking now, but with a different e an execution?”

“Because they were They’d tortured us and still hadn’t gotten anything”

She made a noise in the back of her throat “John’s hands–?”