“That sounds dodgy.”
“Well, in my experience, hackers tend to be that way,” he noted.
“Yeah, that’s true enough. Look at Tasha,” he murmured. “I can’t believe she and Damon finally got together. I’ve been bugging him about that since she first joined us.”
“Yes,” Terk agreed, “I think we all have. But at least he’s finally getting it right.”
“I’m happy for him,” Wade muttered.
“So am I. They’ll be good together,” he agreed.
“And now that we have them together, the problem is, how to keep them safe.”
“Right,” Terk nodded, “and that’s why we’re bringing in another operative.”
“Got it,” Wade replied.
Terk cocked his head. “As matter of fact, they should be here any moment.”
“Great. Do I know her?”
“I don’t think so,” Terk said, “but I could be wrong.” He looked over at Wade and asked, “How are you handling your brother and all?”
“It’s a sad thing,” he replied, “but I always figured my brother would end up dead on a job one day. Just some people always want to be on the wrong side of life. They don’t give a shit about anything but themselves, and that was my brother. I loved him. I really did. But, in the end, I couldn’t save him.”
“And that’s good enough for me,” Terk said. “Nothing’s easy about family, particularly if you’re on the wrong side of things when it comes down to the end.”
“No, not easy at all. He’s gone, and—unfortunately or maybe not—maybe I’m grateful that my mom is also gone, so she didn’t see what happened and didn’t have to deal with the fact that we don’t have a body to bury,” he murmured.
“No, and I’m sorry if that’s an issue.”
“It isn’t. My brother probably would have preferred this in a way. As sad as it seems, I think he would like to be a ghost in the world.”
Just then Terk straightened. “We have company.” He walked out into the other room as a click came at the door, and Merk walked in. But Terk’s gaze was drawn to the woman at his brother’s side and how her energy zinged right to Wade. Terk was surprised because he hadn’t seen a foreshadowing of that happening at all.
Merk smiled. “And this is Sophia.”
She stepped forward, looked at the men in front of her, then frowned when she saw Wade. “You, I know,” she snapped.
He stared at her, as a grin crossed his face. “Well now, isn’t that fun.” He looked over at Terk. “We knew each other a while back.”
Terk looked at him. “Knew?”
He shrugged. “Knew in the biblical sense. Not the long-term sense.”
The woman snorted. “I think the last thing out of your mouth was, ‘See you later.’”
“Sure, and here I am. It’s later.”
“Are you?” she asked, and she glared at him. “You were supposed to come for dinner that night.”
“And then I got called to a job,” Wade said easily. He looked at Terk. “She’s your new hire?”
Terk turned to his brother. Merk nodded. “She’s hell-bent for whatever sounds like technology.”
Wade nodded. “And that’s how we hooked up. We were at a seminar.”
“Yeah, they didn’t know anything there.” She shook her head.
“Which is how we ended up together that night,” he explained easily. “Because both of us had the same opinion.”
Just then another door opened, and Damon came out, walking very slowly, Tasha at his side.
Tasha took one look and said, “Sophia?”
Sophia’s face lit up, and she came running. The two women hugged each other, and Sophia whispered, “Oh my God, there you are. All the others are talking about what you did.”
“I know. I’m very lucky that I survived,” Tasha replied. “We’re hunting those who tried to take us out.”
Sophia looked at Merk and asked, “Is this true?”
Merk nodded. “Terk’s team here was the target. He and Damon have been trying to piece things together. Wade was one of the casualties. He’s only barely back. In fact, he woke up from a coma just a few days ago.”
She turned her concerned gaze to Wade.
He shrugged. “I’m fine.”
She nodded. “Good, then I can kick your ass later.”
He grinned and said, “You can try.”
“Count on it,” she snapped, “and I’ll win too.” She walked over to Terk, reached out a hand, and, when he placed his in hers, she studied Terk for a long moment. Everybody in the room could see the energy rise up ever-so-slightly. “Fine.” She nodded. “I’m in.”
“We can’t have you come in and then walk out,” he murmured quietly. “This has to be a 100 percent commitment. We have to know that we can trust you and that you’ll have our backs.”
She looked at Terk and frowned. “It’s only because you don’t know me that I’ll allow you to say that. After this moment, you don’t ever get to misjudge me again. When I say, I’m in, then I’m in. Done deal.” She looked over at Wade, frowned at him. “You and I, however, still have a score to settle.”
He nodded. “Maybe. I’m looking forward to it. And welcome to the team.”
She smiled, looked around at Tasha. “Now I feel better. This is a family I do know, and I’m more than happy to help out.”
And, with that, she looked at the equipment set up in the main outer room and asked, “So, where do I start?”
This concludes Book 1 of Terkel’s Team: Damon’s Deal.
Read about Wade’s War: Terkel’s Team, Book 2
Terkel’s Team: Wade’s War (Book #2)
Welcome to a brand-new series from USA Today best-selling author Dale Mayer, where dark-ops SEALs have special senses and skills, needed to solve intrigue, betrayal, and … murder. A series with all the elements you’ve come to love, plus so much more, … including psychics!
Sophia met Wade a few years back, and the last she heard from him was he’d be back to take her out to dinner—and never saw him again. Having spent several years in the meantime working with Merk and his team in Texas, when Terk called for her help, Sophia jumped at the opportunity to go. Even if Wade didn’t get it, she knew a connection worth trying for when she felt it.
Wade is weak, helpless, his abilities damaged, after the attack on Terk’s team. Seeing Sophia, the woman he fell in love with at first sight, is a sock to his gut. His defenses are already down, and he knows it will be impossible to keep her at arm’s length a second time.
Wade must bring her closer, protect her, especially after their team was shattered from the initial attack, and subsequent attacks haven’t eased—not with the world slowly realizing that not just Terk survived the attack but so did a few of his team …
Find Book 2 here!
To find out more visit Dale Mayer’s website.