Operation Zulu Redemption: Act of Treason - Part 4 Read Online Free PDF

of her eyes, like an awake REM, told him she wasn’t here. She was remembering.
    “Téya?”
    “How much of a coincidence is it, Trace, that my stepfather is Red Wing, the one purported to be highly connected to whatever was happening in Misrata and beyond? What are the odds?”
    “Pretty high.” In fact, he’d call them contrived. Fake. “You said you saw your stepfather in security footage?”
    She gave a lone nod.
    “That could’ve been recorded. Faked.”
    “Perhaps,” she said slowly. “But I don’t think so. Even if it was, what would be the point of faking it, of telling me he’s alive?”
    “To throw us off. Get us on the wrong track?”
    “Why? How would that benefit him?”
    “He hunted you down in Paris and threatened to kill you to get you out of the way. I wouldn’t put it past The Turk to do that now, if something we’re doing interferes with his mission.”
    Téya nodded. Then nodded some more, as if sorting the facts and storing them. Finally, the consternation washed off her face and she straightened. “I want to go to Bleak Pond—no, I
need
to go.”
    “Té—”
    “I need to warn them, Trace. To warn David. I won’t go see my grandmother. She was too shaken when we rescued her,” Téya explained. “But I have to talk to David. Make him aware of the danger.”
    There was something else behind her reason, he could feel it. See it in her eyes. Did she want to go back to say good-bye? “Did The Turk make you an offer?”
    Téya smiled. “I need to go back, Trace. Please.” She touched his hand. “I’ll be back by nightfall.”
    “One condition—Boone goes with you.”
    “Boone’s grief-stricken.”
    “Rusty then.”
    Nodding, Téya finally relented.
    She hadn’t answered his question. She’d referred to The Turk by his given name. And now she wanted to return to Bleak Pond—
and
she’d told him rather than running off like last time. Trace had a sinking feeling Majid Badem was recruiting Téya out from under Trace. Stealing her.

Téya
Bleak Pond, Pennsylvania
10 June – 0230 Hours
    With a
kapp
on and the familiar dress of the Amish, Téya stared down Augsburger Lane. David’s younger siblings and cousins played in the fields, having completed their chores. The older children were at the school building, though they’d be coming home soon.
    “You sure about this?”
    Téya flinched at Rusty’s voice then flashed him a smile she didn’t feel. “Yeah.” She tugged on the silver handle and pushed open the door. “Remember—watch for me from down the road.”
    He nodded.
    This could take an hour or it could be over in minutes. She strolled down the country lane, nervous and uncertain. Anxious. She had to warn David. More than that, she had to see him. Had to know that what happened in Frankfurt hadn’t changed her or anything else. She’d told Trace that she was worried about her family’s safety, but she wasn’t. At least, not as much. Majid had promised to put an asset or two in place.
    Are they here even now?
    The pull to scan the fields and tree line tugged at her, but she resisted. This wasn’t about Majid. This was about David Augsburger and Katie Gerig.
    Téya slowed to a stop, a nauseating knot tightening in her stomach. She didn’t even know who Katie was anymore. The
kapp
strings fluttered in a breeze, smacking her in the face. Stinging. Unfeeling.
    Just as she’d been when she walked out of Bleak Pond without looking back. So what if she’d cried the whole way. She’d left them. Left those she loved.
    “What are you doing here?”
    Again caught off-guard, Téya spun on her heels. David stood there in his brown pants, suspenders, and white shirt, leaning on a cane. Her heart clinched at the sight. She forced herself to act happy. “I thought you’d still have to rest.”
    His eyes bored into hers. “It’s boring lying about all day. A man needs to work.”
    She smiled. So like David—but with an edge. He was mad. At her.
    “Like I asked,