Storm Warning (Security Specialists International Book 4) Read Online Free PDF

tamping down the bad memories that coming home had brought to the surface. The images were still there, lurking under the surface of her consciousness, but for now she was in control.
    DJ surveyed the surroundings once more, looking for anything she might’ve overlooked during her first go-round. No matter how focused she was, she could always miss some detail that might bite her or her teammates in the ass.
    Several pickup trucks were parked in the side yard. Since several inches of snow had accumulated on the vehicles, they’d been there for a while. Lights were on in the cabin. Tendrils of smoke with an occasional flickering of bright red sparks rose lazily from the chimney. Her not-so-loving father was up with his drinking buddies, or maybe some of Varney’s militia men, keeping him company while waiting on Varney to call and report on her abduction.
    “I’ll knock on the door,” DJ said. “While I distract father-dearest and whoever else is inside, you can go around to the backdoor. My parents’ bedroom is located at the back of the house on the main level. Find my momma and get her the hell out of there. Once she’s clear, I’ll bid my father a not-so-fond farewell.”
    “One of us will get your mom,” Andy muttered. “The other will back you up and make sure you’re clear. You aren’t confronting that bastard and his buddies alone.”
    She cast both men a look her helicopter crew would’ve recognized as her don’t-argue-with-me expression and found them looking mulish. How could she have forgotten that while Dev and Andy had ceded her the lead, they were still Special Ops and would argue with authority if they didn’t see things her way?
    DJ shook her head and blew out a frosty breath. In the short time she’d known the two men, she’d discovered they were far more stubborn than she was—and bigger and meaner. Truth be told, confronting her father would be distressing—because deep inside, she was still the little girl who wanted her father to love and cherish her.
    Plus, Andy and Dev were correct—she needed backup. Her emotional issues could rise up at anytime and throw her off the game plan.
    “Okay … thanks.” She stood, brushed snow off her legs and butt. Then she pulled her weapon and flicked off the safety, just in case, and placed it in her jacket pocket. She felt for the switchblade in her other pocket. She was as ready as she’d ever be.
    “Com check,” she spoke under her breath into the headset mostly hidden under her watch cap.
    “All clear,” Dev said.
    “Ditto,” Andy replied. “Don’t do anything stupid, DJ. Keep your com unit on so we can hear everything.”
    DJ shot Andy the finger over her shoulder as she walked away and grinned as the men’s chuckles came over the headset. Her long legs made an easy and quick trip through the shin-high snow. When she was within a few meters of the front door, motion sensors activated exterior lights on the front corners of the cabin. Something else new since she’d been here last. Bet the local critters set those puppies off on a regular basis—and they’d be just as regularly ignored.
    Unless they have cameras attached to them, Dahlia Jane.
    Nah, her father was too cheap to pay for that kind of upgrade.
    DJ paused and let her eyes adjust. She shoved her hand in her pocket and lightly gripped her pistol, just in case. Once her vision was clear, she mounted three steps, which had been half-assed repaired, crossed the small expanse of porch decking, and then knocked on the roughly hewn door.
    “That you, Ed?”
    Her father’s irritating whine came through the wood door. Her gut clenched at the all-too-familiar sound; it brought back too many memories of bare-assed strappings with his belt as he’d whined about what an ungrateful brat she was. She still carried faint scars from when he’d gotten carried away.
    “Didn’t hear ya drive up. What the fuck took ya so long? Did you get the little bitch?”
    Little bitch?
    Her