Echoes at Dawn by Maya Banks Page B

already given him a heads-up, and now he knew it was legit.
    “Let’s roll,” Rio said in a grim voice. “Where’s this chariot you arranged for us, T?”
    Terrence’s teeth flashed and he tossed his head to the west. “Quarter mile. Stashed in an aspen grove.”
    Rio knelt beside Grace and put his hand on her cheek. She didn’t even stir. His gaze moved down her body, taking in her tattered clothing, the mix of blood and bruises, the makeshift splint on her bruised and swollen arm.
    “One more time, Grace,” Rio whispered. “One more trip. We’ll get you out of here. I swear it.”
    “She needs to remain as flat as possible,” Diego said. “I’m worried she’s already punctured a lung. I don’t like her color and I don’t like her respirations. They’re becoming more labored all the time. If we aren’t careful, we could end up doing her more harm.”
    “If we don’t move her, she’s going to be dead,” Rio said bluntly.
    Diego nodded his acknowledgment.
    They didn’t have time to secure her as they’d done before to Rio’s back. They didn’t have time to do anything more than hoist her up and hope for the best.
    Rio waved off his men. He was taking responsibility for Grace. It was he who’d promised her he’d get her out of this alive. It was he who’d pushed her, bullied her and demanded that she give what she couldn’t spare. He alone would carry her.
    As gently as possible, he slid his arms underneath her body and lifted, rising to his full height, bearing her weight with him. He cradled her against his chest and then fixed his gaze on Terrence.
    “I’m depending on you to get us out of here.”
    Terrence nodded and then motioned for the men to takeposition around Rio and Grace. Guns up and ready, they moved as one, taking a fast clip in the direction of the waiting truck.
    The sun had just peeked over the horizon, a burnt orange glow lighting a pink sky, when they reached the grove of aspens where the truck was parked.
    Rio grimaced. Terrence hadn’t lied when he said it was a work truck. But as long as it got them the hell down the road, it would do.
    As they neared the vehicle, movement caught Rio’s attention. He dropped like a rock, instinctively positioning himself over Grace. His men reacted, forming a barrier between Rio and the potential danger.
    “Don’t shoot. I have business with Rio.”
    The words reached Rio’s ears, and every hair on his nape prickled with apprehension. He eased Grace onto the ground and then jerked a thumb at Diego. Diego dropped to hover over Grace while Rio rose, his gun up, pointed at the man in the distance.
    “What the fuck are you doing here, Hancock?”
    This was bad. Worse than bad. Hancock being here in these mountains could only mean one thing. Titan was after Grace or at the very least had been sent to recover her.
    Fuck.

CHAPTER 8
     
    EVEN though Hancock didn’t so much as twitch, Rio kept his gun up as he circled warily to get a full view of the other man. Hancock watched coolly, his arms loose at his sides as if sending Rio a clear message that he wasn’t a threat.
    Which was pretty damn funny because anyone who ever thought someone from Titan wasn’t a threat was deluding themselves. Rio should know. He’d been one of them for ten years.
    He’d lived and breathed those shadows. He knew what Titan was, what they were capable of. What their purpose was. They weren’t black or white. They were so gray that it was easy to get lost in the different world they lived in. A world where there were no rules and the law didn’t apply.
    He and Hancock had served together. Rio had saved Hancock’s life in what would be Rio’s last mission with Titan. Rio had walked away, never looked back. He hadn’t wanted to look back. Only now his past was staring him right in the face, and he had the sinking feeling that past and present were on one hell of a collision course.
    “What are you doing here, Hancock?”
    But he knew. He knew exactly