Whatever It Takes (Code Of Honor Book 5) Read online

  Whatever It Takes (Code of Honor book Five)

  Copyright © 2021 Reese Knightley

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  Warnings

  Please be advised that this book is intended for adult readers age eighteen and older due to sexually explicit content, language, and violence. Trigger warning: graphic violence, off the page mention of child abuse and trauma.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to the actual person, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. This is a work of fiction and should be treated as such.

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without the written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Cover Art: Reese Dante reesedante.com

  Disclaimer—Cover content is for illustrative purposes only. Any person depicted on the cover is a model.

  Editing provided by Heidi Ryan of Amour the Line Editing

  www.facebook.com/amourthelineediting

  Interior Design and Formatting provided by

  Stacey Ryan Blake of Champagne Book Design

  www.champagnebookdesign.com

  Copyright and Trademark Acknowledgments: All products/brand names/Trademarks mentioned are registered trademarks of their respective holders/companies.

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  TITLE PAGE

  COPYRIGHT

  DEDICATION

  EPIGRAPH

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

  CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

  CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

  EPILOGUE

  SNEAK PEAK of Ricochet

  OTHER BOOKS BY REESE

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  He who conquers his anger has conquered an enemy.

  —German proverb.

  Infinity—A US Army Special Forces, Black Ops, top secret military unit that provides help, domestic and foreign, and answers only to the Secretary of Defense.

  He stood still as stone, hands at his sides, eyes forward, gazing at a spot on the wall while his commander verbally ripped him a new asshole.

  “Your actions caused a shitstorm!” the commander growled, and then all but shouted, “This is the third altercation you’ve been in, Private Thorne! Your first fucking year and your jacket is a mess!” The file on the Commander’s desk was wrinkled from the man’s fist clenched around it.

  “For someone with so much potential, you’ll be court-martialed out of the Army before you’ve even begun.”

  Silence rang through the room after the shouting ended.

  “Do you have anything to say for yourself?”

  “No, sir,” Dillon said abruptly, and it was everything he could do not to ball his fists. Fighting his temper was all he’d ever known. Nobody fucking got it and nobody fucking cared.

  A brief knock sounded on the door, and then Major Liam Cobalt stepped inside. He’d never met the man, but he’d passed the officer in the hallway enough times to know who he was. He’d heard the major was moving up fast in the ranks and that he was being considered for colonel. The man also trained men for Special Forces. Never before had the major come into one of his commander’s verbal thrashings before.

  “Thank God, Liam. Perhaps you can talk some sense into this…” The commander waved his hand at him. “Ingrate.”

  Ungrateful? How the fuck was he ungrateful?

  Liam stalked to the table and picked up his crinkled file. Several long moments went by while the man browsed the pages.

  A trickle of sweat dripped down his back and more popped on his brow. Had he fucked it up so badly that they’d kick him out?

  Major Cobalt turned to him. “You have a problem with authority, private?”

  “No, sir.”

  “You have a problem with your temper?”

  Was he supposed to respond to that? Hadn’t the guy just read his fucking file?

  He sucked in a quick breath when he was suddenly nose to nose with the major.

  “Answer me,” the deep, commanding voice growled.

  “Sir! Yes, sir.”

  “Where’s the anger come from?”

  “I don’t know, sir!”

  “Why are you so pissed off?”

  “I don’t know, sir!” He bit the words out.

  “You don’t know.” Major Cobalt stepped closer and knocked him, chest to chest. He wobbled a step and then snapped back to attention.

  “No, sir!”

  “Or maybe,” Major Cobalt got right in his face, eye to eye, “you don’t care to share it with me?”

  “No, sir!” he said between his teeth.

  Major Cobalt stepped back. “Now that, at least, was honest.” After a long moment, the major turned to the commander.

  “What do you think?” his commander asked.

  “I’ll take him.”

  “What?” Dillon blurted.

  “Shut your mouth,” his commander snapped.

  Dillon shut his mouth.

  Roughly 15 years later

  Dillon

  “Thorne, you copy?”

  “Copy.” He moved the toothpick in his mouth to the other side and lined his eye up to the scope. The team would make their move, and he and First Lieutenant River Seeger would provide cover fire.

  He shifted his arm from where it lay resting against a broken piece of concrete block tucked into the earth. He could hear River’s toes dig into the earth not far from where he had situated himself. River was in a similar position, lying flat on the ground, under the cover of darkness and foliage, eye to the scope of a military sniper rifle.

  The team was below. Last reported, they had retrieved four hostages and were coming out. The perps inside were dead, but there were still three unknown suspects roaming the property.

  A shadow materialized from the corner of the house below.

  “South side, two hundred yards,” he murmured.

  He released his breath and squeezed the trigger. The shadow stumbled into view and the suspect dropped to the ground as the guy’s semi-automatic weapon skidded across the pavement.

  “One down, two to go,” River whispered.

  “We don’t have time to wait. One of the hostages is bleeding out,” Captain Maddox Stone rasped.

  “Copy,” he said. “Go when you’re ready.”

  “Dispatch? You got that chopper waiti
ng?” the captain barked into the com.

  “Copy that, Alpha team,” Sam’s voice came over the mic. She gave the team a sense of normalcy, reminding them that home was waiting.

  His unit came out of the house and turned left. Hunched over, in formation, they had a hostage between each team members’ body, providing what cover they could with the body armor they wore.

  The hostages were Embassy workers, civilians. Rumors had started a week ago of an Embassy take over. And after the 2019 attack on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, the Secretary of Defense hadn’t taken any chances.

  The hostiles had already infiltrated the building by the time his unit had arrived, but the perps hadn’t been inside long enough to kill anyone.

  The Secretary of Defense sent in the best of the best, his Special Forces unit known as Infinity.

  “Get in, get out, bring the staff home,” the S.O.D. had ordered.

  Infinity did what they did best and would get the job done.

  A loud siren filled the air, and on the north side of the house, lights flashed.

  “Cat’s out of the bag,” he grunted and lunged upward. Snatching his rifle, he jumped down the steep incline with River on his ass. They raced through the dark trees toward the team.

  Gunfire erupted, and perps started shouting. Dillon ran faster, blood pumping, his eyes peeled for anything in his way that could possibly stop him from reaching their unit. Ahead of them was the tail end of his team. Blade always took up the rear when she was covering their asses from afar, otherwise, that was his job. He had no doubt that if something were to happen to him, she’d get the job done. She was one badass motherfucker and a hell of a soldier.

  “Base, we may need reinforcements,” Maddox grunted into the mic.

  “Roger that, Alpha team,” Sam’s calm voice came over the mic.

  A shadow lunged out and Blade ducked, coming up with her knife, but the guy had a gun.

  Dillon put two in the fucker’s chest and then leaped over the dead body. It was all done without stopping and the three of them ran to close the widening gap between them and the team.

  Captain Maddox Stone set a brutal pace, but River easily caught up to the guy. River made it his mission to watch Maddox’s flank like he owned it. Which he did, because they were a couple.

  Dillon spun and took up the rear, and Blade hurried to help one of the hostages pick up the pace. She wrapped her arm around the woman’s waist and half carried her forward.

  They moved silently except for the hostages. There was no way to keep them quiet.

  In another minute, the chopper came into view, but the noise on their six was growing, and Dillon knew it was only a matter of time before the perps would reach them. The unit started lifting people into the rescue Hawk.

  Dillon turned and faced the way they’d come and dropped to one knee. He lifted his weapon to his shoulder and aimed the scope at the line of trees.

  He put one into the first perp that stepped into the clearing brandishing a rifle. Five more followed, but then there were too many to count. Bullets hit the dirt and grass flew into the air nearby.

  He settled his breathing as he continued firing at the edge of the trees. He’d take out as many of them as possible before he left this earth.

  “Dillon, fall back,” Maddox snapped out the order.

  He didn’t hesitate. He sent several more rounds toward the trees and lunged to his feet. Racing toward the chopper, he kept firing. Ethan and Blade stepped up to provide him cover.

  The enemy kept coming out of the trees.

  Suddenly, the roar of a R.A.H. Comanche helo lifted above their heads and sent a barrage of gunfire into the perps and tree line. He hadn’t even heard the fucking thing approaching.

  Trees splintered under the impact of the helo’s weapon and the enemy fell.

  Dillon leaped into the rescue chopper and grabbed a strap. The rescue Hawk lifted into the air as the Comanche provided cover fire. Dillon watched the scene below them for as long as he could before the bird was up and lunging away.

  Once they were at a safe distance, he sat back with a hard thud and jerked down his infrared goggles and unsnapped the strap of his helmet. Resting his head against metal, he drew his sleeve across the sweat dripping down his face.

  In front of him sat Blade, who gave him a crooked smile and mouthed, “Close one.”

  His silent agreement was a thumbs up.

  “Thanks for the extra fire power, Sam,” Maddox’s voice came over the mic.

  “It was the colonel’s call,” she informed them, but they all heard the relief in her voice. There was a brief moment of silence, and then Colonel Liam Cobalt came on the mic.

  “Captain, get your team back asap. I have an assignment closer to home,” the colonel ordered.

  “Roger that, sir.”

  Closer to home? They’d only ever done that a few times in the years since he’d joined the unit.

  Once had been just a few months earlier when he and a few of Infinity had been tasked with keeping retired General Luke Rhine safe at his expensive Southern California estate.

  The man got into more trouble than any person he knew, and he’d bet money that this “closer to home” order had something to do with the general.

  Dillon clenched his teeth; he hated babysitting.

  Top secret meeting—undisclosed location

  Luke

  “Who do you think it is?” Colonel Liam Cobalt snapped at him.

  “I don’t know,” Luke responded calmly.

  “What about Monterey?” Dave asked.

  “Monterey is behind bars.” Luke shook his head.

  “And you put him there.” Dave squinted at him.

  It was true, he’d set up a sting that had ultimately resulted in the arrest of nightclub owner Kevin Monterey. The man was now up on charges of sex trafficking and drug running.

  “Monterey has enough resources and money to instigate an attack of this size,” Liam responded.

  “What’s the sense in that?” Luke rubbed the stubble at his jaw.

  “Maybe he wants revenge? Who the hell knows?” Liam looked just as frustrated as Dave.

  “What do you think?” Luke turned back to Dave.

  Dave, who’d been the Secretary of Defense for the past six years, was his best friend. The man had flown in secretly to attend this meeting.

  “I don’t like it,” Dave admitted, his face carved in granite.

  “Where were you headed?” Liam asked him.

  “Dave’s place, for golf. Nobody was supposed to know.” He held Liam’s gaze.

  “Fuck,” Dave grimaced.

  “You think they went after Luke to get at you?” Liam turned on Dave.

  “I don’t know what to think!” Dave snapped.

  “Don’t strain your brain,” Luke smirked.

  Dave squinted at him, but the side of the man’s mouth quirked. “Smart ass.”

  He huffed and took a sip of his drink.

  “Some things never change,” Liam added.

  “You’d both fall over from shock if I ever changed,” he offered.

  It was his easygoing nature combined with his ability to get shit done that got them out of most of the trouble they’d gotten into in the military. They were brothers-in-arms, his best friends.

  Liam and Dave were the only two people on earth who treated him normally instead of like a general.

  A cough near the door drew Luke’s gaze, and he ran his eyes over the five fully-geared Infinity Special Forces soldiers with semi-automatic rifles in their grasps. Beyond the soldiers stood the Secretary of Defense’s secret service and protection detail. All of them stood alert, barely moving, quiet, except for the one who’d coughed.

  His eyes lingered on one of the soldiers. The badass one he’d met at a retirement party a few months earlier, Dillon Thorne. The soldier, along with Oliver and Blade, had assisted him with a behind the scene sting operation that helped arrest a crooked councilman. The councilman had led
them on a merry chase to a dirty state senator. Senator Van Vorst had shot and killed the councilman, a fucking mess all the way around.

  The three Infinity soldiers had also assisted with apprehending Kevin Monterey. Thank god that sting and arrest had gone off without a hitch. Monterey now sat behind bars awaiting trial without bail. So, that meant it probably wasn’t Monterey that had made the attempt on his life.

  “What about Senator Van Vorst?” Liam frowned.

  “He never knew any of us were involved in his arrest.” He’d made sure of it.

  “That you know of,” Liam responded.

  He doubted that Van Vorst had figured out he worked behind the scene of a sting carried out by the local authorities.

  “Check him out then,” he told Liam and then squinted at Dave.

  He had been on his way to meet up with Dave.

  “Is someone out to get you through me?” Luke turned on his friend.

  “I don’t fucking know,” Dave groused.

  The S.O.D. hadn’t made any attempt to keep his voice low. After all, the Infinity soldiers in the doorway had been hand-picked by Dave or Liam.

  “Any threats lately?” Luke asked.

  “No more than usual,” Dave responded.

  “What do we do now?” He held first Liam’s and then Dave’s gaze.

  “Protection detail,” Dave growled at him before turning to Liam.

  “I’m on it,” Colonel Liam Cobalt responded, tugging out his cell phone.

  “Oh, come on,” Luke cajoled.

  “Don’t ‘come on’ me,” Dave warned him with a dark look. “Do you know how many bullet holes are in that chopper?”

  “How many?” he asked because he really didn’t know. All he knew was that they’d been hit and the pilot had said they needed to land. His palm still stung from where he’d gripped the handle near the door. His back ached at his spine from the crack to the asphalt. They hadn’t crashed, but the pilot had called it a hard landing. Whatever they wanted to call it, he was glad to still be breathing.

  “Sixteen, Luke. Sixteen fucking bullet holes,” Dave snapped and then turned to Liam. “How’s it looking on the ground?”