Sumi laid her head down on his chest and smiled as warmth filled her. He might not say she was important to him, but this hug told her just how worried he’d been. “Still can’t breathe.”

He finally released her. “What did you find out?”

“It’s uglier than hell. Definitely your kind of place. Filled with undesirables, who have way too much training and ammunition… and not enough soap.” She handed him a small knapsack.

His jaw went slack as he opened it to find a bevy of electronics. “How’d you get this?”

She winked at him. “Assassin, remember? Took out two of their burliest in the back. Hope they weren’t anyone’s girlfriend. Anyway, that’s what they had on them. I couldn’t even begin to get a body count. There’s at least twenty on the first floor. Sounded like more upstairs. They are trained. They are savage. And they’re loaded for Andarion.”

“You’re right. Sounds like my kind of party. Let’s fall back and plan the festivities.”

“Yes, sir. Captain, sir. On your six, sir.”

Hauk scowled at her use of a rank no one had called him by in years. It sounded so strange and yet, he adored the teasing light in her eyes. Before he could stop himself, he kissed her lips again, then crawled away from their spot to a safe area where they could tie up Illyse, and make plans.

Sumi followed Dancer back to the cliffs. They found a small cubby to use for cover. She sat quietly as he ran over the layout of the facility.

“No doubt they’d have them in or around Aksel’s old office.” He showed her where that would be on the second floor of the diagram he’d drawn on his e-tab.

“How long ago was your strike?”

“Eight years.”

She widened her eyes. “Are you sure about the locations?”

“Yeah. I have scary recall for floor plans. It’s why Darling and I work as a team. He can’t remember shite without a diagram of it in front of his face.”

But what really impressed her was the fact that even though he had a ton more experience with strikes and planning such events, he still listened to her suggestions and advice. Nor did he get angry or defensive when she asked questions such as the one about his recall. It said a lot about him that he didn’t let his ego get in the way. He treated her like a partner.

And that meant everything to her. No one had ever held her opinions with much regard.

Sighing, he turned the tablet around. “There was a munitions dump here when Aksel ran the place. I’m thinking if it’s still stocked and we raid it, it’ll give us a lot of firepower.”

“That’s a big if.”

“I know.” He rubbed his thumb thoughtfully against his goatee.