The moment passed. “Could be the cell phone towers are overloaded. Could be the wind. As for the internet, I don’t know, sir. Seems like all the carriers have outages from time to time.” Changing the subject, he added, “Please just get yourself ready to leave with everyone else. I’d hate to have to come back and find you here if the winds do change.” The last words had such hostile undertones that Zack was certain the impostor didn’t have the self-awareness to hide it. He’s borderline psychotic—Zack had flashes from years past, but he suppressed them.

“Will do, officer. And thanks for notifying me. I’m going to go wake my wife and two kids and get out. Be safe out there,” Zack had lied with a straight face. His instincts had screamed at him not to let the impersonator know that he was home alone.

The man had only nodded and turned away.

The moment he was gone, Zack had gone to his office, grabbed what he needed, and exited by the back porch, silently entering the woods at the back of the property. He’d worked his way toward the street and assumed an overwatch position from behind a towering, thick tree. He’d remained standing since he knew there was no way they’d be looking in the woods. They knew they had the element of surprise, and they were taking full advantage of it.

As he watched, he admired the efficiency of the assault team, which is how his mind registered them and their actions. Whatever they were doing, it was bold and ambitious, and he had to tip his figurative hat to them—at least until the old man charged them and changed everything.

Chapter Nine

ChapteR
NINE

Kevin Oliver was amped up to the edge, inches from giving in to his emotions and losing control. His impulse control had always been his problem, and it was why he’d been dishonorably discharged from the air force after only seven weeks at the Pararescue Emergency Medical Technician Basic course at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico.

It wasn’t his skills, which had placed him near the top of his class during his assessment phase and in the combat dive, airborne, and SERE (survival, evasion, resistance, and escape) courses of the elite United States Air Force Pararescue jumper pipeline. No. It was his overzealousness, a raging storm inside that propelled him to be better than everyone else. Unfortunately, that also included authority—specifically, those with authority over him, which wasn’t a trait valued by the military.

He’d been able to keep his temper in check, at least until one of the instructors had seen something in Tech Sergeant Oliver that he didn’t like. And like a wolf on the scent of its prey, the master sergeant had decided the Air Force would be a better fighting organization without Oliver in it.