The Million-Dollar Heart by Rebecca Ryan

In the dead of night, with the lights off and still in the bedroom!

“Damn it, Percival! What have you done to my daughter? She’s still a minor!”

Percival looked into Dorian’s fuming eyes with a hint of resignation, “We were just talking.”

“Talking? Why in the dark? Were you two kissing like Isolde said, right here in the room?” Thaddeus giggled behind his hand.

Isolde had spilled everything to Thaddeus, including when she overheard Vivienne and Percival kissing in the bedroom!

Dorian’s eyes seemed to bulge even more.

Cordelia’s cheeks flushed as she pulled Thaddeus away. “Thaddeus, stop making things up. Vivienne and Percival were just… doing homework. Yeah, that’s it. Now you better finish yours.”

Thaddeus snickered and scampered off to his room with his backpack.

Percival deliberately avoided Dorian’s gaze and cleared his throat, “Mom, Dad, I should head out.”

With that, Percival made a beeline for the door.

The more he thought about Thaddeus’s words, the guiltier he felt!

Where the heck was Leopold when he was supposed to be on the lookout?

Leopold and Anna were indeed on duty, standing guard with due diligence.

When Percival emerged from the house, Leopold dropped his guard and approached. “All sorted out, Percival?”

Percival responded with a swift kick to Leopold’s rear. “Didn’t you see someone go upstairs?”

Anna and Leopold looked baffled, nodding in unison.

“We saw, we even texted you.”

Especially Leopold, rubbing his backside with a woebegone expression. He had sent Percival the message the moment he saw Dorian’s family within thirty feet!

Percival glanced at his phone, and sure enough, there was a message, which he had missed while with Vivienne.

his throat, Percival pointed at Anna and

to Leopold. “You’re driving me

You’re in trouble with your father-in-law because you

hundred push-ups and six hundred sit-ups outside

and

split

from HQ to the Vanguard Agency’s

Weststart City. Wolf leads the team. Depart

their faces. Anna wanted to speak, but Percival cut her

saluted crisply, “Yes,

and Leopold set out

furrowed deeply, his

in Weststart City, a place known for its abandoned coal

home and relayed the sudden mission details to Vivienne, “It was all very abrupt; I don’t know the specifics. But Ms. Vivienne, something doesn’t feel

in agreement. “I

puzzling appearance of White Tiger in Weststart City, the mission

including the command structure, snipers, and such. They would disseminate maps to squad leaders and decide

leaders would have a heads-up to plan within half an

all, Vanguard Agency’s missions were life and death; they could not afford

Agency had been tracking CK and White

such a high-profile target with

furrowed her brow, “Anna, let’s go see

coat, checked

Vanguard Agency HQ, Percival and his team geared up in combat attire and boarded the transport to

yet. Familiarize yourself with the basic

satellite. Micah would be in the field, in charge of the vehicles, while Percival would lead the

second squad covered the perimeter, and Soren joined Percival to head straight

a fit in the car, and it was not because they were heading deep into enemy

the head honcho. You shouldn’t be on the front

the one supposed to stay back and oversee the safety

the squad leader, and to top it off, the deputy director,

headsets were linked to the command vehicle on-site, and Micah heard everything loud and

if he heard it all; the whole situation was out of

had managed to tick