Chapter 67 Before Everything Changes
Thursday morning arrived with a weight Elena could feel in the air.
Pierce was already up before dawn, already on the phone with Marcus when Elena came downstairs. She heard him discussing entry points, backup routes, contingencies for if things went wrong.
When he hung up, his eyes were sharp, focused, already mentally in mission mode.
"You want coffee?" Elena asked.
"Thanks." Pierce took the mug she offered but didn't drink. Just held it, staring at the map spread across the dining table.
Elena moved to look over his shoulder. The factory building marked with markings, entry points, guard positions, escape routes all mapped out in Pierce's precise handwriting.
"You've been working on this all night," she said.
"I couldn't sleep." Pierce set down the coffee. "Marcus is bringing the team here at noon for the final briefing."
Elena nodded, moving to the kitchen. She had her own preparations to make.
She'd converted the downstairs bedroom into a makeshift medical station. Supplies ordered through Marcus had arrived yesterday, surgical kits, IV fluids, antibiotics, pain medication, everything she might need if someone came back injured.
Elena refused to think about the alternative.
She spent the morning organizing supplies, checking inventory, setting up the room so she could work efficiently under pressure. Derek watched from the doorway.
"You've done this before," he observed.
"Through ER rotations." Elena laid out instruments in order. "You learn to prepare for chaos."
"This isn't the ER."
"No." Elena's hands stilled. "It's worse because I know the people who might end up on that table."
Derek was quiet for a moment. "He's good at this. Best I've ever seen so he'll come back."
"You can't promise that."
"No." Derek's voice was honest. "But I've been on dozens of ops with him and he always comes back."
Elena wanted to believe that.
At noon, Marcus arrived with five other men. Elena recognized two of them from the press conference, Leo and another guard whose name she didn't know. The others were new faces, all hard-eyed and heavily armed.
They gathered around the dining table while Pierce went through the plan step by step. Elena stayed in the kitchen, listening but not disturbing. This was Pierce's world, his team, his operation.
But she caught Marcus glancing at her. The others followed his gaze, clearly curious.
"That's the doctor?" one of them asked quietly.
"That's the boss's woman," Marcus corrected, his voice carrying a warning. "Show some respect."
The briefing lasted two hours. Pierce was thorough, systematically, accounting for every possibility he could control. Elena heard the professionalism in his voice, the commander coordinating his team.
It should have been reassuring but instead, it terrified her, because it meant this was real. Tomorrow night, Pierce would walk into a building full of armed men and there was a very real chance he wouldn't walk back out.
When the briefing ended, the team dispersed to prepare. Marcus stayed behind with Pierce, going over final details, While lena went back to her medical station, double-checking everything. Her hands were shaking.
"Elena."
She turned to find Pierce in the doorway.
"You okay?" he asked.
"I'm fine." The lie was obvious.
Pierce stepped inside, closing the door. "Talk to me."
"What do you want me to say?" Elena's voice was tight. "That I'm terrified? That every time I close my eyes I see you not coming back?"
"Yes." Pierce moved closer. "Say it."
"I'm scared." Her voice cracked. "I'm so scared, Pierce. I just got you back. I just accepted all of this and now you're walking into...." She gestured helplessly at the window. "Into that."
"I know." Pierce's hands settled on her shoulders. "I wish I could tell you not to worry. But you're too smart for that."
"So what do I do?" Elena's voice cracked. "How do I just... wait here while you..."
"You trust that I'm good at what I do." Pierce's voice was firm. "You trust that I've done this a hundred times before and you be ready to patch me up when I get back."
"When, not if." Elena said.
"Yeah, when," Pierce confirmed. "I'm coming back, Elena. I promise."
"You can't promise that.."
"Yes I can." Pierce pulled her close. "Because I have something to come back to now. Someone worth surviving for."
Elena pressed her face against his chest, fighting tears. "I hate this. I hate that you're walking into danger and I just have to sit here and..."
"Be strong." Pierce's arms tightened around her. "Like you've always been."
They stood there holding each other until Marcus knocked on the door.
"Boss, we need to go over the communication protocols."
Pierce pulled back reluctantly. "I'll be back."
The afternoon blurred together. Pierce coordinating with his team, elena organizing her medical station and derek setting up communication equipment in the living room, radios, laptops, everything needed to monitor the operation from the cabin.
Dinner was quiet. Elena barely tasted the food while Pierce ate mechanically, his mind clearly elsewhere.
When nighttime fell, the team left. They'd agreed to gather again at 9 PM tomorrow for final prep before moving at 10. Giving them twenty-four hours.
Elena cleaned up from dinner, her movements automatic. When she finished, she found Pierce in the office, cleaning his gun with practiced efficiency.
She watched from the doorway as he disassembled it, checked each component, reassembled it flawlessly, then did it again with a second gun and then a knife, checking the edge, the balance.
"How many weapons are you bringing?" Elena asked.
"The ones that would be enough." Pierce didn't look up. "This are primary weapon, backup, knife. The standard loadout."
"What if something goes wrong?" She asked again.
"Then I improvise." Pierce finally met her eyes. "Elena, I need you to understand something. Tomorrow night, I'm going to do things that..." He stopped. "Things you might not be able to accept."
"I know what you do." Her voice was.
"You know knowing and witnessing are different. You learned that with Xander." Pierce set down the gun. "If we encounter resistance, if Rodrigo's men fight back, I'm not going to hesitate. I'm not going to show mercy."
Elena's throat was tight. "I know."
"You're okay with that?" Pierce asked.
"I'm okay with you coming home alive." Elena moved into the room. "Whatever that takes."
Pierce searched her face. "You've really changed."
"You showed me your world and I'm living in it now." Elena sat beside him. "So do what you need to do tomorrow. Just come back."
Pierce pulled her close, and they sat in silence for a long time.
Eventually they went upstairs. Elena lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, hyperaware of Pierce beside her.
"I can't sleep," she whispered.
"Neither can I."
They turned toward each other in the darkness. Pierce's hand found hers, holding tight.
"Promise me something," she said.
"Which is?"
"You won't take unnecessary risks." Her voice was sharp. "You don't try to be a hero. Just do the job and get out."
"I promise." Pierce pulled her closer. "I'm not leaving you, Elena."
They held each other through the night, neither sleeping, both counting down the hours until dawn.
When pale light finally filtered through the window, Elena felt Pierce tense beside her.
"It's time," he said quietly.
Elena's chest tightened. "Already?"
"Team's arriving in three hours. I need to prep." Pierce kissed her forehead. "Stay in bed. Rest while you can."
But Elena couldn't rest. She got up with him, following him downstairs.
The day had arrived.
By tonight, everything would change.
Elena just hoped they'd both be alive to see tomorrow.