WithDREW: A YA Thriller (Unleashed Book 2): Unleashed, #2

By Susan Cady Allred

You don't rest when you're tired. You rest when the killer is dead.

After her first assignment for the AGENCY is a success, word gets out, and she's in demand. Her next mission is sent from the top. As in the President of the United States. And you don't say no to the President, no matter what the assignment is.

Aleasha agrees to protect daughters of a man about to revolutionize the power industry. With Drew across the country healing from their last mission, Manny steps in to be Aleasha's partner. Can she keep the girls safe, her emotions in check, and herself alive while dodging world-class assassins and a few ghosts from her past? And what will she do when she discovers Drew has committed the ultimate betrayal?

WithDREW is a YA romantic suspense thriller that will keep you turning the page to see what happens next! If you like Alex Rider, the Gallagher girls, or the Gems, you'll love the Unleashed series.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Susan Cady Allred
• Release date: Apr 23, 2021
• ISBN: 9798224266364

Book preview

Table of Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 1

Memory Lane

Bodies crumble to the ground and screams fill the darkness.

I gasp for breath and lurch upright to sit in bed. Beads of sweat drip down my face and my shirt clings to my torso. With wide eyes, I scan the room and take in my surroundings. Family pictures on the wall, backpack by the door, turquoise duvet on the king-sized bed. My room.

Well, the room I call mine as long as I’m in Walla Walla to be a high school senior for the AGENCY.

I scrub my hands down my face and take a cleansing breath. Icy air fills my lungs. It was just a dream. It was just a dream. I rub my arms, staving off a shudder and waiting for the cold boil of my blood to calm. Checking the time on my phone, I groan. 2:15 in the morning.

A familiar ring tone fills the air and I grab my phone, touching the screen to make Drew’s worried face appear.

Another nightmare? he asks from the phone. His brows scrunch together with concern.

Yeah. I rub the remaining cobwebs from my eyes and glance at the ring—spy gear the AGENCY uses to listen in on me 24/7.

Same dream? he asks.

I can’t get that day out of my head. How long until these nightmares end?

"Every person is different. You’ve gotta come to terms with that fact you had to kill them."

I shake my head at the screen. It’s not that easy. They had mothers, wives, children. I’m the reason those families are hurting. You, of all people, should know how hard losing a parent is to a child - right or wrong.

Drew closes his eyes and nods. Yes, I do. And so do you, he says, barely above a whisper. But it doesn’t make your choice any less correct. You killed in self-defense.

He’s right, as usual. I close my eyes, feeling more exhausted than when I crawled into bed three hours ago. I guess I need more time. Is it too much to want to have my life back to normal?  Or even just feel good about working for the AGENCY? I glance at him. That’s all I want.  To not feel like some mass murderer because I’m doing this.

I examine his face on the screen. Drew’s emerald eyes are alert, his brown, wavy hair perfectly placed, and he’s in a dark button-down shirt.

I narrow my eyes at my phone. Hey, it’s like 5:00 am over there. Are you getting an early start? Or are you still awake?

Couldn’t sleep, he admits, trying to mask a yawn with the back of his hand.

So, you’ve been listening to me sleep? Sounds a bit creeper-ish if you ask me.

He smiles, and his eyes crinkle at the corners. I can’t help it. I miss you...and you never turn your jewelry off.

I at the wall of windows facing the forest. It’s still pitch-black outside, but that doesn’t stop me from imagining what happened out there, causing my stomach to tighten with dread. I glance at his face. I miss you too. The distance is freakin’ killing me. Loneliness as heavy as a hundred-pound kettle bell threatens to seep in again.

Five months ago, Drew recruited me for the AGENCY. Now, he’s across the country being treated by world-class doctors and enduring intensive rehab to get back to his old fighting self. I’m left to deal with the emotional baggage of what I’ve done. Without him.

How are you healing? Are you seeing any progress? I ask.

I met with another doctor yesterday. The bones are almost healed, and the surgeries deemed a success. Now it’s a matter of physical therapy to get me back to the person I was before.

How much longer are they thinking?

Four more months of intensive therapy. They swear by the time I’m done you’ll never know I’ve been hurt.

Four more months? I groan. It’s already been two. I don’t know if I can go six months without seeing you.

Intellectually, I understand his need to be gone for so long, but emotionally I’m like a caged animal without him here. There are nights when I’m literally pacing my bedroom, unsure what to do with myself.

I’m a lethal weapon, for Pete’s sake. I have got to learn how to deal with these emotions on my own, but how am I supposed to do that without him around to talk me down? Drew has been my calming force from the moment I met him. He’s always known what to say or do. Without him, my moods are choppy at best. Without him, I spend hours at a time working to the point of exhaustion just so I can function without accidentally tearing some person’s head off for the audacity to breathe. Without Drew to keep me in check, helping me see the rational side of things, I’ve been struggling hard core.

At least I can still stalk you from here, he says with a grin.

I roll my eyes at the screen and absentmindedly touch my earring that houses a video camera. Between the ring and the stud in my ear I have absolutely no privacy. It’s also how Drew can stalk me from across the country.

Too bad it doesn’t go both ways, I say laying back against my pillows. It’s lonely without you.

How can you be lonely? Everyone’s going in and out of the house and you’re never alone. What about Sierra? Aren’t you two getting along?

It’s not the same. I bite my lip, feeling a pang of guilt. Drew actually is alone. At least I have Aunt Patti, and the crew to keep me occupied. Drew has only his therapists all day long. Aren’t you lonely over there? I ask.

How can I be lonely? I get to stalk you. His eyes crinkle with laughter again before he sobers. They’ve got me working out four to six hours a day, and I’m taking extra online courses to keep busy while I’m waiting to get better. Drew shakes his head. Apparently the AGENCY wants me to get another degree - as if two aren’t enough.

Yeah, well, keep that PT up and you’ll be able to do the Iron Man with me this summer. It’d be soooo much more fun if I were doing the triathlon with you.

I should be so lucky, he says, making a face of disgust. How’s the new recruit shaping up? Is he getting along with everyone? Has Randy sweet talked you into taking another assignment?

Manny is progressing nicely, I say, trying to be vague. Drew isn’t fond of Manny and I can’t blame him. The guys have a history, and it hasn’t been resolved yet.

Randy hasn’t been so lucky, I say, pursing my lips. Quite frankly, I’m in no hurry to start working again. The last time didn’t go as planned. I shudder at the memory of Drew in the trailer where I’d found him nearly dead, along with Patti and most of the crew.

Drew grunts in agreement then says, You’d better get some sleep. I hear Marc plans on training you hard today. It’s his idea of a pre-New Year’s Eve gift so to speak.

Greaaaat, I say, rubbing my eyes. How about you? Are you gonna get any sleep?

Nah. Sleep is highly overrated. He wrinkles his nose. Besides, I’ll take a nap during your swim. I find the sound of splashing water calming.

I make a face at the screen. I’m jealous already.

He smiles again before wagging a finger at me. Seriously. Sleep. I’ll talk to you at our usual time tonight, okay?

Okay.

He stares at me.

Finally, I sigh. Yeah, yeah. I’ll sleep.

Liar. He flashes a 1,000-watt smile, then the screen goes blank, leaving me in the darkness of my room.

You got that right, I mutter as I climb out of my giant four-poster bed. I’m awake and there’s no getting back to sleep now.

Chapter 2

Swimming in the Deep End

Ipad along the overly plush carpet in my bare feet to my walk-in closet. The closet is bigger than my entire bedroom in my home back in Spokane.

At an ornate dresser, I open a drawer, pulling out a swimsuit. I change into a one-piece purple Speedo, cover up with a robe, then grab my waterproof iPod, earbuds, and swim gear.

I walk out of my room, and down the hall to the media room. Punching a code into a panel on the side of the TV, I wait for the secret panel in the wall to slide open with a woosh. Classical music fills the air when the door opens.

Hey Sarah, I call to the tattooed redhead on the other side of the wall. Today she’s wearing a black and white off the shoulder shirt with skin-tight black leggings, and her hair tied up with a white bandana. Her lips are blood red, and nearly all her tattoos are covered by the sleeves of her shirt, but she’s 100% rockabilly. Did you get a new piercing? I ask.

Sarah glances over her shoulder at me and twists a knob on a console covered with hundreds of buttons and knobs. Above her a few dozen screens are a flurry of activity, and the computer on the desk has five monitors filled with still more video feeds and stuff I still haven’t figured out. In the corner, there’s a little Christmas tree filled with bullet-shaped ornaments that hasn’t been put away yet.

She turns down the music until it’s background noise. Yeah, I did! She grins, fingering a new hoop on her eyebrow, below the new scar she has on her forehead. It’s my Christmas present to myself. Marc and Randy haven’t noticed the hoop yet and it’s been a week. You spotted it less than two seconds after walking in. Impressive.

I curl my fingers to my mouth and blow a puff of air onto my fingernails, then buff them on my shoulder before sniffing. That’s why I’m the best.

Sarah rolls her eyes and I break into a grin. I look over her shoulder to her desk. Whatcha doing?

She half-turns and covers the papers. It looks like a bunch of random scribblings from an eight-year-old. Just a project the AGENCY sent over while we wait for you to activate again.

I sit in one of the leather rolling chairs and look out the darkened window facing the woods in the back yard. Two months ago, Drew and I had opened this door and found it ransacked with blood smeared along the wall next to a giant divot in the drywall. I had been sure it was from Sarah’s head being slammed into the wall. Afterward, I learned she’d done it to them when they broke into the room. But they paid her back in the trailer where I’d found her. I shove the memory from my mind, refusing to relive that memory.

What have they got you doing?

Well, there’s not much use for most of the languages I know around her. And you’re not working, so I can’t brush up on my lip-reading. So, they’ve got me deciphering codes. She waves her hand dismissively. Enough about my boring life. Tell me about your dream.

You heard the nightmare? Don’t tell me you’re getting all creeperish too.

That’s my job. She smiles briefly before her lips dip into a frown. Is everything okay? Is there anything I can do to help?

I stare at the new screen that has cameras facing the woods out back. I don’t think so. I think I just need to wait ‘em out. It gets better, right?

I still have nightmares about that weekend too, she says. We all thought we were gonna die, and Drew nearly did. Has he spoken to you about it yet?

Not really. He seems to think he’s protecting me by not going into detail. He’s probably right. I don’t know if I could handle the guilt of knowing exactly what they were doing to him while I was wasting time with the guards. I shake my head. I should’ve been faster getting to you guys.

Aleasha, you did the best you could. No one is blaming you for what happened. You were being swarmed out there, and you took out a lot of targets. I think it’s an all-time record too. She reaches over and squeezes my hand. Cut yourself some slack, girl!

Doesn’t it bother you that people died?

It used to. Sarah shuffles the papers on her desk until they’re in a neat pile, face down. "But then I realized there were many more innocents at stake. Sure, more than forty people died out back, but you saved ten lives—our lives, not to mention all the kids you saved from Madison, all the people you vindicated, and the countless number of families that would have been affected by the illegal drugs we found and confiscated. Sarah shakes her head. Aleasha, sometimes we have to do hard to achieve a much better thing. Not everyone can do what we do. I get that. But someone’s gotta do it. Someone like soldiers and cops and SWAT... she leans her head on my shoulders and I get a whiff of her vanilla perfume. ...and us."

We sit in silence for a while, listening to the classical music until I take a deep breath and say, Thanks for the pep talk. I think I’m gonna go for a swim and try to clear my head.

Don’t drown, she hollers over her shoulder as she returns to her kindergarten scratchings.

Walking down the arched stairway to the main floor, dragging my hand along the smooth black banister. I consider Sarah’s argument. I’ve spent the last two months concentrating on the people I’d killed rather than the people I’d saved. It doesn’t make those deaths any less horrible, but she has a point. And that makes things more bearable. If the government thinks it’s legal, I guess the