Fantastic return to the world of the Ranger Brigade. Cara's boss, Dane Trask, is missing. Reporting it to local law enforcement gave her no confidence that they took it seriously, so she took her concern to the Ranger Brigade and Ranger Jason Beck. Though somewhat leery of her story at first, there is something about Cara that tells Jason she is telling the truth. I liked the first meeting between them. Cara has good reasons for distrusting law enforcement, and she isn't about to sit back and accept what they say. She stands up to Jason's skepticism and insists on staying in the loop.

I enjoyed the development of Cara and Jason's relationship. There are sparks of attraction between them from the start, and it isn't long before Jason wants to earn Cara's trust. His protective instincts kick in when Cara experiences an attempted break-in, and Cara can't deny that she feels safer with him. The more time they spend together, the stronger the attraction grows, and deeper feelings grow right along with it. Jason knows he has it bad when he risks his career to keep Cara safe. A future together becomes a close-run thing when Cara nearly loses her life at the bad guys' hands, and Jason barely arrives in time to save her. When it was all over, I loved seeing them look forward to what was ahead of them. As Cara said, "a future that included putting a lot more trust in law enforcement than she had ever thought possible."

The suspense of the story was terrific from the very beginning. From the first chapter's opening lines and what is obviously Dane's attempt to disappear, the tension steadily increases throughout the book. Each new piece of information uncovered led to more questions. Cara and Jason's suspicions were further aroused by questionable actions taken by company leadership. Cara's determination to discover the truth led to unexpected consequences and a narrow escape. As she and Jason came closer to the truth, the intensity of the suspense ramped up even further. I was glued to the pages as they fought their way through gunfire, drenching rain, and a nearly fatal attack. In the end, some questions are resolved, but still others are left unanswered. I can't wait to read the next book and see where it goes. ( )