100. Vox Moretti
Alexa, play: Big Dawgs - Humankind, Kanu
I stopped the car a half mile out from Apex while we waited for our backup to arrive. Taking advantage of the downtime, I ran Ryan and Theo through some tactical hand signs. It was surprisingly easy to teach them, as apparently, Gavin’s ghost was explaining everything to Ryan.
As much as the cynic in me wanted to reject the fact that Gavin’s spirit was really here whispering in Ryan’s ear, I couldn’t deny the fact that it would be impossible for Ryan to fake this.
On top of that, Ryan was one of the straightest shooters I’d ever met. Why the fuck would he make this up?
I received an encrypted text from Logan informing me that he, Ronan, and Dakota were in position as I was packing my bag with extra ammo and my single remaining grenade.
Testing out Ryan and Theo’s newfound knowledge, I used the signal to move forward.
Theo and Ryan immediately fell in step behind me, both of them matching my pace perfectly.
Pleased that they had taken the lesson seriously, I moved quickly through the woods. I used the natural landscape to cover us as much as possible.
Logan had done a quick sweep of the dark web to see if we could get an idea of Damian’s forces and what we were up against.
It looked like he outbid us on one of the deals we already eliminated. If Logan was right, he had about ten guys with him, which was a pain in the ass but not impossible to overcome.
If it had been just me, it would have been a suicide mission.
But Damian didn’t know about our recent alliance with Logan, Ronan, and Dakota. On top of that, Ryan and Theo were not complete novices. They were both excellent fighters, and Ryan now had surprisingly good aim with a handgun.
As long as the two of them listened to me, I had high hopes for this mission.
Which was a good thing because I refused to fail.
Seeing Naomi’s stupid fucking gnome buckled in the back seat of that mangled G-Wagon made me feel things I hadn’t felt in a long time.
Not since Gavin died.
I was not leaving here without her.
I would raze the entire planet before I left her to die here.
That tiny ray of sunshine with her stupid fucking sundresses and annoyingly positive outlook on life was not dying in the shit hole that had stolen my soul from me.
I’d already been to hell and back.
Nothing scared me anymore, least of all the devil and his band of hired men.
I’m coming, Naomi.