Chapter 7
SANTIAGO
“Knock, knock.” Neil grinned as he strode into my office and held up the bag of takeout he’d brought with him. “Ah, training is definitely in session if we’re eating most of our meals in here. For the record, I told you we weren’t going to go out to grab a beer once the class got here.”
“We went out last night,” I said, rolling my eyes as I saved the notes I’d been typing on my computer. “You were right, though. I only had two beers, but I definitely felt them when I got up at three. It was a bad idea. I won’t be doing it again soon.”
He pretended to be disappointed as he sighed and sat down, but then he opened the bag and the scent of Thai curry filled my office. He smiled longingly at the contents of the bag as he pulled out the containers. “Hello, Dahkmi, my old friend. You’ve come to make me happy again.”
I laughed at his improv version of the song. “I can’t believe that restaurant is still there. Do you remember when Dahkmi opened? You and I practically lived there for a month after our training just in case the place closed down.”
“We were so afraid they were going to take our Thai from us,” he said with a hint of reminiscence in his voice.
“I’m glad they made it, though. It’s been years, but it’s still the best food around here.
How long do you reckon it’ll be before the new cadets find it?
I always hate that initial influx of orders when they first discover it.
Last time, I had to wait thirty-five minutes for our order when that asshole cadet bought dinner for everyone. ”
I chuckled as I shrugged my shoulders. “I don’t think you have to be too worried about it. Most of them are as dense as a stone. There are a few that show promise, but we’ve got a long ass way to go with them.”
“In their defense, it’s only been two days. Do you remember what we were like on day two?”
I scoffed. “We were awesome.”
“No, we weren’t, but we thought we were. That’s my point. Give ‘em time. I’m sure they’ll get better.”
“Since when do you root for them?”
He snorted as he shook his head. “I’m not rooting for them.
We were the last incredible class to pass through these hallowed halls, my friend.
I’m just telling it like it is. Their class will never be as amazing as we were, but we still need a few of them to make it.
Those few will prove themselves soon, and then you can send the rest on their way. ”
“That’s not really how it works,” I reminded him. “Plus, it’s my job to make them as amazing a class as we were. That’s just how it is. Every class believes it was the best, and then the next one comes along and believes the same thing.”
“Sure, but we really were the best. Perkins didn’t make us that way. We just were.”
I tilted my head as I stared at him. “Are you serious? Of course, he made us that way. He had pretty amazing raw material to work with, but still. He was a fucking legend of an instructor.”
Neil thought it over before he shrugged. “Maybe you’re not wrong. He also got me into the CGPD when I asked for his help, so I guess he wasn’t too bad, but still. The man nearly killed us how many times?”
“Nah, we were never going to die. It just felt that way.” I pulled my container close and popped the lid, breathing in the rich scent of the green curry and practically feeling it as it took me all the way back. “We were lucky to have him. Have I told you his daughter is in the class this year?”
He suddenly tore his gaze away from lovingly staring at his curry so he could gape at me. “Are you serious? When did she get old enough for that?”
“My question exactly, but believe it or not, she’s twenty-four now and she’s definitely not a kid anymore.”
“Shit.” He scratched his jaw and slowly shook his head.
“I’m really struggling to get my head wrapped around just how old that makes us.
She was a lanky pre-teen the last time I saw her.
Hell, at the time, we didn’t even know Perkins well enough for him to introduce us to his family.
I just remember standing with you and watching him from a distance. ”
“Yeah, I remember the same thing. We were both wishing he’d kid around with us the way he did with her.”
“Instead, all we got was an ass-whooping for his hangover the next day.”
I laughed. “I still don’t think it was a hangover. I’m pretty sure he was just punishing us for all that crap he saw us eating.”
Neil’s shoulders shook with a silent chuckle as he shook his head. “Man, those were not good times. Are you going to exact revenge for what her father did to us? You should. He was a terror.”
I carefully contemplated my answer, not wanting to tell him too much even though I didn’t really know why. I just felt strangely protective of her, and I didn’t want him plotting against her to exact his own revenge.
“I’m either going to get her out or make her into one of the best. Perkins gave me his blessing to go balls to the wall with her, so I guess we’ll just have to see how it goes.”
“I don’t even know her, but I hope you get to kick her out eventually. Don’t get me wrong, I love Perkins, but I hate him. It’ll be a great day for me if his daughter doesn’t end up cutting it here.”
“Why?” I asked, genuinely curious. “He’s done a lot for both of us.
To be honest, I think she’s going to make it.
At this point, it sure looks like she’s one of the stronger contenders.
I’m not going to make it easy on her, but I’m pretty sure she’s going to stick it out, and when she graduates, she’s going to be a force to be reckoned with. ”
“We’ll see,” he said. “If she’s cut from the same cloth as Daddy, then you’re probably right. Are you rooting for her, then?”
“Nah. I’m not rooting for anyone. I just have a feeling about her, but if I’m wrong, I’d rather have her fall out and so would he. This isn’t the place to be if all you’re after is sticking it to your father.”
“True,” he agreed. “Do you think that’s why she’s here? She’s just trying to prove a point to daddy?”
“I’m not sure yet. I think there’s definitely an element of that, but I doubt that’s all it is.
Like I said, she’s one of the stronger contenders.
She seems determined enough, but time will tell what her determination is about.
Maybe she quits right after graduation, just to prove to her dad that she’s done it and that she was good enough. ”
He mulled it over before he nodded. “She’s going to be an interesting one to watch. That’s for sure. I’d kind of like to see her suffer a little bit, though. Just for all those times her dad made me want to crawl back into my father’s balls and stay there.”
I grimaced. “You wanted to crawl back into your father’s balls?”
He smirked at me. “Don’t pretend you didn’t wish some nights that you’d never even been born. God, we had some great times, but if you really think about, it was tough as hell.”
“It was, but we made it through,” I said. “Do you remember our first drug-bust simulation when Eric got shot in the nuts by that paintball?”
Neil winced before he burst out laughing. “Yeah, I do. Do you know he maintains that’s why all three of his kids have blue eyes?”
I laughed. “I’ve heard him talk about it. Everyone has. He tells that story every time he’s had a few.”
For the rest of our meal, we reminisced a bit more, and by the time my container was empty, I was so full that my body ached and I groaned. “I need to go get some fresh air, or I’m going to explode. Want to take a quick walk?”
He patted his flat stomach and shook his head at me. “Nah, I’m good. I’ll wait here. The sorority president I met the other night just texted me. There are a few things I’d like to say to her you might not want to hear, so I’ll hang back.”
“Thanks for the warning.” I got up and shook my head at him. “These young girls are going to get you in trouble, man. Make it quick, though. I won’t be gone long.”
He gave me a quick salute, then pulled his phone out of his pocket and I left.
When I got outside, I drifted absently toward the training course, thinking about those notes I’d been making.
I still had to go finish up so I could include them in my daily report, but I was still stuck on trying to come up with a better, more official way of saying Fucking Useless.
These reports were mostly just to have a log of the training session as a whole. Hardly anyone ever read them except for the instructors ourselves when we started getting to the end, but just in case, I didn’t think I could rate half the damn group as Fucking Useless.
As I got closer to the course, I noticed a flash of movement near the wall and narrowed my eyes, upping my pace as I moved closer to see what was going on. When I got close enough, my jaw slackened when I saw that the movement was Layla trying to get over it.
I watched her try, fail, get up, and try again, and my head was shaking when I realized she had no shot if she kept approaching it like that. I didn’t go over to give her any pointers, but she was going to be a hard one to crack.
Her body was bound to be killing her after the day we’d had and yet, here she was, going at it just as hard as she had this morning. She needed to get some rest, though. They all did. We had time to get them to the point of completing this course.
Rome hadn’t been built in a day and she wasn’t going to conquer the most challenging obstacle of them all—for her anyway—in that amount of time either.
As I headed back inside, I made sure Neil would hear my footsteps by smacking my feet against the tile, and sure enough, as I walked into my office, he’d just ended his call.
His cheeks were a little flushed and his pupils were bigger than usual, but I ignored it. “There’s a cadet on my course. Get her off for me and show her to her bunk, won’t you?”
“Fine, but she’s not who I want to be getting off, and I definitely don’t want to do it for you.” He winked as he stood up, then chuckled at whatever horrified expression I had on my face as he left.
Once he was gone, I wondered why I hadn’t told him the cadet in question was Layla Perkins. I knew he’d have been hard on her if I’d told him, and since her father had told me to do just that, I should’ve let him know who she was, but I hadn’t.
As I sank down into my chair to finish those notes, I sighed. Ron’s daughter was giving me a headache and the worst thing of all was that it wasn’t just the head with my brain in it that was aching. I wanted that girl, and the more I learned about her, the more I wanted her.
While I knew it was probably just because I couldn’t have her, I couldn’t get her out of my head. Which meant it didn’t matter why I wanted her. It only mattered that I did—and that there didn’t seem to be a damned thing I could do about it.