Chapter 26 #2
“Well, Sir Types-A-Lot here wants you to retrieve Satori’s laptop and then use our computers to remove him from the system before he notices,” Zeke tells me while he bounces his head from side to side.
“Once he’s out of the system, you’ll have to upload Carter’s new code and restart the servers to kill the shit that Satori put in there.
You’ll have to do it from one of the main computers either in the Batcave or Damien’s office, though, and there’s no telling where his laptop will be.
If it’s downstairs with him, we’ll have to grab it ourselves or just call it a loss, because we’re not putting you in that mess.
” His lip snarls, and that grimace tells me that he feels the same way Damien does.
I stop mixing the apples and raise an eyebrow.
It’s not that I don’t understand. I’m just shocked.
“Why me?”
“Because when we confront him, if any of us are missing, and he thinks we know what he’s done?
There’s no telling what he’ll do. He could start shooting all of the men, he could kill-switch the entire system with that code, or both.
Someone like Satori isn’t going down without a fight, and we want to give him as little time as possible to do that. ”
“You don’t think he’ll notice me missing?”
“Not since you guys have been back,” Carter chimes back in. “You’ve mostly stayed in the conference room or Damien’s office, anyway, and now that you’re in your third trimester, it’s a good excuse to use if we have to explain your absence.”
“We’ll just have to feed into Satori’s misogynist bullshit for a few minutes,” Alex adds and shrugs.
“Okay. So, why are Damien and Zeke upset? I’m not seeing the issue.”
“I’m not letting you walk around the Attic by yourself.
We have no idea how many of his guys will be pacing the halls, and I don’t want to give them the chance to get to you when things go south.
” Damien lays his head on top of mine and rubs my belly as I start to roll the apple slices into the dough.
“And using my computer in the office is too risky. He’ll expect you to be there.
If he manages to weasel away from us, or tells one of his guys to come after you, that’s the first place they’ll look. ”
“So, I’ll need to do it from the Batcave,” I clarify.
“Exactly.” Zeke’s voice is full of attitude. “Which means you’ll have to sneak in through the front while we walk into the training area to corner him.”
“Sneak in? It’s our building. Shouldn’t I just be able to go wherever the hell I want?”
“Not without drawing attention,” Alex chirps. “If he starts to think something is up, and his guys see you upstairs alone, they could react and do something to you.”
That thought worries me. There’s a very real chance that anything could go wrong, and as unfortunate as it is, I’m not nearly as quick or balanced as I normally am. My belly is huge, even just compared to a few weeks ago, and I’ve had to be much more careful lately.
“Well, what about Kade? Couldn’t he walk me inside?” I suggest, but I’m instantly reminded how horrible of an idea that is.
“Absolutely fucking not,” Damien spits out.
He tightens his grip, moving to wrap both arms around me and cradle my stomach in his hands.
Fear radiates from him, and I know I should try to ease it, but I can’t help but feel the same way.
There really isn’t a scenario where I stay out of this.
Damien won’t be able to think straight if I’m not near him, but he’ll also freak out if I could be in danger.
At least this plan tries to combat both of those issues…
“What he means to say…is absolutely fucking not,” Zeke repeats, even snappier than before. “Not only do we still not completely trust that mother fucker, but I’m sure Satori will look straight to Kade when we confront him. He’ll need to be with us, too.”
“Okay, so I’ll go alone. It’s not a big deal.” I try to play it off, but it doesn’t really stick. I keep working on the dessert, trying to keep my hands busy while we talk this through, but Damien’s anger starts to radiate, burning so harshly that I absorb his heat.
“It’s a huge deal,” he seethes right by my ear.
“What about your dad, D? We could just ask him to go with her during dinner,” Alex suggests.
“He’s already staying here with Victoria and Elizabeth. We can’t risk bringing them to the Attic, and we can’t leave them alone.”
“So, that’s it? Our options are either leaving Ashia with two of the Society’s targets or have her sneaking around a battlefield alone? That’s not fucking happening!” Zeke slams his hand down on the counter.
“No, it’s not,” Damien agrees.
“It’s better than her potentially sitting in the middle of a gun fight or being here at the house where we can’t protect her. At least this way, she’ll be surrounded by us and our guys as well. We can’t risk them getting into the house again,” Alex argues.
An idea pops into my head, and a part of me doesn’t want to say it out loud. I don’t know how Damien will feel about it, and I know my brother will immediately try to argue. It might be the best chance we have, and having some extra allies couldn’t possibly hurt—could it?
“I know who we can call.” I turn my head to stare up at Damien’s piercing face. “But I’m not sure how much you’ll like it.”
“Whatever keeps you protected, we’ll do it.” His voice is absolute.
I grimace.
“Are you sure about that?”
His eyes narrow at my question, but it’s too late to take it back now.
I know by him giving me as much power as he has, that it’s just part of his love language.
What he doesn’t understand is the absolute menace he’s created.
I know that if this even remotely sounds like a good idea to him, all I have to do is bat my eyelashes and he’ll give in.
I would never use that in a bad situation, but he’s taught me to fight for what I think is right, and to trust my judgement.
It just also sucks for him that he taught me that.