Chapter Eleven
Chapter
Eleven
“He’s in South America?”
Aiden froze at the bottom of the stairs. The voice was raised and
filled with emotion. Aiden recognized it as Glenn. He sounded angry
for sure, but there was a definite thread of pain there, too.
Deefer must have picked up on the vibes because he stepped in
closer to Aiden and came to an alert position.
“From what I am hearing,
yes,” Dev said. “Ever since I found out the stubborn son of a bitch
signed up with Bateman and his Pathfinders, I’ve been keeping in
touch.”
Aiden figured that sounded about
right. Dev saw the men of Bravo team as a family, and he was very
protective of family. Everything that Sam had told him and Nick
about the team over the past few weeks supported that.
“Why are they there? Last
I heard the Pathfinders were taking protective duty contracts over
in the Middle East.”
“This job is at the
request of the American government.”
Aiden didn’t like the sound of that
and walked out from the corridor and into the living room, and both
men looked up at him. Devon was leaning against the wall, and Glenn
was sitting on the arm of the couch against the wall.
“Yeah, I heard you
talking,” Aiden admitted. “I’m on my way out to meet Sam and Nick
at our place after Nick gets discharged. I got stuck in the hall
before I realized the conversation was a private one, and I’d
apologize for eavesdropping, but I’m too damn interested in the
conversation. If the Government has contracted the Pathfinders then
what they are doing down there can’t exactly be legal.”
“Well, of course, it’s not
going to be exactly legal,” Dev growled. “The Pathfinders are not
exactly known for their ethical work practices. And Bateman is a
crazy ass son of a bitch with a narcissistic streak a mile fucking
long.”
“I have a friend that
might be able to find out some information on the group,” Aiden
offered. When he’d left the service, one of the men he had enlisted
with had continued up the chain of command and now sat in an office
in the Pentagon. “If the Pathfinders were contracted by our
government, then he would know something about why.”
Aiden looked at Dev but was surprised
to see him looking to Glenn as if waiting for him to make the
decision. Aiden turned to look over at the quietest member of Bravo
team, and he was shocked to see the expression on the younger man’s
face. It wasn’t an emotion Aiden could put a name to easily, but if
ever there were a man in torment, it was this one.
After a moment Glenn looked up. “Find
out what you can, Aiden. Let’s see what kind of clusterfuck Maddox
is making of his life.” With that, Glenn left the room and walked
out the back of the house.
Dev huffed a breath. “Well, shit.
There is still something there for him.”
Aiden frowned. “Something there with
who?”
“Glenn.” Dev turned to
look back at Aiden. “What happened between him and Maddox a few
months ago was fucked up, but I had always thought the two of them
would be bigger than it. But something happened. There was a phone
call, and words were spoken that drove a wedge between them. Glenn
closed himself off, and right up until this moment, he hasn’t even
mentioned Maddox’s name. I figured he was just going to live like
the man never existed.”
“And Maddox?”
“Well, he took another
route.” Dev pushed off from the wall. “He decided signing up with a
group of fucking mercenaries and giving all rights and ownership of
his stake in this place to Glenn was his way forward.” Dev narrowed
his gaze at him. “Glenn doesn’t know anything about that
part.”
Aiden nodded and let out a quick low
whistle, calling Deefer from his position in the hallway. “And he
won’t hear it from me. I’ll get in touch with my friend and see
what I can find out.”
Aiden followed Dev out through the
kitchen and to the back door. “I’d appreciate it if you could
filter all that information through me in the first instance.” Dev
walked Aiden over to his truck. “Glenn might think he’s fine and
that everything is as it should be, but he’s hurting.” From what
Sam had told him, Glenn had been the victim of what effectively
amounted to date rape, and then his best friend had walked away.
But perhaps there was more to Glenn and Maddox than just
friendship. “He was a victim twice over that day, and he still
hasn’t dealt with that properly. I won’t keep anything from him.
Whatever it is that you have to tell him, he will hear it. I just
want to hear it first so that I can try to help him with whatever
the news is as best I can.”
Aiden threw his bag into the back seat
of his truck and gave Deefer a hand signal that had the dog leaping
into the bed of the truck. “Will do. I’m not sure how long it will
take, but I’ll try to get you something in the next few days.
Whatever the Pathfinders are doing, I am guessing there’s some
urgency to it.”
Dev nodded and stepped back from the
truck. “Then I guess we’ll be seeing you and the dog again later.
You heading out to meet Sam? If you are then leave the mutt
here.”
“Yeah, he went in early to
help Nick get ready to leave the hospital. We’ll head back to our
place this afternoon and get a few things together for Nick and me
before coming back out this way tonight.” Aiden slid a look at his
dog, who was currently staring up at Dev with a look of doggy
worship. “You sure you can put up with Deefer and all his doggy
ways?”
Dev nodded curtly. “Of course. He’s
returned services just as we all are. I’ll just have to put up with
the damn dog. In fact, if you’re all heading back this way tonight,
then why not leave the mutt here? Finn will look after him, and
that might get him off my back about adopting a damn dog for
him.”
Aiden nodded and hid a grin as he
signaled Deefer out of the truck and slid into the driver seat. He
started the truck, and a quick glance in the side mirror saw Dev
holding out a cube of sugar to Deefer, and Aiden
chuckled.
Aiden left the compound, pressing his
own thumb to the security panel to activate the gate. Sam had joked
that morning that was what giving him a spare key to their front
door was like for Bravo team. Driving into town toward their place,
he wound his window down and let the warm wind into the truck. His
body was still humming from the night he had spent with Sam, and
his heart was full of happiness knowing that Nick would be home
with them tonight.
Aiden turned into the driveway that
led up to their house. A second later there was a loud bang, and
then his truck seemed to jack-knife into the air of its own accord.
He saw glimpses of the blue sky before the green of the grass verge
and gray of the road filled his windscreen. This was going to
hurt!
****
Nick scowled at the young nurse as she
pushed a wheelchair into his hospital room. “What the hell do you
think that is going to be used for?”
The nurse grinned and nodded in Sam’s
direction. “He told me he’d be able to convince you to get in the
chair, Sheriff, so I figured I’d wheel it in and see how he goes.
It is policy after all.”
Nick turned to scowl at Sam where he
leaned grinning against the wall at the foot of his hospital bed.
“How in the hell do you think you are going to get me into that
damn chair, Marine?”
Sam looked over at the nurse. “Why
don’t you leave this part to me, Gina?” The nurse smiled up at him
then walked out of the room, but not before she pushed the damn
chair further toward him. “Now,” Sam said as he stepped in Nick’s
direction, and if he wasn’t mistaken there was a definite glint of
challenge in his eyes, “don’t be a stubborn patient and get in the
damn chair.”
Nick crossed his arms and remained
where he was, sitting on the side of the damn hospital
bed.
“Baby, trust me, you could
argue, and I could step outside the door and advise the lovely Gina
that we are going to need a sedative, or you can do as I have
nicely asked and not be difficult.” Then Sam played hardball, by
leaning in so that his lips were a mere inch from Nick’s own. “I
can assure you that the reward for following all my directions when
it comes to your physical health and care will be most pleasurable.
For both of us. Hell, if Aiden gets to the house first and sets
things up like we’d planned it will be all three of us.”
Nick reached up one hand, gripped Sam
by his nape and pulled him in for a kiss. Nick made sure to lick
into his mouth and swallow the mutual sounds of desire they both
made at the move. When he was sure that he had Sam as hot as he
could without risking having them both ending up naked and fucking
hard and strong on the hospital bed and shocking the shit out of
nurse Gina, he pulled back.
“As it turns out,” Nick
said in a voice hoarse with need, “that sounds like something I am
more than happy to sit in that damn chair for. Five days is too
damn long to go without having you and Aiden.” He slid from the
bed, ignoring the slight pinch of the stitches and wounds not yet
healed on his left side and thigh. He turned and sat back in the
chair, holding back a slight groan from the ease of discomfort that
came with sitting down.
“There you go, Sheriff,”
Sam said as he wheeled the chair around, “all safely seated. Please
be sure to keep your arms and legs inside the ride at all times,
and adhere to the instructions of your captain.”
Nick shook his head at Sam’s joking
but was glad to have him there when they finished up the discharge
process faster than expected and were on the road. “So Aiden’s
already at the house?”
“Yeah,” Sam said as he
drove. “He thought it would be good to get home and open the place
up and get some lunch together for us.” Sam turned to waggle his
eyebrows. “We both figure that once we get you home and in bed, the
three of us are not going to want to go far. Five days is a long
time, and Aiden and I have plans to try and make up for lost
time.”
Nick grinned back. “That sounds like a
plan!”