17. Michael
CHAPTER 17
“Dude, you can’t be serious.” Private Adams rolls his eyes.
“He’s serious,” Elijah says, glancing into the backseat of the Humvee. “He wouldn’t shut up about it when we met.”
Chuckling, I turn my attention back outside. “You guys have no idea what you’re talking about.” The heat is stifling, making it difficult to breathe. I reach up and rest my hand on the top of my Kevlar vest, just so I can pull it away from my chest for a moment.
“Then tell us. Explain to us how you could possibly justify saying the later HALO games are better than the original?” Adams demands. “You’d have to be crazy to think they got better!”
“I stand by what I said. The storylines are better than—” An explosion shakes the windows, and the Humvee in front of us explodes. My stomach lurches, and adrenaline surges through my system.
“Contact!” Captain Knight yells as Specialist Greyson jerks the wheel. But it’s too late. Fire licks the side as our vehicle hits another explosive. We flip over, and I’m thrown from the Humvee. I hit the hot sand, and it sears the exposed skin of my face.
But it’s the least of my worries.
Pain shoots through my body, and I struggle to suck in a breath. My chest feels like it’s collapsing, making it impossible to breathe. I scan the clearing, looking for my friends. Elijah is to the left of me, lying on his back, his weapon discarded at his side.
The letter. I need to get him my letter. So he can get it to Reyna.
I look to my right and spot Adams, dead, in the dirt. His eyes are wide open as he stares straight at me, blood dripping from a wound in his head. It seems surreal. A nightmare.
We’d just been talking, and now he’s gone? How is this happening? My pulse skyrockets, and Captain Knight kneels at my side. He’s the only one of us on his feet, though his face has multiple scrapes.
“Look at me, Sergeant,” he orders.
I do, trying my best to focus despite the pain and panic currently wreaking havoc on my system. I’m going to die. I’m going to be a flag-draped coffin, and Reyna will never know how sorry I am. She’ll never know that I still love her.
“I called for evac. You’re going to be fine. I need you to?—”
A bullet hits the dirt beside me and Captain Knight whirls. Staying low, he crouches behind a boulder and holds up his weapon to return fire.
“Michael.”
I look to my left, and it’s Reyna I see crawling toward me through the rubble, her face streaked with blood, her hair matted to the side of her head.
“This isn’t right,” I manage. “You aren’t supposed to be here.”
“But I am here,” she says as she crawls closer. “Because you left me. Again.”
“No. You aren’t here,” I say again.
“Look at me!” she screams. “Michael! I need you!”
“There he is. Welcome back to the world, big man.”
I blink rapidly, trying to clear my blurry vision. My arms are bound above my head, my legs dangling down, my toes barely brushing the floor. The pain in my shoulder is substantial, but one look at the white bandage over it tells me they at least don’t want me to bleed to death.
My vision is blurry, and I’m weak. Whether that’s from blood loss or whatever they dosed me with, I’m not sure. But it’s going to make getting out of here near impossible. “Where is she?” I manage, choking on each word. There’s a vile taste in my mouth, a side effect of whatever it is they gave me to knock me out.
“She is none of your concern,” the man in front of me says.
He’s tall, bulky, and packing some massive heat at his hip. His dark hair is cut short, nearly to the scalp. I’ve never seen him before, but I know the type. He’s a mercenary. A gun for hire. Willing to do whatever for a buck.
And he’s sporting a massive arm tattoo that spans his hand up beneath the sleeve of his shirt. I glare over at him. “You.”
“You know, I didn’t appreciate you trying to mow me down with your truck. I’d planned on going back for you after we’d gotten the girl, just to square things off. But then you went and made it super easy for me by not leaving her side.” He grins. “Thanks for that.”
“I’m happy to let you take another swing at me if you’ll unchain me,” I manage.
The man laughs. “I don’t need you unchained to take a swing at you.” He pushes off the table he’d been leaning against and crosses over. After balling up his fist, he slams it into my jaw. Blood fills my mouth, the coppery tang only adding to my nausea. “See, my masculinity isn’t tied to needing a fair fight. I know what I’m capable of.” He slams his fist into my face again, and pain ricochets through me.
Still, I don’t let it show. I spit, splattering the concrete floor with blood. “I don’t know why I’m surprised you wouldn’t want a fair fight. It takes a coward to go after an unarmed woman in a dark parking lot.”
The man growls. “You have no idea who you’re talking to. Otherwise, you’d watch your mouth, bodyguard.”
“Even if I did know, I imagine I’d still be unimpressed.”
He reaches up and digs his thumb into my bandaged wound.
I groan, biting back a cry of agony because I know it will only bring him satisfaction.
The door opens, and he withdraws his hand, his gaze going to someone behind me.
“I trust you’ve been making our guest feel at home,” a man says as he comes into my line of sight. The suit he wears is likely more expensive than the gym I own, and his grey hair is longer on top, shorter on the bottom, his face clean-shaven.
“Absolutely,” replies the man who’d looked ready to kill me right here.
“Asher, take it easy. I can’t have you killing him yet.”
Asher backs away, but the murderous glare he gives me is enough to tell me that we’re just getting started. Good. I have plenty to say to him, too.
“Your name is Michael Anderson, correct?” the suited man asks, leaning back against the table. The steely gaze he gives me lacks all empathy. Which means he’s not a man to be toyed with.
Asher may be the killer, but this man has blood all over his hands.
“You already know that, otherwise I wouldn’t be here.” I spit more blood to the side.
He chuckles. “Fair point. Now, Mikey, can I call you Mikey?”
“I’d rather you didn’t.”
His amusement disappears. “Fair enough. Michael. Asher tells me that you and your team have been getting in my way recently.”
“Wish I could say I was sorry about it, but I’m not.”
His grin is back. “You’ve got confidence, I’ll give you that. Any chance you’re looking for a job?” Before I can tell him where to put that offer, he waves a hand in front of his face. “Nah, who am I kidding. You do-gooders don’t have the stomach for real work.”
“If you mean I don’t have the stomach for attacking innocent women in dark parking lots, then yeah, you’d be right.” I wheeze, sucking in a pained breath since every single movement is agony right now.
“It seems to me we’re in the same line of work. You have someone to protect, and so do I.”
“Where is she?” I demand again.
“Which she?” he asks. “I’m afraid I need you to be a bit more specific.”
“Reyna,” I growl.
“Ah, yes. Gorgeous redhead. Legs a mile long. Principal, right?” When I don’t respond, he laughs. “Easy there, killer, she’s alive. Which is how she’ll stay as long as everyone plays ball.”
“I want to see her.”
“I’m afraid you’re in no position to make demands, Michael Anderson.”
“What do you want? Money? I can get it for you. Just let her go.”
“I’m not after money,” he replies. “As you can see, I’ve got plenty.”
“Then what do you want? Why go after a school principal?”
“Let’s just say I needed some collateral,” he replies. “While I wouldn’t have ordered you being brought in”—he glares at Asher, who continues staring straight at me—“I can admit that having two hostages might prove to be rather beneficial. Especially given your close relationship with the man I’m looking for.”
“The best trackers in the world will be looking for us,” I say, knowing Lance will have called in the cavalry to find us. “You don’t stand a chance.”
“I’m not worried. See, I did some digging into you as soon as I found out you were here. Michael Anderson. War hero. Nearly killed in action, but somehow managed to pull through despite doctors saying you wouldn’t. Works at Knight Security with Lance Knight, Elijah Andrews, and most recently—Jaxson Payne, a former detective with the LAPD. How am I doing so far?” I don’t answer, so he continues, “Both of your parents live in Hope Springs, along with your sister and her son, and you and Reyna were hot and heavy all through high school until you left her behind to join the service.”
“All you’re telling me is that you’re good at research,” I say.
“Yes. I am. I’m also not a man who toys around, Mr. Anderson. Which means I won’t hesitate to put a bullet in you should you prove to not be useful.”
“You still haven’t told me what it is you expect from me.”
He folds his arms. “I expect you to tell me everything you know about Carter Acker.”
My stomach twists. Is this what Reyna’s abduction has been about this entire time? Her brother? “Seems to me you should have already figured it all out. Being that you’re good at research and all that.”
He laughs and shakes his head. “Mouthy, mouthy, mouthy.” He nods back to Asher, who steps forward and slams his fist into my face. My head whips back, but when I straighten again, I smile, despite the blood dripping from my mouth and the agonizing pain in my shoulder.
“Now, let’s try that again,” the man in charge says. “See, Acker keeps his life relatively under wraps. I know that he’s married and that he has children, but they have a protective detail on them twenty-four-seven. They have no known routines and are a bit more high profile than I care for.”
“You’re after his family?”
“I’m after his everything,” he growls.
“Let me guess.” I lean back and stare up at him. “He put someone you care about away? Dismantled your organization? What exactly did Carter do to garner your attention in such detail?”
“Let’s just say he and I have a score to settle.” He clasps his hands together. “Now. Answer the questions, or I will find a way to make you less comfortable.”
“I got nothing. Carter and I had a falling out when—as you said—I left Reyna to join the service. I know nothing about his life, his routine, or anything that will be of any help to you.”
“Then why do I leave you alive?”
I shrug. “I guess you have no reason to do so.” It’s dangerous, calling the bluff of a man like the one across from me, but it’s all I’ve got. I have to bank on the fact that there’s a reason he’s coming to me with these questions rather than going to Reyna when realistically, she’s the one who will have the answers.
“I guess we need to go see your girl,” he says. “One way or another, I’m going to find out everything I want to know.”
“You certainly seem like the type to try.”
“Try.” Chuckling, he shakes his head. “You are going to make this difficult, aren’t you?”
I smile. “I’m not hired for my sunny demeanor,” I reply.
“Well—” He comes forward, tilting his head up since he’s at least half a foot shorter than I am. “Let me explain something to you, Mr. Anderson. I am not, in any way, shape, or form, similar to the types you’re used to dealing with. I do not fail. I do not give up. And one way or another, I will get Carter Acker’s head on a silver platter. Now, it’s up to you whether or not your sister and his make for a trio.” He straightens and turns to Asher. “Let him sweat it out. I’ve got things to deal with, but go ahead and see the girl.” He looks back at me. “We’ll start with her.”