Chapter 31 Badger
THIRTY-ONE
BADGER
The first gunshot of the three-volley salute startled me as it echoed through the air. I stood next to Phantom, holding her hand as the priest continued the service for Arrow. Only Phantom knew his last moments, and she had yet to tell me in detail what had happened.
I didn’t blame her. Her trauma was something she needed to work through on her own. When she wanted to talk, I would be there.
Across from us stood Kade and Machine, both with solemn expressions. Machine wore a black bespoke suit with no tie and black shoes.
Last night I had taken him to bed, not wanting to talk about everything I was feeling. That’s not what this was. We didn’t do feelings. We were attracted to each other, and that was it.
Yeah, sure, whatever you say, the little voice in the back of my mind taunted.
I looked over at the rest of my team, and was sucked into a memory of how I got my code name, the first time I’d met Arrow.
“So, what’s your specialty?” he asked as we stood in the gym.
I gave a small smile. “It’s better if I show you.”
His eyebrows raised. I pointed to the sparring ring.
“Jump in,” I said with a mischievous smirk.
Arrow shrugged and climbed into the ring. Chief walked up to the ropes and smiled. He knew what I was about to do. I climbed in and got into a fighting stance.
“Bring it,” I goaded.
“Are you sure? I don’t want to hurt you,” Arrow said with a worried expression. He was adorable.
“Give me your worst,” I instructed, giving him a come-hither motion with my hand.
I ducked his punch and threw my fist right at his stomach. Before he could stand back up, I swept his legs and sent him to the floor. We went back and forth for several minutes before he tapped out.
He sat in the ring, sweating and out of breath. He put up his hands in surrender. “Okay, okay, new girl. I get it.”
Buddha laughed from the sidelines.
“You remind me of a badger,” Arrow said with a laugh. “Cute on the outside but fucking lethal.”
“Honey badger don’t care, honey badger don’t give a shit,” Buddha chimed in next to Chief. We all started laughing.
From there, I was Badger, and nothing had felt more fitting.
I blinked, shaking myself out of my thoughts.
The priest finished the service and we headed to the celebration of life. Machine had been right. I had made more than enough baked goods for the party. But nothing had felt good enough. Especially for my beautiful friend who was now nothing but ashes in an urn.
My eyes prickled and my heart ached. God, I missed Arrow. I missed his quirky smiles, his jokes, and most of all, his love. He was the bright light in my world of darkness. I just wished I had had a chance to tell him that.
I wasn’t good at showing affection. That part of me had died when Lily was taken. But I knew my random acts of kindness, my gifts, and spending time together let him know I loved him.
I didn’t know how to move forward with this. Finding Lily was at a dead end now that Ricci was gone, and I’d lost my best friend. The foundation of our team had been cracked, and I wasn’t sure how we would move on.
The celebration of life drained me. I envied Arrow’s mother’s strength as she shook everyone’s hand and gave out hugs.
Just as I was about to leave, Chief approached me and gave me a hug.
I reciprocated the embrace and squeezed tight.
He was the father figure that I had always needed, and his hug was the antidote to the heaviness that I felt.
“We will get through this,” he said with a sad smile. “But before you go, With Ricci gone, I think you’re safe. I think you can pack up your bags and go back home.”
I looked at him with shock. We still didn’t know for sure who was behind the letters. We assumed it was Ricci, so it made sense that I could go home. It just felt rushed.
“Are you sure? Should we wait a little longer in case Ricci wasn’t behind it?”
Chief raised an eyebrow at me. “Do you want to stay with Machine longer?”
The question took me by surprise. Did I want to stay with him longer? Maybe I wasn’t ready for our little bubble to pop.
“N-no,” I stammered. “I just wanted to make sure that we are doing the right thing.”
Chief gave me a knowing look. “I think we should be good. Now that Ricci is gone, it’s unlikely that whoever he is working with will come after you without his backing.”
I nodded in understanding. Now I had to break the news to Machine.