Chapter 28 - Max
MAX
The bedroom door bursts open while I’m still snuggled up against Lily, and I tilt my head to take a look at the intruder.
It’s Ruby, obviously, because any other person has the decency to knock before entering a room. It is only a matter of time until this woman will walk in on something she doesn’t want to see—again—and like the last time it happened, I won’t be the one apologizing.
“Rockwell needs to talk to you guys. Work-related.”
Groaning, I roll on top of a half-asleep Lily and prop myself up on my elbows, so I don’t crush her.
“You wanna come with us or stay in bed?”
“Bed.” I give her a kiss on the tip of her nose, and she makes a face. “Max,” she grumbles sleepily, but kiss after kiss turns her frown into a smile.
“I’m going to sleep on the balcony,” Logan says, glancing in our direction. “Or better, throw myself off of it.”
“May I present the man who calls me dramatic,” I whisper, and Lily grins at me. Giving her one last kiss on her forehead, I get up and put on a pair of shorts before I follow Logan out of the bedroom.
In the living room, Rockwell is pacing around, wearing a sweaty shirt and shorts. If he went jogging, that means he almost reached the top of his losing-it chart, and three beers on movie night were just the beginning.
“Cantrell is sick,” he says, his voice devoid of any emotion. “Sanders will be taking over his duties until he recovers.”
One could mistake Rockwell’s behavior for calm, but I see how he clenches his fists every few steps and how it’s only the wisdom that comes with age that keeps him from slamming them into the nearest wall. This, and the fact that Ruby would yell at him for ruining her house.
“Well, I’m out.” Logan huffs and I’m tempted to say the same.
Back when Sanders arrived on base, Cantrell didn’t know how tight he had to hold his leash.
After my first unpleasant run-in with him, I spent countless nights going through old reports because Sanders insisted that they were faulty.
The phrase ‘they won’t hold up in court’ fell more than once, and I kept asking myself which court he was referring to.
Maybe the fuck-my-ass-court, because if some of the things we do came to light, it would drag so many people down with us that they could give us an entire wing in prison.
“Call Joyce,” Rockwell says, facing me. “You haven’t taken leave since you joined us. Do that now. A week or two should be enough. And Cabrera—“
Logan is already in the kitchen, eating roast beef right out of the fridge together with Mochi, and I turn back to Rockwell.
“He needs to lie low,” I say.
“It’s better if he stays a few miles away from base. We can’t afford him provoking Sanders right now. Sam, Charlie, and I will be driving to base in two days, but we’re leaving today. Gonna pay someone a visit.”
“Vinnie kept an eye on the leading detective in the Delaney case. Turns out one of his sons has a bit of trouble adhering to the law, and well, one hand washes the other…” Ruby says with a grin, rolling her eyes when she catches Logan teaching Mochi to play dead in exchange for yet another slice of roast beef.
“Vinnie’s gonna do shit like this for you until he’s 90.”
“It’s the perfect cover. No one questions an old guy who sits around and watches people. There’s something else I wanted to talk to you about.” She puts her hand around my arm, pulling me out to the terrace.
“Shouldn’t we call Logan over?” I ask, pointing at the kitchen where Logan is now eating an apple bent over the sink.
Why have breakfast at the table, like a civilized person?
“Call him if you want to. Knowing him, he won’t be much help,” Ruby says, letting out a chuckle. “Look, I love having you guys around, and you can stay here for as long as you want. I adore Lily. Honestly, I don’t know how you two idiots managed to snatch such a sweet girl.”
“Through abduction,” I say, and Ruby punches my arm. “Did Logan say something stupid again?”
“Sure, I would worry about him if he doesn’t, but that’s not the point. I don’t know if you guys realized it yet, but Lily is really sensitive.”
“Who’s sensitive?” Logan asks, strolling out on the terrace with Mochi in tow. “No, don’t tell me, I wanna guess.”
Ruby groans. “Do you even know her? Up here,” she points at her head, giving Logan a look. “Not the rest. She is a human being with feelings, and she had a fucking hard time.”
“I’m constantly having a hard time, yet no one gives a shit,” Logan says, and Ruby exhales loudly.
“You wanted a guessing game, Logan? Cause I’ve got one for you: When do you think she was on vacation the last time?”
“Last year?”
“Five years ago. With her parents. And now I’ll to tell you what you guys are going to do. You take her somewhere nice. Spend time with her, fucking talk to her. If you don’t do it, I will. I’m sure she’d like Aruba.”
“Don’t you dare,” Logan says.
“I’ll take care of it,” I interrupt them. “But please don’t tell her anything. I want it to be a surprise.”
“See, he’s listening,” Ruby tells Logan, nudging his arm with her elbow. “Can I take her shopping?”
“No. It’s not safe for her to go out.”
“The 203 doesn’t operate in this part of Cali,” Ruby says, and Logan raises his eyebrows.
“You know too much for your own good.”
“It’s called market observation.” She shrugs. “I’m not scared of a few crackheads, let me call a few guys so Lily and I can—“
“I said no.”
“Eating my food and talking back? Bold,” Ruby says. “Guess I’m gonna put some stuff for her together, then. I brought too many clothes anyway.”
“You’re the best,” I say with a smile, knowing Lily is going to start a ten-minute argument once she finds out about Ruby’s donation.
She still insists on paying me back the money she spent when she went to get groceries together with Charlie, even though she only bought a few cheap items for herself. It’s like she doesn’t want to understand that it’s our money.
A few hours later, I’m almost done planning our trip. Joyce was more than understanding when I explained the situation to her, which made me wonder if there’s a single person on base who hasn’t had an unpleasant interaction with Sanders yet.
I also have to take care of everything on my own because Logan may have a certain reputation on base, but it’s one that does not get people to do you a favor.
“Cabrera? On my aircraft? No fucking way,” Scarlett snarls into the phone when I drop my request.
“Please,” I say with a sigh. “Wasn’t there a concert you wanted to go to but you couldn’t get tickets? I’m sure I could work something out…”
“Two tickets. And if he doesn’t keep his trap shut, I’ll throw both of you out. Mid-flight.”
“You’d have to throw three people out—“
“I know what I said, Max. The girl has nothing to do with this.”
It’s a blessing that Scarlett is flying to Montana tomorrow for a cargo drop, and it’s an even bigger blessing she’s willing to take some additional cargo with her because flying commercial with Logan is like entering the nine circles of hell.
The first problem is his countless fake IDs.
At this point, I’m unsure if he has a real identity beneath it all or if he really is some kind of experiment.
Created in an underground lab, made out of too much testosterone, untreated anger issues, and a pinch of a sociopath, topped off with looks the Greek Gods would have envied.
The second problem: metal detectors. Not because the bullets and shrapnel pieces in his body set them off.
No, those can be explained. The hidden knives and other forbidden objects, not so much.
Logan is convinced that being part of the task force makes him something resembling an air marshall.
Unlike Rockwell, I don’t have the patience for a three-hour discussion with airport security. Especially not if we bring Lily.
Going by car would be possible, but it’s a long drive, and anything exceeding four hours poses a danger to everyone on the road, including the passengers of the car Logan is driving.
I’ve seen this man drive a car while applying pressure to a stab wound in his abdomen because dying is apparently less of a problem than letting someone else behind the steering wheel.
When I rejoin the others, they are already halfway done with lunch. Packed bags stand in the hallway, and as the good mood is slowly overshadowed by goodbyes, I wonder how Ruby does it.
How she can let Sam go when the possibility of never seeing him again always lingers in the air. At least I can take myself out immediately if something happens to Logan, but now that we have Lily… I should really rethink my career choices, and Logan’s too, while I’m already at it.
Ruby is good at concealing her emotions, keeping up a smile that stops reaching her eyes when Sam, Rockwell, and Charlie leave the property in the minivan we all came here with. She waits until Lily excuses herself to go to the bathroom and leans closer to whisper in my ear.
“Dom will drive you back to base tomorrow morning.”
I pull her in for a hug, and she rests her head against my shoulder.
“Sometimes I hate his job,” she says before she crouches down to pet Mochi, and I don’t know what to tell her.
We spend the rest of the day together, with trash TV and a questionable amount of food. At 2am, the night ends with all five of us, including Mochi, lying on the couch in recovery position, so full that even the short walk to our bedrooms would have been too far.
Ruby didn’t outright say it, but the sadness in her eyes made it evident that she wanted some company.
At 8am, Mochi wakes me up with a bop of her wet nose, demanding breakfast. I get up to fill the black hole that is her stomach, and soon, the others are also awake.
Our breakfast consists of water and coffee, and when Logan joins Ruby and Mochi on their morning walk, I go back to Lily, who’s still snuggled up on the couch.
Leaning over the backrest, I wrap my arms around her, and she lets herself fall back into my embrace.
“I have a surprise for you,” I say, slipping my hands beneath her shirt. She giggles, trying to slide her fingers under mine to keep me from tickling her.
“What is it?”
“A surprise, baby. Now stop being nosy or else…”
She squeals as I pinch her side, scrambling to get up from the couch. I give her a head start, but one moment later, I’m at her heels, chasing her into the bedroom.