The distinct sensation of being watched rolls over me, drawing my attention to the back wall where Mori leans with an arm crossed over his chest, a book in his other hand. He doesn’t look away when our eyes meet from over the top of his novel, but the muscles feather in his jaw.
Why does he dislike me so much?I can’t fathom myself doing anything particularly awful to him in the past. Mainly because he’s terrifying and I wouldn’t stand a chance against him in a one-on-one. Did I try poisoning him?No, that’s ridiculous.My lips purse as I shut my eyes once more.
Maybe I should confront him about it.
A few minutes pass before Lieutenant Erik knocks on the door frame. “Men,” he pointedly looks at me and grins, “and Morphine, head to the war room. General Nolan and Captain Hans Bridger will be in attendance so I want all of you to be on your best behavior today.” Erik’s eyes narrow on Mori.Unsurprising,I muse.
“We aren’t toddlers,” Kayden grumbles.
Captain Bridger is attending? I’ve heard a little about him from some of the Malum soldiers in the communal bathroom. There hasn’t been much to do except recuperate since arriving at this base, so I’ve spent most of my time learning about where I am and who I’m in service of. The other squads have been a wealth of knowledge to learn from when they’re actually around, which can be rare at best. They seem to be rotating out constantly.
The captain is basically Nolan’s direct superior, but this must be a pretty big deal if Bridger himself is going to be briefing us. I shift on my feet uneasily.
Mori only holds Nolan’s gaze without any sort of acknowledgment.
“Aren’t you, though? Let’s go,” Lieutenant Erik mutters with a sharp expression that glides over all our faces. He turns on his heel and leads us out of the barracks, then one floor lower. The war room for the Dark Forces is all blacked out. A huge conference table takes up the center of the room and many black leather chairs line the entire rim of it. Our small squad doesn’t even begin to fill the space in here.
It’s almost like this room was created this size just in case all squads were needed for a crisis meeting or something. Which, as far as I know, hasn’t happened yet, but I wonder how long that will remain true.
I settle into the seat next to Gage. Mori, Thomas, and Kaydentake the side opposite of us, while Erik sits in the seat next to the head of the long conference table.
We don’t have to wait long before two men stroll in. One I instantly recognize as Nolan, with his light-brown eyes and fawn-colored hair. I’ve yet to see this man smile, and something tells me he’s utterly incapable of it. Perhaps he was in the same boat as me when he first started. I wonder what his story is.
Now that I think about it, I’m not sureI’vetruly smiled since waking up either.Hypocrite, I chide myself. Being around the others on the squad has shown me how heavily broken people lean into humor. How it grows that longing inside each of us to make the other smile. Even those are usually forced. I would do anything to see Mori actually happy. My gaze wanders over to him before refocusing back to the front.
The second man has silver hair, slicked back with gel, and the darkest eyes I’ve ever known. A crooked nose that has a slash down one side of it. He walks with a bit of a limp, likely from a prior injury.Captain Bridger.Was he a soldier in the Dark Forces once too? I have yet to find out when all of this started, but I’m keen to learn more. I don’t like being in the dark on things that I have a sliver of control over. Considering that I’m in the shadows in every other aspect of my life.
Erik stands and salutes Captain Bridger. “Captain, it’s an honor to see you here today, sir.”
Bridger waves his hand dismissively and stands at the head of the table while Nolan takes a seat across from Erik. Clearing his throat, the captain says, “Lieutenant, it’s always good to see you. It looks like you’ve succeeded in properly taming Mori.” His eyes scrutinize Mori’s careless posture, then shift laxly to me, making me flinch. “And this must be our new recruit who subdued said beast. Morphine, correct?”
I lower my chin in a slow nod, reluctant to actually say words tothis guy. His gaze is heavy. Analytical. Holding some of the world’s darkest secrets, I’m sure. Anything we know as secret soldiers, he knows five times more and in greater detail.
From what I’ve gathered since waking, the world is truly a dark and terrible place. And I’m not just saying that after Gage made me watch all those awful fucking war movies. I learned from hearing all the heinous shit the soldiers in the Dark Forces are expected to do. Kill. Don’t ask questions. Kill.
I listen to that gut feeling deep in my chest that says everything is not what it seems.Be wary.The longer you see what’s under the covers, the more monsters you realize have been beside you. Worse yet, inside you. One person can wear as many as five faces.Which one will give them away?I wonder.
“Well done. Now then, on to the matters at hand. Fury Squad, we have a level black mission in which you’ll be shutting down an entire operation of illegal goods that are being distributed throughout the world. This is a two-part mission. The first being recon and retrieving intel from their hideout located in the Great Basin, the second being execution of the operation once all assets are in our possession.” Bridger’s voice is grave. My heart seizes at the wordexecution.
What was that?I fist my hands over my knees, not wanting to make any attention-grabbing expressions in front of the captain.It felt familiar.
“The good news is that you’re going somewhere warm, the bad news is that the item you’ve been tasked to locate and retrieve is small and will be a pain in the ass to get. We’re talking aboutabsolutelyno mistakes,” he says darkly before snapping his fingers.
The double ebony doors to the room open and a slender female walks in. Her bronze hair is tied back into a ponytail and her plum-shade lipstick complements her olive skin tone magnificently. She has big red-framed glasses and a small digital pad in her right hand.The navy blue suit she’s wearing makes her appear important. It’s obvious that she’s not a soldier like we are.
She strides in and stops at the head of the table nearest the doors. Captain Bridger motions his hand to her as he proclaims, “This is Mikah. She’s our best hacker in the Dark Forces, and your primary goal will be to safely escort her to the data room. The locks on the door are impenetrable except by way of manually opening them with the kill code. Mikah has the ability to hack into any security system in the world and disarm an entire facility in a matter of minutes, but she needs to have time to get that done. We’re counting on the Fury Squad to keep her safe while she disarms the doors and can retrieve the thumb drive.”
Thomas’s eyes widen and dart to Erik. “Are you serious? An escort mission on level black is suicide…morethan a high-stakes mission like this usually is. How do you expect us to get in without being detected and keep guards off her forminutes? That’s like a fucking hour when you’re actively fighting,” Thomas snaps, standing and slamming his hands on the table. I flinch at the motion. He’s usually so calm that I’m surprised he’s this upset.
Lieutenant Erik’s mouth firms and he levels Thomas a haughty gaze. “Which is why they’re entrusting this mission to the Fury Squad. Our superior officers know we can get it done—” I don’t hear what he says for a few seconds because Mori kicks my shin under the table. My eyes flash to his, rage fueling the blush that burns over my cheeks.
“What?”I say with my eyes, emphasizing that I’m not impressed with his timing by the way my brows knit.
He lets his jaw slack, parts his lips enough to make my pulse jump, and then leans forward on his hand, shutting his jaw abruptly. His eyes pointedly saying,“Close your fucking mouth.”
My jaw quickly clamps down. I didn’t realize my mouth was parted from the absolute shitshow mission we were just dropped with.
I shoot Mori a glare and he winks at me with his scarred eye. Was that supposed to be playful? He didn’t so much as crack a grin, yet there’s something in his gaze that holds amusement.
