Reed purses his lips. “You know, Greg wanted me to shave your head. So you’re welcome for leaving it a ratted mess. That’s the only way he would allow it to be left at that length.” He takes a long breath like he’s already tired of my questions. “What, you haven’t guessed yet?” He smiles at me and it makes my stomach churn with dread. Why do psychopaths enjoy mind games so much?
“How do you have so much intel in the Dark Forces? Do you know someone on the inside besides Cameron?” I try squeezing any information out of him while we take the path back to the airplane hangar.
His laugh only pisses me off more. “Oh, you’ll know soon enough, Emery.”
I whirl on him and he stops abruptly, eyes mildly widening.
“This isn’t a game, Reed. My entire squad is going to be terminated on this next mission, and I don’t know if any of us are going to make it out.” I grit my teeth and shake my head.
He sighs and tips my chin up. I narrow my eyes against the drops of rain.
“I won’t let you die, okay? I promise. But you’re not getting information out of me. Not tonight. If you want your friends to have their trackers out, we need to go now. I don’t have long beforeI’m expected back,” Reed says earnestly. He glances down at his watch and nudges me to start walking again. “Believe it or not, you’re my only friend so I won’t risk you, Emery.”
“Trust me, I believe it.” I glower and it makes that cruel grin curl again.
It should make me angry, because he’s a complete asshole, but I take solace in his words. He was once my only friend too, but since entering the Dark Forces, I’ve found more than I could have ever imagined.
Reed starts with Damian, setting a device next to Damian’s side. It’s a small black box with no screen, only a button that flashes red when he pushes it. I’m glad Reed insisted that we gag him, because Damian’s painful groans are bone-chilling as Reed uses a scalpel to cut into his flesh.
The operation takes less than a minute.
Then the tracker is out. I’m surprised at how small it is and the similarities it has to a pill capsule. Reed urgently sets it down next to the box and presses the button once more. The light turns green and then shuts off.
Cameron stares in bewilderment at Reed’s precise motions, likely wondering as I am how the fuck Reed knows the exact procedure to remove them. Where did he get the device he’s using too?
Wraith’s is much less dramatic. He doesn’t so much as flinch as Reed cuts out his tracker.
“It’s as easy as that,” Reed says as he wipes off his bloody hands with one of the towels.
I stare at the trackers. “What would happen if someone tried to remove their tracker without that device?” It’s obvious, but I want to hear him say it anyway.
Reed looks at me like I’m an idiot. “It would detonate. Youneed this box within two feet of the tracker in order to remove it safely.” He says it with a malicious smile, as if he’s fascinated with the craft of devils.
“And I’m guessing you won’t tell us how you got your filthy hands on one?” Cameron asks with his arms crossed as Reed finishes up stitching Wraith’s small incision.
Reed smirks. “Of course not.” He checks his watch and stands to leave. “Well, this was fun, but my time is up.” He extends his hand to Cameron, lifting a brow in expectation for the syringe.
Cameron pulls the black syringe from his pocket and hands it over quietly. There’s defeat and guilt in his gaze.
Reed hands him two small metal plates with bandages taped to the back of them. “These are for the other two. You’ll need to block the signal before escaping, otherwise you risk being followed or detonation of a tracker.”
We all share a collective grim look.
“Wonderful. See your asses in a few days,” Reed says with a wink before slipping out of the bathroom unceremoniously. I trail him as far as the stairs.
“Stay out of our way out there, okay? The last thing I want is to find your lifeless body,” I admit and grab his hand, squeezing in an earnest farewell.
He offers a wry grin. “You’d have to try really hard to kill me, Emery. You don’t give me enough credit, as per usual. I’ve been waiting for this for a long time, so don’t worry about me. You’re only of use to me if you’re on top of your game out there. So don’t let me down, and I won’t let you down.” The fire in his eyes is wicked and all-consuming.
“Self-serving jerk. What do you have planned in that head of yours,” I whisper to myself after he shuts the door behind him.
33
EMERY
Damian and Wraithkeep their vests zipped up to their necks all week to hide the incisions. I think I stopped holding my breath after the first day. No one seemed to suspect anything.
The days have been tiring since we’ve been practicing formations and dropping from twenty thousand feet at least twice a day. Starting and ending each training with a four-mile jog too. It’s been hell.
