“Something’s come up.”
“I like it when your something comes up.”
“No. Not like that. There’s not much I can say. Fuck. There’s not much I know.”
“What do you know?”
“Our training exercise was canceled. We’re mobilizing.”
Oh, fuck. Okay, I knew this was possible. He was a Marine. They were the first in when there was a problem. Flinging open the door, I moved through the house, looking for Walker. I found him in the kitchen with a drink on the counter in front of him.
“What’s up?” Walker asked.
Holding my hand up, asking Walker to wait, I asked Hayden, “Do… Is there anything I can do?”
He got quiet, so there was something; I just didn’t know what.
“Tell me.”
“Come see me off?”
Oh, wow. That’s not what I expected.
“Absolutely. Tell me where.”
“I’ll send you the info.”
“Okay. I’ll be there.”
“I’ve gotta go, but if you change your mind…”
“I won’t. I’ll be there.”
“Okay. See you soon.”
The call disconnected. When I glanced up at Walker, his brow cocked, but he held his tongue.
“Can you find out why a Marine unit just got mobilized out of the blue?”
I picked up the glass and swallowed the whiskey it held in one go before sitting it down.
“Maybe. I take it that was the new Mr. Holt?”
The attitude in his tone and words grat
“What’s going on with you? You aren’t this guy.”
“Jackson wrecked this weekend. He’s okay, but…”
“But it scared you, and now you’re going balls to the walls trying to protect everyone.”
“That damn kid is going to get himself killed.”
“Yeah, but he could get killed crossing the street. Or, if he’d gone in the service or joined us at Holt, he could’ve been killed that way. We all have a finite amount of time on this planet, Walker. Shouldn’t we make the most of it by doing what we love?”
“I hate when that big ass brain of yours comes online and makes me look like an ass.”
“Eee onk, motherfucker.” I brayed like a donkey as I smirked at him.
