“That Brenda has it out for Tessa. He said that Brenda is coming for her and that if she could find a way to pin all of this on her, she would.”
Sawyer arches a brow. “So you think we might be getting sent off on a wild goose chase?”
“I can’t rule it out.”
“Do you really think Brenda is heartless enough to leave Tessa purposefully unprotected like that?” Garrison crosses his arms.
“There is no doubt in my mind she would. I don’t believe she’d take matters into her own hands, but if she can set it up to get Tessa out of the way, she’ll do it.”
“But why?” Sawyer asks.
“Because Tessa is a distraction,” Weston answers. “An obstacle standing in the way of the Cap following every single order Brenda throws his way. Tessa gives Zane a reason to not want this life.” He crosses his arms.
“Ooh. You sure Garrison is enough then?” Sawyer jokes.
Garrison chuckles. “I’ll keep her safe,” he promises.
“Thanks. Keep an eye on Anastasia, too, please. If Jack drew parallels, then it’s possible someone else might, too.”
“You’ve got it, Cap.”
“Do you really think Anastasia’s at risk?” Sawyer’s tone is lacking all humor. A rare thing for him. But when it comes to my sister’s safety, there’s little else he takes more seriously. Which, as an older brother, I can appreciate. As his friend, though? His teammate? I wish he’d just tell her how he feels already so we can all stop dancing around it.
“I don’t think so. But I don’t want to take the risk.” I study them, feeling the weight of everything they’ve been through over the last six years. “Listen, I think this needs to be the last one.”
“Excuse me?” Weston arches a brow.
“You know something we don’t, Cap?” Sawyer questions.
I sigh. “I’m likely in this until they put me in the ground or I become too old to be useful. But you guys don’t have to be. You can lead normal lives. Start families.”
“We’re a team,” Garrison says.
“Besides. You wouldn’t last ten minutes without us,” Sawyer adds with a grin. “We both know you’re useless with a computer.”
Chuckling, I run a hand over the back of my head. “This isn’t your fight, though. This was my mistake. You don’t have to keep fighting.”
“We’re with you until the end,” Ryker says.
“What about your lives? You gave up everything for this. Your lives, homes. And for what?” Frustration pulls at me, but it’s not at my team. It’s at the fact that I practically condemned us all to a life sentence over one decision.
A decision I can confidently say I’d make again, even knowing the outcome. We lost two lives, but we saved four others.
“Because we’re brothers,” Weston says. “Maybe not in blood, but we’re family. And that kind of loyalty isn’t something to abandon just because things get hard.”
“We may not be behind bars, but we’re all serving a prison sentence,” I remind them. “But you guys don’t have to.”
“Only because you took the fall.” Ryker stands and crosses his arms. “The truth is, each and every one of us would have made that same choice.”
Weston, Garrison, and Sawyer all nod in agreement.
But it doesn’t alleviate the guilt I carry. “I just want you all to live long, happy lives.”
“That’s not up for you to decide, Cap,” Sawyer says. “The truth of it is, we’re not going anywhere. Not unless you’re out, too, or we’re shipped home in a pine box. So suck it up, buttercup. You’re stuck with us.”
“When are we heading out?” Weston asks, shifting the subject so I can’t protest any further. Not that it’ll do any good. We’ve had this argument many times over the last six years, and it always ends the same way.
“We’ll be wheels up at sundown.”
