“No, you can’t.”She paused, glancing up with sharp brown eyes.“You think too much.The sea is calm, take the quiet when it’s offered.”
He smiled.“I’m trying.”
“Try harder,” she said, then handed him a slice of mango.“Now, go bother your man before he broods himself into a hole.”
Drew took the fruit and her advice, walking down the stairs and into the garage.The sun beat down outside the large roller doors, heavy and hot, the air thick with the scent of salt and oil.Inside, he found Tane leaning over a workbench, checking his rifle.
“Morning,” Drew said.
Tane looked up, one eyebrow raised.“You mean afternoon.”
“Details.”Drew leaned against the bench.“You always this friendly before coffee?”
Tane put his rifle down and crossed his arms.“I’ll have you know that I have already had three cups this morning.”
“So that’s a no.”Dale sassed.
Tane’s mouth twitched.“What do you want, Hawkins?”
“Just wondering,” Drew said, leaning against the workbench, “how are the perimeter checks?Kael thought he saw something on the ridge yesterday.”
Tane wiped the grease from his hands and gave a curt nod.“Yeah, he told me.But they had all been clean.This place is locked down.Torch has enough flash bangs and concussion grenades set around the place to change the direction of the earth’s rotation and even the gulls would have to show ID.”
Drew chuckled, watching him.“You don’t buy that peace lasts long, do you?”
Tane met his eyes.“Not for men like us.But I’ll take the hours we do get.”
Drew nodded slowly.“Yeah.Me too.”
Tane reached for his weapon again and worked in silence for a few minutes, the rhythmic clink of tools the only sound.Drew found it oddly comforting.Finally, Tane spoke again.“Kael’s right to tighten security.Someone is watching us.”He looked up and locked eyes with Drew.“You feel it too?”
“Yeah,” Drew said quietly.“The air’s too still.”
Later, Drew took a walk along the cliff path, the ocean below catching the sunlight in shards of silver.The wind tugged at his hair and carried the faint tang of rain.He paused near the edge, scanning the waves.
He crouched, studying the ridge.Nothing but the usual wildlife and light movements.Still, his instincts hummed.Years undercover had honed them too sharply to ignore.
He keyed his comm.“Luka, you picking up anything on the perimeter sensors?”
“Clean,” Luka replied.“You expecting company?”
“Just asking.”
“Right,” Luka said dryly.“Because you only ask when your gut’s screaming at you.You and Kael are cut from the same cloth.”
Drew smiled faintly.“You know me too well.”
The rest of the afternoon passed in a rhythm of false calm.He cleaned his weapons, reorganized the med kit, and checked the garage doors twice.Kael found him there at dusk, leaning against the truck with grease-streaked hands.
“Could’ve used you earlier,” Kael said, his tone half amusement, half reprimand.
“Yeah?What for?”
“Keeping Torch from blowing us all to hell and back.”
Drew chuckled.“He still hasn’t learned the art of less is more, huh?”
“Nope, as far as he’s concerned, more will always be necessary.”Kael stepped closer, brushing his knuckles against Drew’s arm.“You okay?”
