“What’s up?” I ask him and finish tightening the suit.
“I saw what just happened, and if it’s any consolation, I think you’re doing the right thing with him. Well, with all of them, really,” he says sincerely, and it catches me off guard. For the past few days, we’ve all been hard at work with training and running drills. Satori has been extremely cooperative, and for the most part, silent—which has been nice and really shows his testament to how serious he is about this. Things may have started off rocky, but it’s nice to see that we’re evolving. I look up at him to witness his face match his tone for once. “I meanit. You have great relationships with your men, and they highly respect you. I know making the tough choices is hard, but where your friend is concerned, I think you’re doing it right.”
“I really appreciate that. Thanks.”
“Regardless of how this started, I’ve got your back. This isn’t just about some pissing match between us. This is about protecting people—your people included. We’ll get him.” He holds my pistol out for me, and I take it from him without hesitation. It’s good to know that we’re stepping foot on a good foundation, and even though I won’t have Zeke with me tonight, I feel a little better about it now.
“We’ll get him,” I say with confidence.
Chapter 11
Ashia
‘Scarlet Cross’ – Black Veil Brides
Well, this is different. Normally when Damien and the guys go out, I’m sitting at home and left to wonder what’s going to happen. That’s not the case tonight, and I’m not sure what’s more nerve-wracking—being left in the dark or seeing everything up-close and personal. It might be different if this was some type of general patrol, like I was watching an episode ofCops, but it isn’t. Apparently ‘there was no chance in hell’ that I was sitting at the house tonight, and I can’t say that I put up an argument. Not after what happened last time…
Damien’s going after Fedor Popov. He was Hugo’s long time business partner, and probably his only friend, if he had any. Information on Avery is getting harder and harder to find, and with the Italians practically vanishing from the Earth’s surface, Damien thinks he’s our best bet at a solution.
I’m sitting in the conference room at the Attic with Carter flanked to my right, Kade next to him, and Zeke to my left. Chris and a few others are standing just outside the door, and that’s barricaded like we’re trying to keep out of a zombie’s reach. We have Damien’s bodycam footage playing on the large screen, and everyone’s voice coms are coming through our secured radio channel. Everything is set up perfectly, and exactly how it should be. Yet, I’m more nervous for him to be out than I have been in a long time.
Because Satori and his men are out there with him.
Granted, Alex and Ezra are there as well, and there’s just as many of our men as Sahara’s, but it still makes me nervous. They’ve been training together all week, and they’ve worked together well. This, however, is different. Tonight isn’t a run through, or a practice of a certain drill. This is life or death, and for Damien, it’s even more than that.
Retrieving Popov means answers. A solution. A way to expose Avery, find Saconne and Deluca, and end this once and for all. It means closure for us both, and while we’ve held each other together for this long, I’m not sure that we can keep going without a few pieces slipping through our grasps. While I’ve been clinging to him, needing his strength to hold me up, his mental state has only been sustained on this one thing. If this fails, I’m not sure where we’ll be in the end.
I notice Zeke’s fidgeting out of the corner of my eyes. He’s visibly on edge. His fingers are drumming against his thigh, and his other leg is bouncing subtly under the table. I know a part of him wishes he was out there, and I know our decision not to let him go made him upset, but I just can’t trust that he won’t try to hurt himself yet.
He's been doing well, and he says he regrets trying to kill himself, but it’s only been a week. His mind is all over the place, and while I want to think he’s doing better, I know he’s beenlying to me. He hasn’t been taking his meds. I found one at the bottom of the toilet this morning—somehow avoiding being flushed, like it wanted me to find it and realize the reality of his situation. I’ll never forget the pit in my stomach when I saw it.
A part of me wants to ask him why, but today was already so hectic that I figured it could wait—at least until this mission is over. After that? He’s getting a mouthful from me. I don’t want to assume that he’s been doing this since we picked him up, that for some reason today was the first day he’d done it, but unfortunately, he’s proven that I can’t trust him—not with his medications, anyway.
“Everyone, confirm your positions.” Damien’s voice cuts through the silence and booms from the speakers, snapping my attention back to the screen. They had to go a couple of towns over, which is more rural than city, but it has a lot of industrial parks. The lot they’re on has multiple warehouses, and tucked in the back is a smaller one that we’re assuming Popov happened to lease under someone else’s name.
Victoria Avery.
This is just one more link to John Avery, the corrupt Senator behind all of this, but it’s not concrete enough to pin againsthim. So far, anything solid and on paper has his daughter’s name on it. Which is really messed up, but I suppose it’s smart on his part, considering she barely has any paper trail, and has no political or public appearance. She’s the perfect fall-girl. Carter has tried to keep tabs on her as well, but because she’s hidden so well from the world, the last thing he can track—and actually confirm washers—was from over a year ago. Hell, she could be dead as far as we know, but until we can validate anything, we’ll still consider all possible angles where she’s concerned.
Could she really be a part of this? Would Avery truly corrupt his own daughter into helping him with the vile disasters he’sarranged? We’re not sure, but whatever the reality is, we’ll find out one way or another, and hopefully sooner rather than later.
Alex and Ezra’s voices come through the coms and confirm their positions on the opposite side of the warehouse. The air around us becomes heavy, and the tension settles in like a dense fog as Damien starts to move. His camera is positioned on his chest, so I can stare down the barrel of his rifle and watch how smooth his movements are. I’ve seen him in action quite a few times, but he always amazes me with how fluid he is. I’m not sure how a six-foot-four, two-hundred-pound man moves like he weighs nothing at all, but he’s certainly perfected the craft.
They’re going in stealthily, as to try and not raise any alarms. Popov has had men stationed here for a few days now, and he arrived just a couple of hours ago. So, the last thing we need is him running off at the first sign of trouble. We may not know much about him, but it’s clear that Hugo’s death spooked him, and we don’t want to lose him again. The Italians, Saconne, and Deluca are proving to be much harder to find. So, if Popov can lead us to them, it makes things much easier.
Satori was ordered to stay by Damien’s side so he could assess him, but that doesn’t make me feel any better about the situation. I don’t think he would intentionally mess the operation up, but what if he tries to slip his big-boy pants back on and goes rogue? I know he’s given Damien nothing but lip since he’s arrived, and while Damien seems more comfortable with him now, something still just doesn’t feel right.
He has been more cooperative since last week, I’ll give him that much. Whatever they talked about during their meeting must have really stuck, because he’s tried to step back a little. He’s not arguing with Damien’s decisions anymore, he barely gives a shitty look when Damien tells him what to do, and he’s been asking how he can help more. Maybe he’s really learning something from Damien. I’m sure he’ll never admit it, though.
Damien gets to the door and quickly opens it before darting inside, making my stomach flip. Then the camera moves quickly from side to side, as if he’s checking the space out before he moves forward.
“Clear,” he quietly announces before creeping further into the space. The entryway is dark, and while I can barely make anything out through the footage, Damien can obviously see a lot. He moves perfectly through the corrugated metal hallway, like he’s been there a hundred times even though he’s never stepped inside. “Updates?”
“We’re making our way through. There’s no sign of anyone yet. We’re coming up on the main working floor,” Alex relays, and I notice Damiens steps quicken just a bit to catch up. It makes me feel better knowing that he’s being so cautious. He’s prone to go in and start shooting before asking questions, but thankfully, that’s not the case this time.
“Okay, wait for my signal,” he replies and continues to maneuver through the hall. A door on the left comes into view, and just as Damien starts to slow back down, the sound of two shots fires through the speakers—the last one being the loudest. My stomach drops, and I scan the entire screen, wondering where it came from.
“Damnit! We’ve been compromised,” Alex’s voice yells through the coms again.
