“I’m just pulling images from the garage and—”Harper coughed,“Err… sorry, G One. I was distracted by the show those two put on.”
“There are cameras?” Rio scowled at Cade, “You didn’t tell me there were cameras.”
“Not in here.” Cade nodded to the door, “Entrance and through the garage.”
“Fuck.”
“Yup, that’s what you were doing.”
Cade could feel the heat climbing up the back of his neck. He had lived and breathed military life for so many years that little should have been able to make him blush. Being naked around others was a fact of life. When you were gearing up, you didn’t have time to worry about what others thought of your bare ass. Same as when returning from battle or training. You were just too damn tired to worry about who saw you stripped down for the showers to clean the shit, blood, and gore off you. You just waited your turn and took your damn shower.
But his private life? That had always been off limits. Something he kept totally to himself. He didn’t give a shit that they knew he was seeing a man. No, this was just for him. That it was Rio they were watching him with, that had Cade biting back the growl that wanted to escape. The one telling Harper she could just fuck herself running and keep her eyes off their horny kissing walk across the house.
“G One, this is TOC.”
Cade tightened his fingers around the grip of his handgun until his knuckles showed white. Using the bite of pain from his nails digging into skin he reminded himself that he was in enough trouble. Punching his boss for having the volume on his coms unit high enough that they all could hear would not be the smartest thing in the world to do right now. Especially considering how Rock’s jaw was clenched. He knew that meant his boss was prepared to go nuclear.
“Go ahead, TOC.” Rock stared straight at Cade, waiting for Harper to tell him who their house guest was.
“Facial Recon says he is Felipe Oseguera González.”Harper told them,“Thirty-one-year-old, Mexican National.”
Cade knew she would have Rio’s file on the screen in front of her. He could picture that damn pencil he chewed on, pointing at the screen as she read out facts.
“Why is that name familiar?” Rock’s eyes narrowed, “Oseguera González.”
When he screwed up, he did it in epic style. To coin a phrase from his past,bollocks, what the fuck have I done.“El’ Mencho?” Cade spun on his heels, turning to look at Rio, “You are related to El’ Mencho?”
“What?” Rio’s face paled at the information Harper was feeding them over the coms unit.
“Cade’s man, Felipe, shows up in photos in South America alongside three men known to be on our most wanted lists. Rafik Kassem and two men who are reported to be his sons, Haaz and Saad.”Harper told them,“Images are coming to your display units now.”
“I’m leaving,” Rio held out the weapon, he had borrowed from Cade.
He doesn’t look like a Felipe!“No.” Cade pushed aside the errant thought. Disbelief slammed into him, along with more than a touch of regret. Fucking hell, he couldn’t even apparently do a fast fuck without getting in shit. He took the gun. As much as he wanted to believe that Rio wasn’t involved with those men, he wasn’t stupid.
Connections to the Kassem meant connections to Hezbollah, and from there it wasn’t too much of a jump to make to Syria and Iran. “Leaving now is not an option.” He watched Rio’s eyes flick down toward the weapon he had just handed him, as if he were contemplating grabbing it and fighting his way out. Cade pushed the gun Rio had given him behind his back and felt Rock immediately take it.
Grif filled the doorway, blocking any hope of leaving Rio may have had.
“What the hell?” Rio paused mid-step and looked at Cade. “You are fucking crazy, I’m leaving.”
“You will need to explain your connection to those men in the photos with you,” Rock moved to stand next to Cade, caging Rio between all three men and the wall. “Depending on what you say, and if we can verify it,” he shrugged. “Then maybe, we let you go.”
Cade refused to allow his feelings to show. Didn’t want the others to know that his stomach was roiling from its new position down by his feet, where it had dropped when Harper told them who Rio really was.
“Get dressed, asshole.” Rock ordered Cade. He clamped one hand on Rio’s shoulder. “We’ll be in a holding cell when you are done.
“Yes, Sir.”
* * *
“Let me fucking go.”How the hell had his morning started so shitty? Was he being arrested? Could these men arrest him? For what? Being related to a bunch of terrorist dickheads?Rio moved his shoulders, testing to see how strong of a grip the big asshole had on him. If he could get loose, maybe he could get away.
“Settle down.” Cade’s boss muttered. “We’re not going to hurt you… much.”
“Hey, don’t be so fucking rough with him.”
Cade’s voice behind them made the fingers on his shoulder harden for a second, before the grip lightened.
