Page 76 of Our Tricks

“Harper as gunner, Dax as driver, and Void as loader. After watching all of you working with others, I truly feel like this is the best match. Care to give it a go?” Savanna asked.

“Fuck yes,” Dax blurted and headed for the nearest simulator we’d been using.

Harper was right behind her, and Void had the biggest smirk on his face as he climbed into that tiny hole.

“Come on, the rest of you can watch in the control room,” Savanna said, leading the way.

The control room had screens all over the place and stations for multiple people to work. Sitting at one of the terminals, she typed in a few things and hit enter. “Your mission is commencing.”

Each of the simulations had it built in where your commanding officer was giving you orders. So we listened to the mission, and my jaw dropped, knowing it was harder than anything else we’d done.

“What the hell kind of level did you put that on?” I asked.

“They’re getting something we’d give about three weeks into the training program. It’s not the hardest shit we can pull, but it’s not easy either. Now hush so we can hear them, that’s the most important part of all of this.”

It was obvious the way Harper and Dax communicated was born from years of friendship. Sometimes they didn’t even have to finish a sentence before the other was already doing it. Void kept up a constant stream of information about what he could see—landscape, enemy arsenal, anything that might affect how they maneuvered across the battlefield.

“We got a pond up ahead, but it’s the only way to get where we need to be,” Void informed them.

“It’s fine, keep on course. Our ride can handle a little water,” Harper stated.

I blinked then looked at Savanna—she grinned. “Someone was paying attention in the video. The tank we have you operating is amphibious and can be airdropped since it’s a lightweight tank.”

That had some of the guys arguing in the back about some wrong call one of them made until I twisted around and shushed them. In the end, they failed the mission, but according to the simulation, they’d made it eighty-five percent of the way through. When the three of them emerged, they all looked rather put out until Savanna told them what she’d done.

“I knew it,” Dax yelled, pointing her finger at Harper. “See, didn’t I say they were going to really see what we could do?”

“Yes, yes, you did,” Harper said, patting Dax’s shoulder. “Now, as much fun as this has been, and I honestly really mean that, I’m not sure I can keep my eyes open much longer.”

I looked down at my watch and found it was almost one in the morning. “How long does it take to fly to Washington D.C.?”

“About two hours,” Jaxson said with a yawn. “We can probably get about five hours of sleep before we need to take off. Thank God they said nine and not like seven, that would have been brutal.”

“I’ve got bunks set up for you in the next building over,” Savanna shared, turning on her heel. “I’ll be sure to be here in five hours to make sure you’re up and can get out on time. The CIA isn’t an organization you want to keep waiting.”

Opening my mouth, I wanted to ask how she knew, but Ghost gave me a look, and I snapped my jaw shut. It seems I’ll get my answers for that in the morning.

Chapter 27

Dax

Mornings can go fuck themselves.

Did I give a shit that the bunk was nothing more than a thin pallet over squeaky springs? Nah, I passed the fuck out, and then the next thing I knew, Void was trying to wake me up. It was really a good thing I didn’t have a knife in my hand because I shit you not, I loved the man, but I’d have stabbed him.

“Little demon, I know you’re cranky, and the last thing you want to do is wake up, but we need to get Cam to his meeting,” Void reminded me as he turned to give me his back.

I cocked a brow at him. “What are you doing?”

“Trying to give you a piggyback ride,” he answered.

Okay, that had me smiling, and since I was on the top bunk, it made it super easy to wrap my arms around his neck and koala the fuck out of him. He tucked his hand behind me, cupping my ass for support or so he claimed, and headed out. Savanna was there with the truck and to-go cups of coffee.

I almost kissed her, but I didn’t.

What I didn’t account for was how hard it would be when your driver is trying to break a sound barrier in a motherfucking truck. Thankfully, I didn’t spill any, and I chugged it down before something else might prevent me from drinking it. Much to my shock, the guys tucked Harper and me in the back bed of the plane. Not giving a shit that Harper and Ghost had used it last, I snuggled with my best friend and fell back asleep in seconds.

When I woke up the second time, I was less stabby but still there. Cam woke me by pressing a kiss to my forehead.