I closed my eyes and mourned my friends for a moment.
“All right, well, I just had to ask.”
“No problem, man. Anytime.”
“Thanks.” The line went dead, and I found myself wondering who the hell the masked men were, and if they were law enforcement, why in the hell they’d sit and have a conversation and not just storm the place.
“Black.” Mike tapped his watch to tell me to get moving. “You good?”
“Yeah.” I shook my head and followed him downstairs to take my seat at the table. Cole didn’t waste any time and jumped right in.
Two hours later and a great job from the boys in Washington, the meeting ended.
I waited for everyone to leave the meeting then leaned against the table and watched Cole tuck his files away.
“How did Frank take the news?” I broke the silence, curious to see were his head was.
“After presenting the evidence Sloane emailed me last night, he and Chamness agreed that the rookie did put the codes on paper. Frank is just as dumbfounded as we were. How any soldier, especially one who went through the training program, could be so reckless just shows how much more we need to screen the men we select.”
“And those involved in the process.” I let that one sink in for a few seconds. “So, what happens to the general?”
“His ass will be relieved of duty, and he’ll face an inquiry sometime at the end of the month.”
“Great.” I was pleased to hear Frank took it as seriously as we all did.
Cole tossed the last file on the desk and rubbed his face like he was struggling with something. I couldn’t tell what was up, so I figured it was best to leave him be with his thoughts.
“Black,” he called as I opened the door, “the video camera you retrieved was blank, although Davie does feel he might be able to pull some data. Time will tell.” I gave him a tired nod before Cole rubbed his head. “And thank you.”
“For?” I closed the door behind me and turned back to him.
His jaw ticked, and I could tell he struggled with what he had to say.
“For giving me a reason to kill that son-of-a-bitch.”
We all had been waiting for the moment we could alert the CIA that Denton needed to be taken out. They just needed proof he was still working with the cartel, and they’d do what they did. Remove the problem in a roundabout way, and none of us would have the blood on our hands. Nice and clean.
“It needed to happen.”
He nodded and glanced at the phone that buzzed beside him.
“I guess he had some cult following in prison, called himself Seven Webs.” Cole chuckled while I shook my head.
“That explains the lame tattoos, then.”
“He was relentless, though. He couldn’t stop until he got what was mine.” His eyes darkened while he flicked a pen through his fingertips. “Chamness and BT have decided to move to Dusk,” he switched gears, “and I think we’ll hold off putting another team in Mexico right now.”
“Smart.” I nodded. “We need to change things up, and until we know who is a good fit, it’s best to start slow.”
“I think I might build a new team, take them directly from Camp Green. Groom them myself. It will be a lot of work, but it’s the right call.”
“Agreed.”
Cole sank back in his chair with a heavy sigh. We both stayed silent while we mulled over how quickly our lives were changing. “When did this happen? It used to be so simple, and now there’s all this entwined with the job.”
He looked so stressed I had to smile, but what I was about to say was cut short as we both looked at the door at the sound of the twins running down the hallway while Mia huffed threats after them.
I stood and opened the door then pointed down the hall with my chin. “When we all found someone.” I shrugged. “It’s not just the five of us anymore. We have more to protect, more of a reason to come home.” I chuckled lightly, loving how this conversation finally included me. “Our days of playing reckless heroes are long gone, my friend.”
“I suppose you’re right.” The lines around his eyes softened and lit up when Olivia appeared outside the door holding Ethan’s Nerf gun with pride. She held a finger to her lips to hush us and giggled when Cole gave her a high five in the air.