Royally Broken by Elle Boon Page 0,1

Yeah, he probably had a notebook on how to rattle the cage, or befriend a man. Dumbass, you don’t become a friend with a SEAL by sitting across from them.

“That’s it for now. You planning on sticking around base while you heal?” He looked toward Keys’ chest.

He didn’t move a muscle, except to blink and breathe as if pain wasn’t wracking his body from the wounds he’d sustained. “Sounds reasonable.” Keys didn’t say anymore, let them think what they wanted. His discharge papers from the hospital were already signed. He was waiting for the whole wheelchair shitshow to be brought in so he could leave.

“Good, good.” He picked up the folder, tapping it on the table again. “Well, I guess that’s it then. If we have any other questions, we’ll be in touch.” He stood up, chair scraping loudly.

Keys nodded, looked at the hand the other man held out, then at the camera. Whoever was there watching could suck his dick, but again, Keys kept all emotion from his face and body language. With a nod toward the unseen observers, he shook the man’s hand firmly, knowing he hadn’t expected Keys to have any strength after a couple weeks of being laid up in a hospital bed. After the door slid shut behind him, he sat there in silence. Finally, he turned to the side, swinging his legs over, getting to his feet. Folded on the chair was a black shirt and cargo pants along with a pair of socks and boots. He didn’t waste time going to the bathroom to dress, modesty wasn’t a thing in his world. Once he was clothed, he stared at the camera again, still not showing any discomfort. The door slid open; his chariot having arrived. He looked at the wheelchair the nurse had brought in. “Can I walk beside that thing?” He gave her a charming grin.

“Afraid not. Come on, I’ll make it fun.” She waved toward the chair.

Keys picked up his bag of stuff since he’d already packed before the suit showed up, sat down in the fucking chair, and plastered a smile on his face. “No wheelies.”

“I make no promises.” The door slid open as they came to it, and then he was being pushed out. He didn’t fidget or change his breathing pattern as they rolled toward the elevator. During his stint in the hospital, he’d walked the hall a few times as part of his rehab or whatever the fuck they’d called it.

“Is someone picking you up?” She asked.

Keys figured it was a normal question. “My cab should be outside.” He knew there would be one waiting since this was a busy area. At the lobby, she stopped just outside the revolving doors, giving him the opportunity to get up. “Thank you for the ride.” Keys didn’t give her the chance to protest his actions. Moving toward the exit, skipping the spinning doors, he grabbed the handle and pulled, exiting without a word, without looking back. As he walked outside, he wondered what the fuck he was going to do with his life.

Silas DeMarcus had died in that jungle with his team. The man walking out wasn’t him, hadn’t truly been in years. He’d been their weapons and computers expert, the one who could hack into computers anywhere at any time.

Outside the building, he flagged a cab down, getting in without looking left or right. Out of habit, he went on the notion he’d have a tail.

“Where to?” the driver asked.

Keys looked at the traffic ahead. “Can you get us lost in the flow of all this shit, and then I’ll decide?”

“Sure thing, mister. You running from your wife or girlfriend?” he asked pulling into traffic, signaling as he did.

“Something like that,” Keys agreed, lifting his cellphone so he could look through it to watch behind him without turning around. Several vehicles back, he noticed a sedan bobbing and weaving. Sure, it could be nothing, but he’d stayed alive by being careful. “Can you take this exit right here?” he asked, knowing the driver would need to cross two lanes and possibly piss a couple other drivers off. He held a hundred dollar bill up he’d pulled out when he’d gotten in. The two long-ass weeks he’d been laid up gave him enough time to get his go bag delivered to him. They’d trained him well.

“Yes, sir,” he agreed, jerking the wheel hard. If Keys hadn’t been braced he’d have fallen over.

With the phone still held up, he saw