Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 56278 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 281(@200wpm)___ 225(@250wpm)___ 188(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 56278 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 281(@200wpm)___ 225(@250wpm)___ 188(@300wpm)
“You get him there, and I’ll make sure he stays,” I said. That was our plan. I was flying up tonight, and Chris would pick up Kayden in Texas next week.
Because of my strange relationship with Kayden, I couldn’t be there when he got out. I knew he was beyond embarrassed, and he’d never been able to admit weaknesses around me. He’d proven that he would rather flee the scene, something we couldn’t risk. But, if given the chance, I knew how to get through to him, and for the first time ever, we’d have the opportunity to get to the bottom of things. I wasn’t going away for work, and he couldn’t escape.
“Forgive me for sayin’ this, but I kinda wish he’d stay in jail another few weeks,” Chris admitted.
I furrowed my brow and smacked him upside the head.
“I said forgive me!” he hollered, rubbing the spot. “Jesus, bro. I’m just saying he’d at least be safe in jail.”
“He’ll be safe with me too,” I replied firmly. “Any updates on the confirmation, by the way?”
He blew out a breath and nodded, then went to sit behind the desk. “They used his name in the last interaction we intercepted, so yeah.”
Goddammit. The one person in our family we’d kept completely out of the loop, far away from Hillcroft, and now he was a target because of who the rest of us were. Actually, just Chris this time. At some point, the people coming for Chris had seen him with Kayden; we were guessing it’d happened around Christmas, the last time Kayden had visited.
“How’s Quin takin’ it?” I asked. “He’s been busy lately.”
He shrugged. “Kinda like you, I reckon. He bitched to me about it the other day. He said, ‘I went from Operation Hellfire to budget meetings where I’m trying to reason with the K9 unit that we need to cut their budget in favor of buying more ammo.’”
I grimaced. Yeah, life had changed. More for Quin than for me, so I could only imagine how frustrating it was for him to take a back seat. Especially in this case. Kayden was a son to him.
“All right. Unless there’s anything else…” I rose to my feet, itching to leave his office. I had to go home and pack.
“That’s it.” He rounded the desk once more, and we briefly pressed our foreheads together. “See you in Alaska.”
I nodded and headed for the door—
“Wade?”
I stopped and looked over my shoulder.
Chris hesitated for a beat. “Do you still think it was a good idea for us to keep Kayden outta Hillcroft affairs?”
I…didn’t know. Given recent events, it seemed it didn’t matter, because hostiles could still put two and two together. That’d been the top reason anyway—to keep him safe and disassociated from at least Quinlan and Chris because of what they did for a living.
Kayden knew Quin ran a private security agency and that Chris worked there too, but we’d always downplayed the risks Hillcroft operators exposed themselves to.
“You remember how he reacted when I was injured in Fallujah,” I pointed out.
That had been the other reason.
As much as Kayden denied it, he struggled with anxiety, and he’d been in and out of panic until I had recovered—and until I had promised I wasn’t going overseas anymore.
“I know.” Chris nodded with a dip of his chin. “I just… I don’t know. Over the years, I guess I’ve reevaluated. Being kept outside of things never did me any good.”
As evidence showed, I hated that too, but… “The difference is, Kayden doesn’t know he’s being kept out of the loop. Ignorance is bliss and all.”
CHAPTER 1
February 16th, 2021
Kayden Winters
“This is called kidnapping,” I gritted out. “I’m being held hostage.”
Chris chuckled. “A hostage who can leave whenever he wants. Cool it with the drama, Kayden.”
Leave whenever I wanted? Was he fucking serious? As if the flight to Nome hadn’t been enough, how about the second flight in a bush plane to a place that didn’t actually have a name? And now a merry road trip in an off-road vehicle straight out onto the frozen tundra. How in the actual fuck was I gonna leave?
I clenched my jaw and stared out the window.
My brothers were overreacting. I hadn’t “lost it” for shit. I wasn’t “out of control.”
So I’d gotten into a few fights, and I’d spent a measly three months in jail because the judge had it out for me.
I couldn’t believe this was happening.
I felt like such an idiot too, for thinking Chris and Wade had wanted to hang out with me. I’d heard of their cabin in Alaska so many times. They came up here to fish, unwind, hunt, and nurse combat trauma.
Then we’d landed in the middle of nowhere, and Chris had informed me that I was here to get my shit together.
Fuck him. Fuck both of them. I couldn’t even call Dad for help. There was no service up here.