Chapter Twenty-Two

“Where are we going?” Wrath grumbled as Ice flew down the freeway doing seventy-five.

The 101 was deserted this late at night and he had smooth sailing all the way to Santa Barbara.

“To Dave’s house.”

Wrath looked shocked and gripped the oh shit handle. “We can’t just drop in on the former SecDef.”

“Yes, we can. Dave and I go way back.”

“How far back?”

“Dave knew my dad. They served together.”

“So, he’s like your old man?”

“Kind of, I’d say an older uncle.” Ice tossed Wrath a grin.

“What about Stone? I don’t want to fuck with him,” Wrath said.

“Umm…” Ice darted a quick look at Wrath before returning his eyes to the highway. “What do you know about Stone and Dave?”

“Just what the rumor mill spits out. They have history. Are they a couple?”

Ice wasn’t going to touch that with a ten-foot pole.

“Stone shouldn’t be there,” he said instead. “They don’t live together.”

“They don’t?”

Ice shook his head and got off on the exit. He drove toward the beach and pulled up to Dave’s front gate.

“Hey Ice.” The guard in the small shack leaned out the window with a smile.

“Hey Mike.”

“Who’s that with you?”

“My good friend. Dave knows him.”

“All right, go on up.”

“Thanks!” Ice called out when Mike opened the gate and waved him on through.

“You know the guards on first name basis.”

Ice grinned. “I’ve known Dave since I was like nine.”

“How old is he?”

“I’m not sure.” Ice said, he’d lost track, but that kind of shit could be looked up on the internet. The birthdate of a former SecDef. Only Ice didn’t give a shit how old Dave was, the man was one of the most brilliant strategists he’d ever known. Nobody came close to Dave’s ability to get shit done when it counted. And that was what he hoped Dave would do when he told him about Solomon.

“He’s got to be close to retirement,” Wrath said, gazing at the huge house that sat just off of the California coast.

“Maybe. But he won’t retire,” he said and got out of the car.

Wrath gave a death glare when one of the guards insisted on frisking him and pulled out Wrath’s weapon.

“Can’t let him in there with this,” the bodyguard said, holding the nine-millimeter aloft.

“Here.” Ice held out his hand and the guard handed him the weapon. “Come on,” he said to Wrath and led him toward the door.

Once inside, he handed Wrath back his weapon and they followed another bodyguard to Dave’s study. Entering the room, Ice found Dave settled in his favorite chair in front of the window.

“Hey, Dave.”

Lowering the book he was reading, Dave gazed at Wrath and then to him.

“What brings you here at…” Dave glanced at his watch. “O-two hundred hours?”

“We have a story to tell you,” Ice said and waved Wrath to the big chair across from Dave.

Dave called his staff and another chair was brought in for Ice to sit in and a pot of fresh coffee made.

Wrath told Dave what he knew, including what he suspected was Rogue’s part.

Dave gazed at him curiously. “And you? Do you think that Rogue ordered the hit on you?”

Ice cradled the warm mug in his hands. “If you’d have asked me that a half an hour ago, I might have said yes. But no. I’m wondering. How would Rogue get me to that job on the pier if not for Solomon?”

“Exactly,” Dave murmured, and when the man’s cell phone buzzed, he lifted it and checked the screen before returning his attention to Ice.

“And Justice found Fisher waiting to kill me outside of Wrath’s place. How are we going to handle Fisher?”

“Justice will handle Fisher,” Wrath said, and Ice slanted him a squinting look before turning back to Dave.

“Solomon gave me and Stone jobs that split us up. How do you think Rogue is involved in that?”

“Let’s ask Stone what he thinks,” Dave said, and lifted his phone and sent a text.

A few moments later, Stone came from a side door and into the study. The man’s entrance startled Wrath enough to pull his weapon.

“Stone.”

“Wrath.”

The two men stared at each other and then exchanged smirks.

“Hey Stone,” Ice said.

“Hey Ice,” Stone said with a slight chin jerk and then glanced over his shoulder.

“You two can come in,” Dave said to someone behind Stone.

Savage filled the doorway and stepped inside the room, followed by Thane.

“I heard you three have already met,” Dave said to Ice.

“Yeah, hey.” Ice shook hands with both men.

“Let’s move this to the dining room,” Dave said and stood, carrying his cup out of the room and they all trailed after the man without hesitation.

“How come you’re here?” Ice asked, flipping his gaze between Savage and Thane.

“I’ve known Dave for years,” Savage said.

“So have I. Why haven’t we ever met?”

“I was commander of one of his specialty teams. I’ve never been here before.”

“Ah. Okay. Specialty as in the military or out?”

“When I was Army Special Forces,” Savage said.

Thane slung an arm around Savage’s shoulder as they walked. “Old Savage here took military leave, met me, and dragged me along for the ride, and the rest is history.”

“Dave called to discuss transferring to Erebus,” Savage said, giving Thane an annoyed look and pulled him into the room. Ice followed along with the others into the dining room and took seats around the large oak table. Dave’s staff filled the table with platters of finger foods and more beverages.

“So, Echo split at the airport?” Thane asked, reaching for a danish and eating half before he spoke. “And that was after he promised not to?”

“Yes.” Ice refilled his coffee cup and sipped at the fresh, hot brew.

“I wonder why,” Thane said, waving his pastry in the air. Savage caught Thane’s wrist and brought the sugary bread to his mouth.

“Don’t you dare,” Thane scowled, but it didn’t faze Savage and he ate the thing right out of the other assassin’s hand. “You’re going to pay for that tonight.”

Savage smirked, appearing unconcerned at the threat, and selected some cheese and meat from the charcuterie board.

Dave’s doorman stopped in the doorway. “Sir?”

“Yes?” Dave said.

“A Mr. Real is here.”

“Send him in.”

Real came into the room and everyone looked. Ice knew why. Real was a looker. Plus, he was ripped and reeked of power. After sweeping his gaze over the room, Real settled in the chair between Ice and Stone.

“I wonder if Echo was forced,” Savage said around a bite of food, picking up where Thane had seemed to be going with the questions.

Ice briefly closed his eyes. “I was wondering the same thing. We need to bring in Rogue.”

“I’ll find him and bring him in,” Stone said.

“No.” Wrath cut in, his tone low and hard. “I’ll find Rogue.”

Ice didn’t give a shit who found the fucker as long as he was located and stopped.

Before Echo was hurt or worse, killed.

“I need a minute,” Ice said, shoving up from the table. He walked from the room with nothing in mind but escaping prying eyes.

Grit’s collar jingled as the big dog kept pace with him.

Where the fuck was Echo? He stopped just inside of Dave’s study. When he swayed, he placed a hand on the wall to keep his balance. Inwardly cursing his fucking lightheadedness, his eyes burned and his throat closed.

A firm and comforting hand settled against his back and he sucked in a few quick gulps of air.

“They took him, Dave. They fucking took him.”

“If that’s the case, we will get him back,” Dave murmured low.

Ice doubled over, his face so heated that he thought his head would explode, and Dave wrapped an arm around his waist, holding him up. When he finally managed to stand upright, Ice stared at the far end of the study where the windows displayed the garden and the night outside.

“You tell Rogue and Solomon that I’m coming for them,” he ground the words through the building rage.

“Just take the night to think about it. Then we will plan.” Dave gripped him on the shoulders and booted the door closed with his foot. “I need you to keep what you know quiet for now.”

“Why?” Ice glared.

“Because this is bigger than you can imagine.”

“Meaning?” Ice was so fucking confused. It was clear to him! Find Solomon, shoot him in the head, end of story.

“He has several facilities.”

His brain spun. Facilities? More kids in cages? “What the fuck?”

“Yeah.” Dave ran a hand through his thick, dark hair with a sigh.

“How did you find out?”

“Real has been working undercover.”

“With Pegasus? Phoenix?”

“Genesis.”

Who the fuck was Genesis? He put aside his questions on that for now. Answers on that could fucking wait.

“Then let’s get all the teams and go in there and rescue everyone,” Ice urged.

Dave gave a sad shake of his head. “We don’t know where any of them are yet. Real only discovered Solomon’s hand in this a few weeks ago.”

Ice clenched his hands, and he trusted Dave, but how in the hell had Dave hired someone like Solomon?

“I’m sorry, but what in the hell did you see in Solomon that made you want to have him head up Erebus?”

“His father and I served together,” Dave said.

Ice closed his eyes. Shit. He knew firsthand how Dave felt about old military buddies and their kids.

“I vetted him,” the man continued. “He’d been doing jobs for hire for a few years. My mistake was in thinking he was another you.” Dave’s sigh was heavy and it was his turn to grip the man’s shoulder in comfort.

“Please tell me you have a plan?” Ice whispered. Dave had to have a strategy figured out by now. The man was scary fucking smart like that.

“I do. We keep this quiet for now.” Dave jerked his head toward the door. “There are a bunch of loose cannons out there. I don’t want any of them killing Solomon before we can find the children.”

That made sense in a fucked up way because Ice knew without a shadow of doubt that Wrath would kill Solomon if he knew what the asshole had done to Rogue.

“All of you are staying here for now,” Dave continued, and it wasn’t a request.

Suddenly, Stone was there in the room. The man must have come through one of the many passages in the house.

Had he heard them talking about Solomon?

Stone placed a comforting hand on Ice’s arm, but the only one he wanted touching him with comfort or anything else was Echo.

He pulled away, gave them a short nod, and then walked out of the study with Grit on his heels. Jogging up the stairs, he made it to the room he usually occupied and closed the door.

Dropping down to sit on the mattress, Grit pushed his nose into his hands and Ice absently caressed his head.

The fucked up part was that he couldn’t even call Echo. While he had a phone, Echo didn’t.

Unless…maybe he got a new one already. Ice punched in the number Echo had made him memorize while in the Maldives.

It rang and went to voicemail.

“Call me,” he said gruffly. “I’m worried.”

Ending the call, his mind continued to race.

Was Echo with Rogue? Did Echo leave by his own will?

Or, had he been forced?