59. daegan

THREE MONTHS LATER

59

DAEGAN

"What's that?"

Kane asks me as we gear up for the mission I've been waiting for since I was captured.

We found The Surgeon. The area is hot, but the Navy wanted to send the best of the best SEAL Teams to capture him…dead or alive.

I twirl a closed thick box from my valentine. I hold it with both gloved hands, and I'm tempted to shake it. My future bride-to-be is thinking of me. I'm going to tease her about this when I see her again.

I haven't talked to her in a few days. A few days ago, I texted her to let her know I was going out on a mission and that I would talk soon. She didn't respond but I'm used to it by now because of our schedules. The time difference is drastic. When it's daytime over here, she's asleep. When she's awake, I either don't have my phone, or I'm racked out. It's unbalanced but that was to be expected.

I lift it up so he can get a better view.

"A box," I reply.

He scoffs.

"Obviously, asshole," he spits with a smirk. Kane tucks a knife into his kit.

"I don't know. It came in yesterday. I haven't opened it yet."

I shrug. I tuck it back into my locker. I want to open it when I get back to the FOB. It's more of a motivation to fight harder. I get to come home to a mysterious gift Alessia shipped to me from back home.

"I wish I had an old lady at home to send me things," Lopez mutters under his breath while he twirls a toothpick in between his teeth.

"Maybe if you stop putting your dick in a different woman every week, you would have one." Kane chimes in while he holds his pistol, looking down through the sights. He has it aimed at the floor, and he squints at it.

"You know…" Lopez sits down beside me. "There is someone I think about. Someone who I always pictured myself settling down with. The house, the dog, some kids, even marriage. Somewhere on a ranch in Texas."

"Who's the poor girl?" I ask.

He chuckles.

"I call her mi mariposa. Her name's?—"

"Lock it the fuck up. We gotta move." Grim cuts him off with a stern, deep voice. Grim's massive figure comes into view. His blue eyes glow against his painted face, and he's no longer Danny Rider. He's Grim, like the Reaper. He looks at me, then Kane, then Lopez. Rooker walks up from behind and stands side by side with him.

We are all still, listening with wide eyes and open ears.

I take one last look at my locker. I can't wait to open it after a mission fucking accomplished. I put any thoughts of Alessia and any other distractions locked away for the last time in the back of my mind before I transform into work mode.

It's done.

I take a deep breath in and relax my shoulders.

I have a dreadful feeling about this one…and I can't shake it.

Everyone has camo painted on their faces—shades of black, green, and brown disguise us.

Pure, thick silence consumes the room, and it's full of tension.

It's like everyone knows the Reaper is near, and we can't do anything about our future that has already been sealed.

"We've gone over the plan a hundred times already. We got this." Grim tells us.

"Hooyah." We all say synchronized.

Admiral Ravenmore walks into the room, and the atmosphere changes. Everyone knows I'm with his stepdaughter. It's been a couple of months since that day in his office when he asked me to promise to stay away from Alessia.

He's bitter about it and hasn't talked to me like he used to since.

Rightfully so. He knew I was married. It's something that'll eat me alive for not being honest with Alessia. But I never cheated.

Grim looks tensed up. We all have our armor plates on, gloves, kits, and our waists littered with weapons. We're ready to fight. We're ready to win.

We're swimming into the area. The HVTs are hiding on an island, and we're in the ocean. We make it to shore after agonizing minutes of swimming through strong currents. The black sea is an element even I know not to underestimate, but we all make it to land with all our limbs intact.

Grim takes the lead, of course. Other SEAL teams and Delta operators are on standby for QRF. But we're ready.

The sand is unforgiving. Our boots sink in, but we're vigilant and determined. We set up in the place Intelligence authorized us to. Lopez has comms ready. Slaughter, Rooker, and Grim get settled in their spots. We're in deep with the trees. Right away, it's my cue to get to work. As expected, there are enemies surrounding the beach. There are two of them, already aiming their weapons straight at us.

I take the initiative.

They're in my crosshairs.

Goodnight.

My finger is on the trigger as Grim calls my name through the mic. They all start to shoot at once, and I begin to hum.

"Creature."

"Already on it," I respond quickly.

I send it. I pull the trigger, and the kickback rolls into my shoulder.

The target goes down as the bullet pierces his face. Then the next one falls, and the next one. The silencer on my weapon made the shots quiet.

The world grows quiet. The sound of the ocean surrounds us. Insects and the wind rattling the trees is almost soothing. I love the outdoors, but right now…it's biting back, and the eerie sounds scream at us.

Something is wrong.

Something is very wrong.

Suddenly, there's shouting from a distance, and in a split second, we're surrounded by bullets. The enemy releases havoc, and we're pinned down in a spot with little fallback cover.

I keep spraying, hitting enemies left and right, but they just keep coming.

It's an army.

"Bro, what the fuck!" Lopez shouts and starts to radio in our location for support.

"I don't like this, Grim! I don't like it at all!" Rooker exclaims as we all return fire. The bullets look like mini fireflies through the darkness, but they're flying fast, and they're not missing a beat.

"Shit!" Grim shouts.

"What's going on? Talk to me, Grim!" Kane shouts into the mic. He's in the center of us all, and Grim is on the far left.

"I've been shot in the side." Grim rasps in the mic. "I'm fucking good, though. Keep fighting!"

Shots and more shots everywhere. They're coming from us and them.

"Damn it, that fucking hurts!" Rooker yells in pain. "I've been shot. I'm hit!"

"Pinche mierda! I'm shot too, brothers." Lopez agonizes from the far right. But he continues to radio in for support and doesn't stop returning fire.

I turn to Kane, and he has someone running up on him. He's the only one who hasn't been shot. I see two tall figures running up on him. Everyone else is busy keeping the threats away, but I've got his six.

Two bullets ring out from my rifle. First on the left side of his head and the second one on the right. Both bullets pierce through the wind, and they go down before they can grab him.

"Fuck, man, thank you!" Kane gratefully shakes. His dark blue eyes are wide and on high alert.

"Thank me with a beer later, loverboy," I tell him as my grip tightens on my rifle.

He smiles, laughs, and lifts his rifle to his shoulder to fire. But then I feel a bullet stab me in my leg, making me tumble over. I grunt from the pain. The bullet knocks the air from my lungs. The shot forced me to drop my rifle, and I laugh as I watch my favorite color drip out of me.

Fuck that hurt.

"Grim! Fucking move!" Kane's voice is laced with urgency. I look up as I try to catch my breath. Kane shouts at Grim and jumps to him. But it's too late. Grim gets shot on the far right side of his chest, making him fall over. Kane takes his spot when he pushes him with his arm, causing Kane to get shot in the chest two times.

Grim gets the energy from God knows where and grabs a grenade from his kit, and throws it a few feet away in front of us from where the shots came from. Loud pained groans follow, and it's a target hit.

The sound from the blast leaves us all with ringing ears. My entire world feels like it's going in slow motion. Smoke is everywhere but the fucking bullets don't stop.

"Give us cover, Creature! Kane is down. He's down! He's fucking down! Call for air support now, Tex!"

"They're on their way already! We have to hold our ground!" Lopez calls out.

"We gotta get back to the ocean!" Rooker orders us as he takes a round to his leg and then his side.

Shit.

He buckles over and grunts. He punches the floor with his gloved balled fist, pissed off. He growls in frustration. "Fucking hell!" He raises his rifle again and looks through his scope.

"How are we going to get to the water?! We're fucking surrounded!" Lopez shouts at Rooker as Lopez takes another shot in his arm. It sends blood spraying everywhere, and I hold my rifle up and take out five more targets.

We're all bleeding.

We are all in fucking trouble.

Grim drags Kane back to me. I look down and see that Kane's been shot straight through his plate and into his heart.

Shit.

"Slaughter. You keep on breathing, brother." I order him.

You're going to be alright.

We're all going to be alright.

He nods and grabs a hold of his chest. The blood is profusely leaking. He's covered in dirt, sweat, and blood. We all are.

Grim tries to help him, and I'm doing everything I can to breathe as another bullet wounds me in my side. A burning sensation runs through me, and I growl.

"Fuck." I spit out blood and shake my head twice.

I've been shot again, but I won't stop shooting.

Kane's voice makes me do a double take.

"Tell our girl I'll say hello to Paul for her." He struggles to talk. He's having short breaths, and it sounds like he's on his way to dying.

No.

No.

No.

"Don't you fucking dare make me tell Ari that! You're going to live through this, Kane. Don't make me tell her that!" Grim is in a full-blown panic. "You're my brother! Don't you go! Don't you fucking dare!" He snarls at Kane. I want to hear Kane's remark, but it never comes. I stop firing and take a moment.

Wake up, Kane. Wake the fuck up.

But he doesn't.

The reality sets in as hope fades to fucking nothing.

Grim's desperate to keep him alive, but Kane's already out. He puts pressure on his chest, and Kane's frozen. Grim watches him in disbelief, like he's in deja vu. This is the second time that I know he's had to watch one of his brothers die. Sadly, this is my fifth time, but this moment is hitting me harder. Grim's light blue eyes water, and I watch blood come out of his own chest. Something starts to come up my throat, and I taste iron. I spit my blood onto the ground and cough hoarsely.

Kane is the one I'm closest to on the team.

Alessia and him are close.

What the fuck am I going to tell her? Will I even get to come back home to tell her anything?

Kane is gone. His eyes are closed, and he's as pale as the moon that shines over us.

My heart aches. But the adrenaline keeps us going. It keeps us all going. We're all shot up and wounded on our way to hell.

"Grim!" I call him out, hoping it snaps him out of his thoughts. We stare at each other, thinking the same thing. The vein on his neck bulging in fury. We come to a mutual understanding as Lopez and Rooker groan from pain as they take on fire, just as they shoot back with their weapons.

We're all going to die here.