Chapter 30

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c aptain looked like he was ready to rip someone’s head off, and I had a sinking feeling it was going to be mine.

I cursed under my breath, feeling like a fucking idiot as I stood there helplessly, fighting against the overwhelming urge to disobey his order.

“Lieutenant, Dr. Davis, my office. Now,” he commanded, his eyes landing on me and Red, which caused his scowl to deepen.

Red stopped moving, her movements coming to an abrupt halt as she turned to stare at me with wide eyes, silently demanding answers that I didn’t have.

And then, like a ripple effect, everyone else in the room stopped moving too. I tried to ignore the prying gazes, but it was fucking impossible. I simply hated being the center of attention, especially when I had no fucking clue what this was all about.

Captain’s face turned an even deeper shade of red and I thought I saw a vein throbbing in his temple as he realized no one was moving.

“Did I not make myself clear? Both of you, get. To. My. Office. NOW.”

No clue what the hell we did to piss him off, but it was clear as day we were about to get our asses handed to us.

“Yes, sir,” I answered for both, feeling a headache coming on.

Red snapped out of it at the sound of my voice, her eyes flicking away. We traded a quick, nervous glance before I followed her out of the training room.

As soon as we were out of earshot, Red turned to me, her voice tight.

“Do you have any idea what this is about?” she asked and her question hung in the air like a fucking guillotine waiting to drop.

I shrugged, trying to think of a plausible explanation. “No idea,” I admitted, racking my brain for any possible reason why the captain would want to see us.

But the truth was, I had no fucking clue. And none of the scenarios playing out in my head made me feel any better.

“You think it has something to do with that woman, Raven?”

I raised an eyebrow, feeling a twinge of defensiveness. “What makes you believe that?” I asked, trying to deflect her suspicions before they gained any traction.

Sure, I’d considered that maybe Raven had gone and ratted us out—spotted Red leaving my room and decided to act like a fucking narc. But then again, that wasn’t Raven’s style. She wasn’t the type to go crying to Captain like a whiny little bitch. Nah, she preferred to deal with shit the old-fashioned way—with her fists.

Red’s eyes narrowed as she leveled me with a knowing look. “I’m not blind, Rogue. I saw the way you two interact. There’s history there,” she insisted, her voice trailing off as if she was thinking out loud.

I scoffed, denying her claims. “Yeah, well, she always had a fucking crush on me. But I never engaged in it,” I retorted, hoping she would believe me.

I didn’t know why, but it was important to me that she believed me. I couldn’t bear the thought of her doubting my intentions.

Red didn’t budge, her expression cold, eyes still locked on mine. “What if she saw me in your bed and felt threatened or something?” she suggested, clearly unconvinced.

I laughed—too loud, too forced—trying to shut that thought down. “I doubt she saw anything, and even if she did, Raven likes to take care of things personally. She wouldn’t run crying to the captain like a fucking child,” I explained, trying to convince myself as much as her.

Red rolled her eyes so hard I thought they might stay that way. “Yeah, I felt that when she was training me,” she said, letting out a harsh laugh. “She was brutal. And you know what? I think she enjoyed it.”

A shiver ran down my spine Red wasn’t wrong. Raven wasn’t the type to let shit go, especially not when it came to someone she saw as a threat.

“You think Raven’s got it out for you?” I asked, hating how right her words felt.

Her laugh turned even more bitter. “I don’t know, but I got the feeling she didn’t like me very much.”

I didn’t want to agree with her. Not because I thought she was wrong—she wasn’t—but because I didn’t want her to freak out. She already had enough shit on her plate. Last thing I needed was her worrying about this crap too.

I shot her a tight-lipped smile, trying to play it cool even though I was seething inside.

“Look, let’s just focus on what Captain wants, okay?” I said, trying to steer the conversation back on track. “We can worry about Raven’s drama later.”

If things did escalate, I wouldn’t hesitate to do whatever it took to keep Red safe. Because no matter what, she was mine to protect, and I’d be damned if I let anyone hurt her, not while I still had breath in my fucking lungs.

As we headed toward Captain’s office, I glanced at Red. She looked like hell—sweat dripping, body shaking just from keeping up with me.

I slowed my pace, not that I’d admit why, and shot her a look. “You good?” I asked, reaching out to grab her arm.

She blinked like she’d just woken up, forcing herself to focus. “Yeah, I’m okay,” she mumbled with a weak smile that fooled no one.

I raised an eyebrow, not buying it for a second. She didn’t look fine. I knew she was too damn stubborn to admit when she needed help and I hesitated for a moment, debating whether or not to press her further.

“I’ll have a word with Raven, tell her to take it easy on you all,” I offered, deciding to take matters into my own hands. “You’re not used to this kind of training, and I don’t want you to burn out.”

She cut me off with a shake of her head. “That won’t be necessary.”

The tension in her voice told me otherwise. “Are you sure?” I pressed, wanting to make sure she wasn’t just putting on a brave face for my sake. “I mean, she’s been pushing you pretty hard,” I pointed out, my concern for her well-being outweighing any discomfort I might feel about confronting Raven.

She nodded, her response coming a beat too late. “I’ll be fine, Rogue,” she said, her voice stronger this time.

I knew she was tough as nails, more than capable of handling herself, even against a bitch like Raven, so I let it slide. For now. But fuck if I wasn’t itching to step in.

“Careful, mate,” I grumbled, sidestepping a pair of oblivious soldiers as Red and I made our way down the corridor.

Didn’t even get the words out before some clumsy dumbass plowed right into us, sending a flurry of papers flying in all directions.

“Watch where you’re going, numbskull!” I shouted, grabbing Red’s arm to steady her.

The kid—some lanky, awkward private—looked like he was still wet behind the ears. Barely out of fucking diapers.

“Sorry, sir! Ma’am!” he stuttered, scrambling to gather the scattered papers. "I’ve got correspondence for Captain Collins, and I’m running late...”

I rolled my eyes and muttered, “Well, don’t let me fucking stop you.” But then I caught the desperate look in his eyes, and my annoyance fizzled out.

He couldn’t be more than twenty-one years old, fresh out of boot camp with that look of wide-eyed innocence that made me feel a pang of nostalgia. I mean, shit, he reminded me of myself back when I first joined the army, all green and clueless and scared shitless.

Red gave me a warning look, but I was already bending down to help the kid pick up the mess.

As I was scooping up the papers, one particular document caught my attention. It was a file with a bunch of military jargon on it, but one line jumped out at me—’Delivery of M4A1 carbines and M24 sniper rifles to Base Alpha’.

With a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach, I scanned the contents, my blood running cold as I realized what I was looking at. According to the report, a shipment of equipment and guns had been delivered to the base weeks ago. But as I looked around at the sorry state of our supplies, I knew damn well that none of us had ever seen a single goddamn rifle.

What a load of shit.

I’ve been on enough patrols with my guys to know we were still using the same busted-ass gear we’d had since day one. Not a single new rifle had touched this base.

I clenched my jaw, the pieces of the puzzle slowly falling into place. Someone was fucking with us, siphoning off supplies meant for the front lines while we were left high and dry. And I had a sneaking suspicion that Captain was balls-deep in this clown fest, whether he knew it or not.

Regardless, that bastard would get what was coming to him. And when he did, I’d be the first in line to watch him fucking burn.

The private gave us this shaky little grin, like he was grateful for the bare minimum. “Thank you,” he beamed at us, still trembling as he scooped up the last of his papers.

“Yeah, whatever,” I grunted, barely sparing him a glance.

There were bigger fucking fish to fry, and I didn’t have time to play babysitter for some clueless rookie who couldn’t even hang on to his own damn documents.

As the kid stood up, a gruff voice called out from behind us.

“Private Johnson, get your ass over here!” Captain barked, sounding like he was ready to tear this poor kid apart.

I shoved the last of the papers into his sweaty, trembling hands. “Better get going,” I grumbled, watching him jump like a damn rabbit, gripping those files like his life depended on it.

He looked like he was about to shit himself as he turned to face Captain, all color draining from his face.

“I—I’m sorry, sir,” he stuttered. “I was just trying to—”

Captain cut him off, striding forward to snatch the files from his hand like the kid was holding a bomb. “I’ll take those,” he growled, flipping through the papers, his expression getting uglier with every second.

The kid dropped his head, retreating like a whipped dog. And of course, Captain just twisted the knife.

“A kindergartener could do a better job than this.”

Morale around here was clearly circling the fucking drain.

The private opened his mouth to apologize again, but Captain cut him off, sharp and final. “Save it. I don’t know why I even bothered giving you a chance.”

I swear, the kid went ghost white, like he was about to piss his pants right there. Captain flipped through the papers like he was reading some kind of personal insult.

“Get out of my sight before I decide to make an example out of you.”

Red and I shared a look, both of us raising an eyebrow.

Captain Shitstain was undoubtedly in a good mood.

“Yes, sir,” the kid said, practically tripping over his own feet to get out of there.

What a fucking joke.

I shook my head, wondering how this guy even made it through basic training.

Fucking amateur.

As much as he didn’t deserve that kind of bullshit, I wasn’t about to sacrifice my balls to Captain Fuckstick. I bit my tongue, swallowed the comeback burning in my throat, and just took a deep breath. Not worth the hassle.

“Well, that was fun,” I said, dusting off my pants.

As soon as the kid vanished around the corner, Captain’s eyes zeroed in on us like a pair of heat-seeking missiles.

“And you two, get inside my office. Now.”

Red met my gaze, and I could see the same simmering anger staring back at me. We both knew it—Captain’s a complete cunt, with a stick so far up his ass, he could probably taste wood.

I pushed open the office door, Red right next to me, and Captain marched in behind us, slamming the door so hard the walls shook.

Same typical military office—sterile, functional, and devoid of any personality. But what caught my attention was the piece of shit already sitting in one of the chairs.

What the fuck was he doing here?

Captain dropped into his seat behind the desk, tossing the files on it like they were trash.

“I called you all here because Doctor Moore brought something disturbing to my attention,” he said, his gaze drilling into Red like she was the target.

I glanced at Dr. Fuckface, who was watching Red with a self-satisfied smirk and I wanted to punch him in the face, break his nose, and make him eat his own teeth.

What was his game?

“It seems,” Captain continued, “there’s been a... discrepancy in Viper’s case.”

Red’s expression didn’t change, but I sensed her hackles rising. “What are you talking about, sir?”

Dr. Cockwaffle cleared his throat, his smug expression growing even more obnoxious.

“It appears, Captain, that Dr. Davis’s treatment of Viper’s blood loss was... unorthodox.”

What a slimy, manipulative piece of shit.

Red’s eyes flashed, but she kept her cool.

“That’s not true, Dr. Moore. I followed standard protocol—”

Captain raised a hand, cutting her off, his face stony as ever. “Doctor Moore has shown me the blood results,” he continued, his eyes boring into hers with all the warmth of a goddamn iceberg. “And it looks like instead of giving Viper the proper medication for blood loss, you gave him an anticoagulant that nearly killed him. Care to explain that?”

Red’s face went as white as snow at Captain’s accusations. The evidence was stacked high, and we had jack shit to prove otherwise. We were circling the drain, and fast.

“I would never intentionally harm a patient,” she protested with a desperate sincerity that tore at my fucking heart.

“You are a doctor, for crying out loud,” Dr. Wanker spat, his face heating up. “You should know better.”

I was fuming, my anger directed at Dr. Twatwaffle, who was enjoying this trainwreck a little too much. And the more I thought about it, the more it made sense.

He had the motive, the means, and the opportunity.

His arrogant look told me everything I needed to know—the bastard had orchestrated the whole thing just to screw over Red. He’d switched those labels, setting us up for this catastrophic failure and knowing exactly what would happen after. But we didn’t have concrete fucking evidence to pin this shit on him.

“You’re gonna have to do better than that, Dr. Davis,” Captain lectured her, crossing his arms.

That was the last fucking straw.

I couldn’t stand there and watch as Red got crucified for something she didn’t do. I squared my shoulders and stepped forward, fixing the captain with a glare that could strip paint off a wall.

“It’s not her fault,” I exploded, my voice echoing with pure rage. “ I gave her the wrong vial.”

Captain barely blinked and arched an eyebrow, not impressed by my outburst. “Elaborate.”

I felt Red’s eyes on me, practically begging me to shut my mouth and let it go. But fuck that. There was no way in hell I was letting her take the fall for this.

“I made the mistake,” I said, standing my ground. “I handed her the wrong vial. Didn’t check it. If anyone’s to blame here, it’s me.”

Just as I was about to continue, Dr. Fuckwit piped the fuck up and opened his mouth to speak. “It doesn’t matter whose fault it is,” he interrupted me. “It was Dr. Davis’s duty to check if it was the correct substance before administering it.”

My fingers curled into a fist and my blood was pumping as I rushed towards Dr. Douchebag, ready to knock his teeth down his throat.

“Pretty fucking convenient, isn’t it?” I asked derisively. “How you just vanish and then magically show up at the perfect moment to cover your ass.”

Dr. Dipshit frowned and tried to appear offended, but he just looked like an arrogant prick. “I didn’t disappear, you moron,” he countered, his expression turning sour. “I was busy doing my job while you were off playing soldier.”

I scoffed, rolling my eyes at his pathetic attempt to act high and mighty. “Yeah, playing soldier while you were dodging responsibility,” I stated flatly. “And now you’re trying to pin this shit on her.”

Dr. Jackass stepped forward, sizing me up and puffed up like a peacock showing off his feathers. “I don’t need to,” he replied, glancing over at Red. “She fucked up all on her own.”

That was a low blow. He was obviously trying to get a rise out of me.

And it worked.

“Go shove your opinion up your ass, you spineless coward.”

I felt my hand move before my brain could catch up, instinctively grabbing Dr. Prick by the collar. I pulled him close, jerking him up to meet my cold, emotionless eyes.

My fist clenched as I prepared to connect it with his arrogant face and the motherfucker grinned at me as if he was enjoying this. He was trying to provoke me, and I was itching to knock him out.

In a split second, I felt someone grabbing my arm and pulling me back before I could do any lasting damage.

“ That’s enough ,” Captain’s voice rang out, piercingly authoritarian but I didn’t back down. “ That’s fucking enough! ” he warned again, louder this time.

I gritted my teeth, the taste of bile rising in the back of my throat as I forced myself to back the fuck off before I did something that would land me in deep shit.

“Lieutenant, I need to remind you that Dr. Davis was transferred to this base as a favour to you. You asked for her to be assigned here, and I granted your request.”

I didn’t need a reminder of the debt I fucking owed.

He had this condescending way that made me want to punch him too, but I bit my tongue.

A low growl rumbled from deep in my chest as I released that cunt’s collar, stepping back, struggling to calm the hell down.

“Yeah, I didn’t forget that, sir ,” I replied in a more controlled voice. “But that doesn’t mean I’m going to stand by and watch this fucker sabotage her career.”

“That’s not what’s happening here, Rogue,” Captain replied, full of that holier-than-thou bullshit, turning to Red. “What is happening is Dr. Moore will be overseeing all of Dr. Davis’s medical decisions from now on. Every call you make will need to go through him. You act only with his permission.”

Beneath all the anger, there was a persistently sense of despair, a feeling of being helpless, that no matter how hard I fought, I was powerless to stop the machine from grinding us all into fucking dust.

Red’s defeated expression tore at my fucking heartstrings, her eyes dull with resignation as she asked the question we’d both been dreading.

“How long?”

Captain dodged the question like the coward he was, his face unreadable, hiding behind more bullshit.

“I’ll reassess the situation in a few weeks, Dr. Davis. See how things go.”

“A few weeks ?” she repeated, her voice spiked with outrage. “You’re going to let him dictate my every move for weeks ? Months? Forever?”

“I’ll review the situation regularly,” was his final verdict.

It wasn’t fucking fair, none of it was.

It was rigged from the start, and it made me want to tear the whole damn system down. But no amount of yelling or swinging fists would change the fact that Red was now trapped, forced to dance to that piece of shit’s tune.

Still, this fight was far from over.

As the captain wrapped up, his eyes locked onto mine, delivering his final fucking warning.

“Lieutenant,” he said low and even, “watch your temper. You’re on thin ice, son. One more outburst, one more incident, and there will be consequences.”

Son.

I nearly told him to go fuck himself right then and there, that his threats meant jack shit to me.

“You heard me?” he asked again because I wasn’t reacting fast enough for his liking.

I bit back the fucking retort that rose to my lips, knowing that now wasn’t the time to push my luck any further.

I’d be digging my own grave.

“Loud and fucking clear, sir ,” I answered curtly, locking eyes with him, making sure he saw the hate burning in mine.

He nodded, seemingly satisfied that I’ve gotten the message.

Fine. I’d seethe. I’d simmer. I’d bide my time and wait for my moment to strike back. Because sooner or later, they’d fucking pay.

For Red.