Their Property (Four Mercenaries 3)

Clover used to be the first one to charge into things, so it ached to see him turn overly cautious, but maybe he needed more time to lick his wounds.

“It’s just all so sudden,” Clover whispered, squeezing Tank’s hand. “You think Apollo is there too?”

“Are you telling me you want to sit this one out?” Tank asked, wanting to know upfront what cards he’d been dealt. This wasn’t a night when they could afford hesitation.

Clover opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out. Once. Twice. “What if I fail?” he asked in a tiny voice.

Tank pushed Clover’s chin up. “You won’t, baby. This is not the time to doubt yourself. Boar is somewhere out there. Trapped, hurting. God knows what they did to him. You need to be brave. I know it must be hard after what happened, but we need to depend on you, okay? You’ve got the skills. You were the one to crawl out of Apollo’s grasp.”

Clover swallowed, nodding slowly, even though his shoulders remained low. “I want Boar back so bad.”

Tank pulled him close, relieved to feel Clover’s warm body in his arms and breathe in the scent of the strawberry shampoo he used. This small moment soothed every ache--both inside and out. “I know how you feel. When I was in Afghanistan, one of my close friends died in an ambush. I was terrified to go out there again. Death became more real and that switched something in my head.

“I tried not to let it show, but it was a struggle. I got antsy, and angry, but my commanding officer was a smart guy and caught it in time. He built me up, you know. And sure, it might only be words, but they mean a lot when they come from someone you respect. Once I got back out there and understood I was still just as capable, the fear subsided. We might be afraid, but we can’t let some bastards win. So if you don’t feel ready, tell me now, but I think you do have the skills we’ll need from you.”

Clover took a deep, shaky breath and nodded. “I won’t let you down.”

Tank kissed him and gently stroked his fine hair. “I know you won’t. There’s a med kit in the back. Have a look at Pyro, because he’s so high he might not realize he’s hurt. Are you… okay staying alone with him? I’ll be taking the bike back there so that we don’t lose Boar.”

Clover shook his head and gave Tank one more kiss, though he lingered close for the longest moment, not yet willing to let go of his safety net. “It’s fine. I’ll be fine.”

Tank exhaled and pressed their lips together for the final time before sliding out of the cab. “Pyro, you need to rest before we strike. Keep Clover safe. I’m going to watch the arena to make sure we don’t lose Boar. You lay a fucking finger on our boy, and I’m gonna make sure you’re dead before you get to see Boar again. Understood?”

In the dark, Pyro was a pale figure that looked more like a ghost than a person of flesh and blood. He took a step toward Tank, as if he wanted to protest, but reality must have hit him hard, because he nodded instead.

“Well, I’m gonna break your neck if you lose him.”

Tank rolled his eyes and climbed on the bed of the truck. “Good talk.”

He put the headset into his ear and chose Drake’s number before unstrapping his bike. After what had transpired earlier that night, he wasn’t certain Drake would pick up but hoped that repeated calls would eventually lure him out of his self-imposed exile.

Tank was on his third call and in the middle of getting the ramp ready when Drake stopped being an ass.

“What is it?” he asked in a bland tone.

“We found Boar.”

The line became so quiet Tank worried Drake might have dropped his phone, but what followed was a stifled noise, and then, his voice. “What? What do you mean?”

By the time Tank set off on his motorbike, he had briefed Drake.

He left the pickup behind and drove turning off his light every now and then to avoid being spotted. His sole focus was Boar. The sweet guy who always tried to mediate between them all, and who’d gotten into this mess simply because he wanted to protect Clover and avoid conflict in their group.

Boar was a grown man, and made his own decisions, but was just twenty-six and Tank felt responsible for him in ways he didn’t for Pyro or Drake. Maybe it was because Tank had met Boar, saving his life from a bunch of hillbilly drug dealers, but he’d never gotten over the feeling that Boar was somehow under his care.

Until Clover came along, Boar had been the ‘baby’ of the group. When a job needed a friendly face, he’d been the one to take on the role of the innocent, bumbling bear. And when tensions got too high, Boar always found a way to get everyone back together.