“It became personal to us too.” Reese clapped him on the shoulder. “Take care, kid. You have our numbers if you need anything.”
“Thank you—safe travels.” Gray stepped farther aside as the others joined them in the hallway to say goodbye as well. Everyone had different plans that were difficult to keep track of, but he knew River and Reese were renting a car. They’d drive to Denver, where they’d hop on a plane to DC.
Elliott and Tariq were next to leave an hour later. They hadn’t gotten nearly enough rest, having evidently done cleanup while Gray had slept. They’d boxed up Alicia’s tech that Gray was gonna bring home to Willow. They’d returned the rentals and driven out to the compound again for a last check, for Tariq’s peace of mind.
It was a bit humbling to say goodbye to the guys, because more than hugs and handshakes were exchanged. Elliott and Tariq gave their numbers to Gray, who, in turn, gave them his, and it was…hard to explain, but the act was so official. He felt included in their batshit bonkers band of bandits. There were promises of future meetups, barbecues, and pub crawls.
Over the past several weeks, Gray had gotten a glimpse into the lifestyle of PMCs, and he admired them all. Most of them seemed to be hardened grunts who competed to use as few words as possible—at first sight. But after a couple beers, the jokes rained down on them. It was a tight-knit community of misfits, and they stuck together. Everyone was always “a phone call away,” especially if someone needed support or a friend to talk to.
Dante was ready to leave at six, around the same time Gray was planning to wake up Darius. The man needed to eat. So did Ryan, who’d passed out on the couch.
“Wait till I’ve left,” Dante said. “We can talk whenever. Let them rest.” Then he pulled out his phone and smiled faintly. “Give me your number. I’ll text you some of my mother’s recipes that Darius got hooked on when he stayed with me.”
Gray happily complied, basking in this newfound connection. They weren’t just Darius’s “mates” anymore.
“I hope you’ll come see us again soon,” Gray said, sticking his hands down into the pockets of his sweats. “Without any missions in the works.”
“Amen to that,” Dante chuckled. “You did good, buddy. I was impressed by both you and Nikolaj.”
Gray stood a little taller. “I had a good teacher.”
Dante shook his head and picked up his two duffel bags. “It’s more than that. Take care of yourself—and Darius. Call if you need anything.”
“Will do. And same to you.”
Dante opened the door and nodded toward the living room. “Have Ryan walk you through the drone surveillance on the laptop when he wakes up. It ain’t urgent unless you hear the alarm sound.”
“Okay, thanks.”
The house suddenly felt empty.
Niko was out by the pool, Ryan was asleep in the living room, Darius in the master bedroom…
It was a weird feeling. Gray didn’t know how to land after everything they’d gone through. Partly from last night and these past couple of months; everyone had up and left right after, allowing them no time at all to talk and digest. The whole Alicia thing… The men had known her for so long, and she’d just stabbed them in the back. Now she was dead. Was there nothing to discuss? Did they simply move on with their lives?
Gray had heard Ryan and River talk a little bit earlier, but that couldn’t be enough. Could it? Ryan had been curious about River’s take on the operation—when he’d become suspicious or felt that “something wasn’t right.” To which River had responded, “Well, first it was the armored door. Running on a theme of leaving no traces behind, it didn’t make any sense if we were blowing up the door. And even if we’d replaced the thing, we were still bringing a pump-action shotgun in there, ready to blow out every door we encountered. It just didn’t add up. But at the same time, those were minor details in the grand scheme of things. As long as we got the job done and no evidence could be linked to us directly, I didn’t care a whole lot about the rest.”
That’d been a conversation Gray had wanted to go on longer—and with Darius around.
He chewed on his thumbnail and made the decision quickly. He’d wake up Darius, and if the man was feeling all right, it would be okay to ask some questions. So Gray headed toward their bedroom and quietly opened the door.
“Dare?” He walked over to the bed and sat down on the edge. “Hon, you need to eat something.” As he combed his fingers through Darius’s hair, he felt the heat at his first touch. But if there was one thing he’d learned after getting to know Darius Quinn, it was that a fever was normal after…oh, stab wounds, gunshot wounds, all of that. All the things that were seemingly a recurring part of their lives now.