Quadruple Duty

“Yes!”

“Then pull your chair over here,” I grinned. “And let me show you some photos…”

Thirty-Six

KYLE

“And that’s what he said? You’re absolutely sure?”

Dakota nodded as he made the last turn into the base. His truck slowed and the guard lifted the gate before he even held up his ID.

“Three times I asked him,” Dakota explained. “And three times he told me he’d taken care of it.”

“He bette

r have,” I said. “Because we’re not putting her in danger again.”

It was unacceptable, what had happened. What Ryan had encountered out in the city, and what Sammara had to go through. She went through it without explanation too, which was miraculous in and of itself. For me, that was the worst part about the whole thing.

“I still want to tell her,” I said. “At least let her know that—”

“I’ve already let her know,” Dakota replied. “Well, some of it anyway. Ryan and I talked to her last night. She was actually very cool about it.”

“Cool?” I barked a short laugh of disbelief. “How the hell could she be cool about it?”

“Because she is cool,” Dakota re-iterated. “You already know that.”

We slid into the parking spot and he killed the engine. The big truck rumbled to a halt as he tucked the keys away.

“Look, I don’t like it any more than you,” Dakota admitted, “but for now, the only thing we can do is sit tight.”

Sit tight.

The words sounded utterly ridiculous. I don’t think any of us had sat tight our entire lives, much less now that there was open danger involved.

“We have to let Briggs do his thing,” Dakota pleaded. His look told me that he’d practically read my mind. “He’s got the best men working on it. You know they’ll come through.”

“Hopefully.”

“Definitely.”

I cocked my head. “In time, I mean.”

We sat in silence for a moment as the gravity of the situation sank in. I hated everything that was going on. Most of all I hated lying to Sammara, or at the very least not telling her everything.

I knew Dakota did too.

“Briggs had better be right,” was all I said. “I know he’s giving us every piece of intel he has, but not even he knows everything.”

“He knows most things though,” countered Dakota. “And he knows this.”

“Maybe.”

“Almost certainly.”

I shook my head. “She’s innocent,” I sighed. “And completely in the dark. Almost isn’t good enough. Not for me.”

Dakota looked back at me, and for once his expression was uneasy. I could tell that the whole thing didn’t sit well with him either. It left a bad taste in both our mouths, but for now there was nothing we could do. Briggs was pretty much telling us to swallow it.