Page 42 of Rebel

On the nearest couch, Phantom sat with his pants cut away from a bandaged thigh.Blood had soaked through the white gauze, but someone -- most likely Doc -- had started an IV, the bag hanging from an improvised stand made from a pool cue and duct tape.Resourceful.Messy.Effective.

“Well, look what the cat dragged in,” came a deep voice from the bar area.

I turned to face Charming.He stood with a glass of whiskey in one hand, his expression stormy.

“Sounded like you needed help,” I said, keeping my voice neutral.

“Heard you needed to follow fucking orders,” he shot back, but there was something beneath the anger.Relief, maybe.

“Figured you’d want your best fighters here, not sitting on their asses at a safe house,” Rio said, her drawl more pronounced than usual.

Charming’s gaze shifted to her.Few people spoke to him that directly, especially the women.He studied her for a long moment, then let out a rough laugh.

“You’ve got a mouth on you, Army girl.”He drained his glass.“Lucky for you, I like people who speak their minds.Even when they’re being insubordinate pains in my ass.As for toughest fighter… that remains to be seen.”

He moved toward us.Up close, I could see the fatigue in his eyes, the tension in his shoulders.This attack had rattled him more than he was letting on.

“Report,” he said, nodding to Scratch.

“Perimeter’s secure.Doubled the guards on the south fence.Added more cameras out back.Got eyes on the road for a mile in each direction.”Scratch shifted his weight.“No movement since they pulled back.”

“They’ll be back,” Rio said.“This was too coordinated to be a one-off.Plus, they didn’t get to me.Which means they won’t stop until I’m in their grasp or dead.”

Charming nodded.“My thoughts exactly.”

Doc finished with Viper’s shoulder, applying a clean bandage.Viper sat up slowly, his face tight with pain.

I moved closer to him, examining the bandage.“Clean cut?”

He nodded.“Blade went in smooth.No serrated edges.Missed anything important, according to Doc.”

“You’re lucky,” he said, stripping off his gloves.“Two inches in the wrong direction, and you’d be bleeding out right now instead of just whining about the pain.”

Viper grinned through clenched teeth.“Love you too, Doc.”

Doc rolled his eyes and flipped him off.

Phantom tried to stand from the couch, wincing as he put weight on his injured leg.“They weren’t aiming to kill,” he said.“They had clean shots on both of us.Chose to wound instead.”

“That’s not their usual style,” I said, frowning.The Morettis were known for their brutality, not their restraint.

“They wanted information most likely,” Charming said.“Dead men don’t talk.”

Rio had moved to the window, peering out.When she turned back, I knew she hadn’t spotted anything out of the ordinary.Didn’t mean she wouldn’t keep checking.

“If they’re coming back, I want to be ready,” Charming said.“This time we didn’t move until they were on the attack already.We need to be smart.Go after them before they have a chance to regroup.Two teams, different entry points.Quick strike, maximum damage, then out before they can respond.”

I studied him a moment.“When?”

“Dawn.”Charming looked up, his gaze sweeping across the room.“They’ll be at their weakest, and hopefully not expecting us to bring the fight to them.”

“I want in,” Rio said, her voice firm.It wasn’t a request.

Charming assessed her for a moment, then nodded.“You’ll go with Rebel’s team.I already know I can’t hold him back.”

“What about Viper and Phantom?”I asked, glancing at the wounded men.

“They stay here with the men guarding the compound and our families,” Charming said.“Along with anyone else not fit for combat.”

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