Page 76 of Kai
Guzman snapped up his head and flashed the other man an incredulous look. “Did you just compliment King?”
“His perimeter defenses are top-notch,” Bozeman pointed out flatly. “Plus, he retrieved his principal efficiently and has kept her safe for the duration.”
“Hey, so did I!” Guzman protested, not bothering to hide his annoyance. “And yet you didn’t say anything nice to me!”
“Quiet down, kiddos.” I plunked down my load on the table. “My principal is asleep.” I looked at Bozeman and nodded toward the other chair. “If your swim was as long as Goof says, you might wanna rest the old legs.”
Granite was unlikely to admit to any chinks in his armor, but if anyone knew the toll extended swims took on the body, it was me.
“You should both hydrate and recharge while we chat,” I suggested.
“I’ve missed you so much, K-man.” Guzman grabbed a bottle and twisted the cap open. “Didn’t know how to shit or wipe my ass without the team’s mother hen clucking about.” He swigged a long gulp and let out an exaggerated sigh. “Ahhhh. Thanks, Mom!”
“You’re welcome, Goofy,” I ribbed back, grinning myself. “Hope you didn’t develop hemorrhoids while I was gone.”
Guzman and I shared a quiet laugh. Bozeman just rolled his eyes, as usual. He unstrapped his carbine but kept the rest of his gear on. Yep. Short visit.
Granite’s knees cracked as he eased down on the edge of the chair opposite to Guzman. “I’m getting too old for this,” herumbled as he opened a bottle and wolfed it down.
“Even granite cracks from time to time.” Guzman tore open the wrapping and bit down on his power bar. “Plus, stone sinks in water. Bozeman’s too massive for sea ops.”
The irritated glare Bozeman shot at Guzman reminded me that our mighty Granite was proud, prickly, and not easily amused.
“Eat your dinner, brats,” I ordered, running interference, something I did between these two all too often. “You need the calories.”
“Thanks for sharing your stash, Mommy Dearest.” Guzman tore open another bar.
“I’ve got plenty, and it’s better if you keep whatever you carry in reserve.” Time to find out what else had brought this visit about. “Let’s get down to the nitty-gritty, shall we?”
If my instincts were right, troubled waters lay ahead.
Chapter Twenty-five
Kai
I took the chair that stood between the two men. With the sliders at my back, I could look over the gunwales, and keep a visual on the cove and the reef beyond.
“Your approach speed suggests an underwater propulsion device,” I ventured as the men wolfed down their muscle snacks. “You left them parked at the bottom. Am I right?”
“BB’s newest sea scooter.” Guzman grinned through a mouthful. “Quiet, fast, and smooth.”
“Nice.” I leaned back in my chair. “How did you get past my booby traps?”
“Since we took part in your mission design, we had the advantage of having prior knowledge of the reef and your perimeter defense plan,” Bozeman explained, then bit down on his power bar.
“Plus…” Guzman washed down bar number one with a long sip from his bottle, then knocked his head toward Granite. “He’s got a new BB gadget he wanted to test, even if he had to get his feathers wet to do it.”
Bozeman shook his head and let out a resigned sigh. He lifted his wrist to show me some sort of strapped-on attachment to his Tak.
“Cool as shit,” I said. “What does it do?”
When he pressed a button, it lit up with dots overlaying the underwater topography of the cove. “It detects submerged explosive charges,” he rumbled in his low bass. “That’s how we got around your defenses.”
“Handy.” I approved. “What do I have to do to get myselfone of those?”
“Fill out a requisition form and we shall see what comes of it,” Bozeman offered, reminding us he ran a tight ship.
“Granite loves his requisition forms as much as his new gadgets.” Chuckling, Guzman ripped into power bar number three. “He insisted on coming. Sitting on his ass bored him. Apparently, he finds no joy in the amenities of a fine Hawaiian resort. The dude doesn’t know how to have fun.”
