Page 10 of Pain
"You should go in."
"I probably will for a bit." He needed to keep some money coming in. Even if he had some saved, he couldn't get careless. "I'll be okay, I promise." Matt got up, going to where Jason still stood in the kitchen. "Thanks for not letting me push you away, even though I try."
Jason gripped Matt's shoulder. "We've been through too much for me to walk away now. I'm always here if you need me."
"Thanks." Matt swallowed back emotions he didn't want to deal with. He really did have great friends and family. He was just so lost in his anger over Faith being taken that he took them all for granted. "I can never repay you for all you've done."
"You don't have to. You know I'd do anything for you and Faith. Now go grab a shower, eat something besides some instant noodle thing, and try not to let yourself be dragged down into the darkness of that website you're on. I'm here if it gets to be too much."
Matt nodded. "I'll try."
"That's all I ask." Jason gave his shoulder another gentle squeeze. "I'll call soon."
"And I might answer." Matt gave a half smile.
"You do that." Jason saluted as he walked out.
A few seconds later, Matt heard the front door open and shut. Alone again, he let out a long sigh. As much as he wanted to get back online and start searching for Faith again, he did need a shower. He'd keep his promise to Jason and try to do better, but until Faith was home, he couldn't be sure he could keep his promises to anyone. The only promise that mattered right now was the one he made to bring his daughter home.
CHAPTER FIVE
"I'm going to scare the poor guy." Xander stared out the passenger window as Carter drove them toward Matthew Springton's house. How the hell he was chosen to go with Carter to make contact was beyond him. With his thick, muscular body, covered in tattoos, he was hardly the face anyone would want to see when they opened their front door.
Carter, on the other hand, looked the part, dressed in nice slacks, his blond hair freshly cut, and his friendly personality could put anyone at ease. STK would have been better to send someone like Becca with Carter. The chances of him talking to them at all were slim. From what they'd been able to learn, Matthew had pretty much cut off everyone from his life. Once he saw two strangers at his door, he wouldn't bother opening it.
"You'll do fine. Bryon wouldn't have asked you to come if he didn't have a reason for it. It's not the first time he plans something out without us knowing why, only to have it all come together later and make perfect sense." Carter glanced over at him. "Put on your friendly face for a change."
Xander gave an over-exaggerated toothy smile. "This work?" He ran his hand over his long beard, gripping it tightly just under his chin. "Are you sure telling him about us is the right thing to do?"
"No, but I'm betting he's desperate enough to welcome anyone willing to help him, especially with the way he's been working the dark web. We aren't going to tell him who we are yet. We're just getting a feel for him and seeing if he might consider working with us on his daughter's case. You just sit back and look pretty. I'll do the talking."
Xander figured he was there more for muscle than for conversation. He wasn't the friendly kind of guy. Ask him to take down a person and force him to talk, he was the man, but make small talk and pleasantries and he would fuck everything up.
They'd met at STK headquarters, and after a bit more discussion, voted on whether to bring Matthew in and offer him a chance to work with the team. It wasn't an easy choice. They all had a lot to lose. They couldn't afford to place their trust in someone and have it backfire on them. It was only Carter and Bryon's confidence that the team needed this man that Xander was able to put aside his hesitation and vote to give the guy a chance. The vote had ended up unanimous. At least if things went south, they were all to blame, not just a few of them.
After the vote, Bryon had told him that he would be going with Carter to talk to the guy. He'd hoped that he would have a job to do, but there wasn't anything active at the moment, at least with enough information to demand his skills, so Xander had no choice but to follow orders and join Carter for the short car ride across town.
It wasn't like Bryon was in charge. They all had a say in all decisions, but with Bryon being the oldest member, and the one who had the most knowledge about the dark world they were dealing with, everyone respected him, and seldom questioned his requests.
That still didn't mean Xander understood them. He tapped an unlit cigarette against the dashboard. "We could have at least taken my car, so I could smoke."
"I didn't want to smell that shit." Carter frowned. "You can smoke when we're done. It won't kill you to wait a few minutes."
"Says the non-smoker." Xander stuck the cigarette into his mouth, chewing on the filter.
"It's a nasty habit."
"There are worse."
"Not that smell as bad."
"I'll remind you of that the next time Dyson decides to make us his famous chili." Xander grinned.
"Ah, fuck. How can something that tastes so good cause someone to smell so bad?" Carter shook his head.
They all loved it when Dyson would cook for them, but whatever ingredients he used always gave the team gas. An hour after they ate, the small house smelled worse than the local landfill. Xander learned quickly to eat, then as fast as he could, make a quick exit and head back to his own home where the only gas he had to deal with was his own.
He smiled, thinking about the small group of friends that were more like family than his own. He sure trusted them more than he did his own family. STK was everything to him. Even before he'd become an official member, they'd been there for him. Going with him to his father's trial, supporting him on the days he didn't think he'd make it, and reminding him that the past wasn't who he was.
