Page 7 of Strays
Unfortunately, Balls chooses this moment to recover his ability to speak.
“This little shit disobeyed a direct order, jeopardizing a high-risk operation—”
He’s barely started squeaking when the commander cuts him off, not even sparing him a glance. “You are dismissed, Captain Smith.”
For a second, I think Balls will argue, but he seems to have regained his common sense too. It’s all over his face how much it kills him to take an order from an aegis, but this isn’t just any aegis. It’s the fucking Commander. So he swallows it, inclines his head, and walks out.
“I know you’re all on edge, Larsen. I could smell it from outside the building, and I wish I could let you go and make the air a little more breathable, but we’re all going to have to suck it up for a little longer.”
He shoots Shane a sharp look. “Let’s hear it from you.”
Shane drops into his seat, and Jay and I follow. He takes a deep breath before speaking, calm and controlled, even with tension pouring off him. I’m impressed and proud.
“Around 09:30 this morning, right after wrapping our night shift, we got a dispatch call about an active shooter at Saint Marie High. Patrol units were already on site and had called for tactical backup.
“We got there within minutes. Officers from District Two were attempting to secure the perimeter and were coordinating with incoming SWAT unit. We weredirected to enter the building and hold position in the hallway outside the classroom.
“Orders were clear: wait for SWAT. But the suspect stepped out, dragging a student with a gun to the kid’s head. The student tripped, and I saw the man’s trigger finger move. I believed he was about to shoot, so I made the call. One shot.”
The commander exhales heavily, then turns to me.
“Do you want to add anything, pack leader?”
“No, sir.”
He looks at me with intensity for a second longer, then shifts his gaze to Jay.
We’re used to this kind of stare. Like every other aegis we’ve encountered since our pack was formed, he’s searching for a crack, a weakness, a fracture in our bond.
But he won’t find one.
Because there isn’t one.
No matter how suspicious they are of stray packs like ours, we’re brothers in every way that matters, just as much as any blood pack.
Whatever the commander sees in our eyes, it seems to satisfy him, which honestly surprises me. I’ve always felt like people wanted us to fail, like they resented how strong our bond was. Proving them wrong has always been extra motivation to keep us as unified as possible.
“I won’t lie, Larsen,” the commander says. “You’ve put me in a difficult position. My information is that Captain Smith wants you suspended, and leadership is going to give me hell for interfering in this kind of station bullshit just to get you off the hook.”
I blink.
I glance at my brothers, searching their faces, because surely I misheard that.
Commander Eneas, a Tier-One aegis, is on our side? That’s a first.
I don’t think we’ve ever had anyone in our corner before. Every aegis we’ve ever crossed paths with has treated us like we were beneath them.
But in the end, it doesn’t matter if Eneas is treating us with some basic respect.
We’re done with law enforcement.
We quit.
“Sir,” I say, “I requested our dismissal from the police force to Captain Smith. We are leaving.”
A slow grin spreads across the commander’s face. “Oh, I don’t think so, Kory Larsen,” he says. “The Matching Program found your pack a match.”
Triadic Dependency and the Collapse of Solitary Aegis
