Page 77 of Code Name: Tank
“Maybe another day or two if your recovery continues at this pace. But when you’re discharged...” Tank hesitated. “I was hoping you’d let me take you to Cedar Point. Let my family take care of you while you recover. The master bedroom is on the main floor, so you wouldn’t have to deal with stairs. My mom is already planning what she’s going to cook for you.”
The offer was so thoughtful that it brought more tears to my eyes. “I couldn’t impose like that. Your parents and Cam’s family would have to stay upstairs?—”
“Piper,” Tank interrupted. “They volunteered. Actually, my mom insisted. She said, and I quote, ‘That girl saved our son’s heart, and now she’s family. We take care of our own.’”
I stared at him, moved by the generosity of people who barely knew me. “She really said that?”
“She did. And she meant every word.” Tank lifted our joined hands to his lips. “What do you say? Will you let us take care of you?”
The old me would have protested, would have insisted I could manage on my own. But lying here, feeling loved and protected and surrounded by care, I realized I didn’t want to be alone anymore. I wanted to be part of something bigger than myself.
“Yes,” I said. “I’d love that.”
Tank’s smile was radiant. “Good. Because based on the text I just received, they’re all waiting in the family lounge down the hall. Turns out the homemade cookies she brings each time open a lot of doors around here.”
“They’re here now?” My pulse quickened with a mixture of nervousness and anticipation.
“Would you like to see them? I can tell them to come back later if you’re not feeling up to it.”
I thought about Tank’s family—the warmth they’d shown me at Thanksgiving and the way they’d welcomed me without question. The way they’d driven through the night because they thought I might die. These people who’d claimed me as family before I even fully claimed myself.
“I want to see them,” I said firmly. “All of them.”
Tank’s face lit up. “I’ll go get them. Fair warning, though—my mom’s going to cry, Powell’s going to want to tell you about every level he’s beaten on his video games since Thanksgiving, and Sophie’s going to insist on showing you all the drawings she made for you.”
“That sounds perfect,” I said and meant it.
As he stood to leave, I caught his hand. “Tank?”
“Yeah, darlin’?”
“Thank you. For staying. For calling them. For everything.”
He leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to my forehead. “Thank you for surviving, Piper. For fighting to come back to me.”
“Always,” I whispered, the word a promise.
As he headed toward the door to collect his family—our family—I felt something settle deep in my chest. For the first time in my life, I wasn’t just surviving. I was finally home.
23
TANK
Ten days after her surgery, I found myself outside the command center entrance when Piper insisted on attending the post-mission debrief despite my protests. She was favoring her injured side, but her color had returned, and the fierce determination in her eyes told me arguing would be pointless.
“I’m fine, Tank,” she’d said when I suggested she rest instead. “I need to be there for this. We solved this case together, and we’re going to close it together.”
Admiral had called the formal hot wash for fourteen hundred hours, explaining that we’d have federal representatives joining us to provide an update. The whole thing felt oddly anticlimactic after everything we’d been through, but I supposed paperwork and debriefs were the reality of federal operations.
“Ready for this?” I asked as we entered the command center together.
“More than ready. I want answers.” Piper replied, touching my arm for support.
Admiral was standing near the main display screens, Alice beside him, and Atticus had positioned himself near thewindows, tablet in hand. The space had been configured into a conference room setting rather than the individual work areas it normally was, with chairs situated around tables that had been pushed together.
“Before we begin,” Admiral announced, “I want everyone to know that Brenna Austen from the Department of Justice will be joining us to provide clarification on the federal procedures and case resolution. After what happened with the communication protocols during the investigation, the DOJ wants to ensure we have complete transparency moving forward.”
“That’s good,” Piper muttered. “I’ve been wondering what had occurred on their end, especially with her sudden leave during the investigation.”
