“You what?” Axel yells. He rolls out from his hiding spot and sprays bullets. I step out behind him and help take out the rest. “You’re fucking dead.”
“I’m just fucking with you. I just needed you to get mad so you would do some shit like that.”
Tyler starts laughing uncontrollably, and I watch Axel’s lips twitch. Before, that would have signed Ari’s death warrant.
“Ari?” Chelsea’s voice finally comes through. “You’re disgusting.”
“What’s the matter, Baby? You don’t think you can handle me?”
“Shut up, Ari,” Axel growls. “I will cut your dick off.”
“Straight to the dick? I thought we were friends.” I know what Ari’s doing, and I couldn’t appreciate him more. For whatever reason, the teasing keeps Axel in the right headspace to make the hard decisions. It’s been like this for as long as I’ve known them. “Besides, when Charlie's intestines are wrapped around his throat, I’ll be halfway across the country. I need a vacation.”
“You and me both.” It takes a second to recognize the voice. Then I remember Gavin’s at the house.
“Damn, brother. It’s weird hearing your voice on here,” Ghost says.
“I’m on camera duty since I’m not cool enough yet to go on raids.”
“You can’t even move your damn arm,” Keon laughs. “Or walk ten steps without sounding like a ninety-year-old man.”
“I’ll have you know, I walked a mile outside yesterday with Ari. So you can suck my big white co—”
“Okay! That’s enough,” Les laughs. “You guys are like children.”
“That’s not an insult, by the way,” Tyler says dryly. “Keon happens to like big white cock.”
“Oh my God,” Chelsea giggles. “Aren’t you guys supposed to be concentrating?”
“We are, Dragonfly.” I can’t remember a time when we didn’t talk shit through the comms.
“You should see this shit, Gorgeous. There are bodieseverywhere.”
“I can see them.”
“We need to get inside. What does it look like?” Axel says with a chuckle.
“Clear in the north and south wing. But there’s a suspicious amount of guards between the west and east.”
“You want to bet that’s where Charlie is hiding?” Sean says.
Axel shakes his head. “That’s where he wants us to go. My guess is he’s on the other side. But those guards are going to be on our asses no matter what we do.” Axel rolls his shoulders back and pulls his automatic up. “Might as well make it easier for them. A team needs to stay outside to cover us.”
“Got it,” Ari says. “We’ll fall back.”
Axel kicks the door open, letting it smack the wall. “I’m here, asshole! Come get me!”
Just like he said, footsteps start pounding down the hallway. Each time, their eyes widen when they see us, not expecting us to have an army of our own. No hesitation, we just drop them as they round the corner.
“Comms aren’t working,” Nolan says quietly. “We’re cut off from the rest.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Axel growls. “Charlie!” We spin back around and start heading to the north side of the compound. Every once in a while, a guard will jump out, but they’re easily taken care of. “Quit hiding like a pussy and fight me like a man!”
“Well, you finally found me,” Charlie’s voice crackles through the speakers over our heads. “Or did you?”
“I know you’re here. I just want to have a chat.”
“I’m actually kind of ashamed that it took you this long. The Axel I raised would have found me long before now.”