Page 25 of The Fortunate Ones
“Ambush? Were they compromised?”
“According to Ramirez, yeah. The agent who got Everett out of the second safe house was his best friend. They were college roommates back in the day or some shit. He was severely injured, but he managed to get himself and Everett out alive and made a call to Ramirez before he died.” The guy on the payphone. “But yeah, it seems he believed there are both FBI agents and marshals who are on the payroll of some of these organizations that are trying to get their hands on Everett. This was all but confirmed when two of the agents assigned to his last safe house turned on the other ones, killing them.”
“I’m still confused on why he’d get Ramirez involved. Dude’s an accountant.” It was worth reminding them that this poor kid’s safety had come down to a guy who spent his life at a desk, staring at numbers all day. Fucking shudder.
Maverick’s lips twitched in amusement. He knew my aversion to anything to do with math. Accountant was literally my nightmare job, and even though I understood their importance in our society, I’d rather have my eyes gouged out with a rusty spoon than trade places with them.
“He called Ramirez out of desperation. He was dying and didn’t know who else to trust after his team betrayed him.”
I couldn’t fucking imagine being in that situation. That was why I was so glad I worked on the team I did. The thought of the people you were supposed to trust and rely on more than anyone else betraying you was awful. Dying on the job was a risk for anyone in this line of work, whether it was government sanctioned or not. We all knew every time we left for a job that it could be the last, and I was sure this agent had known that as well. But for the life-ending injury to come from your team was the worst form of betrayal I could imagine.
Maverick seemed to understand the dark turn my thoughts had taken because he opened his arms for me, and I gladly didThe Dukes of Hazzardslide across the desk and into his lap. He pinched my thigh, but his other arm tightened around me. I nuzzled his neck, and yup, mangoes. Fucking delicious.
“I hate that the guy had to go through that.”
Maverick’s fingers flexed around my stomach. “I know. That’s why he called Ramirez, even though he knew he wasn’t trained. He knew that his best friend would do everything he could to fulfill his final job. They barely got to Ramirez before he died.”
I wondered what had happened to his body, but Mav kept talking. “I’m not totally clear why Ramirez thought of Wes immediately and was sure enough that he was trustworthy to steal his records and essentially leave a trail for him to follow. But here we are. I’m sure we’ll get more info once they get a handle on everything.”
I sunk into Mav’s hold, enjoying the security of his arms.
“So what now?” I asked after a few minutes of silence and cuddling. Maverick had the business calendar that Diego had made for us, moving things around and planning our schedule for the next couple of weeks.
“Well, it’s going to at least be a day or two before Luc and Wes are back with Everett, likely longer. And we can’t just bring Matty back here without understanding the situation fully. We might have to split up for a bit, but we’re hoping to avoid that.”
That would fucking suck. It was even harder being apart from each other these days than it used to be. After the job that had brought Matty into our lives, we’d done our best not to be separated for long-term assignments.
“For now, we’re gonna continue business as usual. We’ll go to Matty’s game, and Brooks has his job tonight. There’s no reason for him not to do it. After that, well, I guess we’ll have to play it by ear.”
“Okay, that works. Is there anything you need me to do?” I felt bad that Luca and Wes were missing Matt’s first hockey game of the new season. Wes, especially, would probably be upset about that, as Matty saw him and Maverick more like father figures. Luca loved Matty, but his way of showing it was by being the provider, so they didn’t have as close a bond.
Mav, as always, knew where my thoughts had drifted. “We’ll FaceTime them for the game like Diego. They’ll get to see it.”
“Good.” It was the first season Matty was getting to play from start to finish. Last year, we hadn’t gotten him on a team until halfway through. It was extremely rare for that to happen on competitive teams, but the coach could see how talented he was and had made an exception. With scouts checking him out after only half a season, it had a no-brainer to start him this year. Some of the other parents were pissed, but I didn’t give a fuck. He’d earned that spot.
“And no. I think everything is taken care of for now. You wanna see if Diego and Brooks need help? You understand all of that better than I do.”
I laughed and playfully tapped Mav’s cheek. “Don’t worry, old man. I’ll do all the scary computer stuff so you don’t have to deal with technology. We all know you’d still use a typewriter if you had the option.”
In hindsight, teasing a sadist while I was sitting on his lap had been a bad idea, but the dangerous glint in Mav’s eye spoke of delicious pain in my future, and I knew it would be totally fucking worth it.
“Do you want to rethink what you just said?” There was deadly calm in his tone that went straight to my dick.
“No, I’m good.”
I had a split second to decide how I was going to play this.
Did I fight him or let him take what he wanted from me? It was something that I always warred with. I was submissive to Mav and Luca, but there were times when I had this undeniable urge to make them work tooth and nail to earn it.
Mav’s fingers dug into my skull, gripping my hair so painfully that there were instant tears in my eyes. His expression didn’t change. He still had that calm, collected demeanor that made me want to push all his buttons.
“It’s one of those days, I see.”
The keyboard hit the floor with a clang, and my face replaced it as Maverick shoved me onto the oak surface.
“Ooomph.” Maverick’s fingers dug into my neck, holding me in place. I tentatively tested his grip, seeing how much give I had.
None.
