Page 39 of Cade

“Cass? Call the home team. I need a doc to walk me through this.” Cassidy nodded, calling the emergency line.

“Sly? We need help,” she said. A few minutes later, Riley was heard on the other end of the line.

“Riley, I need help,” said Cade. “He passed out, but he’s not going to last if I don’t get this shit out of him. It’s at the base of the skull.”

“Alright, you’re about to perform some major surgery, Cade. There are all kinds of things that could create issues back there. Be sure of where you’re cutting.”

“Thanks for the pep talk,” he muttered. He looked at Brent. “Sit on his ass, so he doesn’t wake and try to get up.” The other man nodded, doing as he was told. A few minutes later, Cade was making a fine cut into the base of the man’s skull. Just as with the others, the tiny pinhead metal device appeared, and he gently pulled it from the man. Closing the wound, he nodded at Brent to get off his back and let him wake naturally.

“Will he be okay?” asked Cass.

“I fucking hope so, baby,” said Cade, washing his hands. He looked toward the prone body and heard a moan. Tolin turned his head, touching the back of his neck. “Try not to rip my stitches.”

“Are you okay?” asked Brent, helping his friend up.

“I-I think so,” he said, taking his seat once again. “I mean, it’s sore, but I’m not in pain. The pain, it was awful. Stabbing, hot knife pains. I was ready to…”

“We know, brother. But you didn’t, and we weren’t going to let that happen.” Cade shook his hand. “Cade Norgenson, this is Cassidy Pechkin. We think you need to come with us.”

“What the hell was that thing?” he asked.

“It’s a long story, but if you come with us, we can help to ensure your safety,” said Cade. Tolin looked at his teammate, who nodded at him.

“Alright, let’s go.”

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