Blood & Thunder (21 page)

“Thanks for bursting my bubble.” Dex could see Cael trying not to smile, but he failed miserably.

“Ass hat.”

There was a soft knock at the door, and Dex called for them to come in, surprised to find it was Ash, though he was more surprised by Ash’s behavior. It almost resembled… insecurity. That couldn’t be right. It would mean the guy possessed feelings other than anger and disdain.

“Ash,” Cael said cheerfully, his smile stretching from ear to ear. Dex still couldn’t fathom how these two were such close friends. It was like a bunny becoming friends with an anaconda.

“Hey.” Ash returned Cael’s smile and held up a thermal lunch bag. “Rosa made you dinner. She’s convinced the only way you’ll get better is if she gets some of her Boricua food in you.” He walked over to Cael’s bedside and handed him the bag.

“Ooh, did she make me some
arañitas
?”

Ash chuckled. “Of course she did. She knows how much you love those things. A bit too greasy for my taste, but they’re not bad.”

“Are you kidding? They’re awesome! Fried shredded plantains with the right amount of garlic. Besides, Rosa’s cooking is the shizzle.”

“You and your brother, man. What is it with you two and food?”

“Um, it’s tasty.” Cael motioned over to his right and Ash followed the movement, giving a start when he saw Dex. What the hell? Seriously?

“Daley. I didn’t see you there.”

“Yeah, I must have been real difficult to spot with all the other people not in the room,” Dex muttered. Jerk.

Ash opened his mouth then seemed to think better of it. When he turned his attention back to Cael, he was smiling again. “Did you want to eat now?”

“In a minute. Thanks for bringing it.”

“No problem. How are you feeling?”

“Better, now that you’re here.”

Dex’s stunned expression mirrored Ash’s. Cael carried on, obliviously.

“Yep. Letty came by—”

“Wait a second.” Dex held a hand up. “I’ve been here the whole time. When did she come by?”

“While you were sleeping, a.k.a. dead to the world,” Cael said with a snort. “She tried to wake you up, but you rolled over and mumbled something about having coffee first.”

Dex had no recollection whatsoever of someone trying to wake him, but he knew his brother was speaking the truth. Hence, his ex-boyfriend getting away with horrendous home furnishings for the house. “Makes sense. Carry on, then.” Cael rolled his eyes and turned back to Ash.

“Anyway, as I was saying. Letty came by earlier today, said she was worried about you. Apparently, you’ve been acting like an ass.” Dex opened his mouth and Cael put a finger up without glancing in his direction. “Shut it.”

Dex made a zipping motion over his lips.

“She called me an ass? What the hell?” Ash pouted, his beefy arms crossed over his chest.

“No, I’m calling you an ass,” Cael corrected.

“What for?”

“For blaming yourself. This wasn’t your fault, Ash. And before you say anything else, you were on the other side of the damn building. There was nothing you could have done. You know that, right?”

“I know, I just….” Ash let out a long breath.

“Come here, big guy.” Cael carefully shifted over and patted the bed. After some hesitation, Ash sat down beside him with exceptional care. Dex tended to forget how big Ash was, since whenever Dex saw him, the guy was usually standing around Sloane, Hobbs, or other Therian agents closer to his size, but next to Cael, the difference was staggering, especially since Cael was shorter and slighter than Dex. Cael’s size and Therian qualities weren’t suited for Defense, but they were an exceptional fit for Recon. His size, stealth, speed, agility, and smarts made him perfect for the reconnaissance position. “Bring it in. Time for a hug.”

Dex watched flabbergasted as Ash gently pulled Cael into a hug. His brother tilted his face toward Ash’s neck, his fingers slipping under the collar of the larger Therian’s uniform. With a smile, Ash pulled back, giving Cael a wink, followed by a playful nudge on the cheek.

“I gotta go. If you need anything, and your bro’s busy, or sleeping on the job, call me.”

Cael grinned widely. “Okay.”

With a grumbled “good-bye” in Dex’s direction, Ash left the room. Dex waited until he’d closed the door behind him before taking a seat on the edge of Cael’s bed. His brother wisely avoided his gaze, his eyes dropping to his fingers.

“What?”

“Christ, it’s that bad?” Dex said, running a hand through his hair. He got up and started pacing. “Cael, we went through this. Remember your senior year in high school? You remember what I told you?”

Cael nodded somberly. “Yes.”

“What did I say?”

Cael swallowed hard, his voice quiet. “Never fall for a straight guy.”

“And what happened with Shane? He broke your heart into tiny pieces.”

“Yes, I remember.” Cael lifted his chin defiantly. “Thank you, Dex.”

“And out of everyone, you’re gonna fall for
him
? The guy’s an asshole!”

“He’s not!” Cael snapped, startling Dex. Damn, it really was that bad. “I know he might seem that way, but he’s really not. I don’t know why you two can’t get along. He’s outspoken, and yes, crude sometimes, but underneath all that, he’s really…. He’s a good guy.”

“Okay, look, as much as the guy annoys me, you know I’d support you in anything that made you happy, with anyone who made you happy, but Cael—”

“Yeah, he’s straight. I get it. But you know what, sometimes, I’m not so sure.”

“Cael….” Dex let out a sigh and resumed his seat beside his brother. He wanted nothing more than to see his brother happy, even if it was with, God help him, Ash, but his brother was looking for something that wasn’t there. “Don’t confuse affection for something more. He cares about you. I know he does. It’s obvious. He treats you differently than he does everyone else. I admit, it amazes even me, but I don’t think it’s more than that. Have you ever seen him do anything with anyone that made you think he might be interested in males?”

Cael shook his head, his bottom lip jutted out. “But maybe it’s different with me. Maybe it’s the first time he’s thinking… he might want to.” He worried his bottom lip, when he suddenly seemed to think of something. “You could ask Sloane.”

“What?”

“Don’t tell him it’s for me, but ask him if he might know something about Ash that maybe we don’t. They’ve been best friends since they were little. If anyone knows anything, it’d be Sloane, right?”

“Things are tense at the moment between us, what with my going against his orders.” Cael nodded dejectedly, and it was too much for Dex. “But as soon as we sort it out, I’ll talk to him.”

“You will?”

“Of course I will. You know I’d do anything for you, bro.”

Cael smiled sweetly at him, before letting out a yawn. “Thanks, Dex.”

“Why don’t you get some sleep, huh?” He gently pulled Cael in for a hug and planted a kiss on his brother’s head. “We’ll sort it all out.” As soon as Cael drifted off to sleep, Dex lay back down on the couch. He should have seen the signs sooner. Why hadn’t he paid more attention? Cael had a bad habit of falling for guys who weren’t good for him, and now he’d fallen for the mother lode. Even if there was the slightest probability Cael was right, Ash was so deep in the closet, he was taking Aslan’s place in Narnia. Whatever the outcome, it was going to be one hell of a tough road for his baby brother.

I
T
HAD
been two days since Sloane had spoken with Dex, and he’d genuinely believed he would’ve simmered down by now, but when Dex undressed beside him in the locker room, the bandage around his leg glaringly white against his fair skin, Sloane was far from calm. The more he thought about it, the more he could feel his anger rising. He recalled the way Dex had limped out of the building, leg bloodied, face dripping with sweat, and smudged with muck from the explosion, an explosion that had happened mere feet away.

Dex finished getting dressed and turned to him with a sigh. “Look, I know you’re pissed off—”

“Pissed off?” Sloane slammed his locker shut, the rest of the agents in the locker room gathering their belongings and bolting. “I’m not pissed off, Dex, I’m fucking furious.”

Dex swallowed hard and stood his ground, rounding his shoulders. “I was doing my job.”

“No, you were disobeying orders. You not only put Hobbs’s life in danger, but your own.”

“He would have died. How much more in danger can he get?”

“Don’t—” Sloane caught himself and tried to pull his anger in check. “I’ll see you upstairs.” He needed to cool off, but every time he closed his eyes, all he could see was Dex lying on the floor in a pool of blood. Since the explosion, Sloane had been sleeping at work in his sleep bay, and both nights he had the same nightmare he’d had back at Dex’s place, with the same outcome, except instead of Isaac pulling the trigger, Sloane had watched a mirror image of himself doing the shooting. Disturbed didn’t begin to cover it.

His team was his family. If he lost one of them…. Goddamn it, he had a job to do. Protocols were put in place for a reason. If the structure had given way…. What the hell would he have told Cael? How would he have faced Maddock? How would Sloane have explained to Maddock he’d let his son die because he hadn’t the balls to put his foot down and take control of the situation? Dex was a good agent, but emotionally, he was too green. Maybe in the HPF, Dex could get away with running headfirst into the fray, but not at the THIRDS, and certainly not on Sloane’s watch. He’d make Dex understand, one way or another.

When he walked into their office, he went straight to his desk, where he brought up the files he needed and typed in the time and date, as well as a quick and brief description of the incident. Afterward he would attach his notes and the appropriate reports. As soon as Dex walked through the door, Sloane tapped a code into the side panel. The door swished closed, and the room went into “privacy” mode, the frosted white walls turning solid white so no one could see inside or overhear any conversation.

“Sit down,” he stated calmly. Dex pressed his lips together and did as asked. There was no telling how Dex would react, but Sloane reminded himself he was doing his job, and although his partner would most certainly disagree, he was doing it for Dex’s own good. Sloane would have done the same had he been facing any other of his teammates. Pressing the “record” button on the panel of his desk’s interface, Sloane began.

“Team Leader Sloane Brodie, badge number 0102, issuing a verbal reprimand to Agent Dexter J. Daley, badge number 2108, for direct violation of Policy 2-3, Failure to Follow Procedure.”

Dex gaped at him. “You’re taking disciplinary action?”

Sloane paused the recording. “Were you expecting special treatment?”

“You mean because we’re fucking?” Dex hissed quietly, though with the room in “privacy” mode, Dex could shout at the top of his lungs and no one would hear a word. “No, I didn’t expect any special treatment for that. What I did expect from you was guidance.”

“You knew exactly what you were doing,” Sloane ground out through his teeth. He leaned his arms on his desk and met Dex’s stubborn gaze. “That wasn’t a rookie mistake and you know it. You deliberately went against direct orders!”

Dex jumped to his feet. “And I’d do it again! I’m not about to stand by and watch one of my teammates die when I can do something about it.”

“The structure was unsound!”

“It was sound enough. I was there and you weren’t. This isn’t about not following orders. It’s about
you
not trusting me on the job, or outside of it.”

“What?”

“You don’t trust me.”

What the hell? “Bullshit. You’re my partner. I put my life in your hands every time we go out in the damned field.”

“Only because you’re taking the lead. You’re not risking a part of yourself.”

“I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about. I take the lead because I’m the Team Leader and that’s my job! Like it’s your job to do whatever the hell I tell you to do!” If he wasn’t careful, he was going to lose it. Dex had a talent for getting under his skin and that angered Sloane further. “Why are we having this ridiculous conversation?”

“Argument,” Dex corrected. “We’re having an argument. And we’re having it because you can’t open up and trust me. I know my eight months on the job are shit compared to your twenty-something years, but I’m not an idiot. That structure was sound. What’s more, you know I’m right. That’s why you’re shouting.”

“You’re not thinking objectively and
that’s
what this is about.” He hit the pause button again to resume the recording. “Performance improvement to a satisfactory level is required to prevent further disciplinary action which may impede the course of your training and development, or lead to punitive action which may result in your dismissal. You have a right to contest to this reprimand, under THIRDS Policy 6-2, and are permitted three weeks in which to do so.” He took a deep breath and braced himself. “Do you have anything you’d like to add?”

“No,” Dex replied through gritted teeth.

“Verbal reprimand concluded.” He hit “stop,” wishing he could do the same with the shitty feeling turning his stomach. What the hell had gotten into him? He’d never shouted at any of his coworkers. He’d never shouted at Gabe, and they’d had plenty of arguments at the office.

“Are we done?” Dex asked.

Sloane was tempted to keep arguing, but instead, he nodded, not trusting himself to speak. Dex stood, typed his code into the panel and marched out. Just Sloane’s luck, seconds later, Ash walked in.

“You okay?”

Again, all Sloane could do was nod. He dropped down into his chair, hearing the swish of the door, and watching the walls go white once again. Ash came to stand beside him, and stared at him in disbelief.

“You gave him a verbal reprimand? Why?”

Sloane glanced up at his friend. “What do you mean, why? He disobeyed orders.”

“We disobey orders all the time. Orders aren’t always right. You know that better than anyone.”

“Are you going to tell me how to do my job too?”