by Anya Nowlan
Brushing the tears from her cheeks again, Kayla stood up, taking Rhamos’ hand in hers. She walked to Rylen’s bed and they both sat down on the edge where Rhamos had been sitting before. He took Rylen’s hand and Kayla put hers on top of it.
Rylen looked so small on that bed, curled up in the blankets, his complexion pasty, but the slight rose of life on his cheeks now. He’d looked almost gray when he’d been in the tank. The machine was breathing for him and it was painful to watch, but it was much better than the alternative.
Kayla had been almost certain that she wouldn’t get to return to her boys and yet here she was, with both of them.
Rio sat on the opposite side and Ryker stood behind him, all of them gathered around Rylen’s small body. The energy was amazing, even Kayla could feel it. Looking between all of them, she couldn’t help but be completely and utterly amazed that life had brought her here. Rio and Ryker going through hell to be there for her, and Rylen and Rhamos both alive and almost well.
“How is he?” she finally dared to ask, bringing the Tyren twins out of some self-imposed bout of meditation.
Rio’s gaze cleared and he looked to Kayla, the softness that had entered his expression when he had been looking at Rylen hardening a tiny bit.
“Well, he was really bad when we got in. But Rhamos has been sleeping here and hasn’t left for a moment since arriving and Rylen’s vitals keep getting better by the hour. The doctor said that he’s getting stronger and they might try to bring him out of the coma in a day or so.”
“The coma?” Kayla asked, feeling a horrified shudder launch through her body.
“Yeah,” Ryker confirmed, nodding. “They had to put him under. The chemicals that he was pumped full at The Arctics’ lab were keeping him in sort of a pre-coma state and when he started running out of that stuff he started struggling against the stuff that was actually keeping him alive. It’s for his own good. Trust me, I made sure that the doctor wasn’t fucking with us,” Ryker said darkly.
Kayla smiled slightly.
Of course he did.
“Okay. So we just need to have a little bit of faith,” Kayla said with a nod, squeezing Rhamos’ and Rylen’s hands and giving a quick kiss on the top of Rhamos’ head.
“He’s a strong kid. You both are,” Rio said, scruffing a hand through Rhamos’ hair.
Kayla almost expected him to pull away from the sudden burst of affection, but instead Rhamos leaned into it slightly. She grinned. For a moment, it felt like everything was going to be okay. It was the most hopeful she’d felt in years. If she could have, she would have distilled it into a bottle and always kept it with her just so she could remember what it felt like to finally feel good for once.
But things can only get better from here on, right?
When Dice appeared at the door about five minutes later, looking like a storm was right on his heels, Kayla wished all the more harder that she could hold onto the moment.
“I think we need to talk,” Dice said, Rio standing up and sharing a look with Ryker.
“Can this wait?” Ryker asked.
“No,” Dice said matter-of-factly. “Bring her too.”
Or maybe they can’t, Kayla thought sourly.
Twenty-Five
Ryker
“What is it?” Ryker asked as the door fell shut behind them, leaving Rylen and Rhamos in the room while the grownups gathered in the hall. “What’s so damn urgent it couldn’t wait?”
He was slightly on edge, obviously. His body was covered in cuts and bruises and he’d taken a round to the side – which had become sort of a habit, really – and broken a rib in the process. But none of his nervousness had anything to do with his physical state currently and everything to do with the wellbeing of his family.
My family…
The thought hit him hard and fast, like something out of left field that he couldn’t have prepared for even if he tried. Everything he had done over the last couple of days had been for Kayla and those two boys in the other room, but not once had he stopped to think about what it truly meant. It was simply something that had to be done, that was more important than anything else.
Realizing that he had been fighting for his family, a notion which he thought he could never bask in again, almost floored him. He took an unsteady step back, Rio’s hand clapping him on the shoulder immediately as he gathered his bearings, shaking his head a little.
“I’m fine,” he murmured to Rio, exchanging a look with his brother that spoke volumes of the amount of surprise he was currently dealing with.
What he saw in Rio’s identical golden hazel eyes was something completely different, though. It became immediately clear to Ryker that his little brother had come to terms with this development way sooner than he had. For the first time in their lives, Ryker felt like he was the one who truly had to look for support instead of the other way around.
It was a day of revelations and frankly, Ryker could have used a drink right about now.
He slipped his big palm around Kayla’s little hand, noticing that Rio did the same with her other hand. It was automatic, the desire to be close to her and it warmed his soul to be shown so clearly that he was not alone in this. She squeezed his hand back and heat bubbled through him. It felt like home.
“I wanted to warn you,” Dice said, looking between Ryker and Rio. “Spade’s made himself scarce since you guys were brought in but he wasn’t happy about what we had done. What any of us had done. I think we’re all looking at some time in the Holes and you two will get the brunt of it.”
“He’s going to have to try damn hard if he thinks he can separate us from our kids again,” Rio growled, the animosity thick in his voice.
“Don’t look at it that way,” Dice said sternly, crossing his arms over his chest. “I’m telling you this as someone who has seen this go down. You’re going down the Holes one way or another. Spade can make your life hell or let you out after your time’s served. I’m telling you to tough it out and come back for your kids as soon as you can, because they will need you.”
“It’s nothing we don’t already know,” Ryker said somewhat leisurely, frowning. “The moment we broke out of here I think two Holes were prepped with our names on them.”
“This might seem like stating the obvious, yes,” Dice said with a smirk. “But I know you two well enough to assume that you’d try and do something stupid. I’m trying to instill this on you that you shouldn’t. Pick your battles. You already won the war and if you add insult to injury for The Firm, you might end up without a place that would require your services. That’s all I wanted to tell you.”
“So why am I here?” Kayla asked, a little bit confused.
“You’re here to convince these two knuckleheads to behave,” Dice said with a smile, one that Kayla met. “I hope your boys will pull through. We’re all rooting for them.”
“Thank you,” Kayla said, and Ryker nodded.
When people said stuff like that it always sounded so damn hollow and fake. Yet for the first time Ryker actually believed it and the look Dice gave him and Rio stayed with him.
He’s probably right, Ryker thought.
The notion of agreeing with a superior officer and respecting him was… odd, to say the least. It hadn’t happened in so damn long that it sent a little chill down Ryker’s spine.
Dammit, you’re getting soft with old age.
Ryker didn’t have time to mull over that idea any longer, because as Dice turned to leave, the door to Rylen’s and Rhamos’ room was thrown open. Rhamos’ wild blond-haired head poked out, his eyes wide and his cheeks flushed.
“I think he’s waking up!” he said urgently. “Come fast!”
They almost trampled one another, running back into the room.
As they gathered around the bed, Rylen blinked his eyes slowly open, his lashes fluttering ever so slightly at first. Ryker found himself holding his breath and squeezing Kayla’s hand a little too tightly. He realized what he was doing and
let it go, feeling like he was forgetting to breathe at times and that his heart needed a reminder to beat again because of how anxious he was.
When Rylen’s eyes shot open and the spark of life shone clearly in those golden hazel depths, Ryker let go a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding. Rhamos was grinning wide, his smile matching that of Rio’s as Kayla sobbed happy tears, holding Rylen’s hand.
Too many impossible things had happened over the last few days, too much blood had been spilled and rules broken, but that single moment had made it all completely worth it. Ryker’s knees buckled and he had to sit down, staring blankly at his sons and his mate.
He had a pride again. He had a family, people to protect, cherish and love. It felt like in a matter of days, a broken soul had been taped back together and now it could truly begin building into a whole that could not be shattered again.
Rio put his hand on Ryker’s shoulder and he looked up. Meeting the gaze of his brother, he felt tears in his eyes, and saw the same reflected in Rio’s. While he’d never believed in much other than the destructive properties of gunpowder and brute strength, he had been made into a believer that day.
Good things could happen to bad people, or at least people who thought themselves to be bad.
This changes everything, he thought, a smile etching across his lips. This changes it all.
Twenty-Six
Rio
Rio wasn’t entirely sure anymore what month it was. Hell, he was beginning to doubt he knew what year it was, when the latch of the Hole he’d found himself in was finally opened and light allowed to stream in.
He blinked his eyes painfully, shielding them from the light for a moment that seemed both too long and too short at the same time.
“Get up,” a gruff voice said, two strong hands reaching down for him and practically tearing him out.
The Holes were nothing more than concrete graves kept in the cellars of most of The Firm’s buildings. It was a favored method of instilling some ‘manners’ into badly behaved operatives and they were as brutal as they were effective. A man would be put into solitary confinement with nearly no room to move, certainly no room to shift, and left alone with his thoughts, his aching joints and silence for days on end.
Some cracked within days, but most of The Firm’s agents were highly trained, steely people who could stay down for months if needed. This was not Rio’s first rodeo and he’d long ago learned that the earlier he let go of any notion of getting out, the better he would feel. But this time, it hadn’t been so damn easy.
He’d spent a whole lot of his time banging feebly against the concrete and iron latch that kept him sealed in, screaming his voice hoarse to be let out. For the first time, he actually had somewhere where he would really rather be – with his family. It hadn’t made his punishment pass any faster, in fact it had made it feel like time practically stood still, but at least it kept his mind active.
Maybe too active, again.
“Into the shower,” the same voice commanded, and he was shoved brusquely under a cold jet of water that washed away the filth and grime that gathered over an extended amount of time being stuck in a hole in the ground.
He sputtered and coughed, peeling off the remainder of his shirt and pants and scrubbing quickly, slowly being able to open his eyes. His beard had grown far longer and he needed a haircut and a meal that didn’t consist of gruel, but he was still alive and ready as ever to get the fuck out of there.
Running a hand over his ribs, he could feel that he had lost weight.
I must have been kept down pretty long, he mused, finding his faculties returning to him bit by bit.
By the time the water was cut off, he could stand up straight again instead of hunching over and the stiffness in his joints was alleviated enough that he could actually attempt to walk. It would take a bit of time before he was really back to his own self again. Yet one thing returned immediately that usually took weeks to come back.
His smile.
I’m going to see them again, he thought, almost giddy. I’m going to see Kayla, Ryker and the boys again!
He was led into a small room where his clothes were waiting for him and he dressed quickly, ignoring the various aches and pains in his body. It was going to take a while to get his leg to heal up properly, because he’d been thrown into the Hole so soon after getting the injury. He still had a slight limp. But even that didn’t really seem to matter much.
When he was done dressing, he went to the other of the two doors in the room, trying the handle. It gave in easily and Rio could step out and into a wide, brightly lit corridor, where Ryker was already waiting for him, leaning against a wall.
“You look like shit,” Ryker commented, giving him a long look, a smirk on his lips.
“Yeah? You don’t look so hot either,” Rio confirmed.
They were both haggard as hell and it was clear that Ryker had just been let out of the Hole as well, judging by the unruly mess that he was and the slightly sunken cheeks he sported. The Firm had really decided to go hard on them this time – Rio couldn’t remember ever looking quite so beaten up after a stint in the Hole before, and he’d been down there plenty.
Going against The Firm’s orders just sort of did that to a man, it seemed.
“Bullshit. I’ve never been better,” Ryker commented, pushing himself off the wall gingerly and starting the long walk down the corridor.
His movements were stiff and languid, the pain of confinement still in them.
“Dice came by to welcome me out,” he said.
“How long were we down?” Rio asked, falling into step with Ryker.
“Two months.”
“Jesus fucking Christ,” Rio said, his brows shooting up. “That has to be some kind of a record.”
“Yeah, maybe. The rest of the squad got out in two weeks and they’ve run three missions while we’ve been out. We’ve been given a month of additional downtime now. But I hear Thor stayed down for four months once, so we’re not exactly titleholders.”
“Sounds about right,” Rio said with a nod, his nose twitching slightly when thinking about the squad’s resident sniper.
That guy was so damn off that even Rio’s bells started ringing loud and clear to back away and give the man some space every now and then. It was some sort of a feat to make a guy like Rio consider whether or not he was dealing with more crazy than he could handle.
“So what happens now?” Rio asked as they ascended a set of stairs and then stepped into a lift, which took them five levels higher.
Sunlight, he thought, smiling again as they stepped out of the elevator and he could see light streaming through the windows.
“Now we get cleaned up, catch a flight to California and go see our mate and kids,” Ryker said, sounding both solemn and incredibly excited at the same time.
“California?” Rio echoed, frowning. “The hell did they get there?”
“Dice said Kayla was adamant about staying close when we got thrown in the Hole after Rylen woke up, but she didn’t exactly have anywhere to stay. Rylen still needed care for a while but they don’t use this place as a longterm care facility,” Ryker explained, leisurely walking out of the building and both of them flashing their badges at the security checkpoint.
“Right, those are in Cali,” Rio said with a nod, still frowning as his brother led him out and around the corner of the building.
“Yeah. Dice and Meredith took Kayla and Rhamos in and Kayla could be with Rylen until he got out.”
“Is he out now?” Rio asked, his heart pounding wildly in his chest.
He hadn’t even considered that though Rylen had woken up – basically the last thing Rio saw before he was hauled off to the Hole, kicking and screaming – that his life had still been in danger. It had seemed so natural that his kid would come through it with flying colors.
“He is. He’s good,” Ryker said with a solemn nod. “Dice assured me of that.”
It was odder still that
the fact that Dice had said it immediately made it click in Rio’s head as something that had to be true. Hell, it was almost like they were becoming a real team or something. Learning to trust anyone other than his own brother was something that was damn alien to Rio.
But there have been a lot of firsts lately, he mused.
“Good. So let’s get home, then.”
Rio ran a hand through his short beard and then his hair, as if trying to make sure that it still looked the way it had when he’d left the barber’s shop with Ryker. Both of them stood on the front porch of Dice’s house in California, fidgeting a little as they waited for someone to answer the door.
Rio felt legitimately nervous. It felt… weird as hell.
They’d gotten a hardy meal – damn near eating a diner near The Firm’s offices in Nevada out of business – another shower, caught a flight to California and then seen a barber to fix their homeless-chic look before showing up at this particular door. Rio felt like they should have somehow done more.
“Maybe we should have brought flowers? What if-“ he started, frowning as he glanced at Ryker, who shook his head right away.
Ryker was pale in the face, looking like he was about to pass out. Clearly he wasn’t going to be any kind of help right now with Rio’s existential crisis.
What if she doesn’t want us here? he finished the thought in his head. What if-
At that instant, the door was thrown open and Kayla’s gorgeous, soulful blue eyes met first Rio’s and then Ryker’s gaze. Her face went through a dozen different emotions and the widest smile he’d ever seen broke on her lips.
“You’re back!” she whispered, throwing her arms around their necks and pulling both of the large, muscular men into a tight embrace. “You’re back!” she squealed then, so loud that Rio was pretty sure he’d heard land mines explode at lower volumes. “Boys!”
