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Ifinished drying off from my shower then slapped on some deodorant and brushed my teeth before finally getting dressed. I picked my phone up from the bedside table and checked the time on it. I still had a few minutes before I needed to check in, so I quickly gathered all my toiletries and shoved them into my suitcase.

When I was sure I had everything packed up, I sat down on the bed and opened up my laptop. With the type of job that my coworkers and I had, it wasn’t often that we were all at the office at the same time, so to make sure we all stayed in touch with each other, our boss had begun scheduling weekly video conferences.

I looked forward to it every week, not only because the guys I worked with were like family to me, but because for however long the conference lasted, I felt a little less alone. I’d been on my own for a very long time and, usually, it didn’t bother me, but sometimes it was harder to accept than others. I was happy with my life for the most part, but my career choices weren’t exactly relationship friendly. It was a sacrifice I’d willingly made in order to do what I loved.

As soon as I turned eighteen, I’d enlisted in the Air Force. I’d quickly moved up the ranks, learning specialized skills, until I reached my goal of becoming a pararescueman. I’d served with that elite group for ten of my twelve years in the military before deciding to retire.

I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do after that, but I had money saved which allowed me the time to figure it out. I didn’t have to wait very long though because almost a month after I’d left the military, I got a call from a man named Micah Hamilton asking if I’d like to meet with him to talk about a job with his company, Hamilton Security.

Intrigued, I got on a flight to Chicago the next day. Micah introduced me to his staff, which at the time included five other guys and his office manager, Mary, who he lovingly referred to as Southern Mama. Mary was older, with gray hair and delicate wrinkles over her mocha-colored face. Her eyes possessed a wisdom born of experience and a kindness rarely found in others and I immediately felt at ease around her which rarely happened for me.

Micah had shown me around the building and then I followed him into his office where he explained that I’d been recommended to him by my squadron commander and thought I would make the perfect addition to his team, which was comprised of all ex-military special forces members. When I asked why that was, he raised an eyebrow at me and asked his own question. “Wouldn’t you want the best of the best watching your back if your life was in danger?”

“Yes, sir. I get your point,” I’d responded. Micah corrected me, saying that the people who worked for him were like family and that he was not to be called sir. He waited for me to agree, which I did with a smile, then he went on to explain the various assignments I could expect to be given.

He told me that most of the time, I would be providing security to the firm’s elite list of clients which included politicians, musicians, and Hollywood’s biggest stars. Most of those went very smoothly, Micah said, but occasionally, I might be assigned undercover operations which could prove to be very dangerous. I assured him that I was up for the challenge.

After scheduling a routine psyche evaluation and drug screen, we shook hands. I didn’t need any further time to think about it. The job sounded exactly like what I’d been hoping for, and my instincts told me that Micah would be a good man to work for. Two weeks later, I moved into a tiny, studio apartment just outside of Chicago and started my new job.

My instincts had proven correct. Micah was a fair boss, an honorable man and someone I’d learned a lot from. Together, he and Mary had created a place which felt more like a home than a business. Micah had since added to our team until there were twelve of us working for him. We each had our own area of expertise that we’d learned through our varied military experience, and Micah used that to determine who would be the best fit for each job that came in.

Having served in different branches, we loved to give each other shit, but at the end of the day, we were all brothers and I’d trust any one of them with my life. And Mary was like a mother to each of us, often referring to us as “her boys,” and running the office with a firm yet nurturing hand. I loved my makeshift family back home and that was why I was there. Micah had asked me to do this job, a personal favor to him, he’d said, and that was all the reason I needed.

I’d agreed to the assignment nearly seven months before, with very little information to go on. So far, I hadn’t turned up anything worthwhile. Micah had warned me that this case would be very difficult, but I’d assured him that I’d found people before, using even less information. It had been my area of expertise in the Air Force and I was damn good at it. That wasn’t me being prideful, just honest.

A ringing noise pulled me from my thoughts and alerted me that the video conference was about to begin. A few seconds later, I could see Micah, along with Brandon, Greg and Nolan. Carlos and some of the others were out on assignments, like me, so they popped up in little boxes off to the side. I smiled when I saw them.

Brandon was born and raised in California and had the blond hair, blue eyes and laid-back attitude to prove it, but he was also one of the most intelligent men on our team. Greg was tall and broody with jet-black hair and steel-gray eyes. He could’ve very easily been a model for a men’s fitness magazine but had chosen a career in the military instead.

Nolan was a lesson in looks can be deceiving. With his small frame and lithe body, many people underestimated him, but he was highly skilled in mixed martial arts and deadly in his precision. After seeing him in action a few times, I was definitely glad that we were on the same side.

We were a hodgepodge of looks and personalities and most people probably wouldn’t have expected such a diverse group of individuals to be able to find any common ground, but somehow, we made it work. Not only did we work well together, but we all genuinely cared about each other and enjoyed hanging out with each other outside of the job. I’d missed them so much since I’d been gone.

“Hey! How’s everybody doing?” Micah asked. A chorus of goods and okays could be heard as we all answered at once.

“Carlos, have you made any progress on the senator’s case?” I watched as Carlos’s smile faded, his expression turning serious.

“Not really,” he responded. “This guy’s a smart one. He seems to be one step ahead of us at every turn.”

“Be patient,” Greg chimed in. “They always slip up. It’s a proven fact and when he does, you’ll be there to stop him.”

“Yeah, I know. This case just seems more difficult than others because the senator has made so many enemies with his disgusting views on homosexuality and women’s rights. It could literally be anyone making these threats,” Carlos explained.

“I can understand that,” Josh agreed. “There are plenty of politicians I’d like to see disappear.” We all chuckled at his joke and then Micah turned his attention to me.

“Speaking of difficult cases, how’s the search for Zane going?” he asked. I could feel the concern in my friends’ gazes. They knew the toll this investigation had taken on me.

“I think I may have found him,” I answered. The shocked looks on their faces would’ve made me laugh, but I was too busy watching Micah as he jerked upright in his chair.

“Seriously? Where?” The excitement was evident in his voice.

“First of all, I said I may have found him. I haven’t been able to positively ID him yet.” I held my hands up to slow his enthusiasm.

“Okay, tell us what you’ve got,” Micah said, relaxing back into his seat. I spent the next several minutes explaining how I’d been on my way to Columbus when I just happened to run into a guy whose description fit Zane’s.

“The age and height look right, and the hair color is the same. He goes by the name Zach, which is pretty damn close, but the thing that really got my attention was his eyes. He looked at me for just a second and, I swear, the hair on the back of my neck stood up. I’m telling you, my gut says he’s the guy,” I finished.

If it was any other group of guys, they’d probably laugh me off, but not those guys. They got it. Despite having been trained differently in our various branches of the military, one rule always applied; trust your instincts.

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