Page 50 of Promises in the Dark

“I don’t know shit,” he said quickly, sounding almost uncomfortable with my questions. “If I did, I’d tell you. We’re in this together, remember?”

“Bullshit,” I snapped, taking a step closer, my gaze drilling into him. “You’re holding back. Now spill it, or I’ll make you.”

“Look, man, I don’t know anything more than what I’ve already said. Capt. was tight-lipped about it,” he insisted, his expression still bland and indifferent.

He wasn’t backing down now, and I almost admired that in him.

I wasn’t convinced, but without proof, there wasn’t much I could do. Yet.

“Very well,” I said, knowing I wouldn’t get anything else out of him.

We’d been moving through the open field for a while, heading back toward base. The heat was oppressive, makingevery step feel like a fucking marathon. My body was aching from the last few days of non-stop hell, and the sun was relentless, beating down on us like we were its personal punching bags.

“What were you doing out here by yourself?” I asked, somewhat harsh.

Viper just looked at me with a nonchalant smile, clearly not surprised by my question.

“Reconnaissance,” he said lazily. “Didn’t think I needed to spell that out for you,” he added dismissively, as if he already had the answer for every question I could possibly think of.

“You know damn well that’s not something you should be doing alone,” I said harshly, this time not just sounding suspicious but also worried. “We don’t let our men go off on their own like that.”

Red’s eyes went wide, clearly not sure what the hell was going on. Viper just rolled his eyes, his face still that same cocky mask as he turned back to me.

“I can handle myself, Boss,” he said, with that fucking arrogance that was infuriating me.

I knew from experience that it was a mistake to keep asking him. But my suspicion of him was slowly turning into raw frustration.

“Don’t test my patience, Viper,” I warned, a slight edge to my voice. “Or should I remind you of what happened to the last person that went against my orders?”

He knew damn well what I meant.

Viper remained quiet for a beat, his cocky smirk now gone. “Point proven, Lieutenant,” he replied, his tone matching the look on his face now.

Red’s eyes locked onto me, and for a moment I thought she wasn’t breathing. I saw the same look of fear and concernthat I’d seen a thousand times before, only now it was aimed at me.

Good.

She should be scared. I had destroyed people for less.

The old Rogue was back, and he was hungry for blood.

Chapter 15

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“Harper Eleanor Davis, twenty-eight years old. Received her degree in medicine from Harvard University, graduated with top honors, and worked at several local hospitals before joining the Army.”

I stood in the captain’s office, the place where they slapped a ‘HQ’ sign on it just to make us all feel better about ourselves, rigid as a fucking board.

There was a half-dead plant in the corner, looking like it was suffering as much as we were. The walls were decorated with some bullshit certificates, medals, and a picture of him shaking hands with some old dude in a suit, probably some politician who doesn’t know his ass from his elbow.

I crossed my arms tightly over my chest, as he pored over Red’s file, wishing I was anywhere else but here. His eyes skimmed the pages, his voice taking on a more authoritative edge, as he read aloud the details of her background.

“Four months of active duty serving in the US Army Medical Corps as a trauma surgeon, all in the Middle East. No reports of misconduct.”

Captain Prickface, whose face was a roadmap of deep creases and bullet wounds, sat at his desk, flipping through Red’s file with a look of boredom on his face. He had a bald patch that he was trying to comb over, making him look even more ridiculous. The scraggly beard that he hadn’t bothered trimming in weeks didn’t help his case either. The only thing that made him look halfway decent was that cold, intense stare of his, but even that wasn’t doing him any favors now.

“If you don’t mind me asking, what’s a Harvard-trained doctor doing working for a private military company?” he asked with a frown.

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