Page 44 of Jericho

Kincaid, president of that chapter, enters the room, shaking hands with Hemlock.

Relief gathers inside of me at the sight of them. I'm fully confident in their ability to get to the bottom of all this shit andfind my son. I know each and every one of them will do all they can to make that happen.

There's also that kinship, the brotherhood of being a Marine, that eases something inside of me.

A condition of being a member of the Cerberus team has always been time spent in the Marine Corps. Kincaid didn't require that of us here in Tennessee, but Ace, Hemlock, and myself are Marines. It's very possible that others are as well, but I haven't had the chance to get close enough to any of them in order to find out.

"Do I need to order cots?" Casper asks, his hands hovering over his keyboard, ready to make the call if he needs to.

"We're going to spread out into the other houses on the property," Kincaid says."This is your home."

"You're always welcome here," Hemlock says.

"Thank you, brother," Kincaid says with a quick smile. "But it's best for the newest guests here if we aren't all piled in one spot."

He's talking about Cora, Ace's woman, who recently came and who has suffered through some heartbreaking shit. He's possibly including Aspen as well.

"I have two teams with me now that will get started first thing in the morning, and my other team is already in the field working," Kincaid explains before looking back at Casper. "Max and Wren will coordinate all the tech stuff with you."

Casper dips his head in understanding, but his attention is diverted as he looks from his computer screen to Hemlock.

"Deacon Black, sir," he says.

Hemlock narrows his eyes at him, and I know it has more to do with the sir than anything else. The man reluctantly tookthe leadership role over this chapter in Tennessee, and he's less than impressed with the way Casper refers to him.

Casper swallows as Hemlock pulls his phone from his pocket, and I know the IT tech doesn't mean any disrespect. He'll learn, eventually. I just hope it happens before Hemlock punches the guy in the throat.

"Hey," Hemlock says when he answers the phone. I dart my eyes to Kincaid, wondering if it bothers the man that he seems to be here to assist even though it was his hard work that created Cerberus in the first place.

Silence swarms around the room while we all wait for the news and my gut twists when Hemlock lifts his eyes to me before he speaks again.

"You're absolutely sure it's not him?"

My skin grows icy cold as I stand, walking toward Hemlock, ready to rip the fucking phone from his hand.

He holds up a hand. I know the conversation he's having is about my son, and I'll be damned if I'm going to stand here idle while horrific news is being dished out.

A warm hand covers my shoulder, and although my first instinct is to shrug it away, I know the hell I'll bring on myself if I disrespect Kincaid.

"Let me know what else you find," Hemlock says just before ending the call.

"What the fuck is going on?" I growl, my hands ready to get to work.

"It's not Eli," Hemlock says.

"Who's not Eli?"

"They found a body," Hemlock says.

The room rattles with disapproval and hatred for all men like Damien Gaines.

"The kid was about fourteen or fifteen," Hemlock continues. "Shallow grave on one of the properties just outside of Pittsburg. It was... fresh. Days old. We have no other identifying information, no clue who this kid is or who his parents are. Deacon will let me know more when they know more."

"That sick fuck," one of the New Mexico guys mutters.

A rumble of agreement rolls through the room, and there are so many people in here, it seems to echo off the walls.

"We're doing all that we can," Kincaid says.

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