Page 46 of Legacy's Destiny

Deacon frowned, his brow furrowing. “Copy that.”

Echo glanced at him questioningly, but he shook his head. “No idea.”

Across the cabin, Ronan, seated at one of the gunner stations, turned around and lifted his dark visor. “We should dothis more often,” he joked, a grin spreading. “Seems like we get to play with all the big toys when we do.”

Wraith’s voice chimed in over the comms, dry and sardonic. “No, thank you.”

The team chuckled, the tension in the cabin easing slightly. Echo turned to Deacon, her confusion evident. He smiled. “I’ll explain later.”

Ronan interjected, “Not unless I’m there. Seems whenever you tell the story about Syria, you leave out most of what my team did.”

Deacon laughed, shaking his head. “And I’m sure when you tell this story, you’ll conveniently forget most of what we did.”

“You’re damn right,” Ronan shot back with a grin. “You’re lucky the rain stopped when it did. We intercepted cartel comms—they were bringing in more men and equipment to search for you.”

Deacon’s smile faded. “So, they knew we hadn’t left the jungle.”

Juggernaut, Ronan’s man, grunted. “With those rains and your timing, extraction wasn’t exactly on the table.”

Echo leaned forward, her voice cutting through the chatter. “Since Deacon hasn’t bothered to introduce me, my name’s Echo.” Her teasing tone drew raised brows and amused smirks from the men. “Yes, hippie parents. Long story,” she added with a dismissive wave. “I work for the CIA—though, honestly, the future there isn’t looking great. Thanks for the assist. Things were getting a little too hot for this office worker.”

Wraith snorted, his grin widening. “Office workers are soft.”

Ronan’s team burst into laughter, and Echo turned to Deacon, her brow raised in question. He shrugged. “I might’ve mentioned that Ronan’s about to take a desk job at headquarters. Sounds to me like his team’s giving him some shit about it.”

“Just a little bit,” Stryker chimed in, grinning.

Deacon introduced the rest of Ronan’s team, pointing to each man in turn. “Let me introduce you. That’s Ronan, my twin brother, obviously. Over there is Juggernaut—Jug for short—and Stryker. Wraith is over there by Ranger. And him?” He gestured toward the new face in the crowd. “I have no clue who the FNG is.”

Echo gasped, turning to him. “You did not just call him the fucking new guy to his face!” She glared at Deacon before turning and smiling apologetically at the man. “I’m so sorry. Normally, he’s a decent human being.”

“Bullshit.” Ronan coughed and both teams laughed.

The man chuckled and waved her off. “It’s a rite of passage. I’m Hammer. Temporary fill-in. Wolf’ll be back soon.”

Deacon explained further when the helicopter fell silent. “Wolf was injured during the Syria mission. Traumatic brain injury. He’s going through rehab.”

Ronan’s jaw tightened, but he nodded. “It’s slow, but he’s not giving up, and neither are we.”

Hammer added, “That’s why I’m here. Wolf’ll get back to fighting form. When he does, this is his team—not mine.”

Deacon appreciated Hammer’s integrity. Although he knew this team wasn’t his permanent placement, his professionalism and dedication would enhance any team he was part of.

The pilot’s voice broke over the comms. “We’re over South Vietnam airspace. Five minutes to the helipad. There’s an ambulance waiting as you requested.”

Echo turned to Deacon, frowning. “Who’s the ambulance for?”

Deacon lifted a brow, staring at her. “You.”

“I don’t need an ambulance! I’m fine!”

“Two weeks ago, you drowned. You died. You’re going to the hospital.”

She crossed her arms, scowling. “Since when did you become my boss?”

The men in the cabin found sudden interest in anything but the argument. If they could’ve walked off the helicopter mid-air, Deacon was sure they would have.

He leaned closer. “I’m not your boss, but I am your significant other. I want to make sure there’s no lingering infection or damage from the CPR. You can’t argue with that.”

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