Page 26 of In Darkness Transformed
Then he offered Eli a dimpled grin. “Maybe even a medium if it’s the deep-dish meat-lover’s special.”
“Well, as long as you’ve got your priorities right.”
Eli found himself chuckling as he threw together the sandwiches and grabbed a couple of bottles of each type of beer, then carried them out onto the porch. After setting the tray down on the sawed-off stump that served as a table, he handed a plate to Jamison but let him pick his own beer.
They were on their second bottle when Jamison started talking. “Mike gave me the basics of what happened. It took some serious arm twisting on his part to convince me that he wasn’t bullshitting me.”
He glanced at Eli’s hand. “He said you sliced yourself open for a bit of show-and-tell, but I don’t want a repeat demonstration. Hell, if half of what he told me is true, I’m already pretty freaked out.”
“Imagine how I feel.”
“I’m not sure I can. But regardless, I’m glad you’re not six feet under or in pieces scattered over a mountain slope somewhere.” He took another long swig of his drink. “Mainly because you buy good beer. I don’t want you thinking I’m getting all girly emotional about you or anything.”
“That’s good. I’ll sleep better knowing that.”
They both laughed again, which felt damn good to Eli. Before the crash, he’d had a long list of friends he could hang out with and shoot the shit. Now he had Mike and Jamison. Well, there was also Safara, but there were two major differences when it came to her. First, he still had to watch every word he said to her. Second, and most important, he had no urge to kiss either of his friends.
“So why did the major drag you into my situation at all? Not that I care, mind you.”
“Mike said he thought long and hard before calling me. He figured I might not be on anyone’s radar since I’ve been out of the army for so long. If he made too many trips up here, someone would be bound to notice if they’re paying attention.”
He set down his empty bottle and reached for another. “Me, I’m just a college student working part-time at a local hospital to pay the bills. I might have a beer with old friends once in a while, but mostly I’m ass deep in homework and midterms.”
“That’s right. I hear you’re going to be a nurse.”
Jamison nodded. “Yep, I plan to specialize in trauma care.”
“You’ll be great at it. You were the best medic we ever had.”
Eli meant that. The man had balls of steel when hell came raining down and each second could mean the difference between life and death. Maybe it was time to lighten the conversation.
“So tell me this, Blondie. Are you sporting that ponytail to impress the ladies?”
Jamison offered him the one-finger salute. “No complaints so far. Besides, you’re just jealous. We both know I’m not just the smart one. I’m the best looking, too.”
“Asshole,” Eli responded with no real heat. Rather than continue in that vein, he changed the subject. “So, you’ve told me why Mike picked you, but I’m guessing this was more than a social visit. If he wanted to know if I was lonely, he could’ve called or e-mailed me.”
Jamison stood up. “I’ve got some papers in the car he wanted you to see. He thought about attaching them to an e-mail, but he decided to err on the side of caution. Again, we have no hard evidence that anyone is still interested in what happened to you in the crash, but we don’t know they aren’t, either.”
Doc returned with a file folder and dropped it on Eli’s lap. “Mike managed to get copies of a few pictures taken by the agencies that investigated the scene.”
Eli couldn’t bring himself to open the file. “I already know what the scene looked like. I was there.”
And those images haunted his dreams every night in living color and surround sound. The smells, the screams, the impact—all of it. He hated the sympathy in the other man’s eyes when Eli tossed the folder back to him.
“He knows that, Sarge.” Jamison pulled out two eight-by-ten photos and held them up so Eli could see them. “That’s not why he wanted you to see the pictures. Whoever took these shots caught a few of the men he was telling you about. He wanted to know if you recognize anybody.”
Eli angled the pictures to catch the best light. Two of the men had been caught in profile. Nothing about either of them looked familiar. There was a third one who happened to look right at the camera just as the picture had been taken. Didn’t look too happy about it, either. It was impossible to tell if the man’s eyes were blue or gray, but they were cold as ice. A killer’s eyes.
“I don’t know any of these guys, but they do look like spec-ops, especially in those black uniforms.”
“Mike has a few feelers out with people he trusts. He’s afraid to ask too many questions for fear of stirring up a hornet’s nest. If he learns more, he’ll let you know, but he thought you’d be better off if you could recognize at least a few of these guys on sight.”
Maybe. If they managed to track him up to the cabin, they could have the place surrounded before he had a chance to defend himself. Damn, didn’t he have enough problems on his plate right now?
The sun was now riding pretty low in the sky. “As much as I’ve enjoyed the company, if you wait until after dark to head out, it will take you twice as long going down. Those ruts are real nut busters.”
“Yeah, I was thinking the same thing.” Jamison stood up and stretched. “Not sure when I’ll make it back up here, but is there anything I can bring you the next time I come?”
