Page 7 of Seamus: Unconventional
I look at Asa but he must think I’m asking him.
“I no time to babysit.” Asa looks sorry about that.
I almost laugh but they’re seriously crazy. “I’ve got work to do here. Someone is coming with K-9s for a job from Cort Masters.”
Now Anton rolls his eyes at me. “VP Mase come to see you. Job with K-9 he bring, not you dog. You clear bully, you dog babysit, I work.” He says this as if it’s obvious to everyone and I’m five.
I smile like I’m too stupid to know he’s talking down to me and to hide the fact that he calls my partners, dogs and the K-9 tacticals, K-9. “First, I don’t know the job I’m being sent on because no one has shown for it. Second, mydogisn’t a babysitter and never did that job. And third, when you’re asking for favors, you might want to tone down the attitude because my answer hinges on the respect I’m shown from a person I don’t know.” Shadow is showing me Mark and Vinny pictures through the chip like I forgot who they are. I put up a picture of a hand and he stops.
The air around me moves and I know Mase is here so I stand using my hands on my thighs to push me up. Sure enough, Mase and his smile are here. “You’re moving right along, Brother. Jinx still needs Champ to stand.”
I nod. “I think it’s balance for him.” I needed help to steady when I was in the robotic brace and the first, lighter skeleton. This one is stronger, heavier and cost a mint more, according to Alder.
His nod is with his eyes on Anton. When his head shakes in what looks like disappointment, I turn to watch Anton squirm. “Pres is gonna be pissed. He told me to ask about Shadow while you’re the adult with the boys. Where are the boys now?” Mase’s seer thing comes in handy.
“Boss Kateri,” Anton mumbles.
“Get back to Delta. I got the boys covered. Next time, don’t commit to something and think you’ll cute your way out of work. Maverick isn’t going to trust you to show up when you’re needed.”
The tiny white head shakes a no out fast. “I do my work.”
Asa’s hand up and pointed look stops the little guy and I see his tears.Anton takes a breath and tries again. “I show to help.”
Asa isn’t having it. “Help you off. Club schedule to reason. Follow it. Go. VP Mase, Boss Seamus no play to Anton game.”
The tiny guy runs hollering about sorry and respect with his Security guy chasing him again. Mase smiles with his head shaking. “Thanks, Asa. Kateri has the kids but will need help after lunch. The older boys want to ride but she’s helping at the pool with the younger kids since Natalia is off the compound. Nimuks and Kimuks split is okay but they’re not Ops dogs.”
I nod and send Shadow the order to go to Honor at the Blackhawks and send intel back on Leon. His roger back is pointless since I track him to moving through the woods closer to Honor Rising than here.
Mase laughs. “I like the way you talk through the chip, without the hologram boards showing, it’s more like readers. Can Shadow get a message to Ops or a Prospect if he needs to?”
I nod. “Asa made them watches and taught them about the boards so they can chat with everyone. It’s similar to the chip so it was easy for them. Light made a hologram schedule for us and linked it to my tablet.”
His smile never dies. “That’s good. So, the job is with me today. This is small shit that’s more like Club annoyances. They send teams out for every little thing. Usually, it just needs a Brother or two and maybe a couple of dogs. Seth tries sending two or three full teams for every job.”
I nod thinking small teams fits with how we worked in the military. “The K-9s? I just sent Shadow to babysit kids.”
“Zeus is sending Prometheus. MB said Light trained there with him while you were at the surgery center on the ABSZ.”
Alder and another doctor connected a chip to my lower back that works the skeleton. Maiyun has something similar and stayed to watch saying she was out of it when they did hers, but in my head, she said she’s staying because they wouldn’t let Shadow and Light in and Perses asked her to. I laughed counting backwards for the anesthesia, but it showed me Alder is right, Badass protects minds and bodies.I smile. “That whole two days. When do we leave?” Therapy took longer than the heal time.
Asa laughs. “VP Mase love you to be here. No Brother be his partner. Pres Cort say no to K-9 partner. I ride to Honor. Later.”
My eyes snap to Mase’s as I put a fist out for Asa’s little bump.
He shakes his head and starts walking toward the chopper pad. “I’m VP and need a team, Cort said so and Justice agreed because I’m one of his Three. I’m here today and will probably be a BSC Control but I’m not on smaller jobs. ABSZ IT will monitor your data and add the K-9, or any partner’s feeds and whatever they track. I didn’t ask because I was pissed that I’m not your partner. Akai does ABSZ IT, ask him.” The smile died and I’m not sure I like this Mase.
I don’t dare look back at him so I don’t laugh. “Will do. I didn’t have partners beside the four-legged ones. We helped other teams when called but they were usually Allied units. Mostly we worked alone.” I call Light to fall in and see him dart out from the corner of the small Club.
The chopper lowers like our steps are choreographed to step in just as the chopper touches down. The doors close in the same weirdly synched rhythm of our movements. “Prometheus, I’m glad you’re on our first job. The huge black shepherd chuffs as my ass hits the seat, carrying on the weird choreographically themed movements in my head. I don’t know how I keep linking the Matrix movie to this place, but it fits so I keep linking the Matrix movie to this place. Light huffs sending me a slow-mo scene of exaggerated movements with us as the characters. I shake my head at him and the obvious AI scene but he’s funny.
Mase hits my arm. “It’s weird but normal for us. So, this is some dicks messing with women as they pass a bar. It’s close to a park so it’s a daily thing lately and starting to take on an angry vibe. The PD clocked it but doesn’t have Brothers to sit around waiting for a it to boil over. Readers say today it’s boiling over.”
I wait for more but he makes me ask. “Orders?”
“Stop it. The owner is on the sex offender list with multiple pending charges.”
I smile. “Sex offender and stop it means permanently to me. Do I get objective here or orders and how they want it carried out?” The Hannah woman said rape is a kill order.
