Page 24 of Room Ten: Praise Times Three

8

CAIDEN

“Confirmation on the tan van, Claudine, and this douchebag, Joe Dawson. We’re sending you a couple of photos now.”

“Fucking tan van,” Lee hisses at the same time Case grumbles. “He looks like a douchebag.”

“He hurt her,” I say so low, I’m not sure they hear me. “If you get a chance before I do, you make him suffer.”

“Roger that.”

“I’m serious, Case,” I growl, rage bubbling up from under the surface. “Bare minimum, I want a bullet between his eyes, but I’d prefer to cut on him first.”

They meet my comment with silence. Then Lee sighs. “We hear you.”

“I guess we’re on lockdown until either they find us or Victor finds them,” Case says.

“Yeah. Call if you learn anything.”

“Same.” Lee hangs up.

I rub my head, frustration taking over. Me and idle don’t mix. Sitting in place waiting for them to find us or find the other team goes against our training. And while Victor is the best—he trained us, after all—I don’t like the idea of waiting for him to find this bitch and give us the all-clear either.

Plus, I really want a shot at Joe Dawson.

“You need to relax,” Reese says as I pace back and forth in front of the car. We came out to the garage to make sure Leti couldn’t overhear any part of our conversation—just in case. “Your tension is triggering, and we’re trying to get her to sleep.”

“And to stop touching us.” I hang my head and take in the garage floor.

“Are we really trying to get her to stop touching us?” Reese points out.

“We’ve met war prisoners less starved for physical touch. What the fuck is wrong with her family?”

He shakes his head. “I don’t know, but it makes me wonder what a couple hours with Epiphany has been like for Lee and the team.”

“Pure fucking torture.”

“A different kind of torture. We’re in our own personal hell with Leti. She craves touch, but not the kind we want to give her. Besides, it would be inappropriate.”

“Do you think she’s…” I chew on the inside of my cheek, debating if I should voice aloud the question that’s been inappropriately bouncing around in my head.

“Seems like it.”

“Fuck,” I groan, turning my back to him. “Twenty-two and untouched. That’s a damn shame.”

“Even if she’s not, she’s still too innocent for the likes of us.”

“We’re gentle for three badass motherfuckers.” I flash a smile at him.

He rolls his eyes. “She’s going to keep touching us—reaching out and looking for comfort—and we will not be able to deny her.”

“Then we don’t. We won’t initiate contact, but we won’t shy away either.” I shrug. “It seems pretty easy to me.”

“Yeah, until your balls turn blue after being perpetually turned on for days on end. We don’t know how long this is going to last.”

I shrug. “I can jack off in the shower. It’s no different from every other night.”

He shakes his head. “There is something wrong with you.”

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