Page 54 of Nuclear Option (Owens Protective Services)

“Probably not, especially if I had to drink black coffee. So, did you find anything out?”

“A little bit. I’m still tracking down a few leads, but I think I’ve found out who your aunt was living with.”

“Really?” I shoved a piece of bacon in my mouth, feeling hungrier by the second.

“And if this pans out, it shouldn’t be too hard for me to track him. Well, that’s if I can get someone to talk to me.”

“How did you find him?”

“I’m glad you asked. These neanderthals,” she pointed to the men still wrestling on the ground, “don’t ever bother to ask me these things. I checked out his old Facebook profile. He hasn’t been on in years, but he used to post a lot. Mostly stuff about being prepared for an apocalypse, but there were some very interesting posts on gathering up and fighting back against the government.”

“Really? I don’t see my aunt being involved with someone like that.”

“Don’t get me wrong, he’s not a total nut. Most of the things he complained about had to do with the government being too involved in our lives, which completely explains how he’s been able to stay off the grid for so long. It sounds like he’s been prepared for something like this.”

“If he’s not dead,” I replied.

“That too. But I’m doing a dark web search on militia, and I’m very hopeful I’ll find him there.”

“The dark web is a thing?”

She nodded, grabbing more of my food. I quickly realized that if I was going to get to eat anything, I was going to have to grab it now. I shoved a sausage link in my mouth while she continued.

“People who don’t want to be tracked use it all the time. Not to mention, if you want to discuss things that are taboo, it’s a great place to find like-minded individuals.”

“I feel like I’m in some kind of action movie,” I grumbled.

“You sort of are. Think about it, you have your lead man,” she nodded to Cash. “His crazy sidekick, and the genius that runs it all,” she added, pointing to herself.

“I’m not his sidekick,” Fox grumbled. “Do I look like I would ever play the secondary character?”

“Yes,” we all responded.

Cash walked over to me, looking a little worse for wear after rolling around on the floor for the last ten minutes. “We should pick up a few things in town.”

“Yeah, we need the thing,” I said, giving him a knowing look.

“Aw, no Papa Owens?” Rae asked, giving a pouty look.

“How did you—” I stared at Rae in shock. How could she possibly know what I was talking about?

“Oh, please. The way you two were fucking, it’s pretty obvious what happened.”

I snapped my mouth shut, slightly embarrassed they heard us.

“Send the men to get supplies. I’m almost done with my most recent background check.”

* * *

“I should have gone with them,”I grumbled, not liking being stuck at Jones’s place. “They’re probably going to get me the wrong size.”

“Mhmm,” she hummed, not bothering to look at me.

“Rae, I’m talking to you.”

She slammed the lid on her computer and turned to face me. “Look, I know these guys, and they’re going to want all three of us on security around you. It made sense for you to stay with me. Besides, you still need some rest.”

“Rest,” I huffed. “If I hear one more person tell me I need rest, I’m going to knee him in the balls.”

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