Page 30 of Mates & Mercenaries

We have envisioned this moment over and over again, and we’ve made all kinds of plans to deal with this situation, but of course all that has gone out the window now. What the hell are we going to do? Rex is looking to me for answers, and I need to step up for him.

“You need to call Edmund, right?” I ask. “Then he can tell us where to be and what he needs us to do. So, go, call now.”

He nods and backs away. He’s ready for this. I know he might not think it at the moment, but he is. He can do this. He just needs to pick up that phone and snap into action. As long as he remembers who we are fighting for and why we are doing this, it’ll be fine.

“Okay.” I rub my hands together and look at Sam and Clay. “We need to remember everything we had planned so this doesn’t get fucked up.”

“First, we need to get Skylar to her friend’s house, right?” Sam can’t keep the panic from lacing his tone. “Maeve’s place. She wanted to go there after speaking with her father anyway to spend some time with her, but she was also going to hide out there while all of this happened.”

“And we will get her there,” I reassure him. “I just need to get her out of the meeting with her father.” Not something I’m looking forward to, but it has to be done. “I will be right back.”

My heart is absolutely thundering as I walk towards Evan’s giant office. I don’t know what I will find on the other side of this door, but this is about to get so much bigger than all of us. We have to do this. To save everyone.

That doesn’t stop the anxiety from getting to me as I hammer on the door. I might actually be trembling all over, which just shows how important this all is to me.

“Come in.” Evan doesn’t sound impressed. Not great, but I’ll have to take what I can get. “Oh, Creed. What’s going on? You don’t look great.”

“Rex just got a message from New York, from Edmund. It’s go time.”

Skylar glances between me and her father. I can tell that everything between them is currently unresolved, which really sucks. This was going to be a really important meeting for us all moving forward, but that will have to be put on the back burner for now. If Edmund is going to come after Evan, then we need to be on top of it right away. We need to make this shit work. It might be our only chance.

“It’s time to go to your safe place,” I remind Skylar. “We can sort the rest out after.”

I know she doesn’t want us to go, but as soon as her father nods approvingly at us both, she lets go of all the worry and stands to come with me. None of us have to like any of this, but we all need to get the fuck on with it. I’m glad Evan can see that too.

“Contact me if you need me,” Evan offers as we leave his office. “Don’t leave me here like a sitting duck if there’s anything I can do. Let me help you.”

I nod, but in all the plans we have come up with, there isn’t any way for him to help. But I also don’t want to cut off my nose to spite my face. Just in case. There is no telling which way this will go. “Will do. But stay where you are for now. Keep safe.”

We bump into Rex out in the hallway. He’s in a frantic state as he explains that we need to go meet Edmund right now. I didn’t think that was the way things were going to go. I thought once he got in touch, he would have some kind of mission for us. But, hell, this might be even better. This might work out in our favor. The closer I get to the man who threatened Skylar, the better.

“Okay, then let’s get in the car right now.” I wave to the other guys, and Clay and Sam come running. “We need to get Skylar to Maeve’s house, we need to make sure that Skylar is safe, then we need to meet with Edmund.”

“Meet with Edmund?” Clay asks, confused. “Why do we need to do that?”

“He didn’t say. Just that we needed to go see him,” Rex answers.

This is all very much up in the air at the moment, which sucks. But I’m starting to try to accept that not everything has to be in my control for it to be okay.

“Will I be safe at Maeve’s house?” Skylar asks nervously as we pile in the car. “I know we planned it, but…”

“You’re going to be fine.” I hold her hand and pull her close to me in the backseat. “We wouldn’t take you somewhere you wouldn’t be safe. Being away from us and your father is the only way we can be sure you’re okay. Plus, you can just enjoy your time with her.”

“I don’t know if being with my best friend while worrying about you guys is going to be the best reunion I have ever had, but I do want to see her.”

She rests her head on my shoulder and I stroke my fingers through her hair as we drive, trying my best to reassure her as much as I can that we will all be fine. It won’t be long until we’ll be back in one another’s arms and ready to move on, away from all of this.

Why the hell did I ever seek the darkness in life when there is so much light to be enjoyed? Thank goodness I found Skylar when I did, or who knows what would have happened to me. I don’t want to be anywhere else but here with her.

* * *

LeavingSkylar behind is killing me, but I know it’s better than bringing her along with us. Taking her anywhere near the man who tried to have her kidnapped, or killed, would be the worst mistake ever.

“It has to be this way,” Sam reminds me softly. “It has to be like this. It won’t be long. Just a short time of our life, and then everything will be back to normal.”

I can’t even begin to picture what normal looks like anymore because I won’t be going back to anything. I will be moving forward. It’s that thought alone which keeps me focused on getting this over and done with.

I keep thinking positively throughout the whole drive. I keep myself fixated on what’s next so I make it. Because of that, it doesn’t feel like we’ve been driving for too long before we arrive. Edmund is positioned just outside Chicago, ready for his take over. Even though it isn’t going to happen.

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