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I knew how good Jared was, but I also knew that he was mentored by one of the best in the business.
“He does very thorough background checks.” Nick smiled and the gesture transformed his face. “There was a lot riding on it.”
“Is there a reason why you’re bringing this up now?” I turned back to the mirror and watched him in the reflection. I knew he would’ve run all sorts of checks before he’d hired me. He probably checked it out before he rescued me and my team. There was no reason to tell me about it.
Nick opened his mouth to speak. Closed it, then started again. “No. Just know that I know things, and you wouldn’t behere if I didn’t think you could handle what will be thrown at you.”
With that he stood and stalked out of the room. I stared after him wondering what that cryptic message was about and decided to shelve it for later.
Fifteen minutes later, feet planted into my boots and baseball cap on my head I headed out to where everyone had gathered. Cars were parked at the B&B with picnic tables down at the other end of the field. Beyond the huge expanse, with toddlers running about, was the Salinger Security offices and facilities.
I seemed to have walked into the middle of some kind of water fight.
“Hey, Moore, catch.” Jared threw a plastic water gun - or water rifle in my direction. I easily caught it and raised a brow. “Salingers vs Non Salingers. You, me, and Skylar against Bex, Oliver, and Nick.”
Bex was Nick’s younger sister, and Oliver was his brother. I had met all the Salingers during my recovery and even met some of their spouses.
“Who’s Skylar?”
“Me.” A young girl, maybe eleven or twelve beamed at me. Her smile seemed to come from within and lit up the whole world. “Even though Grandma Hope is like an honorary grandma. I’m still not a Salinger. Not for this war, at least.”
It took me a moment to take in the girl. There was something familiar about her. The way she spoke reminded me of someone I had tried hard to forget. Someone I promised myself I would look up one day when I got out. And I might’ve kept that promise if I hadn’t come back broken. Finding Everly was just not meant to be.
Water hit my arm and I ducked down, pulling Skylar with me. “What are the rules? One hit and you’re done?”
“Oh, no.” Mischief written all over her face. “There’s no real winner. We just try to get the other team as wet as possible.”
I peeked over the car that was between me and Nick. Bex was approaching from my left and who the fuck knew where Oliver was. I turned to Jared. “Go right. Skylar, when I give the signal, I want you to shoot at Nick for as long as possible. Okay?”
Nick was a great Sniper. I heard stories about him and his brother Mason. Still, I could hold my own.
“Sure.” She leaned up and moved her cheek against the plastic. “Do what you need to, old man.”
There was something weirdly comforting about hearing her call meold man. Still, I couldn’t just let it slide. Seeing Oliver appear in my periphery. I knew what I needed to do. “I'll show you old. Go. Now, Skylar.”
I twisted and aimed the water gun at Oliver making sure he was soaked from head to toe. Skylar got a good portion of water aimed at Nick and naturally Jared hit Bex. Of course, all three of us got good and soaked in the process as well.
Skylar’s laugh was contagious as she jumped around and declared our team the winners. I couldn’t help but stare at her. She looked at me and curiosity infused her happiness. “What? You’re looking at me funny?”
I shook my head, not wanting people to wonder why I was staring at a young girl. “You remind me of someone I used to know.”
“Girl or Boy?” Skylar’s eyes narrowed.
“A woman I met a long time ago.”
“Well, it can’t be my mom.” She handed the rifle to Nick, who looked more tense than I had ever seen him. “I don’t look like her. She has blue eyes and blonde hair. As you can see, I have brown hair and brown eyes. Nothing special.”
I shrugged my shoulders. “I have brown hair and brown eyes.”
There was no way to miss Nick stepping closer. Except for Skylar who wasn’t paying attention and carried on speaking. “My mom loves my eyes. She says they’re soulful, like my dad’s.”
Her words gave me pause. I remembered someone else saying the same to me. “Your dad?”
“Yeah, I’ve never met him.” Skylar’s face turned sad. “Mom said that he had to fight for our country. But I hope one day she’ll give me more information.”
No. It couldn’t be. My chest tightened but I needed to ask. I glanced at Nick whose face had hardened. “Skylar, what is your mother’s name?”
“Everly Hale. Though a lot of people still think of her as Eve Halle because she had a hit single many years ago.”
