“We have a new lead on Savannah’s missing business partner,” Ben said.
Pasco gave Wheeler the thirty-second summary.
“That’s good news,” Wheeler said to me. “I hope it pans out. But I didn’t hear anything about an assignment for this as-yet-not-qualified HEAT agent.” He inclined his head toward the stairs. “You’ll thank me tomorrow when you’re only a few hours into the course and already can’t feel your limbs.”
Ben clenched his jaw, but he stood. He looked at me. “If you need anything—”
“She knows where to find me,” Wheeler said.
“I’ll see you tomorrow after your test,” I said. “Good luck.”
Wheeler lingered in the doorway while Ben crossed the wide gym and headed up the stairs. “Hey, Savannah, it really is important that everyone stay in their own room tonight.”
My face flamed. I felt like my mother had just caught memaking out with my high school boyfriend. “You know about…?”
“Yep,” Pasco answered. “Everybody knows. You’re in a building full of special agents. We notice things.”
“Hell, I’m not even in the building, and I know,” Jensen added unhelpfully.
“When you say everybody,” I swallowed hard, “does Mai know?”
“I haven’t told her,” Pasco said.
“Me, neither,” Jensen said.
“She won’t hear it from me.” Wheeler leaned against the doorframe. “But Pasco’s right. When she gets here, she’ll figure it out. My advice, for what it’s worth, is to either come clean to the sister or stop sneaking around with the brother.” He held up his hands. “But you’re all adults.”
Wewereadults, so why did we keep sneaking around like kids? To answer that, Ben and I would have to stop “benefitting” long enough to have a real conversation.
20
BEN
At 0630, as Wheeler drove us in a black SUV and Bloom rode in the gunner’s seat, I sat in the back, getting my mind right for the course ahead of me. A text pinged on my phone. I checked it and was more than a little disappointed it wasn’t from Savannah. But it was still good. Mai wished me luck and told me she’d finally be in town that night in time to celebrate with me. I texted back that I’d do my best to survive long enough to see her.
By midmorning, Wheeler’s prediction of numb limbs came true, but instead of thanking him, I wanted to kill him. By early afternoon, I wanted to dig my own shallow grave and collapse into it.
After hours of cliff-face climbing, solo rappelling, whitewater swimming, off-trail running, and mud-crawling, we arrived back at the SUV. Bloom and Wheeler looked pristine, of course, since they’d observed and shouted orders and taken notes from a safe distance. I had no idea if I’d met the time requirement to pass. I’d given up caring two hours earlier.
Bloom threw a mylar blanket over my shoulders, and Wheeler handed me yet another large bottle of an electrolyte-laden drink. Together, they lifted me into the back seat.Thank God they both believed in leaving no man behind, because if I’d had to rely on my own volition, I probably would have died alone in the mountains of Western Maryland.
A few minutes into the drive, I still couldn’t open my eyes or move, but a little feeling was returning to both arms and one leg.
“He looks so sweet, doesn’t he?” Wheeler said to Bloom. “Sound asleep like a little man-baby. I didn’t even get the chance to tell him he passed the test.”
Good to know. I had no idea if he realized I was conscious but immobile, but either way, for once, I was happy to hear what the Aussie asshole had to say.
“He more than passed,” Bloom said. “He fucking killed it. Hey, did you ever tell him he could stretch out the training over four weeks and take the test in multiple pieces?”
“I might not have mentioned it,” Wheeler said.
What the hell did he just say? I tried to make noise, to bellow and rage, but nope. My body had other stupid ideas, like trying to recover from the brutal beating it had just taken.
“I hate to borrow words from Hayes, but that seems like an asshole thing to do.”
“I did it as a personal favor to Li,” he said. “She asked me to get him qualified as fast as possible.”
Bloom let out a low whistle. “That’s stone cold. I thought they were tight.”
