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“Next Tuesday. That good for you?”
“Yeah.”
He gives me some details for the trip, and we end the call. I’ve almost reached the gate to meet Max when Hunt calls.
“Any luck?” I ask when I answer the call. I’ve been waiting for information from him about the place we’ve been watching in the hopes of locating Zenith.
“It’s a bust. Not their warehouse.”
“Fuck. And we don’t have any other leads, do we?” This fucking gang is slippery. They run a slick operation; we haven’t been able to track them or figure out where they operate from. We don’t even fucking know for sure who runs the gang. Zane, a guy I served with who now has his own security firm, has tried to hunt them down for me with no luck. If he can’t find them with the sophisticated surveillance software he uses, I’m not sure who the fuck can.
“No, nothing, but I’m working with Axe and Zane on it. I’ll keep you updated.”
“Thanks, brother.” I spot Max. “Is Ransom with you?”
“Yeah.”
“Can you let him know I won’t be back today. Tell him to call me if anything comes up.”
“Will do.”
We finish the call and I shove my phone in my pocket as Max comes to a stop in front of me, a grin on his face. “Happy fucking birthday, brother,” he says before pulling me in for a hug.
Fuck, it’s good to see him. While we talk often, there’s nothing like seeing someone you love in person. “You need to visit me more often,” I say as I let him go.
He nods. “Yeah, I do.” He looks around like he’s looking for someone. “Where’s Birdie? I thought she was coming with you.”
“She got called into work this morning. You’ve got me for the afternoon.”
“Fuck. She let me down. An entire afternoon with just you.”
I shake my head, grinning, too. My brother’s friendship with my wife is something special. Something I wouldn’t change for the world. Jerking my chin, I say, “Come on, let’s get out of this place. You got a bag to collect?”
“Nah.”
Fifteen minutes later, we’re on the road heading towards home. Glancing at Max, I say, “You wanna grab some lunch at the pub?”
“Yeah and I’ll have some drinks for you since you’re still on the baby-diet. How are you going with that?”
It’s been just over three months that I’ve been following a clean-eating, no-alcohol diet while also trying to get a decent amount of sleep each night, and the truth is I feel in the best shape of my life and surprisingly don’t miss the booze much. I start to answer his question, but his phone rings.
Holding it up to show me the caller ID, he says, “Your wife loves me almost as much as she loves you.”
Fuck, I love her for this.
He answers the call and puts her on speaker. “Birdie. You ditched me.”
Her laughter fills the car. “Maxxi! You’re in Melbourne?”
“Yeah, I’m here.”
“Was the flight good?”
“Only if you count a screaming baby two rows ahead as good.”
“Bugger. Well, you’re here now and that’s all that matters.”
“What time do you finish work?”
