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“Why?” Wit chuckled. “Why are we enjoying this?”
“Because watching them is entertaining.” Cane chimed in. “It’s like that saying, or whatever…”
“Oh, like a train wreck but you can’t look away?” Hen asked.
Cane guffawed. “Something like that. I’ve only ever seen Killion and Liam like this. I didn’t know it was a thing and there were more of them out there.”
“A chick, no less.” Wit shrugged.
Relay shot a steely glare his way. “A chick? What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
“Uh. I-I, uh…”
“That’s what I thought.” The intensity of her stare was chilling. “Just remember that this chick can shoot better than you, and despite being three times my size, I can still kick your ass because I’m smarter. And when I’m done kicking your ass, I can drain your bank accounts, steal your identity, and ruin your life by creating fake arrest warrants and a faux criminal record so extensive that Interpol will be hunting your ass on every continent. Because of this chick.”
“No need. Point taken,” Wit said. “I only meant that…”
“I’d stop while you’re ahead,” Bozz warned through his laughter. “Relay’s one of the best marksmen I’ve ever known. I wouldn’t cross her… or piss her off.”
Wit cleared his throat. “Noted.”
Rainy noted it too. She also noted the grin Killion wore and the wink he sent Relay’s way.
“Okay, back to business.” Relay went on, letting out a deep breath. “You’ve had a minute, you see it?”
Killion leaned back in his seat and ran his hand down his face. “Where did you get this?”
“Our old bosses,” Relay said.
“Jesus.” Killion buried his head in his hands. “It’s the same system.”
“Either of you wants to clue us in?” Brody asked.
“Enemy of our enemy,” Killion said. “It was the root of this investigation when we were trying to narrow down who the players were when all this first went down. And it’s at play again.”
“Who’s the enemy of our enemy this time?” Wit questioned.
Killion turned to the group. “Me.”
10
“Normally, we would have to design something to make our systems more compatible so they could communicate, if you will.” Killion continued. “In this case, we don’t because the system the Dozen uses and continues to expand on is identical to ours.”
“How is that possible?” Finn asked and turned to where the members of Dirty Dozen sat side by side at the other end of the table. “They steal it?”
“Oh, come on,” Jazz fired back. “Is this going to happen every time something goes south? You’re just going to blame us for everything that goes wrong?”
“I mean, if the shoe fits… wear it,” Finn countered.
“That’s enough.” Killion pounded his fist against his desk, causing everyone to jump and the babies to stir.
Rainy picked up one of the twins and began to comfort them, earning a sympathetic look from Killion. When his stare locked with hers, he mouthed. “Sorry,” and she offered a weak smile as a reply. Things were getting out of hand, and if anything triggered Killion, it was chaos, and this was purely that.
“Look, they came by the system honestly, even if their initial endeavors weren’t, and that’s at no fault of their own.” Killion began. “It bears reminding that the Dozen wasn’t hell-bent on murder and mayhem. They were used and manipulated much like we were from case to case.”
Bozz nodded. “Appreciate the reminder, but that doesn’t explain our databases and software matching yours, Killion.”
“You were a private and personal militia to a branch of Chalice. You thought you were an off-books dark op’s unit because why…” Killion extended his hand, giving Bozz the floor to finish his sentence.
