“Motherfuck!” Ash let out every swear word he knew as he was shoved off Cael. He held on to his balls and curled up on himself. Cael crouched down beside him.
“That angry enough for you, Ash?”
A pleasant voice resounded from the speaker system. “Destructive Delta’s Agent Cael Maddock and Agent Rosa Santiago, report to dispatch.”
Cael smacked Ash across the cheek hard just for good measure before storming off.
Fuck! Motherfucking son of a bitch asshole fuck-buckets. Ash pressed his head against the mat, his cheek stinging and his balls feeling like they might crawl u
p inside him. He closed his eyes tight when he sensed someone looming over him.
“Keeler, you okay?”
“Fuck. You,” he ground out. He didn’t know who it was, and he didn’t care.
“Holy shit!” someone else piped up. “Did you see that? Cael just punched Keeler in the fucking nads, bro.”
Ash opened his eyes and glared up at his fellow Defense agent. “Herrera?”
“Yeah?”
Ash used his recuperated powers of speech to threaten the agent hovering over him.
“Unless you want me to rip off yours, you’ll get the fuck away from me. Now. Don’t think I’ve forgotten about you trying to take a piss on my fern during Daley’s party at my apartment.”
Herrera jumped to it and made like the wind, taking the other half a dozen agents or so who’d gathered with him. Ash pushed himself to a sitting position, and any agents remaining in the boxing bay vacated the premises like someone had announced they were giving away free donuts in the canteen. One lone figure remained, heading toward him.
“How’s Cael’s training going?” Sloane held a hand out and helped Ash to his feet.
“Let’s see. He’s pissed, and he punched me in the balls. I think it’s going rather well.” Ash headed for the towel rack and snatched up a towel to wipe the sweat from his face.
“Good.” Sloane patted Ash on the back, a big dopey grin on his face. “I want you to train Dex.”
“What the fuck?” Ash threw his towel over his shoulder. He’d prefer letting Cael sock him in the nads again. “Are you shitting me?”
“It’s important.”
Sloane’s smile faded, and Ash groaned internally. He hated when his friend got that stupid sad-puppy look on his face.
“He’s learned a hell of a lot since he joined, but I need you teach him what you’re teaching Cael. I haven’t been cleared to train yet, and you’re the close-quarters expert.”
“Let me get this straight. You want me to teach your certifiably insane partner my weaknesses. How to take me out.”
Sloane shrugged. “You’re teaching Cael.”
Ash took a seat on the bench, and Sloane joined him. This argument was pointless. Sloane had already won. The least Ash could do was attempt to put up a fight.
“Cael would never use it against me.”
“Really? He just punched you in the balls, man.”
“Because I told him to, not because he wanted to.” Maybe he hadn’t exactly told Cael to do that, but he had told Cael to fight him. It had been painful, but it worked.
“You sure about that?” Sloane teased.
“Is this you making me feel better about all this, because I hate to tell you, it ain’t working.”
Sloane laughed and threw an arm around his shoulders. “Come on. Please. I mean, you’ve only just started with Cael, and he managed to get away from you. That’s impressive.”