She hurried off, and Ash stood watching her go until she’d disappeared beyond a group of trees. He didn’t know how long he’d been standing there, staring off into the distance.
“Ash?”
Ash’s vision blurred from the tears in his eyes. No matter how hard he tried to fight it, he was too exhausted. After all this time…. His knees felt shaky, and he had to sit down. He let himself drop to the grass in front of Arlo’s grave, leaned his elbows on his knees, and covered his face with his hands. Everything he’d been holding back over the whole of his life bubbled up and erupted like a geyser.
A strangled cry tore through him, and he let the tears fall. He cried for the death of his brother, torn from his life too soon. He cried for his stolen and fucked-up childhood. For every godforsaken piece of shit that got away with hurting someone. For Cael and what he’d suffered at the hands of that asshole. For his mother living under his bastard father’s thumb. His mother…. Had she wanted to see him before today? When had she stopped hating him? Did she still blame him? He had no idea how much he’d missed her until now.
He felt a hand on his back gently rubbing in circles, and Cael’s scent enveloped him like a warm blanket. Ash wrapped his arms around Cael, allowing himself to take comfort in the man he loved. Cael had stood up for him, fearlessly defended him. He pulled back and cupped Cael’s face.
“Thank you for all that you are. For your gentleness, your fierceness, your smarts, your beauty, your charm, but mostly, thank you for trusting me with your heart.”
“Did you mean what you said to your father?” Cael asked softly, removing a small packet of tissues from his coat pocket. He pulled one out and very tenderly wiped Ash’s face.
“I meant every word.”
Cael smiled and kissed his lips. “Good. I’ve always believed in you. I’m so happy that now you believe in yourself. You are a wonderful man, Ash. Never let anyone make you feel less than that.”
Ash stood, bringing Cael along with him. He pulled him close and kissed him. How had he gotten so lucky? He couldn’t imagine his life without Cael. Without his sweet face and warm smile, his infectious laughter and charming quirks. Ash gave him a squeeze, his hand going to the back of Cael’s head, and he hugged him. It had taken him so long to see what was right in front of him. He had no intention of letting go.
SHIT! AUSTEN tapped the security code into the panel on the small bulletproof case and opened it. Inside, snuggled securely in their padding, lay six large blue vials and, next to the vials, a Therian jet injector. This was it. Holy fuck, this was it.
“You have to go! They’ll be here any minute.”
Agent Boyle pulled a Glock from under his white lab coat, and Austen stared at him.
“Are you insane? You can’t take on an army. Wait for the extraction team.”
“There’s no time. Don’t worry about me. You have to get the package to Sparks.”
“Goddamn it.” He knew this was going to happen. Regardless of his feelings on the matter, Boyle was right. Austen swiftly removed the small hooligan kit from his back, opened the hidden padded pocket beneath the det cord compartment, and stuck the case inside before zipping everything back up and returning it to his back. He clicked all the straps into place and removed his own gun from his thigh rig.
“Boyle—”
Shooting erupted down the hall, and a small explosion shook the walls. They’d gotten through the locked fire door.
“Go!”
Boyle opened the door and slipped out into a blaze of gunfire, the door locking behind him before Austen could utter another word. He heard Boyle scream, and it jolted Austen into action. He couldn’t let Boyle’s sacrifice be in vain. The package had to be delivered.
Austen looked around the room. The vent was out of the question. He’d be a sitting duck. There was a window above the filing cabinet just about big enough for his slender frame to slip through. Time to get to work. He pulled on his tac gloves with knuckle reinforcement and smiled. Now came the fun part. Leaping onto the stationary chair by the desk, he used it as a springboard to hop onto the top of the cabinet. Shielding his face with one arm, he pulled back his right fist and punched through the window’s glass. The glass shattered, and he hurriedly punched at the larger shards left in the frame so he could get through without getting cut up. He popped his head out, hearing the sirens going off in the facility.
Assessing the surrounding area, it was immediately clear the only way was up. The building’s smooth surface was clear of anything he could use to climb down, and even if there had been something, the wall surrounding the building was lined with barbed wire. The roof ledge was three floors up. Fun times. He pulled himself back inside, hearing the shouts outside the room getting closer. They were looking for him. Quickly, he unhooked his hooligan kit and removed the grappling gun with rappelling rope. He clicked, locked, and secured all the pieces before securing his kit back in place. Getting on his back, he pushed his upper body through the window, aimed, and fired. The hook whizzed through the air, soared over, and sank, latching on to the roof’s ledge.
“That’s my girl.” Securing the rope around his gloved hands, he pushed himself through the window just as a loud thud resounded against the heavy door. They’d be breaching any moment. He swung out and came back against the building, his boots hitting the smooth brick. Not wasting a single moment, he climbed the side of the building, one hand after the other, one step at a time. The sound of gunfire echoed through the otherwise quiet evening air, but no one would be calling it in. Next to the research facility, there was nothing around but empty warehouses used for equally shady dealings. Which meant if he was caught, no one would hear him scream.
That was the price he paid for doing the job he did. He gritted his teeth and moved as fast as he could without compromising his safety.
“He’s heading for the roof!” someone yelled from the window below.
A bullet hit the brick wall to Austen’s right, and he cursed under his breath. He breathed in through his nose and out through his mouth, his breath visible in the cold night air. Upon reaching the top, he pulled himself over, gathered up his shit at breakneck speed, and shoved it through the side zip in his bag. He took a few seconds to assess the area around him. Several of the rooftops were connected. Thank you, New York City. Austen bolted for the end of the roof, hearing a door slam open somewhere behind him. Gunfire erupted, and Austen dove behind a cooling unit.
“Come out with your hands up!”
“Sure,” Austen yelled, snatching a flashbang from his pocket. He pulled the pin, rolled out, and chucked it at the group of armed men before making a break for it. The bang was accompanied by a flash of blinding light and plenty of cursing, shouting, and grunting. Austen’s boot hit the roof’s ledge, and he leaped across to the other building, hitting the floor in a roll and carrying on as if he’d never stopped. Two roofs ahead, he spotted an iron ladder hanging off the side. He sped onward, ignoring the shouts, threats, and gunfire behind him. Approaching the ladder, he jumped on the ledge, turned, and hurried down, the armed men fast on his heels. Reaching the end of the line, he hopped down and landed on the roof of a car parked between the buildings.
“Stop!”
Why did they always say that? Like Austen was going to decide, “You know what? I think I’ll do that.” Bunch of idiots. Taking off at full speed, he knew there was no hope the Human guards would catch him. The Therian ones might catch up, but from the quick glance he’d managed, they were all large classifications. Austen grinned as he sped through a congested parking lot filled with truck trailers and shipment containers. Everything was packed together, allowing him plenty of darkness to play in. The Humans would never hear him or see him. It was the Therian gunmen he had to be careful of. Austen paused and sniffed the air. They were getting closer. Across the lot was a large wooded area. The trees were mostly dried up, but it was dense enough to provide cover, especially at this time of night.