“Why the fuck not?” I deadpanned. “You’re gonna do it anyway, right?”
He snorted and amusement lit his tone. “Yeah, I am.”
Huffing, I rolled onto my side, facing away from Shaun, and let my eyelids drift closed while he got himself comfortable again. The quiet murmur from the TV and dulled lights soothed some of the torment in my heart, and while I wouldn’t admit it aloud, I was so fucking thankful for Shaun answering my soul’s silent cries for company.
Chapter Eight
Shaun
My heart fucking ached as I sat eating my dinner on Hallie’s bed. It broke me to see her so messed up after an assignment. After speaking with Mac earlier, I understood why: the more she told me about what had happened at the extraction point, the more disgusted I grew inside. Not only that, but internal anger fed off each detail, pushing wave after wave of fury through my veins until I physically vibrated.
Even thinking about it now had my muscles coiling and tense. Exhaling slowly to not disturb Hallie, I cast a glance her way. I wanted nothing more than to reach out and gather her into my arms, but I was already overstepping my welcome. Her shoulders lifted, then deflated on a heavy sigh that had my hand finding the swell of her hip, regardless of the consequences.
“Relax, Hells. I’ll stay as long as you need me to.”
“Of course you will,” she grumbled, causing me to chuckle quietly.
With that said, it only took a few minutes before her breathing evened out and she relaxed under my palm. I slowly reclaimed my hand and ate the portion of rice from my takeout with I don’t know what in it but fuck me, it tasted good.
The TV kept me company for the next hour before I showered. Hallie would probably sass me out in the morning, but it was a risk I was willing to take as I slid between the sheets, taking care not to disturb her.
With the TV off, the room was thrust into darkness. It took a couple of minutes lying on my back before the shadows diminished and objects within the room became distinguishable. As exhausted as I was, guilt stopped me from falling asleep. It gnawed at me for not checking on the other girls. If Hallie was hurting, then surely, they were too.
Huffing, I carefully rolled from bed and tugged on my pants. My head wouldn’t settle until I’d checked on them.
As I was halfway through the living space, a knock sounded on the door. Checking through the peephole revealed Zeke’s scrunched expression.
He looked up as I unlocked and opened the door, and surprise sprang to his face. “Oh, hey man, I wasn’t expecting you to be here. I’m just doin’ a quick check on the girls before I crash.”
I snorted. “That was exactly what I was about to do. Are they all okay?”
“Yeah, seem to be,” he murmured, then ran a hand over the back of his neck. “How’s Hallie? Mac told me what went down…”
“Ah fuck, dude, I dunno. She didn’t touch her food and is asleep right now, but she’s been out of character since we picked them up. I think this one may have broken her, Zeke.”
He hissed a curse. “Sounded pretty fucking rough, huh?” His dark eyes then hit mine. “Not that I’m prying, but are you staying with her tonight?”
I hummed and scrubbed a hand through my still-damp hair. “There’s no way I’m leaving her alone in the state she’s in.”
“Good.” Zeke nodded. “Because if you weren’t, I was gonna crash on the couch, just in case.”
“Thanks, man.”
“No need to thank me, dude. We’d do anything for these girls.”
“Fuckin’ right we would.”
He slapped the door frame. “Okay, well, call me if you need to, and if not, I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Will do, man. Thanks again.”
“Yup,” he said over his shoulder as he strode toward his own room.
I shut the door softly and let out a sigh. The way Hallie shut down so quickly earlier really concerned me. She was one tough cookie, though I feared that she’d reached her tolerance limit for the experiences that compounded with years in uniform. Each of us on the team carried our own ghosts from our pasts, and sooner or later, those ghouls wanted out. They ruptured scars wide open whether we were ready to deal with the aftermath or not.
Unable to face going back to bed, I sat on the couch and scrubbed both hands over my face. I had no true indication of how long I remained there, but the instant Hallie made a wretched noise from deep within her sleep, I was on my feet and rushing to her side.
A chilling, strangulated keen wove through the room, sending goosebumps rippling down my spine. I shivered as I gripped her shoulder and attempted to rouse her.