Athalia Quinn

20 - Mission

My phone buzzes from my pocket. I pull it out to see a notification from her.

Alia : U told me to be safe, but I think u are the one who needs to be safe. Make sure you come back to me, Levi.

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It's a picture of her and Coach, laying in my bed.

Seeing her in my bed does some weird ass things to my chest, but Coach is not supposed to be there. That dog sheds like fuckin' bigfoot.

Me : Always.

I don't think I've ever slept as well as I did last night, with her beside, underneath and on top of me. And the little noise she made as I slid into her---

God, she felt fucking amazing.

"We aren't the only ones who think you're a good person," River adds, gesturing to my phone with a knowing smirk.

I shrug his comment off as the others arrive, but my heart rate kicks up.

You're a good person, Levi.

"Who's ready to kick ass and save ass?" A finally clothed Fisher hops into the van, ignores the vests, and buckles in. "I know I am."

Frannie comes around the corner, handing us ear pieces. "Are we sure he's twenty-one?"

"Having a personality doesn't make me childish," he defends, crossing his arms.

She hands me my ear piece, her amusement fading and her features dropping into a take-no-shit look. "Brady Cu is a dangerous person. He's off the bloody rails on drugs, and I have no doubt he has a syringe in his hands at all times."

I nod, taking in the information of our first target.

"I'll be watching from the van, using the cameras on the vests, but with a possible lag, I don't know if I'll be able to warn you before he strikes," she continues. "Be extra careful."

"You never warn me," I say, suspicion on my tongue.

She pins her eyes on me. "This time you have a girl waiting for you at home. I want to make sure you get there."

That weird feeling returns to my chest, and the more it occurs, the less weird it feels.

I dip my chin in thanks, and follow Frannie into the van. She sits beside River, which is my fucking spot. I'm about to tell her to get her ass up, but remember that Alia wants those two together, and I'm left to sit by the new guy, Karter.

He's not new to the organization, but he's new to the team. He's nineteen, meaning he just got out of training. I was sent his qualification and found that he's not talentless, so I accepted him into my squad.

He's good with combat, but shit, he never stops talking. And his ego is higher than Brady Cu.

"I know it's my first real mission and all, but trust me, it'll look like I've been doing this for years," he tells me. "The organization called for me when I was twelve---"

"The organization doesn't fuckin' call," I snap, unable to let his lie go over my head. "You're not that damn special."

The van starts moving, and so does his mouth. "Well, okay, I called them, but that's besides the point---"

I stop listening.

It's a forty-minute drive from the hotel to Brady Cu's house. With Karter's relentless talking, Fishers stupid ass jokes, and Nicolas annoying Maxen, it feels like we were on the road for fucking hours.