Fall Into Me (Into Me Series Book Three)

Chapter Twenty Four - Animals

"Phantom, this is Ole' Faithful, do you copy?" Mac asks over the radio.
"Ole' Faithful, this is Phantom, I copy," I reply, adjusting my feet underneath me in this weird ass squatting position I'm in because of the stairwell we're hiding in.
"Good to have you back, sir," Mac says.
"Good to be back, over," I agree.
"Alright, let's keep this com line clear for actual communication purposes, over," Hayes interjects.
"Party pooper..." Nyx mutters.

The sounds of snickers bounce off the walls of the apartment building as the com line falls silent. I look over my shoulder to Riley, who checks his gun one last time and straightens out his Kevlar. I've missed the kid so much. Way more than I ever thought I would. Just having him here with me pulls a weight off of my shoulders. The past week that I have been back as CO has been one of the best of my life. I didn't realize how truly homesick I was until I came home for good.

"Phantom, this is Maverick, over," Connor calls.
"Maverick, this is Phantom, go 'head, over," I answer lazily.
"Thermal shows four kids, two adults, over," Connor reports.

The reality of my job comes crashing down on me as his words settle. The smile that was on my face falls, my cold-asshole expression replacing it. I don't like killing people. Truly. It makes me feel disgusting. But, unfortunately, that's the reality of my career. I don't have much choice in the matter. And these sons of bitches deserve it. They sexually assault, rape, and traffick these poor little kids. Actually, in my opinion, they deserve a lot more than just my bullet. They deserve slow and painful deaths.

"Phantom, this is Raven, over," Nyx's voice crackles through my earpiece.
"Go 'head, Raven, over," I reply while leaning forward to creep around the corner to glance at the door of our target yet again. I'm anxious. It's been a few months since I've been in the field. Just have to dive in headfirst. It's like riding a bike. Yeah. This will be fine.
"Valkyrie and I are in position and ready to take our shots, over," they inform me.

Hearing them tell me that reminds me to thank any and all things good and holy that Nyx is a sniper now and I don't have to be. Again, killing people really isn't my thing. Kicking their asses? Hell yeah. But shooting them from thousands of yards away and watching their skulls explode? No thanks.

I shake the thoughts from my head and breathe deeply, rolling my shoulders back. "Alright, everyone. Listen up," I command.

Riley, Jordan, Austin, Sekou, and Heath turn to look at me, given that they're crouched behind me in this god-forsaken stairwell and waiting to follow me in. The rest of the team listens intently to the coms system. Well, at least I hope they do, given that I can't see them

"I want this real quick and clean, alright? Valkyrie and Raven will neutralize the adult targets that we see on the thermal while my group breaches. Avenger and T-BAR, you guys will get to the kids and get them to safety. Our goal is to traumatize them as little as we can. Maverick, Ole' Faithful, and Venom will breach via the kitchen window and assist us with taking out any unknown threats. Nightmare is our eyes in the sky. If there are any changes, you are to let us know immediately," I instruct.

There's a chorus of "Yes, sir"s over the line before it quiets again. There is a palpable tension in the air, a nervousness. While I was gone, the team didn't take on busts as large as this one. They mostly handled two or three-man missions. This is everyone's first big sweep back and you can tell. I sigh and try to remind myself who the fuck I am. Jet's in my head, telling me that I got this and to come home safe.

"I know it's been a minute since we were all together running a case, and I know you're not used to hearing my voice calling the shots, but remind yourself that this is familiar territory, after all. This is how it was not that long ago. I know this has been a strange week of adjustment, but those kids need us, okay? We can't be anything short of perfect. So, let's do what we do best, alright?"
"Hooah!"
"Oorah!"
"Hooyah!"
"Let's fuckin' go!"