MC: Moniz: Book 9 (15 page)

VP looks at Danny. “You knew?”

He’s smiling. “No. I haven’t seen Ben since he left at three. I know Tess and how Ben thinks. If I threw protection on Mitch knowing what she’s capable of I might question that too.” He shrugs.

VP throws Pres chin and gets it back. This is why he’s Pres. He gets it. He looks at me. “With Jeremy getting closer to going up to Mitch I had concerns about Aubrey. What will happen when she’s overloaded?”

He looks at Little Ben to answer. “She’s controlling the pain and learning how to block people. I know she’s learning fast and it’s easy for her. She’s thrown flashes at Harley and Brenna; they think she’s the shit. Before Jeremy goes up to the Baxters we’ll look at what could happen with her. Meet on the patio tonight at eight and we’ll see if Cloud has these same concerns.” I nod. “Either way we’ll do what’s right for her. Know we have your back Brother.”

“Thanks LB.” Love the fuckin’ Brotherhood. I look at Pres.

“What he said.” He throws chin and we all laugh.

I leave them and head to my office. On my way I think of Little Ben and his ability to see the bigger picture. He had Pres’s back even when it went against his father.

Sitting down I log in and flip my screens on. Pulling the school feeds I run live and see my girl with Jeremy sitting on a mat off to the side. Her hands are on his face and she’s looking in his eyes just like she does with me. They aren’t moving, but Colt and Devan are reading on the side of them. Devan gets up and Colt looks at him. ‘Getting work,’ he signs. Colt looks around and Aaron moves closer but doesn’t touch the mat. He nods at Devan and I watch Devan walk to the teacher. What the fuck are they protecting them from? I look at the other kids and everyone looks to be working. When Devan gets back Aaron goes back to his seat. The little Badasses are protecting them. I mark the time and send the three minutes to Cloud.

I pull yesterday and watch it at four-times normal seeing the same thing. When Aubrey takes her hands off Jeremy he lays back. I slow it to normal speed. Brenna and Devan sit beside him holding his hands. Harley and Colt take Aubrey to Brenda. Kids are moving toward the back and Victor stands by the mat. What the fuck? There are too many kids moving around and Victor doesn’t look at anyone in particular so I have no idea who the fuck they’re protecting against. I find Aubrey and see Brenda laughing doing flash cards with her. She looks toward the back and nods to Victor. Aubrey, Colt and Harley go back to Jeremy. He’s sitting up smiling. I zoom in on his face and see he’s tired. Aubrey sits on his lap while Harley and Colt sit by him. Blaze and Blake sit with them. All the kids move so their knees are touching. Victor sits with what looks like a pack of cards and has them laughing. Jeremy doesn’t laugh but he’s smiling. I’m watching his face and see his shine come back; he’s pulling from them. I send it to Cloud and Little Ben with the times to watch and ask who they are protecting him from.

Getting to my actual job I check tracking and see Brantley, Aaron, Ricky, José, Billy and Jacob in North Dartmouth. What the hell are they doing up there? Pulling their zone I jump to cameras we control and hunt them down. Fuckin’ kids. They’re filling police cars with something. Where the fuck are the Police? They move quickly emptying boxes in an assembly line formation. I send the feed to Rich and wonder what the hell it is. Ricky signals and they jump into a box truck closing the doors as it drives away. I pan around the building and see Bull coming out the front door with Baker. They get on their bikes and PD comes out of the building and watch them. I split the screen so I can see inside the gate at the back. I’m running from across the street and can’t get a clear shot of the back door. The kids are on the highway heading back to town. I keep them on my monitor and call Rich. He tells me to run the feed to HS and come down. I set my feeds on his two and three boards and run down to Surveillance.

Rich and Bob are doubled over laughing. I look at the board and see the cops opening the doors and small tubes fall all over the place. “What the fuck is it?”

Danny stands up from the side of Pres wiping his eye. “Preparation H.” He’s down again and I crack up. They were assholes.

“Guess Brantley got his,” I say watching the cops. “Why don’t they pull it out so they can leave?”

Rich looks at me still laughing. “They’re all open.”

They’re all doubled over again. “Oh fuck.” I laugh. Fuckin’ kids. Pres smiles at me and walks out.

I run back to my office and check the kids, they’re still on the highway. I run through Security then my admin programs. No alerts make for an easy day.

I check the feeds going up and call the Rhode Island crews back to the yard to help finish the Baxters town and get the east side of the reservation covered. The crews here are almost done but we can get the reservation to the City up with the RI crews in a day or two. The City is almost completely covered; with everyone working in the City we can cover hot spots and public buildings. Pres will want them done anyway. I need to set some alarms off in the PD so we can get in and set the feeds. The Courthouse, restaurants, and bars around PD and court are covered. We’re actually covered better than we planned for. When I saw the traffic from court and the PD moving to the businesses I set feeds and extra cameras in the buildings. I write the plan up and send it to the three crew foremen and Murphy.

I’m trying to simplify the training form for Jessie when Danny comes in and sits. I look at him then finish and move my hands away from the keyboard. “Yeah?”

“What does she want big and did you decide on a date?”

I laugh at him. “What’s it worth and who is paying?”

“Me and it has to be after Rayne. We’ll need a way to bring the Brothers and the Baxters together.” He’s watching me close. I nod. “The beginning of summer is always good for weddings. What does she want big?”

Fuckin’ guy doesn’t quit. “I don’t know. She isn’t high maintenance and doesn’t know anyone but who she met here.”

“Find that out and we’ll take care of everything else.” He stands thinking this is decided.

“The fuck you will.” He turns around surprised. “There is no circus happening, no big bash for all the Brothers. Marty would hate it. If anything happens it’s with just the people in the compound and the kids.”

He smiles. “We can do that.” He turns and walks away.

“Fuckin’ Brothers.” I put my hands on my keyboard and Pres comes in. “Glad you came in I wanted to ask you about changing Aubrey’s name.”

He nods, “I’ll get the lawyer on it and have it next week for you.”

“Thanks Pres.”

“When are you getting married?”

I laugh. “Danny already got me.”

He stands up fast. “Fuckin’ Brothers,” he says as he walks out.

Rich pops on my screen. “The bet is who will talk first. So far Aaron is in the lead.”

“I’ll take Billy for two,” I tell him knowing Aaron won’t talk. He’s a nonstop chatterbox but he doesn’t say shit about his Brothers. He laughs and is gone.

Getting back to my form I just get started and Tiny comes in. “Brother I wanted to tell you I didn’t think about changing the vision. All I could think is what if it were Tess.”

I nod. “We’re good Tiny.”

“You’re marrying her, did you decide when?” I close out my windows and stand up putting my laptop in my bag. These fuckin’ Brothers are too much today. Walking by each board I shut them down then walk out. “Brother wait up.”

I just keep walking. At HS Surveillance I tell Rich I’m working from home and we didn’t pick a date. Might as well build the pot.

VP told me they come to unwind and think through shit. I haven’t used it since Marty has been here. Tonight Pres and Tiny are sitting in the chairs looking out the windows when I walk in. Cloud and Little Ben show and Tiny hands us all a beer.

Little Ben stays standing as Cloud sits. “I talked to Cloud earlier and he’s concerned about what could happen as much as you are. Aubrey is an unknown for us. We need more information on her but that requires time. Jeremy is working through Mitch’s emails and it won’t be long before he’s ready. He’s determined to get up there. Personally I think he wants to get something specific from her but I’ve got no clue what that is.”

“What kind of time are we looking at?” I ask so I can at least try to prepare.

Little Ben looks at Cloud. “I think Little Ben is right that he’s looking for something specific. When he seeks people out it’s usually to get something from them. He’s pushing to get what he’s looking for and I’d say we have maybe a month. If we don’t bring him he’ll find another way to get there.”

A month. “Will we know enough about Aubrey in a month?”

Little Ben nods. “We already see her growing her abilities. Something ties Jeremy to her. He’s more protective of Aubrey than anyone else here. She has something that he feels needs to be protected. She’s already shown she can heal, she can read, and she can project. She pulls experience like he does but doesn’t show all she’s learned. Christian says Jeremy is teaching her how to block people and when it’s okay to read them. I’d say she’ll be as strong as Jeremy in that month. The problem lies with how much can she take. We learned the hard way with Jeremy and I don’t want to repeat that with Aubrey. No matter what the kids say they can handle we need to have the adults making the decisions. The other thing is she seems to be able to block pain now. With time we can prove that’s the case and it won’t be a concern, but for now we need to keep in mind that she may feel that from the people she loves. Just like Tess when she sees someone getting hurt. It is always the ones she loves that affect her the most. We need to watch Aubrey and try to shield her or walk her through it depending on her reactions. No matter what, we need to chart everything that’s happening with her.”

“I agree. She’s got a mix of everyone in her and she’s already showing a strength that Jeremy doesn’t have,” Cloud says.

“What’s that?”

“She talks more. She’s not as talkative as when she first got here but she does talk more and doesn’t have a problem answering questions,” Cloud says looking from me to Little Ben.

I look at Little Ben. He’d know if she’s got the same things swirling in her head. He doesn’t say a word so I don’t. He barely lifts his chin and I know Cloud doesn’t know he reads people. “So at the most we have a month and we need to chart her,” I say to them.

“Yeah that’s all we have.” Cloud says with a smile.

“Great. How is she doing in martial arts?”

Little Ben laughs. “Pull the video. She’s another Jeremy.” Great. I’m not sure if that’s good or bad at this point.

“I need to get home.” Cloud stands.

“Thanks Brother,” I say throwing chin.

When he leaves Little Ben sits. “It’s good she’s able to defend herself. Her learning that so fast tells me we’ll have answers sooner than we all thought.”

“Yeah.” I look out the window thinking of the little girl that has me wrapped. I don’t want a fuckin’ thing touching her but have no way to keep that from happening.

“Together Brother. We do it together,” Little Ben says standing. I throw him chin. He walks out the back and VP walks through the front. I push it away. He looks at me then grabs a beer sitting with Pres and Tiny.

“Later Brothers.” I walk out and wait until I get to our road before I think about Little Ben and VP. I wonder if he’s avoiding his dad.

“Got a minute Brother?” Little Ben asks walking in. If he asks when we’re getting married I’m shooting him.

He laughs. “I already know and you’re not quick enough.”

He’s probably right so I wave my hand to the chairs in front of my desk. “Jeremy has been working on refocusing so he can disengage from whatever he’s focused on. That sounds strange even to me. Anyway, he’s been doing it at the hospital and with Aubrey. He said he isn’t getting lost in teaching her or healing at the hospital. He’s worried that if he’s always looking for a way to shut that down he won’t be effective, but he’s doing it. I told him we need him to hold off until we’re sure of what happens to Aubrey if she’s focused on something. He says it isn’t a problem for her because she shifts easily.” I nod. “This is where it gets hard. I want to test Aubrey without Jeremy right by her side. The only way we’ll know is if she’s tested and fails to shift her focus. I’m not going to lie to you, this scares the fuck out of me, but I can’t keep Jeremy from going to Mitch much longer, he’s fuckin’ willful as hell.”

I laugh. The kid doesn’t talk much but he is willful. He’ll stand and watch you until you give in. “I agree with testing her but we need to have Marty there.” He nods. “I’ll talk to her about later tonight up at the hospital. We can have Jeremy and Jacob close but not beside her.” I nod again. “I’ll text you with the time. Uncle Danny and Tess will be there and Cloud will have the twins.” I nod again. He gets up and walks toward the door. “You have got to be the easiest Brother to deal with.”

Since I don’t know what to say I throw him chin. He walks out laughing.

Just as we’re walking out the door for the hospital Pres calls Security in for a meeting. Fuck. I get them back in and follow Tiny and Bob to Security then into the meeting room.

Pres walks in and everyone quiets. “We have the date on the try for Mitch and even time details. I need bikes and gear transported to DC and we’ll fly everyone in. Little Ben, Bob, Geek, Danny and Tiny you’re here. Danny you’re running HS control. Geek you’re Ops lead. We’ll fly you in for a meeting Bob, but you won’t be staying. Get ready to cover Baxters for Family on Friday. VP will give you a list of who is going so the bikes and gear can leave tonight.” VP passes pages down and everyone takes one. “Any questions?”

“Yeah when is Driscoll released from his doctor?” Danny asks.

“Another week,” Rich says.

Danny nods looking at his list. Pres gets a ruler and highlighter and puts it in front of him. I don’t think they notice when they do shit like this. I smile as Pres just picks up where he left off. “Does anyone have anything I need?”

“Women are going?” Rich asks. He doesn’t look happy.

“Kate and Tess for Carolina–she’s going to need them. Penny because she’s able to, and she can keep Tess and Carolina in check.”

Rich nods and looks at his list. Pres looks around the table. “Bob get Brothers in place to step into Family. The lists should already be set, get it and fill your spots so ours are covered. Right up front HS will be covering so Rich you need your Brothers ready too. Jessie, get your list to Rich and pull from the next training rotation. Tiny you’re set with Brothers ready to move?”

“Yeah Pres I have almost twenty that want in.”

“Get that to Jessie if you haven’t already. What time is the truck leaving?”

“Ten,” Tiny says looking at his list. Danny passes his list to him with the colors on it and takes Tiny’s. He starts marking it but no one says a word.

“All gear and bikes need to be at Transport for nine-thirty. Get Prospects to shuttle Brothers home. VP, get gear on the truck. If you need your own gear make sure VP has it. Be ready to leave tomorrow night. Any questions?”

“Do I need IT gear?” Digs asks.

“No. Anything else?” No one has anything and Pres walks out. He’s not explaining anything today.

“I need the schedule to see who is working,” Danny says.

“I’ll get it for you once I rearrange for the Brothers leaving. Bob I need to know what kind of coverage you need. I can do that now so everyone else can plan around that,” Rich tells him. Tiny is on his phone getting Prospects in place to shuttle. VP is getting gear packed from his phone.

I stand up. “Danny do you need anything from me?”

“No Brother. I have to wait for the schedule but nothing on IT side. Keep an eye on the feeds for me in the morning while everything is crazy here. I’ll see you for your regular shift.” I nod smiling. I don’t have a shift. I just work when it’s needed. “We’ll have to wait on the hospital until all this gets settled.”

“Yeah,” I say and walk out the door. I need the kids ready for this and decide to head to the KClub to check on them and get them ready for this new shit storm. Little Ben follows me out. “Don’t you need to do the planning thing?”

He smiles, “No. Being President has its perks. I oversee and trust my Brothers to do their jobs.”

I laugh. He follows to KClub. With him here I don’t have much to say so I answer questions and laugh with them about the Dartmouth PD. Not one fuckin’ kid talked. It was Bull that told the Brothers about Brantley’s asshole Op.

I ride back to the compound and walk into the house noticing how quiet it is. Marty is on the couch holding Aubrey. They’re both sound asleep. I sit and watch them sleep thinking this is just as it should be. I’m so fuckin’ glad Aubrey talks to Marty. Every day they look happier than the last. I relax back in the chair and think about what I can do to put a smile on their faces tomorrow.