Dominance Never Dies (Masters and Mercenaries #11)(126)

Sean was with the women, talking to home and visiting with their families. It would be another few days before they could go home, so Sean and Erin and Charlotte were using the Internet to talk to their kids. Even when their babies couldn’t talk back. He’d been surprised Ian had made this meeting, but then Kai had said it was important.

Theo was in trouble.

Kai rolled his eyes. “I think I can explain it to her. He’s in a precarious state right now. When he came to he tried to get away. I had to sedate him again. I need a few days with him. I think it’s going to help that Robert will survive. Stephanie was able to stop the bleeding. I’ve got them in the same room. Being near him seems to calm Theo.”

The idea that some person he didn’t even know could calm his brother down rankled. He’d been to visit Theo, but his brother hadn’t known him, hadn’t remembered a thing. He’d stared at Case for a while and then seemed to be in some sort of pain and Kai had asked him to leave.

He’d gotten his brother’s body back, but he wasn’t so sure about his soul. It seemed so very far away.

Mia’s hands ran over his shoulders, soothing him.

“Don’t you think you should sit in your own seat?” Drew hadn’t gone home yet. His future brother-in-law seemed damn determined to stick around until his sister was ready to go home, too.

Didn’t he have like revenge or something to plan? The ruthless bastard seemed to have forgotten that he had his own life.

Case tightened his arms around her. He wasn’t letting her out of his sight or his lap. He needed her. “She’s fine where she is.”

Mia chuckled and cuddled against him. “I’m afraid it’s going to be a while before I’m willing to disconnect. I thought I watched him die. I need to keep hands on him.”

He was all about keeping his hands on her. It had been two days since he’d seen her being hauled away by his brother in the middle of a firefight. Two days since he’d been sure he was going to have to kill Theo to save his wife. It felt like a lifetime. He’d had to watch as Theo was shackled to a bed because they were worried he would run away.

He wished they’d done the same for Hutch.

“Do we have any intel on where Hutch went?”

Ten ran his hands over the keys of his computer. “I tracked him into Europe and then he disappeared. I’ve got some feelers out, but the Agency is pretty damn pissed at us right now. Damon is going to keep his ears open, too. I think we can bet that Kent is going to go quiet for a while. So I’ll have to try to find Hutch myself.”

Ian groaned. “Do what you have to do. I know he’s hurting but he needs his f*cking family right now. If I have to drag his ass home, I’ll do it.”

“Me, too.” Case wasn’t about to leave Hutch out there on his own.

Mia sat up. “So Ezra’s in trouble? I mean Kent. The Agency isn’t going to burn him, are they?”

“If they do, he can come and work for me,” Drew offered. “He did a damn fine job trying to save you. He’s got a place at 4L.”

“Or he can remain with the CIA.” The last thing Case wanted was Kent hanging around his girl. He was grateful to the guy and all, but he wanted Mia to himself. He had to head to New York in a few weeks to help her brothers take down their enemies, but he couldn’t share her with anyone else.

She wanted a big white wedding.

He intended to get her drunk in Vegas and make sure she was his forever.

“He’s pretty good at talking his way out of things,” Ten said. “And I’m going to back him up.”

Ian sighed and sat back in his chair. “They’re planning on blaming me. I’m willing to take that particular flack. If the Agency no longer wants to work with us, I’ll cry into my beer. By the way, I’m going to go find a beer. We’re all going to need one since it seems like Theo is playing out his own personal version of Memento.”

Kai held up a hand. “His short-term memory is already better. Long term is going to take a while. But my PTSD protocols call for a few days when he doesn’t have to think about what happened. He needs to distance himself. We’ll let him rest and then take him and Robert back to Dallas. This is a long-term project.”

“But he’s alive,” Mia whispered.

She was his light. She always pointed out the important things. Theo was alive. They had won the fight for his body. Now they started the battle for his soul.

It was one he was sure they would win because Theo had a lot of love around him.

Case kissed his almost wife. “And we’ll bring him back.”

There were tears in her eyes, but she was obviously resolute. “Yes, we will.”

She would be there. He wasn’t alone.

“We will bring Theo back,” Ian reiterated. “All the way home.”

Case held on to Mia and realized he would never be alone again.





A week later, Tomas sat in the hotel bar, a beer in front of him. Theo. He forced himself to remember. His name was Theo. “I like this?”

He understood that he’d been conditioned to respond in certain ways. Apparently he had a whole other life outside of Mother.

The man who was said to be his twin brother had told him that calling “that woman” Mother was super creepy and more than a little perverted.