Mercury Striking (The Scorpius Syndrome #1)(42)

Lynne’s lips trembled. Relief chilled through her, weakening her knees. Jax had survived. She wanted to barrel into his arms but instead stood in place. “Yes. We’re okay.”

Wyatt moved past Jax and focused on Red. He sucked air into his broad chest, and his shoulders slumped. “I’ll get this cleaned up.”

Jax exhaled slowly. “Wyatt? Call a Vanguard meeting for late tonight, and find out if anybody else is involved in this uprising.”

“These two mainly stuck together,” Wyatt muttered. “I bet they worked alone in this stupid plan.”

“Agreed. But we need to make sure everybody understands that if they choose to stay, the leadership in position remains in place. Make sure they know we shoot back and have no problem digging new graves.”

Wyatt winced. “Got it.”

Jax turned to Lynne. “It’s still raining. Why don’t you ladies go take a shower?”

“I’m staying here,” April said, patting her daughter’s hand.

Lynne frowned. The second Jax had arrived, her brain had fuzzed as if she no longer had to be vigilant. She could fall apart now. “Shower?”

Jax reached for Lynne’s arm. “It’s raining.” His hand encircled her bicep, and she allowed him to lead her around Red and the guy who’d held the shotgun, where he nudged her toward a pale Sami. “Show her the showers.” He glanced down at the dead body without expression. “I’ll meet you in our quarters in thirty minutes for an update.”

She stumbled toward Sami. The prospect of leaving the dead bodies held too much appeal to argue against Jax’s high-handedness. “Did you find B?”

“Just a box,” Sami said wearily. All fight seemed to have deserted the young woman, although her knuckles were bruised and swelling. “Come on. We don’t know how long the rain will last.”

Lynne began to move forward, only to be stopped by Jax’s hand on her shoulder. “Gun,” he said.

She glanced down at the silver in her hand—she’d forgotten it was there. Without looking at him, she handed back the weapon. Straightening her shoulders, she followed Sami through the hallway and outside to the left of the building to stand under an overhang. Cold slashed into her. Three makeshift stalls made of wood, metal, and what looked like various vehicle hoods stood in the middle of what used to be an alley. Rain pummeled down, pinging against the metal.

“Leave your clothes here so they don’t get wet,” Sami said, setting her gun against the building. She shrugged out of ripped jeans and her shirt without a hitch of modesty, putting them on top of an old trash can. Then she reached for a camping lamp and twisted the knob to get some light since the day still hadn’t banished the darkness, although morning should be arriving soon. The dark clouds made it impossible to guess the time.

Lynne stripped, her brain still buzzing.

“Watch your feet. We cleared everything we could, but sometimes the wind blows in glass and debris.” Sami ran for the nearest stall, all grace and weary muscle.

Lynne gingerly picked her way across cracked concrete, the darkness hiding anything dangerous. Finally, she reached a stall, and Sami set the lamp on the low wall between them. Lynne sighed, surprised to find a shelf with soap. Dish soap, but still soap. Lightning cracked overhead. Damn. Could she get electrocuted? Maybe. Did she care at this point? She wasn’t sure.

Rain sluiced over her, chilly but refreshing. She quickly poured soap into her hand and lathered up, almost groaning at the decadence. “One box of vitamin B won’t last long.”

“I know. We’ll have to raid the other labs soon.”

“I figured more people would be out here.”

Sami scrubbed her hair. “It’s been raining all night. We’re the last to shower, probably.”

That made sense. “What happened on the raid?” Lynne asked.

Sami closed her eyes and lowered her head, allowing suds to drip down her face. “Shawn tried to kill Jax, and Jax knocked him out. Left him for Twenty to find.”

Lynne blinked, her stomach turning. “Was Shawn dead?”

“Nope. Very much alive.” Sami sniffed.

Lynne wiped soap off her shoulders. “How old is Shawn?”

“Old enough to know better. Probably nineteen.” Sami shook her hair, sending water spraying through raindrops. “He just made a mistake, you know?”

Yeah, but if Jax couldn’t trust him, how could he bring Shawn back? More importantly, what had it cost Jax to leave a nineteen-year-old in enemy territory? “I’m sorry.”

Sami took a deep breath. “No, I’m sorry. About the way I treated you earlier. I was jealous.”

Lynne scrubbed her legs. Had Jax been telling the truth about his no-touch policy? “Were you and Jax together?”

“No. I tried to kiss him once, after a fight, but that was it. He turned away—probably because he’d already fought Scorpius. Or maybe he just wasn’t interested.” Sami shook out her hair and lifted her face for more water. “You can definitely have him. I hadn’t realized how empty he really is.” She shivered.

Lynne stuck her leg out to rinse. Trembles wandered down her back from the chill, but who cared? She was getting clean. The cold was worth it. “I don’t think he’s empty.” He seemed more like a volcano ready to erupt, with too much trapped beneath the surface.