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was a friend of Ty’s.”
    “It was a lovely letter,” Kathy interrupted. “He had nothing but high praise for you.”
    “He said you’d met in Afghanistan and had offered him the use of your home when he visited the US. He said he and several of his peers were coming to do some guest lecturing at a couple of nearby schools and asked that if the house was available, could they stay there?” Dennis looked at Ty. “I tried to reach you, but you were being moved between hospitals at the time—we couldn’t get you. We didn’t know what to do. He seemed to know so much about you that I felt he had to be your friend.
    “In any case, Amir and his men showed up at our doorstep before I could respond.” Dennis took hold of Kathy’s hand. “We immediately knew something wasn’t right, but by then it was too late. They separated Kathy and me so that they could control us. When you told me you wanted us to leave, I was terrified for you, worried about what to do. I knew Amir was listening. I feared if I warned you, something terrible would happen to Kathy. And it did.” He stopped speaking as he fought to maintain his composure.
    “Do you still have that letter?” Ty asked.
    “Yes.”
    “Good. We’re going to need to see it.”
    Dennis looked at Ty, and then at Owen. “What happens to us now? Will we go to jail?”
    “No.” Owen unfolded his arms. “We’re bringing you back to Mandy’s house. Greer, go see about getting them discharged into our care.”
    “On it,” Greer answered before slipping out of the room.
    “Blade,” Owen drew his attention. “How would you feel about moving our base of operations over to your house? We’re quickly outgrowing Mandy’s place.”
    Ty looked between Owen and Kit, then shrugged. “Do what you want to do. I’m not going to live there.”
    “You are. We’re all moving over there. Mandy and Rocco, too.”
    Ty faced Owen. “There’s no fucking way I’m gonna live in that house again. Ever.”
    Kit put hand on Ty’s shoulder. He nodded at the Jacksons, then led Ty out into the corridor. “Max and Greer can’t monitor both places effectively. We need you to stay at the house with the rest of us. Just for this mission.”
    Ty leaned against the wall, bracing his new cane against his leg. He’d conquered the daunting training required of a Red Team member, squared off with Taliban fighters, and bedded down with rattlesnakes, all with less panic than he felt now at the mere thought of moving back into his childhood home. He shoved his hands into his hair, pressing the heels of his palms against his temples. “No.”
    “I need you to hold it together, bro. The past is done. We have to leave it alone and move forward.”
    Ty lowered his fists and looked at Kit. Since he’d been back, Kit had gone to see Ivy Banks, his high school sweetheart, only once. His daughter never. “Yeah, how’s that working for you?”
    Kit knew what exactly what he was referring to. “You’re an ass. What am I supposed to do? Break their world apart and then put them in a cage? While Amir thinks I have no interest in them, they’re safe. We do what we gotta do. You know that.”
    “You take the house. I’ll sleep in one of the vehicles.”
    “Jesus, Blade. Your dad’s dead. He’s gone, feel me? It’s your house now. The whole goddamned place. And the billion acres it sits on, too.”
    Ty said nothing. They could shout at each other for hours. He wasn’t sleeping in that house. Kit knew him well enough to know that his crashing in a vehicle was the best he was going to get.

    * * *

    Eden led Tank around a tree in the front of the little medical clinic. The sun was low in the sky, coloring everything in the soft, orange light of the long, June sunset. It felt good to be outside. She’d been so worried about her friends, she hadn’t realized how late in the day it was. Tank was overdue for a potty break and eagerly sniffed the grass and bushes.
    The doctor said her friends