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Better. Still, not everyone was on board. Some they’d never win over. Wasn’t his problem. He had to uncover the information they needed and get out of Dodge.
“We’re here to help you hone your skills. From what I’ve observed in my time in this camp, we have a lot of work to do. Neither of the groups is a well-honed unit.” He paused, making eye contact again with each person. “You will be. Your lives and those of your fellow Brotherhood members depend on you doing your jobs. They trust you to have their backs.”
He turned toward the enforcers. “Your job is to protect Mr. Peters and Mr. Richardson, and yet earlier this morning, my team of seven took down fourteen of you within five minutes. Not one of you went to the aid of your fellow enforcers. You looked out for yourselves, posturing to make a name for yourselves. That stops right now. If I see it again, you’re finished as an enforcer and I’ll demote you to the camp trash pickup team.”
He shifted his attention to the guards. “Your job is to ensure the safety of this camp and everyone in it. If you fall asleep on the job or become distracted for one moment, someone in this camp could die. Every member of The Brotherhood is depending on you to keep watch to the best of your ability. One slip up could cost lives. Unless you want to be responsible for the deaths of your friends and coworkers, you’ll get into the best shape of your lives and learn every trick we can teach you to keep watch effectively while the rest of The Brotherhood goes about their duties or sleeps. Am I clear?”
“Yes, sir,” came the response.
“Excellent. I expect you to cooperate with me and my teammates. Do everything we ask you so we have a fair assessment of your skills and potential to do the job you’re seeking. If you don’t make the cut, you’re welcome to work on your conditioning and try again, but no one will take a position provisionally. You want that job? Earn it. Questions?”
Ryan raised his hand.
“Yes, Ryan?”
“If we don’t have enough training to be an enforcer, will we be considered for a position with the guards?”
“Absolutely.”
Ivan raised his hand.
“Ivan.”
“We want to be better than we are, sir. A lot better. What skills will we learn in training?”
That’s what he wanted, enough interest to ask questions. Now things were moving in the right direction. “Close quarters combat, safety and security, situational awareness, weapons training plus more physical training than you want to write home about.”
Chuckles greeted that statement.
“Other questions?”
A red-haired man raised his hand. “What qualifies you to train us?”
“All of us were Special Forces in the Army.”
A frown. “Even the women?”
“Both Teagan and Violet have more specialized training than you can imagine. They’re experts in weaponry of all types. Violet is a paramedic with more training than most physicians. Teagan is a sharpshooter. Trust me when I say you don’t want to be on their bad sides. They’ll take you down hard before you see them coming.” His smile was more of a baring of his teeth. “When they’re finished with you, my men and I will mop the floors with you. Other questions?”
Seeing none, Seth said, “Expect to work hard this afternoon. Get a good night’s rest because you’ll train hard tomorrow morning bright and early. You’ll train for three hours and be given assignments for the day. Good luck to all of you.”
He turned to Noah. “They’re yours.”
Noah faced the groups of men. “Form two lines. Hope you didn’t eat too much, boys, because we’ll be running for a while.” He glanced at Jerry. “Some of us more than others. Move,” he snapped.
The candidates scrambled to obey Noah’s orders. The only reluctant trainees were Jerry and Blondie.
Seth folded his arms across his chest. “This is your only chance,” he warned. “Are you throwing in the towel, boys? If not, go earn your spot. Plenty of others would love to replace you.”
A scowl from both men, but they fell into line with the rest.
Once they jogged through the open doorway, Seth signaled to Bowen to watch Jerry and Blondie.
After a nod, Bowen fell into line behind the reluctant enforcers.
Seth and Teagan left the training center and walked to the headquarters building. They found Knight and Marsh on thesecond floor, standing guard outside the glass doors leading to Peters’ office. “You’re relieved,” Seth said. “Join the others in evaluating candidates. At the moment, they’re running.” He grinned. “Not happily, either.”
“I’ll bet. Any problems?” Knight asked.