Page 8 of Carver
The confirmation that Archie was still thinking of protecting his man and the NightShade team had Carver snapping his fingers. He was a good fit for them.
“I like how you think, kid. You ever need a home away from home, come find the Angels, and I’ll vouch for you. Let’s load up on my bike. I can torch this place later if Tank doesn’t need any evidence.”
Carver could tell there was no chance of Archie making the long walk back to where they’d parked the bikes alone. He stepped forward, arms out. Archie allowed Carver to lift him into a bridal style hold. Once Carver had him tucked safe to his chest, he turned to face Hex.
“We ready to load up?”
Hex shook his head. “Not quite. We’ve got a lot more survivors than we originally thought. We’re going to need a second truck.”
“Fuck,” Carver grunted.
Trix’s voice joined them. “I’m already working on it, Boss. You’ll need to return Archie first and then come back to the compound to help navigate transport. It’s going to be all hands on deck. I’d send more Angels, but figured you wanted to keep them home should anything else pop up.”
“You’re right, Trix. I’ll get Archie home, then come back. Slash can man everything until then.”
With that, he got Archie situated in front of him on his bike and set off towards the NightShade offices. It was time to lock in those favors from Tank.
When Carver gotto the NightShade building, the security guys gave him curious looks. He knew it wasn’t because of the amount of blood coating him because he’d stopped along the way to change into a fresh set of all black clothing. He also made sure Archie was spot free to prevent any unwanted attention.
“Hey guys,” Archie called out. “He’s with me.”
The men smiled at Archie, then let them both through. No questions. No ID checks. Carver would have to let Tank know about that. Had Archie been in distress and this a trap of some kind, they wouldn’t even know it. They’d trusted the young man far too easily.
In the elevator, Archie leaned against the wall. He closed his eyes and sighed. “I’m ready to be home.”
“I’m sure Takeshi will be happy to take you there after he sees you’re safe and sound,” Carver replied.
Archie smiled. “You don’t get it. Takeshi is my home. I’m almost there.”
The numbers on the screen climbed higher, the young man beside him relaxed even more. Carver envied him a bit for the confidence he held in that moment. He’d never thought of another person feeling like home. It was a foreign concept.
As soon as the elevator doors opened, Archie took off down the hall. Carver followed him, a smirk in place as the young man seemed to gained heaps of energy.
“They’re in Tank’s office,” a voice called from the reception desk.
Carver didn’t get a chance to greet the man. His focus was on ensuring Archie was properly reunited with his family.
At the door to Tank’s office, Archie threw it wide open in a theatrical way that almost had Carver laughing out loud. There was nothing reserved about his actions any longer.
In a blur of movement, Archie took off running into the room. As Carver moved into the doorway, he saw the young man basically launch himself at Takeshi. The two embraced tightly.
“Well, fuck. That was quicker than expected,” Tank said, relief and frustration lacing his words. He was probably bothered by the fact Carver’s guys did what his couldn’t.
“Glad I could deliver him in one piece. He needs a shower and a doctor checkup. The bitch was feeding him, so heaven knows what’s in his system.”
Carver watched Takeshi looking over Archie as if to see if everything he’d said was true. Then the other man turned and moved his hands around.
Archie grinned at the motion, then turned to Carver and said, “He’s telling you thank you. I’ll say it too because we both mean it. You saved me.”
“It’s no biggie. Besides, I couldn’t turn away a three-favor-deal from Tank. That’s too good an offer for an easy job like this one.” Carver’s smile went wide at the memory. He’d savor having those favors in his back pocket. If for no other reason than the fact that it annoyed Tank to have to give them out.
“How did you even know where to go?” Memphis jumped in, his voice hard. “I’d searched high and low for Mordecai, yet you stormed the place within hours of hearing from Tank. Seems suspicious.”
Carver straightened at the incrimination beneath Memphis’s question. “You trying to accuse me of something? No need. My club runs on a system of checks and balances. I knew Mordecai was about to wind up in hot shit, and I only needed one reason to go in and take her out. Besides, I had to wait until the rest of my guys could come help me free the others.”
It wasn’t the full truth, but they didn’t need to know that. Most of what he said was accurate. He refused to lay all his cards on the table with this group. Especially since he knew they weren’t telling him everything either.
Archie gasped and spun to face Carver. “The men in the collars, right? You saved them all?”