Chapter 10: DEVON

We'd dug into Mancini, as much as it's possible to dig into a spook or whatever the fuck the guy is. And though we're all agreed he's our kind of people, it's still not easy for us to just put ourselves in someone else's hands; especially not when the storm was raging all around us.

For the women though, it was probably the best move. Not that we couldn't protect them, but with everything else we had on our plate and as far reaching as the shit seemed to be, it might be good to have a little extra help while we hunted assholes.

Ty came back inside with the baby who'd calmed down to the sniffles. He was still looking at Zak like he wanted to shoot him when he took his set with baby Zak on his lap.

She said some shit to him that he understood and he put her down after wheedling a kiss from her. The guy is such a sap.

She made her way to her daddy on toddling legs and stood at his knee. Zak pretended not to see her as she clasped her hands and peered at him from beneath her lashes.

All eyes were on her as we held our laughter. This is one of her more famous tells. She does this when she knows she's guilty as shit but she wants you to be the one to cave.

Not sure which of her parents she inherited this from. Could be either one of them since they're both sneaky as fuck.

When he still didn't look at her, she poked his knee with her finger and batted her lashes at him when he finally gave her his attention. "What can I do for you Zakira?"

Without an answer, she climbed into his lap with his help of course, and started lecturing him. She laid her head on his chest, picked one of her feet up between her hands and played with her toes through her socks.

He tickled her little girl tummy and she giggled and lifted her head to kiss his cheek. All is forgiven.

"Traitor." Tyler mock growled at her and she went into fits of giggles. For some reason, the conversation centered once again around children and who was going to be the best dad and uncle, with Ty of course claiming the prize for both.

We teased him about his book reading, that is until Dani busted Con for doing the same thing. The others were soon all toppled by their women one by one. My brothers are reading baby how to books. Damn!

I remember a time when all or most of our conversations were about war or some other sick shit that only a handful of people in the world knew anything about.

But five grown men were actually arguing about some shit that like I said, even a year ago wasn't on our radar. The thing is, I think they were serious and so did their women who all looked at me like 'do something about this freak show'.

I just shook my head and laughed because hey, these fuckers are crazy. How I ended up with this band of misfits is anybody's guess, but from the day I got picked for the team it's been like this.

As someone who prefers watching from the sidelines it was easy to see the camaraderie between these men, to sense that underlying thread of trust and mutual respect needed for a team such as ours to exist.

As one of the last to join the ranks, and me being who I am, I'd tried distancing myself in the beginning. Even though the CO had drilled it into our heads that in order to work together as a team we had to damn near live in each other's skin.

It was a new concept for me, trust, plus I had a problem with authority as well, and a chip on my shoulder that no one was gonna knock off. I wasn't about to trust none of these jokers and no amount of half ass inclusion attempts was going to make me think any different, or so I thought.

I was still questioning what the fuck I was doing in the navy back then. I'd joined up because it was something to do and when you don't give a damn if you live or die, the armed forces is about the best gig going. I guess I didn't think shit through well enough, didn't quite get what signing up would entail.

Everyone usually cut a wide berth around me and I had kind of a reputation for being an asshole all through basic training. But that was before they teamed us up after my stint in BUDs and sicced Lo on my ass.

It wasn't just the chip on my shoulder that had kept a cold distance between me and everyone else. It was also the preconceived notions that many had.

Lo had been the first one there to look at me and see just me. I tested him hard as fuck in the beginning, but my brother never wavered. That's Logan for you. He only sees team he doesn't give a fuck if you're part android. And the fucker is relentless.

When I first joined up no one thought I would make it as a SEAL. There's a myth going around that the 'brothers' can't cut it, can't make the grade. I'm a straight up mongrel.

Mom was black and dad was Italian. I had the best of both of them in me and though I was as light as my brothers there was no hiding the fact that I had some Grade A black blood in me. Not that I ever tried.

Anyway, that myth died a hard fast death when I showed up. Never tell me I can't do something, or that I'm not good enough. That's just the catalyst I need to fuck your preconceived notions in the ass.

I aced that shit and left my naysayers in the dust. When I was chosen for this particular team though, motherfuckers were looking for my grandfather.

They couldn't believe a little black boy from the streets of Detroit had made it and done it in such a big way. So of course to them, I had to have had help.

When they realized that I'd done that shit on my own merit and strength of character, it didn't sit too well with some. Fuck...them.

I didn't hold that shit against them, I never did with anyone who acted like that. Who has the time? I myself hadn't expected to shine among the thousands of other young men and women, some of whom were seriously vying for the position when I'd just been pissing around.

But it was their disbelief and the way some of them just dismissed me like I didn't count, that in the end pushed me to be better, not just good, but fucking A awesome.

By the end I actually learned to enjoy it and have a little pride in myself. I'd finally come home, but fuck if I wanted any squatters in my abode.

The CO was probably the first adult I'd ever encountered since the death of my parents that I thought was worth a damn. No matter what shit I threw at him, he never let the fuck up, never once didn't have my back, and believe me I tried.

I tested his ass at every turn, was an insubordinate fuck on more than one occasion, but he refused to give up on me even then. He'd discipline my ass for sure, but he was always there the next day riding my ass to do better.

His 'boys' had to be the best in the history of the SEALs and no piss-ant little snot nosed brat was going to mess with his program.

I never had shit easy in my life, not since the day both my parents died together in a car crash. My life ended that day. The happy teenager who'd known love and support was suddenly set adrift in the world on his own.

I'd never been close to any of my relatives since both sides had a grievance with my parents' relationship. It's sad to say in this day and age that that shit was purely racial and made no sense to the two people who loved each other like their next breath.

They were the ones who taught me to see beyond color into the heart of a person. My dad was always fond of saying, out of hearing of mom of course, 'Son, there're fucked up people from all walks of life. I've seen enough shit to know that-that race shit don't matter. Like the man said in Needful Things, 'Let God sort 'em out.'

He was an upstanding man who was full of heart and loved his wife and son unconditionally. Losing him, losing both of them, was a blow that I hadn't really ever gotten over.