I n f i n i t u m

Chapter Twenty Five

When I entered into the locker room of the level two bunker, I'd basically rolled out of bed. Hak and Hudson were already gearing up, while Santiago was probably the one who was in the only closed partition in the shower room.

"Morning, Fang."

"Mornin'," I greeted back.

Opening my locker, I pulled out a spare toothbrush and toothpaste along with a towel before heading over to the sink. After I was done brushing my teeth, I entered an empty stall and undressed before switching up the nozzle. I gasped when freezing water pelted over my skin, swearing when I realized that I'd forgotten to leave it running beforehand. Telling from the chuckles coming from outside, I wasn't the only one who knew.

Five minutes later, I walked to my locker, towel wrapped around my waist and hair slightly damp. Santiago pulled a shirt over his head and turned to me with a sharp grin, "You're so lucky, bro. Lefevre just swung by a few minutes ago."

I choked, "No way!"

"Way," Hak confirmed.

Holy fuck. What a shit show that would've turned out: me hauling ass with just a towel on. There was no way I would've outran him, I thought. A bit startled, I was quick in pulling on my cammies and my full tactical gear, and sitting down on the bench, I put on socks and my combat boots. I held my helmet in my hands once I was finished strapping on my pack.

Santiago waited for me right outside, and together, we made our way out into the front where the rest of the guys were situated around two humvees that were fitted with machine guns this time. Wren stepped away from his relaxed position leaning back against the hood while he talked with the guys, and a charming smile graced his face when he saw us approaching, "Ready?"

I couldn't meet his eyes, but answered nonetheless, "Let's get this show on the road."

The intent for the mission was to visit another Stronghold that had sent out an SOS. This Stronghold wasn't particularly near Aegis— no, we had a long ass car ride ahead of us. Apparently their grid had shut down before any intel could be retrieved, so we were sent out as a result. Needless to say, I brought a pillow.

It was hour four on the road when we had to finally stop at an abandoned neighborhood to fill up on gas. Wren brought five tanks for the entire trip, so unless someone robbed us, we would be fine. The area was small enough, so I took the time to explore around. It was quite a charming place, with houses not as big as the previous neighborhood I'd encountered last. It was cozy and neat, despite the overgrown grass, deterioration, and what not. It took a lot to get used to, but by now it was just another scenery to solely look past.

The snow was beginning to come down hard, so I entered one house in particular that drew my attention. It was the only one that was still intact, and the couch and beds looked comfortable in particular. The idea of sleeping on a mattress was what set me in motion. I looked for Wren and the rest of the guys, soon finding them at a house a block away. Hak was the one who spotted me first and he followed me on my way over to Wren. He was checking underneath the sink drawers when I walked through the foyer.

"Hey," I called, drawing his attention to me. He swept a stray strand of hair from his eye as he looked my way, "I found a place we could all stay for the night. The snow's coming down hard, it's getting dark out, and I think it'd be best if we weren't on the road."

Wren slowly got up and wiped his hands on his pants, "That's great, yeah, we'll head over in a minute."

I nodded and turned on my heel to walk away. I passed Santiago on the way out. He followed in my step, "That's weird."