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Noah and Teagan flanked Seth. “Gather around, boys,” Seth said. “Time to do one-on-one training in close-quarters combat. Break up into teams of two and let’s get to work.”
Seth demonstrated one of the easier skills on his master list and had the trainees practice with their partners. Over the next ten minutes, he and the others corrected trainees doing the skill wrong and showed again how to do it right.
Once they mastered that skill, they moved on to a more advanced technique using the same skill they’d just learned. Halfway through this practice session, Richardson walked into the training center.
Figured he’d show sooner rather than later. Seth signaled Noah to take over the session, then walked to the militia leader, who stood at the back of the room, glaring daggers at him. Guess Kent had found a friend in the other man.
“Outside,” Seth said and stepped into the brisk early morning air. When Richardson followed him, Seth closed the door and walked several feet away. “You’re up early.”
“Kent woke me a few minutes ago, complaining about you.”
“Is that right? Did he tell you why I kicked him from the training program?”
“No. That’s beside the point. I chose him for the camp guard job. He’s a good man.”
“That may be, but I don’t trust him and you shouldn’t.”
“Why not?”
“Kent was assigned to guard duty outside our team’s quarters early this morning. He left his post an hour into his shift without sending a replacement. Do you know why?”
“No.”
“Jerry asked him to leave.”
Richardson blinked. “Why would he do that?”
“Jerry broke into our quarters with Shane, Ron, and Joel. They were armed and planned to kill me and my men, then rape and murder Teagan and Violet.”
The militia leader swore viciously. “Are you sure?”
“We captured all four of them and interrogated the men. Yeah, Richardson, I’m sure.”
“I’ll talk to them. This won’t happen again.”
“I know it won’t,” Seth said, voice soft. “We took care of the problem permanently.”
Richardson stared. “What did you say?”
“You heard me. I told you and Peters that I was protective of my team, especially Teagan and Violet. No one attempting to harm them will survive the fight. Kent is a weasel who follows whichever man he’s trying to impress. His loyalty was supposed to be to his team leader. That would be me. Instead, he was more interested in making an impression on Jerry. I won’t have a man like that at my back or at my teammates’ backs.”
Seth shifted closer to Richardson and had the satisfaction of causing the other man to back off two steps. “Would you trust him to keep you safe overnight, sir?”
“No. That still doesn’t give you the right to reassign workers without consulting me first.”
“You gave me and my team the authority to train these men to the best of our ability. You either let us do our jobs or you can handle the training and all the other responsibilities yourself. My team and I will simply focus on protecting Peters. Is that what you want?”
The temptation was there. Seth could see it in Richardson’s eyes. He wanted to retake command, but The Brotherhood’s agenda prevented him from taking over again.
“No. Continue the training. I’ll find somewhere else suitable for Kent.”
“Want a suggestion, sir?”
Richardson motioned for him to continue.
“Put him on laundry detail.”
The militia leader stared for a beat, then laughed. “I might do that.” He sobered. “I’ll have to report the deaths of Jerry and the others to Peters.”
