Page 48 of Fracture

The whole reason Vinnie’s presence was requested was to take part in an early morning briefing about a high-profile visitor coming to the city and the need for extra security. Vinnie and the rest of his team were asked to be in charge of the operation, which meant they all had to be there.

After the meeting, there was a training session. Training was interrupted by the raid.

Now they were back, and Vinnie was itching to get the hell out of there.

“Do you need me here the rest of the day?” Vinnie asked his boss.

Damien sighed heavily. “What are you doing with this agent?”

“What does that mean?”

“It means she has her own team that can stay with her until her head is healed and she can be on her own. Why does it have to be you?”

“We talked about this last week. I thought you were okay with it.”

“I… I’m just looking for a timeline here.”

“Captain Patrick was going to assign someone to the team while I’m out.”

“He did. And it’s great to have a body, but that’s not the body I need. When we’re training and we’re preparing for ops, we need you here. Even when shit happens and we have to go, a new guy isn’t the same as someone who’s been a part of this team for a decade.”

“You’re making me feel old.”

Damien shook his head. “You and I both know this team is special. It’s different. You don’t get here just by being a good cop. And you don’t stay here by being a good cop. SWAT isn’t like everything else. We have to trust each other in ways no other group has to.”

Vinnie sighed, nodding. “I know. And I am coming back.”

“When?”

Vinnie scrubbed a hand down his face, thinking about Lorelei’s recovery. In a few days, she’d be cleared to be alone for periods of time. In just one day, her no strenuous activity requirement would be lifted, which Vinnie could not think about in front of his boss.

Karli was willing to help, but it wasn’t so easy with Lorelei on crutches.

“Give me the rest of this week. I’ll be back next week for the high-profile op and have a plan for going forward when I come back.”

Damien considered Vinnie’s offer. It was clear he didn’t love the idea of letting Vinnie miss out on more shifts, but it was better than Vinnie not being around at all.

Vinnie waited, knowing if he added something, it would only be to cave and do whatever his boss wanted him to do. When Vinnie tried out for SWAT, he knew his numbers weren’t the highest of everyone who tested. Marcus encouraged Vinnie to do it, and with Marcus’s support, Vinnie fought like hell and made it through.

But finding his spot on the team was different. Just because he was in didn’t mean he was going to stay there. Being a part of a team was harder than having a partner. Being part of the team meant navigating the emotions and opinions of everyone.

Damien was the one who made that possible. He gave Vinnie a place where he could thrive, a spot on a team that was more interested in who he was and his moral compass than where he came from. Their team was a blend of legacy cops, women who worked harder than everyone else, and men who had instincts that saved all their lives more than once.

Damien was a fair leader, and he was a good man. Vinnie didn’t want to lose his spot on the team, and he didn’t want to lose Damien’s respect.

But he also didn’t want to lose Lorelei.

“Okay. But you have to finish the shift today,” Damien said.

Vinnie nodded. “Deal.”

“Now, tell me about this agent. She seemed like a fierce one. Was that the real her?”

Vinnie shook his head. “She’s complicated. And it’s harder since her memory is shot. I think she’s unsure of who she is. But she’s still the strongest woman I’ve ever met.”

Damien snorted. “Don’t let Molly and Hannah hear you say that.”

“Say what?” Hannah asked, coming around the end of the lockers. Her shaved head and brilliant blue eyes gave her a sharp edge and a kickass look that had men and women either trying to get her number or steering far from her.