After a brief moment of elation at eluding Kirby and friend, Leslie spent the next few hours in fetal position on the cement floor of his dad’s old bomb shelter sobbing. He’d stumbled across it as a boy, using it as a private club house, then updating it as he got older. Now it served as his hideout. It was here he kept the equipment he used in the Green raids. It was here he’d planned to hide what’s-her- name. It was also a bunker in every sense of the word. It was well stocked with weapons, explosives and food. And it had a communications center, but there was no one for him to call. The only person he ever called from here was Grady. Always Grady—who had betrayed him.

Years, years they’d spent planning this, talking about it. Or had they talked? With his recently discovered hindsight, Leslie examined the years with Grady. He’d talked. And Grady had listened. And listened. And listened. Heady stuff to a kid with a father to whom not listening was an art form. He’d never heard Grady say he supported Green’s objectives. He had encouraged setting up the Irregulars, had laughed with him at the irony of it, while he set up the little armed kingdom in the mountains. And given himself his handle, Forest for the Trees.

Damn. He’d laughed about it, thinking he knew what it meant and all the time, Grady was laughing at him. The bastard had played him with a few words of encouragement, and Leslie had given him his trust and piles and piles of money. No, it was worse than that. Leslie had given Grady his love. Not the twisted love between parent or child, or the sexual crap between a man and a woman. This had been the clean, pure love of friends. Or so he’d thought.

Was it just the money? Or was it something else Grady wanted? Why decide to kill the cash cow now? But he already knew the answer.

Shield.

Grady was hoping for a new cash cow, maybe one that didn’t talk so much or need so much. It was always about control. Who had it, who didn’t. That’s what his dad always said. Who had it. Who didn’t.

Leslie pulled himself into a sitting position and smiled through his tears. Grady was in for several surprises. He didn’t know everything about him. And he didn’t know everything about Shield.

It was time he found out.