Page 107 of Built to Last

Ozzie snorted. “No shit, Sherlock. Only took her a year to figure that one out?”

“She contacted me yesterday to ask if BKI would act as the cover for the group of operators she’s handpicked.” Boss ignored Ozzie. “Told her I couldn’t make any promises. Said I needed to talk to you guys first. She agreed but also suggested we meet her men before making our decision. So here they are.” Boss waved a hand toward the group still standing silently at the mouth of the tunnel.

In typical BKI fashion all hell broke loose. Everyone starting asking questions at once.

“Sorry!” Becky called to the newcomers as the sound system flipped from a slow dance to a much more upbeat Selena Gomez tune. “Family meeting! We’ll be right with you!”

After a few minutes, it became clear that the question at the forefront of everyone’s mind was what, exactly, the president expected of the original Black Knights.

“She says we don’t have to play any role if we don’t want to,” Boss told them. “And even if we do want to, she wants us to limit ourselves to mission support. Make no mistake, ladies and gentleman, the torch has been passed. What we have to decide is do we want to provide the cover for that torch.”

There was silence following that proclamation, but Rusty knew what the Knights’ answer would be before any of them opened their mouths. They were patriots, one and all, and when their country needed them, they wouldn’t ignore the call.

“Of course we’ll help,” Ozzie said.

A soft chorus of agreement ran through the group and then everyone turned toward the newcomers only to discover that Peanut, BKI’s on-site mascot, a fat, ragged tomcat that wasn’t good for anything but eating and mischief, sashayed toward the arrivals.

Apparently, the tom wasn’t one for weddings. He’d been hiding since the Knights cleared out the shop and began decorating. Even the buffet table hadn’t been enough to coax him out from beneath the sofa.

Now, however, in typical cat fashion, he wound his rotund self around and between the legs of the men still standing inside the mouth of the tunnel, smelling their shoes and bags. Once satisfied he’d thoroughly investigated them, he flopped down on the floor, lifted a leg over his head, and started gratuitously cleaning his balls.

Boss threw an arm around Becky’s shoulders and laughed. “Welcome to Black Knights Inc., gentlemen!”

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