Page 62 of Beyond Redemption

The change in him was immediate, subtle but unmistakable, the easy calm he carried giving way to something more rigid. “I don’t like that,” he said.

I tilted my head. This was the first time Bodhi had been anything that resembled defiant. “You don’t have to.”

“I’m not talking about you,” he said, holding my gaze. “You’re trained, that makes sense. We’ll need everyone with time at a range aiming over the fences. I’m talking about me.”

Olive’s eyes flicked to him, a quiet warning there, but he continued.

“With all due respect, Liis, I’m not going underground if something happens. That door is the last line of defense,” he said, pointing his finger to the table, “and the second even one of those bastards gets through, let’s face it, we’re fucked. I’m not going to sit inside and wait for someone who wants to kill Olive or Stella or any of those kids to make it that far before I try to stop it.”

“I just told you, Bodhi, that position is already covered.”

“It doesn’t have to be just one person.”

I stared at him for a full ten seconds, considering everything he’d said. “If you hesitate, even for a second—”

He cut me off. “I won’t.”

I blinked and then nodded slowly. “If you’re guarding the door, basketball drills aren’t going to cut it. People react differently to live fire and death. You have no idea what you’ll do.”

He glanced around, raising his arms to his sides. “Look where we are, Liis. People train for that every day. Talk to Naomi. She can get me into shape.”

“She trains soldiers,” I said. “She won’t be easy on you because you’re a kid.”

“Good!” he said, louder than he meant for it to be. He pulled in a breath, catching himself, and forced his shoulders to drop as he reined it back in. “Good. I want to be ready for whatever comes at me. I want to be able to protect Olive. To protect all of them.”

“Did I hear my name?” Naomi asked, stepping into the hallway.

“Shit,” I said, closing my eyes for a second.

Zeke laughed, stepping out from behind her. “Sorry. We were just stopping by to see how you were settling in.”

“Hope we’re not interrupting,” Naomi said, her attention settling on Bodhi. “This the string bean you want me to train?”

“I don’t think—” I began, but Bodhi pushed to his feet.

Naomi had to tilt her head back almost unnaturally to meet his eyes, her gaze climbing several inches to get there.

“I hear you’re the one to do it,” he said with a smirk.

Naomi glanced at me. “He’s green. Arrogant. This’ll be fun.”

“Not for him,” I grumbled.

“No,” she said, shaking her head before looking back up to catch his gaze. Even from below, she was terrifying. He eased back half a step without realizing it. “No, it sure as shit won’t be. I’m gonna knock that grin off your pretty face.”

Bodhi swallowed. “Y-yes, ma’am.”

Naomi relaxed her posture, sitting next to Olive. “So… how are you settling in? Have everything you need?”

“Actually,” I began. “I saw a door on the way back from Command. Is it a bunker?”

“Why do you ask?”

“I was talking to Abby, Ellie, Cami, and Falyn. We need a plan in case the shit hits the fan and the fences are breached.”

Naomi scoffed. “Highly unlikely.”

“Now who’s overconfident?” Bodhi said with a chuckle.