The Spa.
Where every squad in the US Army dreamed of being stationed for a coveted two-week rotation.
General Davis confided in Ben that if he’d known how much it would increase discipline and morale within the troops, he’d have built a few of them in scenic spots around the country. He actually was in discussions with Dominic Sellini and Dan Bishop about plans for another, but for now, there was just the one, and demand was high.
Of course, it couldn’t be denied that one of the highlights of this particular location was the number of beautiful women living in the neighborhood.
For a squad to be assigned the perk of being stationed here for two weeks, they had to reach some performance milestone Ben was unaware of and really didn’t care about, as long as they were on their best behavior while they were here.
Davis assured him that a bad report would eliminate chances of a return visit, so the soldiers also policed themselves. If one of the squad members started to get out of hand, his team would set him straight.
This was on Ben’s mind as he listened to Sergeant Killcade’s report after they’d finished the breakfast clean-up.
“… and three members of the squad were taken to the hospital with minor injuries,” she concluded.
He rubbed his face tiredly as Tina and Lucy watched him with concern.
Ben locked eyes with Evelyn. “Tatiana?” She nodded.
“What was it this time?” he asked, but he was sure he already knew.
“Three soldiers were having an unofficial sparring practice in the park. She joined them, convinced them to team up against her, and said take me to the matt. Those were apparently her exact words. She also told them not to hold back,” Evelyn said with a disapproving tone.
Ben nodded as he’d heard enough. “Okay. I’ll drop by One Ashburn with her to have her apologize to them.”
Evelyn checked his schedule. “I don’t believe there will be time today as you have a meeting at ten with your accountant, Jerry Taggart, to see his newly expanded offices. The Squad is rotating out this morning, and our next visitors will arrive at noon.” She looked up at Ben with an intense expression. “General Davis notified me that it’ll be two SEAL Platoons this time, thirty-two sailors. He wasn’t able to delay them any longer.” She smirked. “He was trying to schedule them to be here after it snowed.”
Ben smiled and shook his head. It was just the beginning of September, and the weather was unseasonably warm. He was enjoying the heat as he wasn’t a fan of winter. The forecast suggested this warm spell could last through the month, but they’d been wrong before.
He sighed. “I’ll still have a talk with her. She has to stop tormenting the soldiers.”
“Maybe it is better she takes her frustrations out on them than you,” Tina suggested nervously.
Ben looked into her concerned eyes and shook his head. “She needs to speak with someone about her anger management issues.”
Tina didn’t look satisfied with that answer, but he couldn’t offer more. His mind flashed back to the day Tatiana arrived in Ashburn Court. Her secret intent then had been to retrieve the diamonds he’d inherited and demonstrate to Ben that he didn’t have the right to set conditions for her freedom. The day might have ended with Ben dead at her hand. Instead, he’d sent her to the hospital in an ambulance. He’d answered her violence with his own, and she’d spent the following week recovering from the concussion.
Ever since he cleared up Tatiana’s invulnerability misconception, she’d been on edge. Her confidence in being the pinnacle predator must have helped her cope with the stress of her occupation. Being shown she wasn’t the apex damaged something her training hadn’t prepared her for.
Their first encounter with a potentially deadly situation arrived just a month ago when Ben attended a conference in Las Vegas. Ben made her rein in her aggression as she’d prepared to use lethal force.
She’d been looking for targets to conquer ever since, but nothing had escalated beyond beatings… so far. He needed to speak with Liliya again and perhaps Dr. Granger.
He took a deep breath and looked toward the Sergeant once more. “Anything else on my calendar?”
She smiled and shook her head.
“Good! Maybe I’ll have some time this afternoon to work on the Department of Energy request,” he sighed.
He’d been shown a new energy cell that promised to hold power longer without degrading, but something was causing the cells to fail catastrophically. The original designer was killed in his lab by a cell that exploded. Ben was reviewing the original design specifications and had done a few virtual tests in his testbed software. No virtual explosions but also no results that impressed. He believed this wasn’t something that translated to software. He would have to rent some lab space to build a physical cell from the components. He wouldn’t risk doing this at home.
He was eager to begin, and the Sergeant shared his enthusiasm.
Earlier this morning, he’d worked out, showered, dressed, and had his breakfast. He’d received his debriefing, yet there was much to do. He thanked the Sergeant, kissed Tina and Lucy, and scooped Christopher out of his highchair to set him on his feet.
“I’ll take the kids to Daphne’s while you get ready for school,” he said to his two ladies.
Tina and Lucy smiled happily as he lifted Gretchen into his arms from Lucy’s hands. Evelyn accepted Sam and the two of them walked to the front door with Christopher chattering away happily next to them. Boots and shoes went on, the Sergeant slipped off her boot covers, then they crossed the court to the daycare.
Lori greeted them with a wide smile as Lisa returned from the back to assist. They signed the children in and took the younger ones into their arms as Christopher raced into the back immediately. Ben leaned forward as they were otherwise alone and gave the twins kisses, which added a sparkle to their eyes.
When Ben stepped back outside with the Sergeant at his side, he took a deep breath and sighed as his eyes scanned the activity in the court.
He saw Ashley getting the kids into her truck. They waved, so he waved back to them. Karen and Penny were halfway to her house, and they saw Ashley’s motion, so they turned and waved at Ben and Evelyn.
Rain was pulling out of her driveway in the minivan Ben purchased for their home. She went in the opposite direction to Ashley as the clinic she worked at was on the other side of town. When the local headquarters of Ben’s foundation center were built, Rain would be transferring to work from the new clinic he was setting up there. She was rather excited about that.
He saw Liliya walking towards him with a smile as her daughter, Rose, rushed forward.
“Daddy!” she called out as her little legs carried her up the driveway into Ben’s arms as he knelt to give her a hug and kiss.
“How’s my Rose this morning?” he asked with a smile.
“Good!” she grinned back at him, then she burst into giggles and struggled to get free as he pretended to nibble her ears.
“Good morning, Ben,” Liliya said as she reached them.
He lifted the squirming and laughing girl into the air and handed her to Liliya.
“Good morning, Liliya,” he said with a smile. His eyes looked past the blonde to the brunette who was causing him the most trouble.
“Good morning, Tatiana.”
The raven-haired beauty smiled at him. “Good morning, Ben. Sergeant.” She nodded to Evelyn with a smirk.
“I’ll be just a moment,” Liliya said as she carried Rose to the daycare entrance.
Ben touched Evelyn’s arm to indicate she should stay where she was as he moved forward to walk Tatiana a few feet away to the sidewalk. She looked into his eyes as he watched her. He caught a few subtle but involuntary ticks she’d developed whenever he got close to her; her eyes widened slightly, her nostrils flared, and her lips parted.
“Tatiana, I heard you sent three soldiers to the hospital yesterday,” he began.
“It was nothing. Some simple sparring,” the assassin immediately asserted.
Ben kept his voice quiet and calm, but he continued to look into her eyes. “You set them up. You knew they couldn’t take you, but with three against one and telling them to not hold back, it gave you an excuse to get rough with them. You need to stop abusing the soldiers. They aren’t the enemy.”
Tatiana’s eyes flared as she moved even closer. He could see she was trembling. “There hasn’t been an enemy since Las Vegas, and even then, I was held back from doing what I do best!”
Ben moved closer still and saw her trembling increase. “You’re more than a killer. The most effective weapon is one that wins the fight before it needs to engage. No more fighting with the soldiers!”
Her breathing became ragged, and Ben saw her nipples pressing firmly against her tight blouse. She was excited? He growled quietly as he didn’t know how to deal with this. A shiver went through her at the sound.
“We’re visiting my accountant today. Are you going to be able to be civil?” he asked quietly.
“Yesss,” she sighed, equally quiet.
Ben heard Liliya rushing down the steps toward them, so he nodded to Tatiana and leaned back. The brunette nodded and closed her eyes momentarily as she struggled to regain her earlier calm.
Liliya stepped up beside them and quickly assessed their physical and emotional states. She noted the signs of Tatiana’s excitement and glanced at Ben’s face, but he just looked frustrated.
“We have to go,” Ben said as he walked back to his place.
Evelyn quickly joined Ben to walk at his side. She glanced at his face and saw his grim expression. She needed to get him thinking about something else.
“I’m curious why you chose an accounting firm in a neighboring city instead of a local company,” she said.