They watched the heavily armed men glide across the security monitors. It was nearing midnight, and the fugitive squad inside the house had already cleaned and dressed their wounds as best they could.
"What are you doing?!" Hawk whispered, a sharp edge of worry cutting through his voice.
"Just stay here." Travis signaled them to keep low, but Hawk and Brown ignored the command entirely. They raised their weapons, training them on the figures at the gate, ready to open fire the second anyone took aggressive action against Travis.
The doorbell chimed three times before Travis stepped out to answer it. His hair was deliberately disheveled, and he wore a black robe tied loosely around his waist.
"Good evening, gentlemen. Is there anything I can help you with?" His gaze was deadpan, and his relaxed manner of speaking carried an undercurrent of raw intimidation that made the men outside hesitate.
A man with a fierce tiger tattoo spanning his forearms stepped forward. He dropped his cigarette butt, grinding it into the pavement with the heel of his boot. "There was a gang that hit a few of my men earlier. They fled toward this sector. By any chance, have you seen them, or did anyone trespass on your property? They're highly trained professionals."
"I did hear some commotion earlier, but it wasn't on my grounds," Travis responded, his face a flawless mask. "I have proximity sensors wired around the entire perimeter; I'd know if anyone breached my property. If you like, you're welcome to check the house. I don't dare to get mixed up in gang wars."
Travis casually gestured for them to enter, but his absolute indifference made the leader think twice. The man turned back toward the gate.
"It's indeed best for you to stay out of gang business. If you spot anyone suspicious, contact this number." He flicked a business card toward Travis and led his men away.
Travis watched them until they completely vanished from the street. When he returned inside, he found Hawk and Brown leaning against the sofa, their faces flooded with relief.
"Thank you so much for covering for us. I'm Brown," the silver-haired man introduced himself, before pointing to the grim-faced operative beside him. "This is Hawk. The lady is Savannah, and the other man is Valkyrie. We can only give you our code names for now, not our personal details."
"I don't care about your personal details. I just wanted to help," Travis said, taking a seat on the couch opposite them. "You can stay here until your comrades are stable enough to move. You can leave after that."
"Thank you," Hawk stated, his eyes instinctively drifting to Savannah.
They must be in a relationship. That was the immediate thought that crossed Travis's mind, reading the raw protective instinct written all over Hawk's face as he watched the woman.
"How did you know we were military?" Brown asked once the lingering adrenaline began to fade, leaving them thoroughly exhausted.
Travis studied them carefully, his eyes assessing their postures before landing on Valkyrie, who was currently dead to the world on one of the couches. "My late grandfather was a General in the Eagles Detachment. He's the one who trained me in marksmanship—and I actually met him there," Travis added, pointing his index finger toward the sleeping Valkyrie.
"Oh. What a coincidence!" Brown exclaimed. But his expression quickly turned serious as he pieced together how they had ended up at this exact coordinates.
Earlier, while fleeing through the dark alleys, Valkyrie had been guiding him on where to go while being carried on his back. Realizing it now, Brown was certain that Valkyrie had intentionally led their retreat straight to this man.
"It's late. Let's get some rest. I'll show you to your rooms." Travis stood up, helping Brown heft Valkyrie's dead weight. Hawk lifted Savannah into his arms with practiced ease, following Travis up to the second floor.
Travis assigned them to rooms directly opposite one another, right next to his own master suite. Savannah was supposed to have her room to herself, but Hawk was too anxious about her waking up disoriented in an unfamiliar house. Ultimately, he settled onto the couch near the bed, leaving Savannah to have the mattress all to herself.
The next morning, the household staff were visibly shocked to find a small army of men occupying their master's house. They were even more bewildered when they were instructed to go out and purchase clothes for a woman. A woman! Their master despised bringing outsiders into his private sanctuary, let alone a female guest.
The head servant brought the newly purchased clothes upstairs. Stepping into the guest room, she found the woman sitting up in bed with the handsome driver watching over her.
"These are the clothes for the lady," she spoke softly, handing the garments over.
"Thank you. I'll help her change," Hawk responded, promptly dismissing the servant.
"Did you really have to scare her like that?" Savannah chuckled weakly once the door closed, shifting to sit upright. "I can manage on my own." She grabbed the clothes and limped her way toward the bathroom.
Hawk let her go without argument, knowing she would flare up if he tried to overprotect her.
Meanwhile, in the adjacent room, Valkyrie woke up with a wide, boyish grin on his face, as if the near-death experience from the night before had been nothing more than a wild dream.
"I had no idea you lived here! I thought your cousin owned this estate," Valkyrie chattered endlessly, clearly thrilled to see Travis step into the room. "I've seen her driving in and out of here multiple times when I was scouting the drug den down the road."
"I own the property. My cousin only drops by when she has free time," Travis responded dryly, tossing a fresh set of clothes onto his bed. "It's a good thing I was home last night, or you would've bled out in my yard."
Watching the interaction, Brown realized just how deep their history ran; Travis had been a part of Valkyrie's life long before they became squad mates. Even so, he didn't feel excluded at all.
That single, chaotic night was how the five of them had first crossed paths and forged a lifelong bond.
"Four years. Oh god, it's been four years since you saved our skins," Savannah spoke up in an exasperated tone, snapping Travis out of his memories. "Two years working undercover in your company. Two years! And it took us this long just to find a lead on that little girl."
Travis simply laughed it off, his gaze turning to the window. "It doesn't matter. As long as we find her, I'll finally be able to fulfill my promise to my mother."
Savannah smiled softly, while Hawk remained silent in the driver's seat, listening intently to the conversation while keeping his eyes strictly glued to the road ahead.
"We have a solid lead, but we still can't be entirely certain which one of them is her," Hawk noted practically, breaking the silence.
Savannah reached over and pinched his thigh in sheer frustration. "You total spoiler! Don't burst my bubble of hope!" She glared at him playfully, but Hawk merely chuckled at her expression, driving steadily into the city.