Chapter 2
Lisa was storming through the halls on base. She was pissed and she was on a mission. She could not believe what she woke up to this morning. She knew Sonny was an idiot at the best of times, but she had no idea he was this stupid. She walked into the lounge room and saw the team there. She slammed the door as she spoke.
"Sonny Quinn how stupid can you be?"
"Hey not so loud Davis. I got a Texan size raging bull in my head." Sonny grumbled. He went out drinking with the team last night and like previous times he spent the night at the bar drinking himself into oblivion.
"Oh I'm sorry, do you have a headache!" Lisa yelled on purpose.
"Goddamit Davis." Sonny said, as he moved away.
"How can you be so stupid Quinn. I mean really you've done some downright idiotic stunts before, but this? What the hell is wrong with you?"
"What the hell are you going on about?" Sonny snapped. He just wanted to sit down and drink his coffee in peace.
"I'm talking about the text messages I woke up to this morning from you."
"Now hang on, I was mighty drunk last night. I don't remember even leaving the bar so I am sorry if I sent you some inappropriate texts. I did not mean to offend you at all little darling."
"Oh you wish you sent me dick pics." Lisa said, as she slid her phone across the table to Sonny.
Sonny picked it up and saw a photo of him and three other team guys, one from Charlie, one from Romeo and one from Tango. Sonny didn't really see the big deal.
"You're upset about me sending you a photo of me and some guys?" Sonny asked, confused.
"I'm pissed off, because that photo, along with twenty others, are all taken inside of Clay's apartment. The apartment you destroyed."
"You did what?" Jason demanded, now pissed off himself.
"Are you kidding Sonny?" Ray snapped.
"Hold on, there's gotta be a mistake. I wouldn't do that." Sonny instantly said.
"Flip through the photos. They all came from your phone." Lisa said.
Sonny moved her phone away and opted instead to pull out his own cell phone. Jason picked up Lisa's phone to go through them as Ray leaned over to look.
"Sonny, this place is a disaster. You destroyed the whole place." Jason growled out.
The whole apartment was just trashed, it was beyond trashed. There was no salvaging any of the bathrooms or the kitchen counters. The walls would all need to be redone, the carpet, the kitchen and bathrooms, it was all a write off.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" Ray asked.
"I don't remember any of this. I swear, I don't remember leaving the bar." Sonny said, hurt as he looked through the photos on his phone. He clearly had taken more than he sent to Lisa. Photos of him and the guys all smiling and laughing. Sonny couldn't believe he did this. He had never done something like this before.
"You didn't just destroy his apartment Sonny. You guys peed on his bed. You poured paint all over his clothes, you destroyed literally everything he owns. None of that even compares to the last set of pictures you sent to me."
Sonny flipped through his photos and instantly groaned when he saw them.
"You destroyed his library." Jason growled.
"Sonny it was already bad, but that. It would have been less painful if you just shot him." Ray said.
The guys all knew that Clay loved to read, you always saw him with a book. When they went on tour he would have at least three with him to read in their down time. He read on the plane, in their cage, they had even seen him stay awake all night reading a new book. Clay read, that was a huge part of himself. They used to bug him about it when he first joined the team, but they had come to accept that it was just a huge part of who he was.
"It's bad, ok I admit it's really bad. I don't remember doing any of this." Sonny said, he was just completely shocked by this.
"How drunk were you?" Trent said.
They had known there was some tension within the group towards Clay. Him and Brock had seen it and they both could understand why. After Ash's interview it only made sense that his inside man was Clay. They weren't going to kick him out, but they had to make sure he understood there were consequences for his actions. He had broken a trust and as a result he was going to be paying for it. This took it to a whole other level though, one Clay didn't deserve.
"I don't remember most of the night. I'll talk to him when he comes in. I'll cover the damages."
"The damages? Sonny, the apartment alone is close to thirty grand in repairs he's going to have to hand over. He can't file for insurance because you used your key. He could be evicted over this. As for the books, you can't replace them. The one book that was kept in a shadow box on the shelf, that was the only thing Clay had from Brian. He gave it to him as a present when he got accepted into Green Team, Clay didn't even read it. He told me once when he was drunk that that book meant the most to him out of all of his possessions, because it was the first time he had ever received a gift from someone in his life. Twenty-four years old and that was the first time he had ever gotten a present. And you completely destroyed it." Lisa told them.
"This is really bad." Brock said, as the reality hit them all. This wasn't a sucker punch, it was one of them coming up behind him and shooting him in the back to slowly bleed out and die.
"Ok, I can't fix that, but the other books can be replaced." Sonny said, trying to figure out how he could make this right.
"No they can't Sonny. They were all first editions. The cheapest book he had was fifteen hundred dollars. He had over a hundred grand in books that are now shredded." Lisa informed him.
"A hundred grand? Who the hell pays that much for a book?" Sonny said outraged.
"He didn't have kids, he didn't have debt. Clay would save up all year around everything he could and then purchase a few new and rare books that he had wanted. He would buy them every year in December as a way of celebrating the year by himself. Said he had done it since he was eighteen as a way to celebrate not dying that year. They mean a great deal to him, you know that." Lisa said.
"How can you be this stupid Sonny? Out of all the years I have known you and put up with your stupid stunts and probelms. All the times I looked the other way when you stumbled onto the plane hungover or half drunk. And you do this to your own brother. You're supposed to protect him, not hurt him like this." Jason yelled.
The problem was Jason wasn't just pissed off at Sonny. He was pissed off at himself. He had allowed this to happen, he had allowed things to get this out of hand. He cared about Clay, he loved him like a son, but he was also his boss and with that came a responsibility to ensure when at work Clay was treated just like everyone else. When Ash's interview hit he had to treat Clay like he would anyone else if they had done this. It hurt him to do it, but he had to or he risked people calling favoritism and it could jeopardize Clay's career. That didn't mean it didn't hurt to see the pain in Clay's eyes. Jason was planning on talking with him in a couple of days about it all and get it sorted. He was planning on taking him out to grab something to eat and some beers where they could just talk it all out. Jason was going to hear him out and hear his side of the story and get him back on the right track. This wasn't supposed to happen. The other teams weren't supposed to join in on icing Clay out and they were never supposed to go after Clay or his apartment. This wasn't the first time a team has had to ice out a member for a punishment, everyone knew what to do. This had never happened before.
"You're not telling me what I don't already know. I fucked up and I have no clue how to even start to make this right." Sonny said.
"You all fucked up. You allowed this to happen. You allowed the other teams to treat him like crap and you all treated him like worthless garbage. None of us know what happened in Clay's childhood, but it doesn't take a psychologist to know that he has serious trust and abandonment issues. He trusts you guys and the first time he needs you in his corner you not only turned your backs on him, you joined in on the abuse. How the hell do you make any of that right?" Lisa said.
"It'll take time, probably a lot of it, but we'll make it right. We'll figure out how to make this right." Ray said.
"I'll talk with him when he comes in today. I'll make it right." Sonny promised.
Their phones all went off and Lisa was the only one that looked at hers. They knew they must be getting spun up if all of them got a text message.
"Ops now." Lisa said, as she turned and headed out.
The guys all followed her, each of them feeling like shit. They would be seeing Clay, but they were hoping to not have to see him in ops. They needed to speak with him before they got sent on an operation, because being on the plane was not the time to be having this conversation. They walked into their ops center and noticed that Clay wasn't there yet. They could also tell Blackburn was not impressed at all, and Mandy didn't look much happier. They all took their seats and Blackburn spoke.
"We have news."
"Shouldn't we wait for Clay?" Ray said.
"It's about him. The Upper Brass has been running a silent internal investigation into Bravo and everyone connected to Bravo that was present during the leaked operation. The investigation has turned up who released the intel."
"How bad is the kid in trouble?" Sonny asked.
"None. He was found innocent. The leak came from Sworsky, he's been trying to get onto Bravo outside of a support role for a couple of years now. He hates Clay and saw an opportunity to get him removed. He figured with Clay gone, you would pick him to replace the kid. Sworsky is going up on charges and everyone will be told the truth." Blackburn finished.
A weight all sank in everyone's stomach. Clay had said he didn't do it and none of them listened to him. They all treated him like shit, they let the other teams treat him like shit and it was all for nothing. They had thrown an innocent man into jail and they all turned their backs on his cries for help.
"He really didn't do it?" Sonny asked, shocked.
"He didn't. And I don't get why any of you thought he would. I walk a fine line in allowing you all to work out your problems without getting involved and pulling rank. I have allowed that to happen this time, when I shouldn't have. You all made assumptions about Clay due to his last name. You assumed he would be like Ash and release classified intel, when you know him better than that. You know he is nothing like Ash and he would never betray you or the brotherhood. He's risked his life countless times to protect you and save your lives. Why the hell would you ever think he would hurt you like this?" Blackburn said.
"We were idiots." Jason said.
"Ya you were idiots and it's going to cost you." Blackburn said.
"More than you even know." Davis said. "Are you going to tell him or me?" Davis said to the guys.
"Tell me what?" Blackburn demanded.
Jason let out a sigh. He knew this was going to be bad. Sonny was in serious shit and there was no telling how they were going to fix this. Jason needed to talk to Clay and see what he wanted to do. If he wanted Sonny to be reported and officially punished or to be unofficially punished. He would do whatever Clay wanted, even if that meant Sonny would be getting sent to the reform program for three months. After what Sonny did to Clay's apartment, he deserved it.
"Last night Sonny and three others from other teams, got so drunk he let them into Clay's apartment and the four of them destroyed the whole place and every single thing he owns. Including his library." Jason answered.
"You did what?" Blackburn snapped.
"He took pictures of it and sent them to me. I got them this morning. The whole place is destroyed, both bathrooms, kitchen, carpet and walls all throughout it. Probably close to thirty grand in damages that Clay will have to pay. He could also be evicted." Davis added.
"Great, so this whole mess is your fault." Mandy said with a deep edge to her voice.
"You do realise that Clay could press charges. With how you have been treating him, he can easily have you arrested for destruction of property, breaking and entering, vandalism. You can be dishonorably discharged and thrown into prison for ten years. How can you be this stupid Sonny?" Blackburn snapped.
"I don't know what happened. I don't remember leaving the bar last night. There's nothing that you or anyone can say that would make me feel more like a piece of shit then I already do. I'll talk with Clay and I'll make it right. I don't care if it takes until my dying breath, I will make it right." Sonny said.
"We'll talk with Clay and we will make it right. The four that did this, will be paying him back every cent that he is out." Jason said, with a sharp look at Sonny.
"It's not that simple anymore." Mandy said with an attitude that they all knew meant she was beyond pissed.
"What are you talking about?" Ray asked.
"Clay signed transfer papers at some point last night. They were left at the Clerk's office for processing. He's being transferred to another team." Blackburn stated.
"Wait what?" Ray asked, shocked.
Jason stood and threw a mug across the room, shattering it on impact.
"It won't be official for a couple of days, but he is no longer with Bravo. He is now reporting to Delta."
"Delta, he can't go to Delta." Jason instantly said.
He was pissed and hurt that Clay was leaving Bravo. Even if there was a slight grace period of a couple of days before Clay's transfer out of Bravo became official, if he couldn't convince Clay to stay he would at least have the comfort in knowing he was going to a good team. But Delta wasn't a good team. They were the bad seeds within the Tier One teams. They partied a lot, more so than Sonny, they had been whispers that they were using drugs, whispers that they were sleeping with barely eighteen year olds. Maddoc didn't care about his men as long as they could do their job. He focused on people that could push his career further. It was why he said they would take on the missions that other units wouldn't. The ones that weren't too dangerous in the physical sense, but the ones that destroyed a man's soul. Going on tour in the Valley meant you would be helpless to see women and children being raped and tortured in the street. You couldn't stop it though, because you were on a mission and getting involved would jeopardize your mission. It was not something a good man could handle, something Clay would be able to handle.
Jason knew Maddoc had been trying to get Clay on his team since day one. They were originally supposed to get first pick with Clay's Green Team, but they were deployed so it moved to Bravo. Maddoc had come back a week later from tour to let everyone know that he was robbed out of first pick when they were only a week out. He wanted Clay because of his language skills and his sniper skills. Delta didn't have a sniper and with Clay being in their unit, they could get even more assassination operations, putting that weight on Clay's shoulders. There was a very fine line in a sniper's mind between healthy and damaged. Every life a soldier took placed a weight on someone's chest, but a sniper had a heavier weight. They weren't killing someone in combat, they were taking them out without their own life being threatened. It was an order being placed and you had to accept that the order was the right move to make. Too many kills though and it started to turn a man's mind, it was why some snipers turn into vigilanties and go against orders and make the shots when they aren't supposed to. They start believing that they are God up on that hill and can do whatever they want.
On the other side of it though, there were good men that carried that weight with them everywhere. Destroying their mental health with each kill they have to make. It was why Jason didn't take on assassination missions unless given no other choice. He didn't want to put that on Ray and when they got Clay, he made sure to rotate them around to help carry the load. Maddoc won't care about Clay's mental health and they all knew it. All he cared about was padding his stats.
"It's already been signed by both Captains and Maddoc. The only way to get out of the transfer is if the paperwork is held before it can be put into the system. Only Clay can request it back to make adjustments to it." Blackburn said.
"Ok so we get him to change his mind about transferring." Trent said.
"I'm not going to stop him from transferring if that is what he wants. We broke his trust, we broke our word to always being there for him and on his side. I understand why he wants off Bravo, but we can't let him go to Delta. Any other team would be ok, they'll protect him and let him grow, even Beau will. Delta will just use him until there is nothing left of who he is." Jason said.
"I can't believe you have let this happen Jason. Do you have any idea what types of missions my boss has given to me because of Clay's language skills. Those high priority targets are going to now go to Delta." Mandy said, as she shook her head.
"That's what has you so pissed off? That someone else will be getting missions because of Clay? You're worried about your career? I'm worried about his life." Jason challenged.
"There might be a work around. With what I just discovered it makes sense why Clay is looking to leave Bravo. A trust has been broken and once you can't trust the men you are with to not hurt you, there's no going back. If you are not looking to stop the transfer we can try and see about a different team. Delta is at five, so they are a man down; however, Full Metal has voiced interest in stepping down from Alpha One and letting Derek take over. He has mentioned he would like to roll with Bravo to give Derek a clean slate and not have a former team leader running underneath him. If Full Metal moves to Bravo, that puts Alpha a man down and Clay could transfer there. Unless someone from Alpha had a hand in this destruction party." Blackburn explained.
"No, just me and one guy from Romeo, Charlie and Tango." Sonny said.
"Do it. Tell Full Metal he can be here with us, he could be here regardless he's always welcome to run with us. We'll go and talk to Clay, get it all sorted out and get him to agree to moving to Alpha instead. Alpha is the next best place for him. Derek will protect him and he'll help train him and help him grow as a leader. Maybe one day when he is ready and we have repaired the damage done between us, he'll come back to us." Jason said.
He was pissed, but he was also really hurt by all of this. He was hurt for Clay, he didn't deserve it. He looked at Clay like he was one of his own kids and to know that he was a source of that pain, it was devastating to him. He had failed as a team leader and worse, he had failed as a father. He had to make this right, he just didn't know if he ever would. Clay was a gentle soul, he might not always show it but the guys knew, Jason knew. Clay cared about people, he felt deeply for people. There had been plenty of times in the past eighteen months where the guys had seen how someone on an operation got to Clay. He would become quiet and more drawn into himself, he needed to have people in his life to help him through the darkness. Delta wouldn't do that for him. They would let him get dragged down into the abyss just because it would make it easier for them to continue to use Clay. Clay couldn't go to them or they would lose him forever and that was unacceptable to Jason.
"I'll clear it with Full Metal and get the paperwork started. You need to speak with Clay and get him to agree to the change in teams." Blackburn said.
"He's probably in the cage room grabbing his stuff." Ray said.
Jason didn't say anything more, he just headed for the door. The guys joined him and Davis didn't follow them. She was too pissed with them right now to even look at them. She needed to calm down and focus on what needs to happen, with Clay no longer on the team things were going to change and Davis had no idea how bad it would be. The guys made their way into the cage room, fully prepared to see Clay packing up his gear. Only when they walked in, Clay and his gear were nowhere to be seen. Jason went over to the table and picked up the Bravo six patch.
"He's really gone." Sonny said, sadly as he took in the patches and photos left on the table.
"He didn't even wait to clear out, he wanted to make sure we weren't around for it." Ray said.
Trent pulled out his cell phone and called Clay. He knew that Clay was pissed and hurt by all of them, but he was hoping if he saw it was Trent calling, that Clay might actually pick up.
"I doubt he's going to answer." Sonny commented.
"Automated message, it's no longer in service." Trent said, as he hung up.
Jason pulled out his cell phone to call Emma as Sonny spoke. "Makes sense to get a new number. He probably doesn't want us calling him over and over again."
"Clerk's office won't give it to us." Ray said, trying to think of how they could get Clay's new number.
"Hey Dad, is everything ok? I'm just about to head into class." Emma said, as she answered.
"No, everything is fine. I was just wondering if Clay has called or texted you this morning? He had to change his number but he didn't give it to us yet and we might be getting spun up." Jason didn't like lying to his kids, but he didn't want to get all into it with Emma right now.
"No, I haven't heard from him. He'll probably be in soon, it's almost nine so he'll be there soon." Emma simply said.
"Most likely. Thanks Em. Have a good day."
"Love ya Dad."
"Love ya too."
Jason ended the call and spoke to the guys. "She doesn't have it."
"He's really gone." Sonny said, softly.
The reality of the situation was fully kicking in. Clay was gone, his stuff was gone, he changed his phone number so they couldn't even contact him. They would have to be at the mercy of Clay's schedule and with them being on two different teams, it would be a nightmare to even talk to him. Brock went over to the garbage can and started to look through it.
"What are you doing?" Trent asked.
"A photo is missing." Brock answered, as he finished looking through the garbage.
"Don't think so." Sonny said, as he moved the photos around.
"The one with just him and Jase on Family Day. It's not on the table or in the garbage." Brock explained as he walked back over.
"He's right, it's not here. He must have taken it with him." Ray said.
"That's good though, he didn't cut us completely out of his life. He kept a picture." Sonny said. He wished Clay had kept all of the photos, but he was more than happy for Clay to still want a connection to one of them.
"I don't know, he's not reaching out to me." Jason said, unsure if it was a good sign or not. Clay could have removed the photo previously for some reason. The photo not being here, didn't mean Clay had it, as much as he would like to believe he kept it.
"He's gonna need time, but Jase, he kept the photo. It was in there yesterday, so he must have it. You and him have a different relationship and bond then we all do. Your bond is a lot harder to break and walk away from. He's hurt and devastated, but he's keeping your picture, that means something Jase." Ray said.
"He's right Boss, he didn't close the door on you. He's not looking to hear from us right now, but he left that door cracked for you. He's done with us, but he's not done with you." Trent added.
"But what do we do? We can't just not talk to him. We have to talk to him and get this whole thing worked out and sorted." Sonny said.
"It's not like we can just buy him a case of beer and say sorry Son." Ray said.
"I know, but we can't just do nothing either." Sonny argued.
"Alright enough. We will go and find him to talk with him, but then we will respect his wishes if he doesn't want us in his life right now. We can't force it, we're in the wrong which means he gets to make the calls." Jason ordered.
"He's probably at his apartment." Trent supplied.
"Let's go." Jason said, as he turned and headed out of their cage room, the guys all following him.
Sonny really didn't want to go back to the apartment. He already had the image of it burned into his brain from the pictures on his phone. The very last thing he wanted to do was see it with sober eyes in person. He knew though there was no way the guys or Jason was going to let him stay behind. This was his mess and he had to face it head on, no matter how much it hurt him to see, because Sonny knew for a fact it was hurting Clay more. When the guys arrived at Clay's apartment building they all headed in, Sonny going in last to try and buy himself as much time as possible. As they made their way down the hallway they saw guys carrying out the ruined pieces of furniture. Jason walked in and he instantly had to close his eyes at the sight of the apartment. He saw the photos, but they really didn't do this place any justice. Clay was going to be lucky if there was thirty grand in damages.
"What the fuck happened?" Derek snapped, as he stood in the middle of the room.
"Sonny, Blockhead, Jackson and Ricky got so drunk last night they decided to destroy Clay's apartment, and everything he owns." Jason said, through clenched teeth.
Seeing this place was only fueling his anger. He couldn't believe that four team guys had done this to one of their own. They wouldn't even do this to someone that was PNG and they had done this to one of their brothers. Jason was going for blood for this, he didn't care Sonny was on his team, there was no excuse for this, none.
"You did this? Are you fucking kidding me Sonny!" Derek yelled.
He knew that Bravo was giving Clay shit, he had seen it and some of the guys on his team had been icing Clay out as well. Derek didn't mean to himself, he was just busy with getting ready to take over Alpha. He was so engrossed in his own world he didn't even see what was going on in front of him.
"I don't know what happened. I don't remember leaving the bar last night. I can't believe I did this." Sonny said with a great pain to his voice.
Yes, there had been plenty of times where he was blackout drunk, but he never did anything like this. He normally was passed out on stage in the Boom Boom Room or he was given a ride home by one of the guys or Davis. He never had done something like this and he couldn't figure out why he would do this to Clay. He obviously did, he had the photos on his phone, still Sonny couldn't believe it. He had done a lot of bad things in his life, but this was the worst thing he had ever done.
"Did you see him this morning?" Jason asked.
"No, I called but it's not in service anymore. I was just about to call you and see what was going on." Derek answered.
"Upper Brass had been doing a silent investigation into the leak, it came back that Sworsky was behind it. Apparently, he's wanted to be in Bravo for years and figured if Clay was gone he would be picked to replace him." Ray said.
"So all that shit that you guys have been putting him through was all for nothing." Derek said, before he turned to Jason. "How the hell did you let this happen?"
"Mistakes were made all around. I was planning on talking to him about it in a couple of days. Get him sorted and back on track. Ash is a weak spot to him, always has been and probably always will be. I figured he must have let something slip without even realising it. I didn't think it would go to this extreme. I didn't expect the other teams to interfere." Jason said.
"You should have said something sooner. You should have stopped it before it even started. Now this happened. The landlord is pissed, he banged on my door asking if I knew anything about this. The owner is thinking of suing him. This is more than interfering, this is criminal." Derek argued.
"I know, and something is going to be done. Unfortunately, there is a more pressing issue right now." Jason said.
"And what the hell would that be?" Derek couldn't imagine what could be more important than this right now.
"Clay filed to transfer off of Bravo." Ray answered.
"Can you blame him?" Derek asked, not surprised at all. There was no going back from this.
"He's being transferred to Delta." Jason stated.
"Oh fuck." Derek said, as he closed his eyes for a second.
Clay couldn't go to Delta, he wasn't built to handle Delta. Full Metal could handle it, he was dark and dangerous and Derek was fairly confident he really did have a bag of lye in his trunk just in case. Clay was different though, he had a really good heart, he cared about people. He didn't become a Seal so he could brag about it or for the danger. He joined because he just wanted to help as many people as he could. He truly wanted to leave this world making it a better place. Delta, they were in it for the destruction that they could cause. It was why the Upper Brass gave them the operations that required them to destroy a village's water supply, to destroy their crops. They didn't care about what it would do to the innocent people within that village. They enjoyed inflicting pain and they would destroy everything good within Clay.
"Blackburn said that Full Metal was looking to step down from Alpha One and work with us. We're hoping with you being down a man we can convince Clay to transfer to Alpha over Delta. We only got a small window though before the paperwork is official and it becomes harder for Clay to transfer off Delta." Jason said.
"I'll talk to him, get him to transfer to me. He can't go to Delta."
With Full Metal leaving the team Derek could really use Clay on his team. Clay had this uncanny ability to see the matrix. Clay was a genius and he was an unbelievable strategist. Derek would be crazy to not want him on his team. Now they just needed to convince Clay to transfer over to Alpha and not to Delta. Derek was hoping it would be an easy conversation to have. Afterall, it made the most sense. Clay would fit in a hell of a lot better on Alpha then he ever would on Delta.
"Let's head back to the base. We gotta find Clay and talk with him." Jason said.
"I'll be there soon. I'm gonna see if I can smooth things over with the landlord. Maybe stop him from evicting Clay for this." Derek said, not impressed at all.
The others gave a nod and they made their way out of the apartment and back to their cars. They needed to find Clay and they were hoping he would be on base then. The problem was, they would have to check in Delta's cage room and Jason was not sure how well that would go over. Everyone in Bravo was hot right now and just looking for someone to blame other than themselves, Delta was perfect for that. Jason would have to keep his head, no matter how hard it might be. He needed to talk to Clay and it would not go over well if he was too hot headed as he did it. Jason used the time on the drive back to the base to calm himself down. Seeing the destruction first hand to Clay's apartment was doing nothing to settle his anger towards Sonny and the others. Something needed to be done as punishment, this wasn't something that could go unpunished. He would need to meet with the other team leaders and get this settled.
They arrived back at base and immediately headed towards Delta's cage room. Before they walked in, Jason turned to look at the others.
"No one talks. I'm not about to get into a heated argument with them. We might need them to cooperate with letting Clay go to Alpha. The last thing we need is them trying to fight the transfer."
"We'll behave." Ray said, as he looked right at Sonny. They all knew he would be the one that could potentially cause a problem.
Jason gave Sonny a very stern look and Sonny knew he had to keep his mouth shut. He was already in the doghouse, he was not about to make things worse. Jason headed in and saw that everyone in Delta was there, everyone but the one person he wanted to see, Clay. Maddoc looked up from his spot at the table and gave Jason a smirk, one Jason wanted nothing more than to smack off his face.
"I was wondering when you would show up. Finally found out you lost your precious golden boy." Maddoc said.
"You've been trying to get Clay on your team since day one. Going on and on about how we stole him from you." Jason started, but Maddoc cut him off.
"You did steal him. We were one week away from coming home and you went ahead knowing it was our first pick. You stole him from us."
"We were given the all clear to make the pick. You got a problem with the system, take it up with the Upper Brass. They gave us the clear to pick and not wait. You and I both know Clay doesn't belong on Delta. He's not going to fit in with what you and your guys do."
Jason was hoping he could get Maddoc to understand that having Clay on his team would be more of a liability then an asset.
"A deadly sniper with the best language skills within the Navy. Sounds like he's going to be perfect for my team." Maddoc said with a smirk.
"He also has a strong moral compass and he won't sit around and allow you to do some of the things you do. Come on Maddoc, we all know that you have no problem torturing people for information. Or ignoring the fact that your guys like to sleep with barely eighteen year olds. Clay has no problem rocking the boat and reporting you."
"He could be a problem, at least he would have been. But see after all the shit you put him through, I'm thinking he's not going to be a problem. You didn't just break his heart, you broke his spirit. You should have seen him last night sitting all alone at the table working away. He was like a little abused puppy just waiting for his master to come home one day and tell him he was loved. It was pathetic. And you know what the best part is? You did it to him. I didn't have to break him, you already did that for me. Convincing him to transfer to Delta was like stealing from a blind guy. Even better, he didn't do it for himself, he did it because he was worried one of you would be hurt or killed. Even after everything you put him through he was still that perfect abused dog sitting when told." Maddoc said with a dark chuckle.
"He's not transferring to Delta. He's going to be placed on Alpha. You will never get him." Jason growled out.
He didn't want to think about how true Maddoc's words were. He didn't want to picture Clay all alone feeling like he wasn't good enough for them, for their love. What was worse, was knowing he made him feel that way. They did this to Clay and it was over nothing.
"He has to agree to it, and considering I told my guys not to ice him out I doubt he's going to change his mind. Every team was following your lead, it only made sense to make sure my guys didn't. Why would Spenser go to a team that treated him like shit for no reason, over one that didn't? I acted last night just in the nick of time too, when I heard the investigation came up clear I knew I had to act before you found out this morning. But I couldn't believe when he called me to tell me Bravo trashed his apartment. You made it too easy Hayes. And you finally made a mistake, one that will cost you that top spot you're in. I'm going to use Spenser as my own personal weapon to push Delta to the number one spot. It's time your little rein ends Hayes and it's going to be your own little golden boy that makes it happen."
"You're underestimating him. Clay's too smart to be played. He'll see right through you and he will be what ends Delta and all of your careers." Jason said with pure confidence.
He knew for a fact that Clay saw through bullshit. He saw what other people tended to miss. There was no way Clay was going to be played by them at all.
"I think you are underestimating the damage you inflicted on him. You destroyed his spirit and now I get to mold him into who I want him to be. Just wait and see Hayes, just wait and see." Maddoc said with a smirk. "Now, get out of my cage room, we got work to do."
"This will be what ends your career Maddoc, you mark my words on that." Jason threatened before he turned and headed out with the guys.
They were all pissed, every last one of them. They couldn't believe Maddoc had gone this far to get Clay. He waited like a snake in the grass for the perfect opportunity to strike out. What made it worse was knowing they gave him the opportunity. They had to talk to Clay, he couldn't go to Delta. They couldn't let him.
Once the door to the room was closed Maddoc turned to his guys.
"You made sure you weren't caught on camera right?" Maddoc asked Roth.
"Bulkhead only has cameras outside and on the cash register. No one saw me slip Quinn, Blockhead, Jackson and Ricky the devil's breath."
The plan Maddoc had came up with was very simple, slip the hotheads within DEVGRU some devil's breath then have Roth sit down with them and talk up how they should destroy Clay's apartment. With the devil's breath in them, they would take the suggestion as a command and fulfill it. The best part, they wouldn't even remember any of it.
"We flushed the rest." Sanders added.
"Good. Spenser is probably going to be evicted, that gives us a unique position with him. Stokes, I want him crashing with you for a little bit. Get him acclimated to life with Delta." Maddoc ordered.
"I'll give him a proper welcome." Stokes said with a deadly smirk. He was already getting some ideas of what he could do with Spenser.
"When's he set to be here?" Keith asked.
"This afternoon to run drills." Maddoc answered.
"Are you worried about him switching to Alpha. That paperwork isn't official for three days." Sanders said.
Now that everyone would know that it wasn't Clay who had leaked the intel they would all want to go back to including him. Clay had already ran with Alpha on past joint operations and tour, it would make sense for him to join up with them.
"He won't join. They all iced him out, he's not going to just forget about that. Plus he's too hurt by Bravo, he's not going to want to be on Alpha and still have to see them all the time. Alpha and Bravo run too many ops together, Spenser will want a clean break. He won't switch." Maddoc said confidently.
"With him staying with me, I'll make sure they don't get a chance to chat with him." Stokes said.
"They won't just give up. You know Hayes cares for Spenser. He's not just gonna let him go." Sanders said.
"Maybe, but there's only so many times a man can be told to get lost before he finally gives up. We get Spenser deep within our world, he won't think he's good enough for Hayes and he'll avoid him without being told to."
"So we stick with the plan and get Baby Hayes deep within the team and he'll never think twice about leaving." Stokes said with a smirk.
"Pushing our careers to the top." Sanders added with a smirk of his own.
The guys all gave a smile to that. They wanted to jump start their careers even more and they wanted to drag Bravo down to the gutters. They were going to become the number one team within DEVGRU, giving them the support staff, team doctor, and elite operations and all of the prestige that goes with it. It will be Delta's name that everyone talks about and it will be Delta that every new DEVGRU rookie wants to be on. They were going to destroy Bravo and they were going to use Spenser to do it.