A Threat From Within

by DianneRose2016

A threat to Bravo Team is a threat to them all. But when that threat comes from within Bravo it is one they never saw coming. Vic has no interest in playing 2IC to Clay, he wants to be the one that leads Bravo. In order to do that he has to get Clay out of Bravo and he will stop at nothing to be the shining star of Bravo and get Clay far away from them.

4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

It was tour day today. The guys were all in their cage room getting things ready. Clay had yet to arrive, but he was due to be there soon. Jason had already gotten his things together and he was working on what Clay could need. Clay was cleared to fly. But he was not cleared to be on desk duty for another two weeks. For the past six weeks Clay had been getting better and better each day. He spent two weeks at Jason's place before Jason headed back to work and Clay went back to his apartment. When the guys weren't on an operation they were checking in on Clay and making sure he had everything he needed and how he was feeling. They were very relieved when Clay was able to be awake for more than a couple hours at a time two weeks ago. He still tired easily and had a long road to go, but they could finally see that he was on the road to recovery.

"When's the kid gonna get here?" Sonny asked.

"Doc just wanted to check him out first before he got on the plane. He's on base at the infirmary so he won't be much longer." Jason said.

They had driven in together, but Clay told Jason to focus on getting what he needed in order for the tour while he was at his check up. Jason reluctantly agreed to leave, he knew now was the time for him to be Bravo One and not a parent.

"He seem ok?" Trent asked.

"He's looking good. The bruising is gone, his concussion is gone and he is using his inhaler a lot less. He's hoping the Doc will tell him that his wrist is good to go. Trent, you got everything you need for him?"

"I have all of his TB medication that he'll need over the next three months. I also have extra inhalers and the Doc gave me some liquid antibiotic that we can keep cold and stored just in case something happens. He's covered."

"Good, we don't need any surprises with him." Sonny said.

The door to their room opened and everyone was expecting for Clay to walk in, but instead it was Beau, Derek and Full Metal.

"We got a problem Hayes." Beau said.

"Ya, you're in my cage room." Jason said with a smirk.

"Jace." Full Metal said in a tone that told Jason and everyone in the room all they needed to know. This was serious and it wasn't time for any jokes.

"What's going on?" Jason demanded.

"I just had to strip my rookie. This is his phone." Beau said, as he slid the phone over to Jason on the table as he continued. "There's a new page on the internal social media platform. I don't tend to go on it, but a lot of the younger guys do. My rookie was one of the new users on that specific page and he's been commenting on it."

"What is it?" Ray asked.

"It's a page dedicated to trash talking and cyber bullying Clay." Derek answered.

"It's a hate page, and they are hash tagging and tagging him in the posts." Full Metal added.

"What?" Sonny growled out.

"These posts are all about how he should never have been allowed in the Navy. That he should kill himself. All these absurbed bullshit rumors about how he's sleeping his way up to the top. How he is probably letting Lindell fuck him in the office." Jason said, as he scrolled through.

He was pissed, beyond pissed. How could someone, let alone thousands of someones trash talk Clay like this. Sure you might not like him or Ash, but to take it out on him like this was dishonorable and disgusting.

"You're on social media, you know anything about this shit?" Sonny demanded at Vic.

Vic held his hands up in surrender as he spoke. "I'm on it, but I don't pay much attention to anything that goes on within it. I just use it to keep in contact with my friends all over the country. You have to be invited to these pages, no one would invite me with being in Bravo."

"It's not his fault Son." Ray said, in Vic's defense.

"No, I know. Sorry." Sonny said, trying to get his emotions back under control.

"Who started it?" Trent demanded.

"It doesn't say. It's set up to be private and anonymous. You don't even have to use your name to make a comment, though lots are." Beau said.

"Jace, they've been calling him Autistic Gutter Baby. Someone, who didn't use their name, said that their father was the one to diagnose Clay in boot camp." Full Metal said with an edge to his voice.

"It's growing in followers every day, it won't be long before others start hearing about it. Now, I don't care about what Spenser's medical history is, he's a solid guy and operator, but there will be others that will care." Beau said.

"I'll speak with Lindell and get this shut down. See if Cyber can backtrack it to see who started it and maybe see who some of the followers are." Jason said, as he finally looked up from the phone.

He looked at his men and he could see the anger boiling in their eyes. It was one thing to have a problem with someone in their family, it was a whole other thing to be doing this. This was harassment, it was bullying of the worst kind because it was behind his back. They didn't even have the balls to confront Clay and say it to his face. They were cowards, all of them.

"Does he know?" Brock asked.

"They have him tagged in every post. He must know." Derek said.

"He would have told me." Jason instantly said.

"He doesn't have the app on his phone. He's got an account, but he doesn't go on it. Any notifications or messages get sent to an email that he almost never checks. Kid said he used to be on it a lot when he first started out to connect with other people, but now he doesn't ever use it. Everyone he cares about has his number." Sonny explained.

"Great, so he's got an email account with thousands of hate mail waiting for him to open." Full Metal grumbled.

"We gotta tell him Jace." Ray said.

"I know, we will when he gets in." Jason turned his attention to Beau once again. "Did your rookie say anything about this? Anyone else involved?"

"No, just that he heard about it through the grapevine. He wouldn't give anything up and he had no interest in talking once we kicked him out."

"We should talk with the other teams and see if any of our new rookies know anything about this." Derek suggested.

"You think Jackson knows something?" Full Metal asked.

"I don't know. He seemed cool with the kid, but everyone from Green Team seems to be pretty close with each other still, for the most part." Derek answered.

"You know anything?" Jason demanded at Vic.

"If I knew about this, I would have said something boss. I don't really talk with the others from Green Team. Maybe it was someone that didn't get picked for a team. I know Yoder was upset that he didn't get picked, maybe he blames Clay for it." Vic suggested. He needed them to get their attention focused on someone else, why not Yoder?

"I thought Yoder and Clay were friends?" Brock asked.

"Maybe they had a falling out and he's feeling bitter." Sonny suggested.

"We can talk to Clay about it and see." Ray said.

The door to the room opened and Clay walked in. The first thing he noticed was how many people were in the room and he couldn't help but wonder if something was going on.

"Ok, what's going on?" Clay asked.

"I'll go and speak with the others and see what they know." Beau said to Jason.

"Appreciate it."

Beau headed out and Clay kept his eyes on the others. He knew now for sure that something was going on, something that was bothering the others.

"What's going on?" Clay asked again.

Jason turned his attention to Clay, noticing the black brace still on his wrist briefly before he spoke. "Beau discovered something today and he was bringing it to our attention. Come sit."

"I'm fine." Clay said, as he moved closer.

"I can hear you breathing heavy from the walk over here. Come and sit, please son." Jason said with a calm and gentle voice.

The use of the word son told Clay that he wasn't in Bravo's cage room right now, he was in a room with his family. Something serious was going on, something bad must have happened. Clay walked over and sat down as he spoke.

"Who died?"

"No one, it's not like that. Beau's rookie, Smith, he just had his trident removed. Smith's been posting on an internal social media page that is dedicated to hating you."

"You're joking right? I mean I know there are people who don't like me because of my last name, but come on, someone actually went out of their way to create a social media page for it? What is there like ten whole people on it?"

Clay couldn't believe this, there was no way someone made a social media page about him. Yes, he came across people in the past that didn't like his last name, but after meeting him they tended to be ok with him. There was no way this existed. Jason handed Clay the phone and Clay looked down, everyone could see the shock on Clay's face when we saw the large number of posts and followers the page had. There were well over three thousand followers and just as many if not more posts all hating him.

"I don't even know these people." Clay said, as he scrolled through the posts to see some of the names that have been attached.

"I wouldn't take it personally kid, some people just like hating on others because they are miserable." Sonny said, hoping that Clay wouldn't take any of this personally.

"Who the hell started this?" Clay asked, looking up at them.

"We don't know, yet, but we will. I'm going to have Lindell looking into it to get it shut down and to see who started it." Jason answered, he was going to get to the bottom of this no matter what.

"Clay, we're wondering if it could have been Yoder." Ray started, but Clay just gave a chuckle to that.

"Somethin' funny?" Sonny asked.

"The fact that you think Yoder would ever do this. You guys couldn't be more off base."

"He did get past over, he could be having some hard feelings about it." Trent said.

"He doesn't. He joined Green Team knowing there was a good chance we wouldn't be on the same team. He's on Team Seven now and got to stay local, we see each other all the time. I've known him since my first day in Team Three, since I was nineteen. It would be like telling me one of you started this. He didn't do this, he doesn't know about it or he would have told me."

"You sure?" Jason asked.

"Completely." Clay said with full confidence as he looked right at Jason.

Jaso gave a nod. If Clay was sure, that was good enough for him. "We'll get to the bottom of this and put a stop to it. The best thing you can do is not obsess over it. You don't need to be reading this shit."

Jason took the phone back to stop Clay from reading it.

"You should delete your social media account so you don't keep getting emails about it too." Derek added.

Clay gave a nod and they could tell he was a little distracted by all of this. They couldn't blame him, they knew this was going to be a shock to him and it would take some time before he was able to move forward and get his mind wrapped around this. It wasn't something that was easy, but they were hoping they could get this page shut down and it would be over.

"I gotta get some paperwork done. You guys be safe out there." Derek said.

"Thanks Derek." Jason said on their behalf.

Derek gave Clay's shoulder a squeeze as he headed out.

"Listen to me kid, I don't want you to be thinking about all of this. It's just a bunch of pathetic idiots with nothing better to do with their time." Sonny said, trying to make Clay feel better about all of this.

"I know." Clay said, but none of them were convinced.

The problem was, they had to get ready to leave soon. They didn't have long before they had to be loading up on the plane. Jason figured Clay needed a few minutes to get his thoughts in order, then later on the plane he would talk this over with him again.

"Let's make sure everyone has their gear ready. Clay, I got yours all set for what you might need in HAVOC. Make sure you have whatever guns you want to bring though in case the base gets hit."

"Alright, let's get back to work, we're rolling out soon." Ray said, looking to get the others moving.

Jason picked up the phone and headed out for Lindell's office. He would also need to update Blackburn on this matter, but he could do that on the plane. He also wanted to talk to Lindell about the future of Bravo so he figured he might as well do that now. Jason knocked on the door and once he was granted permission entered. Lindell looked up and it was clear he wasn't expecting to see Jason here. They were due to spin up within the hour.

"Master Chief, should you not be getting ready to fly out?"

"We are almost all set. I was hoping to speak to you on an urgent and non-urgent matter Sir."

"Urgent first." Lindell said, as he pointed to the empty chair across from him.

Jason went over and handed Lindell Smith's cell phone as he sat down and spoke.

"That is the cell phone of Special Warfare Officer Smith from Charlie Team. It was brought to my attention from Beau that Smith is a part of an internal social media page that was created and dedicated to cyberbullying Spenser."

"What?" Lindell asked, clearly shocked by this.

"Spenser didn't know about it until a few moments ago. He's not active on it. There are thousands of followers and thousands of posts that are all hateful, cruel and down right dishonourable. The name they prefer to call him the most is Autistic Gutter Baby. They are posting and spreading rumors about how Spenser must have slept his way to his position. Even talking about ways he should kill himself." Jason was doing everything within his power to keep the anger out from his voice, but it was hard and his voice shook nonetheless.

"Do we know who started this page?" Lindell demanded.

"No, it was set as anonymous, some of the posts are as well. I was hoping you could have Cyber run it and see if you could discover who created it, or any information on the commenters. I would like to get this page shut down as well obviously."

"I'll handle it right away. I'll have them block it so no one else can post to it and see if we can determine any additional information. Please inform Spenser that I will personally see to it that this is dealt with. That I will not tolerate any bullying of any kind." Lindell said with a strength in his voice and Jason knew that Clay had a very powerful person on his side.

"I will. I appreciate it Sir, all of Bravo does."

"What is the non-urgent matter you wish to speak with me regarding?"

Jason wasn't sure if this would be too early, but he wanted some additional information so he knew how to proceed with the team. He was hoping Lindell would be able to provide him with that information.

"It's no surprise to you that eventually my time as B1 will come to an end. And with Ray going the Warrant Officer route he won't be able to take my place. I know there is a long list of other operators that could fill my spot, but I would like for it to go to Spenser. I'm just unsure of how that would be possible given his ranking and years of experience."

"In the political world Hayes, anything is possible. Spenser is the future of the Navy, he is what a large percentage of officials and upper brass want to shape the navy around. Young, driven, intelligent, highly skilled, he has the power to instill real changes. To influence and be a role model to many young kids and sailors. Placing him within a position that he can lead is the best thing for him and the Navy. Now, I would love for him to go Stat Twenty-One, but he has informed me that although he wishes to one day have the title of Admiral, he wants to earn it the traditional way. He feels like he needs to lead a team and grow more experience before he should be in a position to make changes to regulations. I respect that. Just as I respect that Bravo is his home, his family. There are exceptions to rules Hayes."

"Could his ranking be one of those exceptions?"

"It can be. Some of the requirements he would have to do. He would need to spend a term teaching Green Team, so six months. He is up for a Bronze Star with Valour for his efforts in Yemen and I have it under good authority he is going to be receiving it. With that medal and given the political mission he was just on, I can submit the paperwork to have him promoted up a level to Petty Officer. With that ranking and the Green Team training, he would be able to fill the role of Bravo One for when the time comes for it."

"That's great, I'll let him know about Green Team and we can figure out the best time for him to be doing that. Maybe after a tour he could spend the six months doing that so he doesn't miss out on a tour with us. I appreciate the information and your help with this."

"Spenser is very gifted, and I don't believe in holding someone back that is gifted. Though, there will be plenty of other operatives who will feel like they have earned and deserved the title more. Everyone likes someone that is gifted when they are helping to push you forward and making the teams look good. But when that person takes what you believe to be rightfully yours, it's a whole other game. You'll need to be careful if it gets around. There could be enemies right here on base and we don't even know it." Lindell warned.

"We'll keep an eye on it and make sure he's covered. The team and Alpha all know that Clay is the one to take over when my time comes. It won't be a shock to them. And if it happens while Ray is still in the team, he'll be a strong number two for Clay and help guide him through the transition. All of the guys will."

"I have no doubt about that. I'll get the wheels in motion and see when the next Green Team will be in that will work with your schedule, but I believe the next one is set to start in five months. If he doesn't take that one, it will be a year before the next one comes around. I would strongly suggest that he takes the first course just in case something happens. Without his Green Team Instructor Badge, he can't lead a team, that's not something we can get around."

"Understood, I'll let Clay know. He'll do it, he wants to lead Bravo one day and he knows he will need the instructor experience. I appreciate the support Sir."

"I am always happy to throw my support behind a good operative. Be safe out there and I'll see you when you get back."

"Thank-you Sir." Jason said, as he stood.

Jason headed out and made his way back to the cage room. He was glad that Lindell was going to handle the social media page and he was also throwing his support behind Clay taking over for Bravo. It was one less thing that he would need to worry about. He could talk to the team and let them know, make sure they were supportive of Clay being in the top spot. With that done he would then bring it up to Clay about what would happen moving forward. Jason saw that their cage room was empty, so he grabbed his bags and headed for the plane.

XXX

Once the plane leveled out Jason made his way over to the back of the plane where Clay had his hammock set up. He was sitting on a crate with his cell phone in his hand and Jason knew he would be scrolling through the emails. Jason went over and gently pulled Clay's cell phone from his hand as he sat down.

"Nothing good will come from reading these Sunshine."

"You know what's stupid? It shouldn't bother me, but it does. How can someone that I don't even know talking trash about me, bother me? It's stupid."

"It's not stupid, it's human nature Clay. You don't have to know these people to feel insulted by what they are saying about you. What they are saying is hurtful and bullshit and you don't deserve it. It's not stupid that this is bothering you, I would be worried if it wasn't. Lindell is going to handle it though and get it shut down."

"I just don't understand why someone would even create the page. What do they get out of it?"

"People like that just like to watch someone being hurt. Whoever created this page probably figured you would be getting the updates and they got pleasure in hurting you. But they're a coward, because they did this from behind a screen. I know it hurts right now, but the page will be shut down and these people will have no choice but to move on in their lives. We'll get the ones that we can and make sure they pay. Clay, I know it's hurtful, but you can't let this get to you. It's all just bullshit being spewed to hurt you. Your family, the ones who love you, we know what the truth is."

"I know you guys do. And I know it shouldn't bother me. It's just hateful people being pathetic. I guess I just didn't expect it and I don't know how I feel about people now knowing that I'm on the spectrum. I don't want to be known for being some token operative, like the only reason I even got here was because I fit some minority group that needed to be checked off."

"That's not why you are here at all and you know that. It's not even in your file. No one is going to ever think that you haven't fought and earned your spot here and if they do, fuck them. Their opinions don't matter. It hurts right now, but that hurt won't last long. You've been through a lot in your life, I know this isn't what is going to hold you back. Feel the hurt and then let it go by remembering that the people who know you and love you are right here and we're the only ones that matter."

Clay gave a nod and Jason knew that by the time they landed he would be ok again. Jason deleted the emails so Clay couldn't keep going through them before he handed the phone back. He then pulled Clay in for a hug, one Clay easily returned.

"I love you kid."

"I love you too dad."

After a moment Jason pulled back and spoke, "Get some sleep, your body is still healing."

"I will."

Clay was already feeling tired. His body was used to not moving around too much, just around his or Jason's apartment. He had been moving around a lot today all over base.

Jason headed back, but turned back around to speak once again. "I forgot to ask, the Doc, what did he say?"

"Oh, um I can take it off in two weeks if Trent clears it. I'm not healing as fast because of the TB." Clay said with a small shrug.

"Is that something that will always be a problem?" Jason asked, concerned.

"It shouldn't, the Doc said. Once the brace comes off I can do some strengthening exercises to get it back to full function again."

"Alright, I'll let Trent know he'll probably have some ideas for you. He's got all of your medication and extra cartridges too for your inhaler."

Clay gave a nod just as a yawn hit. Jason gave a small chuckle before he spoke. "Get some sleep Sunshine."

Jason headed over to the others as Clay got into his hammock. The others were already in a group just hanging out. It was still morning so none of them were tired yet. They had just finished discussing to see who wanted to play some poker.

"Hey Boss, you up for some poker?" Vic asked.

"Ya sure in a minute. I wanna talk to you guys about something first."

"Something wrong with the kid's hand?" Sonny asked, concerned this was about Clay.

"Not really, the Doc said he had to keep the brace on for two more weeks before he could remove it. Trent will have to check it out first to make sure it's all healed up. Apparently the TB is making him heal slower. The Doc also recommended some strengthening exercises."

"I'll check on it when we land later. I had a feeling the TB would slow things down." Trent said.

"Alright, but that's not what you wanted to talk about." Ray said.

"No, I want to talk about the future. As you guys know me and Ray have been trying to get things put into place for what the future of Bravo will look like. It's why we picked Vic over Yoder. We both felt like he would be a great number two and you all know that Clay will be taking my place."

"Kid makes the most sense for it. He's got your style and Ray's head." Full Metal commented.

"Ya, but aren't you planning for a time that you don't have a say in? I mean, even if you died tomorrow Spenser wouldn't be able to lead at his ranking. Even if you stepped down in five years it would go to someone else either on this team or another." Vic stated.

He wasn't sure how everyone just assumed that Clay would be the one to lead Bravo in the future. He wasn't even close to the ranking he needed to be leading a team, plus there were guys on other teams that had been doing this for twenty years that would get to throw their hat into the ring. Clay wouldn't get picked over them and their experience.

"Not anymore. I spoke with Lindell and with the new bronze medal with valour coming his way, plus his work on that political mission he is set for a promotion to Petty Officer. With taking the time off to be a Green Team instructor he will be allowed to take over as Bravo One." Jason explained.

"There's more than just those requirements though and he wouldn't be a Master Chief." Vic said, confused.

"Clay has a lot of connections and support within the upper brass. Lindell is confident that the other requirements can be overlooked. Eventually with time Clay will be promoted to Master Chief, but he won't have to be one to lead. He does have to do six months with Green Team and the next course starts in five months. I have to talk to the kid, but he'll be working as an instructor for the next class. I don't want to run the risk of us waiting too long and something happens."

"It'll suck not having him around for six months, but it will be good for him to get that training done so he can take over." Sonny said.

"And it is when we won't be on tour so we won't be a man down the whole time." Trent commented.

"I'm sure the kid will be fine with it." Ray said.

"He should be. I wanted to discuss how things are going to go once we get back from tour. Right now he can't be active until we get back home. Once we are back on missions I want to be using him more. I gotta get him trained, so if it's alright with you Ray, I'd like to switch you guys and have him as my B2 just strictly so I can train him."

The very last thing Jason wanted to do was upset or insult Ray. He was his best friend and his sounding board. He didn't want Ray thinking he was being replaced at all or demoted.

"Naw that's cool with me. It needed to happen at some point and it's not like you aren't still going to listen to me. The three of us are the ones that do most of the planning anyways. It's just a number brother. And it will let me focus more on getting Vic trained up too."

"Best way to train is to be working right under someone." Sonny commented.

"I'm also going to have missions where he'll lead as B1 and I'll be his B2. We'll all need to follow him and see what happens. Everyone makes mistakes, especially when leading a team in the beginning. I want those mistakes to happen while I'm still around to prevent something tragic from happening." Jason said.

"Best way to learn is by making mistakes and figuring out what not to do. If he can make those mistakes with someone there to help bail him out, he won't have so many shadows following him around." Full Metal agreed.

Most of the time when you become number one, you got there on experience and training. You worked up to it, but because you have that experience everyone assumes you know how to lead and what you are doing so no one is there to train you or to stop you from potentially killing your whole team. The way Jason was doing this was putting training wheels on Clay to teach him how to lead before taking the training wheels off. It was very much a fatherly thing to do, but it would make Clay stronger and a better leader faster in the end.

"The kid is solid, he'll crush it." Sonny said full of confidence in Clay.

"Did you think we wouldn't be ok with it?" Brock asked.

"I wanted to talk with you about it and make sure we were all on the same page. I didn't think anyone would have a problem with it, but I also wanted to make sure you trusted Clay with leading you."

The very last thing Jason wanted to do was put his team in an uncomfortable position. Yes, they cared for Clay and they relied on him with helping with strategies and being a solid support system to the team. That was different than taking orders from him. It would be hard and awkward at first, but Jason was hoping everyone will adapt to it fairly smoothly.

"We knew the kid was going to be taking over one day as B1. It's good that he can learn how to lead and what he needs to know while you are around to help him." Sonny said.

"He'll kill it." Trent added with confidence.

"Most teams don't get to think about what the future will look like, we got that chance I say we take it. We'd be stupid not to." Ray said.

"Alright. I'll talk to Clay about it later and let him know."

"Perfect, I'll get the cards." Sonny said, as he clapped and headed off.

The others couldn't help but smile and shake their heads. Leave it to Sonny to go from a serious conversation to fun and games. The others started to get things ready to play some poker. They couldn't do anything up in the air and with none of them being tired playing some poker was the perfect pass time.

XXX

Pulling into the base at J-Bad felt like home to them. They were so used to being here that they knew what to expect. They easily drove over to where the vehicles were kept and got out. Clay grabbed his two bags and started to head off for the bunkhouse. He didn't get two steps before someone was calling over to him.

"Hey Firecracker."

Clay smiled at seeing a more than welcomed face. It had been a while since he had been able to see Yoder with them on different schedules. He had no idea that Yoder was going to be here with his team.

"No way, you're on tour?"

"For the next two months."

Yoder pulled Clay in for a hug, one he easily returned. After a moment they pulled back and Yoder spoke.

"What happened to your hand?"

"Long story."

"It's a good thing I got nothing going on right now." Yoder said with a warm smile, as he took Clay's duffles from him and threw his left arm around his shoulders and they headed off.

"We still sure he couldn't be the one behind that page?" Sonny asked the others.

"Clay trusts him." Jason said.

"Ya, but sometimes it's the people closest to us that can hurt us the most." Ray pointed out.

"We'll keep an eye on him. He's here for two months so let's make the point in getting to know him." Jason said, not looking to eliminate anyone at this moment.

"The dessert is a good place to bury a body." Full Metal pointed out.

"We won't need to bury him, that page is a clear violation of the brotherhood. He'll be thrown out and PNG before he even touches down Stateside." Ray said.

The guys grabbed their gear and headed off for their quarters for the next three months. Yoder and Clay headed into the mess hall area to grab some lunch. Clay hadn't been eating too much with being sick so he just grabbed some fries and chicken fingers. Yoder guided them over to a place that was empty so they could talk without having to worry about being overheard. Once they sat down he spoke.

"What are you getting over?"

"What?" Clay asked, as he put salt on his fries and chicken fingers.

"You only eat chicken fingers when you are either still sick or just getting over being sick. And you always put extra salt on them to help your stomach and blood pressure." Yoder answered, as he grabbed the ketchup for his own fries.

"Technically I'm still sick."

"Part of that long story I take it." Yoder guessed.

"Ya it is."

"I guess you should start talking then."

Yoder and Clay had known each other for a very long time and Yoder knew when to push and when not to push with Clay. This was one of those times where if he didn't push, Clay would probably never tell him.

"It started off with a target elimination. I was the one to take the shot, but that put me out on a rooftop in the pouring rain for over thirty hours. I ended up with hypothermia from it. It was relatively mild, but it quickly turned into pneumonia."

"Shit, so you're just getting over it then. How did you hurt your wrist?"

"I'm still getting over the pneumonia, but because of the hypothermia it was severe. I had to be sedated for twenty-four hours and had both of my lungs drained. I was supposed to be on bed rest six weeks ago, but the mission we were set to go on couldn't wait. I can't talk much about it, but it was a political mission in Pakistan and my language skills were the only thing stopping a potential war from happening. I was in no shape to be going, but we didn't have a choice. After a very long day of negotiations I was able to get the General to agree to peace. The only problem was it relied on a General on our side agreeing to a five minute public beating."

"What? There's no way a General would agree to that." Yoder instantly said. He knew Generals were not the type of men that would easily stand around and get beaten. It went against their egos and pride.

"We thought he agreed. Only when we got there the next day we discovered that he reneged and because I did the negotiations I was grabbed and received the beating. I couldn't defend myself and honestly, I don't even know if I could have. I was really sick, I could barely breathe. I had to have an oxygen mask on me when I wasn't in negotiations. Trent had to give me a special drug that kept me awake, it was bad."

"And the team just let you take the beating?" Yoder asked.

He was pissed. He couldn't believe that the team let Clay get beaten, especially when he was so sick like he was. Clay was his friend, his kid brother and the team that was supposed to keep him safe, just stood around and allowed him to be beaten. It was bullshit.

"It wasn't like that. We didn't know, they didn't know. As far as any of us knew the General was going to take that beating, but something made him change his mind last minute. I was grabbed right from Jason's arms and pulled away. They had guns pointed at the team, and at me. They couldn't make a move without me being shot. They were pissed, still are, but D the only reason I am even here is because of what they did for me. I stopped breathing on the plane. Trent had to intubate me and insert a chest tube. The team, Alpha and both support teams had to breathe for me for twenty-two hours. I'm alive because of them D."

Yoder let out a sigh and closed his eyes for a moment. He couldn't believe that Clay, his brother, had come so close to death and he wasn't there to protect him once again. The whole reason he joined Green Team was so he could be there for Clay, so Manilla wouldn't happen again. It hurt to know that he failed his brother once again by not getting onto a team and by not being there when he needed him.

"I hate this." Yoder admitted.

"I know, but there wouldn't have been anything you could have done differently. Bad ops happen, you know that." Clay said with understanding in his voice.

"I know, but I used to be there for when they did. I hate that I'm not. How bad were your injuries?"

"My wrist was badly sprained, I had blood in my lungs, but no broken bones. I had a concussion and a lot of bruising. The Doc ran an MRI and bloodwork, he discovered that the blood in my lungs was actually from TB."

"Oh shit, it would have been dormant. I never even thought of that with you being in Africa."

Yoder was a trained medic and was the one they all relied on in Team Three. There had been plenty of times when Yoder had to repair Clay from one injury or illness. He never even thought that he could have TB from his time in Africa.

"I didn't either, or the Doc. I'm on the meds still to get rid of it and I'm almost cleared from the pneumonia. I'm just easily tired and I can't do much physically yet until my lungs have healed up. I can't be in the field this tour, but I have been cleared to work in HAVOC in two weeks. The Doc did find something else when he ran the MRI on my lungs."

"What?"

"Turns out my lungs are underdeveloped by about twenty-five percent. He thinks I was born around twenty-nine weeks. I also have some scarring on my lung tissue that is common with untreated asthma."

"The times your breathing was tighter in the heat. That makes sense. Is anyone going to give you shit about your lung size?"

"No, I've proven that I can handle being in the field."

"How bad is the asthma, do you need an inhaler with you?"

"It's not too bad, it's worse with the TB and pneumonia. I have an inhaler that I keep on me and Trent has extra cartridges. I'm getting used to it and the Doc thinks it'll be easier once my lungs are cleared up of everything."

"I'm sorry, I never thought to check for any of that."

"I didn't either. It's not your fault. The Doc caught it and now it's under control and we know about it. I'll be fine D."

Clay knew that Yoder was often worried about him, especially after his injury in Manilla. Yoder wasn't able to come up to see him because he was gone on tour himself. Clay still called him all the time and kept him updated on his recovery and when Clay was in a very dark place Yoder seemed to be the only one to bring him out of it. Clay was so excited when he found out that Yoder was going to be going into Green Team. He knew he would pass it and he was hoping that Jason would pick him over the others. It tore him up when Jason picked Vic over Yoder and Clay still felt like it was the wrong choice.

"How are you feeling with it all?"

"I'm tired mostly. I didn't eat much for the first few weeks and now I'm just getting back into eating again really. Still not really hungry and my meds for the TB can make me feel a little weird. Trent said it's normal, that it'll get easier as my body gets used to the meds and the TB gets smaller and smaller."

"It will get easier and by the time you are done tour you won't have to take them anymore. What about your wrist, when can you get the brace off?"

"Two weeks. I was hoping for it to be off today, but I'm not healing as fast with the TB. Trent can check it out in two weeks and if it's good then I'll get to take it off." Clay said with a small shrug.

Yoder gave a nod and Clay knew he wasn't too happy about all of this. He knew it would affect Yoder with him being injured and Yoder not being there to help him or to have protected him from it.

"How have you been? Any problems?" Clay asked, looking to change the topic.

"Nothing I can't handle."

"What's going on?" Clay pressed. He wasn't going to let Yoder get away with that crap.

Yoder let out a soft sigh before he spoke. "The guys found out I'm gay, they aren't taking it so well."

"What are they doing?"

Clay knew Yoder was gay from the first day he met him. He never cared about it, but he knew it was something Yoder was keeping on the down low. Him and Brian were the only ones within the team that knew he was gay. It wasn't that Yoder was ashamed of who he was or his boyfriends, the opposite, but he didn't want to deal with any of the bullshit that most military men had over homosexuality.

"They won't room with me and they are refusing to shower at the same time as me. They have comments here and there and they don't let me treat any of their injuries unless they are serious. And I am no longer invited for any of the team bonding. Just typical bullshit. It's fine."

"It's not fine. It's the twenty-first century, who gives a fuck if you are gay? It's fucking stupid." Clay said, pissed.

"The fact that you believe that is one of the reasons why I love you. It's also why you are one of the very few who feel that way. The team is only temporary anyways, I'll get placed on a Tier One team once a spot comes up. I'll make it work."

"I'm always going to be there for you D, always. And if you are rooming alone, that means I can crash with you." Clay said with a smirk.

"Why do you think your bags are already in my room." Yoder said with his own smirk back.

Clay gave Yoder a wink and Yoder laughed. They kept the rest of the conversation light while they ate. Once they were done they headed back to the room and Clay got to work on getting his things unpacked. The room had two single beds instead of bunk beds which was nice, they didn't have to deal with that. Yoder helped Clay get his things unpacked and once he was finished Clay laid down on his bed and kicked his boots off.

"You alright Firecracker?" Yoder asked, as he sat back on his bed and looked at Clay.

"I'm tired and I'm sick of being tired. I'm not used to not being able to move around or go for a run."

"You've always been crazy active. You'll get back to it soon. Each week that goes by your body will recover more and more. How's everything with the team?"

"Good. We ended up in Liberia before the attack. I went back to the house I grew up in, the team was there and Derek." Clay answered with a bit of pain still in his voice at the memory.

"Shit, how did they react?"

"They were pissed off at me at first. But I was still hypothermic and I left on my own. I knew Jace wouldn't let me go with being sick so I left while the team was out picking up some targets. Once they found out that I grew up in that house their anger went away. I told them about growing up and I got to say goodbye to Gramps and Grams. It was hard, but I think I needed it."

"You did need it. You finally got some closure, that's good Clay. The others aren't giving you a hard time about any of it?"

Yoder didn't know the guys, but just because Clay had been with them for three years didn't mean he was going to trust them. If he got to know them and saw how they interacted with Clay, then he might be able to trust them if he liked what he saw.

"No they were really good with it. I know you don't really know them, just what I've told you, but they do care and love me. Well not Vic, we're not at the like phase yet, let alone the love phase."

"I don't like him. I don't trust him. He's always given me a bad vibe and he comes across as so innocent and kind, but I've heard some of the shit he's said about other guys behind their backs. He's two-faced." Yoder warned.

"I don't trust him either, but the guys do. Ray seems to think he'll be a great number two to me, but I don't see it. I don't know, I just don't trust him. There's something about him, I don't know what it is. I just found out before getting on the plane that someone created an internal social media page dedicated to hating me."

"What?" Yoder asked with an edge to his voice.

"Yup, there are thousands of followers and even more comments about me and all the ways I should kill myself. Or how I must be sleeping my way to the top. They like to call me Autistic Gutter Baby, just endless posts of hate with me tagged in them. The rookie on Charlie was one of them and Beau kicked him out."

"Fucking assholes. What is anyone doing about it?"

"Lindell is getting Cyber to look into who started it and getting it shut down and identifying some of the anonymous users. I don't have the app on my phone, I never go on it, but it does get sent to my email. I checked the messages it started six weeks ago. That was after the mission I got hurt on, literally the second day I was in the hospital after getting beat up."

"That's one hell of a coincidence." Yoder said, skeptical.

"I know. The thing is, the General was in agreement to take the beating, but then all of a sudden he changed his mind. And he knew if he said no we would be going to war and maybe he wanted to start a war, but I can't help but think that someone told him I would be the one to get hurt if he said no. And I know that sounds paranoid, but then when I got Stateside, Ash showed up at the hospital, but the hospital never called him. So someone who knew I was there had to call him. Then the next day this social media page was created. It's probably just a bad string of luck, but I can't help but feel like someone is out to get me, but the only change in personal is Vic and Alpha's rookie Jackson."

"That doesn't sound paranoid at all. I think it's weird too, especially Ash. I don't really know Jackson too well, but I know he was a part of the admirers group."

"Admirers?" Clay asked, confused.

"You have the ability, as you know, to make people either like and respect you or hate you. Green Team was no different, though there were more admirers than haters. Jackson was one of them. You were called Baby Hayes to the admirers and they knew that fucking with you meant you fucked with Jason Hayes, and that was suicide. It was better to respect you then risk losing everything. Trust me it's a compliment. Jackson has been trying to get into Green Team and on a team for a few years, he's not about to throw all of that away by playing with fire."

"And Vic?"

"He rode the middle. It's why I say he's two-faced. He had no problem acting like he respected you and then turned around and joined in on the bashing by the others. I think you have a reason not to trust him."

"I don't know what to do about it. I keep thinking we just haven't clicked yet, that we'll click eventually. Me and Sonny didn't get along too great at first, but then we finally clicked and now we're best friends, or we used to be before Rebecca. Now I don't know what we are. I don't know, I just… I don't know." Clay said, sounding exhausted and overwhelmed by it all.

"It's not something you have to figure out right now. You're still sick and exhausted, you need some sleep. Give your mind a rest Firecracker." Yoder said warmly. He knew that when Clay was sick or rundown it made it harder on his mind.

Clay let out a soft sigh before he spoke. "Ya."

"I gotta go check in on some stuff, get some sleep."

Yoder got up and gave Clay's leg a pat as he headed out. He wanted to get some things organized with his gear before they were spun up and Clay needed some serious sleep to get healthy again. One thing Yoder did know, he was going to be keeping a closer eye on Vic while they were on base together.

XXX

Sonny walked into the team lounge house and saw that everyone was there getting situated. He noticed that Clay wasn't here and he was the one person he was looking for.

"Where is the kid?" Sonny asked.

"Thought he was with you." Ray said.

"He asleep already?" Jason asked.

"He's not in the room. His stuff isn't there either. I was all set to watch Clay and Vic fight for a bed and he's not even there."

They knew that the bunk house normally only had two rooms with one bed and then the other room had two bunk beds and a couch. Sure Clay would be getting a bed and Vic would be on the couch, but they also knew it would be funny to watch them wrestle it out.

"He went off with Yoder, he's probably bunking with him." Vic stated.

"He can't. Yoder is part of Team Seven, they have their own quarters. Clay is Bravo, he sleeps with us." Jason instantly said.

"Ya, but Yoder is an outsider with Team Seven, has been since they found out he was gay a month ago." Vic said with a shrug.

"How do you know that?" Trent asked.

"Some of the guys that were on Green Team know the guys on Team Seven, they told me. Yoder is probably bunking alone and Clay is crashing with him. Maybe they are more than just friends." Vic said.

"Are you trying to say that Clay is gay? He's got a girlfriend and even if he didn't he would have told me he liked guys." Sonny said in Clay's defense.

"Maybe he's bi-sexual and doesn't know how to tell you or is afraid of how you would react. It would make sense why Yoder was always talking about him in Green Team, I mean he was practically obsessed with Clay."

Vic knew that was a lie, but they wouldn't know that. If he could get them thinking that Yoder was the enemy then it would turn them away from him and he could do more things against Clay.

"Clay's not bi-sexual he would have told me. He knows he can tell me anything and there will never be any judgment. What do you mean by obsessed?" Jason asked.

Jason wasn't worried about Clay possibly being bi-sexual and keeping it a secret. If there was anyone Clay would have told it was him. He also knew for a fact that Clay would never jeopardize the team by trying to get Yoder on it if they were dating or fooling around. He was more concerned about what Yoder's intentions were with Clay.

"He was always talking about him, even when no one brought him up. They texted all the time and he would always make sure he saw Clay whenever he got the chance. He came across as obsessed with him. Apparently, the only reason he joined Green Team was to be with Clay."

"Oh hell no." Sonny automatically said.

"Seems like we need to talk with Yoder." Full Metal said with an edge to his voice.

"I can go find him if you want." Vic offered.

"Do it, we'll wait here." Jason said.

Vic headed out and Ray spoke. "Jace man we don't know what is going on. You can't just jump to conclusions or down Yoder's throat. Remember, he was almost on Bravo and is Clay's friend."

"Ya, but if he's trouble we have to say something. We have to find out what is going on." Sonny argued.

"I'm not saying we don't, I just think we shouldn't jump to conclusions." Ray said back.

"We won't, we're just gonna have a chat and see what the hell is going on." Jason said.

It was a few minutes later when Yoder walked into the lounge, but Vic wasn't there.

"Vic found you quick." Sonny commented.

"Didn't know he was looking for me. I was hoping to find you guys. I wanted to let you know that Clay was asleep in my room."

"And why would he be in your room, when he should be in the bunkhouse for Bravo." Jason asked, as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"For one, there are seven of you and only six beds. Someone was going to have to sleep somewhere else. Two, I have an extra bed in my bunkhouse, it made sense for Clay to crash with me." Yoder didn't see the big deal here. It wasn't like they were in different bases, they were basically next to each other.

"You know Clay isn't gay or into men right?" Sonny said.

"I've walked in on him having sex a few times when we lived together. I am well aware of his sexual preference. Not sure how that relates to this conversation though." Yoder said with a slight attitude to his voice.

"It relates because you are gay and apparently obsessed with him. Did you join Green Team for Clay?" Sonny challenged.

"Yes, I am gay, no I'm not obsessed with him and yes I joined Green Team for him. I don't appreciate the way you are making these assumptions about me. And I don't appreciate now having to lie to Clay by pretending like this conversation never happened. Because if he found out how you are reacting and the assumptions you are making based on me being gay, that will be the end of whatever friendhship you have with him."

"Oh really?" Sonny said, as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Yes really. He doesn't tolerate ignorance or stupidity where sexuality is concerned. If you have a question, then ask me but drop the attitude and stupid assumptions about what my relationship is like with Clay. You know nothing about me or what we have been through together."

"Alright, let's just calm down here. We all care about Clay and don't want to see him hurt. I think emotions are running high right now because of what we just found out before we left." Ray started, he was not looking to have a huge blowout, because if Clay did care about Yoder the last thing the team needed was Clay pissed with them or Sonny for getting into a fight.

"We're a little over protective of Clay right now after what happened on our last mission. We don't like him far from our sight." Trent added to try and explain to Yoder.

"I get that. But I'm not the enemy either. I've known Clay for eight years, you've been brothers for three, I've been his brother for eight. Clay is safe with me."

"Then why is Vic telling us how you were obsessed with Clay in Green Team?" Full Metal challenged.

"If Vic is where you are getting information from, then you're in trouble. Vic is a snake in the grass. He had no problem praising Clay to the right instructors and cadets and then trashing him to the others. Vic is two-faced and all he cares about is being the best."

"What are you talking about?" Jason asked. He knew that Clay didn't fully trust Vic, but that could be related to Vic being the new guy on the team. If Yoder had seen something different Jason wasn't going to be an idiot and ignore it.

"Vic made it clear that he was going to be on Bravo one day, that was his goal. But it wasn't to play second fiddle for anyone. He wants to lead, not play a supporting role to anyone, but especially Clay. He was very vocal about how he felt like Clay should never have even been allowed to be in Green Team until he was more experienced like everyone else. And that was the nicest thing he said about him. He won't settle for being number two, especially to Clay. You didn't pick me fine, it's your team, but you let a wolf walk right into your henhouse and he won't think twice before eating Clay the first chance he gets." Yoder warned.

"You and Vic don't like each other, I take it." Trent commented.

"Not in the least. You can't like someone that you've never actually seen. Vic plays whatever role he has to if it gets him what he wants. He knew that me and Clay were close so he avoided me as much as possible."

"You said you joined Green Team for Clay, if it's not because you have the hots for him, then why did you?" Sonny asked this time, still keeping the edge to his voice.

"Son." Jason warned.

"I met Clay when he was nineteen. He was fresh out of Buds, he hadn't even been on a mission before because he was picked right out of boot camp to go into Buds. Him and Brian were placed on Team Three. Brain had it easier, he was twenty-two like me and it was easier for the guys to accept him. It didn't matter that he was green too, he was old enough to drink and he was social. He fit their opinion of what makes a Seal a Seal. Clay didn't." Yoder started.

"Meaning?" Jason asked.

"Clay's smart, he can blend in a lot better now but when he was nineteen he couldn't. And it didn't help that he wasn't old enough to drink. I had a cousin, he had high functioning autism, but his social skills were non-existent. He didn't care to learn them, didn't understand the point of them. He was twenty when one night he was walking down the street and a group of gang members walked by him. The one bumped into him and demanded an apology. My cousin didn't even see how dangerous the situation was. They beat him to death in a side alley. They were so brutal that you couldn't even recognize him. After the first conversation with Clay, I knew."

"You knew he hit the spectrum." Jason stated with a bit of understanding.

"I did, I knew he wasn't as far on it as my cousin, but he was kissing it if nothing else. Brian had been trying and from what I heard Clay had come a long way, but he still had a long way to go. I was taking him to where he could keep his stuff and once we got there the very first thing he said to me was if I was sleeping with this other guy on one of the other teams." Yoder gave a genuine smile at the memory before he spoke. "We walked by each other on the way to the cage room and he saw the quick look we gave each other. When I hesitated he told me he didn't care, he just wanted to know if it was a secret. I said it was and he said he wouldn't tell anyone. Then he proceeded to ask me if I was a top or a bottom and quickly explained how anal sex was beneficial to your mental and emotional health with scientific reasons to back it." Yoder chuckled at the memory "That's how I knew he was a good man. It's one thing to be ok with someone being gay, with a teammate being gay, and another to willingly talking about it and asking questions."

Jason went and sat down on one of the stools at the island as he spoke. "He is a good man, and he wouldn't care about something as simple as you being gay. Clay's not like that. You guys got close." Jason nodded for one of the stools to offer Yoder a place to sit. He had to be careful here, he wanted to be protective of Clay, but he also had to remember that this was one of Clay's friends and he didn't want to hurt or upset Clay by insulting or being disrespectful to his friend.

Yoder spoke as he sat down. "We did. The other guys, they didn't like Clay or respect him, but they had no problem using his skills when it benefited them. They would go out of their way to make sure Clay knew he wasn't one of them. They would have team meetings at bars or clubs knowing Clay wasn't old enough to go. They would have nothing but beer on the plane and would tease Clay about children not drinking. It was just little shit like that, but it was enough for Clay to feel like he didn't belong. He constantly felt like he had to prove himself, even if it put his own life on the line. Whenever they needed someone with his language skills, it didn't matter how dangerous the mission was Clay always said ok. Eventually they respected his skills, but they still made sure he knew he wasn't one of them. Brian and me were the ones that got attached to Clay. He was our kid brother. Me and Brian though, we were just friends, we didn't have that deep connection, but we had Clay. He was our glue."

"He's got a way of getting under your skin." Sonny agreed.

"Ya he does. He's come a long way. He worked his ass off to make sure he could pass for normal as he likes to say. He started to make a pretty impressive name for himself with what he could do. The guys started to respect his skills, started to ask him for strategy advice and in the field they would listen to him. It didn't take long before he was moving up in the team. By the time he was twenty-three he was leading missions. Brian and me though, we knew he wanted to be a Tier One Operator and when the opportunity came up for him he took it, but we didn't want him going alone. It wasn't that he couldn't handle it, he could, but we didn't want him going without one of us watching his six. I never wanted to be a Tier One operator and Brian didn't care either way. He decided he would go and I stayed in with Team Three. It killed me to say goodbye to him, but I knew he would be safe with Brian looking out for him. When I found out that Brian died I was devastated, but I was on tour so I couldn't go and be there for Clay. When I found out he was on Bravo, the best team in DEVGRU, I was hoping that would mean he would be safer. That he would have some brothers watching his back."

"He does." Ray stated.

"I know he does. He told me all about you guys. I know he's happy here."

"If you never wanted to be in DEVGRU, why go to Green Team?" Brock asked.

"You did it for Clay." Jason easily stated.

"He called me from the hospital after Manilla and told me what happened. I was on tour and then constantly spun up, I couldn't come down to see him. But we talked almost every day. He was in a pretty dark place, one I wasn't too sure he would get out of. I was tired of not being there for him. I was tired of not being there when he was injured or sick. I was tired of not being there for him after a hard mission. Phone calls weren't enough. I wanted to be on the same team as him again and in order to do that I had to pass Green Team."

"But you had to know there was a chance you wouldn't get placed on Bravo." Full Metal said. Just because you pass Green Team doesn't mean you got on a team. There were only so many openings every time.

"I knew I would eventually, and I would be able to be in Virginia at least. Clay and me will be on a team together again one day. He'll take over eventually." Yoder said with pure confidence.

"But you didn't want to be in DEVGRU, why go through it just to be on the team with Clay? Weren't you in a position to lead in Team Three?" Sonny asked.

"I could have led my own team ya. But leading isn't what I want to do. I will if I need to, but it's not a goal that I have. There are different types of people in the world. Some are meant to be leaders, others are meant to work in a supportive role, others are meant to follow and some are meant to destroy. I've never wanted to be the leader, the one that has to have all of the answers and carry the heaviest burdens. Until I met Clay, I thought I would be happy being a follower, one of the guys, but Clay changed that for me. Anyone who took the time to get to know Clay knew that he was born to lead. He's too smart and too good not to be a leader. He was going to lead the team and I was going to be the best number two he could have asked for. I was going to be whatever he needed. It's why I became a medic, it was one more way I could keep him safe. I learned Pashtu and Arabic so I would know if a threat was around us. I was going to keep him safe, keep him healthy so he could keep us all safe."

Jason could see how serious and sincere Yoder was. This wasn't a man that was a threat to Clay, to his son. This man clearly cared for Clay and was ready to do battle just to protect him. He changed the direction of his career so he could be there for Clay and watch his back. Jason wasn't getting an obsessed vibe from Yoder. He was concerned though with what he had to say about Vic. It was something he was going to be keeping an eye on and see what happens. He wasn't going to tolerate anyone being a threat to Clay.

"Clay's lucky to have a friend like you. I heard your teammates aren't too happy with you being gay." Jason said.

"It's nothing I can't handle. It'll blow over soon and in the meantime I get to enjoy a room all to myself."

The others could tell that Yoder was just trying to make the situation lighter. It bothered him, it was human nature for it to.

"Anyone gives you any shit you just let me know. I'll handle it. You being gay doesn't change how well you can do the job and shoot." Jason said.

"I appreciate that."

"I'm sorry we jumped you like that. We're protective of Clay and a bit more recently with what has happened."

"Ya Clay told me about the last couple of missions and the social media page." Yoder said with understanding.

"He told you about that? When?" Sonny asked, still not sure about Yoder.

"Today while we ate lunch."

"You got him to eat? What did he eat?" Trent asked. They had been having a harder time getting Clay to eat with the medications that he was on. He was also more tired and rundown still so he wasn't too into eating.

"What he always eats when he doesn't feel well."

"Which is?" Trent pressed.

"Chicken fingers and fries. You don't know that?" Yoder would have figured with being the team medic that Trent would know that about Clay.

"No, he's never said anything. We normally get soup in him, but the medication for the TB is making him feel off."

"Chicken fingers and fries usually does it. He'll put extra salt on it to help his stomach. The trick is he won't go out of his way to get it. When he doesn't feel great he'll veg around and not really go out."

"Kinda weird for a grown man to eat chicken fingers." Full Metal commented.

"That would be my fault. Three months into being with the team he had a terrible case of bronchitis, it took him down for almost a month. Now that I know about his lungs it makes sense why it hit him so hard. He was exhausted all the time, he had no interest in food and he didn't feel too great from coughing so much. I brought him some chicken fingers and fries and he actually ate it. It was the first time he had ever had them. Ever since it's what I would bring him when he was sick and not eating much."

"I bet there were a lot of things he had never had before or done when you got him." Sonny said.

"Oh ya, me and Brian made a point of getting him to try a bunch of firsts. Some things made sense, but then others it was crazy. He had never had pizza before or ice cream. We knew he grew up in Africa, but we didn't realise what that would mean for him. He couldn't even drive, we taught him on base with a humvee. Told him if he could drive it he could drive anything." Yoder said with a big smile at the memory.

"I didn't even think about him not knowing how to drive. He's lucky he had you and Brian in his life." Ray said warmly.

"We were lucky to have him. He's one of a kind and very special." Yoder said warmly.

That was something they could all agree on. Once Clay got under your skin he was impossible to get rid of. Unfortunately, that went the other way too for those that didn't like him.

"What quarters are you in?" Jason asked.

"C2."

"And you are aware of his health condition right now?"

"I am, he told me all about it."

"Alright, he can crash with you. But if you notice anything let me know and talk with Trent if there is anything medically going on. You've known him longer, but with his allergy to phosphate we can't be too careful with what he takes." Jason said.

"I know, who do you think gave your doc that list of approved medication?" Yoder said with a smirk.

"I appreciated that list. I didn't know it came from you." Trent said.

"Can't risk him being given something that could kill him. I've told him for years he needs a medical alert bracelet, but he won't do it."

"That is something we should be pressing for." Trent said to Jason.

"Order one for him that you think he needs, I'll make sure he wears it." Jason agreed.

Trent gave a nod and Yoder stood up. "I have some things I have to get organized before I get spun up. I appreciate you talking with me."

"You ever need to talk, we'll be here." Jason offered.

Yoder just gave a nod and headed out. Sonny didn't even waste a second before he spoke. "You sure it's a good idea to have Clay sleeping with him?"

"He was sincere Son, Clay's a little brother to him. I'm not about to piss Clay off or have him push us away because we insulted his brother. I'd rather have his relationship with Yoder where I can see it versus him hiding it." Jason answered.

"Agreed. The last thing we need is Clay hiding something from us like this. And Yoder seems like a good guy that cares about him." Ray agreed.

"What about what he said about Vic?" Brock asked.

"I think it's clear the two don't like each other. We'll keep an eye on Vic and make sure he isn't talking trash about Clay. All we can do is wait and see on that one." Jason answered.

"Fine, but I'm still watching both of them." Sonny said.

"You wouldn't be the kid's best friend if you didn't." Ray said with a smirk.

"For now, let's leave it alone. The kid is asleep and he ate something real at least. Let's get settled in and we can check on him later." Jason said.

The others agreed and they all started to go their own ways to get their things set up and ready. Ray hung back for a second with Jason, as he could tell something was spinning in his head.

"What is it?" Ray asked once they were alone.

"I'm wondering if we made the wrong choice. If I made the wrong choice." Jason admitted.

"You think we should have gone with Yoder over Vic. I don't know Jace, I think Vic will be a good contrast to Clay. You needed someone like me."

"I know, but I picked you to be my number two. You weren't picked for me. We clicked right away and we built something from that. Clay didn't pick Vic, he never would have. And there is nothing saying he has to pick him when he's in charge of Bravo. I mean, Clay is a lot like me, but he's also a lot like you. Maybe he needs someone that can be whatever he needs. Someone that understands him and knows when to push and when to be a silent support."

"Clay is different, but I still think that Vic will be a solid number two. Yeah he might not be who Clay would pick, but isn't that the point? He needs someone that is opposite to him, not someone that will go along with everything he says or does because he's his friend. Vic will challenge Clay's calls, he'll tell him no when he needs to hear it. That's important to keep Clay in line."

"I'm not sure how much in line Clay needs to be kept in. I know you've taken to Vic and have brought him under your wing, I'm just not sure it was the right call to make."

"All we can really do right now is wait and see Jace. Clay and Vic will need to come to some sort of common ground and get along. They don't have to be best friends, but to be on the same team they have to at least get along and respect each other. It's not just Vic that has to work on that. Clay isn't giving him much of a chance on and off the field."

"Clay takes a bit to get used to someone and let them in, you know that. Look how long it took for him to get used to us and let us into his walls. Clay isn't the new guy, Vic is and it's on him to try and figure out how to start building that trust with Clay."

"Aren't you being a little bit biased there Jace? I know Clay is your kid, but you can't make excuses for him either or put all of that on Vic. Clay's a big boy, he can make an effort too. It's not just on Vic to get to know him. Clay's got a responsibility of being one of the guys on the team and as the previous rookie to make Vic feel welcomed."

That was one of the issues that Ray had with Jason and Clay being so close. It seemed like Jason was letting Clay get away with things he never would have if Clay was just another guy on the team.

"No one showed Clay the ropes or went out of their way to make him feel welcomed. He had to earn his place and so does Vic. If he earns Clay's trust, then he will have fought and deserved it. I can't force Clay to get close to someone or trust someone blindly. He needs to do it himself, you know that."

Ray gave a nod, he wasn't going to win this round and there was no point in pushing Jason on it. Clay and Vic were going to have to work things out on their own and hopefully soon before something bad happened on an opt. Ray was hoping with them being on tour maybe the downtime together would be good for them all. He was hoping at least.

XXX

It had been a couple of days since Clay had arrived for tour. The past couple of days had been uneventful, but it was still weird for Clay. He was used to being with the team anxiously awaiting for the order to go out and fight. Only this time around he was going to be stuck in HAVOC watching his team going out there. Clay was also going to be keeping an eye on Team Seven when they went out. He wanted to make sure that Yoder was safe and returned back as well. He was on his way to meet up with the guys in the team lounge. He was walking by a supply room when he heard a loud bang, like something falling over. Clay opened the door and walked in. The lights were off, which was weird.

"Hello?" Clay called out, as he turned the lights on.

Everything happened all at once. The door closed, a loud obnoxious music started to play to a deafening level and all around him there were strobe lights making the whole room flash at a rapid pace. It was overwhelming on his mind and Clay instantly ran for the door, only to discover that there was no handle on the inside. He was trapped in the room. Clay moved his hand along the wall to try and find the light switch that had started all of this, he flicked it off, but the lights and music didn't stop. Clay stumbled around the small room looking for a way out, but the only option was the single door in the room. He could feel his mind starting to struggle with the stimuli that was coming at him in all directions. He had gone through this before, not this exact situation, but he had been overloaded before. He knew the signs and normally he could fight it off, but today he couldn't seem to block it out. He could feel his chest getting tighter and it was harder to breathe.

Yoder was sitting around outside when he heard this obnoxious music coming out of nowhere. He turned his head to see where it was coming from and how to turn it off. It was in the afternoon and most people were up, but still there were teams that had night duty and were asleep during the day. It was common courtesy to not blare music on base so if anyone was asleep they could stay that way. Yoder got up and headed towards the music. He saw the guys on Bravo walking towards where the music was coming from as well.

"What the hell is that shit?" Sonny complained.

"I don't know, but whoever is blaring it I'm going to kill em." Full Metal said.

They came up to the storage room and Jason opened the door. They were all instantly hit with the music and lights going on in the room. Jason had to back up for a second because of how strong it was on his own senses. He hit the light switch, but it didn't do anything. It was in between the flicker lights that Jason saw that Clay was in the middle of it all. Jason couldn't really see or hear Clay all the well, but he could tell that something was wrong. He reached in and pulled Clay out of the room and it was then that they all noticed he was having a very hard time breathing.

"What the hell is going on?" Sonny demanded.

"Shit." Yoder said he knew what was happening.

He grabbed Clay right from Jason's arms and quickly took him away to their room, which was thankfully only a few spots down. The others followed and once in the room Ray turned the light on as Jason spoke.

"What the hell is going on?"

"Turn the light off, shut the door and shut up." Yoder demanded.

Everyone was shocked at how Yoder just spoke to them. However, Brock closed the door and turned off the light. The room was dark, but you could still make out the other people in the room. Yoder pulled Clay into his arms with Clay's back against his chest. He wrapped his arms around Clay tight to hold him still and everyone could see Clay struggling to breathe. He was suffering from some type of an attack that had to have been triggered by the room. Jason remembered Clay telling him that when he first got to the States he would have moments where it was hard to breathe. In the extensive research that Jason had done since discovering that Clay was kissing the spectrum, it had talked about how his senses could be overpowered by large stimuli coming at him in all directions. That room was set up to hurt Clay. The music and the lights hitting him would have been too much for his mind to handle.

Vic was doing everything in his power to keep his face neutral. He couldn't believe how well his stunt had worked. He knew there were guys on base that were commenting about Clay and hated him. It didn't take much of anything to get them to help him with what he needed. He had even made sure there was a camera in the room that could record the whole thing so it could be uploaded to the social media page. It was a perfect way to show how pathetic and weak Clay truly was.

They all stood there and watched as Yoder, someone that wasn't them, comforted and calmed their brother. They could see Yoder whispering into Clay's ear, but they couldn't hear what he was saying. What they could see is that it was working on calming Clay down. His breathing started to relax and not become so hard. The tremble that had overtaken his body was starting to turn into a more subtle tremble. Clay let out a shaky breath as he leaned his head back against Yoder's shoulder. He moved his hand and placed it on Yoder's arm that was still wrapped around him. Clay looked exhausted, but he seemed to be back with them.

"I got you brother." Yoder said.

"Shit. It's been years." Clay's voice was shaky and weak from his attack.

"Your body is exhausted and rundown, it only makes sense that your mind will be too. You've been through a lot in the past couple of months. You also haven't been in a club in six years."

Jason moved so he was closer to Clay and he would be able to see him.

"You ok son?"

"I'll be ok. I just need some sleep to reset."

They could hear and see just how tired Clay was all of a sudden. Like his whole body had just gotten drained.

"What happened Sunshine?" Jason asked. He knew Clay needed some sleep, but he wanted to know what happened first so he could handle it.

"I don't know. I was walking by when I heard this loud bang. I thought maybe someone was in there and maybe needed help. The light was off and when I flicked the switch all of this music and flashing lights started to go off. The door was closed, but there was no handle on the inside and when I hit the light switch again, nothing happened."

"Ok, we'll look into it. You need to rest to feel better." Jason said, as Clay was fighting to keep his eyes open.

Yoder helped to get Clay down and into his bed as he spoke. "I'll stay with him."

Jason reached down and placed his hand against Clay's cheek and rubbed his thumb back and forth. "Get some sleep Sunshine."

Clay gave a small nod as his eyes fell closed. They knew it wouldn't be long before he was sound asleep.

"Anything happens, call me." Jason said.

"I will." Yoder promised. Jason had given him his phone number a couple of days ago in case something happened with Clay.

The guys all headed out and made their way back to the room to try and get the shit turned off. Sonny was the first one to speak.

"Someone has a sick idea of a joke."

"This wasn't meant as a joke." Jason said, letting the anger show in his voice.

"You think someone targeted the kid? Kinda hard to do, they didn't know he would have an issue with it." Full Metal said.

"After Clay told me about hitting the spectrum I did some research. You can invoke an attack if you over stimulate someone's mind. The loud music, flashing lights all around him and being trapped in here. It would be enough to push his mind over the edge and cause an attack." Jason explained as he walked around the room, doing his best to ignore the music and lights.

They had to be plugged in somewhere, they just needed to figure out where. Even being in this room Jason was having a hard time with it all. It was too loud and the lights were really bothering his eyes. He couldn't imagine how hard it must have been for Clay to be in here even if it was for a few minutes.

"So they targeted him, someone that must be a part of the social media page to know he was on the spectrum. They planned this." Ray said, pissed as well.

"Someone had to have helped this person though. He didn't just happen to get all of these lights, remove the handle and get the music in here. It's gotta be at least a two person job and one of those people had to have access to the supplies." Trent said.

"We're gonna need to look at everyone that has access to these types of supplies and see if we can find who set this up. This type of behaviour, it's an attack against the brotherhood, they could be sent to the reform camp for this." Ray said.

"Ya, but maybe it was just a prank and wasn't meant for anyone in particular. I mean how could they have known that Clay was going to be the one to walk by the room and hear a bang?" Vic argued.

He didn't need anyone to point the finger back at him, he was confident no one would, but at the same time he didn't want anyone to get in trouble for it. You could easily call this a prank that Bravo was taking too personally. It was why they set it up this way.

"Prank or not, they took it too far. And I doubt this wasn't directed to the general public. This wouldn't have bothered someone like it would Clay. Annoying, but it wouldn't cause a reaction." Ray said.

Jason finally found the plug buried underneath the shelving unit behind some boxes. It wasn't in a place where Clay would have been able to find. With the plug pulled everything stopped and they were finally in silence again.

"Grab the equipment and I'll go ask around and see who knows what. Loop in Lisa, maybe she can figure out where this stuff came from. I'll let Blackburn know too." Jason ordered.

The others gave a nod and they all got to work. Whoever had done this to their brother was not going to go unpunished, no matter what they had to do. What they didn't know though, was that this was only just the beginning.

XXX

They were all sitting out by the fire that night. Clay had been resting for the rest of the day to try and get his mind back in order after his attack. The others were still worried about him, they had never seen Clay go through that before and if it hadn't been for Yoder, they wouldn't have known what to do. It was made very clear to them that Yoder did love Clay like a little brother and there was no way he would ever do or say anything that would hurt Clay like that social media page. Tonight Clay was sitting next to Yoder to his right and Sonny on his left, what was different though was the small laptop in Clay's lap. He was typing on it while keeping up with the conversation going on around the firepit. It was different though, because the guys were not used to seeing Clay working on a laptop. He was normally reading or just relaxing.

"Where's the Rookie?" Full Metal asked.

"He went to bed, he was feeling a little jetlagged." Ray answered.

"What are you doing over there?" Sonny asked, as he leaned over to try and see what Clay was working on.

Clay turned the laptop away from him so he couldn't see it as he spoke. "Nothing."

"Seems like something." Trent said with a smirk.

"Are you working on number two?" Yoder asked, as he leaned over to try and see the screen.

Clay closed the laptop as he spoke. "Yes, but you have to wait like everyone else. No peeking."

"What are you talking about?" Jason asked.

"It's nothing, really." Clay said, not really wanting to share.

"I wouldn't say it's nothing. It's good that you're gonna keep going with it. But why don't they know?" Yoder asked.

"Because they will tease and I don't need to hear teasing for the rest of my life." Clay simply said.

"Since when do we tease?" Sonny said, slightly offended.

"Really?" Clay said with a smirk.

"Ok fine, but we've never teased about important stuff." Sonny argued back.

"Come on Sunshine, we promise not to tease. What are you working on?" Jason tried.

Clay let out a sigh before he spoke. "Alright fine, but this doesn't leave the circle, I mean it."

When everyone gave him a nod Clay continued. "I wrote a book about six months ago."

"You wrote a book?" Sonny asked, surprised.

"About what?" Full Metal asked.

"How do we not know you wrote a book?" Jason added.

"I wrote it in a pen name so no one could connect it to me. And it's a fictional book."

"Fictional, wasn't expecting that. I thought it would be some political foreign country book." Ray said, surprised that Clay would be writing something in the more creative category.

"No, definitely not."

"What's it about?" Brock asked.

"It's about a military special ops team and it follows them through missions, the brotherhood and finding love. It was just supposed to be one book, but it did so well that I decided to write a sequel to it and turn it into a series where each book would focus on one of the guys. And before you ask, no I've never written about one of our ops."

"We assumed you wouldn't have. The book did good?" Jason asked.

"It did amazing. He's been on the New York Times Bestseller's list for the past few months." Yoder said with a proud smile.

"Serious? Clay that's huge man." Ray said proudly.

"It was unexpected." Clay said.

"What made you get started?" Sonny asked.

Clay let out a soft sigh before he spoke. "You guys know about growing up, but once I learned how to read I read everything. Whenever the gunfire got too loud or I got scared I could pick up a book and escape into that world. After my grandparents' death I would spend days curled up reading one book after the other. It was the only way I could escape from all of the death, the bombs and gunfire, the fear. I was safe in whatever world the book created. I still read different novels when I need that escape. I wanted to create a world that someone else could escape into. A world where even though bad things happen and people go through hard times, they still come out stronger and can find love and their happily ever after. I didn't create the book in hopes of making lots of money. I created it with the hope that I could give someone else the escape they need."

"That's the best reason to make a book. Good for you Sunshine." Jason said warmly.

"That's really cool kid, but you do know we now need to know what the book is called so we can read it right?" Sonny said.

Clay playfully rolled his eyes. "It's called A Healing Love by Spenser Quinn."

"Quinn eh? I like that." Sonny said proudly.

"Ya I thought you would." Clay said with a small chuckle.

"Gonna have to check it out. Can't have a book out there by you that I haven't read." Sonny said.

"It's good. I'm excited for the next book. I was hoping you were going to make another one." Yoder said with a smile.

Clay's phone beeped and he pulled it out to see a new email. He couldn't help but have a huge smile on his face at what he read.

"You got a nude on there?" Trent teased.

"No, email. I had put a bid in for a house and it was accepted. I own a house." Clay said as he emailed his real estate agent back.

"Congrats. I didn't know you were looking to purchase." Jason said.

"I've had my eye on a few properties, but when this one came up for sale I decided to take the chance and see. It's amazing, it's literally right on the water. The backyard is the beach. It's down on Sandfiddler Road."

Sonny whistled before he spoke. "Damn, those are nice houses. How the hell did you afford one of those?"

"Book sales are good so that covered a good chunk of it."

"How many bedrooms?" Ray asked.

"Six beds and four baths. I got pics if you want."

The guys all moved over so they could check it out on Clay's phone. They couldn't believe how amazing the place looked. Not only was the ocean his backyard, but in the side yard there was also a pool. It was amazing and just perfect for a family. They all knew there would be more family barbecues at Clay's place over the others.

"Clay man, that place is gorgeous. We gotta have a housewarming party when you move in." Ray said.

"Definitely." Clay easily agreed.

"Why so big?" Full Metal asked, as they sat back down.

"The future. One day when I get married and have some kids it will be a place they can grow up in and eventually end up with themselves. I wanted to purchase a home that could be kept in the family."

"Well, that place looks amazing and I can't wait until we can see it in person." Sonny said.

"Ya, it's gonna be pretty sweet to hang out there. Cerb will love being able to be in that much open space out back and the ocean." Brock said.

"It's a great place brother." Yoder agreed.

"Now I just need to get ready to move in when we get back. I'll have to put my notice in from here for the apartment. Time it right so that first weekend we get back I can move into the house."

"Well, we're all here to help, it'll make the move go faster." Trent said.

"Appreciate it. The house came furnished and all so I won't have to worry about buying a bunch of furniture. I'll have to figure out what I want to take and what to donate when we get back from my apartment. I can't believe I got it, I thought for sure I would be out bid." Clay said, still amazed that he was able to get the house.

"Must be meant to be." Yoder said with a warm smile.

"Must be." Clay said with a smile back.

He had missed being able to spend the time like this with Yoder. He was really happy that they were able to be on tour together for the first month. It had been a few years since they were able to spend any real time together and Clay was loving it. He had missed Yoder a lot over the last three years. It seemed like things were falling into place for Clay. He now had his dream home, he was working on his second book, after his first book was so successful. He had no idea that this tour was going to be the end of a normal life in Bravo.