Kasey followed Dyson through the back door, glad that there was a large awning around the patio to block their view from the houses that were only fifteen feet away. They'd waited until most of the lights in the neighborhood were off, but there was still always a chance someone would be awake and watching.
The house was dark as they walked in, and Dyson used a small penlight to weave a path through the living room and down the hallway. He paused for a second to glance at Kasey, and when he gave him a single nod, they entered the bedroom.
Dyson quietly went around one side of the bed while Kasey went to the other. He could barely make out Dyson's shadow in the darkness, but he watched closely, waiting for Dyson to make his move before he did the same. The second he saw Dyson's arm go forward, he did the same, managing to find the woman's neck in the darkness and jab the needle into her skin. He held her as she started to struggle and cry out, but it only took a few seconds for the drugs to work through her system and leave her unable to move.
Once he had her lowered to the bed, Kasey turned on the lamp on the nightstand, looking over at Dyson to make sure there weren't any issues.
Dyson's gaze met his, both of them dressed all in black, with large hoodies and black masks on.
"Well, look what we have here. If it isn't pedophile one, and pedophile two. You are a sick fucking couple." Kasey stared down at the woman.
"What kind of people sexually abuse children, let alone your own grandkids?" Dyson asked as he pulled out a zip-tie and secured the man's hands.
The woman gasped, but no sound came out, the drugs keeping her unable to move or talk.
Kasey tied her hands behind her back before pulling out a pair of scissors. He easily cut her nightgown from her body. Tears streamed down her cheeks as the cold metal caressed her skin. "You didn't think we would let you keep hurting them, did you?"
"What will your children say when they find out you raped your grandchildren, or did you rape your children too when they lived with you?" Dyson asked as he cut the man's sleep pants open, exposing him.
Forcing himself to focus on what he needed to do and not on what Dyson was doing, he forced the woman's legs wide. She couldn't fight him, the drugs kept her muscles limp. He grinned at her as he pulled a large one-inch curling iron out of his hoodie pocket. "You know the pain you forced those kids to go through? It's nothing like the pain I'm going to make you feel."
He nudged the tip of the curling iron against her before forcefully jamming it inside her, thankful for the gloves he wore. As soon as it was in, he turned and ripped the cord to the alarm clock out of the wall. Once that was done, he plugged the curling iron in.
"Done here." Kasey smiled at the woman as he secured her to the headboard. "How are you doing over there?" He glanced over at Kasey.
"All done." Dyson set the man's cock and balls on the man's chest as if they were a prize before securing one of the man's arms to the headboard.
The two of them gathered everything they had brought, making sure there was no evidence left behind and that the file was in place for the police to find. "You two have fun facing your children and explaining what you've done." Kasey waved as he left the room, Dyson right behind him.
They didn't speak as they quietly left the house and made their way to the sidewalk. Once there, they slowed their pace so they didn't draw attention, and headed down the street to Kasey's car. He unlocked it so they could both get in.
Once there, he blew out a breath. "I fucking hate dealing with women."
"Me too, but I think it's more because we deal with so few compared to how many men we have to sting." Dyson pulled out the burner phone. "All good?" He glanced at Kasey, still wearing the mask.
"Yeah, make the call, then text Bryon. I'm headed to the lake. Not going to stick around and make sure those two are found." Kasey had no respect for the average pedophile, but to hurt your own family, your own grandkids, that took a special kind of fucked up.
Dyson called the police, then tossed the phone into a plastic bag with the rest of the things they'd used on the sting. He then sent a text to Bryon. Once done, he pulled off his mask. "So, what's the news on this new boyfriend you found?"
Kasey pulled his own mask off now that they were a few blocks from the home. "Not much to tell. Met him at the gun range, then ran into him again one night when I was out running. We got dinner that night and sort of hit it off. It's too soon to tell if it's serious." He focused on the road, hoping Dyson couldn't see the lie on his face. It was more serious than it should be for the time they'd been together, at least from his side of things. It seemed like Noam felt the same way, but he couldn't know for sure. He highly doubted Noam told anyone about his injuries unless the feelings were there.
"What did you tell him you do?" Dyson asked.
"The usual late-night IT story we all use." Kasey shrugged. "It works, explains why I'm out late at night, and I've used it so many times, it's easy to remember the lies."
Dyson tore off his gloves, tossing them into the bag too, before reaching for Kasey's, which he'd set on the console between them. "You trust him enough to have Faith around him."
Kasey nodded. "I do. He was good around her. I hesitated bringing anyone around, but Faith has to get used to being around people. She did okay. She was so amazing, Dys. I wish you could have seen her. That girl is so strong."
"She is. She told me you took her to the trampoline place. I'm glad you thought of that. She's been hounding me for weeks to get Xander and Matt to get her one."
"Xander made it clear that wasn't going to happen. I figured that was the next best thing. You should go there. It's a lot of fun. Noam and I had as much fun as she did."
"That's his name?"
"Yeah, he was born in Israel. You should see some of the guns he has. Stuff I've never had a chance to shoot before. That's what got us talking in the first place. If things work out, I'm sure you'll meet him sometime." Kasey tried to imagine how the team would react to Noam. He'd never brought anyone around his friends before. Never wanted to. With Noam, he looked forward to them meeting him.
"Everyone's falling in love." Dyson sighed.
"Jealous?" Kasey glanced over at him.
"A bit. I'm tired of random hook-ups. Tired of going home to an empty house all the time. I guess watching Xan and Matt over the last year has gotten to me. Made me want what they have."
"You'll find someone," Kasey said. "It's hard though. I hate lying to him. I hate that I can't be like Xander and be open about what I do. If things get serious, I don't know that I can keep it up. I might have to make a choice."
Dyson's eyes went wide. "You'd leave the team?"
"Maybe. If it came down to a relationship with someone I loved or the team, I would probably choose the relationship. I love being part of the team, but having that fear of my partner finding out the truth would destroy me. It's one thing to lie while dating, but when things get more serious…" He didn't have to finish. He was sure Dyson knew what he meant.
"I don't know what I'd do. I haven't ever really thought about it. The team is all I know. Xan and I left the Army and joined the team."
"Yeah, I'm with you there. I joined up with Bryon when I was eighteen. If I quit, I don't know what I'm qualified for. I mean it's not like I can put castration expert on my resume."
Dyson laughed. "Maybe Beau can get you a job doing circumcisions or something."
"Right." Kasey laughed. "No parent is going to trust me to touch their kid, and I don't blame them." Kasey pulled up near the lake and shut off the car.
"You ever regret what we do?" Dyson asked.
"Never. Not for a second. All I have to do is remember those kids we save. Remember the cries we've heard from the rooms they are locked in, the images we've seen. Nope, never have felt bad for what we do. If I could work eight-hour days doing it, I would. Do you feel bad?" Kasey glanced over at him.
"No, but I almost feel like it's bad I don't. Like there should be some sort of shame or remorse. I don't know. Maybe I'm just thinking too much lately. It scares me how much I love what we do. How excited I get before a sting. I hate the reason we have to do it, but I don't hate that we do it, if that makes sense."
"It does. If we never had to do it again, I'd be happy, but as long as any child is in danger, I will do all I can to stop it." Kasey climbed out of the car, taking the baggie out of his hoodie and tossing it into the water.
Dyson came to stand beside him, tossing his own bag into the lake below. "We need to change dump spots soon." They'd been using this location of the lake off and on for a few months now. They tried to change locations as often as they could.
"Yeah, I was thinking about the spot closer to the dam. It's quiet, the water's deep, and we haven't used it in a couple of years." Kasey rubbed his hands down his pant legs. He just wanted to get home and get a shower. He always felt dirty after a sting, like touching the vile scum left its mark on him in some way.
"I'll talk to Bry tomorrow about it. See if he's got something else mapped out or if we can just switch." Dyson looked up at the moon. "Okay, let's get home."
As they got in the car, Kasey wondered if Noam had been called out to work the scene. It was a bit nerve-wracking thinking about his boyfriend investigating a scene he'd made. It was too close for comfort, but there was nothing he could do about it unless he was willing to give either Noam or his job up. He was just going to have to get used to it.
Pulling the car onto the road, he reached out and turned on the radio. He needed something to distract him. Two more nights and he'd be with Noam again. Until then, he'd do what he'd been doing for years. Focus on his job, sleep alone, and just try to survive.