Ben Mercer is an ex-cop, lamed, framed, and thrown off the force for a crime his partner committed. Now homeless, he has no expectations for a better life until he's recruited by Durand, head of Vanguard Security, to join a team that deals with problems the police can't or won't touch. All Ben needs is the approval of the team leader, Zach Turner.<br><br>To get it, Ben has to prove to Zach that he still retains his skills as a sniper, and that he can handle any job thrown at him, despite the still painful damage to his knee. He does, and is immediately pulled into a job with the team, rescuing a kidnap victim.<br><br>Ben had one big secret, or did have until Durand drew it out of him. Before his life was drastically changed he had denied, even to himself, that he was gay. Now that he's accepted it, and learned that Zach is as well, can the two men forge a bond beyond that of being teammates and friends? It will take several more jobs before Ben gets his answer.

A Second Chance

“Do not push yourself beyond your limits, Ben,” Zach replied adamantly. “You don’t have to be perfect the first time around. This will be more of a test of what you can deal with, physically. I’m fairly certain you have the actual ‘innocent versus criminal’ target down pat, even after a year’s break.”


“I’d better or I’ll be useless.”


When Ben finished his sandwich, they went down to the second room. Ben chose two weapons to practice with and Zach set things in motion. He was impressed by Ben’s ability to avoid shooting a ‘bystander’ while taking out the ‘criminal’ without hesitation, even when said criminal was using the bystander as a shield.


“Time to quit,” he called out when he saw pain etched on Ben’s face, and in the way he moved, favoring his bad leg more and more.


“No, you’re not. It’s not going to do you any good if your leg collapses and you end up back in the hospital or in our clinic.”


Chapter 10