by Dale Mayer
He reached up, rubbed his face. “I was trying to keep her out of any danger.”
“Sometimes danger comes to us, and we don’t have any choice. You know that.”
“I know, but I don’t like it.”
“Of course not, especially since you’ve found someone you care for,” he said, “and now you don’t want to see that destroyed.”
At that, Eton shot him a hard look.
“Hey, I’m just calling it as it is,” he said.
“Yet you were part of the push to see her again.”
“Absolutely, and I am not at all upset that this is where you are heading,” he said. “We just have to find a way to keep her safe.”
Eton had to admit, of all the things his partner had said, that made the most sense, and it showed the kind of man Garret was. He wasn’t complaining about the extra complication; he wasn’t saying Eton should walk away and leave her. Garret was all about joining forces to keep her safe. And that Eton appreciated very much.
Sammy heard part of their discussion from the kitchen, and it bothered her to think that level of danger was around them. That they thought her father might be in danger as well broke her heart. That was the last thing she needed for him. What was the answer though? Somehow Joe had gotten her embroiled in something that she didn’t think he expected. And knowing the man as she did, she couldn’t believe he had any ill intent and wanted to bring it down on her shoulders. She’d known him since she was little.
But she also knew what it was like to try to save those who you loved. And she had no doubts that Joe loved his family. That son of his had been a bit of a rascal, for sure. But it all was what it was, and the reality was that, if it hadn’t been Joe, eventually it probably would have been someone else. That left her and her father, plus Eton and Garret, where they were now, left to figure out what they were supposed to do about it.
That’s where the challenge came in. Trying to find an answer to all this. Answers that had apparently proven elusive so far. When the coffee was ready, she walked into the other room. “Well, if you two are done discussing what to do about me,” she said, “do you take anything in your coffee?”
Her delivery was so smooth that it took both men a moment to understand what she had said.
Garret’s face broke into a bright grin. “I like you,” he said. “Good attitude.”
She stared at him. “Not really a whole lot of choice in the matter, is there?”
“No, none at all,” he said. “So let’s be sensible about it from the beginning.”
“Do you have any idea what we can do?” she asked Eton curiously, as she poured the coffee.
“Well, the one thing is to keep you and your father safe because not keeping you safe isn’t an option.”
“Says you,” she said. “But that doesn’t mean it’ll be easy to do.”
“No, of course not, but it’s not impossible either.”
“I wonder,” she murmured, “and you’re still not answering me.”
“One of us will stay with you at all times,” Garret said.
She looked up in shock. “That can’t happen,” she said. “You need to back him up.” Pointing to Eton, she continued. “This one keeps getting into trouble.”
At that, Garret burst out laughing. “Isn’t that the truth?” he said affectionately.
She fisted her hands on her hips and glared at him. “You think I’m joking?”
“Doesn’t matter if you’re joking or not,” he said, “because Eton is a born protector. He will not let anything happen to you and will keep you safe, regardless.”
“Sure, but I don’t want him looking after me if he is supposed to be out there finding the guy who’s going after all of you.”
“Exactly,” Garret said. “At the same time, we now have a name, Karl. And we’re tracing to find the person who paid him, and he has connections we are especially interested in, so we need to pay Karl a visit.”
“Uh-huh.”
Just then a vehicle came up the road, lights flashing around the room as it drove past. But it slowed down at the driveway. She frowned, as she saw the lights drift closer. “Most people don’t slow down when they get here.” Just then she heard an odd popping sound. She stared at the two men, but Garret had already raced to the window, and Eton had grabbed her and tossed her to the floor. Glass shattered seconds before she went down, as the window in front of them broke.
The moment it broke, something on fire landed on the rug and the wood floor underneath, immediately hunting eagerly for its next source of fuel. She wanted to scream but she was too shocked, as she slowly picked herself up. The men were immediately on the Molotov cocktail, or whatever the thing was called, and were trying to put out the fire. She bolted to her feet, raced to the kitchen, and grabbed water, as the flames were even now licking at the curtains at the sides of the window. She tossed water on them, quickly dousing the flames.
As she went back to get more, she turned around to see the men had picked up the area rug and tossed it on top of the couch that was burning now too. She stared at them in shock. “Is this what trouble you meant?” she asked faintly.
“Well, I was hoping it’s not what I meant,” Garret said grimly. “But now it’s definitely not safe for you here.”
“You don’t understand,” she said blankly. “I can’t leave my father here, and he won’t leave.”
“If you say so,” he said. “What happens when he finds out about this?”
“I don’t know,” she whispered, not even sure how to explain it to him. “He won’t do what I want him to do most of the time.”
“What is his situation? How much longer does he have?” Eton asked. His question was direct but gentle.
She sighed, then closed her eyes for a moment and said, “He may well have run out of time,” she said. “He’s lived beyond the estimate the doctor gave him.”
“Didn’t you say something about seeking more treatment?”
“He seemed to rally a bit yesterday, or maybe it was today,” she said, with a shrug. “I’m losing track of the days. But he said that maybe he should go find out if there is any other treatment. Like, get a second opinion.”
“What’s wrong with him exactly?”
“Stage four cancer,” she said, “but it’s not following the path the doctors expected. He’s got a brain tumor as well, which compounds the problem.”
“Wow, either one of those would kill him.”
“He sleeps most of the time, though he finished the job we needed to get finished today,” she said, with half a smile. “It’s the last of his commitments.”
“What are the chances that he just wanted to finish that before going to bed?”
“Well, he was truly excited about the idea of me having a date,” she said drily. “He said that he wanted to see me settled, first and foremost.”
“Settled is an old-fashioned term, isn’t it?”
“He’s an old-fashioned man,” she said, with a gentle smile. “What do we do about this now?” she asked.
Even as she stood here, Garret had slipped out of the room and returned with a broom and was busy cleaning up the floor. He looked at her and asked, “Do you have a vacuum?”
She nodded. One of the rugs was badly burned on the side. “I suppose that should just go outside,” she said.
“It would help with the smoke smell, yes,” Garret said, “and I suggest you remove these two curtain panels that burned, maybe move that one over. How often do you close this?”
“Almost never.”
“In that case, nobody would notice.” Quickly he lifted the curtain rod from the wall and dropped off the two panels, hooks and all. He slid the other good panel down, so now instead of two panels at each end, there was one each. Then he hung it back up. “Once we get this cleaned up and take this rug out,” he said, “it’s just the window.”
She stood here, stunned. “Wow, you’ve minimized that damage pretty fast,” she said, and, even as she spoke,
he was removing the rug. She sighed. “I suppose the insurance might cover this.”
“It’s hard to say. I don’t know what your policies are like over here,” Eton said. “A big window like that will be expensive, even though the damage is just on the one side.” Then he shrugged and said, “Honestly the whole thing would have to come out.”
“I’m sure it will,” she said. She turned and looked at the both of them and said, “Neither of you went after him. Why?”
“Because he was already being tracked,” Eton said quietly.
She stopped and stared at him. “What?”
He gave her a half smile. “We’re not alone,” he said.
She stopped and stared. “Are you saying what I think you are saying? That more of you are out here?”
“Well, we definitely have eyes in the sky,” Garret said. “I’ll check in with them in about a minute.”
As he straightened the curtains on the rod, she just couldn’t believe it. “I guess it makes sense that more people are out there with you,” she said, “but I’m not sure whether I understand what the ‘eye in the sky’ comment means.”
“We are part of a big team. Remember?” Eton said. “I told you that the entire team has been targeted.”
She nodded slowly. “Right. It just seems like so much craziness has happened these last few days,” she said. “I’m not sure what I remember and what seems like so long ago now that I just found out this morning.” She shook her head.
“Yes, sometimes it happens that way,” Garret said. “And Eton just checked in with our team. They’re on it.”
“Good,” she said. “I’m glad.”
“You and me both,” Garret said.
“So does that mean it’s safe to leave me alone now?” she asked hopefully. Although she didn’t have a clue how that was supposed to work because, if she were safe to be alone, why had she just been targeted?
“It’s hard to say,” Eton said, “but we won’t take a chance anyway.”
She took a deep breath. “I get that,” she said. “I’m just not so sure what any of this means.”
“It means that we don’t take any chances,” he said. “It’s all about safety.”
“Right,” she said, frowning. “I think I’d like that coffee now.”
“Me too,” Garret said.
Just then Eton’s cell buzzed. He took one look, glanced at Garret, and said, “I’m gone.”
Garret nodded, and, just like that, Eton bolted out the door.
She turned and looked at Garret, then spun around as she heard the big truck whip by, probably to follow the vehicle that had thrown the firebomb. “Did he just take off like that, after you guys decided I shouldn’t be left alone?”
“You aren’t alone,” he said. “I’m not exactly an invalid.” Enough indignation was in his voice that she turned and apologized immediately.
“I’m sorry, Garret,” she said. “I didn’t mean it like that.”
“Yes, you did,” he said, with a sniff.
She had to smile. “Okay, but I just was thinking that he would stay with me.”
“Of course you were because you want him to.”
“Well, maybe,” she said, “I’m not so sure about that though.”
“It’s all good,” he said, chuckling. “I’m just tripping you up to get you to admit that you wanted him here.”
She shot him a look.
He smirked, as he shook his head. “You can get a lot of information across with that look in your eyes,” he said, smiling broadly.
“Well, it’s definitely interesting to be around you guys,” she said. “I didn’t realize how damn boring my life was before I met you two.”
“Hey, we are good people,” he said.
“I know,” she replied. “I really wanted him to behave himself at the hospital with Joe, and the only reason he did, I’m sure, is because he knew how much it mattered to me.”
“If he was doing anything other than beating the crap out of Joe, you have an amazing influence over him,” he said seriously. “Think about what Joe did to him. To all of us. It’s a miracle that Eton wasn’t killed by that car bomb.”
“I know,” she whispered. “And I’m just now realizing it, as I see my own father’s life in danger.”
“Exactly,” he said. “And for what? Money?”
“In Joe’s case, money translates to his grandson’s health,” she said, “so it’s understandable.”
“Understandable, but he sacrificed a lot of other people for that, including his own son.”
“Except he had no idea it would end that way.”
“That’s the trouble with guys like this,” Garret said quietly. “It always ends that way.”
She winced and nodded. “Hopefully you guys can bring this to a fast conclusion, so there is no more trouble.”
“We’d like to think so, but, so far, nothing is going very fast.”
She sank into the couch beside him, studying the room. “I don’t know if my father will notice,” she whispered. Except that one side of the couch was torched and damaged.
He looked at it and asked, “Do you have a blanket, like a throw or something, to put over that?”
“Yes, but it still smells in here.”
“It does, but the fresh air coming through the window will help clean it up. We’ll get wood hauled in to nail up here, while you await a window replacement.”
She muttered slowly, “Everything has gone so crazy these last couple days.”
“Your friend is gone too, isn’t she?”
“Yes, and I don’t even understand how that happened so fast,” she says. “It’s like she suddenly realized she was in danger, and that was it. She was gone.”
“Do you blame her?”
“No, of course not,” she said, “and she is a really good friend, so obviously I want to keep her safe.”
“Exactly, and now, with her gone, hopefully she is safe.”
“I hope so,” she whispered. “This is all just too confusing.”
“Not really,” he said. “When you think about it, it’s really simple.”
“Is it?”
“Yes,” he said. “It is. All we have to do is keep you and your father safe.”
“Plus keeping you and Eton safe.” She gave a broken laugh. “I’m not so sure that’s such an easy thing to do either,” she whispered.
He smiled and said, “Some things in life are just the way they are, so we’ll do our best.”
She nodded slowly. “I get that. I really do,” she said. “It’s just a very confusing state of affairs for me.”
“Yeah, it is, especially when seen from an outsider’s point of view. However, for us, who have more experience with this crap, it’s not impossible,” he said.
She took a slow deep breath. “I can get through this. If you guys can, I can.”
He laughed. “It’s not a contest,” he said gently. “A lot of things in life we would just as soon not have to deal with.”
“I think that goes for all of us,” she said, with a nod toward her father’s bedroom.
“Exactly.” Garret nodded in understanding. “Why don’t you go to bed and rest?” he suggested.
She stared at him in shock. “Are you serious? It’s not like I’ll leave and go to sleep.”
“Well, I had hoped you might try,” he said. “I just thought maybe you could.”
“Not happening,” she said, with a smile. “Not until I know Eton is safe.”
“See? I knew you cared,” he said, with a knowing nod.
She rolled her eyes at him. “Yes, but I shouldn’t. I don’t know anything about him. I don’t know anything about either of you guys, and honestly, it’s all happening just way too fast.”
“Nothing is way too fast yet,” he said, “because nothing has happened yet. You’re just interested. Okay, maybe a little more than that,” he said, smiling at the look she’d shot at him.
She smiled back, nodded, and said, “True
enough.”
“So don’t get scared,” he said.
“You want me to have a relationship with him, don’t you?”
“Yes, but only with the caveat that it’s right for both of you. I would be happy to see him with somebody special in his life. He’s spent so much of his life doing good for others in the worst of conditions, yet rarely has anybody been there for him. He has the team, of course, but nobody special, just for him, you know?”
“I do, and that’s hard,” she said, “and I know exactly how it feels.”
“Of course you do,” he said. “That’s one of the reasons you are perfect for him. Because you do understand.”
“Maybe,” she said, “but I won’t be pushed into anything.”
He chuckled at that. “So far it appears that you’re the one doing the pushing.”
She stopped, stared at him, and realized that, in a way, he was right.
*
Eton picked up the pace, driving as fast as he could in the dark with the headlights off, as he tracked the vehicle that was a good ten minutes ahead of him. His phone beside him was connected to Ice.
“I’m handing you over to Stone right now,” Ice said. “He’s got the truck on satellite.”
“Tell me where I’m going,” he said to Stone. “Make it good.”
“Okay,” he said, “we’ve got him. He’s slowing down and taking a left-hand turn, which appears to be down some dark road around to another village.”
“I believe it. This whole area is dotted with small towns.”
“Well, he’s heading up to another property.”
“I’m pushing hard behind him, so keep giving me instructions.”
“Pull off and sit on the side of the road,” Stone said.
Immediately Eton pulled onto the shoulder and asked, “Why? What’s up?”
“Because you’ll catch up to him too fast,” he said. “Just sit there for a minute, while I wait and see what he’ll do.” As he waited, Eton heard Stone give a sigh of satisfaction. “Okay, looks like he’s parked.”
“Interesting,” Eton said.
“Yes, it looks like it may be home base for him.”
“Sweet, that would be perfect,” he said. “I want to go in and beat the shit out of somebody. They tried to torch Sammy’s house.”