Discovering Rafe
Stryker Security Force Book 5
Sara Blackard
Copyright © 2021 Sara Blackard
For more information on this book and the author visit: https://www.sarablackard.com
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Edited by Sweetly Us Press
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All rights reserved.
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One
A ping sounded beside Rafe Malone, and he groaned. Not now. Not when victory stood a few clicks away. He jerked his thumb and rapidly pressed the buttons on his controller.
“You’re not going to get me today.” He flicked his finger as another ping sounded.
He chanced a peek at the flashing icon on one of the computer screens lined on his desk. A smile pushed up his bearded cheeks. Today looked to be a great day.
He turned his focus back to the screen that demanded his priority. His eyes widened as pink flashed on his screen. How the heck did—
“No …” Rafe frantically pressed buttons, his heart rate increasing. “No, no, no, noooo.”
He tossed the controller onto his desk as Princess Peach beat his Mario in the race. He’d been so close, only to lose again.
Story of his life.
“Ha, ha, ha, sucker.” The high-pitched voice arrogantly laughed in his earpiece. “Just admit it, old man. You’re never gonna beat me, even with this prehistoric game you force me to play.”
He leaned close to the video feed on his monitor and gave his sternest look into the camera. “You shouldn’t talk to your elders like that.”
His niece Sammy tipped back her head and laughed. Her auburn ponytail swayed as the tinkling laughter continued. Rafe leaned back in his office chair and crossed his arms over his chest. His lips twitched to let his smile free as the screen revealed her cheeks pinking with joy.
How could the nine-year-old keep whipping his butt? He’d been playing this stupid game for longer than she’d been alive, yet she beat him every single time. She snorted, sighed, and wiped the tears from beneath her eyes. Rafe found it difficult to keep the straight face.
“Uncle Rafe, you crack me up.” Samantha leaned forward so her Pepto-Bismol pink room disappeared from behind her. Her smug expression filled the screen. “What do you think? Best two out of three? Bet I could spank you in those too.”
Rafe cocked his eyebrow. “Does your mom know you talk like that?”
“Psh.” She leaned back with a smile. “She’d say you deserve it for still playing video games when you’re ancient.”
“Ancient?” Rafe pointed at her freckled nose. “Ancient? I’ll have you know I’m not even thirty yet.”
“But you’re close.” She shrugged and twirled her controller in her hand. “That’s ancient. So, what do you say? You game or are you going to tuck your tail and run?”
He let his laugh free and shook his head. “Girl, you are too much. You may have nothing better to do than sit and play games all day, but I have important work that needs to get done.”
“Boring.” She slumped in her sparkly pink bean bag with a look of utter dejection.
“You better be ready, Sammy.” Rafe pointed at her. “I’m going to beat you next time.”
“You wish. You always say that, but I only ever see checkered floor in front of me.” She sat forward, her face lighting up. “When can we play next?”
“I’ll have to text you.” The computer pinged again. “Until later, Queen of Mario Kart.”
“Farewell, King of Loserville.”
“I’m telling.” Rafe used his whiny kid voice she always got a kick out of.
Her eyes sparkled as she smiled. “Yeah, right. Then you’d just get a lecture on playing games again.”
“You’re right.” Rafe sighed. His sister could be a real downer sometimes. “Love you, Sam.”
“Love you too, Uncle Rafe.” She blew him a kiss as he signed off.
Rafe turned to the notification that interrupted his first chance at beating his niece in months. He scowled.
“It’s all your fault,” he grumbled as he clicked a few icons to pull up the report. A smile spread across his face. “But I guess I’ll forgive you.”
He’d finally done it. He’d slaved over the last month, working alongside June Rivas, a.k.a. Reagan MacArthur, his friend Sosimo’s wife. They’d worked tirelessly trying to figure out how to get her Eyes Beyond tech to work on a larger scale. Her original invention allowed soldiers to have x-ray vision and see beyond the walls and vehicles in front of them. It’d helped them on countless missions and would’ve saved their friend Ethan Stryker on the mission that changed all their lives if some bureaucrats hadn’t screwed them all over.
His hands trembled on the keyboard.
He didn’t think about that day.
Ever.
It was the only way he could keep the ghosts away.
He shook his hands out and focused on the data before him. He and June had come up against glitch after glitch as they tried to expand the program. He’d approached her with the idea after a group had strapped a bomb to the underside of the nanny’s car. Nothing like some C-4 exploding next to the pond in the backyard to wake one up.
After that little hoopla, he had wanted a way to scan every vehicle, bike, or person who ventured onto their property, and the Eyes Beyond seemed just the ticket. If they could just get it to work, they could minimize the risk to other places besides their own, like The White House, military bases, and embassies. It’d put one more layer of protection between the soldiers and people who guarded those places and the people determined to attack them.
Rafe hooted and lifted his arms up in victory. So what if he couldn’t gloat at his niece over a Mario Kart victory? He’d finally figured out what had tripped them up. He grabbed his phone and texted June.
RAFE: I figured it out.
June’s reply came quick and to the point.
JUNE: It’s working?
He smiled as he typed back.
RAFE: It’s running as smooth as a baby’s bottom.
Rafe checked his other screens, making sure he had nothing else that needed his attention. The three dots popped up on his phone, indicating June was typing something.
JUNE: You’re a stud.
RAFE: I won’t tell Sosimo you said that.
An eye-roll emoji appeared, followed by her text.
JUNE: He knows I’m just fluffing your sensitive ego.
RAFE: Woman, there is no fluffing needed here.
JUNE: That’s the truth.
Rafe guffawed as he turned in his chair. Sosimo had found an amazing woman when he married June. Sos deserved happiness after everything that had happened. Rafe, on the other hand, didn’t deserve to find love. Not after what he’d done. Rafe stood before the memories could crash over him. His phone pinged, and he glanced down.
JUNE: All joking aside, good job, Rafe. I’m so glad we figured out how to make it work. It’s going to help so much.
Rafe moved his fingers to type back when his phone rang. His forehead furrowed. Restricted number?
“Hello? Rafe here.”
“Rafe? It’s Davis.” His best friend’s voice sounded strained.
“Davis, you on leave, or what?” Rafe couldn’t believe it’d been
so long since he’d talked to his childhood friend. Since he’d left the Army, he and Davis didn’t have the chance to cross paths like they used to.
Rafe logged out of his personal computer and left to go to the kitchen and grab a snack.
“No, getting ready to leave on an extended mission. Listen, I need your help. Chloe and Piper are in some kind of trouble.” Davis’s agitation grew.
“What do you mean?”
“Some dude has been leaving strange messages for Chloe down in Texas.” He huffed. “They’re up in Steamboat Springs for a concert and just found a note taped to their door.” He growled. “Rafe, you should’ve heard how scared they sounded.”
“Dude, I’ll leave right now. I’ll be there in less than an hour.” Rafe rushed out of the room.
“Man, thank you. I’m glad you’re there.” Davis’s sigh sounded as if it came all the way from his toes. “I’m tired of being so far away, Rafe. Think I might be ready to follow you out and be done with the military.”
“We could always use another hand here.” Rafe took the stairs two at a time. He’d do anything for the Fields family. He’d spent as much time or more at Davis’s aunt and uncle’s house, where Davis and Piper lived after their parents died. They were like family. “Don’t worry, Davis. I won’t let anything happen to the girls.”
“Thanks, man. I’ll call when I can.”
“Keep your head down.” Rafe shoved his phone in his pocket after Davis agreed and hung up.
Rafe strode into the office, interrupting Zeke Greene and his wife Samantha from kissing. Rafe would’ve cracked a joke about interoffice relationships, but he didn’t have time to screw around. Samantha jumped away from Zeke and placed her fingers over her cheeks before straightening her hair.
Rafe couldn’t help himself. “Stop making out. We’ve got some serious business here.”
“Knock much?” Zeke scowled as he flexed his fingers.
“Hey. If you want privacy, close the door.” Rafe pointed his thumb behind him at the open doorway. “Listen, I need to go to Steamboat, and I need to take your plane.”
“Okay.” Zeke crossed his arms. “What’s going on?”
“Just got a call from Davis. His cousin and sister have a stalker issue. His cousin is performing in Steamboat this weekend.” Rafe ran a hand over his beard and tugged. “The dude followed them up there from Texas. Left a note on their door.”
“Take Jake. He’s a better pilot.”
Rafe nodded and headed for the door. Zeke was right. Jake could fly a plane through the eye of a needle if it fit.
“I’ll send you the girls’ info so you can call them,” Rafe called over his shoulder. “Tell them to hang tight until we get there.”
Rafe didn’t wait for a response. Zeke knew what to do. Rafe pictured Piper and Chloe the last time he’d seen them. Five or six years had to have passed since he had gone back with Davis for the girls’ high school graduation.
Back then Chloe had just gotten out of the hospital and still had the dark shadows on her face of someone who’d gone to hell and back. Piper had smiled from ear to ear, still swimming in the oversized shirts she always wore. She had changed little since they’d first moved into the neighborhood when she was twelve. He remembered laughing at how she’d looked back and forth between him, Davis, and Chloe, like at any moment one of them might disappear.
Piper had always been a worrier. Rafe couldn’t imagine how crazed she must be with all of this. He’d not only keep the girls safe, but he’d also find out who this creep was. Piper didn’t need any more worry piled on her shoulders. Rafe picked up his pace. He couldn’t get to Steamboat fast enough.
Piper Fields stared at the full-length mirror in the bathroom of the house they’d rented. The garnet sweater didn’t hug her tight and expose her fluff, but also didn’t fit her like a circus tent. It somehow accentuated her body in ways she never thought possible. She should go back and buy every sweater they had in her size.
She still couldn’t believe she’d allowed Chloe, her cousin and America’s next country music darling, to talk her into a shopping spree. She had to admit, though, that the new clothes gave her a boost in confidence. Maybe she could even consider accepting Chloe’s newest guitarist’s, Chet Stevens, invitations to dinner. Piper’s hands slicked with sweat and her mouth went dry. Then again, maybe she wasn’t ready for that yet.
Her old clothing had become a security blanket. The habit had sprouted from her grief when her parents had died in a car accident. It had buried thick, deep roots when her aunt and uncle enrolled her into private school with Chloe. Her looming height and fleshy frame hadn’t exactly fit in with the petite, anorexic image toted by the popular crowd.
She still could hear the teasing barbs the girls would throw about how school uniforms didn’t work on Wookiees, like Piper had any say in how tall she grew. Or that she hadn’t learned to tame her hair that wasn’t curly, but also wasn’t straight until well into her sophomore year. By then the damage had been done and the jock guys would make Wookiee calls when she passed in the hall. Her relief at missing most of their senior year because she refused to leave Chloe at the hospital by herself had been so selfish. She still felt guilty of being glad to have an excuse to not go to school.
Her mother had always claimed Piper would be a great warrior princess, like all her Viking ancestors from the stories her mother had told. Piper had dreamed of Nordic fairytales growing up. Of being tall and beautiful, just like her mother. Instead, she’d ended up more a frumpy giant than the gorgeous goddess her mom had been.
Piper adjusted the tunic sweater and yanked the hem a little more over the leggings, smoothing down the soft fabric. The deep red of the knit brought out the pink in her cheeks and made her green eyes pop. Huh. She cocked her head to the side. She never thought about how the dreary clothes she wore could make her look tired.
Turning one more time in front of the mirror, she smiled. Maybe there was a bit of her mother in her after all. She rolled her eyes, headed back to the living room, and slumped on to the couch, glancing at her watch. The security team Davis had suggested should be there soon. According to Zeke Greene, Davis’s friend and owner of the firm, it would take a little over an hour for his men, Jake and Rafe, to get there. Only fifteen minutes had passed since they’d gotten off the phone, but Piper swore more like forty had.
Her stomach had twisted when Zeke had said the name Rafe. It pretzeled thinking about it again. Rolling her neck, she reached up and rubbed the knot between her shoulders. Zeke couldn’t be talking about Rafe Malone, Davis’s best friend from high school. Surely Davis would’ve told her if Rafe had gotten out of the Army.
That she still crushed on her brother’s best friend after not seeing him for six years and nine months merely proved that she lived a pathetic life. What kind of person kept a secret flame going for that long? Chloe was the only one who knew Piper had pined for the unattainable back in high school.
She hoped she hadn’t been obvious in her insistence of keeping that crush alive after so many years. None of her handful of dates since getting out of high school had come remotely close to measuring up to Rafe. She hoped that fact didn’t prove she was destined to be alone for life. She shook her head and snatched a tourist magazine from the coffee table, mad at herself for letting her mind travel down the road to Rafeville yet again.
Muffled muttering and a crash sounded from upstairs. Had Chloe lost something again? The note taped to the front door came to mind, picking up her heart rate. Piper lowered the magazine as she peered up the stairs.
“Chloe, you okay?” Piper hollered.
“I’m good.” Chloe sounded out of breath. “Just doing some wardrobe adjustments. I’ll be right down.”
Piper snorted as she flipped a page she hadn’t looked at. Chloe was always adjusting her concert sets, whether it was her wardrobe, her dancing, or something else Piper didn’t realize needed adjusting. Chloe would freak if she knew that Piper still harbored her
childhood dream of becoming a stay-at-home mom like her mother had been. Chloe had nearly gone into seizures when they’d talked about their dreams of the future one night under the covers.
Even at fourteen, Chloe had wanted to be a country music star. When Piper had said she just wanted to be a wife and mom and homeschool her kids, Chloe had spazzed out about women being liberated from such nonsense until she’d collapsed into an exhausted heap. Piper hadn’t ever said anything about it again, but in her heart, that dream still held tight. Not that it looked to come true anytime soon, if ever.
Her mom had been the most amazing woman she had ever known, not only strong but so happy it beamed from her. Why couldn’t Piper dream of a happiness like her mother’s? Of course, if she never dated, then she’d never find a husband to build a happy home with.
Chloe tripped down the stairs with an armful of Piper’s old clothes. Piper’s stomach twisted. What was her cousin up to now? Their security guards would be there in—Piper glanced at her watch—about thirty-five minutes. She’d just finished straightening the place.
“What are you doing?” Piper tried not to act perturbed as she flipped a page in the magazine.
“Bonfire. Remember?” Chloe’s bright smile slid ice down Piper’s back.
“Now?” Piper stood, her voice coming out like a squeak. She figured with the whole stalker issue that Chloe would forget all about their agreement to burn Piper’s old clothes.
“Yep.”
Piper should’ve known that Chloe wouldn’t let it go. She probably worried that Piper would fall back into the habit of wearing the old sacks of monotone dreary. But still, the bodyguards could be there any minute.
“But what about the note? Shouldn’t we stay inside and wait for Zeke’s guys?” She stood and prepared to take her clothes back upstairs.
Chloe tossed the clothes on the entry floor and rushed back upstairs. Obviously, the men showing up didn’t worry her cousin. Piper placed her hands on her hips and stared at the one tone pile of ugly. Why had she wrapped herself in that for so long?
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