Gray Horse (Heartbreakers & Heroes Book 7)

by Ciana Stone

"The fuck it's not. Hand it over."

  "I told you, it's not here."

  "One more chance bitch."

  "How many times do I have to tell you I don't have it?"

  "Time's running out." The man threatened. "Three, two—"

  "She's telling the truth," Naomie said. "She doesn't have it. I do."

  "That's a lie!" Reese shouted.

  "Somebody better give me that fucking thing now."

  "We don't have—" Reese never got the rest of the words out of her mouth. Naomie leaped in front of Reese, pushing her into Wiley as the sound of a gun firing boomed out.

  Naomie looked like she'd been shoved from behind. Her arms flew out to her sides, and blood spurted from the upper right side of her chest. Reese tore free from Wiley to catch Naomie as she fell. It wasn't until she was on the floor, cradling Naomie in her arms that she paid attention to what was going on around her.

  In the time it took her to do that, Mathias was standing over one gunman, with his foot on the man's back. Russell Walker had the other man on his knees, with the man's gun pointed at the back of his head.

  "Ambulance!" Reese yelled.

  Wiley knelt and put his hand over the wound to staunch the blood. Naomie's face was pale and covered in a sheen of perspiration. "Ambulance!" Reese yelled again.

  "To hell with that. Wiley take this." Russell barked.

  Wiley got up, took the gun from Russell and kicked the second assailant to his belly on the floor while Russell marched across the room. He pulled a bandana from his jacket pocket, put it over the wound and took Naomie's hand and covered the material. "Hold that there. You hear me?"

  "Yes."

  "Good girl." He then picked her up and headed across the room. "Call and tell them I'm bringing her in and will be there in five minutes."

  "It will take longer than that!" Lily yelled.

  "The hell it will." Reese heard his words as he marched into Lily's office toward the back exit.

  "The police are on the way," Lily announced and a split-second later sirens sounded, along with the sound of a helicopter.

  The next hour was taken up with the police, headed by Charli Judd, taking the assailants into custody, and then everyone giving statements. When at last they were done, Reese asked. "Can we go to the hospital now to check on Naomie?"

  "Of course," Charli agreed.

  They hurried out to Mathias' truck. Reese bit back the urge to tell him to drive faster. He was doing precisely what he should. Be calm and don't take foolish risks. All she could think was that Naomie had risked her life.

  "We shouldn't have done the dog and pony show," she said.

  "You know that it wouldn't have stopped whoever was behind those men showing up. If it hadn't happened today, it would have tomorrow or the next, or next week."

  "But maybe then no one else would have been hurt."

  "Look, I get it." He reached for her hand, and she let him take hold of it. "You care about her, and she tried to save you and ended up hurt. But if it's any consolation, it looked like a clean through and through, and I'm sure Mr. Walker got her to the hospital before she suffered massive blood loss."

  "You and he are heroes." Her hand tightened on his. "If you hadn't disarmed those men, they could have shot someone else."

  "But they didn't. And you have to stop the what if's. You know that. Fall back on your training if that's what it takes but stop thinking like a victim."

  Wow. How did that happen? Reese had never thought like a victim, and it shocked her to be told she was doing that now. Not that she disagreed. Mathias was right. The last time she'd allowed emotion to hold sway over reason was when she'd been placed in that foster home, and her life had become a series of days in hell until she finally figured out how to reclaim her life. She'd stopped being a victim the day she poisoned the liquor of that worthless piece of human garbage who'd made a sport out of raping her.

  Until now. Today she'd let emotion eclipse reason.

  "Thank you." She raised their clasped hands to kiss Mathias'. "I needed to hear that."

  Now what she needed was to see that Naomie was okay and then she could turn her mind to figuring how who would be behind the attack and how to prove it.

  When they arrived at the hospital, they went straight to Emergency and were told that Naomie had been moved to a room on the third floor. It didn't take long to find the elevator and ride up. Reese heard the ruckus the moment the elevator doors opened but followed protocol and went to the nurses’ station.

  "Naomie Taylor?"

  "Just follow your ears," the nurse at the desk replied irritably. "And maybe you can convince those two to tone it down? This is a hospital."

  The voices were louder the closer they got to Naomie's room. When Reese pushed the door open, the first thing she saw was enough to make her bite back a laugh. She heard the chuckle Mathias choked back and quickly closed the door.

  Russell Walker had hold of Naomie. Her back was to him, and his arms were around her middle. As she cursed, kicked and hit at him with her good arm, he carried her toward the bed. "Goddamn it, girl, settle down!"

  "Let me go you, Neanderthal fuck!"

  "Naomie!" Reese shouted.

  The room went silent and still. "Tell this Troglodyte to let go of me," Naomie grunted.

  "Fine." Russell released and then caught her when she wobbled and almost fell. "See, dumbass? You can't walk around pumped full of painkillers."

  He scooped her up, took two long steps and dumped her on the bed. "As you can see, your friend is fine," he directed the comments to Reese. "The bullet went clean through. She lost some blood and will be sore as hell for a while, but there doesn't seem to be any major damage. She was lucky."

  Russell then looked at Naomie. "You were lucky, but you can hurt yourself if you don't stop cutting a fool and do what you're told."

  Reese stepped in before Naomie could speak. "He's right and don't you dare glower at me." She hurried to Naomie’s bed and hugged her. "I could strangle you for that stunt, but I know you probably saved my life so instead, I'm going to say thank you and please promise me you'll be good."

  "When am I anything less?"

  Reese laughed. "Yeah, right."

  "Look, I get that I can't bop down to the gym for weight lifting, but I don't need to stay here. Seriously, I can check into a hotel and be just fine."

  Reese looked at Russell, who shook his head. "She's stitched up on both sides and is lucky if she hasn't already pulled some loose. They want her to stay just to err on the side of safety, and I agree."

  "I have to say that I do, too," Reese said and when Naomie narrowed her eyes, continued. "Look, it's just for one night. If you need, I'll stay with you."

  "No. No, no I'm fine, I don't want you to do that. Mathias, take Reese home, will you?"

  "Are you sure?" Reese asked.

  "I am. I'll be fine, and I don't want you here. You'll be safe at home with Mathias, so go home and call me when you get there."

  "Yes, ma'am." Reese hugged Naomie. "I love you."

  "I love you. Now go. Thank you, Matthias."

  "You bet. Rest well. And tomorrow you can come stay with us."

  "Really?" Reese asked.

  "Of course."

  "Thank you. See you in the morning, Naomie."

  "Call me when you get home."

  "I will."

  Naomie watched Reese and Mathias leave then turned her attention to Russell. "I promise not to do a prison break. Thank you for everything you did for me today, and I'm sorry if I was a problem, but you need to leave, too."

  "I think it'd be smart if someone stayed with you."

  "Why?"

  He smiled and sat on the edge of her bed. "Because sometimes Troglodyte's aren't as dumb as they look. I heard what you said when it all went down. You told those men you had the device."

  "Just to keep them from hurting Reese."

  "Or to make them uncertain. And it probably worked. So, if they get to make a call, it's within
reason to assume they might just relay that now there are two targets, which, I believe, was your goal."

  Naomie was annoyed and impressed. She'd prefer to be just annoyed. Russell Walker had way too many appealing attributes as it was, and the last thing she'd do was hit on the man who was going to be her boss. She had a firm policy about getting involved with superiors or co-workers, and she'd not start breaking it now, no matter how tempting.

  "I was annoyed when I said that. My apology. And yes, you're correct, which makes it even smarter for you to leave. This project has no chance at all without you, which means it's very much in my best interest to keep you alive and well. Therefore, you should go home. Reese can find another robotics person. She can't find another you."

  "Nice speech, but no. Say, I'm hungry. Are you hungry?"

  "Are you serious?"

  "Yep. I can get someone to head over to the steakhouse, or maybe the Honky Tonk Bar and Grille. They make good barbecue."

  "Texas style, I assume?"

  "What other kind is there?"

  Naomie snorted. "I wouldn't say no to barbecue."

  Russell pulled out his phone and made a call. "I need you to pick me up some food from the Honky Tonk and bring it to the hospital. Naomie Taylor's room. Yeah. Hold on." He looked at Naomie. "Coleslaw, beans, potato salad, fries, sweet potatoes?"

  "Oh, uh, I don't know. What are you having?"

  Russell spoke into the phone again. "Get it all. Yeah, ribs too. And two big iced teas."

  "With lemon," Naomie added.

  "Got that? Okay. Thanks."

  He pocketed the phone. "It'll be about an hour."

  "Who are we feeding?" She asked. "We'll die if we eat all that."

  "Lucky for us, we're in a hospital. Excuse me, I need to make one more call."

  He walked over to the other side of the room and spoke softly. When he finished, he sat in the chair beside the bed.

  "I heard you."

  "Okay."

  "You think they'll try again. That's why you arranged for security."

  "Seemed like the smart move."

  "And you cover your bases, don't you Mr. Walker?"

  "I try. And you can call me Russ."

  "No, I can't. I'm going to be working for you, remember?"

  "You and Reese are cut from the same cloth, aren't you?"

  "Not even close."

  "No?"

  "No. She's—well, let's just say that Reese isn't what she appears. She and her life have been very complicated, and maybe one day she'll tell you about it, but I won't because it's not my story to tell."

  "And your story isn't complicated?"

  "Not at all."

  "Then how is it you have spare doctorates?"

  Naomie chuckled. "Now that I can tell you."

  "Then out with it. I'm all yours."

  In my dreams. Naomie shoved aside such thoughts. Russell Walker was off limits. Period. But she could enjoy this moment and would, so she launched into her tale.

  Chapter Thirteen

  "I doubt Mr. Walker was expecting anyone like Naomie," Mathias said. "She definitely doesn't fit the model of a super-brain geek girl."

  "Because she isn't," Reese agreed. "I mean she is a super brain, and she can get her geek on with the best of them, but beneath that, she's a country girl who grew up on a big ranch in Kentucky, being a tomboy and beating the boys at their games while she was kicking kids’ ass in school who were ten years older."

  "But the way she was with Mr. Walker—"

  They both burst out laughing. "Neanderthal." Mathias managed to get out.

  "Troglodyte," Reese sputtered, and they both howled.

  Before either could catch their breath, they were violently pitched toward her side. Glass showered in from Mathias' side and both airbags deployed. The impact made black spots dance in front of her eyes as the truck slid, jostled and the shriek of metal competed with the roar of engines. Reese fought to stay conscious, trying to feel for Mathias.

  Her door jerked open, and she felt hands working beneath the airbag to free her from the seatbelt. "Matty? What happened? Are you okay?"

  "Shut the fuck up."

  That wasn't Mathias' voice. Nor was it his hands, grabbing hold of her arm and yanking her from the truck. Before she could get a look, a bag went over her head, and the man spun her around, slamming her against the side of the truck. "Matty! She yelled and fought.

  The man cuffed her in the side of the head and jerked her wrists up behind her, forcing her to bend forward to release the strain.

  "Matty!" She was getting scared now. Why didn't he answer?

  "Matty!"

  "Shut the fuck up!" The man hit her again then lashed her wrists behind her.

  Her head was spinning from the blows, so she changed tactics. "You're making a very big mistake." She tried to stay calm. She had to. She'd never figure a way out if she gave in to fear.

  "Find her phone." The man behind her barked, then yanked on her arm. "Move."

  Yes, please find my phone. While all phones were equipped with a location service, hers had a few added features. The location service could work in stealth mode. With a quick combination of keystrokes, she could make it appear to be disabled, when in fact it was fully functional. That made it possible for her to be located.

  The second feature was just as nifty in her book. With a voice command, she could turn on the camera, and it would take photos in stealth mode, uploading the images to a cloud service. With luck, they'd want her to make a call, and she could activate the feature and send photos of her captors.

  It was a lot of ifs, but all she had, and Reese was determined to escape whoever it was that'd taken her. She just prayed that Mathias wasn't hurt and could get to help if he needed it. If they'd harmed Mathias, then she vowed then and there, she'd personally put an end to them.

  *****

  Mathias woke in total darkness. Not just a room with no lights on but wane light from windows or doors defining the space, but a place with no light from any direction. He sat and felt like groaning. His head hurt like hell and when he raised his hand to touch it felt more pain, and his fingers came away wet.

  He sniffed and realized he was bleeding, but not profusely. How long had he been unconscious? He felt his pants' pockets. No key fob and no phone. Next, he felt the surface he sat on. It didn't take much to figure out it was a metal frame, bolted to the floor with a thin mattress that smelled bad.

  Standing brought a wave of dizziness that was closely followed by nausea. He reached out, and his right hand touched what felt like block or concrete. Careful not to move too fast, he stepped over to the wall, placed both hands on it and started inching along away from the cot, feeling for a door.

  When he reached the corner without encountering a door, he turned and started down the adjacent wall. He'd only gone a few feet when he felt something. A doorframe. Metal. Short, maybe six feet and less than three feet wide. There was no handle or knob. It wasn't designed to be opened from inside, and there were no hinges or hardware that he could feel anywhere on the surface.

  Mathias knelt to feel the bottom of the door. It barely cleared the concrete floor. There wasn't even enough room to put his fingertip beneath it. He continued his circuit of the room until he bumped into the cot. It obviously stretched from wall-to-wall. He walked the distance, putting his feet heel-to-toe to measure the distance. Seven feet.

  Next, he measured the distance from the cot to the wall with the door. Five feet. He was in a five by seven room. Mathias reached up, and his hand met the ceiling. There was air coming from above. That meant a vent. He felt along the ceiling, and when his fingers touched the metal grate, he felt around its edges.

  There didn't seem to be any way to get a grip on it. He needed something to pry with. Dropping into a squat, he pulled the mattress from the cot and felt the metal frame. There had to be something he could pull loose to use.

  A sound at the door had him hurrying to toss the mattress on the frame a
nd lay on his back with his head turned toward the wall. Light spilled into the room, casting the shadows of two figures on the wall.

  "On your feet."

  Mathias turned his head toward the door. Two men in black ski masks. That was good. Had they been bare faced it would have been a sure sign they didn't intend for him to leave. The fact that they hid their identities was a plus for him.

  He stood and followed orders as they had him turn to face the wall, drop to his knees and put his hands behind his head. Once his wrists were restrained behind him, he was taken from the room, which appeared to be one of three in a basement.

  Wooden steps led up to a closed door. He was shoved toward a metal chair bolted to the floor and once seated, his ankles were duct taped to the chair legs. The door on the stair landing opened, and Reese appeared.

  She was obviously restrained as well and was guided down the steps by another masked man. Once they cleared the steps, the man kicked her legs from beneath her. She fell to the floor and glared at the man.

  "Okay, this is how it's gonna go." The man said to her. "You're gonna call your partner and tell her to deliver the prototype to the coordinates I give you, or I'm going to tell my boys to start working on your Indian. We'll shoot his feet, then knees, hands, elbows and ... well, you get the idea."

  "You harm him in any way, and I swear to God I'll end you." Mathias heard the conviction of her words and saw it in her expression. He appreciated her love and at the moment the fact that she was keeping the attention on herself, which allowed him to twist and turn his ankles, loosening the tape. All he had to do was get his legs free, he'd find a way to fight with tied hands. He'd been through worse, after all.

  The head man laughed at Reese's threat and pulled her phone from his pocket. "Make the call bitch."

  "Uh, you want to tell me how I'll do that without using my hands?"

  The man cursed and motioned with a jerk of his head to one of the other men who walked over, pulled out a knife and cut Reese's restraints. She rubbed her wrists and then held out her hand for the phone.

  Her eyes went to Mathias, and he could tell she planned to do things her way. There wasn't much he could do but hope whatever she did, didn't get them killed.