by Lori Foster
“It’ll be okay, I swear.” He could hear her breathing, but she said nothing. Going with sudden inspiration, Logan said, “Pepper, Rowdy wants to talk to you. Don’t you dare hang up on me, honey. Do you understand? I’m giving the phone to your brother.”
Rowdy grabbed the cell from Logan, saying in a rush, “Are you okay?”
Rowdy hesitated, nodded, and as he slumped back in the seat he closed his eyes. “Thank God.”
“Tell her to come to us.” Logan continued scanning the outskirts of the area. Reese approached from the other side of the devastation, walking, staring in amazement. He looked as stunned as Logan felt. “This is dangerous, Rowdy. Too damn dangerous.”
Reese faded back into the shadows, out of the main flow of the milling throng.
Rowdy hesitated, maybe thinking of a way to keep Pepper safe from one and all.
The sense of menace amplified, the pressure built inside Logan. “We can’t linger here, damn it. She’s a sitting duck. If anyone sees her—”
Making up his mind, Rowdy sat forward. “I’m with Logan, in his truck. You need to come with us.”
Rowdy shushed whatever argument she gave—if indeed, she argued. Logan couldn’t be sure.
“We’ll be safe, both of us, but not if you don’t get your ass over here, right now.”
Logan kept watch while Rowdy told her where to find them.
“No, stay on the line,” Rowdy said, “until I see—”
And just like that, she appeared across the street, hovering behind a bus stop shelter, her gaze watchful.
Again Rowdy tried to get out of the truck. Logan cursed as he held him back. Considering Rowdy’s size and the added strength of his emotion, it wasn’t an easy feat. “People will recognize you! Stay put, and tell her I’m coming to get her.”
Rowdy relented. “Logan is coming for you, hon. I’m in the truck waiting. Don’t you dare budge an inch.”
“Get behind the wheel,” Logan told Rowdy before leaving the truck and jogging over to Pepper.
She stood there, her hair tossed by the evening breeze, her expression wounded but her stance defiant.
In his lifetime, Logan had faced injustice of every kind. He’d dealt gently with rape victims, survivors from random shootings, the bereaved, the insane, evil and immorality.
Nothing and no one had ever leveled him like this.
As he got closer to Pepper, she took a step back, then planted her feet again. “If you hurt my brother, I swear I’ll—”
Logan grabbed her up against his chest, crushing her close, his face in her hair, his hands opened against her back.
She didn’t exactly return his embrace, but she didn’t shove him away, either. “Logan?”
He had her, and he’d be damned before he let her go again. To reassure himself that she wasn’t injured, he held her back, smoothed her hair, searched over her.
She released a broken breath. “Don’t you dare think that I—”
“We have to move. You can explain everything later.” He turned with her tucked close to his side.
“Nothing to explain.”
“Fine.” With so much confusion surrounding the area, no one appeared to pay any attention to them. But that didn’t mean they were safe. Hell, no.
He feared a sniper, another bomb, even an ambush.
Reese didn’t approach the truck, but then, he’d have enough sense not to once he saw everything unfolding. Rowdy had the truck idling as he waited for them. Logan tucked Pepper into the middle of the bench seat, then got in beside her.
“Drive.”
With the truck already in gear, Rowdy asked, “Where?”
“Out of here for now.” He fastened Pepper’s seat belt, then his own. She didn’t fight him when he took her hand.
Rowdy glanced at them both before carefully turning the truck and driving away.
Pepper took an audible breath. “I need the stuff out of the car.”
“Forget it.” Logan wanted only to get her as far away from the area as possible.
She didn’t appreciate his consideration. “No, you forget it! It’s important.”
“I see you’re recovering from your shock.” Now that he saw her unharmed, all his worry coalesced into rage. She could have been killed. She would have been killed. “What you did, coming here like this, it was incredibly reckless.”
“Yeah, well, if you hadn’t—”
“You cleared out my motel room?” Rowdy asked with an abrupt interruption.
That redirected her anger. “Yes, including the bimbo you left in the bed!”
Watching the road, Rowdy turned a corner and said, “She was a very nice girl.” And then, “Everything is in the trunk of my car?”
Deflating, Pepper crossed her arms and glared at Logan. “Yes.”
If the situation weren’t so dire, Logan could have appreciated the irony. He’d wanted Pepper to get Rowdy. Now he had Rowdy, but all he could think about was keeping Pepper out of harm’s way. He rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Where is the car?”
“I parked it two blocks north of the club, in the lot of a pawn shop. The keys are under the passenger seat.”
“Anything…incriminating inside?”
She turned dagger-eyes on him. “You mean, since we’re such heinous criminals and all that?”
In the face of her hostility, being reasonable wasn’t easy. “I didn’t say that.”
“Not in those exact words, maybe. But you thought it all the same.”
He gave her a quelling look that she tried to ignore. “We’ll clear all that up very soon. But for now, I meant is there anything that could be used to trace you?”
“No, I just felt like visiting Rowdy’s most recent conquest for some small talk. I mean, what better way to get my jollies, right?”
Rowdy whistled.
“Your sarcasm isn’t helping anything.”
“You’re lucky all you’re getting is sarcasm!”
Counting to ten didn’t help. “What kind of car is it, Rowdy? I’ll send Reese to take care of it.”
After Rowdy gave him the make and model, Logan withdrew his cell. “You any good at losing a tail?”
He checked the rearview mirror. “Are we expecting that?”
“No. But be prepared just in case.” He called Reese.
Reese answered with a blunt, “I saw. What do want me to do?”
He couldn’t believe he’d doubted Reese, even for a second. “For now, get out of there without being seen.”
“I left when you did. Want me to meet you somewhere?”
Knowing his friend wouldn’t like it, and aware of both Rowdy and Pepper listening in, Logan said, “Not just yet, but soon.”
Rowdy’s shoulders eased a little. Did he really distrust Reese that much? Or had he still been worried that Logan would betray them?
Not likely. He wanted to do many things to and with Pepper Yates, but betrayal was permanently off the list. “I have to sort this out, and it’ll be easier to slip away unnoticed if I do it alone.”
“That’s the problem, Logan. You’re not alone—you’re with people that, until only recently, you considered dangerous. Since you cut me out, I have no idea why you’ve changed your mind, but I do know that I should be there with you. I should—”
“Can you trust me on this?” He didn’t have time for explanations.
Without hesitation, Reese said, “One hundred percent.”
“Thanks.” At the moment, trust was a high-priced commodity—and in short supply with the siblings sharing his truck. “I’ve got a laundry list of things to be done, but for now, can you move Pepper’s car without being seen?”
Clearly puzzled by the request, Reese said, “I can do that, yeah.”
Logan gave him the details on the car and where to find it. “Put it someplace secure, all right?”
“No problem.”
“I have to switch phones, so it’ll probably be a few hours until I can touch base with you again. Find out
what you can about the club before then, but be subtle. I’d as soon no one knew we were there.”
“Consider it done.”
“Appreciate it.” Logan disconnected the call and then turned off his cell. To Pepper, he said, “Where’s your phone?”
Subdued, she handed it over to him, and he turned it off. No reason to make it easy for others to track them through GPS.
“Rowdy?”
“Already done.” Vigilant, he glanced in the rearview mirror again. “But I’ll hang on to mine.”
Yeah, Logan didn’t blame him. “Take another left and then hit the highway. Go south for now.” He twisted to look out the back window, but he didn’t see anything suspicious. He gave his attention to Pepper.
So many sentiments flashed over her face, distrust and hurt at the forefront. She tried to conceal it with bravado, but her hands were shaking, her face pale.
“I’m sorry,” he told her, and he meant it.
“Jam your apology, Logan.” She leaned farther away from him, crowding close to Rowdy. “I don’t want to hear it.”
Rowdy briefly gripped her knee. “You’ll be okay now,” he told her.
Putting her head to his shoulder, she gave him a brief, hard hug.
God, she was beautiful.
And she wanted nothing to do with him. Knowing she’d need time, Logan said, “What the hell were you doing at the club?”
Rather than answer, she said, “I didn’t cause the explosion.”
“I told him that,” Rowdy said.
“Thank you.” She hugged him again while giving Logan a quick, disgruntled frown. “God, Rowdy, I’ve missed seeing you.”
For a second there, Rowdy looked overcome with emotion. “Same here.”
Logan touched her back. “Let him drive, honey. It’s doubtful, but if he suddenly spots a tail, he’ll need both hands on the wheel.”
Nodding, she straightened again. She settled her purse in her lap and, without further prompting, said, “I was counting on you to get there in time, but if you didn’t, I would have killed them.”
“Them?” Logan asked.
“Morton Andrews. His bully boys.” She rubbed her palms over the denim covering her thighs. “Anyone in his circle who got in my way.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
PEPPER SEEMED SO FRAGILE, Logan couldn’t keep from smoothing back her hair. She’d put a lot of faith in him getting to her on time, and in him not being involved with the corruption. “Morton was in the club?”
“I assume so.” All but oblivious to his touch, she chewed her bottom lip. “After I told the guard who I was and that I wanted to see Morton—”
Rowdy cursed low.
“—he made a call, and then agreed to take me into the club. We had just reached the back entrance, and the guard was ready to frisk me when…” She clenched all over.
Logan wanted so bad to hold her, but in the short time he’d known her, he hadn’t taken her preferences into consideration.
From here on out, he would.
She shook her head, swallowed hard. “When I heard that noise, I had no idea what had happened. At first I thought someone was shooting at me. But then the windows above us blew out, and an alarm sounded.”
Rowdy turned down the road that’d take them to the highway ramp. “While you were scoping it out, did you see anyone suspicious go in? Anyone who stood out in any way?”
“No.” And then to Logan, “It’s a busy place. Even on a weekday, people are coming and going at all hours, usually in big groups.” Seconds ticked by. “Used to be,” she whispered, “I’d have recognized Morton’s car and known if he was inside. But now, it’s just been too long. There were some fancy wheels in the parking garage, but who knows if any of them belonged to Morton.”
Logan opened his glove box and took out a pen and notebook. “Write down the models and colors—anything you can remember. I’ll try to find out what Morton drives now.”
“He gets chauffeured by his own driver,” Rowdy cut in. “And he always has an entourage with him. Bodyguards and the like. It’d have to be something big to hold them all, but probably not anything as showy as a limo.”
Her hands now steadier, Pepper wrote down what she could remember.
“What will you do?” Rowdy asked Logan.
“Ensure you two are safe, first.”
“We were safe before I met you,” Pepper said in an aside while still writing. “Thanks a lot.”
Rowdy held silent.
Considering what she’d been through and how he’d deceived her, Logan let her slide on the continued animosity. “I know a place we can go.”
“And then?”
Thinking out loud, he said, “I’ll get a prepaid cell, call Reese to see what he’s found out about Andrews and the bomb, any suspects.” Logan shrugged. “I’ll go from there.”
Eyes dark with concern, Pepper said, “I don’t know if anyone was hurt. I took off as soon as I realized what had happened.”
“I’ll find out.” He took the pad of paper from her but held on to her hand. “Okay?”
After a long searching look, she nodded. “Okay.” She squeezed his hand before letting him go.
Logan took heart at the sign of her softening. Or was it simply desperation over a critical situation that had tempered her animosity?
“I’m in the dark here, boys. You two have obviously come to some understanding, so does anyone want to fill me in?”
“I told him everything,” Rowdy said. “You can trust him.”
Her eyes narrowed, and then she nodded. “All right. I’ll trust him.” She gave Logan a look. “With this.”
It was going to be a cluster-fuck of the first order. No doubt about that. “I’ll need a pay phone. If you see one, pull over.”
“Food would be good, too,” Pepper said. “Not to downplay the drama, but I’m starving.”
Rowdy smiled over that. “She eats when she’s upset or nervous.”
“Do not.”
Watching them interact, Logan couldn’t deny their closeness. So many of his assumptions were disproved with the natural, loving way they treated each other. He and his brother were often the same—irreverent, but there when needed.
“Fast food?” Rowdy asked.
“Let’s get over the bridge into Kentucky first. Another ten minutes, tops.” Still awed by how different Pepper looked, Logan studied her profile. “Is that okay with you?”
She rested her head back and closed her eyes. “I won’t starve.”
But it was nearing dawn. She’d missed dinner and had been running for hours, probably on adrenaline and fear alone.
Pepper wrapped her arms around herself. “At least I don’t have to wear those ugly clothes anymore.”
“You’re crossing the line, aren’t you?” Rowdy switched lanes. “This could cost you your job.”
“Maybe. I don’t know.” It all depended on how things rolled out. So far Peterson had been accommodating when he needed extra time, when he wanted to follow vague leads. She’d even given him the go-ahead to be undercover at Pepper’s apartment building—something most detectives wouldn’t be involved with. But this? The lieutenant could only be so forgiving and understanding. “I’ll figure it out somehow.”
Rowdy flexed his hands on the steering wheel. “I can make a suggestion.”
“I don’t know if I want to hear it.”
On a groan, Pepper said, “I know I don’t.”
At a rest stop, Rowdy pulled in and put the truck in Park. He turned to face them both. “Sorry, Logan, but you need to cut me loose.”
Pepper said, “No!”
Unsure where he was going with the suggestion, Logan studied Rowdy. “Why would I do that?”
“It’s the best way to get info. I have contacts. In a single day I can probably find out more about Morton and anyone who wanted him dead than your whole damn police department can in a week.”
“No, Rowdy.”
He hugged his sister up close,
kissed the top of her head. “Sorry, hon, but you don’t get a vote in this.” He looked at Logan. “I’m not hampered by the law. I don’t need search warrants or even a key to go snooping. Because Morton has remained a threat to us, I’ve kept track of him. I know the people working with Morton. I know where they’ll hide, and who they’ll turn to.”
“So you can find out who might have wanted him dead?” Assuming Morton Andrews was the target—instead of Pepper.
Rowdy gave him a hard stare. “I have ten times the motivation of anyone on the force.”
Because he wanted to protect his sister.
Much as Logan hated to accept it, especially knowing how Pepper would react, Rowdy had a point. “I’m listening.”
“Your buddy Reese can bring the car to me. Everything I need is in the trunk.”
“Like?”
“A half dozen prepaid phones for one thing.”
No need to pick up more. Smart. Logan nodded at him. “What else?”
Rowdy didn’t sugarcoat the truth. “Gun. Knife. Computer.” He shrugged. “Contacts.”
Shit. “You can’t expect me to give you carte blanche on murder.”
“The Glock is for protection!” Pepper snarled not an inch from his face.
Rowdy pulled her away from Logan. “You want to clear up this mystery once and for all? Get my car to me, and I’ll take it from there.”
Notably silent, Pepper curled in on herself, her legs pulled up on the seat, her head on her knees.
Had she learned not to argue when Rowdy had a plan? Or did she simply trust him that much to make it all right?
One day, Logan thought, she’d trust him in the same way.
“I can do this,” Rowdy said. “But I have to know that she’s safe.”
“I’m not going to let anything happen to her.”
It surprised Logan when Pepper didn’t object. It also helped to make up his mind.
He had to call Dash and Reese, and after he got Pepper stowed away he’d have to tell the lieutenant something. “I’ll agree, on one condition.”
Ready to impose his will, Rowdy said with silky menace, “Yeah, what’s that?”
“If at any point you find yourself in real danger, you let me know so I can send backup your way.”