Maverick hoped to meet this new owner like he’d met Josh Winters, maybe make another friend and throw another wrench in Reardon’s plans. He’d fully expected to be booted off the ranch or a knock-down-drag-out brawl after interfering with the last horse sale, but Reardon was all talk.
Instead of fighting, he’d stuck a finger in Maverick’s chest and gotten away with it. “You think I don’t know why you’re hiding out like you are? You’re a child molester. That’s what you are. Don’t even look my daughter’s way from now on, or I’ll make sure everyone knows you’re a perv. You hear me?” Reardon had himself spun up with his own lies; it wouldn’t have taken much to push him over the edge.
For now the stallions were calm, and Reardon had gone inside to nurse his wounds. But China’s kids were not the reason Maverick lingered at the Wild Wolf. He glanced sideways at the child on the steps. Kyrie’s hair didn’t shine. She looked sad all the time, and Maverick wondered again what was going on inside that ranch house. She must have been threatened, too.
So he walked the wire.
He left little prizes for her to find. The risk of getting caught was worth the smile, and Kyrie needed to know he cared. The day before he’d left China’s cowboy hat on the wooden swing. This morning it was nothing more than three strands from Star’s tail braided into a bracelet just the right size for a little girl’s wrist. At the knot, he tied off a silver buckle from a broken halter in the barn. It wouldn’t latch. If she couldn’t wear it, she would never get caught.
Kyrie had already tucked it in her pants pocket, but never glanced his way.
It wasn’t much. Pitiful, really. But until Hammer acted, it was all that Maverick could legally do. China’s disappearance worried him to the point he had quit eating. Zeke and Xavier teased him about his new weight-loss program, but he waved it off. The more his body begged for sustenance, the sharper his mind grew.
Late last night, his frustration got the best of him. He called the man he’d walked out on. Alex Stewart. Owner of The TEAM, the elite, covert surveillance company on the East Coast. Toughest man alive. Mover of mountains and killer of bad man the world over. And damned proud of it.
Maverick didn’t deserve anything, much less the package that was already enroute to him. After a quick rundown of the situation, Alex had released a wealth of resources to his former, stupid employee. That he held no recrimination touched Maverick deeply.
“So, they’re selling all of her horses?”
“Yes, Boss, all of them. Four went yesterday. Two stallions today.”
“Maybe that’s just as well. Doesn’t sound like China’s sister is much of a horsewoman.”
Maverick grimaced at the truth, wishing he were in a position to buy China’s kids. “She’s something else, all right.”
“You do know I’ve still got an empty desk with your name on it,” Alex reminded him.
“I might just take you up on that offer.” It sounded true when he said it, but honestly, the Wild Wolf had a hold on him, and China’s grip was a helluva lot stronger than anyone’s on the East Coast.
“Keep in touch. I expect a report on this mess when you’re done.”
“Will do. Thanks, Boss.”
“Kyrie! Git yer ass inside, ya little shit!”
Reardon’s stern rebuke jerked Maverick from his mental trip to Virginia. It also added energy to poor little Kyrie’s legs. She scrambled into the house, her little butt tucked in tight behind her. Reardon slammed the screen, still cursing her for having been outside without his permission. Poor thing.
The screen door squeaked.
Maverick’s head jerked up. He added another job to his chore list. Oil that damned door.
He waited until the dead of night.
Until the package Alex had sent, a medical helicopter was en route to the high meadow above the Wild Wolf. Everything had to look as if China had simply wandered to the corral and rode away on her favorite horse. That also meant Star had to disappear tonight, too. Alex had better have remembered that very important detail.
After X and Z were snoring as loud as ever, Maverick made his move. Star was his only accomplice, and even he seemed to understand the gravity of the situation. Maverick didn’t realize the big horse knew how to walk stealthily, but by hell. He did.
As usual, the front door was unlocked, the screen hinges once again well-oiled and silent. Maverick glanced to the living room at his left. Beer bottles littered the coffee table and floor where Leezel and Reardon must have enjoyed an assortment of late-night snacks, judging by all of the garbage.
The TV filled the room with flashing lights and raucous noise. Both trespassers were sprawled in separate corners of the couch, Reardon with a liquor bottle in his fist, his head tilted back and his mouth opened wide. Wheezing snores assaulted anyone within range.
Leezel cut an equally unimpressive picture with her head back, knees spread. Maverick turned away in disgust. No man in his right mind needed to see that. He didn’t go far.
China sat in the opposite room in her wheelchair, facing the corner.
Damn them.
His heart broke as he knelt at her side again. Dressed in an oversized men’s T-shirt, her legs were sprawled like some bizarre store mannequin’s. Her arms hung over the armrests. The belt at her waist had been left unfastened probably in the hope she would fall and hurt herself.
Damn them to hell.
With one big armful, he slid her out of the chair and onto his knee. She felt thinner. Colder. When he smoothed a hand over her backside to lift her, his fingers met bare flesh. Just the damned T-shirt. That was all she had on. No pants. No underwear.
Rage and frustration boiled over. He glanced sideways at Reardon. You fucking bastard! I WILL kill you if you’ve touched her!
He could’ve cried right then and there. She, the most beautiful woman in the world, had been reduced to a lifeless ragdoll by those drunken asshats in the other room. God, he ached to wreak hell and damnation on Reardon and Leezel.
But not tonight. He ached for China more.
He lifted to his feet. The minute he did, she laid her head on his chest and breathed out a soft sigh. He held her close for one long moment and let his body transfer heat to hers. “You’re going to be okay now,” he whispered. “I’ve got you, and I’m never letting you go again.”
She groaned, her face in his shirt, and damn it to hell. For two cents he would pound the living shit out of Reardon for doing this. Instead, Maverick stepped lightly, angling China out the front door without a sound and down the steps to where good ol’ Star waited patiently.
Maverick bundled her in the blanket he’d left hanging off the saddle. Very carefully, he placed her into the makeshift brace he’d fashioned on Star’s broad back. She’d have to sit sidesaddle, something she would never choose to do under ordinary circumstances, but he needed her upright and belted in. He secured the neck roll to keep her head and neck protected.
Star assumed care of his mistress without so much as a nicker or a shift of his big feet.
But time was running out. Maverick returned to the house and tipped the wheelchair on its side. Leezel and Reardon needed to believe she had crawled away under her own power.
He took one last disgusted look at the degenerates in the other room, and—
Someone very little tugged at his jeans pocket. “Kin I come, too?”
He froze. There at his feet stood a frightened mini-version of China. And there he stood, the Grinch who’d just stolen her one and only joy.
The sad eyes of a child about to be left behind blinked up at him. There was no choice. He couldn’t just leave her, could he? He did what any knight in shining armor would do. He raised a finger to his lips and bundled Kyrie in another blanket. “Can you hold onto Auntie China for me while I get on Star?” he asked in a whisper as he placed her behind China.
“Uh huh,” she whispered back, her head bobbing. “I is a good hewper.”
Maverick mounted up and reached both h
ands around Kyrie and China to the reins. “You are the best helper in the whole world, sweetheart. Now hang on tight. We’re going for a ride.”
He kissed the top of her head, but noticed the same sour smell in Kyrie’s hair as China’s. He reined Star toward the driveway. When they were safely out of earshot, Maverick urged the horse into a trot.
Damn Leezel and Reardon to hell.
“Unca Mavwick?” Kyrie’s upturned nose and bright little eyes peered up at him from the dark. Star plodded steadily upward while Maverick ensured both of his charges stayed put. It was slow going, but—it was going.
“Yes, Kyrie?”
“Puppy’s smiwin’. Kin he come, too?”
Sure enough, that rascal Puppy had broken free of his digs up the hill. He trotted happily behind Star. The crazy mutt did look like he was smiling. Maverick grimaced. His rescue of a single woman was turning into a zoo.
“He is now.”
“I missed Puppy. He so cute.” She had an adorable lisp to her voice, as if little girls really were made of sugar and spice.
Star kept going. Before long, they arrived at the rendezvous point. A large medical helicopter sat silent on the crest of the grassy hill. Maverick’s heart sank. Damn. The chopper was way too small. Kyrie would fit and Puppy too, but not Star.
Taylor Armstrong scrambled out of the waiting helicopter and strolled toward Maverick with a serious smile. “It’s about time. Man, you weren’t kidding. He’s a big horse.”
Gabe Cartwright all but fell off the chopper, the klutz. “Hey, bro. We’ve been waiting a while. Thought maybe you’d gotten waylaid. Where’s your lady friend?”
Maverick couldn’t have been happier to see his two best buds. They’d literally been through Hell and back with him and every step in between.
“Here’s one of them.” He handed Kyrie off to Taylor just because he stood closest. “Don’t drop her.”
“Ah, okay.” Taylor accepted the unexpected passenger in surprise. “But I thought you said—”
“Does you yike me?” Kyrie peered fearfully up at Taylor, her little chin a quiver.
“Ah, yeah. Sure. You’re cute, kid, but—” Taylor looked down at Kyrie and then to Maverick. “I thought you said—”
“I couldn’t leave her behind.” Maverick slid off the horse, his hand still on China’s side to keep her balanced. “She’s small enough. You got room?”
“Sure. No problem.” Gabe stood ready to help. “You know us. We’ve always got room for cute girls.” When he winked at Kyrie, she scrunched her shoulders shyly in return.
“Good, because you’re taking a dog, too.” Maverick nodded to Puppy, who sat at Taylor’s feet because he had Kyrie.
Taylor shifted her to his hip. “Man, Maverick. We only brought one chopper. Anything else?”
“Yeah.” Maverick dismounted and pulled China gently off Star. “I need a medic. You did bring one like I asked, didn’t you?”
Gabe motioned to the man who’d just scrambled out of the chopper door. “Meet Ryan Gibbs. Gibbs, Maverick Carson.”
Ryan jogged straight away to Maverick’s side with a lightweight gurney under his arm and his medical bag in his hand. “I’ve got a warm bed inside for Miss Wolf. What can you tell me about her condition?”
“She’s been drugged. I don’t know with what, but she exhibits all the signs of a stroke, and I don’t think she’s been given any food or water since she’s been home.”
When Gabe helped Maverick transition China to the gurney, her head lolled to the side. Her eyes were open. She looked dead.
Maverick sank to his knees beside her. “God. Am I too late?”
Taylor retrieved a heavy-duty flashlight from the chopper. The bright stark light only made her look worse.
Ryan edged Maverick aside and slid a stethoscope under her shirt to the middle of her chest. He listened briefly. “No, but she’s damned weak. Let’s move her inside and get some fluids into her. Quick.”
Together he and Maverick shifted her to a larger bed-like gurney in the chopper. Taylor occupied Kyrie with a couple of surgical gloves he had blown up and turned into animals. He had positioned himself so she couldn’t see China.
While they played, Ryan went to work and examined his patient. Maverick assisted in removing her filthy clothes. He covered her with three warmed blankets while Ryan took her vitals, drew several vials of blood, and inserted an IV drip-line into her arm. All the while, he communicated with a doctor or nurse somewhere in the Ethernet in short bursts of medical lingo through the radio pinned to his shoulder.
Anxiety stabbed at Maverick. He couldn’t look away. China seemed to be slipping through his fingers.
At last, Ryan huffed and looked up, his eyes serious. “What can you tell me about the gunshot wound in her hip? Why wasn’t it treated?”
“It was. I treated her as soon as she was shot. Used an antiseptic clotting agent and sterile packing, too.” Maverick raked his hand through his hair, unable to explain why her wound now looked as if he hadn’t done a thing.
“Listen. It’s gone septic. It’s not bandaged and I doubt—”
“But the sheriff took her to the emergency room. I know he did. I was there. I bandaged her. It was clean the last time I saw her. God, it was just a flesh wound.”
“Then someone purposely contaminated it. Listen, I’m not arguing. I’m just telling you what I see. I’m not supposed to offer any medical opinions, but you’re right. She’s been doped. With what, I won’t know until we run blood work. She’s lucky she’s not dead, but she’s damned sick. Who drugged her? Do you know what he used?”
Maverick blew out a huge sigh. “Her sister’s sonofabitchin’ boyfriend. Troy Reardon. And no, I don’t know what crap he used.”
“How long was she in that guy’s care?”
“Three days.” Maverick’s mouth went dry. Care, nothing. Three days of hell.
Ryan stilled as he listened to her heart again. “Prolonged use of any drug means withdrawal, but overuse could cause heart damage. I’m not hearing anything abnormal. All I can do right now is start her on a detox drip.” He reached into a nearby cabinet and retrieved another IV bag.
“There’s something else.” Maverick lowered his voice, not wanting Kyrie to hear. “God, I hope not, but she’s been alone in that house for three days with Reardon and—”
“You suspect rape?” Ryan asked, his voice as low. “Got it. I’ll make sure the ER docs give her a thorough exam. I won’t sugarcoat it. She’s in bad shape. She’s dehydrated, and I’m only getting a thready pulse. I need to clean her wound and get her on a strong antibiotic, but it’s going to be a while before she’s conscious.”
Maverick bit his lip and nodded. I’m too late. I should’ve gotten her out the first day. I knew something was wrong.
Gabe clapped a hand to his back. “You saved her, man.”
No. I didn’t. Maverick turned away before his emotions got the best of him, but Gabe wasn’t about to let him go. He still gripped Maverick’s shoulder and held him in place. “Hey. You’ve seen guys in worse shape than this. They pulled through. Gals too. We’re going to get her to a hospital, and she’s going to make it. You want a few minutes before we take off?”
“Yeah.” Maverick wiped his eyes. “I do.” Here he was telling China goodbye all over again. The hole in his chest where his heart used to be felt incredibly deep and tender. God, did it never stop hurting?
“Hey, Ryan? Can you give us a minute?” Gabe asked.
Ryan took one look at Maverick and stepped back. “You bet, but they’ve got a trauma team standing by. Make it quick. We need to lift off in five. No later” He signaled the pilot to start the engine.
Maverick knelt at China’s side, his heart breaking. He gathered her cold fingers in his and leaned his forehead to hers. All he could see was the ashen face of the woman he loved. Yes, loved, damn it. He choked. All this time, he had been trying to be tough and invincible. Untouchable. Unreachable. What a waste of time and
energy.
He should’ve picked her an arm full of flowers. Even Kyrie knew how to do that.
He could’ve spoiled China rotten and helped her more around the ranch.
Hell, he could’ve married her. Now he might never get the chance to tell her how much she meant to him. How she had saved his life. In locking up his heart, he had locked her out along with everything good. Everything right. There he was, powerless again and unable to stop death from taking China the same as it had taken Darrell.
He placed a soft kiss on her parched lips. “I never told you this, China, but I don’t want to live without you. I don’t think I can. You’ve given me another chance.” He gathered her sickly body into his arms and buried his face in the crook of her neck, wishing for a way to roll back time.
As tight as he held her, it could never be tight enough. Death seemed to have the upper hand. Maverick sealed his love with his tears, choking on yet another regret. “I love you, baby. I love you so damned hard it’s wrecking me. Don’t—leave me. God, please don’t die.”
Ryan’s fingers at his shoulder told him it was time. Maverick settled her back against the gurney. He kissed her lips one last time, and he let her go.
Chapter Twenty-Five
“You turn into a damned cowboy or something?” Gabe stood with one arm around the underside of Star’s neck as he stroked and patted the horse’s long nose. Star stood as calm as ever, soaking it all in. Moonlight shimmered over his broad flanks and withers. Damned horse still looked like something out of a fairytale. A fairytale gone terribly wrong.
Maverick wiped his eyes before he faced his friend. “Something like that. You guys were supposed to bring a bigger chopper.”
“We can’t take animals on a medical flight, Maverick. You know that.”
Gabe’s gentle admonition stabbed Maverick. Oh, yeah. He hadn’t thought of that. Leave it to Alex to be smarter than him. No wonder he was the boss.
“The boss did you one better, bro. It will be easier on your horse, too.” Gabe nodded toward a man standing a ways from the chopper with a big ol’ cowboy hat and a horse that Maverick hadn’t even noticed until then. “Maverick Carson, meet Ebenezer Carson. He’ll take Star with him. The dog, too.”
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