Deadly Games

by Mary Stone

  Because holy god. They had a mafia hit man after them. One of the most powerful crime syndicates in the country wanted them dead.

  She quickly batted that thought away. Keep busy, she told herself.

  “Okay. I’ll get the guest room set up for you, if you want to go and freshen yourself up in the bathroom.” She reached into the linen closet and handed her a towel, then pointed up the stairs. “It’s the first door you come to. Do you want something to sleep in?”

  She nodded.

  Kylie grabbed fresh sheets and followed her mom up the stairs. She went into the bedroom she shared with Linc and opened her closet to search through her pajamas.

  Crap.

  All her warm, comfy ones were at her apartment because she’d only used her sexy ones when staying with Linc. She couldn’t let her mom see those.

  Biting her lip, she looked at the yoga pants and shorts, which would be about two sizes too small for her mom. Sighing, she closed the closet and headed to Linc’s armoire. A pair of his boxers and a t-shirt would have to do for now.

  Digging through the drawer, intent on finding one he didn’t wear too often, her hand closed around a box. A satin box. THAT kind of box.

  Her heart began to pound even as curiosity hammered at her soul.

  Just a peek.

  “No, Kylie,” she muttered to herself. “No!”

  It was the strangest thing, the thought of what was in that box didn’t cause her to break out in a cold sweat. She felt…

  Joy?

  Happiness?

  Hope?

  Sure, there was still fear there too. Maybe that fear would never go away.

  But wasn’t that a good thing too? Didn’t that fear make you try harder, like pre-game jitters prepared a player for the championship game?

  A door slammed downstairs, and Kylie rushed to pull out a t-shirt and boxers, then quietly closed the armoire doors. She handed them to her mom and hurried to the guest room to dress the bed.

  She was smiling.

  She tried to make her mouth turn serious, but by the time she was fluffing the pillows, the smile was back.

  Which was ridiculous.

  She was supposed to be afraid. Not just of relationships, but because they were being freaking hunted by members of a mafia. Her mother had been hurt. Her life had been in perilous danger. Heck, Kylie’d just witnessed a man’s death. Watched the man she loved pull the trigger. Knew that very act would probably make him have horrible nightmares that night, the PTSD being tripped so abruptly.

  And yep…still smiling.

  About ten minutes later, her mother came out. It was strange to see Rhonda not dressed up with a full face of makeup since she always made the effort when guests were around. Kylie went to her mother, wrapped her in a tight hug.

  When Rhonda winced, Kylie pulled away. “Oh! I’m sorry. Are you okay?”

  She nodded and rubbed at her wrists, where she’d been tied up. She didn’t have marks there, thank goodness, because Kylie didn’t think she needed any more reminders of what was hunting them. “That bad man didn’t hurt me much, but I could use one of my pain pills. My shoulder is starting to act up from the car accident. I left them in my purse downstairs.”

  “Oh, sure! I’ll be right back.”

  Kylie ran down the stairs, returning with a glass of water and her mother’s little knock-off Coach purse. Rhonda dug in and pulled out a little white pill and drank it down. “These things make me a little loopy.”

  Kylie smiled. She wouldn’t mind taking something to make her mind go a little loopy too.

  Her mother surveyed the room, grabbed one of the pillows, and sat down on the edge of the bed, cradling the pillow on her lap. “That awful man really hurt poor Jerry, though. I need to call him.”

  Kylie’s heart squeezed. “You like him?”

  A warm and mysterious look flitted over Rhonda’s expression, so personal that Kylie looked away. “How can I not? I mean, what’s not to like? Don’t you?”

  Kylie nodded quietly, her heart in her throat. More than anything in this world, she wanted her mother to be happy.

  Her mother put a hand on her daughter’s. “But don’t worry. I like him. I’m not a kid anymore. I’m not going to run off and elope. I enjoy his company, but we barely know each other. At this point, I simply know that I want to risk learning more about him. That’s all.”

  Kylie let out a small laugh. “Right. Well, I’m glad he makes you happy. You deserve to be happy.”

  “I am happy, sweetheart. You made me happy.” She tried holding back a yawn but couldn’t. “Anyway, we’ll see where it leads. Either way, I’m fine.”

  Kylie was glad to hear it. And glad that for, even a fraction of time, there was a world outside the horror that was stalking them. She gave her mother a kiss on the cheek, said good night, and turned out the light.

  When she went downstairs, something different struck her right away.

  It was fall, and the mountain got the most heavenly night breezes. Linc loved opening every window wide and letting it into the house, letting it rustle the curtains and whistle through the air. There hadn’t been a night that Kylie could remember where the doors and windows had been closed. It felt claustrophobic.

  She found him, sitting on the couch with his feet up on the coffee table, a couple of empty beer bottles already by his side. Storm was on the couch, her head on Linc’s knee. He absently stroked his hand through her fur.

  Vader was there too. He jumped up and excitedly bounded to her side. Kylie stroked the pup’s ears, and he glued himself to her as she tried to get around him and make her way to Linc.

  Linc took a swig and looked up at her. “Where’s your mom?”

  “In bed. She was exhausted.”

  He nodded and stared at the fireplace, though he hadn’t started a fire. He didn’t have to say a word. He was worried.

  “You look tired,” she said to him. “You should go to sleep too.”

  “Nah.”

  She knew what that answer meant. He’d stay up all night, keeping watch, because he always erred on the side of caution. But he didn’t need to. They were safe up here. The hit man was dead. There might have been a price on their heads, but they were a long way from New York.

  She inched around the coffee table, indicating to Storm that she’d like to sit, but Storm didn’t get the picture until Linc gave her a little nudge and said, “Go on girl. Let Kylie sit.”

  The dog hopped off the couch and joined Vader on their beds near the fireplace. Kylie slipped beside Linc on the couch and curled up next to him. He took in a breath, and the muscles of his chest tremored under his tight t-shirt. He’d been rattled.

  He may have seen a lot in Syria, but it seemed like every time he got into a tense situation, those things snowballed inside him. The therapy was helping, but it wasn’t a magic cure-all. Tonight had probably undone all the progress he’d made in weeks of therapy.

  Because of her.

  “Are you okay?” she asked, stroking the stubble on his cheek before pressing her lips to his jaw.

  He nodded and wrapped an arm around her, holding her tight. “Yeah. Just…stay here with me for a minute. Okay?”

  She didn’t want to move. It was stuffy in the house, with the windows closed, and Kylie was known to be spastic. Whenever she was someplace, she was always thinking about being somewhere else. But right then, as she rested her head on his shoulder, there was really nowhere else she’d rather be. She stayed there, listening as his heartbeat slowed a little.

  “Are you okay?” he asked her after a while.

  “Yeah. This is nice.”

  She felt more than heard his chuckle. “Could be nicer. Your mom’s upstairs. It’s not like we can get it on.”

  She shoved his arm, laughing too. “It doesn’t matter. I’m so tired I’d probably fall asleep in the middle of it anyway.”

  He snorted. “With me? Never. Give me a little credit.”

  She smiled and kissed him
again, just as both dogs bolted from their beds. Linc sat up, placing his bottle on the coffee table, and craned his neck to look into the darkness outside the window.

  Kylie followed his line of vision, at first noticing nothing but black upon black.

  Then, a bright orange glow began to spread through the darkness, flames lapping at the sky. Kylie stood up to look closer. It appeared to be coming from the direction of the pasture, and…

  “That’s the barn,” Linc murmured as the dogs began to bark.

  Even as she stared, he burst into action. Giving herself a mental shake, Kylie ran for the window to get a better look. Stepping into his boots, he raced for the door and threw it open. Then he ran back and shoved a shotgun in her hands.

  “It’s loaded and ready to shoot. Keep your finger off the trigger unless you mean business.” He gave her a hard, bruising kiss. “Lock the door, and whatever you do, don’t open it for anyone. And stay away from the windows.”

  Before she could argue, he’d grabbed another gun and went slamming out the door. She rushed up to it, thinking there had to be something more she could do than just wait there.

  But what could she do?

  She looked at the heavy gun in her hands and remembered her mother, who’d just taken a powerful painkiller.

  Kylie needed to protect her mom.

  Twisting the lock, she peeked out the window to see the flames grow higher. Even from the distance, she could hear the fire crackle as it ate through the old barn wood. Soon, the light from outside grew as bright as a second sun.

  31

  It was easier said than done.

  Keep the doors locked. Stay away from the windows? While the man she loved was in danger? How did Linc expect Kylie to do that?

  The answer…he couldn’t

  He knew Kylie. She was just too curious for her own good.

  Still, she resisted. She backed away from the windows as the fire began to consume the entire barn, lighting it up from the inside like a glowing fireball, clutching hold of a gun she didn’t know how to shoot.

  Note to self: take lessons on gun safety, dammit.

  This had to be just a coincidence, right? The house was on top of a mountain. There were lightning rods atop the roof of the farmhouse and a weathervane on the barn that often conducted bolts of lightning. Maybe a stray bolt had hit the barn?

  Kylie was kidding herself, she knew.

  On the ride up here, the sky had been calm and cloudless.

  As she backed to the staircase, her fear grew as her thoughts continued to race. Maybe Faith was wrong. Maybe the hit man had brought an accomplice, and that person was outside right now.

  With Linc.

  As much as she hated to think it, that sounded more likely.

  What should she do?

  She needed to think it through and not go off half-cocked like she usually did. It wasn’t just her life at stake right now. She had Linc to think about. She had her mother.

  Rhonda!

  Making a decision, she grabbed the railing and flew up the stairs. Running to the end of the hallway, she threw open the door to the guest room. And realized two things. One, she could protect her mother better, and two, she’d have a perfect vantage point to see the barn. And Linc, hopefully.

  The glow from the fire made the room almost as bright as day. She rushed to the window and looked out, shading her eyes against the glare. Where was he?

  The barn door was open, but there was no sign of Linc or any of the animals. A sob caught in Kylie’s throat, but she forced it down. This was no time to panic.

  “Mom!” she shouted sharply, shaking her mother to rouse her.

  Rhonda didn’t move. She just let out a little snore. Her eyes didn’t even flicker.

  The pain pill had knocked her out.

  “Mom!” she tried again, shaking her harder. Downstairs, the dogs were going crazy, scratching at the windows and leaping at the door. Storm would take down anyone who wasn’t Linc coming inside, and Vader would most likely help her. Kylie found some comfort in that.

  After almost a full minute of shaking her mother, Rhonda began to move, trying to open her eyes. “Kylie? What—?”

  “Mom, listen to me. The barn’s on fire. I need you to get up.” Her own phone was in Linc’s bedroom, so she rummaged through her mother’s purse. She punched in 911. After telling the dispatcher about the fire and giving the address, she said, “We need police backup too. Contact Jacob Dean. We’re involved in a case he’s working. Please tell him that he needs to get to the farm right away. Tell him that I think there is an accomplice. He’ll know what I mean.”

  She had no time to repeat the entire story.

  “I’m handing you off to my mother, Rhonda Hatfield. She was a victim of an attempted murder a few hours ago.” She thrust the phone at her mother. “Stay on the line with the dispatcher. Let her know what’s going on.”

  “But…” Rhonda pushed her hair from her face, struggling to sit up. “What is going on?”

  Kylie jumped when Storm nudged against her legs, almost knocking her off-balance. The smart dog had come upstairs and was now resting her front paws on the window ledge, barking and growling at the barn.

  “Good girl.” She hugged the dog tight. “You stay and protect Mom, okay. Stay. Protect.” She’d heard Linc call out those commands and hoped the dog would listen to them coming from her beta mouth.

  Rhonda was finally sitting up in bed, looking more fully awake. She hugged the phone to her ear. “Oh my goodness,” she said breathlessly, craning her neck to look out the window. “What are you—”

  But Kylie was already halfway down the stairs, Vader at her heels. Twisting the lock for the deadbolt, she yanked open the door and rushed outside, making sure to keep the business end of the gun pointed down.

  The heat of the fire was surprisingly hot, even from this distance. It made her eyes tear up and her skin prickle. She gasped. The barn was nearly completely consumed.

  When she ran across the porch and down the stairs, she saw Linc out in the pasture. He was leading the llamas and other animals away from the blaze. She heaved a sigh of relief. The animals were precious to him. She had to help.

  She needed to protect him. She needed to—

  Behind her, Vader let out a sharp yelp of pain.

  Kylie whirled, just as she heard the unmistakable sound of a gun being cocked.

  A figure slowly emerged from the shadows and into the blazing light of the fire.

  Kylie knew this person. Knew her.

  It was the woman she’d seen in her father’s office. The plastic platinum blonde with the spiky hair. Christina DeRoss. His wife.

  For an older woman, she was dressed like a college girl, with thigh-high boots and a small sweater dress that barely covered her ass. Her model-perfect, pert little features were painted with so much makeup, Kylie was surprised the heat from the fire hadn’t melted her. She looked magazine-cover perfect.

  The only thing ugly about her was her smile. She was smiling, but not in a kind way. Her lips stretched wide like a hideous gash as she held the gun in front of her with both hands, leveled right at Kylie. From the way she was handling the weapon, Kylie knew she wasn’t a stranger to using it.

  Unlike herself.

  She would get lessons asap…if she lived to see another day.

  “Don’t move, bitch,” Christina DeRoss seethed. “And drop the gun.”

  Loath to let it go, Kylie had no choice but to lean it against the porch railing. There was no way she’d have time to bring it to level, sight Christina, and pull the trigger.

  Bringing her hands to shoulder height, she looked at the woman. “Christina, I—”

  “Was it you?”

  Kylie swallowed, trying to think of what she could possibly mean.

  Her lack of answer only seemed to infuriate Christina more. The smile slipped into a scowl. “Answer me! Was. It. You?”

  “Me, what? I don’t understand,” Kylie said, her voice quiverin
g as she tried to gauge where, behind her, Linc had gone off to.

  “You know what I mean. Nino.” The gun never wavered in her hands as she kept it trained on her target. “Is he dead?”

  Kylie’s thoughts raced and landed on a lie. “No…just injured. Th-they’re taking him to the hospital. They said he’d be fine.” She shut her mouth before she blathered herself into an early grave.

  Christina’s eyes narrowed. “Why did you go to New York?”

  Kylie knew better to lie about this. Christina surely already knew everything. “I’ve wondered about my father my whole life, so…I wanted to find him. Ask him why he’d abandoned us.”

  Christina sneered. “And get your hands on his wealth, I’m sure. Were you hoping to guilt your rich daddy into a Porsche or maybe a Lambo?” The woman’s eyes ran down to Kylie’s feet and back. “Although a redneck truck seems more your style.”

  Kylie bristled at the insult.

  Who was this plastic bitch to judge her? To judge anyone, in fact?

  But when you were staring down the black hole of a gun wasn’t the time to argue. Unlike Kylie, this woman looked like she knew how to utilize a weapon pretty well.

  Christina took a step closer. “If your pathetic father was half a man, maybe you wouldn’t be looking at the end of my gun right now.”

  Kylie shivered, even in the heat of the fire. Where was Vader?

  “Your father was a piece of shit,” she continued, taking another step closer in her high-heeled boots. “He betrayed us, again and again. Starting with you and your whore mother.” She scoffed. “I’ve been with him for over twenty-four years, yet you two are his legitimate family?” Her face transformed into a mask of hatred. “His heirs? I don’t think so.”

  Behind the woman, the shadows changed, and Kylie held her breath as Linc appeared from the darkness. She forced herself not to look at him. She needed to keep this crazy woman talking.

  “I was four days old when he left us for you,” Kylie said. “I’ve spent my entire life wondering what was so bad about me that he felt the need to just leave us, without a word. That’s all I ever wanted…an answer.”