by Dani Wade
Without waiting for his nonresponse, she swept by and stalked to her office, locking herself inside before she collapsed against the door. Silent tears trickled down her cheeks. Only after she heard him open the front doors and leave did she give in to the storm inside her.
She’d be strong later. She’d clean the tub, lock the doors and return to her empty house, just like she had every night before Luke had come back into her life. Later.
For now, she could only let the pain sweep her away from the knowledge that once again, someone would leave her behind.
* * *
Man, I am such a jackass.
Luke had always prided himself on being kind and friendly. He rarely had conflict with anyone. When he did, he’d just as soon avoid it by disappearing onto the track than provoking major fights like his brother Aiden sometimes did. Luke was a fan of letting things work themselves out.
Sure, he occasionally said things that rubbed people the wrong way. Not out of any desire to be mean, just from letting something slip that would have been better left unsaid. Just like a few nights ago with Avery. He’d known the minute he’d started talking about feelings he was gonna screw up. And sure enough, he’d dug a hole so deep he’d been stumped as to how to get himself out of it.
Now he had to figure out how to salvage the one thing that had touched him like nothing but his racing ever had. But should he? Was it fair to win her back, patch things up, then turn around and leave her behind so he could pursue his dream?
He didn’t know. Pacing back and forth in his suite at Blackstone Manor had only made his leg ache, reminding him of Avery all the more. He couldn’t stop thinking about his truck, either. There were too many reasons to suspect Mark had tampered with it, regardless of whether his intentions were deadly or not. Then Zach had texted him:
Found multiple log-ins from Mark’s work computer to the inventory system. Only accessible by management. Possible link to sabotage.
So instead of sleeping, wrapped around Avery’s warm, silky body tonight, he was poking through Mark’s computer at the mill. What else was he going to do at two o’clock in the morning?
Not to mention, he had no idea if the guy might strike again. And Luke wasn’t losing his life over some agenda he didn’t even understand. Tonight was the best night, because the plant was shut down for maintenance that would begin in the morning.
It didn’t take long. After an hour of snooping, Luke had enough evidence to confirm some of his suspicions…and awaken even more. Mark didn’t know nearly enough about computers to hide what he’d been doing, or maybe he’d thought he didn’t need to. The combination of a dated system and paper files had allowed him to move money without anyone noticing. The withdrawals from various company funds into a secondary account that Mark then transferred to a miscellaneous account at another bank appeared genuine enough, until someone searched for the documentation and receipts.
The deposits had grown in frequency and amount over the past few years. Since his work performance had been fine, Luke didn’t think it was drugs or drinking. Gambling was still his best guess.
If Mark was unstable or desperate, he could hurt a lot of people by sabotaging the mill, even if he simply intended to destroy property. Just like the goons he’d probably hired had done to Aiden’s studio.
Luke copied what he could into his online backup storage before shutting the system down. Rubbing his eyes, he blinked at the clock. Three-thirty in the morning. Maybe now he could sleep without aching for Avery by his side, her measured breath a soothing rhythm beneath the palm of his hand. First thing tomorrow, he’d meet with Jacob, Aiden and Zach.
Firing this guy outright wasn’t the solution. They had to be very careful to get all the information they needed before confronting Mark.
Closing down the office, he headed for the stairwell. The accounting department was on the third floor, so Luke decided to exit via the stairs. After sitting so long, moving felt good. As he passed the door for level two, he heard a truck engine rev.
Knowing there wasn’t supposed to be any activity tonight, Luke paused. The administrative offices sat over a two-story loading dock, where they shipped out the finished products.
Were they prepping some last-minute deliveries? That didn’t make sense, because the whole plant closed down over maintenance weekend. Maybe it was just his heightened suspicions after everything he’d read tonight, but Luke knew he wouldn’t sleep unless he checked it out.
Opening the second-floor entry, he winced as a squeal assaulted the eardrums. The sound echoed through the stairwell. He glanced toward the loading dock below. He couldn’t see clearly through the iron mesh of the walkway, but there was definitely a truck. Not one of theirs, though.
He’d have to get closer.
Glancing around, Luke found a wedge to prop the door open. He scooted it closer with his foot, then forced it into place. He could always come back and close it later if this was nothing, but his niggling senses said something was up.
He took the last of the stairs to the ground floor. A turn to the left led down a long hallway to the security entrance. He could jog down there and see if anyone was home, but if no one was, he’d have wasted precious time and legwork. Right would take him down a short distance to the loading dock floor. Better to just take a cautious peek.
Thankfully the lower-level door had been oiled. He eased through with very little noise and stepped out beneath the elevated walkway. He had to lean out for a good look, because of pallets blocking his view. But then he saw the back end of a work van very clearly.
Click.
Luke froze. Anyone from the South recognized that noise—the clear sound of a gun hammer being cocked. He glanced over his shoulder to see Mark watching him with a cool gaze and pointing a pistol directly at him. And if Luke remembered correctly, Mark had taken marksmanship with Jacob in high school. They’d captained rival teams.
“Well, I didn’t expect anyone to be here this late, but the fact that it’s you is a nice bonus,” Mark said.
The snide tone grated across Luke’s senses. He turned completely as Mark stepped out of the dappled shadows beneath the walkway.
“Mark, what’s going on?” he asked, attempting to keep both his voice and his body loose, casual.
“You showed up just in time,” Mark said, his grin stretching a little too far.
“For what? A hunting party?”
Apparently Mark didn’t find him funny. “No, you lazy bum. It’ll be a celebration, but I doubt you and your intrusive family will see it the same way I do.”
“How’s that?”
“A giant fireball to celebrate the ruination of the Blackstone brothers and their legacy in Black Hills.”
Luke’s blood ran cold. Did Mark mean to blow something up? “So you’ll destroy the mill in an effort to, what? Get back at me for something?”
Mark jumped forward, the threat of the gun forcing Luke to retreat. “Not ‘something,’ you ignorant ass. I’ve spent years working a menial job, always blocked from moving up. I finally got the chance to take my rightful place in management, and you and your brothers decide it’s time to ride back into town and save the day.” The disgust on his face was perfectly plain. “This place should have been mine. Mine.”
Luke’s stomach sank. Even though he’d known Mark needed money, he’d still held on to the idea that his anger at Luke himself centered around Avery. This went far deeper than either of those issues.
He gestured for Luke to turn around. A sharp poke in the back from the gun got him moving forward. Luke tried to keep his steps slow, exaggerating his slight limp. He needed time to figure this out and find a way to get clear.
“I’m not a murderer,” Mark said. “Normally I’d say that’s taking things a bit too far, you know?” He herded Luke closer to the truck. “But for you, I’ll mak
e an exception.”
“What makes me so special?”
He jabbed Luke hard in the back, a reward for his smart mouth. “I almost had her where I wanted her, was ready to put a ring on her finger. Then I’d have had all of Avery’s money at my disposal and she’d have been none the wiser.”
Luke snorted. “Avery Prescott? Are you serious?”
“What the hell’s that supposed to mean?”
Luke glanced over his shoulder, just as much to see what Mark was up to as to emphasize his point. “Avery is way too smart to just hand her money over to someone because she married him. She’s a good businesswoman. She’d find out about the gambling way before the wedding day.”
Luke wasn’t sure if the silence that greeted his statement was good or bad. He decided to push his luck.
“Thought you’d kept that pretty secret, didn’t you? Why do you think I’m here tonight, Mark?” Luke’s disgust hardened his voice. Maybe if he could get Mark riled up, push him off-kilter, he could get the upper hand. “I’ve been upstairs, going through your computer. All your files. All your emails. I know what you did.”
Mark’s flush deepened from red to purple. “Doesn’t matter. In about fifteen minutes, I’ll be the only one who knows. And all that evidence, including you, will have gone up in smoke.”
Or so Mark thought. He actually thought Luke wasn’t smart enough to have made copies. But Luke was smart enough to let him keep believing that…for now.
“And don’t bother calling for help. The great advantage of doing this on maintenance weekend is the only people here are the outer guards.” Mark laughed. “The local cops haven’t figured me out yet and they aren’t going to, either.”
Maybe Luke could still do something if he could get to a radio and reach a guard, depended on how soon the bomb was set to blow. Fifteen minutes. Luke’s adrenaline kicked in hard enough to summon a wave of nausea. This was not gonna be fun.
Without turning his head, he tried to look around, figure out his options. Mark didn’t give him enough time. Reaching out for something nearby, he then held it up for Luke to see.
Zip ties.
“Now back up to the door. Nice and slow.”
Luke moved himself up to the rear of the van. The whole time, he pumped his fists, hoping to create space once Mark tied him down. As he grabbed at Luke’s hands, Luke lifted his wrists slightly against the bar, hoping Mark wouldn’t notice.
Luke waited until Mark stepped away with a smirk. Then he disappeared around the front of the van. Luke heard a door open and some noise. The smell of fertilizer grew. Luke couldn’t help but wonder about the size of the bomb.
Mark spoke from inside. “Amazing what you can learn to do on the internet, isn’t it? Looks like I’m just making a little delivery for my parents’ gardening company and oops—I had an accident.”
“Why not just ask them for money?” Luke asked, curious about that since hearing Mark’s side of the conversation the other night.
“You know, my older brother reminds me a lot of Jacob. He’s soft. Protective. Like my parents don’t have more than enough wealth to share. Like I don’t deserve it—I’m the one stuck here with them, after all. But not for long. I’ve found someone else who will pay me very well.”
Luke let him ramble while trying to work his hands free. Heaven help him, he would not leave his family, Avery, like this.
“Hasn’t done you a lot of good so far, has it?” Luke prodded.
“This one last job and I’ll hit the mother lode of payoffs—with a new job to boot. Now shut up and let me work.”
While Mark was busy, Luke let his arms straighten once more. Then he squeezed his hands through the extra space he’d created in the ties. Not as much space as he’d like, but luckily he’d started to sweat from nerves and heat. Five minutes and he’d managed to wring his big hands back out.
Luke looked for a weapon, but footsteps told him he’d run out of time. Mark stepped around the corner. “Time to leave—”
“Yep.” Luke swung the heavy half door of the van in Mark’s direction, catching his face with a weighty thunk.
He didn’t stop to check the bomb—he simply grabbed the gun and ran. Adrenaline kept his body from resisting, though Luke had a vague thought he’d be hurting tomorrow.
If there was one.
He reached the door to the hallway, only to find Mark had locked or jammed it somehow. He had to detour to the next door down the line. Damn—why was this room so long? Through that one and back down the hall. This one wasn’t a straight shot, so Luke had to guess which turns to take.
He’d maneuvered his way back to the main hall before he heard a voice behind him. “Where are you going, Luke? You’ll never make it out in time.”
Luke wasn’t giving up, but a sudden hard rumble erupted from the middle of the building and Luke knew his time was up. He wasn’t going to reach a radio or phone or even a door. He saw the entrance to a room and threw himself into the doorway just as the building seemed to explode around him.
FIFTEEN
Avery stood in the hallway just outside the emergency room, though she wasn’t quite sure how. She didn’t remember driving, didn’t remember coming inside. Heck, she didn’t remember much past Jacob’s quick explanation that Luke had been in an explosion at the plant and was being med-flighted to a hospital over an hour away.
She remembered a few choice words from a special newsbreak on the radio—namely bomb and explosion and serious injuries—before she’d turned it off. Not knowing was better than letting vague info whip her into sheer panic.
Common sense told her she shouldn’t even be here. After the way Luke had spoken to her the last time they’d been together, it was clear he didn’t have a very high opinion of her. Unfortunately, that didn’t mute the love that had grown in her heart. Her need to know he was okay overrode all the arguments to stay away that her brain could come up with.
So here she stood. She hadn’t been allowed behind the big metal doors to where the family had already gone. After all, she wasn’t family, just the woman Luke had been sleeping with for a few weeks. She didn’t know if anyone knew she was here. Christina wasn’t answering her phone. But she’d wait as long as she had to, until someone came through those doors who could give her news.
It took another forty-five minutes before a familiar face appeared. Christina paused at the nurse’s station before looking in her direction. Then she rushed over. Her arms around Avery were the first warmth Avery had felt since she’d received that phone call.
“I’m so sorry,” Christina said. “We were speaking with the doctor then Luke woke up and I just didn’t think about them not letting you come back to the family waiting area.”
“He’s awake?” she asked, focusing on the important part.
Christina nodded, her eyes welling with tears. “He has a concussion where some debris hit his head, but he’s very lucky. No broken bones, only a few stitches. No internal damage.”
“What happened?”
“He was at the mill when a bomb went off.”
Avery quickly reached out to the wall, because she knew she was going down. Her knees hit the floor with a painful sting, but at least they stopped her descent.
“Oh, Avery, I’m sorry,” Christina said, kneeling down, too. “I thought Jacob had told you.”
Avery only managed to shake her head. “Not much,” she murmured. Images of broken bones, surgeries and traction had raced through her brain while she’d waited. “He didn’t give any details. Just that Luke had been hurt.”
“Men.” Christina helped her to her feet, then led her down the hallway with an arm around her waist, though Avery couldn’t really tell who was supporting who. All too soon they breached the forbidden doors that Avery had stared at for so long. “I’m so sorry he left you guess
ing, Avery. I guess he was freaked out by it all, too.”
“I bet.”
“From what we can tell,” Christina said as they walked, “he was at the accounting office doing some work during the night. As he left, he heard a truck on the loading dock, which wasn’t supposed to be there during mandatory shutdown. He found the makings for a bomb in there—”
Oh, lord.
“Mark is involved somehow, too.”
“Mark?”
Christina nodded. “The police are with them now.”
“Mark made it out, too?” she asked as they came into a waiting room filled with Blackstones, including KC with little Carter, Nolen and Mary.
“Yes,” Jacob said, reaching out to pull her close for a quick hug. “I’m so sorry. All I could think about was Luke.”
“I understand.”
“I was there while the police spoke with him,” Jacob said. “Looks like Mark drove one of his parents’ work vans into the mill loading dock, intending to blow it up with a bomb made from fertilizer. Luke found evidence of embezzlement on Mark’s computer.” Jacob shook his head. “Mark tied Luke to the truck and was gonna leave him there.”
“Why?” Avery gasped.
Jacob took on a very uncomfortable look. The women glanced at each other. “Jacob, hon, you can tell us,” Christina said.
KC appeared at his side. She looked at Avery in sympathy. “I’m sorry, Avery, but from Luke’s account, it seems Mark was trying to marry you for money. He resented Luke’s interference.”
She rubbed up and down Jacob’s back with her palm. “Mark called the Blackstones the golden sons. Said that they came back and took over everything he wanted. Said he’d ruin the whole town rather than let them take it.”
Avery squeezed her eyes shut, unable to process it all. “What about the mill?”
“Zach is there now, assessing the damage,” Jacob said. “But it’s confined to the admin building, so fingers are crossed that it’s minimal.”