“No. It would never be enough for him. He’d just keep coming after you. He’s pissed Aiden took off and to him, someone will pay for it and not with money.”
“I can’t believe Aiden did this. Where could he be?”
“We’re sure he’s heading for Canada. If he thinks Caporale can’t reach him there, he’s sadly mistaken. Caporale won’t stop until he has his revenge.”
“What a mess,” Megan said. “I was so shocked when I came home to find him gone after he’d been released on bail. I feel terrible knowing I can’t repay Dakota.” She shook her head. “I never should have asked him for the money. I should have just left Aiden in prison.”
Nathan put his hand on hers. “He’s your brother and although he made a huge mistake, you felt you had to help him. I’d have done the same thing.” He stood. “I need to get to the office. If you need anything, ask Gary or one of the men.” He looked at Micah. “Do you need to ask her anything else?”
“Not right now but if I do, I’ll be in touch.” Micah turned toward Megan. “It was a pleasure meeting you even if under these circumstances.” He shook her hand and walked out with Nathan following.
When the door closed, she wanted to scream. Damn you, Aiden. How many times had she said that since all this happened? He deserved to go to prison for stealing but he didn’t deserve to die and he would if Caporale gets to him. She laid her head on the table and wondered what she’d done in her life to deserve this.
****
Dakota walked out of his office to head to the diner for lunch. He turned when he heard his name called and grinned when he saw Cooper Lang walking toward him.
“Hey, Coop.”
“What’s going on, Dakota?”
“Heading for lunch. Have you eaten?”
“Nope. I’ll join you, if you don’t mind.”
“Hell no, I don’t mind. Let’s hit Zellene’s. I’m starving.” Dakota noted how Cooper was looking him up and down. “What?”
“You sure as hell don’t look like a district attorney.”
Dakota laughed. He wore jeans, cowboy boots, and a cowboy hat with a blue dress shirt, tie, and jacket. “I’m wearing a tie.”
“I see Dry River didn’t leave you.” Cooper laughed.
They entered Zellene’s and found a table in the back. A server handed them menus, cracked her gum, and walked off. They opened the menus but quickly put them down, and laughed.
“I don’t know why I look at it. I always know what I want. A burger, fries, and a milk shake.” Dakota gazed around. “I wonder if Chloe’s here today.”
“I doubt it. Kendra told me Chloe is moving back to California. She’s real upset about it.”
“Why is she moving back there? She hates it.”
“Her parents are making her. They told her if she didn’t move back and marry some dude to combine hotels that they’d take her allowance away from her. That income keeps her going. This restaurant does all right, but it’s a small town. She doesn’t make much off it. The extra money from the hotels is what she lives on.”
“Damn, her parents are a piece of work. Why does she have to marry this guy?”
“Apparently, his parents own hotels too, and they want to merge them but only by family. Not a money merger, if that makes any sense. Chloe would marry this guy and the hotels would be connected since neither family wants to sell shares to the other. I don’t get it. I don’t understand that shit. All I know is that Kendra is really upset about Chloe leaving.”
“I bet. They’re best friends. How is married life anyway?”
Cooper got a big grin on his face. “I love it. Man, I never thought I’d say that. But she is my entire world and I hate that she’s hurting right now.” Cooper sighed. “What’s going on with you? You like being back?”
“I love it. Uh...Megan is at the ranch.”
Cooper choked on his drink. “What?”
“You heard me,” Dakota muttered.
“For good?”
“Hell no.” Dakota proceeded to tell him the circumstances of her being there.
“No shit? Damn. Aiden always was a pain in the ass. This Caporale is a bad dude?”
“Worse than bad. He’ll kill Megan if he can’t get to Aiden before the FBI does.”
“If you need any help, let me know. I’m sure Lucas, Linc, Storm, and Mont would help too.”
“Mont called Micah. He’s supposed to talk to Megan today.”
Cooper nodded. “Micah’s a good guy. I liked him the minute I met him.”
“Yeah. I trust that he’ll do what he can to find Aiden. Mont told me Micah has been after Caporale for years. Nothing would make him happier than to take him down.”
“Well, what do we have here?” Both men turned to see Lucas, Linc, and Mont standing beside the table.
“Looks like we need more chairs.” Cooper stood to pull chairs from other tables. “All that’s missing is—”
“I’m here too,” Storm said from behind Mont.
Cooper laughed. “Then the gang’s all here. Hi, Mandy,” he said to Storm’s little girl. She gave him a shy smile and put her head on her daddy’s shoulder.
“You don’t mind if we have one beautiful girl sit with us, do you?” Storm asked.
“No way. I’d love for Emily and me to have a girl,” Lucas said as he took Mandy from Storm.
“I love our sons, but my daughter has me wrapped around her little finger,” Mont said as he grinned.
“Yeah, with two boys already, I want a little girl. I’ll have to see if I can talk Emily into it.” Lucas smiled.
Lincoln laughed. “I’m sure you have a different method than talking her into it.”
“What can I say? I love my wife.” Lucas grinned.
The server came over to hand out more menus but the men told her they were ready to order. Lincoln leaned back to look toward the kitchen.
“I guess Chloe isn’t here or she’d be out here tormenting us in one way or another.”
Cooper sighed and told them what he’d told Dakota about Chloe. Storm leaned forward and rested his arms on the table.
“That doesn’t sound like Chloe. She’s too independent.”
“She is, but she’d lose the money she lives on. Kendra told me that even though Zellene’s is usually packed on the weekends, it’s not enough for her to live on. She has to pay bills here and at her house so the money she receives from her parents is how she can afford to keep it all going. Her parents can take it away anytime they want. She told Kendra she couldn’t believe her parents were pulling this shit, but she really has no choice but to do as they ask, or demand, I should say. It’s bullshit,” Cooper said.
Storm shook his head. “Sounds like it to me but I can see how it’s hard to live off this place. It’s great food but there’s less than a thousand people in this town.”
“Looks like you blew it, buddy.” Dakota grinned at Storm.
“Blew what?” Storm frowned at him.
“Your chance with Chloe.”
Dakota watched as Storm’s jaw clenched. “I don’t want a chance with Chloe. I don’t know why you all think I do. Yeah, she’s hot but I’m not looking to settle down. Ever.”
“Makes two of us,” Dakota muttered. He went through the story of Megan being at his ranch again.
“How’s that going? Her being there with you?”
Dakota cleared his throat. “All right, I guess. I avoid her as much as I can.”
“That has to be tough. You loved her a lot,” Lincoln said.
“I did but when she refused to come back here with me, I saw her true colors. It was my money she was after.”
“Bullshit. I don’t believe that, Dakota. She loved you. It was that damn brother of hers. She felt she had to take care of him,” Lucas told him.
“What about obligations to me? If she loved me, she would have come here to live with me. But here she is, on the ranch, but only because of her brother. Again.”
The food arrived and they du
g into it, any conversation stopping for a while. Dakota couldn’t stop thinking of Megan being alone at the ranch. He’d make sure he called her when he got back to the office.
****
Aiden knew it was time to move again. He knew Caporale’s men would be hot on his trail and he couldn’t afford to let them find him. They wouldn’t kill him but they’d take him back to Caporale, and then he would kill him. Of course, after he had the men beat him to within an inch of his life he’d probably be begging to die. He couldn’t take that. He’d never been one for fights. Even when he was in school, he did his studying and didn’t bother anyone. He was too afraid to fight and the thought of someone just punching on him scared him to death.
Yes, it was time to go. Peering out the window of the cabin, he saw nothing but woods and snow. The bad thing was his footprints would show which direction he’d gone. He needed to find a way to cover his tracks but then anything he did would show a pattern. Damn! He needed to get the hell out of here.
Aiden sighed as he packed his duffel bag then he pulled on his snow boots and his heavy coat. After putting a knitted beanie on his head and pulling it down over his ears, he threw the duffel bag over his shoulder, took a deep breath, and opened the door. He glanced around but it was so quiet. Not even the birds were singing. The quiet made him nervous.
The sun wasn’t very high in the sky but it was shining down on the snow, making it difficult to see. Putting his sunglasses on, he stepped out, and pulled the door closed behind him. He didn’t have too far to go to reach Canada, maybe another day’s trek. Since it was early, he’d make up a lot of ground. Freedom was so close he could taste it. Caporale wouldn’t look for him in Canada, he was sure of that. Why bother with him if he was in another country?
Aiden grinned as he started trudging through the snow. He had to pace himself or he’d get tired too quickly. He hated the idea of having to sleep in the tent for the night. He could keep the tent warm, it wasn’t that since he had the necessities to make sure of it but the idea of it did not appeal to him at all. He never particularly liked the outdoors much.
He gazed up at the cloudless sky. That was good since it meant no more snow for at least today and tonight. His little radio had died and he didn’t have any more batteries. It didn’t matter. All he needed was his compass and map, and he was on his way. The only thing he hated was leaving Megan behind. Aiden shrugged. It had to be done. She would have never gone with him anyway and she would be appalled at what he’d done. She wasn’t a goody two shoes, but she wouldn’t have agreed to theft or stealing from a crime boss. He just hoped Caporale wouldn’t go after her if he couldn’t find him. Aiden hoped that if he completely disappeared, Caporale would give up. Once Aiden made it to Canada, he was going to look into going to Belize. The further away the better.
Smiling as he stepped through the snow, he spun around when he heard a sound. He didn’t see anything but when he turned to move on, a searing pain hit him in the leg. He fell and looked down. Blood poured from a wound. He’d been shot! They’d found him. Who were they, though? The FBI or Caporale’s men? In his heart, he knew it was Caporale’s men. The FBI wouldn’t have shot without calling out to him.
Aiden fell back in the snow as he heard footsteps in the snow getting closer to him. He looked up at a bulky figure. The sunlight peeked over the man’s shoulder so Aiden couldn’t see his face.
“The boss wants to see you, Carson.”
“Fuck you,” Aiden said.
The man laughed. “No, you’re the one who’s fucked.”
The man reached down to pick him up. Aiden thought of fighting but then he heard another voice. There was no way he could take on two of them. He’d never been a fighter, but he would have certainly tried if it was only one man but with two, he didn’t stand a chance. Shit! Caporale had found him and he knew his life was over.
****
Vincent Caporale stood at the window in his office, staring down at the bustling street below. He sighed with frustration when his secretary buzzed him. Her nasal voice came over the intercom.
“An Agent Turner from the FBI is here to see you, Mr. Caporale.”
Vincent raised an eyebrow as he walked to his desk and pressed a button. “FBI?”
“Yes, sir.”
He had no idea why the FBI would be here. No. That wasn’t true. He had an idea but also knew they had nothing on him. He pressed the button. “Send him in,” he said as he took a seat behind his desk.
The door opened and a tall man entered and strode toward the desk.
“Mr. Caporale, I’m Agent Micah Turner from the FBI. I think you and I need to have a conversation about Aiden Carson,” the man said in an all business, no nonsense tone then took a seat in the chair on the other side of the desk.
Vincent smiled. “I don’t know why you’d think that, Mr. Turner.”
“Agent Turner. Oh, I think you do. You see...I know he took off owing you money.”
“I am not denying he borrowed money from me, but to go after him for only a small amount is a waste of my time.”
Agent Turner laughed. “Fifty thousand is a small amount?”
Vincent waved his hand. “It is to me.”
“Makes no difference. I know you’re looking for him, just as I am.”
“Why would you be looking for him, Agent Turner?” Vincent knew why, but he’d be damned before he let this agent know.
“You know exactly why, but I’ll play your game. He embezzled money from a bank. Being a federal offense the FBI is looking for him. I’m here to ask you to not harm him in any way and turn him over to me if you find him.”
Vincent leaned forward and rested his arms on the desk. He was tired of this cocky agent. “Let’s get this straight, Agent Turner. I will deal with Carson in my own way. I have no desire to share him with the FBI.”
Agent Turner leaned toward the desk. “How you’ll deal with him is illegal. I want him arrested for his crime. I understand he stole from you, but I want him to stand trial.”
Vincent sat back and laughed. “Who said I’d do anything illegal to him?”
Agent Turner stood and leaned his hands against the desk then stared Vincent in the eyes. “I know all about you, Caporale. I’ve been dogging you for years. Your time’s coming and I’m going to be the agent to take you down.”
Vincent was suddenly impressed with this agent. No one ever stood up to him. He slowly rose to his feet. “Good luck with that. I’ll say this...you have a set of balls on you, Agent Turner.”
The man stared at him a few more minutes, then straightened up and smirked.
“You’re damn right I do. I’m sure we’ll meet again. Soon.” He spun on his heel and strode from the office, closing the door quietly behind him.
Vincent swore. He knew the FBI had been watching him and he never worried about it before but this agent, Turner, was a whole other matter. This man had determination written all over him and Vincent didn’t like it. He may have to take Agent Turner down before he got to him. The intercom buzzed again.
“What is it?” he asked in a sharp tone.
“Hulk is on line one.”
Vincent snapped up the phone. “Tell me you’ve got the son of a bitch.”
“We do. We’re on our way back and we should be there in a few hours.”
“Is he hurt in any way?”
“A shot to the leg, through and through. He’ll live. For now.”
Vincent chuckled. “Wonderful. Take him to Dale to get him stitched up then bring him to me.”
Vincent hung up and grinned as he thought of the torture he was going to put Aiden through for stealing from him. No one stole from him and lived to tell about it. He was going to take great pleasure in killing the little weasel. This was one time; he might pull the trigger himself. He picked the phone up and called Dale Sharpe.
“Dale, Hulk, and Bubba are bringing you a patient who needs stitching up. Don’t bother with any anesthesia.”
“You’re one c
ruel son of a bitch, Vince.”
Vincent laughed. “This little asshole stole from me. Hulk and Bubba had to shoot him to get him. He was running from me. I don’t put up with that shit and you know it.”
“I know but it will be very painful.”
“My heart bleeds. Just do as I ask,” Vincent said.
“Don’t I always, Vince? I’ll take care of it.” Dale hung up.
Vincent didn’t care if it hurt Aiden to get the stitches. The weasel was lucky that Dale didn’t have to dig a bullet out of his leg. Now that would be painful. Stitches were nothing. The pussy deserved it and it was nothing, compared to the pain he was going to feel once Vincent got a hold of him.
Chapter Seven
Later, that afternoon, Dakota entered the kitchen and came to a halt. Megan stood at the stove stirring a pot. He took his hat, coat, and gloves off then raised an eyebrow at her when he caught her staring at him.
“That’s how a D. A. dresses in Wyoming?” she asked him.
He hid a grin. “It’s how this D. A. does—unless I’m going to court. This is cowboy country, darlin’.” He watched as she turned away from him but he noted the blush when he’d called her darlin’. She had to know it wasn’t a term of endearment, just something most cowboys used when talking to a woman. “I told you not to cook.”
“I’m only cooking for us. I made chicken noodle soup.”
His stomach growled at the thought. “You always made great soup. I’ll go wash up.”
She nodded as he walked past her. She had her hair up in a ponytail and he wanted to pull it lose and wrap her hair around his hand to pull her close to him. Damn it! He wanted her again. His dick was thinking the same thing. If he had time he’d take a cold shower because he was sure his cock was going to be straining against his jeans all through dinner.
Entering his bedroom, he undressed, washed up, and pulled on a T-shirt and sweatpants. On his way back to the kitchen, he stopped in the living room and made a fire to take the chill off. It had been warmer during the day but Dakota knew the nights would be much colder. He added kindling and logs and struck a match to it. The flames caught and wrapped around the wood. Orange and blue flames reached up the flue as the fire snapped and crackled, and the smell of burning wood filled the air.
Dakota Bad Boys of Dry River, WY Book 5 Page 9