Hiding in Plain Sight

by Hornbuckle, J. A.

  Niko's image on the screen showed him with a hand over his eyes as he thought of all that Brand had told of his meeting with Trey.

  Atin, on the other hand, was grinning broadly and turning his head occasionally as if to listen in on a conversation that wasn't picked up by the mike on his computer.

  "She's a joy for my Vana, brother," Atin said, finally. "There's been a lot of laughter in my kitchen since she arrived."

  Brand could only smile. If Reese's mother was like her daughter, especially with Atin's woman, all would be good in the house. He loved that she had taken to his brother's wife and knew once you were in Vana's heart, there was no escaping. "I am glad, Atin," was his only response.

  "All is well and good for you two, but we still have a situation to address," Niko interrupted, his voice stressed and rough. "I've met this Trey and haven't yet decided if he is worthy of consideration. But does it matter in the scheme of Sunday's delivery?"

  Brand wondered at Niko's words but more at the tone that was a little too forceful and strident in light of their subject matter.

  "At the last plan, I was to be on the far east side of where we are to meet your father's truck. The agents are to be behind me and directly across with other agents coming from the trees behind." Brand went over the original preparation again. "The HMC trailer is to be on the other side of the Chevy that will hold four highly armed Hellions."

  He waited to see if his brothers had anything to add. At the continued silence, he continued. "In light of what Trey revealed, I could maintain my position and continue to move east, through the trees on foot, before making my way back home without either team knowing. I know the ridge trail well even though it may be not readily visible this late into summer."

  "Who's to say the transfer would take place, though?" Atin offered, his thin face scowling.

  "Not to mention your ATF brothers will be making a stink after the fact at your disappearance, yes?" Niko added.

  Shit! Both of them had a point.

  "I vote you move forward as agreed, taking a stance and protect what you are supposed to protect to the benefit of both sides," Niko instructed.

  "I'm there to protect the transfer of the guns from the Milosevic truck to the HMC truck. At the first sign of trouble I'm either to spread a wide spray of bullets from the semi-automatic Glock 18 that the club will provide or high-tail it and run to protect me and my future family with my bride." Brand tried to keep his voice unemotional, and he was able until he said the word 'bride'. Then, even he could recognize his purr of possession.

  "With Laza and Deschames still trying to figure out what to do about you and your bride, I'd think you'd be more circumspect in your summation, Brand," Niko deadpanned.

  "If the delivery is because of Goran, why would I worry about his brother's reaction to something totally separate?" Brand's was the face that held the scowl now.

  Atin's hand moved to his neck before he barked, "stop being dense! You don't think brothers talk? Wake up, Brand!"

  "Exactly!" Niko's voice through the speakers bounced around the small room. "Uncle Laza will certainly be apprised of the situation in Montana and will have talked to my father. Not only will they be watching you, they will have orders to shoot you on sight is my guess."

  Fuck! Brand hadn't considered there would be two reasons to see him dead in just one scenario.

  "So…" Brand drawled, his mind racing.

  "Armor," came Atin's suggestion.

  "A fuckin' lot of prayer," came Niko's.

  Brand knew he was screwed on more than one level.

  *.*.*.*.*

  "You pull this here," Brand instructed, both of us shoulder to shoulder in the laundry room as he reached for the third spindle that looked like another faucet behind the washer. A door slid open, unseen in the wall that held the half cabinets with a 'whoosh'. "There is a staircase that leads down to the basement."

  I peered into the dark space before Brand's hand reach over my shoulder and, with a 'click', I saw lights flicker on a staircase that led down from the small opening just to the right of the washer. I'd have to duck and turn sideways to get through it but if it was big enough for him, I should have absolutely no problem fitting myself in it.

  "The tunnel ends in a cave with a door that leads to the west corner of the property. The road is a quarter mile if you go to your right," he explained. "There are lanterns, a couple of sleeping rolls and enough food for more than a few days."

  I pulled back and looked at him. This was an escape that 'normal' people didn't need to have in their homes, and I couldn't help but wonder why my husband required it.

  "I purchased the house at an auction. The couple that had it built were survivalists," he said on a low note, reading the question in my eyes. He flicked the lights in the tunnel off and, by twisting the handle on that third faucet, closed the opening. There was only the slight smell of mustiness in the laundry room to acknowledge what he'd shown me. "While the house was run down, the bunker they'd created downstairs, along with the exit were in good working order but were not included in the description of the property. I did not discover it until I was connecting the washer."

  His eyes came back to me. "This is only between you and me, yes?"

  "Yes, Brand," I replied dutifully, but I'll admit my head was spinning.

  "We do not know yet how Deschames or Laza will react to our news," he said, hands on my hips as he pushed me from the small room and back into the kitchen. "We must be prepared, Reese, for every eventuality."

  I stopped and felt him collide with my back. Turning over my shoulder, I forced my eyes to his. "Is there gonna be trouble?"

  "As I said, we do not know how they will respond. Either one or the other or the two combined may come at us," he told me solemnly. "But I need you safe."

  He blinked deeply before he spoke again.

  "I love you, my Reese. Please do as I ask and use the hideaway until I can get to you." His face, shit, his whole body gave evidence of his words. And they hit me at a deep spot that ached to respond in kind. I bit my lips to hold the words back, the phrase that bubbled inside me.

  "How so-soon?" I asked, stuttering at the thought of losing him, whether by him going or me running.

  He glanced at the microwave then at the window over the kitchen sink. "Less than an hour until sunset, my heart. And remember, they like to come at night."

  Without thinking, I grabbed his hand and found it was my turn to tug him up the stairs. "Then come love me, husband."

  His whole body stopped at my words, from his place where I'm forced him to be.

  "Let's go pretend we've had a huge fight and need to make up," I explained, pulling on his hand.

  "Bitch!" he yelled, his voice and face wreathed in a huge smile.

  "Asshole!" I yelled back, though my shout wasn't as effective because I was giggling.

  And my beautiful husband and I had pretend make up sex, so filled with love and spice that I was almost crying as I hit it just seconds before he did.

  Chapter Twenty Seven

  "Reese Ann, honey? Is that you?" Mama's soft voice called down the line. Atin had called me and then had handed the phone to her.

  "Yeah, Mama, it's me," I confirmed. Oh, how I missed her and her voice. A sound that always meant home, even if neither one of us had ever found comfort in our actual living space. "How you doin'?"

  My Texas seemed to show more when I talked with her, dropping letters and slowing my speech.

  "I'm good, real good." She cleared her throat before continuing, which was a sure sign she was gettin' emotional. "You're friends have been real good to me."

  "I knew they would. They were good to me, too. Vana, 'specially." My voice was thick too, just knowing she was safe.

  "Oh, that Vana. What a treasure," Mama said and I could hear her heart in just those few words.

  "Uhm, I have some news." I wasn't quite sure how to start this portion of our conversation even though I knew it needed to be said. "Daddy's
in the hospital and according to what I heard, he's real bad off. All but one of the boys are gone."

  "That'd be Clay. That boy never had a lick of sense, diggin' in his heels when there weren't no use. Lord, Reese Ann. When's he gonna get some smarts?" I knew she was shaking her head at my oldest brother's stupidity. Like me, there was no sorrow or regret concerning my father or brothers. Once you harden your heart against a person, finding sympathy for them was impossible.

  "But then again, who's gonna guard my pretties?" I heard her ask and was dumbfounded she'd be thinking of her little, delicate but cheap knick-knacks in light of all our family had gone through because of their greed. So wanting the 'good life' as Daddy used to call it, they'd been willing to sell me, sell me, to an old man in order for him to breed with me spoke volumes about their priorities.

  But those cheap figurines meant something to her. Enough to worry if there wasn't anyone at home to protect them from getting either stolen or smashed.

  "All in all, Mama, do they matter?" I asked, trying to keep my voice even and steady, but I was mad. Angry at a woman who worked herself to the bone, doing double shifts just to keep her children in clothes and shoes, even though all their belongings were only second hand. And getting beat up every day for just breathing the same air as her husband because he'd had too short a temper after having too much to drink.

  But those damn bits of glass seemed to mean the world to her.

  "That man, Atin? He said you and your new husband would come round to collect me shortly." Mama's voice told me she didn't put much truck in Atin's words, and I was sure the information given was only what he'd heard from Brand. But I couldn't admit to anything because by the time I went to get her, Brand and I would be a done deal.

  And my heart sank, cracking a little at just the thought.

  "Yeah, Mama, I'll be there shortly. I don't know when just yet. But I'll give you a head's up beforehand."

  "Vana said you're happy now, Reese Ann. I hope that's true. Your Brand sounds like a good man." Her voice was soft now, sending me thoughts of joy and goodness that she'd never once dreamt of having herself.

  "He is. I wish you could meet him," I whispered, squeezing my eyes tight at the thought of the two most favorite people in my life never having the opportunity to get to know one another. "I gotta go, Mama. But if you need me, Atin can call."

  "Thank you, honey. I will, though I don't think I'll have much reason to. They're both so sweet," she sent back and I knew she was telling the truth. Mama'd had so little nice in her life that Atin and Vana's hospitality was sure to set her head to spinning.

  "I love you, Mama," I murmured before my voice broke, giving my eyes a clear signal to begin streaming as I disconnected.

  *.*.*.*.*

  "You're telling me that there might be an internal war within the Hellion's?" Harvey's voice was both disbelieving and loud from the other side of the fence on Brand's edge of his property. While he didn't have a lot of land, where they'd decided to meet was far enough away that he'd had to use the four-wheeler to get to it on time.

  "Yes, that is what I heard," Brand confirmed, looking over the man who seemed more disheveled than usual. There was no way he was giving this man, a man he couldn't begin to respect, any more information than he had to.

  "Well," the older, bald-headed man drawled on a long note. "Just remember who is sending your paychecks, all right?"

  What?

  The little pencil-pusher was trying to give him instructions when the man didn't have a clue on what the field or undercover work required.

  "Noted," Brand rumbled, playing with the Velcro on his wrists, anxious to be away.

  "And, policy dictates that if anything changes, you gotta call me immediately," the shorter man challenged, as if Brand had ever done anything else in his career.

  "No. As soon as physically possible," Brand corrected. "If anything changes, I will not put myself or others in jeopardy but will contact you as soon as possible."

  Harvey eyed the taller, younger man and let the sound of him sucking on his teeth escape with his sneering eye roam. "I know you think you're better and smarter than me, but you aren't. I got the job as Field Inspector, and you didn't even bother to apply. That makes me your superior, boy, and don't you forget it."

  Brand, counting every hour between the now and when he didn't have this little Napoleon overseeing his activities, just smiled, allowing his derision, his absolute hatred for the man to be reflected. "Oh no, I will not forget you, Harvey Becker."

  "Is that a threat, you stupid foreign lummox?" the other man yelled, spit flying and arms waving, so red in the face, Brand was hoping for a heart attack.

  "Oh no, sir. That, I vow, is a promise," Brand said, keeping his evil grin in place.

  *.*.*.*.*

  Everything, Brand decided, happens for a reason as he carefully maneuvered over the dips and swells of his property as he rode back to the house.

  Standing on the ledges of his four-wheeler, he removed his cellphone and pulled up the contact marked, 'Trey'.

  "Yeah, brother. I just had a meet with a guy named Harvey Becker. He was asking a lot of questions about Reese. But I am not sure of his status even though he mentioned Big Duke," Brand said, trying to hold the steering steady over the incline and the large rocks between him and the house.

  "On it, Brand. Thanks for checking in," Trey rumbled. "Be at the clubhouse by nine on Saturday morning."

  "Will do," Brand replied and disconnected.

  Things would be put in motion, and Brand was sure that Harvey Becker would no longer be a problem for either him or Reese, especially after everything played out.

  *.*.*.*.*

  I made a point to time it and Brand was completely right. It took exactly thirty minutes to fill the bathtub. And another five to gather enough candles to light the space.

  Turning on the mp3 player in our bedroom, I found a playlist of old nineties rock and set it at a soothing level before climbing in. Oh, dear goodness. It was heaven, even without bubble bath, and exactly what I needed.

  The tub was so long that as I stretched out, I was on tippy-toe against the overflow drain as the top of my head, hair floating, just reached the end of the tub. Taking a deep breath, I allowed my head to sink underwater and opened my eyes to the shimmering dim lit darkness I'd created in our bathroom.

  As I came up from my watery cocoon, I heard, "…my beauty!" and I called back, wiping the streaming water and strands of hair out of my eyes. "Bathtub, babe!"

  He stormed in, chest heaving and arms flexing like he was gonna take on the world. "I couldn't find you!" he exclaimed, running a hand over his head before he stopped and really looked at me. And as he did, his face morphed into a sexy smile, the dimple making an appearance as he held onto the vanity and toed off his boots while snagging his t-shirt between his shoulder-blades.

  "Good music, good lighting and a beautiful, naked woman," he breathed, shucking his jeans and boxers down in one smooth move. "How can I resist?" He stalked to the edge of the tub and eased himself down at the other end with a heartfelt, "Aah."

  I ran a hand over my face, feeling my smile underneath my fingers watching the handsomeness before me as Brand sank shoulders deep into the hot water.

  "Now, this is what the tub was made for," he sighed, letting his neck relax against the rounded rim as his eyes closed. "Love this and love you for setting it up."

  "Uh-huh," I said, my own voice a rough shade of female deep. I closed my eyes and let my head fall back as well. "What's the name of this song?"

  "Check It Out, John Cougar Mellencamp," came the most calm of replies.

  "I like it," I mumbled and began to do a slow tub hip dance in time to the music, brushing my ass against his. I heard a chuckle and glanced at him from underneath my lashes to see his eyes were closed, a special smile in place as he lightly tapped on the tub's rim in rhythm to the song.

  As the new song started, I sat up. "And this?"

  "Finish What
You Started, Van Halen," he murmured, one eye opening. At a glance at what was showing, dripping wet, both of his eyes opened. Wide and unblinking.

  I'd come up onto my knees between his open legs, keeping up my hips movements as I caught his gaze that didn't seem to know which part of me to focus on. I moved up and down in the water, scooping water up with the bath sponge to dribble and drizzle before running a hand on my neck, lifting my hair. His eyes were glued to my every move, at every water drip as it ran down my skin. My arms lifted high above my head, palms together, holding his stare, all of me on display and Brand didn't disappoint with his interest.

  His eyes were searing as they roamed over me and all I was offering to his view. I slowly snaked and circled my hips, causing all sorts of my parts to jiggle. His eyed flared at every bounce, every dip and drip. That hot look had me sliding up then down in the water, dipping to allow the water to coat my skin, the parts he seemed enamored with watching

  I shot him a slow grin as I slid forward, gliding as I crawled up his muscled thighs, a new appendage making its presence known above the water line.

  I grazed my wet chest over his, my hard nipples dragging up and back as he moved his legs to rest along the top of the rim. Then I pulled fully back, teasing. Oh, yeah, my man was into this.

  "This one?"

  "Is It Love, Whitesnake," his voice rough as I moved up and back on him, his special velvet length vibrating along my belly as I stroked myself on all the manly beauty that was my Brand. He reached for me, but I grabbed his wrists and placed them away.

  "No, baby," I growled, sliding my wet body over his. "My turn."

  I again raised myself and pushed, pumped and moved until I was straddling him. I splayed my nether lips over his heated length and skimmed my cleft on him from root to tip.

  "Fuck, Reese," he groaned as his hands again moved determinedly, reaching to shift me exactly where he wanted my body. "So fucking good. Beautiful, like a dream."

  Our mouths took up the same slithering pace that our bodies had already started, sliding and bumping. A watery dance floor with naked bodies writhing in time to the music. Tongues glided, exploring any skin not underwater as we danced against each other.