by Eileen Green
“What’s going on?” Trent asked when he got to the bottom step.
“Josh has taken Margo and Siobhan at gunpoint. He shut the shop down and is demanding Augusta to come in.” Brian explained this tersely, his jaw clenched. “He’s probably going to want to exchange the ladies for a million dollars.”
Trent slipped into his Kevlar. “What do we tell Augusta?”
“How about the truth?” she said, drawing his attention to the stairs.
He stepped over to her as she finished descending the steps and took her hand. “I wasn’t trying to cover anything up, precious. I don’t want you panicking, nor do we want you to be pressured and give him the money.”
Squaring her shoulders, she nodded as she looked over at Brian. “I never wanted to put anyone else in danger.”
“Siobhan’s been in situations before,” Brian said as he grabbed his keys off the table. “She’ll help keep Margo calm.”
Hunter stepped over to Augusta. “Are you sure you’re up for this, darlin’?”
“Yes. I want this over and done with, so I can get on with my life. I don’t want to be looking over my shoulder for Josh.”
Augusta was no longer looking rested as she had upstairs in the room ten minutes ago. Her mouth was drawn tight as was her body. Trent could tell she was trying to be brave but was fighting her feelings.
As Hunter hugged their woman, Trent slipped into his own Kevlar.
“I really wasn’t expecting Josh to be doing this,” Trent said. “I was expecting the mob guys.”
“Has there been any sightings of them?” Hunter asked as he released Augusta.
“No. It’s like they’ve gone to ground,” Brian responded as he grabbed his keys. “I half expected them to take care of Josh before now.”
Trent went over and nabbed Augusta’s jacket from where it hung over the chair she had occupied the previous night. As he was helping her into it, a phone rang.
It stopped quickly when Brian barked, “Hawthorne.” A couple seconds went by. “Hey, Doc. What’s going on?” Brian listened. “Let me put you on speaker. Okay, go ahead.”
“I was in the bakery when Margo came out and said there was a gas leak. I know something’s going on there, so I went down the alley to check it out. The doorknob has been broken on the door, so it’s unlocked,” Doc Anderson said over the connection.
“You didn’t go in, did you?” Brian asked.
“No. Siobhan was in there, Brian.” The doctor’s voice was emotional. Apparently, he knew some of these people.
“Yeah, I sent her there. One, because Margo needed some help, and two, to keep an eye on the place.” Brian nodded his head toward the front door, an indication they all needed to leave. “We’re outside of town but leaving now. Can you stick around just to keep an eye out for us?”
“Of course. I’ll take a walk around the block a couple of times. They’re sitting in the café part near the display.”
“Okay, thanks, Doc.”
They were heading out the door to their vehicles, Augusta between Trent and Hunter. Trent could only imagine what was going through her head.
She kept saying she didn’t want anyone hurt because of her, and now Margo and Siobhan were being held hostage. He was certain she was blaming herself.
“It’s going to be all right, precious. We won’t let him hurt them.” Trent could only offer those words, for there wasn’t much else to say.
* * * *
Sitting in Hunter’s pickup, Augusta felt like she was going to be sick. Margo and a woman she didn’t even know were in danger because of her. If she had just given him the money he had asked for…
No! He never would have stopped asking for money if you had given in.
You know he would keep coming back for more. It has to stop!
Hunter was holding her hand on the console while Trent was leaning forward and had his hand on her shoulder. She knew that both men were trying to comfort her, but she couldn’t control the bundle of nerves that was tightening in her stomach.
A glance in the rearview mirror told her that there were many people who were trying to help. Brian had told them that they protect their own. He had told the stories of the many rescue missions that had taken place in the past few years and she was quite impressed. That they were there to help her, Margo, and Siobhan was touching.
“Are you going to be all right going in and facing Josh?” Trent asked.
She shrugged. As much as she wanted to lay into him as soon as she saw him, Augusta knew she had to hold on to her anger. Margo and Siobhan were her priority once she stepped foot in the shop.
“He’s not going to let them go until he has the money,” she said quietly. “There’s no way the bank would be able to get that kind of money in a day.”
“What about offering to wire transfer it to an account for him? We can at least go through the process.” Hunter never took his eyes off the road as he spoke.
“How can we go through the motions? He’ll want to verify that the money has been deposited before he lets the girls go.” Scenario after scenario darted through her mind. Of course, part of it was from watching too many movies.
“We’ll have to see how things progress. Is there any place in the kitchen that we can hide but hear everything in the café?” Hunter asked.
“The office has a speaker that is set up to a mic in the café. I used to use it when I had to do paperwork and I was alone in the shop. It hasn’t been used for a while, but I’m certain it still works,” she said.
Those days seemed so long ago. Just starting out, there were so many times she had to work alone. Being able to hire Margo had been a godsend. She had also been her only friend, and now Augusta could see how she kept herself out of the light of socializing.
Glancing over at Hunter, she smiled. She had gotten so lucky that she had stayed that night at the party last month. She looked back at Trent and found him watching her intently.
“What?” she asked as she knit her brows together.
“You,” Trent responded. “You have been so strong through this. You started a bakery and worked by yourself for a while. A jerk of an ex threw obstacles at you, but you kept going. And now, you’re putting up with both of us while having to deal with your ex again. I love you, Augusta Manning. I love you because you are strong and loving.”
Tears prickled her eyes at his words. Pulling her hand from Hunter’s, Augusta shifted in her seat so that she was able to look at Trent without getting a kink in her neck. She took Hunter’s hand again with her other one.
“I feel like I’ve been on a roller coaster for the past several years. Josh always harassing me. My father passing away. The bakery.” Augusta took a deep breath. “When you two sat next to me at the dinner in Polson, I have to admit that I was attracted to you. I just didn’t think that I had time for anyone in my life, and I really didn’t want to drag anyone into my mixed-up life. But you two have been so patient and caring that you’ve surprised me. I have fallen in love with you both in such a short time.”
“We don’t care what has happened in your past,” Hunter began. “I mean we do, but it wouldn’t change how we look at you. As we’ve shown you, we have accepted your past because it is a part of you. All of our experiences, good and bad, from our pasts make us who we are at any given moment.”
Hunter looked over at her and smiled as he squeezed her hand. “You’ve accepted my past. I mean, when we get married, you’ll be the stepmother of a college student. Is that going to send you running in the other direction?”
She saw his point. “Of course not,” she said as she looked at him. Wait! What? “When we get married?” she croaked out.
Trent chuckled, drawing her attention to him. “This is not how we were going to ask you, precious. We wanted to get over this little hump, and then date a while longer. However, some people jump the gun sometimes.”
“Sorry,” Hunter said quickly. “I didn’t mean for it to come out this way.”
&nb
sp; “I know we barely know each other,” Trent added. “But I knew as soon as I met you that you were the woman for me. There wouldn’t be another. I know it’s too soon, Augusta, but will you marry us?”
Augusta looked between the two men that had come to mean so much to her. They had changed her heart, opening it again after what she had been through. And, even though they barely knew her, they were trying to protect her, so she wouldn’t get hurt.
That first night at the party in Polson when they first stepped in, her core turned into molten lava when she had seen them. The feeling was foreign to her. She hadn’t felt that way with Josh. That was how she knew Hunter and Trent were special.
When they had made love, her heart did flip-flops in her chest, and she had come like she hadn’t ever before. She attributed that to her feelings for her men.
There was no comparison between her ex and Trent and Hunter. Chivalry, manners, and being gentlemen were in the latter two’s genetic makeup. Now that she looked back, Josh didn’t possess those qualities. In fact, now, she could see why Margo and her father had issues with the way Josh treated her.
They say hindsight is twenty-twenty. Now that she was looking at things, she could see what she had put blinders on for.
Focusing on the here and now, she noticed Trent was looking at her with anxiety and concern. Hunter was watching the road, but his hand was tighter on hers.
She remembered there was a question on the table. Did she really need to think on it?
As if reading her mind, Hunter put out there, “You don’t have to give us an answer right now, darlin’. We’ll give you time.”
“No. I already know the answer,” she said quickly. “The answer is yes!”
Chapter Twelve
Tony couldn’t believe that the bakery had gotten closed down due to a gas leak. Once he was outside, he leaned against an older pickup.
Folding his arms across his chest he took in the situation. The patrons that were in the bakery had dispersed. However, he noticed that the other stores on the block hadn’t evacuated. After ten minutes, the fire department hadn’t arrived. Something wasn’t right here.
He pushed himself off the truck and casually walked close to the front of the bakery. As he suspected, the two workers were still inside. The only problem he saw was Josh sitting between the two women, a gun in his hand.
What was the man up to?
An older gentleman walked slowly past Tony, for the second time. Tony had also seen the man in the bakery when they had been asked to leave.
The man, dressed in a dark blue suit, walked down to the end of the block, and Tony decided to follow him, holding back at a respectable distance to keep the man from knowing he was being followed. When the gentleman turned the corner, Tony watched him turn down the alley.
Tony was curious on what the man was doing. He looked out of place in the alley in his suit and tie. The back of the bakery seemed to keep the old man’s attention for a few minutes before he continued to the other end of the alley and turned the corner.
Once the man was out of sight, Tony went down to the back of the bakery, where they had first encountered Kirby’s wife the other day. He noticed the doorknob was gone. That was probably how Josh had gotten in without being seen.
Pulling his Glock from the shoulder holster he wore under his jacket, Tony opened the door quietly and stepped inside.
The heat was welcoming if a bit too much, and the smells of the kitchen were outstanding. It reminded him of his mother’s kitchen when he was a kid.
“Josh,” he heard a woman say from the front of the shop. “You don’t have to do this. Don’t you care that you are hurting Auggie? You’ve hurt her for the entire time you’ve known her.”
“Shut up, Margo. You don’t know what you’re talking about,” Josh said in a growl.
“Really? I’ve been with her almost the entire time she’s had the bakery. Not once did you come in and help her while she was trying to get it up and running, or while struggling to keep it open. You weren’t working, so you could have helped.”
“This was her dream, not mine. I wanted her to move to New Jersey, but she insisted on staying here. Why should I help when she didn’t want to do what I wanted to do?” Geez, he was a prick!
“Is that how you think relationships work?” the Irish woman asked.
“Shut up!” Josh bellowed.
“Dinna tell me what to do,” she spat back. “Relationships are give and take. Everyone works at it, not just one person. If I did that in my marriage, I wouldn’t be married anymore. Oh, wait! That’s why you aren’t.”
The sound of flesh hitting flesh could be heard.
“I told you to shut it!” Josh yelled.
“Why, you little mother fucker!” Irish shouted. “Is this how you deal with women? You manhandle them?”
“You really don’t know when to close that mouth of yours, do you?” Josh asked nastily. “I can only imagine what your man must think of you.”
“I’m very well loved, and my men respect me, thank you very much,” she snapped back.
“Look, woman, I’m tired of hearing you talk. You are annoying as hell.” Josh sounded like he was getting tired of the situation. “If you don’t shut up, I’m going to tie you up and gag you.”
Tony had to stifle a chuckle. He was certain that the Irish woman wouldn’t take to that kindly.
He wasn’t going to wait to find out. It was time to confront the jerk who was jacking the boss around.
Stepping into the café part of the bakery with his gun drawn, he said with a sneer, “Hello, Kirby.”
All three people turned to look at Tony. The women because of their nerves while fear was written on Kirby’s face.
Josh turned the gun toward Tony as he stood. “What the hell are you doing here?”
“I wouldn’t be pointing that thing at me, Josh. You’re in way too deep here.”
The gun in Josh’s hand began to waver as he shifted his eyes from Tony to the brunette, then to the Irish woman, then back. His nerves were beginning to get the best of him.
“I am in the process of getting your money, Tony. You just have to give me a couple more hours,” Josh said, his voice shaky. “Please, give me a couple of hours, and you’ll have your boss’s money.”
“No can do,” Tony said. “It’s beyond that now. You’re coming with me.”
Josh chuckled. “Do you think I’m stupid? I know if I go with you, I’ll be dead before nightfall.”
Tony wasn’t expecting Kirby to pull the trigger. The impact threw him back a couple of feet in the doorway. Fire erupted in his belly as the bullet whizzed its way through his flesh.
He managed to hold on to his gun, but Kirby came over and took it from him. “I didn’t want to do this,” Josh said as he stood above him. “I need a couple more hours, that’s all. I asked nicely, but you didn’t want to give me that.”
Suddenly, Josh swung around, his gun finding what he was looking for. Tony saw that the two women were halfway to the front door. “Where do you think you’re going?” Josh sneered.
The women stopped. Josh motioned them back to the table they had just vacated. Resigned, they went back to their seats, fear now on their faces.
“If anyone makes a move, I won’t hesitate to shoot.” He spoke with a snarl, his face a mirage of anger, hatred, and nervousness.
“Come one, Kirby. I need to go to the hospital,” Tony complained.
Josh stood over Tony. “You can go to the hospital once I hand over the million dollars. That way I’m free and clear of you guys.”
Tony groaned from the pain. “Do you really think you’ll be free of us after this, Kirby? You just screwed with the wrong people.”
* * * *
As soon as she was getting out of the truck, she heard the gunshot ring out. Panic rushed through her, and she began to run toward the bakery. It had been planned for her to go through the front door, and everyone else would go through the back.
&nbs
p; Hunter and Trent both grabbed her.
“You have to let me go in there to see who is hurt,” she pleaded.
“No. You’ll be in there in a minute,” Hunter said as he pulled over to the front of the store next to the bakery. “You need to be in control when you go inside. Take some deep breaths and calm down.”
Augusta noticed the Trent had gone into the shoe store they were in front of and was escorting the patrons and workers out. It was time to evacuate the area, especially since there was a gunshot.
Perspiration beaded on her skin while her stomach felt as if it was spewing out of her, especially since she hadn’t eaten anything yet. Disbelief also made her a bit numb. She hadn’t ever expected her ex-husband to pull a gun on a woman he knew, and one he didn’t. He hadn’t ever shown her a violent streak.
Now, she was going to have to go in and face the man she hoped she would never have to see again.
Hunter pulled her to him and wrapped his arms around her. Trent had stepped back over to them once he had the civilians safely away from area, and he had an arm around her waist.
She didn’t really feel Trent’s arm, for what she wore under the red sweater she was wearing under her dark blue parka. Brian, Trent, and Hunter had all insisted that she wear a bullet-proof vest, and she was finding they were not comfortable at all.
“Darlin’, we want you to be extra careful in there,” Hunter began. “Don’t do anything that will antagonize Josh. Don’t say anything he might take offense to. We’re going to be in the backroom within five minutes, and then we will intervene as soon as we know you aren’t going to be in harm’s way.”
“What about Margo and Siobhan? What if they’re hurt?” she asked, feeling helpless.
“First off, we don’t know if he hit anyone with that shot. You need to assess the situation and then act accordingly. Wait until you know we have your back inside before you tip him off about us, but try not to do so at all.” Trent kissed her cheek before continuing. “If possible, try to get the girls away from Josh so that they won’t be near when we rush in.”