by S. E. Smith
Trey watched as three people climbed out of the small plane. He knew Allie from numerous visits out to Sam and Claire’s ranch. He did not recognize the two tall men with her. Sam had said they were Jonathan and Jacob Tucker from Montana. Trey had done a search on them but had come up empty-handed. He studied both men carefully as they approached. Allie had an easy grin on her face but the two men looked serious and dangerous.
“Hey Allie,” Trey said, leaning down to kiss her. He jerked back in surprise when she was pulled backwards against the chest of one of the tall men before he had a chance to brush his lips across hers in greeting.
“I wouldn’t,” Jacob drawled out darkly, ignoring Allie’s startled squeak. “Jacob Tucker,” he said studying the equally tall man standing in front of him.
“Trey Randall,” Trey said with a wary grin.
“I’m Jonathan Tucker. Sam said you could help me get my wife back,” Jonathan said, pushing forward. “He said you would know where she is being held.”
Trey frowned and nodded. “Let’s get going. I can tell you what I can on the way to Hayden Wild’s townhouse. We’ve had him under surveillance for the past year. While he hasn’t done anything against the law per se, he has brushed the line more than once. Your wife was seen being carried inside and the police responded to a call she made from his home,” Trey explained as he pulled out of the gate of the small, regional airport and headed for the freeway.
Allie leaned forward from where she was sitting in the back seat with Jacob. “Why didn’t the police help her?” Allie asked furiously. “Why didn’t she go with them?”
“Hayden told the police that Indiana was a recovering drug addict and had called because he refused to give her money for her next fix. We called them off as we knew something was going down. We needed to see what would happen next,” Trey responded, glancing at her in the mirror before letting his eyes slide back to the road in front of him.
Allie gasped in shock, sitting back. “You are using her for bait?” She asked in outrage. “What if something goes wrong and she gets hurt?”
Jonathan's fist clenched as he fought for control. It was a good thing Trey was driving, otherwise he might have beaten him to a bloody pulp. He swore under his breath before he turned in the passenger seat to look at the man who Sam said they could trust. If trusting a man who would use an innocent woman as bait was considered normal during this time then he couldn't wait to get back home. A woman was meant to be protected at all cost.
“What the hell does she mean you are using my wife as bait?” Jonathan gritted out between his teeth.
Trey looked uneasily at the man sitting next to him. He knew a predator when he saw one and this guy reeked of it. He glanced in his side mirror before changing lanes wishing he could move away from the barely controlled fury of the man next to him. He debated how much he could reveal to his three passengers without compromising his assignment any further than he had.
“Hayden was expecting company, powerful company, from Washington, D.C. last night. I can't tell you much as it is an ongoing case but I can tell you this man is dangerous. We suspect this man contacted Hayden Wild to help in Wild's bid for a seat in the U. S. Senate. This man has helped a number of other men get seats which he then controls through them. His corporation has received some questionable contracts both domestically and in our foreign venues. While the corporation is legitimate, some of his business practices he hides under its umbrella are not. We are hoping he will make a mistake with Wild so we can issue a search warrant,” Trey explained as he took the exit marking the downtown area.
“What does my wife have to do with any of this?” Jonathan asked. “She has been gone from your time for the past four months.”
Trey glanced at Jonathan, puzzled by his choice of wording. “We believe Wild offered your wife up on a silver platter for this man. The suspect likes beautiful, young women. I've seen photos of your wife,” Trey said with a brief grin. “She fills all of the man's requirements plus some. She is hot!”
“She is my wife,” Jonathan replied coldly. “She isn't just an image or bait or whatever in the hell you want to call her. Her name is Indy and she is mine.”
Trey chuckled and nodded his head. “I'm just jerking your chain, man. I talked to one of our men that is on the inside just before you arrived. She was safe as of first thing this morning,” he promised. “Our inside man won't let anything happen to her.”
“Does Indy know about this man, your inside agent?” Allie asked anxiously.
Trey shook his head as he took another right at the intersection then slowed for a light. “No, it would be too dangerous for our agent. The last one we had was compromised and we found her dead. The initial ruling was a car accident but we have evidence that she was dead before the car went off the shoulder and down into the ravine,” he said, his voice hardening.
Jonathan flexed his fists as the SUV started moving again. “I can’t believe you left my wife within reach of that bastard. If he has touched one hair on her head, I’m going to kill the son-of-a-bitch,” he snapped out, his eyes flashing. “I suggest you don’t get in the way.”
Trey looked at Jonathan, his eyes widening when he saw that he had pulled a gun out from under the long coat he was wearing. Between the coat, the cowboy hat, and the way he was handling the gun, Trey felt like he was sitting next to a cowboy from the last century.
“Shit!” Trey responded, barely swerving to miss a car that was turning in front of him. “What in the hell do you think you are doing? Put that damn thing away! What do you think this is, the wild west or something?” He asked with another curse on his lips when Jonathan smiled.
“Where we come from if a man threatens what belongs to one of us, we kill the bastard,” Jonathan said coldly.
Trey gave a nervous laugh as he drew to a stop in front of a large, towering building covered in steel and glass. “Yeah right, and I guess you hang horse thieves and murderers too,” he said opening his door.
“If we don’t shoot them first,” Jacob said with a shrug as he opened the door and slid out.
Trey turned to look at the twin from the back seat and paled even further when he saw the set of guns hanging from around his waist as well. Both brothers had unbuttoned their long coats and tucked it behind the holsters strapped around their slender hips. They looked like they were not only used to wearing them, but that they knew exactly how to use them.
“Is this where Indy is supposed to be,” Jonathan asked in an emotionless voice, staring up at the massive building.
“Yes, Wild has a townhouse on the twentieth floor,” Trey said looking at both men cautiously. “We also have an agent in there. I don’t want you guys going in there guns blazing and shooting the wrong person.”
Jacob laughed as he pulled his gun and whipping it around between his hands before sliding it back into its holster within a matter of seconds. “We don’t waste bullets. We only hit what we are aiming for, isn’t that right Jonathan?”
“Time's wasting,” Jonathan said with a nod to his brother. “Let’s go get Indy.”
Jonathan motioned for Trey to step ahead of them. He bowed his head to hide the grin when he heard Allie make a comment to his brother as she walked by. It sounded suspiciously like she said ‘show off’ before she moved to walk behind Trey.
“You haven’t seen anything yet, darlin’,” Jacob responded, drawing a heated look from Allie.
*.*.*
Jonathan realized two things as they moved upward. One, he decided he hated heights and two, he hated this thing they called an elevator! His stomach felt like he had left it on the ground floor. He didn’t know what to think when Trey had pressed the button on the wall. He had watched a light blink out numbers but he couldn’t figure out what it meant. When the metal doors slid open and Trey and Allie walked into the small box, he and Jacob had looked with skepticism at each other. They had waited so long the doors to the damn box had started to close. He and Jacob had to hurry through
the opening before it closed without them.
Trey had then pressed the number twenty and it lit up. It wasn’t until the damn box started moving that he felt like he had left a part of his body back on the other side of the box. Jacob had started muttering curses again and glaring at Allie who just shook her head in amused disbelief while Jonathan prayed he wouldn’t end up at heaven’s gate when the box opened again.
Jonathan stumbled out of the doors as soon as they opened, sucking in a deep breath. His eyes widened when he saw a figure running straight for him. He would have recognized Indy’s slender figure anywhere. She had a look of terror on her face as she charged toward the box they were exiting. Her eyes widened for a moment before she lost her balance and slid on the glossy surface of the marble foyer, a strangled cry ripping from her throat.
Jonathan rushed forward, lifting her into his arms while Jacob pulled his gun with one hand at the same time as he pushed Allie into a nearby alcove to protect her. Jonathan vaguely recognized that Jacob stood protectively in front of all of them, making sure his body was between them and any threat that might come at them.
Jonathan’s arms tightened around Indy as she buried her face into his chest, huge gasping sobs escaping her as she tried to mold her body against his. He wrapped them tightly around her trembling figure and rose with her securely caged against his tall frame.
“Don’t let me go,” she gasped out in a husky, frightened voice. “Don’t you ever let me go!” She cried out again fiercely in a voice barely above a whisper when he made to shift her so he could free one of his hands so he could grip one of the guns at his hip.
“I won’t, darling,” Jonathan promised, moving back away from the area she had run from while Jacob continued holding the man who had charged after her within his sight. “I need to use my hands, Indy. I need to set you down behind me, honey. Just hold on to the back of my coat. I promise I won’t let anyone take you again,” he murmured trying to get her to let him go enough so he could protect her.
“For crying out loud, don’t shoot!” Trey growled out above all the confusion. He stepped in front of Jacob with his arms spread out wide. “What the fuck is going on?” He bit out to the man standing in the long hallway with his hands raised.
“We have him,” Rodgers stated calmly, slowly lowering his hands. “He confessed to killing Evelyn.”
“Did you get it on tape?” Trey asked harshly.
Rodgers nodded, his eyes focusing on Indy’s partially hidden figure. He took a step forward only to stop when Jacob pulled the hammer of his gun back. He looked into Jacob’s eyes and nodded, raising his hands in a gesture to show he wasn’t going to do anything stupid while taking a step back again and standing still.
“Is she alright?” Rodgers asked in a quiet voice. “I tried to do what I could to protect her. She doesn’t make it easy, you know,” he said with a small smile.
Jacob’s eyes narrowed and he glanced briefly at Trey who nodded his head at the silent question in Jacob’s eyes. “He’s our inside man,” Trey responded in a low voice. “Agent Spencer Rodgers, FBI. Where’s Wild, Hammock, and Hammock’s bodyguards?” Trey asked curiously, turning back to look at Rodgers who relaxed his arms down to his side again.
Rodgers’ lips curved with a ghost of a smile and he nodded toward where Jonathan was holding Indy protectively against his body. “Let’s just say Wild should have listened to his sister when she told him he needed to let her just walk away. Hammock is knocked out. He won’t be waking up anytime soon. His guards aren’t in much better shape and Wild will be lucky if he ever walks straight again after his sister busted his balls,” Rodgers stated. “You can read about the details in my report. Right now, the clean up crew are on their way and should be here shortly.”
Rodgers looked over to where Indy and Jonathan were talking quietly, wanting to make sure she was alright. He paused when the tall man who had been holding the gun on him stepped in front of him with a glare. Rodgers raised his eyebrow and waited for the cowboy to make up his mind as to whether he was to be trusted or not. It took almost a minute before Jacob slid his gun into the holster at his side and stepped back with a glint of warning in his eye.
Allie, who had been pushed to the side by Jacob, stepped out of the small alcove. She walked up to Jacob and smacked him in the chest to get his attention. She waited a moment before she reached up with both of her hands to grip his cheeks. She didn’t give him a chance to say anything before she pressed her lips to his in a fierce kiss that lasted only a few seconds before she pushed him away.
“If you ever - and I mean ever – do a stupid stunt like pushing me out of the way and putting yourself in danger again, I’ll bust you in the gut,” she growled out before walking over to see how Indy was doing.
Trey stood looking at Sam’s petite, dark haired daughter with a grin on his face before turning to look at the stunned expression on Jacob’s face. “You know, she’ll do it too. I once saw her break a chair over a guy who thought he could beat his girlfriend at the local bar. She beat the shit out of the guy with it.”
Jacob just stood watching Allie with a silly grin on his face. Hell, she could get pissed at him any time if that was how she wanted to let him know she was mad. He wasn’t about to complain, not one damn bit!
Chapter 18
Jonathan stood holding Indy, rubbing her back and whispering how much he loved her. He had tried to convince her to let him set her down and get behind him but she was trembling so badly he realized she probably wouldn’t be able to stand on her own. He also realized almost immediately that the situation appeared to be under control. Jacob had them covered, Trey was talking quietly to the man who had been coming after Indy, and no one else came out of the door she had run from. Jonathan assumed the man must have been the one Trey told them about. He really didn’t give a damn. He was just relieved to have Indy back in his arms.
“I don’t like your world very much,” Jonathan murmured softly in her ear. “As soon as we can get back to Sam’s ranch, I’m taking you home.”
Indy shuddered as another wave of adrenaline caused from the fight or flight reaction swept through her. “I don’t like my world very much either,” she admitted with a shaky voice. “I was so scared you would think I wanted to come back. I didn’t.”
Jonathan tilted her chin up and brushed his lips against hers. The soft, trembling breath that caressed his lips pulled a groan from him. He pressed a hard kiss to her lips only pulling back when she winced in pain. His eyes narrowed on the bruise on her chin and the slight swelling of her lip where Hammock had struck her.
His eyes darkened dangerously. “Who hit you?” He bit out harshly, gently examining her face.
Indy shook her head and gave him a shaky smile. “I told him you would want to kill him. You don’t have to worry, I gave him a dose of his own medicine,” she said with a twinkle in her eye at the inside joke.
Jonathan’s mouth tightened in anger. “Who hit you, Indy?” He asked again in a low, dangerous tone.
“Leave it be, Jonathan,” Indy said with a tired sigh. She could feel her body on the precipice of crashing and burning from too much adrenaline and not enough rest. “Jonathan, hold me,” she whispered as her eyes suddenly felt like someone had put lead weights on them and her muscles turned to jelly.
“Shit! Indy!” Jonathan cried out as her head suddenly rolled back and she folded.
*.*.*
“Aleaha said all Indy needs is a few days of rest,” Allie murmured, brushing Indy’s hair back from her forehead. “She knows what she is talking about, Jonathan. I promise. She would never do anything to hurt Indy.”
“It’s been almost two days!” Jonathan exclaimed, lifting Indy’s delicate looking hand to his lips.
“Yes, and she has been through a lot,” Claire said in a gentle voice. “Come downstairs and I’ll fix you something to eat. You haven’t eaten hardly anything since you got back.”
Jonathan looked at the three women staring down
at him as he lay on the bed at the Whitewater ranch. One of the paramedics had checked Indy out and said except for the bruise on her chin, she appeared to be fine. She was just exhausted. Afterwards, Allie had convinced Trey into letting her borrow his SUV so they could get back to the airport and fly home. She promised him they would be available for any testimony that the FBI might need but she wanted Aleaha to check Indiana out. Trey had gotten approval on the condition that none of them left the country. Jonathan and Jacob agreed, after all where they were going was still part of the U. S. as far as they were concerned.
It had been late the day before last when they touched down. Sam, Claire, and Aleaha had met them at the hanger. Jonathan had carried Indy, refusing to release her to anyone else. Even once they were back at the ranch house and he had laid Indy down in the bedroom he’d had before, he refused to leave. Aleaha had checked Indy thoroughly under Jonathan’s watchful eye. Once she affirmed the paramedic's diagnosis, he had sent everyone from the room. He locked the bathroom door between his room and his brother’s room before he gently peeled Indy’s dirty clothes from her body. He took his time washing every speck of her soft, delicate skin, even washing her hair. She slept through the entire thing, not even moving when he washed and rinsed the silky strands. He had taken his time drying her as well, memorizing her body all over again as he made sure for himself that she had not suffered any other physical injury.
The time he spent caring for her pulled at something deep inside him making him realize he could never live without her. After he was done, he slid into the bed beside her and drew her against his long, hard length, holding her as if he would never let her go again.