“Oh God, I’m bleeding.” She panicked and then her cell phone rang.
* * * *
Michael and Chad recognized the asshole known as Solandro Cruz. He had been tagging along with Francisco Santos for years. He was like a son to him, and rumor had it that the enterprise was going to be handed down to Solandro.
“It’s him. He’s the one in the United States right now. He’s a pompous asshole who thinks he’s above the law,” Mason stated.
“Well, remember what he looks like. This is the piece of shit that killed Nate and sent his sister the body. If he’s here in the United States then we need to get him. I want you two to forward this information to the commander.”
“Already done. He’s on line one now, Michael,” Chad stated as he typed with one hand. Chad’s fingers still moved pretty damn quickly over the keyboard.
“Commander, do you have all the info that Nate sent us?” Michael asked.
“I do. I’m pulling up the other pictures of Solandro Cruz’s main guys that you sent a little while ago. We’ve got names, and I’m verifying their last-known locations now. They do not have any criminal records in the system. But that was just in the US. They could be wanted elsewhere. I don’t like that Solandro knew personal information on Nate. He may know things about the five of you. Security measures must be taken immediately.”
“Understood. We need these faces distributed throughout the various security departments including homeland security so we can grab them if they enter through the airport, train stations, busses, etcetera,” Michael stated.
“I’m on it. Do you have the pictures up?” Dale asked, and Chad brought up the pictures onto his desktop computer screens. There were five lined up on the large wall. All their mugs now faced Michael, Chad, Mason, Dale, and Virgo.
“Oh fuck! Chad, bring that one guy in the center up. Who is that?” Virgo asked.
“Miguel Felez. He does have a criminal record. He’s Solandro’s main guy. An enforcer, so to speak. He’s wanted by the US government.”
“Michael, call Alexa and I’ll call BJ,” Virgo stated.
“Why? What the fuck is wrong?” Michael asked, and Virgo looked at him then Chad.
“I fucking just saw this guy in town. He was waiting for Alexa to come out of the deli. He looked at her, winked, and she ignored him. That’s when she and I sat down and talked.”
“Oh God, no. No!” Michael yelled.
They heard the sound of a phone ringing. Chad had immediately dialed her number.
She answered.
“Hello. Oh thank God, Chad.”
“Alexa, listen to me. You’re in danger. I can’t explain right now. Where are you?”
“I’m in my car. What kind of danger? I just crashed my car when the tire blew out. The steering wheel wouldn’t work either. I hit my head.”
“Fuck! Are you okay? You can’t drive the car?”
“No, Chad, I can’t. I was just about to get out and walk. It’s starting to thunder and lightning.”
“We’re sending help now. Virgo is on the phone with BJ.”
“Wait. There’s a car coming. I see the headlights.”
“No, Alexa. It’s not help. It could be members of the drug lord who is after us. You need to run, Alexa. Run through the fields and as far away from the men in that car as you can. We’re on our way.”
“Oh God. There’s four of them. They have guns, Chad.”
“Run, Alexa!” Michael yelled.
They could hear scuffling and then men yelling in Spanish. The sounds of gunfire echoed over the phone.
“Oh God, no.”
“Let’s move, Michael, come on!” Chad grabbed Michael’s arm.
* * * *
Alexa climbed over the passenger seat and opened the car door. It hit the side wall of the ditch and barely left enough room for her to squeeze by. Her head throbbed and blood continued to drip from the gash.
She heard them yelling at her in Spanish, but she did as Chad had told her and she ran. She slipped in the mud, got caught up in the high grasses, but trudged on despite the sounds of thunder. But then they started shooting at her. There wasn’t any place to take cover. Not a tree, not a building, nothing. She turned to look around her when something sharp pierced her arm. She cried out in pain and fell to the ground. As she lifted her hand from her arm, she saw the blood. They shot her. Oh God, I’m going to die.
* * * *
There were police and other ex-military men on the scene. Michael and Chad conversed with everyone so that they were all on board here. This situation was a great fear for all of those involved with their secret government jobs. Many of the men around Michael and Chad had settled down, had families, and knew that they were now in danger.
“We’re tracking the vehicle. The commander is calling in all possible ways to help us out. We need to capture and kill these guys,” Virgo stated.
“He knows where they’re headed. We call off the locals, BJ. This is a military operation now,” Michael stated firmly, and BJ nodded then walked over to his truck and began to call out on the radio to stop pursuits.
“Chad, there’s blood by her car and also out there a ways in the field. It’s a lot, Chad,” Mason informed Michael and Chad, and both men looked pissed off.
“You think they shot her?” Virgo asked.
“We have to assume the worst. She hit her head on the steering wheel. We know that much. We heard the gunshots over the phone and them ordering her to stop running in Spanish,” Dale stated.
“Let’s get the location on their destination and move in. I’m waiting on the commander. I need volunteers,” Michael stated aloud, and every man there raised their hand.
“Thank you. Get your gear and wait for my command,” Michael stated as the commander’s call came in.
“Commander, what do you got?”
“We have them. They headed to a location about fifteen minutes outside of the city of Dallas. I have units on standby for your orders. The surrounding buildings will be discreetly evacuated. Also, now that we have a name and face to go with Solandro Cruz, we can prove his involvement in various illegal activities besides assisting Santos in his drug cartel. He is wanted for questioning in murdering multiple men and women.”
“Women?” Chad asked.
“It appears that he doesn’t like to keep his women for the long term. He does what he wants with them then kills them. We’ve seized all his assets. We’ve also seized his private jet that he arrived on and all other financial accounts we can. I have lawyers working on strangling this guy. Even if by some far chance he does survive and escapes to Columbia, he is broke and so is Santos.”
“Thanks for the update. We’ve got the address. I’m organizing teams. I need intel on the building now.”
“Already sending a team to meet you there. Be safe and catch this asshole.”
“Okay. We’ve got a location. Chad and I want our woman returned safe and unharmed. Use your heads. Any information I send to you will be in drips and drags. He’ll kill her and he’ll kill any of you without a thought. I don’t want any more of us dead. We’ve lost enough good men over destroying the Santos operation. Let’s take out the trash.”
The men dispersed and Michael and Chad got into the truck with Virgo, Dale, and Mason.
Chapter 13
“What is it that you want me to do?” Miguel asked Solandro.
Solandro stared at the blonde. She’d passed out from her injuries. The gash in her head had finally stopped dripping blood. One of his men wrapped her arm as best he could, but the bullet was still wedged inside of it. The blood was seeping through the bandage.
“Let’s get this meeting over with and head to the airport.”
“And the woman?” Miguel asked. Solandro stared at her. She was quite lovely. Young, too, maybe less than twenty-one. If she didn’t die from her injuries, she may be some fun. But was it really worth the battle to drag her across the globe? She would get blood on the new rugs of his priva
te jet. No. The damage was done. Her men would think that he had her and then killed her.
“She is worthless now. Leave her. It doesn’t matter.”
Miguel placed his gun onto the table then turned to talk with the other men. They were going to have a small meeting about the organization and about Solandro being the new boss. As they walked in, gathered around the table, Solandro shook their hands. They discussed the operation and made some deals. Solandro pulled out his cell phone.
“I will transfer the money immediately. You be sure to do as I asked. I expect progress. Do what needs to be done to keep the authorities at bay.”
He got an error message on his phone. He tried again. He was frustrated when he realized that someone had tampered with his accounts.
“Fuck!” He rose from the table and tossed the edge up and onto its side.
“Everyone out!” he yelled then paced the room.
“What is it? What’s going on?”
“The government has seized my accounts. They somehow know who I am and what I look like. They got the information but how?”
“The agent. The one you killed. Do you remember that he mailed something and it couldn’t be tracked down?” Miguel stated.
Solandro roared in anger. The woman on the floor moaned then began to move around slowly.
“Get up! Get up, bitch!” Solandro screamed as he pulled her up by her shirt and tossed her across the rug. She landed with a thump and cried out in pain.
“They dare seize my money. They dare mess with Solandro Cruz. I am the fucking richest man alive. I will kill them all!” he yelled then reached down and pulled Alexa up by her neck. He shook her then tossed her down again.
“Freeze, asshole!” He turned as multiple agents, including the ones he’d sought out, entered the room. He wasn’t going to get caught. He wasn’t going to spend his life behind bars.
He grabbed for the gun on the side table next to the woman. As his fingers reached the trigger, multiple shots rang through the air and struck his body. He jerked, the gun fell from his fingers, and his world ended.
Epilogue
It had taken hours of surgery to remove the bullet and save Alexa’s life. Michael and Chad finally had their chance to see her. They walked in together, and Michael looked at all the tubes and then at Chad.
“Come on. She’s alive and the doctors said she’ll be okay.”
Michael absorbed her pale complexion and how tiny and fragile she looked lying in that hospital bed. There were bandages on her head and on her arm. As he stood by her side, he noticed the bruise on her throat. Solandro had tried to strangle her.
“Oh God, baby, I’m so glad you’re alive.” Chad leaned down and kissed her cheek.
He took her hand and squeezed it.
“I’m so sorry, baby. I’m sorry that our job put you in such danger.”
Michael kissed her cheek then headed out of the room.
He ignored his friends and walked through the double doors and into the long hallway. He took a few deep breaths of air. He hated hospitals. He hated the smell of them and the memories of visiting them a few too many times, and he hated that Alexa was here and it was all his fault.
“Hey, what the fuck was that all about?” Chad asked as he joined his brother.
“I’m not arguing with you, Chad. I want to be alone.”
“No, you don’t. You’re trying to place distance between us and Alexa. I know that what happened today scared you. Hell, it took God knows how many years off my own life, but I’m willing to face my emotions here. I love her, Michael, and I know that you love her, too. Solandro is dead and Santos isn’t too far behind. It’s over. Our job with the government is over and we can start living a normal life now with Alexa in it.”
Michael shook his head.
“I put her here. I put her life in danger. We shouldn’t have gotten involved with her. She had enough bad shit happen in her past. How will she forgive me for doing this to her? I lied. I didn’t tell Alexa everything that I was involved in. When we arrived home from the raid, we should have said fuck the debriefing and went to her. Thinking that only our lives were in jeopardy was stupid. We should have been protecting her by staying uninvolved.”
“You can be such an asshole sometimes, Michael. I can’t believe how easily you can regret what we shared with Alexa. She’s ours, Michael. She loves us, too. I just know it, and none of us would have ever thought that Solandro would come after us like this. His sick, narcistic, pompous attitude is what destroyed him in the end. He’s dead. Just admit to your real fears, Michael. Admit that you love her and that your heart soars just thinking about her and suck up that fear and face it. She is ours. Now get your head out of your ass and let’s join the others. We’ve got a family, Michael, and most of them are standing by our side just like we would stand by theirs.”
Chad opened the door and held it open.
“The smoke is cleared. It’s safe to come out.”
* * * *
“I’ve been here how long?” Alexa asked as Sally helped her to sit up.
“Three days, sweetie. The doctor said you’re in the clear.”
“Where’s Michael and Chad?” she asked as the door opened. Chad entered, carrying a large bouquet of flowers.
“Those are so pretty. Thank you,” she whispered.
Chad’s eyes widened in surprise that she was awake.
“Oh God, baby, are you okay? Should you be sitting up? Sally, did you call the doctor?” Chad carried on as he moved next to her side and leaned down to kiss her.
“Oh God, you feel so good,” she whispered back.
Sally rolled her eyes.
“We’ll leave you two alone.”
Alexa watched Sally and Susanna exit the room.
“You don’t feel too much pain, do you? They have stuff to give you. Just let me know and I’ll grab the nurse.”
She rolled her eyes.
“Calm down, Chad. I’m okay. I’m just a little dizzy, very tired, and achy. Other than that I’d say quite well, considering. Now where is Michael?”
Chad swallowed hard and turned away a moment. He placed his hand in his jeans pocket and stared at her.
“What’s wrong? He isn’t hurt, is he? Oh God, no one told me anything. He’s not dead?” she asked as the tears filled her eyes.
“God, no, baby. No, he’s alive. He’s just being—”
“He thinks he’s to blame for this?”
He took a deep breath and nodded.
“He is so crazy. Hasn’t anyone ever taken care of him before? Doesn’t he realize that he doesn’t have to take responsibility for everything that goes wrong? My God, does he seriously think that I would blame him for this?”
“Pretty much. He feels like he failed you when he should have been protecting you.”
“Is he out there?”
“Yeah. He’s talking with Virgo.”
“Get him in here please.”
She watched as Chad exited the room. She took a deep breath. Michael was so dominant, in charge, and commanding. She knew it was his military position, and she understood the seriousness of his job. She didn’t really care about any of that. She loved him. He helped her to heal and she was going to help him, too.
Michael entered the room, appearing concerned. She figured that Chad had to convince him to come see her.
“Get over here, soldier,” she demanded then took a deep breath as the pain in her arm throbbed.
“You shouldn’t be sitting up. You were shot for Christ’s sake.”
“I’m fine except one thing is really aching badly.”
“Do you need me to get the nurse? There’s painkillers for that.”
“Not for this ache, Michael. Come here please.”
Michael walked toward her other side. “Do you make it a habit of going around breaking hearts, Michael?” she whispered.
He looked at her strangely and then to Chad.
“Did I do something to anger you or make you not
love me the way I love you and Chad?”
“What did you say?” Michael asked, and Chad took her hand.
Michael placed his hand on her thigh.
“I think you screwed up big-time on such an important mission, Michael.”
He was quiet a moment and then he nodded his head.
“I know I did. I should have been more considerate of you. I didn’t think. If I had, Solandro wouldn’t have found out about you.”
“No, Michael. Not that mission. You succeeded and he’s dead. I am grateful to you for that. I’m talking about the most important mission of your life.”
“What would that be?” he asked her, still not getting it.
“Finding true love, embracing it, opening up your heart and your fears despite what you’ve conditioned yourself to ignore. I don’t blame you for any of this. I blame Solandro. I love you, Michael, and I want to be with you forever. I don’t care that I sound naive. I don’t care what anyone thinks about it. I love you with all my heart and I love Chad, too.”
Before she could finish, Michael was leaning forward and kissing her hard on the mouth. She tried to hold him with her good hand, and she cringed when his forehead touched hers.
“I love you, too, baby.”
“Me, too, Alexa. We can’t wait to start our new life together,” Chad added.
“You’re my protectors, my lovers, and my everything.”
They both laid their heads against her shoulders. She smiled and closed her eyes as she absorbed the feel of her two, strong, sexy lovers. She was safe, they were safe, and life in Delite, Texas, was only going to get better with her double Delite Warriors.
THE END
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
People seem to be more interested in my name than where I get my ideas for my stories from. So I might as well share the story behind my name with all my readers.
The Sinful 7 of Delite, Texas 3: Her Double Delite Warriors (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 15