“Please tell me we’re not just going to sit here.” Randi had never seen Britt so indecisive, so defeated. It broke her heart, and she could feel desperation bubbling in her stomach.
Britt rocketed from his seat and paced the small confines of her kitchen. “There’s not much I can do. Without a lead on the release location, I have no direction to follow. I could go to Norwood, but intimidation doesn’t work on the bastard.”
Jonah swiveled his laptop back around and typed a few commands before closing the lid. “The way I see it, you have two options.”
Randi tore her eyes away from Britt and focused on his brother. At first glance, one could easily dismiss Jonah Steele. He had many of the typical millennial generation characteristics—disconnected to those around him, technology dependent, bored to the point of rebellion. However, when he spoke, he commanded attention. His intelligence, without question. His focus, laser-sharp. His curiosity, no equal.
“Well, one, really,” Jonah continued, “but I’ll share the second option just for the sake of giving you a choice.”
A growl erupted from Britt’s throat.
Standing, Jonah stowed his laptop in his bag. “One, you can stay here and pace all night, emitting a few savage sounds as your frustration builds. Or, two, you can head to the Hill and help us locate the wolf.”
Britt halted. “Us?”
“Reid, Grif, Evie, Brynne, Carlie Beth, Mom, and anyone else who answers my text for action.”
“Text?”
“While you were growling and pacing, I was texting.” He slung his bag across his torso. “A good deal more productive, I might add.”
Randi’s eyes widened as Britt stormed over to his brother, who started backing away.
Britt pulled Jonah into a brief, hard, back-slap hug. “Thanks.” The single word came out low, rough. He cupped the back of Jonah’s neck. “I know you’re not a kid anymore. But you’ll always be my baby brother.” He pushed him toward the door. “Deal.”
An ache caught deep in Randi’s throat. The two brothers annoyed each other and were as opposite as opposites could be. But at the heart of their relationship, they loved each other and would do anything for one another. A gift she hoped they never took for granted.
“Don’t dally, stud man.” Jonah glanced back at them, giving his big brother a pointed look. “The clock’s ticking.”
“I’ll be there in twenty minutes.”
After throwing a puzzled look her way, Jonah left them alone.
I’ll be there in twenty minutes. I not we. The exclusion hurt. A lot.
Her inability to navigate the maelstrom of emotions that had hit her when she realized Britt was telling her that he loved her may have destroyed the best moment of her life.
How could he love her after spending mere days in her company? How could she return the sentiment? It made no sense. The rapid advancement of her feelings smacked of blind, irrational lust, and it frightened her. How could she love him when in all honesty she knew him so little? And what little she knew reminded her of her mother, which was not a good comparison.
The silence between them stretched, became deafening. Every comforting, reassuring phrase that came to mind sounded flat and idiotic. She longed to walk up behind him and knead the tension from his square shoulders. But Britt Steele held a large, flashing sign over his head that said, “Don’t mess with me right now.”
Instead of smoothing away the hurt she’d caused, Randi slid from her chair. “I take it I’m not invited to join you at the Hill.” When he said nothing, Randi rubbed at the knot forming in her chest. “I see.” She strode to her bedroom door on Pinocchio legs. “I hope you find Calypso in time, Britt. I really do.” Locking her bathroom door, she shed her clothes and stepped into the shower.
The frigid spray did nothing to stop the scalding tears from falling, nor the shattering impact of the front door slamming on yet another failure in her life.
27
By rote, Britt participated in the chatter around him, half his heart thrown into plans for saving Calypso while the other half remained in a bungalow on the opposite side of town.
Why in the hell had he put Randi on the spot like that? He’d considered trying to joke the words away, but that would have made him look like a bigger lunatic or, worse, a liar, both of which he hadn’t been able to stomach. He’d ruined one of the most momentous days of his life, with his schoolboy impetuousness. Worse, he couldn’t think of a way to repair his mistake.
And dammit, he missed her. They’d been separated for less than an hour, yet those minutes seemed like weeks.
“What do you think, Britt?” Grif asked.
Adjusting his focus, Britt caught the empathetic glances of his brothers and their mates. He glared at Jonah, whose face was buried in his laptop. His brother couldn’t have missed the tension between him and Randi, and he must have remarked on it to this gang. With his mother puttering in the kitchen, he was saved from enduring her commiserating gaze. But Carlie Beth’s condemnation could have cleaved his head in two. Where was Evie? He needed to have at least one ally in this house.
As soon as Britt had strolled into his mother’s house, Reid had settled into his familiar Green Beret tactical mindset and dubbed Jonah’s suite of rooms as the War Room. Amid Jonah’s electronic command center, Reid taped pictures of Norwood, Ito, Ferguson, Taylor, and Watters to the wall. He also posted several large sticky notes on the wall. One note contained various preserve-type settings in the area that would be large enough and private enough to host an exclusive, illegal hunt. Another note identified the steps they would take to locate Calypso once they hit the ground.
“I’m sure Deke would offer us a hand,” Britt said, answering Grif’s question. “He might even be able to scatter up some of his buddies at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.”
Jonah was muttering beneath his breath.
“What d’you have, Jonah?” Reid asked.
“A worthy opponent.” His gaze narrowed, focused. His fingers hit the keyboard harder, faster. “The IT person who set up their main website isn’t the same as the one who secured the inside of the members-only site. The latter geek knew what he or she was doing.”
“Do we have a plan if Jonah’s not able to hack the site?” Brynne asked.
“I’ll hack it.”
“Brynne has a point,” Carlie Beth said. “Let’s say Jonah gets in, but the information we need isn’t there.”
“What is it with the two of you?” Jonah complained. “I’ll search until I find what we need to save Britt’s wolf. Now stop distracting me.”
Carlie Beth and Brynne raised matching eyebrows, not used to Jonah’s take-charge side. Britt sympathized with their confusion. His brother was usually absorbed in one device or another. However, this afternoon Jonah seemed possessed by the desire to annihilate the Carolina Club for daring to mess with his family.
Jonah would succeed. It was only a matter of when.
Even if they failed to reach Calypso in time, Britt would never forget Jonah’s determination today. How his brother had worked so hard to stop a terrible act he didn’t particularly have a passion for one way or another. How he worked until his fingers cramped for one reason and one reason only—because the issue was important to Britt. Period.
Glancing around the room, he’d never felt closer to his family than he did right now. Rather than Britt shouldering the entire burden of Calypso’s kidnapping, each person in this room had taken a piece.
And just like that, years of resenting his big-brother, man-of-the-house status peeled away like a rattlesnake’s skin, leaving him…content. Truly content for the first time in memory.
The only rough patch in this field of new spring grass was Randi. He wished she were here so he could share this moment with her. After the way he’d excluded her from this meeting, he’d be lucky if she ever spoke to him again. He would never speak to himself again if their roles were reversed.
Though he hadn’t seen her exp
ression, he’d heard the pain in her voice. The acceptance. Something about that last part made him angry. Didn’t she care for him at all? Love might not have crossed her radar yet, but a deeper connection existed between them. They enjoyed each other’s company, they shared a love for the environment, and they desired each other. He hadn’t misread those cues, and Britt knew without a doubt they were just the beginning.
Carlie Beth clicked off her phone and stood, snapping Britt out of his reverie. “Brynne and I have an errand to run.”
“We do?”
“Yep.” She grabbed Brynne’s hand and pulled her out of the cocoon made by Reid’s arms. “Text us when Jonah locates Calypso.”
After a flurry of kisses and good-byes, the ladies left, leaving four bewildered men behind.
“Anyone know what that was about?” Britt asked.
“No,” Reid said, “but I doubt it bodes well for one of us.”
“My money is on Britt,” Grif said.
Reid moved to stand before the list of potential locations. “We’re missing something.”
“Like what?” Britt asked.
“The only acreage we have listed that’s owned by the Carolina Club is the five hundred housing their headquarters.” Reid asked Britt, “Didn’t Donovan tell us they owned thirty-five hundred, statewide?”
Britt sat forward. “Sounds right.”
“Where are the other three thousand acres?”
“I’m on it,” Jonah grumbled. “Would you like me to order you a damned pizza while I’m at it?”
“And miss Mom’s fried chicken and homemade gravy?” Reid asked. “Not a chance.”
“Look for sizable, contiguous acreage,” Britt said. “This particular hunt will require privacy.”
“What about their headquarters?” Grif asked.
“My gut tells me this auction is the work of a small faction within the club. If I’m right, they won’t risk the other members finding out about their illegal hunt.”
“I hope Jun Ito’s one of them,” Reid said. “He and I need to finish getting acquainted.”
“If he is,” Britt said, “you’re not going to get within a hundred feet of him.”
“That dictate’s going to be hard to follow while I’m stomping his ass.”
“Reid, he could undo months of healing.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence, bro.”
“Who’s Jun Ito?” Grif asked. “Besides the obvious.”
“One of Norwood’s cronies who likes to attack from behind,” Reid said.
“Then I agree with Britt. Stay away from him.”
“Just once, I’d like for one of you to take my side in an argument.”
“When you start using your head instead of your pride, I’ll have your back,” Britt said.
Jonah snatched a sheet of paper from the printer. “Here’s a list of parcels owned by the Carolina Club. All of them are over one hundred acres.” He grabbed another printed sheet. “This map shows where those parcels are located in relation to Steele Conservation Area.”
“Looks like we can rule out three of the seven,” Britt said. “Too far away.”
“That leaves us with four properties and thirteen hundred acres to scour in”—Reid checked the monitor displaying the live feed of Calypso and a countdown clock—“twelve hours and eleven minutes.”
“Maybe we’re going about this all wrong.” Grif stared out the window, overlooking the backyard.
“What do you mean?” Reid asked. “We’re looking at this from every angle possible.”
“Every legal way.”
A thread of excitement wove around Britt’s chest. “What do you have cooking upstairs?”
“We’re burning a great deal of energy searching for the secret location of the wolf.”
“Are we now?” Jonah tossed in. No one paid him any mind.
“What if we set aside the wolf’s location for now and concentrate on the players.”
“I’m listening,” Britt said.
“Who do you think masterminded this auction?”
“It’s gotta be Richard Norwood,” Britt said. “The guy taunted us about the wolves. He wanted us to believe they weren’t safe anymore.”
“Then we’ll hit his bank account,” Grif said.
For the first time in over an hour, Jonah stopped typing. Reid’s jaw fell open, and Britt’s lungs collapsed.
“When you say ‘hit,’” Britt said, “what do you mean, exactly?”
“Look for entries in his account that hints at a secret he wants kept or something he doesn’t want destroyed.”
Grif said the words in such a matter-of-fact tone that you’d think he suggested ruining someone’s life on a daily basis.
“Like an affair or a secret baby?” Reid asked. “Or funding a terrorist group?”
“Something like that. I hadn’t really thought it through yet.”
“Finding it—whatever it is—could take more time than we have,” Britt said.
“There’s another way,” Jonah said.
“How?” Grif asked.
“Relieve his personal account of funds. Much faster.”
“No fucking way.” Britt pointed a finger at Jonah. “Get that shit right out of your head. Hacking into a bank account is a lot different than an auction site. You’d violate a thousand different federal laws. We’re not going there.”
“For every fifteen minutes the wolf is missing from her pack,” Jonah continued, “we extract ten thousand dollars from his account.”
“Damn, Jonah,” Reid said. “Remind me never to piss you off again.”
“If you get caught,” Britt said, “you’ll break Mom’s heart.”
“Then I’ll be sure not to get caught.”
Britt looked to Grif, who stood silent by the window. “Will you talk some sense into him?”
“Not a single byte left behind to mark your path, Jonah.”
“Got it.”
“Grif, you can’t be serious!”
“I’ve done it before,” Jonah said. “When I was fourteen and Reid wouldn’t pay back a hundred-dollar bet.”
“You thieving shit.”
“It’s not thieving when you owe the money.”
“What kind of twisted genius logic is that?”
Britt dropped his head in his hands, his pulse raced off the charts. As much as he wanted to save Calypso, he couldn’t do it at the expense of his family. He wouldn’t take the chance of losing another family member.
He lifted his head, his gaze locking with Grif’s, then Reid’s. “We can’t risk it.”
They both nodded.
“Too late,” Jonah said. “Hacking already in progress.”
“Jonah, no!”
His brother stopped typing. “I’m already in and need to concentrate.” He met Britt’s gaze. “Let me do this.”
For you.
Even though his little brother didn’t say the words, Britt read them in his eyes. For Jonah to risk so much for something important to Britt made his nose sting and his throat close. Damn stupid genius was going to give him a heart attack.
Britt gave Jonah a hard nod, and his brother’s fingers took off like rockets.
“If you get caught, I’m joining you.” Britt rose, no longer able to sit still. “I’d rather face prison than Mom’s disappointment.” He picked up a beanbag ball off Jonah’s desk and began tossing it from one hand to the other. “What if we’re wrong and Norwood’s not the mastermind behind the auction?”
“Then Jonah can put the money back,” Reid said.
“I’m pretty sure it won’t be that easy,” Grif said, “but we can go with that approach for now.”
“Does anyone want to know what I think, since I’m the one committing the crime?”
“No,” all three brothers said in unison.
“What’s our plan?” Britt asked.
“After Jonah siphons off the first ten thousand dollars of Norwood’s fortune, you call him and explain our proposa
l,” Grif said.
“Me?”
Grif rubbed a finger over his bottom lip. “You have the most emotional investment in seeing the wolf’s safe return. Norwood won’t question your motivation. When he sees ten thousand dollars slip away from his account, he won’t doubt your resolve—or your resources.”
“What are we demanding in exchange?” Reid asked. “The wolf? Or the wolf’s coordinates?”
“Wolf,” Grif said. “Norwood could send us in circles long enough for the bidding to close.”
“If they release Calypso, we might never find her,” Britt said. “Or find her too late.”
“Let’s say our plan’s successful,” Reid said. “We will have made a powerful, dangerous enemy.”
“As will he,” Jonah said.
Britt lifted a brow. Reid grinned.
Grif said, “Spoken like a true hacker.”
“Jonah, let us know when you’re ready,” Reid said.
“Ready.”
“You’ve already hacked into Norwood’s account?” Grif asked.
“Bank accounts are easier to pick than Reid’s high school locker.”
“What the hell is wrong with you?” Reid asked. “Is nothing of mine off-limits?”
“Haven’t come across anything yet.”
“What’s taking so long with the auction website?” Britt asked.
“I’m dealing with a pro on that site.”
“Now that’s comforting,” Reid said.
Jonah frowned. “I’m close.”
Britt retrieved his phone from his front pocket. “Got a number for me?”
Jonah rattled off Norwood’s private number.
The line rang three times before a clipped voice answered. “Norwood.”
“You took something that doesn’t belong to you.”
“Who is this?” Norwood demanded. “How did you get this number?”
“Before today’s over, you’ll be surprised at the information I can get my hands on with a few clicks of a mouse.”
“Steele,” Norwood spat.
“Here’s how this is going to play out.” Britt moved to stand behind Jonah. His brother pointed to the opposite screen. “For every fifteen minutes the female wolf isn’t safely within her own territory, your bank account ending in 4325 will make a sizable donation to the Red Wolf Alliance Fund.” Britt squeezed his brother’s shoulder, and Jonah smiled and his index finger depressed the enter button.
Loving Deep: Steele Ridge Series Page 23