Gabe pulled his jacket off the kitchen chair before he slipped out the backdoor and around the side of the house. Inserting the blue-tooth earpiece in his ear, he slipped his jacket over his shoulders and took quick stock of the backyard.
Both dogs looked at him from their kennel, their big, old German Shepherd ears pitched forward like radar dishes. Neither offered any signal that they sensed an intruder, but he made sure the home was secure before he left. He loved them, but he didn’t trust them—not anymore. Not Alex Stewart’s dogs.
“Comm check,” Zack said quietly.
“Loud and clear. Looks like our company moved on.”
“I called Mark. Becker is on his way to us. Watch your six. That could be him out there.”
“Copy that. Good to know.” Gabe replied. Damned good to know.
The late summer evening had turned dark. Nothing stirred. Kelsey’s street ended in a cul-de-sac five doors north of her front door. Gabe swept through there in case Becker had decided to park. Nothing.
Walking back gave him a complete view of the rest of the street, including the T-intersection four doors south of her place and to the east. The driver of a mini-van tapped his brakes at the stop sign and proceeded south before turning into a driveway.
“I’ve got a silver van three doors south of the intersection. Anyone we know?”
“Saw it. Cromwell’s van. They usually go out for dinner. Must have called it an early night. Proceed.”
“Checking west perimeter next.” To do that, Gabe had to walk through two of Kelsey’s neighbors’ backyards to reach the street behind her house. This was the blind spot as far as he was concerned, so he’d mounted a couple of extra cameras on the street lights in front of those homes.
While Mark and Libby dealt with the administrative side of getting Kelsey released, Gabe and Zack had vetted their security perimeter with all the neighbors prior to trespassing and posting any off-property security cameras. It had been a good morning spent meeting Kelsey’s neighbors. She was well respected and loved. Not one person had argued with the extra precaution.
Gabe kept to the shadows, half-listening to the conversation back in Kelsey’s living room. It turned to healthcare, with Zack targeting Shelby for specifics. She was a Certified Nursing Assistant, a CNA, who preferred home-care to the stress of hospital work. She wasn’t married. No big surprise there, given her air of superiority.
“Hope you’re not doing this for my benefit,” Gabe muttered, his throat tight and sore.
Zack seemed not to hear so well. “You look too young. When did you graduate?”
“I’m old enough. I’ve been in private care for three years now.”
“That makes you all of what? Nineteen?” Zack teased Shelby.
“Twenty-three, if you must know.”
“What? No way. You engaged?”
“Knock it off.” Gabe didn’t even want to hear the answer to that one. “You’re so far off base, old man. Put a sock in it.”
“Not looking,” she responded lightly. “I’m dedicated to my patients.”
Don’t fib, little girl. You were certainly looking in the bathroom this morning.
“Why are you in private practice if you’re an RN?”
“Well, you see...” She hesitated. Gabe’s ears perked up. “I’m not actually a registered nurse. Not yet.”
Excuse me all to hell?
“I’m just a nursing assistant. I’m going to go back for my nursing degree one of these days.”
Then why the hell did you want us to call you Nurse Sullivan, Miss Smarty Pants?
Gabe shook his head at the nerve of that woman. Damn. The extent people go to for control.
Zack kept on not minding his business, as if that last revelation didn’t bother him. “You still live with your parents?”
“Oh, no. I have an apartment in Silver Springs. It’s in a very nice gated community with all the amenities.”
“Really? Well, isn’t it a small world? I know a guy who just bought a real nice home in Silver Springs.”
“Don’t do it, Lennox,” Gabe growled. His nosy senior agent was treading on thin ice. Shelby didn’t need to know Gabe might be her neighbor. Ever. Unless... could the old blabbermouth mean someone else?
“You don’t live far from the hospital then.” Zack artfully changed topics yet again. Sort of. “You live there all by yourself?”
“Not far, and yes, I live alone.”
“All alone? No dog? No cat?”
“No goldfish, either.” She chuckled, a pleasant sound in Gabe’s congested head.
That was a first. The old man must know his way around prickly women. He spoiled it by turning the conversation to second amendment rights. “You don’t think anyone has the right to carry guns though, do you?”
Great. That ought to get her stirred up.
Gabe coughed quietly into his sleeve. He stopped listening for her answer at the sound of a car engine idling. A sedan sat parked six car-lengths down the street to his right, its light off. “Target in sight,” he advised Zack.
“Copy that. You know what to do.” His answer came back soft and sure, while Shelby and Kelsey chatted in the background.
No problem. Watch the enemy and learn. Apprehend if necessary. Eliminate if push came to shove.
Gabe dropped behind the cover of a neatly trimmed privet hedge bordering the corner residence, a brick home with all lights blazing. Rock music bellowed from an open second-story window, signaling that at least one of the Browns’ three teenage boys was home.
Gabe liked these kids. They were hot-rodders, like him. The ’63 souped-up, two-door Nova in the driveway gave them away. It looked a lot like his, only this one needed a paint job to cover the primer-gray. Their father’s pristine candy-apple red Ford Fairlane caught his attention, too. Gear heads. Gotta love ’em.
Still out of sight, Gabe retrieved the pistol tucked under his left arm, racked the slide and slid a laser scope onto the top rail. Sometimes that little red dot was enough to make a man think twice.
Just in time. A single guy, dressed entirely in black, his head and face covered as well, stepped out of the driver’s side of the sedan, quietly shutting the door behind him. Six feet tall, body shape hinting him to be close to two hundred pounds. Ramrod straight posture. He walked between the two homes behind Kelsey’s. The bulk at his hip and the thigh holster spoke for themselves. This was no cat burglar.
Gabe swallowed hard. Now directly in front of Gabe’s position, but still on the street, the intruder glanced from left to right, his head cocked. He looked just like Alex. Walked just like him. Had to be him.
Undetected, Gabe waited. The soft rubber soles of his boots were designed to absorb the impact of sharp terrain, which also made them extra quiet. Given the right conditions, he could get the drop on this guy with no trouble.
Alex must’ve thought things were clear. He advanced to the sidewalk and between the homes, neither fenced. He stepped over a child’s plastic trike and other toys littering the joined space as if he knew exactly where he was going.
God, he had balls of brass.
Gabe followed, sticking close to the edge of the home to the north, his weapon aimed and ready. The guy seemed to know where he was going. Oddly, Whisper and Smoke remained quiet. That cinched it. Has to be Alex, the bastard! How could you do this to Kelsey! Your wife!
Gabe followed less than ten feet behind, his emotions running as high as his fever, until the stealthy man came to a halt at the Stewarts’ fence line. With one jump, he’d be out of reach and next to the dog kennel.
Not going to happen, you lying ass. Gabe closed the distance and pushed the barrel of his weapon between the guy’s shoulder blades before the jerk could make another move.
“What the hell are you doing out here, Boss? What’s going on? Turn around and knock off the black op routine.”
The man lifted his hands but didn’t turn around. The time to be nice was long gone. Gabe snatched the balaclava from guy
’s head.
Damn it to hell.
It wasn’t Alex.
Her ears perked up at the thump against the back door. And then her heart. Already in the kitchen, Shelby looked out the window. Gabe had a man at gunpoint, cuffed with his hands in front of him, on the step.
Zack’s hand clamped her shoulder. “Get away from the door. Go sit with Kelsey.”
“Why? Who is that?” She needed more than an order to comply. If something was going on, she wanted to know.
Zack twisted the knob to the left but didn’t open the door, his voice stern. “I said now, Miss Shelby. Sit with Kelsey. Don’t open the front door for anyone. Stay put.”
“You need to—”
“Now! That guy’s the reason we’re here. Now go. Do what you’re told.”
She stepped back, swallowing hard. Whoever Gabe had cornered, he must be dangerous for Zack to be so blunt. He let himself out to the porch and shut the door behind him. Shelby did as he’d asked.
“What’s going on?” Kelsey had actually smiled tonight, but worry lines etched her face now. “Is Gabe hurt?”
“No, he’s got some guy on your back step though.” Shelby peered over her shoulder, frightened for the man she didn’t want to have feelings for. Gabe was sick. He shouldn’t have been outside in his condition, much less working.
In came Zack again. “Kels, I hate to ask, but this guy says he knows you. Says he worked with Alex. I’ve never seen him before. Can you come to the back door and give me a yay or nay?”
“Sure.” She lifted off the couch and followed. Shelby, too.
Zack only let the women peer through the back-door window. Gabe didn’t even look up, his eyes dark, bent on the stranger. And darn. His chest heaved, probably from all that dirty river water. He kept blinking, as if he were exhausted.
The stranger looked up, his rugged face lit with a cheerful smile when he spied Kelsey. He could’ve passed for the Marlboro man. Thick, wavy hair. Mustache. Scruff on his chin and cheeks, but his neck clean-shaven. Handsome. He tipped his head in friendly greeting, like a cowboy might touch two fingers to the brim of his hat.
Honestly, Gabe looked meaner, sick as he was. Shelby relaxed. What was there to worry about?
“I’ve never seen him,” Kelsey told Zack. “Why would he say such a thing?”
He grunted. “To get close to you. Look again. Are you sure?”
“Pretty sure. I’ve met a lot of people since I married Alex. I might be wrong. Do you want me to talk to him?”
Zack hesitated. “Only if you stay on this side of the door. Gabe won’t let him get to you. He’s already disarmed this joker, so don’t be afraid.”
“I’m not afraid. Let’s see what he thinks he knows.”
Disarmed? Okay, so maybe he wasn’t so harmless after all.
Zack opened the door, but kept his arm between Kelsey and the screen.
“Mrs. Stewart,” the stranger greeted her amicably enough. “It’s nice to see you again. You may not remember me, but I remember you. You’re as pretty as ever. Hayden Carell, at your service, ma’am. We met in Seattle when you and Alex were headed up North to Alaska for halibut fishing. Remember?”
She pursed her lips thoughtfully. “Which cruise were you on?”
A big smile cracked his rugged face. “Now you know better than that. Alex leased a private rig. The Frigid Wind. Remember?”
Hayden Carell didn’t look dangerous, but Gabe did, his elbows cocked, his pistol aimed at the man’s chest. Gabe was sick and breathing hard, but fierce. Angry. His lips were set in a thin hard line that brooked no discussion. His eyes had changed from puppy dog adorable to the feral glitter of an alpha wolf protecting his pack.
So this is what he looks like when he’s ready to lay down his life. Or take one.
“Is he right?” Shelby asked, pushing her glasses up on her nose to see more clearly. “About the fishing boat, I mean.”
Kelsey huffed softly. “I don’t know. The name’s right, but I can’t place him.”
“I’m sure sorry to hear about Alex,” the stranger said contritely, as if he really cared. “And I’m sorry I got your boys here all riled up for nothing, too. The truth is, Alex asked me to check in on you if anything ever happened to him. I’m only following up on my good buddy’s last request. That’s why I’m here.”
“You call creeping around her house checking up on her?” Gabe snapped. “Was that you standing under her bedroom window the other night, too?”
Kelsey gasped. So did Shelby. Darn. The secret was out.
Hayden Carell, if that’s what his name really was, shook his head, releasing a hank of wavy hair over his forehead. He smoothed it back with a big hand as his gaze zeroed in on Gabe. “Kind of hard to walk up and knock on her door with you goons on patrol every hour on the hour. I didn’t think I could get in to see her the way you’ve got the place buttoned up and locked down. Hell. It’s a might safer than Leavenworth.”
“I don’t know you,” Kelsey stated firmly, drawing his attention off Gabe.
“It’s okay. Don’t worry about it. You do remember me pulling you out of the river though, don’t you? You can’t have forgotten that.”
A tiny yelp burst from her throat. “That was you?”
Shelby put a protective arm across Kelsey’s shoulders. With one breath, this jerk had ripped the last shred of hope from her.
“Yes, ma’am. Glad I could oblige. My buddy, Craig Olsen, said I could use his summer place if I ever needed it. Sure glad. You were in mighty bad shape that morning. I needed to get you somewhere safe.”
“Listen, buddy. IF that was you, why didn’t you take her to the hospital?” Shelby demanded. “Why take her to some guy’s house and hide her away for three days, huh? You want to explain that?”
“Someone needed to keep her safe,” he drawled, extra slowly, as if he needed to make a point.
“Not good enough, Mr. Carell, or whoever you really are.” This guy was lying through his straight, white teeth. He’d manipulated Kelsey, and she wasn’t strong enough to see through him. Well, Shelby could, by heck. “She was badly hurt. You should’ve called an ambulance. You should have had her transported to the emergency room. Instead, you let the people who love her go crazy with worry. We searched for three days while you played hero. She could’ve died.”
He lifted one shoulder. “Guess after your guys let Alex die, I wasn’t convinced you could keep her safe.”
“I didn’t let him die,” Gabe spat. He closed in on the guy, but Zack lifted a hand to stop him.
Gabe’s emotional outburst caught Shelby short. Oh my. Gabe. You poor thing. You didn’t let anyone die. He just—did.
“But my dogs,” Kelsey murmured. “They scented Alex on the river. I know they did. I just watched them do it. Twice.”
Hayden Carell had the good grace to offer a truly sad face. Even his mustache drooped. “Sure sorry ’bout that. Your husband gave me a good pair of boots when he came home on emergency leave from Iraq. They were nearly new, so I kept them and used them. Must’ve been what the dogs caught wind of.”
Oh, my God. Shelby shuddered. All along Kelsey had insisted that Alex had climbed into bed with her. Was it really this guy? Had he gotten inside? Had he held her in his arms and—
Ewww. The thought that this guy might have taken that extreme liberty with a medicated and unconscious woman creeped Shelby out, but it made sense. Kind of. She shot a lightning quick glance at Gabe, wanting to ask, but not willing to frighten Kelsey any more than she already was.
Kelsey stepped away from the stranger, shaking her head. “No. It wasn’t you. Not you. It was Alex.”
The front doorbell rang.
“Don’t let him out of your sight,” Zack growled.
Gabe shifted his weight, his pistol still aimed at Hayden Carell’s head, while Zack pulled the ladies inside before he locked the rear door. Striding through the house with Kelsey and Shelby at his side, he pointed at the couch. “Sit. Now.”
/> Shelby knew better than to argue, but damn. Carell seemed to have an answer for everything. Maybe Alex really was dead.
Mark Houston burst into the house. “Where is he? I want the bastard before the police get here.”
“He’s all yours.” Zack nodded toward the back.
“He hurt anyone?”
“Settle down. Hell, he didn’t get the chance. Gabe intercepted him at the back fence line. He’s cuffed and disarmed. Not going anywhere. Calls himself Hayden Carell. I’ve got to tell you, he sounds authentic.”
“Like hell. He’s Sam Becker, the FBI bastard who killed Alex.”
“Oh, no,” Kelsey murmured as she sank deeper into the couch, her face as pale as the day she’d come home from the hospital. She clutched one hand to her mouth.
And Shelby had had enough. Jumping to her feet, she blocked Kelsey from Mark’s view. “Stop it. Right now. You guys need to leave. I won’t have you hurting her. She’s had enough and so have I.”
Mark shot her a menacing look, but Shelby didn’t back down. She took another step forward, her finger pointed into his chest. “You’re as bad as that guy out there,” she bellowed, her index finger stabbed in the direction she meant Mark to go. Away, damn it! “You’re hurting her! Go outside and break someone else’s heart!”
He nodded, his anger restrained. His gaze flickered over her shoulder to Kelsey, but it was Zack who dropped to one knee at Kelsey’s feet. “I’m sorry, Kels. For a minute there, Gabe had us all believing, didn’t he?”
Kelsey broke down. She dropped her face into her hands and Shelby came unglued. “I still believe, damn it. Gabe’s telling the truth. Trust him, Kelsey. Not Hayden What’s-his name. He’s a liar.”
Kelsey’s shoulders heaved, and Shelby melted onto the couch beside her. She took her sad friend in her arms and pressed her to her chest, stoking her head. Shelby’s eyes brimmed as Kelsey’s pain became hers. This nightmare had to stop.
“Your husband is alive, Kelsey,” she crooned, rocking back and forth and giving Kelsey all she had to give. Kelsey had become more than a client. She was family.
Chapter Twenty
Gabe (In the Company of Snipers Book 8) Page 20