Explosive Alliance

by Susan Sleeman

  She looked up from her phone with a smile. “We’re in luck. It has a hard drive.”

  “Great. I’ll ride in with Veronica and put a rush on this.” Jake stood and looked at the other team members. “You’ll need to take the truck. I don’t care who drives, but you’d better bring the rig home in one piece.” He tossed the keys in the air. Darcie snatched them and the guys glared at her.

  Skyler tugged Darcie up and took her spot next to Krista. “I know you don’t want to relive all of this, but I should take your statement while it’s fresh in your mind. If you’ll give me a sec, I’ll call Logan for a ride home, then we can get started.”

  “The rest of us will get out of your hair.” Brady crossed the room and stood looking down on Krista. “I was wrong about you, Krista, and I’m not embarrassed to admit it. I thought my friend here wasn’t thinking clearly.” He clapped Cash on the back. “Turns out, I was the one who was missing the obvious.”

  “Not a stretch for you,” Cash said, earning a punch in the arm from Brady.

  Archer focused on Krista. “Don’t be surprised if you have some lingering emotional issues from today. I’d be glad to refer you to someone if you need some help.”

  “He’s right,” Darcie added. “No one will think less of you.”

  Krista smiled. “I appreciate your concern.”

  “C’mon, you two,” Darcie said to Brady and Archer. “First one to the truck gets to drive.”

  The guys bolted for the door, and Cash laughed. “It’s not often Jake lets anyone else drive.”

  “I’m sorry I’m missing out on it.” Skyler pulled her micro-recorder from her pocket. “Let’s get started with your statement, Krista.”

  Cash didn’t miss the fact that Skyler had stopped using Ms. Curry. A big step for her.

  Krista started her story and stayed strong like the trouper she’d proved to be. Cash, however, nearly lost it as Krista described Ian’s rough treatment. An hour later, Skyler was wrapping up the questions when her phone rang.

  “It’s Jake,” she said, then put him on speaker.

  “Are you all sitting down?” he asked.

  Could mean good or bad news and Cash had had it with the bad stuff. “Just tell us what you found.”

  “We not only have the banking information, but a spreadsheet Toby copied the night he died. It lists every scammed senior and the amount of money they lost.”

  “That’s wonderful,” Krista exclaimed. “We can pay them back.”

  “I’m sure there will be a bunch of legal mumbo jumbo to go through, but yeah, looks like the victims will be getting their money back. And you’ll be happy to know, Summers has made a full confession.”

  “Then Krista is completely in the clear.” Skyler smiled at Krista. “I hope you’re not upset that we had to keep you on our suspect list.”

  “Honestly, I was worried you were like Detective Eason, but you’re nothing like him.” Krista squeezed Skyler’s hand.

  “If you girls are done kissing and making up...” Jake’s voice came over the phone as the doorbell rang.

  “That will be Logan.” Skyler got up. “Do you need anything else, Jake?”

  “Nah. Go spend time with Logan. You worked hard on this investigation and you’ve earned it.”

  She disconnected. “Well, you heard the man. I’ve been ordered to spend time with my sweetie.” Laughing, she headed for the door, then turned. “FYI, Krista, I’ll be calling Eason. We’ll hold a joint press conference to make sure everyone knows your name is cleared.”

  “Which means I can go back to my legal name.” Krista smiled.

  “That you can.” Skyler stepped out the door.

  Cash dropped onto the sofa next to Krista. “Alone at last.”

  She peered at him. “I’m really starting to like your teammates, but I was hoping they’d leave.”

  He took her hand, closing his fingers around hers. His hand dwarfed hers, her skin soft. Her lips curved in a shaky smile, bringing out dimples he hadn’t seen before. The phone rang.

  “Let it roll to the answering machine,” Cash urged as he moved even closer.

  She didn’t get up to answer, but despite Cash’s efforts to keep her attention, she kept her gaze fixed on the machine. Disappointed, Cash cupped the side of her face to get her attention. She focused on him until the caller announced that he was Otto’s doctor wanting to report Otto’s latest test results. She jumped up and grabbed the phone, catching the doctor before he hung up.

  “You have the results?” she whispered, as if afraid to hear the news.

  Cash saw her pull in a breath and hold it. He did the same thing. Waiting. Hoping. Watching.

  She listened intently until a wide smile slid across her face. She thanked the doctor, and as she hung up, she twirled in a circle, her eyes alight with happiness.

  “Good news, I take it,” Cash said.

  “Opa’s responding to the chemo. The doctor is optimistic about his prognosis.”

  “That’s great.” Cash’s heart flooded with joy.

  Krista sat but instead of seeming open to him, she hugged her arms around herself.

  Was she protecting herself from him? From the chance of being hurt by another man?

  When he finally explained that he’d kept something from her, would she walk away?

  He drew in a breath to tell her, but all of a sudden he wasn’t certain he was strong enough to take the risk.

  * * *

  Something changed in Cash. He’d been alive and cheerful, as happy for Opa as Krista was, then suddenly the light had gone out as if someone had flipped a switch. She had to know what was going on.

  She made sure her gaze was soft and encouraging. “You can tell me whatever’s bothering you.”

  He opened his mouth. Closed it. Opened it again. “I...I’ve been thinking. About all you’ve gone through lately. Men have let you down a lot. Except Otto.”

  She hadn’t expected this topic at all, but she’d go with it. “I’ve had my share of disappointments. That’s why I didn’t want to get involved with anyone. I kept saying it was because I couldn’t trust my own judgment, but honestly, I was just afraid of getting hurt again.”

  “I’ll never hurt you,” he said almost in a whisper. “At least not intentionally.” He took her hand, engulfing it with long, strong fingers. “I’m not really keeping a secret from you like Toby did, but there’s a part of my life I haven’t told you about.”

  A moment of apprehension had her drawing back, but she was done running. If he revealed something horrible, she’d find a way to deal with it. “Tell me.”

  “When I was Delta...my team...we were family, you know? But then, one day...it was near Kandahar. We were charged with escorting a special leader and keeping him alive at all costs. There was this bridge.” He stopped and shook his head, his sorrow so obvious she knew something terrible was coming.

  “Once we crossed the bridge, we’d be home free. But then the Taliban attacked. Had us pinned down. Our only way out was to call in air support. It was risky because we were so close to the insurgents. A two-thousand-pound bomb falling that close...I don’t have to tell you what it could do, but it was our only option. I was the senior officer so I made the call.”

  He paused again and she felt him tremble. She clutched his hand and willed him the strength to go on.

  “The bomb went astray.” He looked up at the ceiling. “I’ll never forget it hitting. I was thrown in the air and my ears started ringing. Chaos all around me. The only thing that saved me was the mud walls. They’d baked in the hot sun for so long they took the worst of the blast.” His voice dropped lower. “The other guys on the team didn’t make it. I had a blown eardrum and a knot on my head, but that was it. I was fine. Our protectee survived. Mission accomplished. But the cost
. Man, the cost.”

  “I’m so sorry, Cash,” she said and knew her words couldn’t possibly convey how badly she felt for him. “You must’ve been devastated.”

  He jerked his hand free and plunged it into his hair. “I shouldn’t be walking around talking about it while the guys are buried six feet under.”

  “You couldn’t have done anything to stop it.”

  “I know, and here’s the thing. I’ve thought about it and thought about it. Over and over, replaying the day. And every time I come up with the same thing. If I was in that position today, I’d do the same thing. The odds of a bomb going astray? Let’s just say they’re crazy big odds. I made the right call.”

  “But it still hurts.”

  “Yeah, and I gotta wonder, why me, you know? Why’d I survive? God could’ve let me go, too. Some days I think it would’ve been easier.”

  “Please don’t think that way. Ever.” She grabbed his hand again and kissed the palm. “God wants you alive, and He put you in my life. Maybe to save me like you tried to do with your men. To save the other people you’ve rescued in your new job. To let me see I can trust men again. To love again.” She looked deeply into his eyes. “I love you, Cash. With my whole heart.”

  He flashed a quick smile, one that made his whole face come alive.

  “I love you, too,” he said but his smile fell. “But you have to know. This thing with my team and the way it makes me feel...I’m working on it, but I haven’t resolved it. Still, seeing what you and Otto share gives me hope I can have the same thing in my life.”

  “You want to be my grandfather?” she joked to lighten the tension.

  “Most definitely not your grandfather.” He gave her a wicked look, jerked her into his arms and kissed her soundly.

  “Hmm,” she said when he lifted his head. “That kiss was not at all grandfatherly.”

  He trailed his finger down her cheek and that luminous smile returned. A smile that made her feel as if she was the only person in his life. A smile she’d love to have trained on her again and again.

  “Maybe we should try it again,” he said. “Like a thousand or so times and then come up for air.”

  “I’m thinking Opa might come out before that happens. But then again, he probably wouldn’t interrupt. You passed the Opa test long ago.”

  “Is that so?”

  She nodded solemnly. “Very few people make the cut, so we better get started on that relationship before we disappoint him.”

  Cash smiled. “I agree, Krista Cu—Alger.”

  She frowned. “You’re going to have to get used to the different last name.”

  “Not to worry.” The same grin lit his face. “I suspect it won’t be long before you’ll have another name change. I kinda like Krista Dixon. How about you?”

  “Oh, yeah.” She gazed into his eyes, her heart overflowing with love. “Krista Dixon sounds perfect to me.”

  * * * * *

  Keep reading for an excerpt from GONE MISSING by Camy Tang

  Dear Reader,

  Peace. It’s such an elusive concept at times. At least it is for me. I’m a take-charge kind of person and when things don’t go according to plan, I sometimes lose my peace. It’s at these times I have to step back and ask God what His plans are in this situation. If I don’t, I will fret until the problem is resolved.

  Though I consciously work on this area in my own life, I still struggle with it. That’s why I decided to write the First Responder series. Each story revolves around finding peace in trying times. In fact, as I wrote book two, Explosive Alliance, I was surprised at how much the spiritual content applied to my life. I hope as you read this series and see the team members search for peace in their lives that they will help you find more peace in yours.

  If you’d like to learn more about this new series, stop by my website at susansleeman.com. I also love hearing from readers, so please contact me via email, susan@susansleeman.com, on my Facebook page, facebook.com/SusanSleemanBooks, or write to me at Love Inspired, 233 Broadway, Suite 1001, New York, NY 10279.

  Susan Sleeman

  http://www.harlequin.com/harlequinexperience

  We hope you enjoyed this Harlequin Love Inspired Suspense story.

  You enjoy a dash of danger. Love Inspired Suspense stories feature strong heroes and heroines whose faith is central in solving mysteries and saving lives.

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  ONE

  The man had danger written all over him.

  Or maybe that was just Joslyn’s perception because of the grim cast to his mouth and the way his powerful body moved with the athletic grace of a man confident in his physical strength. His blue-gray eyes found hers across the hot sidewalk in front of Fiona Crowley’s Phoenix home, and her vision wavered as if he were a mirage.

  The sun glinted off of the straight, blond-streaked, brown hair that fell over his forehead, and it triggered a memory for her. Fiona had the same hair color, and in pictures she’d shown Joslyn of her brother, they’d looked very much alike.

  Joslyn looked more closely at the man as he closed the car door and approached her where she stood at the edge of Fiona’s front yard. He had golden-brown stubble that softened his square jaw, but there was no doubt that the shape of his face was the same as Fiona’s, although wider and more sharply cut.

  “Are you...Clay?” Joslyn guessed as he stopped in front of her.

  His low brow wrinkled. “Who are you?” His voice was deep but not gravelly, with a smoothness that made her think of honey.

  The Arizona sun had been unbearably hot since six this morning, but it suddenly became a furnace. A bead of sweat trickled down the side of her neck, and she wiped at it. “I’m Joslyn Dimalanta. I was good friends with Fiona when she lived in Los Angeles—we were classmates in the same master’s degree program. You’re her brother, right? You look exactly like her.”

  “Half brother.” There was a tinge of bitterness in his tone. “What are you doing here?”

  “I’m here looking for Fiona.” She straightened her shoulders. “I got a postcard from her—”

  “When?” Clay’s eyes suddenly became more intense, and he took a half step toward her.

  He wasn’t a large man, but something about the strength simmering beneath his wide shoulders gave Joslyn a flash of memory of her abusive ex-boyfriend, and her heartbeat went into red alert for a second. It must have showed on her face, because he looked conscientious and quickly stepped back.

  She took a long breath before answering him. “Fiona sent it three weeks ago, but I only got it a few days ago. It was sent to my old address in LA.”

  “Three weeks? I got a phone call from her three weeks ago.”

  “What did she say? Is she all right?”

  “She said, ‘Clay, help me,’ and then she hung up.” A muscle flexed in his jaw.

  “Did she sound frightened? Stressed?”

  “Her voice shook.” Worry was etched in his face, in the lines between his brows and alongside his mouth. “I hadn’t heard from her in...” He stopped himself and looked away.

  Joslyn knew, from what Fiona had mentioned back in LA, that Fiona and Clay had been close as children, but had drifted apart. “Before I got the postcard, I hadn’t spoken to Fiona in the two years since she left LA.” Why would she reach out to him now?

  “What did she say?”

  “She said she was in trouble and needed my help. But she didn’t say where she was.”
The handwriting had been messy, as if written in a hurry, but she’d recognized it as Fiona’s.

  “Where was the postmark from?”

  “Phoenix. The card was a touristy Grand Canyon design, prestamped.”

  Clay frowned. “That’s strange. Why would she call me and send you a postcard?”

  And why wouldn’t she say anything more than that she needed help? The knot at the base of her skull tightened even more. “It’s why I came here. I had to do some digging to find her address—after she left LA, it looks like she didn’t want to be found.”

  “I had to hire a private investigator to find this address for me.” But there was uncertainty in his face as he glanced at the house. The house’s large front bay window had white curtains pulled across it, and there was no way to know if anyone was inside. “Did you ring the doorbell?”

  “No, I just got here.”

  Clay’s mouth was grim. “Maybe it was just a bad joke.”

  On two people Fiona hadn’t spoken to in years? Joslyn didn’t think it was likely, but the alternative was that Fiona was in serious trouble.

  Clay strode up the concrete walkway that wound through the stone garden in the front yard to the door. “Let’s hope she doesn’t run away screaming when she sees me,” he muttered.

  “Fiona always talked about what a great big brother you were,” Joslyn said. Protective. Someone she’d trust. Fiona had loved him dearly, but had simply shaken her head sadly when Joslyn asked why she didn’t try to get in touch with Clay again after all these years.

  He looked at Joslyn in surprise, his eyes lightening to blue. It transformed his serious face into that of a man from whom a great burden had been lifted. But then pain flickered across his gaze and he turned away.

  Joslyn followed him to the front door, trying to wrap her head around everything that had come out in the past few minutes. This was too much thrown at her at once—not just Fiona’s postcard, but her phone call to Clay, equally as vague. And then meeting Clay here, seeing firsthand the strength in his body and the fearless way he carried himself, fitting the stories Fiona had told Joslyn about Clay being a mob strong-arm in Chicago, before he went to prison.