Special Forces: Operation Alpha: Protecting Beauty (Kindle Worlds Novella) (The Bounty Hunters: The Marino Bros. Book 5)

by MJ Nightingale

“You sure you want me to stop?” he teased in return, raising one eyebrow at her mischievously. She was pleased that his mood was lighter and that it wasn’t pretense either.

  Melody nodded. “Yes, no.” They both laughed at her answer. But her actions answered more clearly. She took a step outside the room, and while standing in the hallway, added, “Why don’t we meet in the lobby around three-thirty since I’m getting a late start? We can go out for an early dinner, and then come back here for a little fun of our own?” Melody returned the eyebrow wiggle which made Tex’s smile brighter. “And whatever amazing plans you can come up with for the evening will be fine with me.”

  Inside her head Melody calculated how much time that gave her. She had about five hours.

  “Sounds good to me,” Tex replied. His eyes crinkled at the corners from the thought of their fun together later. Melody was his forever. He couldn’t imagine not having her in his life. She’d not had an easy road, and she was a remarkable a woman. She got him. She was the only one who ever had. Except for his brothers in arms, of course.

  He would plan a special evening for them. He knew that one of her favorite musicians was in town and was hoping he could snag some last minute tickets to the concert at the Ford amphitheater.

  As he shut the door behind her, he too calculated the time he had. About five hours, he thought. Plenty of time to check in with Wolf and the men, do their test, and also call Akilah. He’d Skype with her. She was staying at Caroline’s and would love talking to him. He also might check in with Amy to find out how Baby was doing. Then, he’d get the tickets and find a restaurant that would wow his wife. That had to come first.

  Then and only then he would begin to dig into Cat’s past. He wanted to learn all there was to learn about Cat Stone. And he hoped like hell she had at least experienced a few moments of happiness. If not, he knew the guilt would never leave him.

  Sighing, he sat down at his computer. The images from his earlier search were still there. He looked at her face. Her eyes. They were so familiar. But different too. In some of the pictures her eyes looked sad. In others angry. And in others they even looked happy. And that gave him the courage to put the images away and do what he needed to do first.

  ***

  AFTER STRETCHING AND hanging up the phone with Wolf three hours later, Tex made his way back into his hotel room. He had enjoyed most of the morning on the balcony, but it was getting too warm now. Plus, he needed to recharge the laptop, his battery was running low. He was happy with the test though. The tracking software was working perfectly and the time lapse was less than thirty seconds. With a few minor adjustments, they would be able to pinpoint locations of anyone they had trackers for within five seconds. It would do.

  He’d called his daughter. Akilah had been thrilled, and it had cheered him up to see her so happy enjoying her time with Caroline and the others. He hoped he and Melody and Akilah would move to California. Akilah’s support network would be so much bigger. But that was Melody’s choice.

  Tex put his phone on the charger and plugged in his laptop and went to the small refrigerator to get a cold drink. He also wanted to stretch a bit more. He wasn’t putting off delving into Cat’s past. He just needed to frequently stretch his muscles. Having a job that kept him behind a desk most of the time could wreak havoc on his body. But after a time, he felt ready, and resumed his spot in front of the computer screen. With just a few clicks, Cat’s story was before him once more, and he began to read. Her images were splashed everywhere it seemed, more so recently than before.

  After two hours of research, he was finally able to sigh a breath of relief, though a small one. Cat Stone, Katarina Stenin, was now Cat Marino. She had married seven and a half months earlier to Andreas Marino, a former NYPD detective, who now ran his own Bail, Bonds, & Bounty Business. He also did private security work for the local elite, was highly recommended, and sought after for his special services. The man seemed like an all-around good guy. No black marks could he find on his record. Cat had found someone who was able to protect. . .no, save her after all. It just had not been him.

  He was glad his wife was somewhat right. The woman had found happiness it seemed, but that had only been recently. During the previous ten years, in his mind, her life had been hell. Pure hell. And he would have to live with that.

  Chapter 6

  “WHAT?” MELODY EXCLAIMED, acting surprised by the bomb shell her husband dropped while they sat at the crowded bar waiting to be seated for dinner. Once in the hotel, she had left her packages with the concierge to deliver to her room and they had set off. Although he tried to appear nonchalant, she knew from the moment he met her in the hotel lobby that he was bothered by something. Obviously giving him the day to take care of his Wolf project and to do a little snooping into Cat’s background had backfired on her. But she also knew he wouldn’t just rely on “cold hard facts” presented by the media that he’d found during his search. She was curious to see if his sleuthing matched her own.

  “Yes, she started her own escort service. She was a prostitute.” His tone didn’t make it sound dirty, but rather defeated. Melody concluded her husband hadn’t gotten much positive from his digging. Or hadn’t been willing to see the positives.

  “Oh, honey, I’m so sorry. But running an escort service doesn’t necessarily mean a rough life out on the streets.” She didn’t want to reveal her hand just yet, or give him false hope; she wanted to learn more first, and she’d done a little of her own snooping while shopping. Like him, she had googled Cat and gotten her name right away and found she had married recently. Whereas her husband focused in on the horrifying recent events, she had focused in on the marriage. The locals were only too happy to talk about the two local celebrities as well. And Cat and her handsome husband were definitely that. In fact, the Marino name was very well-known in the Bay Area. She had down a quick search using her phone on Andreas Marino, the man Cat had married. She had read that he and his brothers were local celebrities, and that they had recently handled some very difficult cases for which they had been recognized. Instead of using strictly Google, she’d decided to get her information from a more human source. She’d sat on a bench outside one of the stores she had been shopping in and struck up a conversation with a woman waiting for a bus. For a while, as the woman had gossiped, Melody regretted her decision to fact gather, but when the woman started talking about the wedding, which she had seen photos of in a local magazine, and started telling her about the wonderful family Cat had married into, Melody was able to relax. It seemed the entire Marino clan was well known and respected in the area. There were four brothers and each had made headlines recently involving solving crimes and catching serious criminals. They also did charity work and their wives all made contributions to several charities in the area. Lisa and Cat helped out at the battered women’s shelter. Ronnie and Bella helped and donated to animal rescue and environmental conservation projects. And the entire family, husbands and wives did a great deal of work with Fight for the Fallen, a local charity that helped wounded veterans. That had caused Melody’s eyebrows to perk up. She and Tex volunteered at their local chapter.

  Yes, it was sad that for a while Cat had gone back to the only life she knew. And then to make matters worse, she was stalked by the son of the bastard who had held her for all her teenaged years, and the son almost killed her in Maryland, but what the middle aged woman provided was insight—the between the lines information that Google didn’t provide. Cat was known to be a strong woman who was immensely happy with her life. She did volunteer work in the community and on the local military base and helped out at a quite a few local shelters for battered and abused women. From what Melody could gather, this wasn’t a woman who was a victim. She was a survivor, and her husband had to know that. But knowing her husband like she did, he would have to see it with his own eyes to believe it.

  “She married the man who rescued her. A cop. Well, a former NYPD detective.” Tex picked up his beer bottle and
took a long drink telling Melody something else she already knew. Tex was pleased with Cat’s choice, but still that didn’t mean much. There were bad people in all lines of work, he thought to himself. It was true he hadn’t found any dirt on the man, but you never really could know a person, not behind closed doors. And with Cat, a sense of foreboding surrounded him. It was his guilt still eating away at him. He tried not to let Melody hear it in his voice.

  “Well, that’s something,” Melody stated brightly, trying to not give too much away. Not until she could be one hundred percent sure the woman wasn’t as miserable as Tex seemed to think she was would she dare voice her idea. And a plan was just beginning to form.

  “I guess so,” Tex stated noncommittally. He set down the nearly empty beer bottle and considered ordering a second as they waited to be seated at the table in the restaurant the hotel’s concierge had suggested, Shepard’s Ocean Flame. This place was packed, and the twenty minutes the hostess had promised seemed a little far-fetched, so Tex was a little shocked when exactly twenty minutes later the buzzer went off.

  Melody held up the small black square plastic device in the direction of the hostess who nodded and indicated for them to follow her. Helping Melody off of her high top stool, they followed the young hostess to their table. It was a small shiny black table top in an alcove that overlooked the water. The view was amazing. The hostess handed them menus and promised someone would arrive shortly to take their drink order.

  And no sooner had they grown accustomed to the dimmer lighting when a waiter arrived and did just that. Sitting back, Melody relaxed into the comfortable chair and asked Tex another question. She wanted to be sure she knew all that he knew, or if not, at least most of it. “Did you find out anything about her life now?”

  Settling in, Tex put his menu down and gave his wife his full attention. “It seems she no longer runs her agency. She is by all accounts a happily married woman who does charity work. Her husband runs a PI service, and is also a bounty hunter. He has three brothers and they all work together. He is well known and respected in the community. Legit services, and he helps to clear people wrongly accused of crimes. There is talk that the governor has hinted at having him head up the newly formed Innocence Project for the State.”

  Tex was thorough, Melody would give him that. He had gathered plenty of information on the man Cat married. But it was all just that. A list of facts. And she knew her husband still had his doubts. She saw it in the fine lines around his eyes. “He sounds like a good man,” she offered.

  “Yes, he does.” Tex’s words came quickly, but were clipped.

  Melody sighed. She didn’t have a choice. How in hell was she going to help her husband get out of this funk? Seeing Cat Stone had him as worried and melancholy as he was when any of their friends had been out of reach. With their friends, it was easy, a few mouse clicks and a location was given, and they were a phone call away to reassure you they were okay. But with this Cat Marino, a virtual stranger to them, how did you convince the person you love that she was okay. Could you just walk right up to her and ask? She’d likely tell them to take a hike, and it was none of their business. Or would she? And did Melody have such bravado? She smiled inwardly. Well, she knew the answer to that. She’d do whatever it took to put a smile on Tex’s face, or their daughter’s, or her dog’s for that matter. Without hesitation.

  “Honey, I really hate to see you letting this eat away at you,” she voiced her concern aloud.

  Tex sighed heavily knowing his attempt to hide his feelings from his wife had been an abysmal failure. “I know. I don’t like it either. It’s just seeing her brought it all back.”

  Again Melody kept it positive while she continued to formulate her plan. “But she does seem like she has her life together now.”

  He made a tsking sound then let his held breath escape through his lips before he spoke “Well, I just wish I knew for sure,” he said, picking up his menu once more. He was tired of the conversation and how it was making him feel. He reminded himself again and again what this vacation was about. Him and Melody. Stress free. And for the past two days they had very little of that. He put on a big smile for Melody. “Let’s drop the subject, doll. I’m hungry and I just don’t want to think about it anymore tonight.” When he saw her pick up her menu and nod, he gave Melody a broad wink. He still hadn’t told her about the concert tickets for later that night. Those babies would get both their minds off of Cat Stone.

  Melody saw the determination in her husband’s face to salvage the rest of the weekend and nodded her assent. She suddenly felt queasy. She was hungry, but the toll this was taking on her man had her feeling uneasy. She would get the fish, nothing too spicy, she thought as she picked up her menu to give it another quick scan. Yes, definitely the fish. Something light. Her stomach had been rolling all day; in fact it had been bothering her since they had seen this woman yesterday too. Her woman’s intuition told her that she needed to take care of this situation with Cat Marino sooner rather than later. They still had nine days and she very much wanted her husband’s undivided attention.

  The waiter came and took their order. Tex ordered a Ribeye with a lobster tail and a baked potato. She was glad his appetite was still okay. That was something. She sipped her lemonade and contemplated how she could make sure this woman was okay for Tex. She wanted her man back, and for them to enjoy the rest of their vacation. He worked so hard these past few months. The SEAL team he was a part of had just recently wrapped up a big case and though he hadn’t gone with the men, he worked just as long and hard as they did. Not only was he responsible for keeping an eye on them, but also making sure their woman and children were safe at home. No easy task with them all so spread out. The more and more she thought about it, the more she began to conclude that drastic times called for drastic measures. She may have to barge in on this woman’s private life to get the answers she needed.

  When their orders arrived, she decided to let the subject drop as Tex wished. She switched to her work, telling him about how she was enjoying the new project she was working on. She loved being able to work from home, setting her own hours. It gave her the leisure to work her schedule around Tex’s and Akilah’s, and be the kind of wife and mother she’d always wanted to be. Her latest job was for a university student who was deaf, and she transcribed the lectures for a class he was taking at Yale.

  As usual, Tex listened attentively, and made all the right comments as he dug into his food. Her man. He could always eat. He needed to. Despite losing his leg, he ran and he worked out daily. When wearing pants, and when his limp wasn’t bad, one would never know her husband had lost his leg in Iraq. He had a perfect body in her mind.

  Tex laughed across the table when Melody described the eccentric college professor while still picturing her husband. Melody loved hearing that sound and looked up at him, startled. He was smiling from ear to ear.

  She smiled back at him, and he laughed harder. “What?” she queried, amusement in her voice becoming more evident.

  Tex shook his head before speaking in wonderment. “The way you were looking at me, Mel. I know exactly what you were thinking. You dirty lady,” he accused, lowering his voice seductively. “You were undressing me with your eyes.” His brown eyes were flecked with gold at that moment. Gold and mischief.

  Melody practically spit out her lemonade. Sometimes he shocked her. The words he chose, and the fact that he had been dead on, shocked her even more. It was like he could read her mind sometimes.

  She couldn’t deny it. Her blush creeping up her neck and cheeks gave her away. “Of course, I can’t. . .can’t help myself when you are around.” They both laughed at her flustered response.

  “Soon, babe, soon. And for the record, I can’t wait to strip that sundress off of your body and feast on my woman.” Tex pushed his plate away. His eyes showed his hunger, although he was done eating his dinner.

  Melody’s mouth went suddenly dry, but she couldn’t help teasing him in r
eturn. She pointed her fork at his plate, but her words came out huskily, “Looks like your belly is pretty full as it is.”

  “Oh it is, but, I’ll work it off later.” Tex’s eyes were molten. He wished he hadn’t purchased the concert tickets after all. But it would please her. And please her well, he aimed to do. It just had to be after the concert.

  ***

  AND HE DID. After the concert Tex and Melody returned to their suite where he made love to his wife, not once, but twice, despite their long day. And after she fell asleep in his arms, he gently slid out from between the blankets careful not to wake her. Grabbing his crutch, he hoisted himself as quietly as he could and made his way to the desk in the far corner of the room. Risking the light waking her, he powered up the device quickly lowering the resolution to reduce the glow. Cat was on his mind and more questions had surfaced. He needed answers, and with his wife asleep now was as good a time as any to get those answers.

  ***

  MELODY FELT THE bed shift as Tex hoisted himself up, but she remained quiet. She knew what he was doing. And it wasn’t the first time. When he was on a mission and worried about someone, he often got up in the night to track someone and do whatever he could to help bring the mission to a successful conclusion. And even though she knew this wasn’t his mission any longer, she also knew it still was. A Navy SEAL didn’t quit. And even though he wasn’t a SEAL when he worked Cat’s case, it was still a mission, and one in his heart that wouldn’t end until he had all the answers he needed.

  Melody heard the soft tap of keys on the keyboard and continued to feign sleep. She knew what he was doing, hiding behind his computer. When he was agitated, worried, and felt the world closing in on him, it was what he did. And he was probably trying to learn more about Cat Marino. But she knew he wouldn’t find the answers he sought online.

  There was really only one way to get those answers, and she was going to deal with this head on. Tomorrow. She had learned enough, and she knew women enough to know they bounced back. Her husband might not believe her, and from what her husband had told her, and the way she had seen that woman turn in the other man’s arms, the way she had returned his embrace and the passion, she knew in her heart that Cat was happy. Now, she just had to prove it to Tex, too.