by Aimée Thurlo
“Not a problem.” Dana tried to prepare herself. She even hated school fights, pulling boys with bloody noses off each other. But she’d do what had to be done. Somehow, she hoped.
They arrived less than twenty minutes later. The fight was being held in a large metal warehouse located in an industrial section just southeast of downtown. Vehicles lined the curbs on both sides of the street, and Dana could see mostly young men, some with beer bottles in hand, walking toward the structure.
“It’s packed,” she said. “I never thought so many people would be interested.”
“Yeah, it’s popular, and most who come bet heavily on their favorite fighters. The promoters switch locations all the time to avoid getting raided, and there are rumors that officers are being paid to look the other way. I got tonight’s location earlier from a source at my workplace.”
Three big goons with handheld radios stood beside the only entrance, a double door at the side of the structure above a small loading dock. After handing over a forty-dollar admittance fee for the two of them, they walked into the two-story structure. Judging from the signs outside, it had been a former maintenance garage for oil service company vehicles. But whatever oil smell might have lingered was overwhelmed by the odor of dust, beer, stale tobacco and sweat.
Hundreds of people were crowded around a hexagonal, wire-covered framework atop a makeshift stage in the center of the big room. Two slightly overweight men were swinging wildly at each other with bare fists. Between the grunts from the center of the ring, and the ebb and flow of voices from the crowd, the place literally vibrated with the rawness of underground life.
Ranger held her hand tightly, and when he glanced over at her, she was looking down at her feet. He was certain she’d never seen anything even remotely like this.
Dana didn’t say a word, though she would have had to shout to be heard, and he couldn’t think of anything to say that would help her now. Finally she looked up, holding her head high at last, and gave him a stiff-lipped smile.
Ranger switched his gaze to the people around and ahead of them, ignoring the shouts, raised beer bottles and the money being waved around. He was searching for Jimmy Brownhat.
The people were crowded elbow to elbow around the cage. Ranger surveyed the faces slowly and methodically. Then, at long last, he spotted Jimmy across the room, standing on a pallet against a wall, high enough for an unobstructed view. He was shouting encouragement to one of the fighters.
As the crowd roared almost in unison, Jimmy looked away, shaking his head. Judging from the groans among the cheers, one of the fighters had either just delivered a knockout punch, or his opponent had thrown in the towel. Jimmy jumped off the pallet, and started walking in the direction of the entrance.
“He’s leaving. We need to catch up to him before he disappears,” Ranger said, elbowing his way through the mass of people.
The press of the crowd forced Ranger to switch directions quickly, but as they went through a maze of angry losers, he felt Dana’s hand slip away from his. Ranger turned around, but before he’d even taken a step, three people pushed in between them.
Looking around, Dana waved him on. “Go! I’ll catch up.”
Dana changed directions, heading for the closest open area. Just as the mass of people around her began to thin, someone grabbed her arm.
“Hey!” she yelled, turning around. A tall, dark-haired man with a tattoo on his arm held her in a painful, viselike grip.
“Come on, baby,” the man said, yanking her so close she could smell the beer and tobacco on his breath. “If you’re looking for company, you’re in luck. Let’s meet my brother over by the door, then take a walk to my van. The three of us can rock the night away.”
Terror gripped her. Hastiin Sani had died trying to keep the others from hurting her. Now Ranger would be forced to take on two drunks. She was certain it would happen once he spotted her being strong-armed outside. Anger swelled inside her. No one she cared about would ever again be harmed because of her.
She looked up into the man’s eyes and smiled. “Sounds like fun!”
He eased up on his grip, and she kicked him hard in the knee. He howled in pain, and as he bent over, she chopped down on the side of his neck with the heel of her right hand. Her aim was off and she mostly struck him on the back, but the force of the blow sent him down to one knee-the injured one.
With a scream of pure rage, the man hurled himself at her. She sidestepped the tackle and stuck out her foot, tripping him. His momentum dropped him facedown on the floor.
“Look, I don’t want any trouble,” she said, backing away. But it was too late. Without a fight in the center ring, everyone’s attention had suddenly shifted to the rear of the room-to her and the man she’d just knocked down.
“Fight, fight, fight,” the chant started up, like kids in the schoolyard during recess.
“Twenty dollars on the babe,” someone yelled from behind her, followed by a chorus of laughter.
The drunken, wannabe rapist outweighed her by at least one hundred pounds. He wasn’t going to back away, not with all eyes on them. She looked around for Ranger, but three men were struggling to hold him back. He’d get away eventually, but for the next minute or two she was on her own.
The man howled with rage and charged at her like a bull. She tried to step aside at the last minute and trip him again, but this time he was ready. He grabbed her arm as he went by, spinning her around. They nearly fell together, but somehow he kept them on their feet, yanking her back against him by the hair.
Pinned to a man with biceps the size of a side of beef, she panicked. She struggled wildly to break free, scratching him on the face but that only made him angrier.
“Got you now, witch!”
Then she remembered her lessons with Ranger. His arm had been in the same place. Dana sagged as if giving up. Then, as his hold eased somewhat, she rammed her elbow right into the man’s midsection as hard as she could and stomped on his instep with the heel of her boot, putting everything she had into it. The man yelped in pain, letting go as he stumbled back.
“I’m not done yet,” she yelled, arms up in a defensive stance. The drunk staggered away, then disappeared into the crowd.
“Hey!” Someone behind her called out.
Remembering that her opponent had a brother, she spun to face the new threat. That’s when she saw that Ranger had managed to break free.
“Give it up for the lady,” a tall, thin man shouted from the edge of the crowd.
As the people laughed and cheered, Ranger scooped her up, threw her over his shoulder and hurried out the side door. The novelty over, the crowd’s attention quickly shifted to the next two combatants climbing into the elevated cage.
Once they were outside in the parking lot, Ranger quickly did as she asked by setting her back down, and they hurried back to the car.
Ranger finally spoke as they were racing down the street in the Ringer. “So much for staying low-key.”
“Hey, at least my wig stayed on. Good thing I pinned it in place.”
He stared at her. “That’s all you have to say?”
Dana opened and closed her fist. It hurt like crazy, but she was pretty sure she hadn’t broken anything. “What else could I do with my bodyguard AWOL? And, just for the record, I didn’t appreciate that caveman routine when we left. It’s not a comfortable method of travel.”
“But effective. Nobody wanted to have ‘the babe’ thrown at them. We got a wide berth.” He looked at her, and then burst out laughing.
She glared at him for a moment, then finally started laughing, too.
“I can’t believe I lived through that,” she said at last, tears of laughter running down her face.
“Crazy Louie’s one mean drunk. But you ate him alive,” he said, admiration in his gaze. “But why didn’t you just pretend to go with him? I’d have seen what was going on before you ever reached the door. Didn’t you think I could handle him?”
“
It wasn’t that, or even that he’d said his brother was going to join him and you would have been outnumbered. I made up my mind right then that no one else would ever be hurt on my account,” she said, then added, “even if my hand is black and blue in the morning.”
Chapter Ten
Once they were a safe distance away, he pulled to the side of the road. “Let me take a look at your hand,” Ranger said.
She flinched when he touched her fingers. “It hurts. Go easy. It was like hitting a brick wall when I got his backbone instead of his neck.”
“Nothing’s broken,” he said after a moment. “At least you remembered how to make a fist.”
“I remembered everything you taught me, but he ran before I could get to the N and G of that Sing move. Too bad. The guy could have used a good kick in the G.”
“You’re one helluva woman, Dana.” Before she could even think, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her. Feeling her melt against him, he pressured her lips to part, then tasted her slowly, deliberately, changing the angle of the kiss only to deepen it.
His fingers skimmed the column of her throat. Her pulse was beating wildly, and her soft sighs drove him crazy. With a groan, he let her go. He’d take her right there and then if he didn’t cool off. Whatever crazy feelings drew him to Dana were real and more powerful than he’d ever dreamed.
“Why…” she whispered breathlessly, running the tip of her tongue over her lips. She could still taste him.
Ranger settled into the driver’s seat, keeping his distance. “Wanting you is making me a little crazy,” he warned, an edge in his voice.
The expression of disappointment on her face was almost his undoing and he had to look away. “Let’s go to the house. You need to change clothes. Then we’ll set out again.”
SHE SHOWERED QUICKLY and changed clothes. The sweater had been smeared with Crazy Louie’s blood and was torn in places. She tossed it into the trash. She’d buy its owner another as soon as her life got back to normal.
Normal…would she ever have a normal life again? Her feelings for Ranger changed everything. Thoughts of him simmered in her mind, mingling with hopes and dreams. They persisted, even though she knew that giving in to those emotions would only distract and endanger both of them.
Dana joined him in the living room minutes later. As she saw his gaze traveling slowly down her frame, she had to work hard to squelch the flutter in her stomach.
“That brown, long-haired wig changes your looks completely. It’s perfect. Even if we run into someone who was at the fight, chances are you won’t be recognized.”
She held out her swollen hand. “This’ll give me away. It’s already starting to turn blue-even though I put makeup on it.”
He started to take her hand, then abruptly changed his mind and turned away, but not before Dana saw the flash of fire in his eyes. There’d been a burning there, a hunger her soul recognized.
As they walked out to the car, Dana remained a discreet distance away from him. He was still too much of a temptation. “Where to next?”
“The Back Alley. It’s a bar on the other side of town.”
She cringed. “More fights…”
“No, not at this place. The bouncers keep everyone under tight control. At the Back Alley the police are the enemy-and everyone has cop radar.”
“So what’s the plan once we’re inside?” she said, getting the idea fast.
“You’re my old lady, and I’m muscle who’ll do anything for money. With luck, we’ll run into whoever hires for Trujillo. Then we can check for known associates and that might give us a lead to the kidnappers. The tribal police believe the kidnappers were local talent and I happen to agree.”
“Okay, I’m ready,” she said.
He gave her the once-over again. “Let me do the talking. There’s something about you…a gentleness, a softness…It makes you stand out.”
She gave him a long look. “How many butts do I have to kick before you’ll give me some credit, huh?”
He laughed. “Play the cards you’ve got. Stick with the naive look. They’ll underestimate you.”
“Did you…at the beginning?”
“I wasn’t sure what was on the inside, but I liked the packaging. Still do,” he added in a rich baritone voice.
His words had felt like an intimate caress. “And do you know what to make of me now?” she asked in a whisper-soft tone.
He said nothing for several long moments. “You’re getting under my skin, schoolteacher,” he said at last. “I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or bad, but it’s a fact.”
It was more John Wayne than John Keats, but his words gave her a powerful rush. Yearning…she understood that emotion better now than she ever had before.
They approached the bar, which was located on a narrow side street in east Farmington a short time later. Ranger took a parking spot close to the door as another car was leaving. “Take a good, hard look at the people inside. If you see anyone we might be interested in, let me know.”
Once inside, Ranger chose a table that allowed them to keep their backs to the wall and still get a good look into the room.
“I recognize the bartender, and he knows I’m not law enforcement. For a Jackson, he’ll answer a quick question or two.
“Order whatever’s on tap for me, and something for yourself, while I go over to talk to him.” His eyebrows rose as he added, “Think you can stay out of trouble?”
“If you can, I can. Just don’t make me have to come over and save your behind,” she added.
He laughed. “Okay, sweetheart. You’ve got yourself a deal.”
Dana watched as he joined the bartender, then struck up a conversation. Though deep in discussion, Ranger would glance back at her often, making sure she was okay, and the gesture-and its intent-made her feel good.
A waitress in tight jeans and western-style shirt came over to take her drink order.
“Dana, I thought that was you! I love your wig,” she said.
Dana shifted her gaze and recognized the pretty young woman instantly. Jenny Miller worked as a teaching assistant at the school.
“Shhh,” Dana warned. “Nobody’s supposed to recognize me.”
“Keeping a low profile after being kidnapped? I don’t blame you,” she whispered, sitting down on the chair beside her. “We were all told you’d had to take a leave of absence for your own protection. But if you don’t want to be recognized, I better give you a heads-up. Coach Martin is here hoping to hook up tonight. He’s always had a thing for you, and that wig might just turn him on.”
Dana groaned. “Just what I need.” Looking in the direction Jenny pointed, Dana saw Martin flirting with a busty blond waitress. “Oh, good! I think he’s already making his move.”
“That’s probably just the first girl of the evening for him. Stay in the shadows. I’m engaged now, so hopefully he won’t try to hit on me, but Martin seems to like going from one woman to the next…kinda like the guy you came with.”
“You know Ranger?” Dana asked.
She nodded. “Sure. Heck, half the women around here have made a move on him. He’s a lot of fun, and a good guy, but he’s definitely not relationship material. I dated him for a while two years ago, but it didn’t work out. Same old story. I was getting serious-he wasn’t,” she said with a sigh.
Dana hadn’t been prepared for the news, though all things considered, she should have expected something like this. Ranger was smooth and that usually came from experience. A man with his looks and confidence was bound to have more than his share of opportunities.
“But don’t worry,” Jen continued. “Even when he stops calling or coming around, he’ll let you down easy. Ranger’s decent about the whole thing. Once he knew I was starting to get serious, he ended it.”
“Who’s he dating these days?” she asked, unable to resist.
“Last I heard, he was seeing three or four women. One of them is Linda McFadden, the anchor for channel eight news.”<
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The local cable news celebrity, besides having a degree in journalism, had curves in all the right places. Her early claim to fame had been as New Mexico ’s selection for a national beauty contest. “If he’s interested in her…”
“You think he won’t take more than a passing look at you?” Jenny said, finishing Dana’s thought. She shook her head. “First, you’re as pretty as Linda, and a heck of a lot smarter. But Ranger isn’t attracted just by looks. He met Linda while dating Chloe Vargas, the weather girl.”
Chloe was Linda’s polar opposite, and went counter to the old stereotype of the “all looks and no brains” weather girl often seen on major news outlets. Chloe was plain-looking and her only noticeable curves were around her bottom. Yet her intelligence and humor gave her an on-air sparkle that was responsible for her having landed the job.
“As I said, Ranger likes women,” Jen said in response to Dana’s surprised look. “No, let me amend that. Ranger loves women ll sizes and shapes,” she said. Lowering her voice to a conspiratorial whisper, she added, “He and I never made love, but I’ve heard from a woman who shall remain nameless that once you’ve been with him, no one else quite measures up.”
That was possibly the last thing Dana needed to know. Her imagination had been working overtime. Now it was on hyperdrive.
“My source says that Ranger definitely knows how to use what nature gave him…and then some.”
Dana sighed openly. Despite all the reasons against it, he’d always been a temptation. Now it would be worse. But she had to stay focused.
Jenny turned, hearing her name being called, and saw the bartender motion to her with a toss of his head. “I better get back to work,” she said, taking Dana’s drink order.
As Jenny hurried away, Dana spotted Martin across the room, deep in conversation with a stunning black woman who’d just taken a seat by the bar. When he looked up, Dana ducked quickly, pretending to be looking in her purse. When she surfaced again, she saw that he’d moved with his new friend to an area where the patrons were playing darts.