by Vonnie Davis
Fran snorted. “You inherited the snoop gene, girl.”
“Yeah, well, it’s what got me here, fearing for my life every day. I won’t tell you what else I found and heard, but Tony was rising in rank in a neighborhood gang.” She exhaled another loud sigh. “And because he wasn’t afraid of anything or hardly anyone, he’d made connections with the Russian Mafia. This particular branch was called the Morozov Circle.”
ZQ ran a hand over his face. The Morozov Circle. What the hell did they have to do with Kelcee? Hell, they were one of Black Eagle Ops’ next missions.
“Jesus, Kitten, how did your brother get in with them?” Dust reached for two cookies. “Earning their trust doesn’t come easy.”
Fire all but blazed from her eyes as she scowled at Dust. “Earning mine no longer comes easy, either.” She took Fran’s hand and patted it before turning her gaze on ZQ. “I suspected my brother was mixed up in something super bad, but had no clue what. So, I started wearing a dark hoodie and following him at night.”
JJ set his can of soda on the square coffee table. “Hell, this doesn’t sound good.”
Kelcee stood and started pacing as if she couldn’t endure sitting still for the telling of what came next. “It wasn’t. I followed him to the docks one night. I turned off my headlights and eased my car into a parking area when I saw him stop at the entrance gate.”
ZQ extended his hand in a stop gesture. “Wait. How did you, and Tony for that matter, get into a secured area? Surely the Port Administration had the place locked down tight.”
She shrugged. “Connections, I guess. Tony punched in a code at a gate, waved at the guard, and exchanged a few words and an envelope once the gate opened. It was one of those gates that slid back, not the type where two halves swung inward. Once it had slid back enough for me to slip through, I crouched in the shadows of the guard shack.”
Damn, this woman has nerves of steel. ZQ’s respect for her grew.
“I followed his black van through rows and rows of large shipping containers, until Tony and two other guys stopped at a large one, under a security light with an ‘M’ inside a circle drawn in chalk on the pole. One of the guys unlocked the doors. Tony and the others hopped in and I waited a few minutes, thankful he hadn’t placed guards outside.”
ZQ knew. He closed his eyes in resignation and pinched the bridge of his nose. Damn it all to hell—human trafficking. His team had broken up one kids-for-sex ring in Taiwan, but the demand for young sexual playthings was so heavy, it was like playing whack-a-mole. As soon as one group was disbanded, another popped up.
Kelcee wiped her trembling hand on her floral skirt. “I crept closer to the container, saw the doors weren’t closed completely, and peeked inside the few open inches. The guys with Tony held flashlights while my…my brother”—she choked back a sob—“examined the human merchandise, touching them all inappropriately. Girls, mostly. A few boys. All between the ages of what looked to me to be eight and twelve. They were crowded in there, shipped over from God knows where…” She waved her hand for emphasis as tears coursed down her face.
Seeing others in pain wouldn’t come easy for her. For all her sass, Kelcee was a kindhearted person in a cruel-hearted world. What she saw that night would have surely cleaved her soul in two.
“The children were frightened, pleading for help, I suppose, in a couple different languages. And the odors.” She rubbed her index finger under her nose as if to banish the memory of what she spoke. “I knew I had to document this somehow, so I made a video with my phone. Snapping a picture would have attracted attention, but my phone taped action and noises quietly. One of the girls appeared near death. To my horror, Tony pulled a revolver from the back of his jeans and shot her in the head. Everyone screamed, including me. Thank goodness, with my hand over my mouth, my muffled cries only blended in.”
She grabbed some tissues from a box on the desk, blew her nose, and sat again.
JJ leaned forward, his forearms on his thighs. “Seeing what you did probably gave you PTSD. I’m betting you were afraid of loud noises and crowds afterward.”
She nodded, dabbing a tissue at her eyes. “I was afraid of everything. Especially after…well, there’s more, Jerryl.
“One boy, who was kind of muscular for his age, was jerked to his feet before Tony shot him in the face. I couldn’t stand seeing any more. I held onto my phone and ran. I ran until I couldn’t run anymore. I was overweight and my endurance low. I threw up between one of the rows of shipping containers.
“I got out of the secured area the same way I got in. By the time I got to my car, I was shaking so badly I could barely get my keys in the ignition. He had to pay. They all had to pay for what they’d done to those scared, innocent kids.”
Fran rubbed Kelcee’s hand. “So you went to the police?”
“No. I was afraid I’d luck upon a dirty cop. I drove to the CIA in Langley, Virginia. Extreme, I know, but I was in fear for my life. And I was so disappointed in the brother I’d always adored and trusted. As it turned out, they were already watching Tony and his cohorts, building a case against the Morozov Circle. My video and sworn statement was the final piece of evidence they needed. They put me under protective custody while they issued warrants and all the other legal stuff they had to do. I was in such a panicky mental state, most of the next few weeks were a haze of distress and horrible night terrors.”
ZQ stared at Kelcee as he came to terms with her story. “You’re Tony Talamo’s sister? Really? The one who went to the CIA with a video of Tony killing two kids and then testified against him? That sister?” Holy hell, he hadn’t expected this; his mind kept rolling it around. Sweet, gentle Kelcee, who would help anyone, was the sister of a cold-blooded killer who ran with the notorious Morozov Circle. Hell, he had a folder on the gang and Tony in his safe…and ZQ had known his sister all along.
“Yes, I’m the nosy sister who had to know everything her brother was up to.” She jabbed a finger in her chest. “Look where that got me. On the day of my appearance in the trial, I could barely make it to the witness stand on my trembling legs. I’d been gone for weeks and my parents thought I was dead. My mother reached”—she held three fingers to her lips—“reached for me as…as she cried.” Her tears started again and she swiped them away. “Momma looked as if she’d aged twenty years and I wanted to hug her so hard. I couldn’t bear to keep looking at her or I knew I’d fall apart before the rough testimony began.”
“Your whole family suffered because of your brother.” Fran rose to get Kelcee more tissues.
“Yes. After I answered the questions put before me, the prosecution showed the video of Tony shooting the kids, my fa…my father jumped up, face red with rage and yelled, ‘You are no longer my daughter.’ ” A gigantic sob and shudder escaped. “ʻI disown you!’ ”
Dust slid to the edge of his seat, his hardened gaze never once leaving her even though she’d purposely chosen to ignore him. “He should have been proud of you, just as I am right at this moment.”
Her eyes rose to meet his and a moan of pain escaped. Dust reached her in a few long strides. Damn, he didn’t hesitate one second to lift her into his arms and swivel, sitting with her on his lap. He kissed her hair and she burrowed her face in the curve of his neck. He whispered something as his arms tightened around her.
A moment later, Kelcee pulled back from their embrace so she could look at everyone in the room. “Pandemonium broke out in the courtroom. Tony stood and glared at me with such menace. ‘I will kill you. Somehow, you snitching bitch, I will kill you!’ He was found guilty and sentenced to three lifetime sentences in the penitentiary.”
“He got what he deserved. Those children were no more than babies,” Fran growled.
“He never spent a day there. On the journey from the holding cell at the courthouse to the penitentiary, Tony’s mob buddies staged an escape. They killed the driver of the van and the guard. With Tony on the run, the CIA knew my life was in danger, so I was
turned over to the U.S. Marshals and placed in the Witness Protection Program. Katrina Talamo died; Kelcee Todd was born. I was sent here to Frank Brandt for safekeeping through Clint and other U.S. Marshals.”
“Was Frank, the man who willed you the bookstore, aware you were in hiding?” JJ petted Nance.
“He knew,” Clint said. “We’d been best friends since we were boys. I wanted him to know the young woman I’d asked him to hire into his store was honest and aboveboard. I’m sure he never told a soul, which is why Wanda disliked Kelcee so much. She couldn’t understand his protectiveness, but Frank was like that with most everyone. He always had a soft spot for the underdog.”
“You’ve been safe here all this time. What’s happened, Kitten?” Dust wrapped one of her short curls around his finger. “How did Tony find out where you were living?”
“Jim Dobbins. Remember when I told you I thought he’d taken a picture of me with his cellphone?”
“Yeah.” Dust’s face darkened.
“He came into the bookstore today and called me by my real first name. I was so distracted being careful not to bump my broken arm, I answered him without thinking. He told me he had a message from Tony. Said he was on his way and I had three days left to live, but that I wouldn’t die until I’d watched him skin you alive.”
“So, that bastard Jim Dobbins has been working for Tony all along?” Dustin’s eyebrows dipped into that annoyed “V” again.
“According to my superior, Kelcee’s brother is still in hiding somewhere,” Clint informed the group. “We have a general idea where from intel the head office has been gathering. I’ve been on the phone with them once I had the local police pick up Jim Dobbins. We haven’t been able to get him to respond to interrogation yet, but it’s still early. Plus I haven’t spent any time with him. I’ve been known to squeeze information out of a rock.”
Clint looked at Fran for a minute, reaching for her hand, before gazing at Kelcee. “Young lady, we can move you, if you want.” Fran gasped, no doubt a personal veto of Clint’s idea. He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it before continuing. “We’ll set you up with a new identity. That would be safest.
“Or we can put you in hiding until we catch your brother. Hang a ‘Closed’ sign on the door of the bookstore, lock it up tight, and stick you somewhere your brother wouldn’t expect you to be. But you must choose.”
“I just reopened the store today. I’m tired of running. Tired of always looking over my shoulder. I love this town, my store, my friends, but I won’t risk Dustin’s life. Make arrangements to have me moved. Dustin has to be protected.”
“Oh, this is fuckin’ rich. I’m the bad guy for walking out of your life, for protecting you from my PTSD episodes, but it’s okay for you to leave everything and everyone you love to protect me from your brother? What the hell, Kelcee!”
She stormed off his lap and raged in front of him, leaning in, a hand on her hip, like an incoming hurricane. “Don’t you swear at me, you gutless wonder! You didn’t have the fortitude to stick around and work through your PTSD issues with me the way Clint did with Fran. No, it was easier for you to slink away and lick your wounds.”
Dust exploded from his seat, forcing Kelcee to step back. “No fortitude? Gutless wonder? Slink away? You’ve gone too far. Damn if you don’t need your teacup ass beat.” His gaze remained locked on hers. “Excuse us for ten minutes or so while we iron out a few things. Don’t anyone dare interrupt us.”
Kelcee jutted her chin. “I don’t have anything to say to you.”
Dust scooped her in his arms like a baby. “Clint, she stays. Make your plans around that fact. And this SEAL protects what’s his. I could give a fuck about his threats toward me. That motherfucker has no clue who he’s messing with.” He stormed out of the room with Kelcee fighting his hold and hurling insults.
“Damn, those two are perfect for each other, aren’t they?” ZQ laughed. “Just look at them. They’re so busy trying to protect the other, they don’t realize how deeply they care.”
Chapter 18
Kelcee was sure steam shot from her ears. The nerve of Dustin carrying her from the meeting as if she were a baby. Oh, he had a good tongue-lashing coming. Where was he taking her? The guest half-bath! He kicked the door shut and locked it.
He plopped her on the countertop of the vanity. His hands bracketed her bottom and he stepped between her legs. “We need to get two things straight. One, I have missed the hell out of you. Two, I can be indulgent, but I am most definitely alpha. I protect what’s mine.”
“Yours? Yours? If this is how you treat a woman you consider as yours—no calls, no texts, no spending time with her—then I’d sooner be a stranger. It wouldn’t hurt as much.” She looked away, taking note of the pictures hanging on the wall and yet not realizing what they were. I will not cry. I will not cry in front of this alpha jerk. I’ve cried enough over him. I have to be strong.
His fingers forked into her hair as he turned her face toward his, and his blue eyes deepened as he leaned closer. “I may have misjudged things.” His lips softly rubbed over hers and everything inside her came to life. His lips lifted from hers enough so he could speak. “When a man loves a woman more than he does his own life then he doesn’t hesitate to put himself through the bowels of hell to make sure she stays safe. I love you to that degree, Kelcee. I should never have walked away from you, from us.” His lips covered hers and passion poured from his body as he clasped her to him and his tongue dueled with hers.
She gave as good as she got. Her deep feelings cascaded from her heart into the kiss and the touching they shared. Her lips trailed across his square jaw and down his muscled neck. “I love you, Dustin. And if my emotions weren’t bouncing from fear to anger to potential loss of everything I hold dear, I’d find it almost hilarious that the first time I say ‘I love you’ to a guy is in a freaking guest bathroom.”
He chuckled as he nipped where her neck joined her shoulder and then soothed with his tongue. Standing straight, he lifted her chin with two fingers. “Do you want to walk away from your bookstore?”
She shook her head. “No.” It was her home, her livelihood, and she adored every inch of it. There would never be the sound and view of the falls anywhere else, or the memories she’d built there.
“Do you want to leave Fran and all your other friends?”
“No.”
“Do you want to help me through my PTSD? I’ve talked to a psychiatrist who deals primarily with PTSD patients. Maybe you could come to a few sessions with me.” He gave a one-sided smile. “Learn what makes me tick.”
“I’d like that.” She frowned as she rubbed her hand over his pecs. “But I have a pretty big problem looming in front of me. One crazy, vengeful brother who wants to kill us both. I’m scared, big guy. And I’m more scared for you than for myself.”
He rubbed the backs of his fingers down her cheeks in a tender gesture. “I’ll be here to help you deal with it. So will ZQ and JJ.” He kissed her again and her stomach fluttered. “You won’t be alone anymore.” He pressed her head next to his chest where she could hear the steady beat of his heart. “I’m a trained warrior, baby. I’ve killed and maimed more people for my country than your brother can think of. Don’t stress so. We’ll plan, we’ll rehearse, we’ll execute, and we’ll prove victorious.”
She smiled against his chest. “Pretty confident, aren’t you?”
“I know my SEAL brothers.” He stepped back and held out his hand. “Come on, we’d better get back to that meeting. See what plans they’ve come up with.”
They walked back into ZQ’s office, holding hands. Kelcee sat next to Fran, and Dustin next to Kelcee. “Now that we’ve worked out the worst of our problems, what have you all decided?”
Clint placed his hands on his thighs and leaned forward. “It all depends. Kelcee, do you want to be reassigned to another safe place or are you prepared to face the danger if you stay on in Warrior Falls?”
“I’m stay
ing.” Dear God, let me be making the right decision for everyone.
Dustin leaned forward and stared at ZQ, his hands hanging between his spread knees. “ZQ, a few days ago when we were out riding, you hinted at a team you were forming. Earlier, you and Clint spoke of it again. I want more details.”
ZQ nodded. “It’s only fair. Ladies, this is not to be repeated. I. Mean. Never.” He glared at Fran and she squirmed in her seat. “When I retired, I went through a special debriefing.” He took a few gulps of soda. “Several layers, in fact. I was approached by the CIA to start a black ops team of former SEALs. We’re not the only one they’ve got, of course, but they wanted one with a higher caliber of skills. So, from time to time, I have three ex-frogmen come here to run drills. We’ve had a couple small missions.” He shrugged. “Nothing major. I spoke to JJ last week and he’s in the group now, too. We go by Black Eagle Ops.”
Dustin snatched a taco chip from the bowl, shoved it in his mouth, and chewed. His face reddened, no doubt from anger. “So, all this ‘come to the ranch for a while and heal’ was just your way of drawing us into your clandestine world. Is that it?”
JJ reached for a handful of chips. “You’re wrong, man. ZQ had no idea Nance and I were coming. We just showed up one day. All I was looking for was some freaking peace and quiet, which I’ve gotten. Now, I could use some action every once in a while. I miss the adrenaline rush.”
ZQ guzzled more of his drink and glared at Dustin. “Look, you dipshit, my invitation to all you injured team members has nada to do with my part in leading a black ops ring. Besides, you’re still a SEAL. How are you going to do both? Including myself, I’ve got five in Black Eagle. Six would be ideal, so I’m going over the list of former SEALs who’ve served under me in the past.”
Dustin leaned back and slid his arm around Kelcee. “So, it’s you, JJ, and who fuckin’ else?” Her Dustin with his innate curiosity would have to know.