by Jaime Lewis
Alex touched Ace’s hand. “Remember what I told you this morning, Ace. Maybe she really is burnt out and just needed some relaxation and not the craziness of being around all of us.”
“Okay, I can understand that, but she could have at least called and told us that. But, no, she just sends a fucking cryptic text message then shuts her phone off.”
Sienna, Irish’s six-year-old niece giggled, and Ace looked at her and winked, “Sorry, sweetie, mark one down for me.”
Irish looked between Ace and Sienna. “That’s one, what?”
Ace grinned. “I was telling Sienna that was one for her swear jar.”
Stitch couldn’t help but smile either. Sienna had a swear jar, and for each swear word someone said, the person had to put a quarter in her jar. She had to have earned a few hundred dollars just in the short time she’d been living with Irish.
Sienna giggled again and looked at Irish with the most adorable face Stitch had ever seen. She was a beautiful little girl, and if you didn’t know she was Irish’s niece, you would think she really was Irish and Bailey’s biological daughter. She had both Irish and Bailey’s blonde hair and blue eyes. Stitch was so happy that Irish and Bailey had officially adopted Sienna.
“Uncle Ace gave me five bucks.”
“For what?” Irish asked, looking back at Ace.
“For my swear jar, silly. I also got five bucks from Uncle Potter, Uncle Diego, Uncle Frost, Uncle Skittles, Uncle Stitch, and Uncle Dino.” She said, gasping for breath at the end. Then she scrunched her little nose up and looked at Ace. “What did you call it again, Uncle Ace?”
Ace smiled. “An upfront payment.”
She looked back at Irish and crossed her arms in front of her chest, appearing all sassy. “It’s called an upfront payment.”
The room erupted in laughter at the shocked expression on Irish’s face. Apparently, he was unaware of his daughter’s “savings” account.
Ace lifted his beer to his lips. “We all figured with the amount of cuss words spoken between us, five dollars each should suffice the swear jar, at least for tonight.”
Irish looked between Sienna and the guys.
“How long has this been going on, and how often do you give her money?”
Stitch chuckled and slapped Irish on the back. “Pretty much every damn time we all get together and the kids are around.”
“Holy shit! That’s like every fucking week. Why am I just hearing about this?” Irish said, making eye contact with Bailey, and it made Sienna giggle again. She looked up at her daddy with hyer baby blue eyes.
“Daddy, you need to pay up.” She told him as she held her little hand out.
“Fuck me…” He muttered under his breath as he tried to find a quarter in his pocket, but apparently, he said it too loud because Sienna’s eyes lit up again, and Stitch knew what was coming. “Oh, screw this.” Irish turned to Bailey. “Do you have five dollars?” He asked, and everyone in the room laughed as Irish handed over five one-dollar bills to Sienna, and she stuffed it into the little pocket on her dress.
Stitch was reaching for his drink when he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He was surprised to see Sheriff Prescott’s name flashing on the screen. He was a good friend and a former Marine. Why the Sheriff was calling him now was a bit alarming. His first thought was something was wrong with his cabin as the Sheriff kept an eye on it for him.
Not wanting to be rude and take the call at the table, he excused himself and went out onto the back patio.
“Sheriff Prescott,” Stitch said, answering the call.
“Hey, Stitch. Happy Thanksgiving.”
“Happy Thanksgiving to you as well. What’s going on?”
“Well, I have a little situation up here in Sugar Bend.”
“And, you’re calling me, why?” Stitch asked as he leaned against the deck’s railing.
“Well, I just met an interesting friend of yours.”
Stitch chuckled, thinking what friend of his could be in Sugar Bend, considering most of his good friends were inside Ace’s house having dinner.
“Does this friend have a name?” He replied sarcastically because the only friend Stitch had in Sugar Bend was the person he was currently on the phone with. The name his buddy spoke next had him reeling back the laughter and going on instant alert.
“Does a Mia ring any bells? She claims you gave her a key to your cabin.”
Stitch stood up straight and looked through the house's window where all of Mia’s family and friends were enjoying the holiday. A million questions went through his mind. The main being, why in the hell would she be at his cabin when she was supposed to be here with her family? The hair on the back of his neck stood, alerting him that something was wrong. It was the same sensation he got when he was out in the field on missions right before things went to shit.
“Your silence tells me she is indeed a friend.”
He licked his lower lip and pinched the bridge of his nose.
“She is, and yes, I did give her a key. But the funny thing is she’s supposed to be here in Virginia Beach with her family. She sent her brother a very cryptic text early this morning saying she ran into trouble and might not make her flight. We’ve all been a little concerned, to say the least, considering she hasn’t answered any of our calls or texts.”
“Her brother?”
“Yeah, Ace is her older brother.”
“Shit…” The Sheriff cursed in a tone that Stitch knew well. Whatever the hell was going on had the Sheriff upset.
“What’s going on, Blake?” Stitch was already walking back toward the back door.
“Listen, I don’t have a lot of time before Mia comes outside. I’m at the bus station here in town, and I just happened to run into one of the townsfolks who mentioned there was a young lady on her bus that possibly needed some assistance.”
“Assistance? Damn it, Blake, what are you saying?”
“Look, I don’t know all the details because she’s not really talking, but she is claiming that she was involved in a car accident up in New York.”
“A car accident?” Stitch noticed how the tone in the Sheriff’s voice indicated he wasn’t buying that story. “You don’t believe her?”
“No, but I’ll give her credit for trying. Her injuries are definitely not from a car accident.”
The word injuries made Stitch stop his forward movement, and his body became rigid.
“What type of injuries are we talking about?” He asked in a low voice.
“In my opinion, it looks like she was involved in a fight.”
Luckily Stitch was standing close to the house and grabbed onto the windowsill. Mia was one of the nicest, sweetest people in the world. Who in the hell would have hurt her?
“How bad is she, Blake?” He asked, gaining his composure back, although he was very concerned. Christ, Ace was going to bust a fucking gasket when he heard about this. Why hadn’t she called someone if she was actually in trouble?
“Pretty bad. She’s got bruising on her face, she’s favoring her left side, and she’s got a pretty bad limp, maybe an ankle injury. Not to sound mean, but she is a mess.”
“Fuck!” Stitch yelled out, running his hand through his hair.
“I told her that I’d give her a ride up to the cabin. She was planning on catching a cab.”
“Does she need a hospital?”
“She doesn’t want to go. Personally, I think she needs to be checked out.”
“Thanks for calling, man. Do me a favor, can you please let her know that you’ve spoken with me and that we are on our way? I’ll give you a call when we get close. If her condition changes before we get there, take her to the hospital. Even if you have to drag her kicking and screaming.”
“No problem. I’ll hang around until you guys get here.”
Stitch disconnected the call and stood there watching through the window as everyone sat around the table, smiling and laughing. It was exactly where Mia was supposed to be right no
w. He needed to talk to Ace. They needed to get to Mia quickly.
Suddenly, Alex’s head popped up in the window; she was at the sink rinsing off dishes. Stitch tapped on the window and smiled when she jumped. It wasn’t often you could scare or frighten a woman that went head-to-head with a terrorist. His smile died when he thought of Mia and the trouble she could be in.
He pointed at Ace, and she nodded her head in understanding. She walked over and whispered into Ace’s ear. His eyes shot to the window, and Stitch motioned for him to come outside. Ace wiped his mouth with his napkin and set it aside on the table before giving Alex a quick kiss. He wanted that. He wanted a woman he could cater for and love. He wanted Mia.
Ace walked outside and closed the door behind him.
“It’s fucking cold out here. What’s up?”
“That was Sheriff Prescott on the phone.”
“Blake from Sugar Bend?” Ace asked, and Stitch nodded his head as he bit the inside of his cheek. He was still pissed that someone hurt Mia and that she didn’t call someone. “What did he want?”
“Apparently, your sister is on her way to my cabin.”
“My sister, Mia?” Ace asked as he stood and crossed his arms in front of his chest. Stitch could see all of the questions forming in Ace’s head.
“I don’t have a lot of information, but she’s in trouble, Ace.”
“What do you mean she’s in trouble?” He asked in a low voice but one that meant he wanted answers, like yesterday. Unfortunately, Stitch couldn’t give him much, which he knew Ace wasn’t going to be happy with.
“Blake thinks someone attacked her. She is injured. He doesn’t know the extent of the injuries, although some are visible. She tried to tell him she was in a car accident.”
“He didn’t believe her?”
“No.”
Ace paced the deck. His heavy footsteps against wood planks echoed in the quiet night. After a couple more paces, he stopped and stared at Stitch with his hands fisted at his sides.
“What are her injuries?”
“Blake said they’re pretty bad. He thinks she needs to go to the hospital, but she’s against it. He is taking her to the cabin.”
“I don’t understand. Why in the hell didn’t she come here? Why didn’t she call me? Or better yet, why didn’t she go to the police?” He shook his head.
Stitch shrugged his shoulders. “I can’t say what her reasoning was for not calling, but if you think about it, why would someone run and not contact anybody for help?”
Ace stared at Stitch. “You think someone may be after her? Shit, it’s a three-hour drive to your cabin.”
Just then, the back door opened, and the rest of the team walked out along with Derek and Tink. Tink was a former SEAL himself and one of Alex’s uncles. Stitch and Ace explained to them what they knew.
“I can get you guys there sooner,” Tink interjected into the conversation as he stood off to the side, listening. Tink owned an elite security business working black ops missions for the government.
“How?” Stitch asked.
“Did you forget my company owns two helicopters? I can call and have one fueled and ready by the time we get to the helipad.”
“If someone is after my sister, then she could be a sitting duck up in the mountains all alone.”
“Then let’s go,” Tink stated, pulling his phone out and making the call.
Chapter Ten
“Mia, are you sure I can’t take you to the hospital to have a doctor examine you?” The Sheriff asked as he glanced over at her before returning his eyes to the road. Mia already had the same discussion with him before they even left the bus station’s parking lot. He was very adamant about taking her to the hospital. She wouldn’t have argued in any other situation, but it was too risky in her case. If she went to the hospital, her identity would be placed into the computer system, and any smart computer junkie could find her in a heartbeat. She couldn’t have that. Stitch’s cabin was the safest bet right now. The cabin had no connection to her family, so those looking for her would have to dig really deep to put the connection together to even think about heading this way.
When the Sheriff had told her he had spoken to Stitch and that they were on their way, she felt relieved. She was nervous as to how her brother and Stitch would react to seeing her injuries. Judging by the pain in her body, it could take weeks before returning to her normal self. Before she got into the truck, she had taken one of the pain pills. Hopefully, she’d make it up to the cabin before it took effect.
She looked in the Sheriff’s direction. “I’ll be fine once I get to the cabin and can lay down. But thank you.”
She noticed the way his hands gripped the steering wheel, and he clenched his teeth. He wasn’t happy, but it was her decision, so the remainder of the drive was in silence.
Her eyes had just started to close when she felt the truck pull off the smooth asphalt and onto a more rugged road. She became alarmed at how dark the area was. The only lights came from the headlights of the truck. It was creepy and eerie. She couldn’t even see lights from any nearby houses. She wished she hadn’t watched so many scary movies over the years because the imagery was like she was driving into one.
“Where are we?” She asked, trying to see through the darkness.
“This is a private road that leads to the cabin. Not many neighbors up this way. I’m sure that’s why Stitch bought the place.”
She looked back out the window into the darkness and was relieved that the Sheriff had been adamant about driving her. There was no way in hell she would have been comfortable here alone, especially with the circumstances surrounding her. Stitch’s place was far from civilization. As if the Sheriff knew the crazy thoughts floating through her head, he said, “If you’re not familiar with the area, it can get kind of creepy. Especially at night.”
Yeah, no shit. She swallowed hard. Right before she answered, the truck came around a bend and merged onto a smooth, paved driveway that was lit up like a runway at a busy international airport. Her eyes followed the path of lights leading to a gorgeous two-story log cabin. She pressed her face against the glass as they pulled up and parked in front of the steps that led to the inviting wraparound porch complete with rocking chairs, potted plants, and even a porch swing. She hadn’t even seen the inside and was already in awe. The porch swing had her name written all over it.
“This is beautiful. Are you sure we’re at the right cabin? With all of the lights on, it looks as if someone is home.”
The Sheriff put the truck in park and turned off the ignition. “Wait until you see it in the daytime. I’m jealous I didn’t buy it when Old Man Larkin put it up for sale. Stitch has done a lot of work to the place to bring it back to its former glory. Starting with all the solar outdoor lighting he installed. Since he doesn’t get up here as often as he would like, he wanted the property to appear as if someone lived here all year round.”
She opened the door wanting to get a better look, but when she twisted to slide out of the truck, the pain that tore through her mid-section made her pause. She bit down on her lip to stop herself from crying out. How in the hell was she going to get out of this monstrosity of a truck? The damn thing was so high that the Sheriff had to lift her and set her in it. She tried to position herself differently, but the muscles still pulled and caused tremendous pain no matter what she did. She prayed she had no broken ribs. However, she had heard that bruised ribs felt almost as bad as broken ones. If she wanted to get into the house, she would have to suck it up.
She held her breath and counted to three. When she got to three, she pushed off, but a set of hands on her thighs stopped her.
“Whoa, easy does it.”
She glanced to her left and was met with a set of angry and concerned eyes of the Sheriff.
“Honey, let me help you out and into the house.” She nodded, but then a thought hit her. And it was a crazy thought. She wondered if it was the medicine making her looney. But what did she kn
ow about this Sheriff? Sure, the townspeople seemed to fawn over him, but that could just be an act. She’d read in the news about individuals like him and how they use their power to manipulate people.
Once he helped her down, she stepped to the side, and in doing so, she tripped over her feet and almost fell. If it weren’t for the Sheriff’s quick reflexes, she probably would’ve ended up flat on her face. Not that it would matter because her face was already messed up.
She steadied herself before her gaze landed on his hard, penetrating stare with his hand resting on the butt of his gun attached to his hip. She swallowed hard.
“Are you okay?” He asked.
“Yes, I’m sorry.” Oh geez, how could she explain to him what her thoughts were without either insulting him or pissing him off more than what he already seemed to be? He probably thought she was some nut case and wishing he hadn’t offered to give her a lift. She took a painful breath.
“Let me start by saying I think my pain medicine is affecting my rational thinking. It’s just that I don’t really know you, and here I am getting into your truck and letting you drive me out into the boonies, in the dark. I’m mean, you could be a serial killer for all I know.”
She was expecting some type of lecture, but instead, she was thrown for a loop when the big man threw his head back and roared with laughter.
“If it helps settle your nerves, I’m happily married to the love of my life, and we have two amazing little girls.” He pulled a picture from his wallet and showed it to her.
“They’re beautiful.” She looked up at him and gave her shoulder a slight shrug. “I’m sorry. That was a ridiculous thought. Here you are being nice, and I’m acting ungrateful and so disrespectful.”
“Don’t be sorry. It’s actually nice to see you are aware of your surroundings. Although it is a little late in the game, considering I already have you at the cabin.” He raised an eyebrow at her, and she lowered her head. She felt so stupid.
She went to reach for her bags, but he waved her off, telling her he would get them. He followed, keeping his hand at her back as she walked up the steps to the porch. Jesus, just walking up five steps was like trying to climb a mountain. Her legs shook as they started to cramp. The Sheriff helped her with the last step. She inserted the key, unlocked the door, then disarmed the alarm with the code that Stitch had given her. She turned toward the Sheriff as he set her bag down next to the couch.