by Angi Morgan
“Sounds like a nice family.”
“And I want to keep it that way. Those kids need their father. Don’t order him to—”
“Todd Harris has a job to do, Kylie. He signed up for this.” Bryce tried to look stern. It didn’t work on him.
“Get real. He signed up to make sure people drove the speed limit and to get cats out of little old ladies’ trees.”
“I think you might need that drink more than you think.” He backed his wide shoulders through the doorway and latched on to her hand. “On the rocks or straight?”
“Can I get some clothes? My toothbrush?”
He pulled her into the kitchen. There was a more concentrated destruction path. Her refrigerator was completely ruined. Her free hand began shaking and she couldn’t stop it.
The mess was surreal. It registered on levels she didn’t—couldn’t—comprehend. She did need a drink. Perhaps more than one. But she hadn’t. Not in five years.
“This is some good stuff.” Bryce grabbed the whiskey from the top shelf. Then took a tumbler from the drain.
The bottle was half-gone. He unscrewed the cap, tipped the bottle...
“Wait. I can’t. Especially that stuff.” She shook her head, matching her hands. “It was in the car, Bryce. It belonged to...to Xander. I don’t drink anymore. Can we just go?”
That bottle was a symbol of her past life. It and the car were the only two things she’d kept.
“Sure. I’ll grab your toothbrush.”
She turned looking at the broken things she’d collected. “Forget it. I need a new one anyway.”
The clothes, things, books and even the house would be easy to leave behind. She picked up one of the photos that had been held in place by magnets on her ruined fridge. Fred and Lisa had locked her in the jail in the museum.
“It was a bet about how tall I was.” She flipped the milk-drenched photo toward Bryce. “You see, Lisa thought I was over six feet and that’s how tall the old cell is. So when I stood inside...she thought she’d won. I didn’t point out that my shoes had heels.”
Tears. It had been a very long time since she’d cried over the life she’d given up.
Bryce used a scraped knuckle to wipe the trail dry. “You’ll see your friends again, Kylie. I promise.”
“It’s out of your control. You can’t keep a promise like that.” More scared than she’d been in a while, she could barely whisper.
“She’ll see her friends right now.”
* * *
FRED SNELL HAD marched through the debris, crunching glass, not attempting to be quiet. Bryce hadn’t heard a thing. Admittedly, his ears were still ringing from the gunshots. But his focus had been on Kylie instead of on keeping her safe.
“I would have gotten here sooner, but someone hijacked my truck. I had to call Bernie for a lift.” Fred angled his back to Bryce and took Kylie in his arms.
“I’ll call the officers for an escort to my truck and out of town.” Bryce had his phone in hand about to hit Redial.
There was something about the look that Fred shot him. Anger. Disbelief. Defiance. The emotions of a protective father.
“Is that what you want, Kylie?” Fred asked, already assuming he knew she didn’t.
“I don’t seem to have a say in the matter. Fred, Bryce is a Texas Ranger.”
“I know.”
“I told them this afternoon.” But they’d already known.
“I knew before that, son.”
“Does everybody in this entire town already know?”
“Probably. Most of them are standing out in the yard waiting to find out what happened here. It’s not too often that we have a shoot-out on Pecan Street.” Fred crossed to a still-shaking Kylie and hugged her with one arm. “I think you two can use some pie.”
“The Koffee Cup is closed.”
“Don’t mind that little detail. I know the owner.” Fred secured Kylie with an arm around her shoulders. His lanky frame was a bit deceptive considering how he’d worked all afternoon. “We’ll take my old Chevy and Ranger Johnson there can grab his newfangled vehicle after he straightens out this mess.”
“Fred, I can’t allow that.”
“It’s Ranger Snell, retired. She’ll be all right, son. I’ve got a couple of men already on their way to keep her safe.”
“There’s no way she can stay here.”
“Are you arresting her, Bryce?”
“That wasn’t the plan.”
“Then do what you have to do and know she’s safe.”
“No, sir.” Bryce stopped the older man as he tried to leave. “She stays with me. I think we could both use some coffee, but it’ll be at my house. I’m under orders. She’s not leaving my sight.”
“Good for you, Ranger. Good for you.” Fred patted his hand against Bryce’s chest. “We’re agreed that she needs to leave?”
“Yes, sir. I just need to find Officer Harris.”
“He’s trying to get people to head home.” Fred guided her into the living room. “Come on, sweetie.”
“Bryce?”
“Want that toothbrush?” He winked, trying to let her know that everything would be okay.
Nodding to Fred to move ahead of him, he drew his weapon and followed steps behind Kylie. There was a crowd of about forty gathered in front of the house. He looked around and didn’t see any unusual people. Most were couples or men he’d seen driving rigs and parking at their homes.
A retired Texas Ranger. Hard of hearing Fred. Who would have thought that? Mrs. Mackey might have told Fred about who was living in her house as soon as Company F had put the plan into motion. Just his luck that his first field operation had turned into such a disaster.
This wasn’t all about him, though. His assignment was about Kylie’s safety. Her insistence that she didn’t know anything was a problem. Whatever she knew, whatever she had on Xander Tenoreno it had to be big.
Something had kept them alive through that shoot fest. He had no illusions that he’d done anything to keep them safe. He’d walked them right into a death trap.
Whoever had been firing at them had taken their time and what? Deliberately missed?
The big question was why.
Chapter Seven
“Eventually the police will begin a search. They will find you and where will I be? Back at the beginning. The girl will get away and I won’t have leverage.” Daniel Rosco felt his body tense with the anger pulsing through him. “I have waited five years for this freedom. Do not rob me of it!”
Daniel threw the cell across the room. He didn’t care that it burst apart. The burner wouldn’t be used again. The dent in the wall might be noticed by his wife’s maid, but was easily explained away with a lie.
“They had her, Papa. The incompetents had her and wasted our element of surprise.” He spoke to a picture on the mantel. His father and mother had both been executed by the Tenorenos. “I swear on your graves that those bastards will not get away with this.”
“Daniel, are you all right? I thought I heard something fall?” Nancy peeked through the door connecting their rooms before coming through wearing nothing but her dressing gown. “Whatever’s happened, it will be okay, sweetheart. Do you want to talk about it instead of ruining the paintings?”
She wrapped her arms around him, flattening her breasts against his back. The comforting hug was not enough to assuage his anger.
“I apologized for the Rivera and have replaced it.”
“Darling, that’s not the point. I don’t like to see you this upset.” She rubbed her hands up and down his chest. “Sit on the bed and let me help get rid of all this tension.”
He covered one of her hands and brought it to his lips. “You’re good to me. But this tension is good. It keeps me on edge.”
“It’s going to send you to an early grave. What went wrong? Didn’t they find where Sissy Jorgenson was hiding?”
“Yes. But a cop is with her now. He saved her life and called the local PD.”
<
br /> “I can understand your frustration about them not completing their job, but you must be happy that the information we paid for is solid. Xander has been hiding her all these years. That tells us she must mean something to him.”
“We’ve lost the element of surprise. They’ll be watching for the men and more prepared to fend them off. I’ve been lying low long enough. It’s time to reclaim my heritage.”
He spun Nancy in his arms and kissed her hard, pushing open her robe and feeling the artificial breasts she admired so much. He used the frustration he felt to have sex, bending her over the lounge chair. She didn’t complain. She’d rather spend their time coupling than talking. It was the real reason she’d come into the room and they both knew it.
Afterward, he carried her to bed, lighting them both cigarettes and pouring his favorite whiskey three fingers deep into two glasses. He’d need it if he was going to take her again. She expected it. He hated that she did and would get what she wanted.
She was propped against the headboard with the pillows behind her. He left the cigarette to burn in the ashtray and threw the whiskey back so it would burn sliding down his throat. Then he lay face down across his wife’s legs, allowing her to drag her nails across his skin.
The action soothed him anyway. It was a familiar routine. An action that needed no words. Familiarity that kept him just far enough from the edge that he wouldn’t lose it.
He thought of Xander and how much he hated him.
“Daniel, stop. You need to relax, love. Focus on the good. We’re close. So close,” she whispered. “This setback is a little bump in the road. We’ll get our revenge. Don’t doubt that.”
He controlled his body, keeping it slack. But he let his mind list the ways he would destroy Xander with the retrieval of the flash drive. He’d tease him first with the knowledge someone had betrayed him.
It wasn’t enough to kill Xander’s ex-wife. He wanted Xander to cry out in pain. To suffer. And Daniel wanted to watch the Tenoreno family fall.
Then—and only then—he’d tell Xander why.
Chapter Eight
Bryce and his self-appointed armed partner cleared the rented house. First phone call was to Officer Harris who moved his three officers closer for a protection detail spanning both houses. The officers hadn’t spoken to anyone who had spotted the shooters. After this much time it wasn’t likely they’d find anything in the dark.
While the coffee brewed, his second phone call had been to Major Parker. To say the man was unhappy was an understatement. He also verified that Fred had served a distinguished career in Company A before he retired. Backup was on its way. Jesse had texted five minutes ago that he’d been ordered to lend assistance.
He’d be lucky if Jesse hadn’t sent a mass email letting the rest of the state know he was coming to Bryce’s rescue.
The house was secure. Kylie hadn’t been out of his sight. Fred had been standing next to her the entire time. They’d said very few words. The older man watched the backyard and occasionally squeezed her shoulder. The comforting seemed to help her to be patient.
Time for some answers.
“Before you get yourself all worked up...” Fred pulled out a dining room chair, joining Kylie at the table. “I recognized you, Johnson, as soon as you got to town. I read the news and keep up with current events. So no one informed me that you were here. Even without your glasses it would be hard to miss one of the Rangers who helped bring down Paul Tenoreno last spring.”
“Why the interest in Kylie? Why do you want to keep her in town?”
“She’s our friend and hasn’t done anything wrong. It’s not a question about keeping her. If she wants to leave, then she can leave.”
“Fred,” Kylie began, “there’s something you should know.”
“That you used to be married to a Tenoreno or that he tried to kill you five years ago? I recognized you when you ran out of gas. Hard not to. Everyone thought you’d been abducted and murdered. Your face was all over the news, honey.” Fred scratched the white stubble on his chin. “This ain’t my first rodeo. I was in law enforcement my entire life. Took me a bit longer to reach Texas Ranger than you, kid. Loved every minute of it once I did. It’s not like you just stop because you ain’t wearing the badge.”
“You never said a word.” Kylie looked completely astonished.
“Neither did you.” Fred winked and grinned. The old man was having a blast. “We all figured that when you were ready, you’d tell us. After a couple of years, we figured it was better for you if you didn’t talk about it.”
“Who all knows her real identity?” They both ignored Bryce, continuing their own conversation.
“I can’t believe you did all that for me. I was so lost. If it hadn’t been for you and Allison at the Koffee Cup, I would have been... Fred, I don’t know what would have happened to me.”
“You settled in here real good, young lady. We wanted to keep you.” The smile on Fred’s face was as genuine as his words.
“This is all very inspiring,” Bryce interrupted, “but it still doesn’t solve our problem or answer my question. I’ve been ordered to bring Kylie to Austin for questioning by the state attorneys.”
“Then I’d like to see the warrant or summons. Sorry, son, but if Kylie doesn’t want to go...she’s not going.”
“We’re just talking for now. Nobody wants to issue a warrant, especially if Kylie hasn’t done anything wrong.” He tried to catch her gaze. He didn’t want everyone to know Tenoreno’s stolen car sat in her garage. Hell, maybe everyone in Hico already knew. “I need a list of people who know who Kylie is and what happened to her before she arrived five years ago.”
“Most everybody thinks of Kylie as someone who the community took in and who gives back to us a hundredfold. Few know that a mobster tried to kill her.”
“I need those names, Fred.” He opened a notepad on his phone. “Type them here and I’ll check them out.”
Fred tapped his pockets. “I don’t seem to have my bifocals.”
“Use these.” Bryce found his glasses in front of the television. “Squint if they don’t work. I need to talk to Kylie.”
Fred covered her hand with his own. “I will admit that it’s been a challenge keeping you out of the public spotlight, sugar. ’Fraid that’s out of our hands now. You should know that your friends decided way back that we’d stand shoulder to shoulder with you if something happened. You’re not alone.”
He nodded to Bryce to take a chair while he pushed back from the table. He scooped up the cell and glasses and went to stand by the front window.
“I can’t believe this.” Kylie shook her head, looking as shocked as he felt.
Bryce spun the dining chair and straddled it, leaning on the back but close enough to lower his voice so only Kylie could hear him.
“I think he’s sincere. That creates a big problem for us.” He waited until she looked up with a question in her eyes. “A while ago you didn’t want to call for help because you were afraid of what would happen to trained officers. What do you think is going to happen if your friends stand shoulder to shoulder?”
“A lot of innocent people are going to get hurt.”
“Yeah. I’m not saying that Fred isn’t right. He is. I don’t have a warrant. Compelling you to testify is something I can’t do...yet. But for their sakes I think it’s time you told me what you know about Xander Tenoreno that makes him so determined to kill you.”
“Bryce, I really don’t know anything about his business.” She threaded her fingers through her blond hair. “Please believe me.”
“I’ve read the reports of the night you were shot. Didn’t you wonder why he wanted to meet in that part of Austin?” He knew the answer, but wanted to hear her personal account, too. “Maybe you’ll remember something different this time.”
“I went for my cat. Xander is a cruel man...at least he was five years ago when I knew him. I told the police, I never suspected that he would try to kill me.
When his alibi checked out, along with all of his closest men, there was nothing anyone could do.”
“What about the day-to-day operations of the Tenoreno family?” He noticed that Fred was standing at the window, arms crossed, frowning and definitely listening.
Hard of hearing old man? He doubted it.
“I lived there for a couple of months. I was on photo shoots back then. Or going to movie premieres in LA. Xander went with me everywhere, even to Fashion Week in New York. He seemed to get a high from draping himself all over me. I liked the attention at first.” She rested her head on her hands, hiding her eyes from him.
“But?”
She jerked straight, throwing her head back and pushing her hair away from her face. “Do we really have to do this now? I’m a little exhausted. Actually, I’m more than exhausted and need some sleep.” She pushed the chair back, grabbing her shoulder bag and standing. “You have a bed, right? I’m using it.”
“Kylie—”
“I’ll take that cup of coffee now.” Fred jumped between him and the woman running down the hall. “She’ll be better in the morning. This is a lot to process right now.”
Fred’s hand was plastered against Bryce’s chest. Not necessarily pushing, but if he pressed forward, he’d have to knock the older man to the side.
“You need to back off.” Bryce pushed the words through a jaw clamped so tight his teeth wouldn’t move.
Fred threw his hands up in surrender, gesturing toward the kitchen. “Want a cup?”
“Let me explain something. You’re a guest here. Only here because of your previous service and because I can use an extra set of eyes keeping her safe. We’ll reassess the situation when my partner arrives.”
“Sure thing. I’ll get that coffee.” Fred stepped aside toward the kitchen.
Bryce followed Kylie toward the bedroom—there was only one furnished. The door was open and she was lying across the covers, arm covering her eyes. There were still a lot of lights flashing outside even with the blinds drawn shut.