Framed
Page 6
“From what I gathered from Kade your mission was over six months ago; when you didn’t hit town like he thought you would he assumed you’d written him off. “
“Our mission was extended to twenty-four months. He knows there is always a possibility of that happening.”
“He may know that, son, but considering he’s in prison for a crime he didn’t commit, you can see how he might lose faith. He’s focusing on the wrong done to him, not whether or not you got delayed,” my dad jumped in.
“Who are you to the Chief?” he asked me.
“Kade? I’m his dog trainer.”
“Pardon?” the SEAL I’d decided to dub “Drago”, since he reminded me of the Russian from Rocky 4, asked, confused.
“Why don’t we sit down and start from the beginning?” I replied.
The SEALs wasted no time pulling up chairs so Dad and I joined them. A waitress came straight over, her boobs pushed out in an obvious attempt to get their attention told me the boys wouldn’t be lonely long if they were looking for female companionship. Impressively, they ignored her; they were too attentive, focused on me as they waited for me to continue.
“I’m Harley and this is my father Harry Dash. We own and run Dirty Harry’s Auto Repair in Milton.”
“Oh, fuck,” Drago mumbled, his eyes shooting to the other SEAL.
“What?”
“Nothin’, nothin’. Please tell me you’re still married.”
“Um, I was ’til a few years ago . . . Wait, how did you know that?”
“I’m Michael McDonald,” Drago blurted out, shoving his hand in my face to shake. “Everyone calls me Mickey D, but you can call me Dead Man Walking.”
I looked at my dad and bugged out my eyes, then shook his hand. Mickey D had gone from cocky and sure of himself to nervous and jittery in a blink of an eye.
“You can call me Prez,” the other SEAL jumped in, pulling my hand away from Mickey’s.
“Why Prez?” my dad asked.
“Because I was named after the greatest President to ever hold the office. Ronald Reagan, God rest his soul,” Prez answered with pride, his hand over his heart as if uttering the Gipper’s name required the same respect as the Pledge of Allegiance.
“Amen,” my dad joined in, shaking Prez’s hand. An immediate bond, born of conservative values, was formed between the two.
“Tell me how you know so much about what’s happening with my brother?” Prez inquired.
“As I said before, I’m his dog trainer. I volunteer at the prison with a program called IDTP. We rehabilitate abused dogs using inmates within the correctional system. I’m assigned to the prison Kade was transferred to after his conviction and I recommended him for the program.”
“Do you always take this much interest in the inmates you train?” Mickey asked.
“Oh, no. It’s just that Dad and I followed the case from the beginning and knew he was innocent.”
“Okay, but that doesn’t explain why you think he’s in danger now or what you’re doing here.” Prez asked.
“I was at the prison today and he had stitches on his arm from some sort of attack. He blew it off as nothing, but I knew he was in trouble. As for why I’m here, not knowing if you guys were actually going to show up we decided to dig around and see what we could come up with on our own.”
Prez chuckled when I was done, shooting Mickey a curious look. Then he turned serious and leaned into the table; for the next few minutes he was all business.
“We set down at seventeen hundred hours today. We can’t get in to see Kade until visiting hours at oh eight hundred tomorrow morning. We came straight to the scene of the crime and just finished interviewing the owner. D and I both took a 30-day leave to sort this shit out and get my brother out. If we need more than 30-days, then we will request it. Kade is our brother, once a SEAL always a SEAL. We do not leave a man behind, we do not give up until our mission is complete, and we will not rest until our brother is set free. Do you feel me?”
“I feel you,” I answered because the man was intense, he was determined, and he was pissed right the hell off. “You’re The Brute Squad in fatigues.”
Prez’s head jerked back at my comment and a slow grin pulled across his face. “Did you just quote Princess Bride?”
“You know that movie, too?”
“Know it; we can quote the whole damn movie. Kade’s final mission with our team, we forgot our movies. Our portable DVD player made it on board the plane so we checked to see if anything was inside. Thanks to our lieutenant’s wife, who had borrowed the device, The Princess Bride was inside. We ended up watching it every night for two months.”
“Kade said one of your wives quoted it all the time and that’s how he knew the movie,” I laughed.
“I bet,” Mickey D chuckled. “We’re The Brute Squad, princess. We don’t want to admit we liked a chick flick.”
“But there’s sword fighting, shrieking eels and Cary Elwes,” I stated. “It’s way more than a chick flick.”
Both men nodded in agreement and I felt an instant bond. They had to be good men Kade could trust if they quoted Princess Bride.
“You boys got a place to stay?” Dad asked, grinning from ear to ear. No doubt he found it as hilarious as I did that these macho men liked my favorite movie.
“I won’t need much sleep, sir. I’ve got a friend to rescue,” Mickey answered, his face hard with anger once again.
“All right. How about a place to store your gear while you’re out hunting down the bad guys?”
“Are you offering?” Prez asked.
“My casa is su casa.”
“Then we accept,” Prez replied.
“Before we see Kade tomorrow, I want to know how our brother is really doing.”
“I’d say on a scale of one to killing someone, he’s about a seven.”
“Then there’s no time to lose. Take us back to your house and we’ll store our gear and get started.”
“Have you already been to the courthouse and obtained a copy of the court records?” I inquired, surprised they could investigate anything their first night in town.
“Princess, the less you know, the better,” Mickey stated.
“I don’t understand? If you follow the evidence, then what’s there to hide from me?”
“We have a select set of skills which allows us to . . . How should I put this? Access information without leaving the comfort of home.”
Oh, Lord!
Leaning in so no one would hear I whispered, “You’re going to hack into the courthouse, aren’t you?”
“No going to about it; all we need has already been obtained,” Prez answered, raising a duffle bag that I assumed held their equipment.
“Whoa, you are The Brute Squad . . . but with brains.”
“No, darlin’,” Prez smiled. “We’re Navy SEALs . . . “
***
“Are you gonna tell him you kissed the woman he’s been hard for for more than fifteen years, or am I?”
“Why do I have to tell him?”
Prez cocked an eyebrow at D as they waited for Kade to be brought up and shook his head slowly. “For a SEAL you’re a dumb son of a bitch, you know that, right?”
“Prez, it’ll just piss him off. Why upset him any more than he’s already been,” Mickey hedged. But the truth was, he liked his balls right where they were. He had no doubt that Kade would tie them in a knot if he knew that his lips had gotten anywhere near his dream woman.
Prez, Kade, and Mickey D had gone through BUD/s together, moved up the ranks together, and had each other’s backs on a daily basis. So Prez and D knew all about Harley. The one who got away.
During boot camp, they’d heard all about how he’d met the perfect woman in high school. About the cheerleader he’d knocked down during a game, but had left her alone ‘cause he knew he was too wild for her. He didn’t know her name then, but he knew that he wanted to find a woman just like her when he was ready to settle down. Years later
, he’d seen her at her dad’s garage when he had no time to talk to her, but he at least knew where to find her. Fast-forward two years, after a long and bloody mission, Kade had headed straight for Pensacola and a certain auto repair shop only to find out he was too late. Kade spent the next few years looking for a woman who compared, but everyone fell short.
Mickey knew, without a doubt, to have her here now and not be able to touch her had to be eating away at Kade. So there was no way in hell he wanted to tell Kade that he had tasted those luscious lips first.
“He’ll find out, D, he always has a way of knowing. You know this about him. If you tell him up front what happened, he might let you live,” Prez advised.
“Jesus, Prez, what were the chances that that fine woman was his dream girl? Swear to God, between this fuck up and that Puerto Rican hottie that Campbell drooled over, it’s a wonder I haven’t been killed.”
“You leap before you look, my friend. Always have. You should have asked why she was so pissed off before sweeping her off her feet.”
“Maybe after meeting her he wasn’t as into her as he once was. Maybe with age and experience the pedestal he put her on isn’t as high.”
Prez cocked his brow again and scoffed, “You met the woman, right?”
Yeah, he’d met her and tasted those sweet lips, too.
Christ, I’m fucked.
“I’m dead, aren’t I?”
“Is your will in order?” Prez chuckled, enjoying watching his brother sweat.
D was shaking his head no, just as the door opened and Kade came into view. If anything, he looked bigger than the last time they’d seen him; as if he spent all his time strength-training. And his hair looked like he hadn’t cut it since the day he discharged. Other than that, he was still the same man they hadn’t seen in two years.
His eyes were sharp, assessing everyone and everything as he entered the room. He didn’t see them at first so he and D stood. When their eyes met, the hard lines on Kade’s face grew even harder for a moment then relief filled his eyes.
“Whoever this motherfucker is that put my brother in here and that look on his face, he’s a dead man. I’m gonna string him up by his entrails when I find him,” Prez growled low to D as Kade made his way towards them both.
Kade wound around the tables never taking his eyes off his old friends. When he was close enough, Prez grabbed him by the shoulder and drew him in for a fierce hug, holding on tight.
“Our mission was extended, my brother. It killed us we couldn’t get back here any sooner. We didn’t get any of Kyle’s messages about the trial until we hit stateside yesterday morning,” Prez mumbled as he felt Kade’s rigid body relax.
“Jesus, you’re a sight for sore eyes,” Kade finally said. “An ugly sight, but I’m not complaining.”
Looking between his two friends, the bitterness that had taken root and grew daily like a malignant tumor melted away.
Only to be replaced by the urge to kill a certain giant of a man a moment later.
“Kade, I gotta tell you somethin’,” D jumped in.
“D, you may want to step back before you—”
“I didn’t know who she was when I kissed her, man. Honestly, you would have done the same thing if a woman that hot got in your face. It’s just . . . Ah, hell; you know how I love the ones with piss and vinegar, Kade. I couldn’t help myself.”
Kade narrowed his eyes at D at a loss for what the hell he was talking about. He looked at Prez for help but then it hit him like a lightning bolt. There was only one woman that D could touch that would piss him off and he wasn’t at a loss anymore. He was crystal-clear. His mouth tightened and his jaw clenched at the thought of D’s lips anywhere near Harley and he instantly reacted. Leaning in to cover his actions from the guards, Kade hissed, “Are you telling me you kissed Harley?” right as he grabbed D by the balls and squeezed. Hard.
“King,” Mickey hissed low, trying to keep from moving. He’d been on the receiving end of this maneuver a few times and knew better than to move. “I didn’t know who she was.”
“Where the fuck did you run into Harley?” he asked Prez, still holding onto D’s balls like a Rottweiler. At six-foot-seven, D was a big man. But he had the mentality of a lover, not a fighter, most of the time. He’d have your back in an instant if you needed it, but he was a Romeo. Kade was big, but not as big as D at six-foot-four. But D also knew his size wasn’t any match against a very pissed off Kade, so he didn’t move a muscle.
“St. Elmo’s Fire. She was there with her father doing the same thing we were; asking questions about the night Sutton died. She got in our faces when she figured out who we were. Unfortunately, I have to agree with numbnuts here; she was hot doin’ it and considering the way D lets his little head do all the thinking, it was bound to happen.”
Hearing that Harley was at the bar looking for a killer, the air around them hummed with unleashed anger as Kade sucked all the oxygen out of the room.
“Is she nuts?” Kade growled. “What the hell was she thinkin’ sniffin’ around after killers?” Kade’s hand tightened further on D’s balls just at the thought of Harley in danger, causing the big SEAL to whimper in response.
“King,” Prez said calmly when D’s painful moans caught the attention of a guard. “I know you want to rip his balls off, but you’ve got a guard at your ten who looks like he’s about to head this way.”
Not wanting to spend time in solitary or lose visitation privileges, Kade released D reluctantly.
“Thank you,” D rushed out in relief. If they’d been alone, he would have fallen to his knees and said a silent prayer that Kade was in a forgiving mood.
Not wanting any more attention, all three took a seat at the table with D taking a chair farthest away from Kade. When Kade was sure no one was listening, he leaned in and ordered, “Talk to me. Tell me what you’ve found out.”
“No witnesses, no cameras, no one to corroborate your version of events. We hacked Sutton’s bank records and found no mysterious payments. Nothing out of the ordinary. We’re heading to his house when we leave here to talk to his wife; we’re hoping she can shed some light. After that, we're hitting the apartment building across the street from the alley, followed by walking the perimeter to look for any businesses that might have had cameras. If we can get a visual on one of these guys, we can find him, King. I just need a face, then he’s mine,” Prez vowed.
“I don’t wanna lose anyone else to this mess, you hear me? Whoever they were, they were professionals with no code. I need you to check in with me. Visiting hours are daily except for Tuesday and Wednesday. I want to see your ugly mugs each day. If you don’t check in, I’ll know something is wrong and I’ll get a message out through Harley to contact Kyle. He can report the situation to Bosworth.”
“Affirmative,” Prez agreed.
“Where are you staying? With Kyle and Pops?”
“With Harry Dash. Harley’s father is putting us up.”
Kade shot Mickey a look, pinning the man with his laser sharp eyes. D was smart enough not to say a word.
“Harley doesn’t live with Harry; she lives over the garage in a studio apartment so you can tamp down your need to kill D for now,” Prez chuckled after watching the exchange.
Turning back to Prez, Kade winked. It had been more than two years since he’d had a chance to bust D’s balls over something, and kissing Harley was as good a reason as any to keep the big man off-balance.
“You tell her father to keep Harley out of this.”
“I don’t think you need to worry about that. Papa bear was all over the kiss.” Prez nodded towards D. “And now that we’re in town, he’s happy to let us take lead.”
Kade sat back, looked at his friends, and took in a slow, deep breath. A breath, he hadn’t been able to pull into his lungs for two years. A grin began to pull across his face as the weight he’d been carrying since the day he was arrested started to ease.
“Damn, but it’s good to see you b
oth.”
“Been too long, my brother. But know this, King. We’ve got your back; we aren’t leaving until you’re free. You have my word on that.”
Kade reached out his hand, then Prez did the same and they clapped their hands together. It was a show of unity, of camaraderie, of respect.
“Jesus, all this touchy feely shit is making me itchy to kill something . . . or maim at the very least,” D blurted out.
“Then get to work, boys,” Kade ordered, looking at both men. “Somewhere out there are three unknowns who need to be found, detained, and preferably brought to me for a little attitude adjustment. However, seeing as I’m in here for the duration, I’ll settle for a room with bars.”
“Speaking of a room with bars, Harley said she thought you were in danger,” Prez questioned.
“Nothin’ I can’t handle.”
“You got any clue who’s marked you?”
“Nope. But like I said, I can handle it.”
“See that you do,” D jumped in. “I may be sterile after the nut hold you just gave me. I’d hate to think I’ve deprived the world of little D’s for nothing if you turn up dead by some gangbanger.”
“I did the world a favor,” Kade grinned, letting D off the hook for now. Of course, when he walked out of this stink hole a free man—all bets were off. He wouldn’t soon forget D had done the one thing he’d dreamed about doing most of his adult life.
Taking a deep breath, he stood from the table and put out his hand to D.
“Does this mean I’m forgiven?”
“Do I seem like the forgiving sort?”
“Fuck, man. At least give me fair warning, will ya?”
“Where’s the fun in that?” Prez chuckled, knowing D would sweat bullets wondering when Kade’s retaliation would come for kissing Harley.
“Time to get to work and get me out of this hellhole,” Kade said as he clapped one then the other on the back. “To the fuckin’ pain,” Kade hissed low. “Find these bastards and teach them a lesson. No one messes with a SEAL and gets away with it.”
“Amen, my brother. To the fuckin’ pain,” Prez growled.