Ride The Storm (Storm Warning Series Book 4)

by Geri Foster

  Picking up the phone, he dialed a number he hadn’t used in years. The phone rang twice before a gruff, familiar voice answered. “It’s me,” he said. “I think I finally found a way to get Crawley.”

  “What are you doing calling me? We had a deal. We’re not to contact each other. It’s too dangerous.”

  He hated getting the cold shoulder from a man he’d risked his career for. “Well, things change. And don’t treat me like a recruit just out of boot camp. I put everything in jeopardy for you.”

  “And you made a fortune, so don’t come crying to me now.”

  “You want Crawley dead as bad as I do.”

  “No, I don’t. I got out of Afghanistan without a scratch and a lot of money. That’s all I care about.”

  “I guess you were okay with your name being front and center on the report Crawley filed.”

  “I’m CIA. No Navy SCPO is going to get anything on me. Even at your court-martial, the stuff about me was inconsequential. They blew it off like I knew they would.”

  “If that’s true, why no promotions for you in the last ten years? By now you should’ve been the director. But after the incident with Crawley, and all the evidence he produced, we’ve both suffered and you’re a liar if you say we haven’t.”

  “Okay, I’ll admit there are people in the agency who treat me like I have leprosy, but I don’t care anymore. I’m living like a king with enough money to last me a lifetime in an off-shore account.”

  “And Crawley still breathing doesn’t bother you?”

  “Not enough to risk everything I’ve accomplished. Revenge doesn’t mean shit to me. It’s cold and empty.”

  “Not to me.”

  “You were a fool, Eli. We made a deal with the devil. He paid us a fortune to send that team into a trap. They’d been up Al-Qaeda’s ass for months. We just changed a few things at the last minute. Remember, we didn’t fire a single shot.”

  “We didn’t have to. The insurgents took care of that. Unfortunately, they didn’t get Crawley.”

  “Just luck. I told you the man had nine lives.”

  “Well, I’m prepared to cash him out. Opara’s younger brother has agreed to take care of the matter for me.”

  “You went out looking for a hit on Crawley?”

  “No, the kid came to me. He’s lost his whole family and decided it was time he got revenge for Hector’s death.”

  “And he blames Crawley?”

  He poured a drink, took a big swig, then chuckled. “After I got done talking to him, he does.”

  “If he learns the truth, you’re in serious trouble.”

  “Who would tell him? He’s a gang member. You think he’s going to go to Congress and ask to see the report or ask for details? Besides, if you can’t believe a Commander, who can you?”

  “An ex-Commander that got booted out of the Navy?”

  “I’m a survivor.”

  “I don’t care who or what you are, just leave me out of it. Take my advice and be happy with your money and whatever family you have left.”

  Easy for Cal Felix to say. He still had his family while Eli only had an empty house, long, lonely hours alone, and memories of a family destroyed.

  Chapter 9

  If Nancy expected Jeff to drop her off at home and leave, she was in for a surprise. After pulling up to her house, he turned off the motor and opened his door. Before she could manage to get hers open and explain he didn’t need to come inside and wait, he was standing outside her door.

  When he opened it, his face came close to hers. “Don’t even say it. I’m waiting until you get dressed and then I’ll take you to work. No discussing the matter.”

  The firm set of his jaw had her on the verge of telling him exactly what she thought, but he looked so adorable. She’d also learned recently just how much she liked being looked after by a man like Jeff Crawley. He had just enough gruffness to make her heart beat faster and her pulse to raise her blood pressure. She could let his bossiness slide, if it meant she got all the rest.

  “I was going to say this isn’t necessary,” she took his offered hand and stepped down, “but I know you won’t listen. Still, for the record, you understand I think this isn’t necessary?”

  “Affirmative.” His gaze roamed over the entire street and her house. “Let’s get going.”

  She rushed inside, and he locked the door. Turning to find him right behind her, she stepped back. “I just want to say ignore the furniture. I bought all new stuff last night.”

  “Is that where you were?”

  “Yes, the girls and I went shopping.”

  He looked around at her tattered furniture, and she wanted to cringe. “I don’t see anything wrong with it, but it’s your choice.”

  “This stuff is almost as old as I am.”

  Hs shrugged. “Suit yourself, but I think it’s fine.”

  “You have new furniture,” she accused. “I saw it and it’s lovely.”

  He put one palm in his hip pocket and scratched his unshaven cheek with the other. “That’s all Candi. I could live in an empty tent.”

  “I hated living here with this stuff. That’s why I changed it.”

  “Good reason. You should do what makes you happy.”

  “It did.”

  “Okay,” he said, leaning closer and tapping her on the nose. “I’m not here to tell you what to do. I’m just waiting for you to get in the shower and dressed so we can head for the bank.”

  She turned and marched toward the shower. Not daring to pause, she went into her bedroom and laid out her clothes for the day then went into the bathroom.

  Within thirty-five minutes, she walked out wearing a beige suit, black blouse and mid-high heels. She’d shampooed her hair, applied make-up and spritzed on some perfume.

  Entering the living room, she noticed Jeff was standing exactly where she’d left him.

  “I didn’t want to go prowling through your kitchen to find the coffee or I’d have made a pot.”

  She stopped and stared at him. “I did.”

  “Well, I don’t have enough stuff to actually prowl through and the coffee and coffee maker are out on the counter.”

  Right. She hadn’t even had to open a cupboard to find a cup. A carousel of six mugs sat right beside the maker. Only Candi would think of something like that. Certainly not Jeff.

  She grabbed her purse and headed for the door. He reached out and took her by the arm spinning her around. His mouth clamped down on hers, and she dropped her bag to wrap her arms around his neck.

  Heat started in her belly and traveled down between her legs, causing her to take a step forward in order to press her body against his. She had never felt so out of control or so fearless. She wanted more. A lot more.

  As the kiss deepened, his whiskered cheek tickled her skin. Leaning his head to the right, he pulled her even tighter. She couldn’t breath and didn’t care. She just wanted him closer and closer. For a totally inexperienced woman when it came to relationships and men, she thirsted for more of this.

  He broke the kiss and she slowly opened her eyes and ran her tongue along her lips. He frowned. “Don’t do that.”

  “What?” Her eyes widened. “What did I do?”

  “That think with your tongue. It’s sexy.”

  She smiled. No one had ever said that to her before, and she liked the sound of it. “Thank you.”

  “You smell good, too.” He pulled her into his arms. “Maybe you should call in sick today.”

  “That’s something I can’t do. I’ve never missed a day of work in all the years I’ve been there. Besides, Hatley rarely shows up for work. If anything happened, there’d be trouble.”

  He wrinkled his brow. “Hatley?”

  “The president of the bank.”

  “Oh, that’s right. I forgot. You should be the president. If a guy can’t show up at work, he doesn’t deserve the job.”

  She pried his hands from her back. “I don’t make that decision, but I d
o have to leave.”

  He took her arm and they walked out the door to his pickup. Stopping at the door, she turned to him. “It’s only two blocks away. Let’s walk.”

  “No, I think it’s best if we drive. I don’t want you out in the open.”

  “Am I going to be in hiding now?”

  He opened the door, slipped on his aviators and she slid in. “No, but I don’t think you should parade up and down the street either.”

  “Walking to work isn’t the same as parading, Jeff.”

  “I want you safe. If you think I’m overreacting, fine. But, better I’m too protective than not enough.”

  After closing her door, he walked around the hood and got in. Pulling a U-turn in the middle of the block, he headed for the bank. She pulled her skirt down and rubbed her lips together, hoping their kiss hadn’t messed up her makeup too badly.

  When she glanced at him, he smiled. “You look so pretty I maybe should sit at the bank all day to keep the other men at bay.”

  “You don’t have to worry about that. There aren’t any other men.”

  “Then they’re all blind.”

  “You’re cute.”

  He scoffed.

  In front of the bank, he stopped and put the truck in Park. Looking over at her, he said, “Don’t take any chances. Don’t go to lunch alone, and if someone comes in acting strange, call Lucas. I talked to him while you were in the shower. He, Austin and David will be keeping a close eye on the bank.”

  “They don’t need to do that.”

  He pulled down his sunglasses and glared at her over the rim. Giving in, she held up her hands. “Okay, okay, I give up.”

  He jumped out and opened her door and, when she went to step around him, he reached out and pulled her against his chest and kissed her until her head spun.

  Lifting his head all too quickly, he said, “That’s so you don’t forget me.”

  She stepped on the curb and grinned back at him. “There’s no chance of that happening.”

  * * *

  Jeff drove his pickup through downtown and around several neighborhoods, looking, taking note and hoping to run into Alec Jones again. Satisfied the guy had crawled into a dark hole, he headed over to his brother’s.

  Pulling into Russ’s driveway, he made sure he stayed to the right so if Russ needed to get out of his garage, he could. He rang the doorbell then stepped inside. “Hey, anyone home?” Russ, unlike him, never locked his door.

  “Yeah, in here having my second cup of coffee.”

  “Yes, I’ll have one.”

  Russ chuckled and took another cup down from the cabinet above the carafe of coffee, pouring him a cup and handing it to him. They both sat across from each other at the round kitchen table.

  “I heard Nancy and the girls had a problem at Frankie’s Bar last night.”

  “They did.” He took a sip and put the cup down. “Austin fill you in?”

  “Yes. He called me late last night to say Candi and Tyler were staying with him. I usually keep an eye out for her when I know she’s not home.”

  “According to Nancy, they went furniture shopping then stopped by Frankie’s for a beer then went to head home. The attack took place in the parking lot.”

  “Did they get him on a security camera?”

  “He wore a ski mask.”

  Russ sat his cup down and leaned forward. “You don’t say? Huh, I wouldn’t be looking for that to happen in Rainwater.”

  “Why not?” he asked. “Lots of crimes are committed by people wearing ski masks.”

  “I know, but I don’t even think you can buy one here. Maybe if it were the dead of winter, but it usually doesn’t get cold enough for people around here to buy them. So, someone wearing one would really stand out.”

  “I’m sure the guy bought it to commit the crime and isn’t walking around town with it on.”

  “Makes me think this guy might’ve come from up North where those are still in the stores.”

  He thought about that. “Could be. Or he might have had it from last year. Not much to go on, really.”

  “What do you think happened? I mean, what did the guy want? Austin said, by all appearances, he was after Nancy.”

  “That’s the way I read it too, but we have no way of knowing for sure. I had Nancy stay with me last night, just in case.”

  Russ sat up straighter, his face a mask of surprise. “You did? And she went along with that?”

  “I didn’t give her much of a choice. I wanted her kept safe, and I only knew of one way to ensure that.”

  Russ shook his head. “Your fortress is the safest place for her to be. No one could ever break in there.”

  “No one without some serious technical skills, anyway. That’s exactly the way I want it. One never knows when evil will come knocking on your door.”

  Russ stared at him. “You’ve been paranoid since returning from the war. You came home so empty and troubled. I wasn’t sure you’d make it.”

  Used to his brother bringing up his past by now, he wasn’t pained by the reminder of what had happened and what it had done to him. Not too much, anyway. “War can do that to a man. Any man.”

  “I sure wish you’d taken that honorable discharge the Navy tried to give you. You deserve it. The charges against you were trumped up and you know it.”

  He shook his head, understanding that his brother was proud of him, but also understanding that he didn’t deserve that respect. “No, I deserved that General Discharge, all right. I beat the living crap out of a Commanding Officer. I knew what would happen and I thought it was worth it.” He glanced at Russ. “I’d do it again.”

  “Well, the good thing is they kicked him out of the service and stripped him of everything.”

  “Yeah, but even so, I get the feeling Munson and Felix made out pretty good. No one can convince me they weren’t in cahoots with Al Qaeda. I just couldn’t stay around long enough to prove it.”

  “Because you wanted to escort your dead team members back home.”

  His chest tightened, and he closed his eyes. Behind his lids he relived sitting in the C-130 strapped into a seat, crying as he gazed at the ten, flag-draped caskets.

  Feeling his brother’s hand on his arm, he opened his eyes, jumped to his feet and began pacing, plowing his fingers through his hair. The sound of rapid fire filled his ears and the scent of spent ammo stung his nostrils. Blood covered the floor, him, his weapon. It was everywhere. Out of the smoke and darkness, he felt a pair of strong arms wrap around him and hold him until the shaking stopped.

  Clothes damp with perspiration, he looked around for a moment, unsure where he was. Then, his brother’s face came into view, and his firm hand pressed against his cheek.

  “It’s okay. You’re home and out of that hellhole.”

  He blinked and staggered against the counter, gripping the edge to stay upright. “I’m okay, it’s passing.”

  Russ put his hand on his shoulder. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry I brought that up. I’m an insensitive fool sometimes.” He looked conflicted for a moment, but then pressed on. “You need to go to those meetings at the bank. I’ve heard Dr. Molinsky is pretty good.”

  “I know the guys who go. We’ve met under different circumstances. I didn’t think I was as bad off as them.” Thinking he just might need the help after all, he cupped his brother’s hand. “I’ll check it out.”

  Russ took his arm and led him to the table, where he immediately slumped down in a chair. He still felt a little shaky. From experience, he knew today nothing would get done except what had to be done. He’d be a mess before completely shaking off the residue of the effects.

  “What about Nancy?” Russ asked. “Is she staying at your place tonight?”

  “I asked her to, but she’s reluctant. Worried about her reputation.”

  “She’s got good reason,” Russ stated. “Nancy is a very well-respected person in this town. Everyone loves her.”

  “I understand all that,
Russ, but I think she’ll be much safer at my place where I can protect her.”

  Russ’s brow wrinkled. “Why do you feel the need to do that? Is she really in danger?”

  “The others claimed Nancy was the man’s target. He wanted her.”

  Russ held out his arms. “But why?”

  “I don’t know, but I don’t want something to happen to her and us all to be left wondering what we could’ve done to prevent it. And that’s exactly what would happen.”

  Russ appeared to mull over what he’d said. He knew if he couldn’t persuade his brother Nancy would be safer with him, he’d be hard pressed to convince anyone else.

  His brother continued to rub his chin, his eyes troubled. “I see where you’re coming from. And I’m wondering where else she could stay that people might not make such a fuss about.”

  “While you’re thinking about that, make sure you come up with someone who can protect her at the same time.”

  Russ looked up at him, a question on his face. “There is Austin.”

  “What’s the difference between her staying with me or Austin? He’s a single man, living all alone.”

  “That’s true. Why don’t you and I talk to the Mayor and see what he says?”

  “Is this really the Mayor’s business? I mean, I know this is a small town but, come on. It’s not the dark ages. I think we should first find out if Lucas or Austin have another idea.”

  “I see your point. Okay, we should do that.”

  “I have no reason to suspect the guy, other than instinct, but I keep thinking about that guy at the veterans’ meeting a few days ago. You remember me telling you about him? This guy hit me as someone who didn’t belong. He had an Eastern accent, either New York or Pennsylvania. Could be the Chicago area, too.”

  “Did he do something that alerted your radar?”