Courage (Blackstone Book 4)

by J. L. Drake

  In a smooth motion, I unclipped my bra and tossed it to the floor and shimmied out of my pants.

  He stood at the edge of the bed and crooked his finger at me to come to him. I raised myself up to my hands and knees and slowly crawled along the mattress, looking up at him with hungry eyes. As soon as I was within reach, I stopped and devoured him as the flickering candlelight played with his muscles.

  His hands were suddenly in my hair, and he pulled me up to him and took over my mouth. I could tell he was in the mood for control, and I found I wanted to give it to him, but I also wanted to play a little.

  I moved my fingers to his stomach and fiddled with the clip on his Army pants. Once they were open, I pushed them down past his hips and leaned back on my hands, arching my back, my nipples erect in an invitation to show him how much I missed him too. He leaned forward and reached around and pulled my wrists outward to release my weight, and I lay flat, my breasts screaming for his touch.

  Bending down, he hooked his arms under my legs and slid them out from under me as he pulled me tightly to him. I didn’t get a chance to think before he dove straight in.

  “Jesus.” His neck contracted, and his stomach muscles flexed, granting me a show as I adjusted to the invasion. “I will never tire of this feeling right here.”

  I wiggled to make more room, and he slipped in farther. My back bowed, and his hands were all over me again.

  He rocked back and forth and took his time dragging in and out. His mouth moved like he was talking, but the music drowned out his words. He was thoroughly enjoying his moment…while I, on the other hand, needed some kind of release before my blood got any hotter and my heart beat right out of my chest. It had been a long, stressful time since he’d left, and all that pent-up emotion needed to be torn from my core.

  He changed angles and hooked my left leg over his shoulder and picked up the pace. My head whipped back and forth, and my hands clawed at the sheets. I wanted to cry and scream at the same time. Finally, when the buildup became too much, I pushed on his shoulders, making him fall backward with my sudden show of strength.

  “No.” I batted his hands away as I crawled onto his erection.

  “What?” He smirked.

  “No more touching unless you’re making me come.”

  “Aww.” His smirk became wider, and I wanted to smack him. A woman in need was not someone to mess with.

  I slid up and down and started my build-up again, but my way. I rode his tip and used his arousal to coat my already slick opening.

  “Sloane,” John’s neck strained again as I relished the control, “let me touch you.”

  “No,” I panted and ran my hands through my hair, giving him a good show. My breasts bounced around as I grew closer to my bliss.

  Oh, so close…

  Whoosh!

  John somehow was now on top and was pumping himself into me at a maddening speed. I screamed and bucked, and just as I was about to find that place inside that let all my worries fade away like mist on a lake, he leaned in and spoke.

  “There’s nothing I love more about you than when you’re wild with need.”

  His hips flicked hard, and I burst upward like a confetti popper, colors exploding in my head.

  I had no idea when I came down from my high, or when morning decided to show itself, but all that mattered was that I woke to John Black wrapped around me like a warm hug. I snuggled in and went back to sleep.

  I vaguely remembered the bed dipping and some movement in the bathroom, but I was just too tired to pry my eyes open.

  When I woke for the second time that morning, John was gone, and the urge to throw myself back into my work was strong. For the next four days, I hibernated in my Tin House, desperately going through everything over and over. I needed to figure it out; I needed to find the link that hovered just out of reach.

  How were the cartel able to figure out Blackstone’s movements when they were speaking in code? How the hell did they know what the codes meant? I was exhausted and knew I needed a break soon. I stood and put my hands on my hips and leaned back, trying to alleviate the ache in my spine.

  I hadn’t seen John or the guys much, as they were closeted with Frank being debriefed on the mission and going through every detail, as I was.

  Savannah poked her head in the door and held up a bottle of red. “Dinner’s in ten, and this time don’t miss it. You’ve been hiding away in here way too long. Besides, I have a bottle of Hess here with your name on it.”

  “You had me at bottle.” I laughed. “I’ll be right up.” For the fourth or fifth time this week, I closed the file that had haunted me since we’d discovered the cartel knew the codes.

  The smell of warm bread hit my nose as a Marcus Martini was shoved in my hand. The guys were standing around with drinks, a typical Friday evening at Shadows.

  “You’ve been MIA lately.” I turned my attention to Mark.

  “I could say the same for you.”

  “Meh, it’s all part of the job.” I wanted to ask him how it was going, but Liam raced by with a water gun, and Mark was soon hard on his heels. Shrieks of laughter came from the kitchen as the two of them ran through. Daniel and Sue had their heads together and were whispering over something that had Sue giggling with excitement.

  As I went to join them, a loud shriek came from the kitchen. Savannah ran into the room and turned on the TV. She shouted for everyone to come and listen. Cole stood behind her and rested his hands on her shoulders as they looked at the TV. We all tuned in to what the newscaster was saying.

  Helen Kitley, from Channel 5 News, pointed over her shoulder at the activity that was taking place behind her as she spoke. “At 3:46 p.m. today, the Montana Federal Prison broke out in a riot. Four inmates have been killed.” As the pictures flashed up on the screen, the entire room went still. “Denton Barlow, who was well known to have strong ties with the Mexican cartel, was among those killed.” I quickly glanced up and noticed a look pass between Cole and John.

  “Oh, my God, is it really over?” Savannah couldn’t contain her excitement, and Cole spun her around and pulled her into his arms as a champagne bottle popped. I couldn’t help but smile. John had shared part of Savi’s story with me, so I knew this was big.

  “If there was ever a time to celebrate…” Daniel laughed as he poured the bubbly into several glasses, and the dinner that followed was filled with laughter and good old-fashioned storytelling.

  “There you are.” Savannah found me on the back deck looking out over the frosty lake, and her eyes literally sparkled with happiness. It seemed as though a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. “We voted, and we are having girls’ night at your place tonight, so come on. We can’t be there without you.”

  The five of us girls headed down the path, bottles of red and sparkly tucked under our arms. Of course, Lexi had sparkling water, but she was a good sport about it all. We took a moment to watch the guys, who had the kids sitting in the snow listening to instructions. Mark, John, Cole, Mike, and Keith all held Nerf guns as if they were heading into battle. Cole’s voice could be heard as he laid down the rules of the game. We had to laugh at how serious they all were. Olivia made sure B sat next to her as she tried to listen. As we watched, one of the twins slowly slid an extra Nerf gun behind him and was reaching for another.

  Mia raised her eyebrow at me. “And that’s why I drink.” She raised her bottle of red.

  As I sat back and watched my new family around me, I realized I was happy to be here. I was glad I was a part of it all when Savannah got such life-altering news. I noticed Lexi and Catalina had become quite close. It didn’t surprise me, as they had both come from such violent backgrounds and had been living at Dusk together before they moved here. Mia and Savannah seemed to be much more approachable. They both wore their hearts on their sleeves and seemed to adjust easily to whoever they were with.

  Later that evening, with the kids all in bed, shouting and cheering from the guys brought us to the
window to see was happening.

  Catalina flopped back down in her seat. “I guess more good news was shared tonight. Davie and Dell will be taking over Mike’s and Keith’s positions at Dusk.”

  “Fine by me. I’m just happy we are all together.” Catalina smiled. “Mike seems a lot happier to be back here, and I know he’s happy to be closer to California.”

  “Why does that guy scare me in all the right ways?” Savannah laughed.

  “Who?” I questioned, looking around at their pink cheeks. “What?”

  “Oh, wait, you haven’t met Trigger.” Savannah fanned herself.

  “That’s a damn shame.” Mia snorted, and the other girls hooted with laughter.

  “I guess I have some catching up to do!” I leaned forward and cheered the girls’ glasses.

  By midnight, Savannah and I were the only ones left standing. The others went to bed, knowing they had to get up early with their little ones. With a glass of water in her hand, Savannah stood and studied my wall of pictures and diagrams of the all the possible scenarios I had sketched and glued everywhere.

  She pulled the rookie’s photo down and with her back to me muttered, “He was so young. As much as I respect and understand what Cole and the guys do, it’s not for everyone, and definitely not for someone this young.”

  I moved to join her and sat at the conference table. I rubbed my head in frustration. “He may have been young, but his family pulled many strings to get him into North Rock. He had quite the reputation for cheating.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I guess he had a terrible memory. He failed the first test, and then his family paid off a general to get him back in to write it a second time. Don’t worry,” I held up a hand, “the guys figured out which general it was. He was just some ass with too much power. From what I hear, the rookie probably had a cheat sheet in order to pass the test. His classmates certainly weren’t very fond of him. They all knew he had someone from way up giving him freebies.”

  Savannah turned toward me as she pointed to a position on the map. “So, the rookie was killed, stripped of his radio and all his belongings, so how do we know he hadn’t written them down? If he had that bad of a memory, he may have written the codes down too. It would have been pretty stupid, but that could be a possible theory, right?”

  It was as if someone had cleared the fog away, I grabbed my laptop and opened it to play the one YouTube video that had always bothered me. I fast forwarded to the part where the leader had the radio, and the small black thing he held in his hand suddenly became clear to me. I watched as the leader listened to something on the radio then looked down at it as he gave orders to his men to move out. “Holy shit, how could I have missed it?”

  I raced around the table and grabbed Savannah and hugged her so hard I nearly knocked her off her feet. “Thank you! Thank you so much!”

  I grabbed my laptop, and we both ran up to the house. “John,” I called as we raced into the living room.

  “Out on the deck,” Abigail said as she pointed to the door.

  All the guys were around the firepit with cigars and brandy and looked up in surprise as we burst through the door.

  “We got it. We figured it out. Look!” I opened my laptop and showed them the YouTube video once again, only this time I pointed at the object in the leader’s hand. “He must have written the codes down. Nick Stewart always wrote everything down.”

  “That’s suicide.” John moved to see the screen better. “How sure are you?”

  “I would bet my career on it.” I just knew in my heart I was right.

  “That’s good enough for me.” Cole granted me a small but worried smile.

  “What an asshole thing to do.” Mark shook his head.

  “You took the words right out of my mouth,” Cole muttered in disbelief.

  “What a way to lose such good men. There’s protocol and training put in place for a reason,” John said as he pulled me onto his lap. “Thank you for figuring this out.” He kissed me.

  “Actually, it was Savannah who made the connection.”

  “It was all right there, Sloane. It just took a fresh set of eyes to see it.”

  “Regardless of who found what, we have the answer now. Good job, girls. I’m taking this to Frank.” Cole had his phone to his ear as he hurried inside.

  “Score one for the girls,” Savannah cheered with her hands in the air.

  “Yeah, it’s always bittersweet when you learn the answers and it’s not what you want to hear. I know that Chamness will take this hard, but at least the remaining members of North Rock will get some closure and rest easier tonight.” I reached for John, and he wrapped his arms around me as his lips found my neck.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  John

  I glanced at my watch then went back to reading the news on the iPad. I had fifteen minutes before we gathered downstairs to discuss how the last mission went and to hear what Frank had to say about Washington’s reaction to what we had discovered.

  My phone buzzed on the counter, and I glanced at the screen.

  Huh.

  “Black,” I answered.

  “Hey, man.” Brick took a moment to inhale. “Got a second?”

  “I do.” I turned off the iPad and replaced it in its docking station.

  “Your team that you had in Mexico, are they still there?”

  “No.” I leaned against the counter, curious where the conversation was heading.

  “Shit, okay.”

  “Why?”

  “I don’t know, maybe it’s nuthin’, but you know I was following the Stripe Backs. After we hopped the border from Texas, they stopped to meet some guys in suits. I didn’t recognize any of them, but one had a nasty scar on his forehead.” He made a disgusted noise. “The meeting took forever, so I hunkered down and had a few too many shots of whiskey.” He took another drag of what I assumed was his joint. “Suddenly, some men decked out in masks and black military pants came in, took a seat, and started talking to them.”

  “As in feds?”

  “What feds do you know would walk into a house with a bunch a lowlifes, pull up a chair, share a drink, and chat?”

  I smirked. He was right on that one.

  “One thing led to another, and someone starting shouting. When I jumped back up to look, bullets were flying.”

  “Shit.” I’d been there, and I knew how things could change in a blink of an eye. “Anyone make it out alive?”

  “One did for sure.” He paused. “I didn’t stick around to find out about the rest. The Stripe Backs’ pres bolted, and I followed. He was my mark, so, yeah, I moved on to stay on his ass.”

  “Right.” I nodded, understanding that statement, and brushed a hand through my hair. “Well, I can assure you our brother team is not there right now. We pulled the rest and are waiting to rebuild and relocate.”

  “Yeah, sorry about that.” He lowered his voice. Despite the life Brick lived, he had a good heart, and from what I understood from Mike, he was a damn good friend to his guys and to Tess. “Never easy to lose a family member.”

  “No, it’s not.” I closed my eyes and mourned my friends for a moment.

  “All right, well, I just had to ask.”

  “No problem, man. Anytime.”

  “Thanks.” The line went dead, and I found myself wondering who the hell the masked men were, and if they were law enforcement, why in the hell they’d sit and have a conversation and not just storm the place.

  “Black.” Mike tapped his watch to tell me to get moving. “You good?”

  “Yeah.” I shook my head and followed him downstairs to take my seat at the table. Cole didn’t waste any time and jumped right in.

  Two hours later and a great job from the boys in Washington, the meeting ended.

  I waited for everyone to leave the meeting then leaned against the table and watched Cole tuck his files away.

  “How did Frank take the news?” I broke the silence, curiou
s to see were his head was.

  “After presenting the evidence Sloane emailed me last night, he and Chamness agreed that the rookie did put the codes on paper. Frank is just as dumbfounded as we were. How any soldier, especially one who went through the training program, could be so reckless just shows how much more we need to screen the men we select.”

  “And those involved in the process.” I let that one sink in for a few seconds. “So, what happens to the general?”

  “His ass will be relieved of duty, and he’ll face an inquiry sometime at the end of the month.”

  “Great.” I was pleased to hear Frank took it as seriously as we all did.

  Cole tossed the last file on the desk and rubbed his face like he was struggling with something. I couldn’t tell what was up, so I figured it was best to leave him be with his thoughts.

  “Black,” he called as I opened the door, “the video camera you retrieved was blank, although Davie does feel he might be able to pull some data. Time will tell.” I gave him a tired nod before Cole rubbed his head. “And thank you.”

  “For?” I closed the door behind me and turned back to him.

  His jaw ticked, and I could tell he struggled with what he had to say.

  “For giving me a reason to kill that son-of-a-bitch.”

  We all had been waiting for the moment we could alert the CIA that Denton needed to be taken out. They just needed proof he was still working with the cartel, and they’d do what they did. Remove the problem in a roundabout way, and none of us would have the blood on our hands. Nice and clean.

  “It needed to happen.”

  He nodded and glanced at the phone that buzzed beside him.

  “I guess he had some cult following in prison, called himself Seven Webs.” Cole chuckled while I shook my head.

  “That explains the lame tattoos, then.”

  “He was relentless, though. He couldn’t stop until he got what was mine.” His eyes darkened while he flicked a pen through his fingertips. “Chamness and BT have decided to move to Dusk,” he switched gears, “and I think we’ll hold off putting another team in Mexico right now.”