ES_ebook_8.2.19

by Kell, Sheila

  Three-quarters of the way to safety, she chanced a glance over her shoulder and almost stumbled at the uncoordinated move. What she saw almost stopped her heart. Ken and Franks had gone down.

  Not caring what Grits said, she stopped and ran toward them. Damn if he didn’t stop her by grabbing her arm again. She tried to wrench away, but he held firm. He leaned in close so she could hear. “We’ve got him.” Doc rushed up from his position and helped the two men up. He’d nearly lifted them both himself. Ken had his arms around each of their shoulders, and they hustled forward.

  Grits turned her and they raced the remaining steps as their sharpshooters fired off more rounds.

  Stepping on the rail and with her heart galloping away on her, she lifted herself to climb aboard. When Grits put a hand under her butt and pushed her in, she sprawled across the floor. Instead of feeling contrite about it, he yelled for her to move. “Now,” he added in a firm yell.

  With another adrenaline boost firing through her, she scrambled across the floor, careful to avoid Jesse as he fired again. Once again, she turned and lowered her rifle to take up a support position, but Doc and Franks basically launched Ken onto the floor at her feet. Grits gave her a quick glance that bounced between her face and her weapon, so she set it aside and reached down to help Ken, but Doc leaped in—the big man was amazingly agile—and he quickly got Ken situated. No first-class airplane seats on this trip. Jesse might be kicking himself for running this op pro-bono after adding two cargo helicopters to the final extraction.

  Her eyes met Ken’s, and he smiled at her. Her heart fluttered. All the walking and running had to have taken a toll on his leg. Not that they’d helped it the night before. While not a doctor by any means, she suspected the real doctor might have a problem with the wound not being stitched right away. More than likely he’d give Ken that cane he hated back for a while.

  The next men to enter took up positions to protect the final agents entering. Those seated donned their headsets, and when Grits—the last to enter—made it aboard, he told the pilot to get them in the damn air or their bird would be decorated with bullet holes.

  It wasn’t until they’d flown well away from the area that the team relaxed and switched to a channel for just them so the pilots wouldn’t have to deal with their chatter.

  As the fear and excitement from the extraction left her, she trembled with relief and suppressed rage as they joked with Jesse about getting Reagan to change her rule. The fact that they weren’t bound to follow orders from a child hadn’t seemed to occur to them.

  Looking at all the men and especially Ken, she’d never been more grateful for the team at her back. Her “friend” had been the one to terrorize them, whether through torturing Ken or men shooting at them as they’d helped her and Ken escape. And Bravo team must’ve done a quick turnaround to be there to assist them. The past ten years, hell, even before that, almost seemed like a lie. HIS and the team who surrounded and supported her, these guys were real. Their connection was everything.

  Relief swelled through her. She trusted Alpha team, but they’d been down to almost nothing agent-wise with her and Ken out of the mix.

  “Old Man.” Some call signs she couldn’t get used to, but she wouldn’t be the one to disrupt what had already been established. “How’s Cody?”

  A smile stretched across his serious face. “He’s good. Kate, Reagan, and Jason came home to be with him. Reagan follows him around and talks nonstop.”

  She didn’t doubt it from the little she knew of his daughter. As for Cody, he could probably use someone the same age to be around. She could barely wait until she returned. Gaining legal guardianship might be a challenge, but since Devon had already reached out to the right authorities, she could only hope everything went at a rapid pace. But Bev. Would she fight it? Sam had to find a way to have her sign over Cody’s care permanently. She’d do whatever it took to find the woman and make it happen.

  “I want to be included when you find a way to make Bev pay,” Sam said.

  The men glanced at each other with unease. “Sam,” Grits said, his voice soft, “before Bravo team came for you, we stormed the compound looking for her and Alejandro. That’s why we didn’t join you right away.”

  Her breath caught. “Is she in the other bird?”

  At his hesitation, her heart sank to her stomach like a leaded weight. His next words made her think of one person. Cody.

  “We found Alejandro dead and her missing. We don’t know what happened, but it’s obvious he’d been murdered.”

  Her stomach revolted and she bit back the bile rising in her throat. What had happened to the woman she’d been closer to than her sister? Grief and anger washed through her in a painful gush. Sam could no longer treat Bev as a friend. She needed to pay for how she’d treated Cody and Ken.

  Sam would be the person to make her pay.

  With Alejandro dead— “But the men?” Why were people still chasing them?

  Grits shrugged. “My best guess is they don’t know yet.”

  Things had gone too far. Her entire focus had to be on Cody since who knew what Bev would do now since she’d lost her chance to kill Ken and Jesse.

  She didn’t fight it when Ken put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her to him. With the whomp-whomp sound echoing off the helicopter, her ire ebbed and a tear slipped down her cheek.

  To protect Cody, Sam knew she wouldn’t hesitate to kill his mother.

  31

  With Cody safe and happy at Jesse’s house within a virtual fortress, and Ken off to the hospital under superb care, Sam’s task became clear. She raised her chin. “I want to go after her,” she insisted to Jesse. “I know she was a part of this, even murdered Alejandro, but Cody won’t be safe until we apprehend her.” After Bev’s actions, she couldn’t bring herself to say friend and not even former best friend.

  “Sam, we don’t even know for certain that she murdered him.”

  True, but something inside her cried to avenge all Bev had done to Ken and the emotional toll she’d laid on Cody. “I want her.”

  Jesse sighed. “You’re smarter than that. Even if she did murder him, and we know she did torture Ken, it occurred in Mexico. Unlike going after Cody where the parent hired us to extract him, going in to pull her back against her will is tricky. Especially with someone who’s gone off the deep end like she has. We’re not Mexico’s favorite group right now.”

  She hated when he was right. While that made him a good boss, she still despised it. There had to be some way. They’d done shades of gray ops before. If Devon could locate Bev, Sam would go alone if necessary. She couldn’t have Bev coming after Cody. Couldn’t.

  When she didn’t speak, he continued in a more soothing voice. “Are you sure you’re not misdirecting your anger? This isn’t the first time you considered the need to avenge someone you love.”

  All the winds flew out of her sails in a silent whoosh. How could he be so calm about the fact Bev wanted him dead and Sam had almost contributed to it? Ken must’ve been awfully convincing when he and Jesse had spoken about her. The men had surprised her with their forgiveness and the confidence she wouldn’t fall back into that trap that Bev had helped lay. As upstanding men, they assured her they trusted her to have their backs.

  With a thought to Jesse’s question, she took in a deep breath and let it take away all her anger and assumptions about what changed with Bev. Desperately, she hoped Cody could grow up not knowing the level of his mother’s evilness and destruction. And she knew going after Bev wouldn’t resolve everything, but it could make Cody an orphan.

  The thought struck hard and almost knocked her down with its heavy burden. Whether an orphan or not, Cody would grow up with Sam. She’d have to talk with Kate and Rylee to see how they did it, to create a balance between the demands of HIS and motherhood.

  She’d see if they had a recommendatio
n for a caregiver who could watch Cody while she worked.

  “Sam?” Jesse’s eyebrow rose as if realizing her mind had jumped the track.

  She started. “You’re right.” Her words released a weight holding down her shoulders. “I’m so sorry, Jesse.”

  He waved it off as if nothing had happened. “You’ve already apologized, and I accepted. That’s enough of that. Now that your head is back on straight, let’s discuss this.”

  Keeping her emotions out of it, she nodded.

  “The twins are watching Bev’s house until they can be relieved by one of the teams. Do you think she’d go back there?”

  Her first instinct had been no, but with Bev’s mind, who knew what she’d so? With a sinking feeling, Sam realized she’d lost touch with Bev’s thoughts and couldn’t anticipate her actions. “I don’t know. Maybe. She’s not thinking straight, but she’s also methodical. In a crazy way,” she added. “I mean, she had all this time to try something, and I don’t understand why now, and how she thought her plan might work.”

  “I’ve been thinking about this,” Jesse offered. “I’m thinking she’d hoped you would do the deed to keep her hands clean.”

  Bewildered, she started to respond and out of long-standing habit almost defended Bev. Then her mind began to whirl. “She got me riled up about it.”

  “Yep.”

  “She had convinced me the report was authentic.”

  “Yep.”

  “I considered doing something because of it.”

  “But you didn’t do anything.”

  She didn’t even react to that because Jesse’s tone told her he was helping her work through this. “And when I didn’t react, she made other plans.”

  “Yep.”

  If he said that word again, she’d toss something off his desk at him. “But why take Cody?”

  “Because she knew you’d do anything for him. And if she took the fight to Mexico, she would probably get away with it because my guess is that Alejandro had the law in his pocket.”

  Closing her eyes and letting it all wash over her, a renewed sense of purpose filled her, but one thing still had a hold. “I can’t believe I allowed myself to be part of her trap. And to think I might’ve done something regrettable.”

  “Sam, first, I don’t believe you’d ever have followed through and allowed Ken or me to die. Second, why would you doubt Beverly, who was your friend? I imagine she was very persuasive, convincing you it was the only way.”

  She had been, but that didn’t absolve Sam of not getting to the truth of such vital information before it all began.

  As if realizing she didn’t wish to speak of it further, Jesse shook his head. “I’m worried about Cody.”

  So was she.

  “Since Beverly used the boy to execute her plans, there’s no telling if she’ll try again. She’ll know he’s with you since we took him. She doesn’t know where I live, but she knows where you do.”

  She opened her mouth to speak and closed it. Although she’d worried about Cody’s safety, she hadn’t thought through how she’d move forward.

  “You’re not alone, Sam. With us, you’re never alone. You have some choices to make. AJ and Jake are watching your place in case she shows.”

  He’d brought most of his family back for her? A warm acceptance slid through her veins. “What about Trent’s problem?”

  Jesse picked up a pen and tapped it on his desk, focusing on it until he spoke. “They caught the men in the act and Devon tracked them back to who’d been giving Trent trouble. With this situation, they cut their vacation short to be here for the team”—the corners of his lips twitched into a smile—“and you.”

  Flabbergasted—an emotion she rarely felt—and unsure what to say except “Thanks” again, she smiled. “You said I had choices.” While she had an idea, she’d never pass up something from his brilliant mind and experience.

  “No matter which you choose, you’ll have a HIS guard.”

  She nodded in relief that she wouldn’t be Cody’s only protection.

  “There’s an extra couple of rooms at my house, and you two are welcome there. As we’ve said, unless she recently found out, she doesn’t know I live here and couldn’t pass the security Devon’s had built around the place.”

  She nodded and waited. He tapped his pen more, quicker this time.

  “You could go back to your place with an agent.”

  There seemed to be another option, though she couldn’t think of what it might entail.

  “Although my least favorite, you could check into a hotel. Mind you, the last two options can be with or without Cody. He’s welcome here as long as needed to keep him safe.”

  While room service and someone making her bed each day appealed to her, she couldn’t do it in this situation. There were too many people to consider. It was too difficult to control. Going back to her place would be comfortable. She knew all the nooks and crannies of her home and neighborhood.

  While she wanted to stand and fight Bev, she chose the one that kept her and Cody the safest. “We’ll stay with you.”

  The movement of the pen stopped and he tossed it down. A broad grin spread over his lips. “The right choice.”

  With a suppressed laugh, she wanted to ask him why he’d even given her a choice. Then she remembered, he wanted her to see that she controlled her life… her decisions… her actions.

  Now”—his firm tone made her gulp at what might come next with this change—“are you ready to see Cody?”

  Pleasure flowed through her, bringing a smile to her face. “Yes,” she said emphatically. “I am. How is he?”

  Jesse stood, and she followed suit. “He’s fine. The only thing he says about his mom is that he doesn’t want to go back to her. We didn’t prod him, figuring that’d be best for you to do since you know them both.”

  Damn Bev. “I’ll see what I can do. If all else fails, I’ll get him into counseling or anything that might work.”

  He nodded his approval, and that somehow made her feel comforted in her choice. Jesse’s daughter, while an infant, had lost her mother. As a father, he understood a parent willing to go to any length for their child.

  And Cody was now her child. No matter that she didn’t give birth to him.

  Following Jesse out of the room and the building to enter the back of the family’s home, her palms turned clammy and she discovered nervousness weaved its way through her. To finally see him again.

  When Cody saw her, he rushed to her and they held each other so tight she didn’t understand how they took breaths. Joy and the most wonderful thing she’d ever felt rained over her. If this was what motherhood involved, she understood why delivering a bowling ball from a tiny hole made it worth it.

  “Aunt Sam, am I going home with you?”

  Tears misted her eyes at the hope in his voice. “What do you think about staying here with me another day or two, then you can come home with me?”

  He could’ve knocked himself out with how swiftly he bobbed his head. “Yes,” he said with excitement.

  “Well, okay.” She grunted hard and then laughed when Cody hugged her tightly. Tears sprung to her eyes, and she closed them quickly and planted a kiss on the top of his head. “I love you, kiddo.”

  She opened her eyes and watched as he angled his head up to look at her, happiness lighting his face. “Love you, too.” He gave her one more squeeze before turning away.

  She would use the time to learn all the basic parenting stuff to get her through the next week or so at least. She hoped together they’d be able to fumble their way forward. Being the cool aunt had been fun, but she knew she’d have to find equilibrium. Smiling, she thought she might keep one or two of the tricks she’d used for special occasions.

  As Cody scampered off yelling to Reagan that he was staying longer, Jesse appro
ached her. The grim look on his face had her insides churning.

  “Ken,” she whispered. It’d been difficult choosing what important task to take up first when they’d arrived back in Baltimore. With the two men in her life safe, she’d chosen to go after Bev because the woman posed a threat to both of them.

  Although she’d wanted to rush off to the emergency room to see Ken, Jesse had reminded her that she’d drag two agents with her. Instead, she’d decided to wait and see him when they’d finished with his treatment. That’s been a hard pill to swallow—waiting—and maybe she’d been wrong, but by morning, she’d be by his side, no matter what.

  When Jesse didn’t respond, she wondered whether he’d heard her or not. The fact he seemed reluctant to tell her anything made her body twitch with worry. “What? Tell me. Is it Ken?” Her pulse raced and an invisible hand clenched her heart, waiting.

  He nodded. “Yes, it’s about Ken.” He paused, and she thought she might have to wring his neck to get the words out. “They’re keeping him overnight.”

  The floor fell out from under her. If she didn’t already want to kill Bev, she would now. “I need to see him,” she said in a weak voice. Screw pulling two agents to go with her. They’d understand.

  “I figured you would. While I get everything ready, why don’t you take a shower? You and Kate are similar sizes although she informed me you were, uh—” He waved his hands near his chest, and even though everything around her was in turmoil, she wanted to laugh at his discomfort. Who knew big, bad Jesse—their Old Man—could blush and stumble for words?

  “Anyhow,” he said, trying to salvage things, “we’ll have some of your things brought over here later.”

  Eager to get to Ken but knowing she needed the shower since she still carried the stench of their jungle trek, she nodded, then followed him to a bedroom with a private bath.

  As hot water sluiced down her skin, memories of their encounter in the cave brought a smile to her lips. Tingles spread over her skin, filling her core with desire and need. There would be a time soon that they could be together. She was determined to make it so. A passion-laden, languishing sigh escaped her.