Page 2 of Brave Horizons (Barrington Billionaires #19)

ALEX

It had been over a year since his phone had rung with a request like this.

Living in the middle of nowhere put him in the perfect position to help.

The first time was seven years ago. His former military buddy had called him out of the blue and asked if he was up for another mission even though he’d been honorably discharged the year before.

Never one to turn down a little excitement, Alex had assumed there was some kind of transportation of equipment or maybe something in construction.

He wasn’t expecting to be running security for a mother of two who’d showed up on his doorstep.

For three weeks he’d tried to make the terrified little family feel safe and comfortable while some other arrangements were made for them.

That’s when he found out he was pretty terrible at the “making them feel comfortable” part.

The kids needed things to play with and cartoons to watch. Their mother wanted answers he couldn’t give. His cabin was not built for a family and he was not built for figuring out what one needed.

But over the years, when the phone calls came, he got better at it.

He could adapt to the energy of the person passing through and find ways to try to make it easier.

Usually it was best not to ask many questions.

It was about making sure their basic needs were met and then usually within a week or so he was moving them along to another contact at the border and into Canada.

He was the waiting place. While paperwork and next steps were being sorted out, this far flung place was the perfect spot to hide out.

Yet sometimes it was still awkward. Strangers trying to find their way around each other under the extreme stress of whatever they were dealing with.

“Thank you for the clothes,” Topeka said, clearing her throat halfway through the sentence. “And for dinner.” She gestured at the heaping plate of food in front of her, looking more intimidated than grateful.

“There wasn’t much of a selection for clothes,” Alex apologized. “But we can get more tomorrow. I’ll run into town and pick up something more your style.”

“You don’t think this is my style?” she asked through a smile, gesturing down at the rainbow on the front of the shirt. “Do I not exude rainbows and sunshine?”

A chuckle rolled across the table and Alex felt his shoulders begin to relax. This was always a little easier when the person’s sense of humor was still intact.

“So I’ll still be here tomorrow?” Topeka asked, sipping her water and trying not to look as desperate as he was sure she must feel. Alex couldn’t imagine having such little control over his life. Not knowing where he would be the next day.

“I think we won’t be getting on the road until tomorrow night.

” Alex offered her a kind and apologetic smile.

“With the media coverage of your missing person status it will be very important that we travel at night and stay off the main roads. I’m waiting to hear more of where we are headed, but when I know, you’ll know. ”

Her expression was so filled with gratitude it actually pained him. The simple act of letting her know she wouldn’t be in the dark about what was going on was enough to settle something in her.

“Can I get you more chicken?” his mother asked, half getting up, poised to heap more food on Topeka’s plate if she’d allow it.

“I think I’d burst,” she sang. “I can’t thank you enough for all the hospitality. I’m sure this is disruptive to have a stranger show up at your house with nothing and needing help.”

“It’s quiet up this way,” his father said, the gruffness in his voice the only reward he’d gotten from years of mining. “We like a little excitement now and then. It’s nice to talk to different people. Hear about their lives. What makes them tick.”

Topeka let out a little laugh. “That answer has certainly changed over the last few months. I used to be a pretty straight-forward person. I worked at a marketing agency I loved. Had my friends over for dinner. Was in a book club. I thought I knew exactly what I was doing.”

“That’s when they get ya,” his father said flatly as he waved his fork in the air. There was a chance he was joking but it had been years since Alex was able to sort out a nuance like that in his father. Age had robbed his dad of such things.

“I guess so,” Topeka agreed with a sigh.

“I certainly never expected to be running for my life with my face plastered all over the news. My life is over and I can’t see a path back to anything remotely normal.

” She was a bit easier to read than his father.

The melancholy was heavy and her words sounded far off.

Luckily his father’s quick reply pulled her back in.

“But you wouldn’t have my wife’s chicken. It’s the best I’ve ever had. So you’re lucky in that way.” He stuffed a forkful the chicken into his mouth and shrugged.

Alex offered some version of an apologetic look as he chuckled at his father’s attempt at comfort.

“Good point,” Topeka agreed light heartedly as she swirled a forkful of gravy around her plate. She took a large bite, her cheeks puffing out a bit and shrugged just like his father had.

When his cellphone rang, he knew instantly his mother would scold him for not turning it off during dinner.

And right on cue she opened her mouth to protest but he cut her off gently with a nod in Topeka’s direction.

He had to keep his phone on. He had to be ready to get some sort of last second directive and move quickly .

“Hello,” he said as he pushed his chair back from the table. He could feel Topeka’s eyes locked on him and did her the favor of not leaving the room. Having her in suspense wasn’t fair or his intention.

“Alex, it’s Kenan.”

“Just checking in?” Alex asked hopefully, but experience told him that was unlikely.

Without any friendly chatter, Kenan launched into the reason for his call.

“You’ve got to move tonight. We took pretty extreme measures to keep this quiet, but we’ve gotten word that Topeka’s father has gained access to traffic cameras early on her route once she landed in the States.

It’s unlikely he was able to stay on her trail the whole time, but we can’t take any chances. ”

“I understand,” Alex said, holding back the questions he had. They’d portray urgency that would likely freak Topeka out. It was much harder to do what he needed to if she was in a panic. Not that she’d be overreacting. He couldn’t imagine being in her position.

“She’s there with you?” Kenan asked, clearly picking up on Alex’s reserved tone.

“Yes.”

“Okay. I know this isn’t what we were originally planning but I really think in this case we need to be conservative.

We don’t have the paperwork and our contacts at the border arranged yet but you’ve got to get on the road.

I’ll rush everything I can. You’ll be on your own for a few days though. Can you manage?”

“Absolutely. Stay in touch when everything is lined up. I can take it from here.” Alex’s confident tone was far more acting than reality.

He felt responsible for more than Topeka’s safety.

Keeping her under the impression that everything was going the way they’d planned was important too.

A cool head made for better decision-making.

He didn’t leave her hanging after finishing the call with Kenan. “We need to move tonight but it’s not a big deal. Nothing imminent, just precautionary. We can finish up dinner and then get on the road.”

“A minute ago you said we’d be here tomorrow.” She placed her fork down and leaned back in her chair. “Something significant must have changed.”

“Just a pivot. Nothing serious. We have to be nimble. But the goal remains the same. Getting you over the Canadian border is the end result we’re going for.

I don’t get visibility to all the moving parts, but I have faith in the process.

” He sat back at the table even though he felt an urgent desire to head for the door now.

A half hour wouldn’t make a difference. He settled his body, took his seat, and chocked down a few more bites of dinner, swallowing past the growing anxiety.

He had a few spots in mind they could go to hole up but the idea that the people after Topeka might be on their trail was unsettling.

“I’ve lost faith in most things,” Topeka admitted, dipping her head in defeat.

“Not in my son,” Alex’s father said while clearing his throat a little too aggressively. “Keep the faith in him and you’ll be all right.”

It was a ringing endorsement Alex rarely got from his sometimes-monosyllabic father. Whether or not it was true was a different story. He was only a brief stop on what would be a tumultuous journey for Topeka. All he was meant to do was keep her safe a little longer.

“We need to get going in a few minutes,” Alex said, his voice a bit raspy and tired suddenly. “I know you don’t have much to pack. Let me know when you’re ready to get on the road.”

His mother stood and shuffled away. “I’ll get you some food packed up. Whatever I can put together. Where do you think you’ll end up?”

“Camping I think,” Alex said, giving his father a knowing look.

That would mean gear. Supplies. And it would certainly be less accommodating than whatever he’d originally assumed they’d be doing for the next couple of days.

He couldn’t tell by looking at her if she’d done much camping in her life.

There was no way to really discern who she’d been before all this.

She’d rolled up here in the back of a pickle truck.

The odds were she could take a couple nights in a tent. They were both about to find out.