Page 37

THIRTY-SEVEN

SAVANNAH

“WE’VE GOT OUR work cut out for us, don’t we?” Pierce steps over a pile of debris, his grip on Mona’s hand tightening as he helps her navigate the treacherous back lot of the property Alaskan Security just purchased.

“It’s not that bad.” Mona sidesteps a plastic bag she probably shouldn’t investigate. The ones we came across last time we were here were filled with crap.

Literal crap.

“The first thing we should do is put up a fence and a security system.” Zeke points to the far corner of the adjoining lot. “That’s the access point we need to cut off. Once it’s not easy to get into, I think people will move on. Find somewhere they don’t have to work so hard to access.”

I slide the stylus pen free from its loop at the top of the screen on the digital tablet in my hand and write myself a note:

Call McKinley Security Systems for consult.

“I think having someone on site should be high on our priority list.” Jamison scans the buildings around us. “How long do we think it will take to have one of these places livable?”

“I guess that depends on what your definition of livable is.” Zeke turns to me. “Any idea?”

“I spoke with the guy Christian referred us to yesterday. He couldn’t give me much in the way of a timeline without seeing the place and the soonest he could get here is two days from now.” I swipe across the screen of my tablet, double checking the time before rattling it off for everyone. “He’s also going to look over the hotel to see if it’s salvageable. If it is, he said he’ll give us a few options for it too.”

“I really hope it’s not a tear down.” Sadie frowns. “We’ll be able to be up and running so much faster if we don’t have to build a place from scratch.”

“It didn’t seem like it was in terrible shape when I was in it.” I wrinkle my nose. “It smelled freaking awful though.” I write myself another note:

Deal with hotel before summer.

“How far away is the residential area?” Pierce pauses to scan our surroundings.

“Not far.” Zeke takes my hand, holding tight as we make the trek through the trees.

I give him a smile as I step over a fallen branch. “This isn’t nearly as easy of a hike as I remember.”

Zeke chuckles. “It’s easier than I remember.” He pulls me closer, his expression sobering. “You sure you won’t mind living here?”

“Positive.” I don’t hesitate. “This place actually holds some pretty good memories for me.”

“Speak for yourself.” Derek’s tone is flat. So different from the first time we met the realtor.

But being knocked unconscious into a pile of snow by an explosion probably does that to a guy. He’s actually lucky he ended up where he did the way he did. If he hadn’t been thrown so far away, the assholes trying to take me out probably would’ve noticed he was there, and there’s a good chance no one would have seen or heard from him again.

But I’m not sure he’s ready to hear that. It can take a while for a person to see the good in the bad.

We break through the treeline and the line of houses comes into view. Most of them were vacant, which made it pretty easy for Pierce to buy them, but a few—like the one Zeke and I broke into—had occupants. Luckily, the offer Pierce made them was more than generous, so they were happy to sell.

Including the people now loading a few of their belongings into their brand new Civic. It’s nothing super fancy, but it’s way better than the Neon we appropriated. I give them a wave as we pass, leading Pierce along so he can inspect the extent of the property that will make up the new compound.

I don’t know that he initially intended for this place to be so big, but since it’s going to be not only a second location for Alaskan Security, but also the headquarters for our recovery division, it made sense to buy up as much space as we could.

“I think this is going to be perfect.” Pierce focuses on me. “Do you have an estimate for when demolition will begin?”

“Two weeks from today.” And not a second too soon. I’m beyond ready to break ground on the house Zeke and I picked out, and I know Sadie and Jamison are itching to get into theirs as well. “They estimate it will take a week to take everything down and clear it all away. Once that’s done, the builder has a company coming in to handle the infrastructure—water, electricity, sewers, road, that kind of thing—and then the houses will start going up.”

We considered simply duplicating the townhomes Pierce put up in Fairbanks. It definitely would have been quicker and easier. But having seen and experienced what Christian and his brothers have, I couldn’t go back.

I wanted to pick my own home. And I wanted the same for everyone else uprooting their lives to come here.

“Perfect.” Pierce flashes me a smile. “Have I told you how happy I am that you let me convince you to work for me?”

“Yes.” I count in my head. “Five times today.”

“Make it six.” Pierce continues around, going over everything we’ve discussed in our millions of meetings. The exact location of the main building. The number of women and children we’ll be able to house when all is said and done. How many houses will ultimately be erected.

I’m halfway through explaining the city’s requirements for our access road when my phone chimes, reminding me I’ve got somewhere else to be.

“Crap.” I silence the sound. “We’re out of time.”

Pierce waves one hand at me. “Go. I’m sure Sadie can handle the rest.”

I pass my tablet off to her in case Pierce makes any important changes or requests, giving her a hug and a grateful smile. “Good luck.”

She rolls her eyes. “Thanks.”

Zeke takes my hand with his and we hurry to the SUV. Once he has me seated inside, he climbs behind the wheel and takes us in the direction of the apartments where we’ve all been staying. “I’m glad you and Sadie are working on this together. That way Pierce has someone else to bother besides calling you all the time.”

I’m glad too, but my reasons are different.

For the second time in our lives, my relationship with my sister changed abruptly. At least this time, it was for the better.

After helping Lydia, I feel like I understand Sadie better. And I think she now sees I’m not as fragile as she thought. It’s given us both a different outlook.

And a stronger connection.

“I’m not sure Jamison would agree with you.” I smile, thinking about how annoyed my brother-in-law is by the way this project has taken over their lives.

“That’s his problem.” Zeke pulls into the parking lot of our building and takes the spot in front of the unit beside ours. “Hang tight.” He climbs out and I watch as he goes to the door. Zeke comes back, his steps slower as he paces himself with the man leaning against him for support.

I turn, grinning at Maddox as he works his way into the back seat. “You’re looking good.”

He lifts a brow at me. “Good must be real fucking relative for you.” He grunts as he shifts his weight. “Because I still feel like warmed up dog shit.”

“Is that better or worse than if it’s cold?”

The only best friend I’ve ever had was my sister, but Maddox might be taking a close second place to her. He’s a big part of the reason Zeke and I moved here pretty much immediately. After a quick trip back to Fairbanks for Zeke to finish up some business with Vincent, and for me to collect some of my stuff, we flew right back down to help Maddox as he recovers from his wounds.

And since Zeke and Shadow are still doing their thing—a thing that requires pretty frequent travel—that’s left me with Maddox a lot.

“Slightly better.” He lets out a sigh as he finally gets settled. “But that could change during this physical therapy appointment.”

I cringe. “The last one wasn’t so fun, was it?” I know things get worse before they get better, but holy crap this guy could use a break.

He’s one of the reasons my relationship with Sadie has found new footing. Now I understand a little of the guilt she felt over what happened to me. I get why she wanted me to be back to my “normal” self so much.

Because that’s what I want for Maddox. I do my best to meet him where he is, but gosh I’d love to see him running around chasing bad guys again.

“I guess you’ll just have to make me dinner and force me to watch another episode of that stupid show you made me like.” Maddox gives Zeke a smirk. “Unless he wants to watch it with you.”

“No fucking way.” Zeke shakes his head. “That’s your thing now, buddy.” His gaze shifts, narrowing on Maddox in the rearview mirror as we pull away. “But if you eat all the plov again, I’ll put another bullet in your body.”