Page 55

ASHER

THREE WEEKS LATER

“ Yo, big bro!” Asher said as he picked up his ringing cell phone.

He’d been waiting for Gabe to check in. Frankly, he was surprised that it had taken this long. He and Karlin had gotten almost three whole weeks of relative peace, but he knew that real life would start to demand his attention sooner or later.

“How’s Amarillo?” his oldest brother asked. Asher could hear the sound of him moving around his office in the background. As far as Gabe saw it, if he was doing only one thing at a time, he was already behind. “Did you finally take a selfie at the Cadillac Ranch? Buy a cow? Start wearing boots?”

“You tease, but I’ve done two out of three.”

Gabe hesitated.

“Not the cow, right?”

He laughed. “No, not the cow. But Karlin says I look fantastic in these cowboy boots.”

Karlin was currently at the spa, where he’d insisted on treating her to several pampering treatments, on the condition that he didn’t have to actually set foot in the building himself.

To pass the time, he’d decided to hit up a local outdoor store, and was now considering purchasing a ten-gallon hat.

“You’re getting way too comfortable up there. It kind of freaks me out. And for the record, buying a fully-loaded pickup truck would be just as dumb as buying a cow. Even if you do decide to stay.”

Asher chuckled, but chose to let the comments slide.

The intrusion of real life into his precious time with Karlin was bad enough. The discussion about how long he was planning to stay in Amarillo could wait a few more minutes.

“So, got any updates?” he asked, hoping Gabe would accept the abrupt change of subject.

“A few,” Gabe said. “Ben told you he finally worked up the guts to propose to Grace?”

“Obviously. I had to call him five minutes beforehand to make sure he didn’t wimp out,” Asher said, laughing. “I’m happy for them.”

“I would be, except that all this wedding crap is driving me insane already. Do you know how to arrange flowers in a tasteful Christmas-but-not-too-Christmas table setting?”

“Uh, no, why?”

“Because I do now, Asher,” Gabe said, his voice almost pleading. “I do. Cameron asked me to help when their florist cancelled, and I told him to pound sand.”

“He called in Bristol, didn’t he?”

“He called in Bristol. I couldn’t say no to her. Not after everything she went through when she started working with us. So yeah. I knew what a poinsettia was, but now I know where to import cymbidium orchids from.”

Asher couldn’t help but to laugh out loud. It sounded like a typical Forge family nightmare, but it was the kind of nightmare he missed the most.

“When I have been able to escape from that stuff,” Gabe continued, “Ben and I have been digging into Dana’s past.”

“Did you guys figure out the whole Professor thing yet?”

“Yep. Dr. Peter Rorhart was actually pretty brilliant. Got his PhD super young, ended up heading up the history department at Panhandle Plains College. Until he was ousted for preying on female students, that is.”

Asher’s jaw fell open. “Oh man.”

“He wasn’t convicted, unfortunately,” Gabe said. “Got off on some technicality. But Dana Corbett was apparently one of his victims, groomed by him since she was seventeen, though obviously she refused–and refuses–to see things that way.”

“So he started a cult?”

“We’ve been able to piece together a story that fits pretty well from what we learned from Dana and Cora.

When Rorhart was driven out of his teaching job, he started some hippie commune in the desert.

It wasn’t in the same location, though. Apparently, they moved into their current compound after he disappeared in the early nineties, leaving Dana–who changed her name to Lily Moonchild–in charge. ”

Asher could hardly believe what he was hearing, but he wasn’t exactly surprised, either. This was the weirdest case he’d ever worked on by a long shot.

“Did you ever figure out what the preliminary ritual was that caused Amira Gorsky to try and extricate herself from the group?”

Gabe exhaled loudly. “Their other rituals were sexual in nature, and yes, unfortunately, they included the underage girls that were groomed into the cult.”

Asher felt sick to his stomach. It was unbelievable to imagine that this evil had been going on for over twenty years, all without anyone really seeming to notice or care until recently.

How many young girls had turned to hard drugs, alcohol, or other self-destructive behaviors to try and escape the reality of what they’d taken part in?

He could only pray that no one else had followed in Amira’s tragic footsteps, but at least the cult had been disbanded now. And hopefully for good.

“Oh, before I forget–were you able to find out why Paul Durant signed up to participate in the DX8 trial?”

Karlin had never found out, and it had been bothering both of them ever since the older man had gone home to Montana.

Gabe sighed. “I did, actually. Kind of broke my heart. Mr. Durant is battling an aggressive cancer. He’s not going to live much longer, and despite his Christian faith, he was experiencing intense anxiety about death. I guess he thought a psychedelic experience could help him to face it.”

Asher felt like he’d been kicked in the gut. Paul had seemed so calm, like nothing could shake him, and yet, it had all been a facade.

Then again, he knew what that was like. It was easier to put on a happy mask than to admit you were hurting.

“Man, that’s terrible. I’ll be praying for him.”

“Me too, bro. And I’ll let you know if we find out anything else important,” Gabe said after letting the silence rest between them for several moments. “We’re still digging on Senera. We’re going to do what we can to help Karlin. I just wish I’d done more sooner. I’m sorry.”

His apology sent a jolt of guilt through Asher’s heart.

He had so much to apologize for himself, and so much to confess.

And now that the right moment had come, it was absolutely the last thing he wanted to do.

“No, it’s…it’s okay,” he started. “There’s actually something I need to talk to you about. I’m sorry I’ve waited until now.”

“Everything okay?” Gabe asked.

“You remember what happened back on South Padre, right? When I screwed up?”

“Yes, somehow, I seem to be able to recall that particular incident pretty well, considering you literally shot a dude by accident.”

Asher flinched. Apparently, his big brother was still a little bit mad about that one. Not that he was in any position to get defensive.

“I’m sorry.”

Gabe let out a long sigh. “Nah, man, sorry to bring it up again. We all make mistakes.”

“That’s the thing,” Asher said, trying to find the words. “I knew I was taking a big risk when I took part in that operation. And then I did it again this time.”

“What do you mean?”

“When I came back from Afghanistan, I tried to convince you all that Nico’s death didn’t really affect me. It seemed to work. For a while, I think I even fooled myself.”

He allowed himself a second to breathe. He wanted to tell Gabe and the rest of his family the whole ugly truth of what had happened, and just how much he was to blame, but it wasn’t the kind of thing he wanted to share over the phone while standing in front of a giant plaster cowboy hat.

“Anyway,” he continued, “I started experiencing some symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. It didn’t seem very serious at first, but it just kept getting worse over time. I should have told you, or at least Ben. Just…I should have told someone.”

Gabe’s voice was stern. “Uh, yeah you should have. You should have told us so we could help you, Asher. I hate that you’ve been going through this alone.”

Asher couldn’t help but to smile at his big brother’s mixture of harshness and love. It reminded him so much of their dad, which was probably why the two of them argued so often.

“Thanks, man,” he said. “It feels good to get it off my chest, but there’s more.”

“Try me.”

Asher took a deep breath. He’d rehearsed the words in his mind over and over again. All he had to do was get them out.

“My panic attacks have gotten severe enough that I think I’m a risk to both myself and others out in the field. Because of that, I need to give you my resignation as an operative with Forge Brothers Security.”

The other end of the line was silent for so long that he was sure the phone had gone dead.

“Bro, I know I can be tough sometimes, but my main priority is our family. I want everyone to be safe and healthy, including you, and if you think stepping away is what’s best, you have my support.”

The relief was so intense that he actually felt tears springing to his eyes, which he managed to wipe away a few seconds after one of the sales clerks had already noticed him.

“Er, they’re great hats,” he said by way of explanation. The guy gave him a funny look before scurrying off toward the gun aisle.

“What?” Gabe asked, but kept talking before he actually had a chance to answer, his voice all business. “Anyway, I assume that probably means you’re staying in Amarillo.”

“I’m actually not sure,” he admitted. “Not long term, anyway. Karlin wouldn’t mind a fresh start, and I hate the weather.

But for the moment, my focus is on helping her prepare for two trials.

I think it’s gonna keep us both busy. Ben already knows I’m staying for now, and he was already gonna sell our house so he could move somewhere new with Grace.

Either way, Karlin and I will be flying back for the wedding. ”

“Oh, yeah, there is no world where you’re getting out of that,” Gabe said quickly. “I’m not putting together all of these flowers by myself, and Reilly and Ben have already called dibs on helping with the much more manly tasks of setting up the marquee and the dance floor.”

“I suppose I can live with being the flower boy’s assistant for one day.”

“I take it you’re not going to want a remote job with FBS?” Gabe asked.

Asher laughed. “Me doing paperwork would be more dangerous than me having a panic attack while holding a loaded gun.”

“That’s true,” Gabe agreed. “Well, okay, bro. I guess we’ll see what happens. But we’re going to miss you.”

“I do have one more thing to ask.”

Gabe sounded wary. “What? Don’t worry, I’ve already started looking for someone to irradiate your office as we speak.”

“Ha-ha,” Asher said. “I just need a little favor.”

“Just say the word,” Gabe said. “I have some mental space for favors now that you’re no longer here to mess everything up.”

Asher didn’t bother to suppress the grin that spread over his face, even as the outdoor store clerk wandered back over in his direction.

There were so many regrets that he would continue to carry, and so many wounds he would never be able to heal.

But this?

This he could fix.

“There’s this guy I served with, John Collins, who happens to be Karlin’s older brother. I need you to help me find him a PTSD service dog.”

Thank you so much for reading Forged in Deception!