Page 8

Ray

The whole Ghost and Noah Project situation had taken on a new level of crazy, and Ray regretted signing up for the conference as the representative for his station. At the time, he’d thought it was the perfect solution to get out of Marshall fast, but now all he wanted to do was return.

Only yesterday, he’d been pinned down by gunfire behind Elias’s truck, and now he was checking into the Four Seasons on the strip in Las Vegas. Surreal didn’t even cover it, and Ray secretly wished he could return to the barn they’d visited and still ha Ghost in his arms.

Amazing what a little over forty-eight hours could do to a person’s point of view. He’d be stuck here for the next two days and was already counting down the hours before he could catch a taxi back to the airport, and back to Marshall—and Ghost.

They were still no closer to figuring out who the shooter was and which of them was the likely target, though all indications suggested Ghost was the one in danger. As for the case of Aunt Sophia and her missing baby, things were moving along well enough. Spencer was able to dig up Jericho’s Army record after Ray discovered his service during the Korean War. He was surprised to learn the sergeant had been relieved of duty only months before the United States pulled out of Korea, and was sent back to the States on a medical discharge. Upon further investigation, they discovered the man had a mental breakdown during a skirmish outside Saigon.

Jericho’s records indicated that he’d been behaving erratically and even had been put on suicide watch for a time. Of course, none of this was uncommon in such hostile and deadly circumstances, but all prior notes in his file classified Jericho as a stable individual with keen insight and skill. He’d even been promoted and received several citations for bravery.

It wasn’t as uncommon as you’d hope for service members to snap and completely lose their shit without warning, and back in Jericho’s day, there weren’t the mental health avenues available to service members today. Back then, it was shut up and move out. If you were a little bit crazy, that would be even better.

After Jericho was discharged, he returned home without a risk assessment or plan for his reintegration into civilian life. It was unfortunate that most “shell-shocked”

vets were institutionalized without any hope of improvement or let loose on the general population. The military had come a long way in the past forty years, but it wasn’t a secret that there was always room for further improvement.

“Well, look what the cat dragged in,”

a voice said from behind Ray.

Funny, it was the second time he’d heard that line this week. Hell, it wasn’t like he’d fallen off the planet, but by others’ reactions, Ray may as well have.

He turned to find Detective Rocko Owens standing roughly twenty feet from him across the lobby. Owens and Ray had a past; they’d fallen into bed on more than one occasion, and Ray had even looked forward to picking up where they’d left off the last time they’d been in the same city for more than twenty-four hours. Now, oddly, the thought didn’t hold the same appeal.

“Where the hell have you been hiding?”

Owens asked.

“Some people have to work,”

Ray shot back. “Not all of us have the cushy job you do over in Boca Raton, where you’re more likely to die of old age than by a violent crime.”

“You’re jealous.”

Owens laughed.

“That you’ll likely get a melanoma from that Florida sun or be eaten by a shark while swimming in the ocean?”

Owens closed the distance and slapped Ray on the back good-naturedly.

“How the hell are you, man?” he asked.

“Living the dream. You?”

“Leave it to you to be the realist. As for me, I’m stellar. Couldn’t be better. Life is good.”

That was the thing about Owens: he was the optimist and pretty much the opposite of Ray.

“Want to grab a drink?” he asked.

“Can’t. I’ve got some work to do before the welcome banquet tonight.”

“Want some company?”

Owens asked suggestively.

Normally, Ray would have been open to the company, but not today.

“No, man. I gotta work.”

“No worries, plenty of time to catch up later,”

Owens said, adding a wink. “Hope to see you tonight and with much less clothing on.”

Owens left Ray standing in the lobby, feeling at a crossroads. It wasn’t as if he and Ghost had some sort of relationship. Hell, it takes a lot more than a stolen kiss and heated moment, that’s for sure. Then why was he feeling so guilty?

***

Ghost

“You can’t be sure it was me they were after,”

Ghost tried again to talk some sense into Brick. “It could have been this new case. Maybe someone didn’t like us poking around into the whole Jericho Miles issue or Sophia’s missing baby.”

Brick gave him another withering look. “The odds of that are slim.”

“However, there is still a chance I’m right, and forcing me to stay on the property is overkill.”

“Seriously, give up already,”

Fletcher said. “Until we get to the bottom of this, you’re safer here.”

Fletcher and Gunner were preparing for a run to the hardware store in town to grab some more lumber for the finishing touches on another cottage.

“I could go ghost. It’d be the perfect chance to try my ability in a real-world setting. No one would know I’m there but you guys. All you’d have to do is make sure to leave the doors open a few seconds longer so I can get in and out of the truck and store.”

“If we let you, will you shut the hell up about it?”

Brick huffed, giving Ghost a glimmer of hope.

“Yes.”

“Fine. Go, but don’t let anyone see you. Got it?”

The look on Brick’s face brooked no argument. Fuck around and find out.

“Got it,”

Ghost cheered and began stripping on the spot.

“Go get naked in your room. I’m already weirded out you’ll be sitting beside me with your balls hanging out,”

Gunner growled.

Ghost laughed. “My balls are fabulous.”

He dashed off to his room to finish undressing and go ghost.

Freedom was almost his, and he couldn’t wait to get off the property. He’d been on lockdown since the shooting at the cemetery and was desperate for some room. It wasn’t as though the lake house property was small by any means. Hell, there were acres of land to wander, but it wasn’t the same when you were ordered to remain there.

He returned to the living room within minutes and shouted, “Ready.”

“Shit,”

Gunner growled even louder. “A little warning when you’ re in ghost mode would be appreciated.”

“Sorry, I forgot you couldn’t see me.”

Fletcher was laughing along with Brick at Gunner’s scowl.

“Man, you knew he was returning in chameleon mode,”

Fletcher chuckled. “Besides, you should have learned long ago to expect the unexpected.”

“You’re funny,”

Gunner huffed. “Let’s get this shit show on the road.”

Ghost was intimidated by Gunner’s tough and angry demeanor until he saw the man with Conor and got a new view of him. He was calm, friendly, and open when his partner was around. That didn’t mean the guy wouldn’t beat the shit out of him if he screwed up, but it somehow made Ghost feel better.

They loaded into the truck, and Fletcher held the door open for a few extra seconds before he jumped into the passenger seat. Now securely seated in the truck, Ghost allowed himself to enjoy the freedom, even if only for an hour.

They pulled up to the hardware storeas Elias drove by in his squad car. He pulled in after them.

“Hey, guys. Watcha up to?”

Elias asked.

“We need about ten more two-by-fours to finish up the deck on the new cottage. And FYI, Ghost is here,”

Gunner said.

“Oh, come on, way to rat me out. I was going to wait to see if he could see me,”

Ghost whispered, not wanting anyone to hear a voice coming from nowhere.

Elias chuckled. “You’re getting good at that, I gotta hand it to ya. I wouldn’t have even noticed you there.”

“Thanks, I’ve been practicing hard so that I can help on missions.”

It was his greatest wish. He wanted to help those who had saved him and others like him, and if he got good enough, he might be able to do that on the regular.

“Okay, let’s go,”

Gunner barked out orders as if they were on a mission.

Ghost followed Gunner into the store, and Fletcher pretended to wave goodbye to Elias as he held the door open for a few extra seconds. They were good at this. The moment the thought entered his mind, Gunner abruptly stopped, and Ghost slammed into the back of him. He covered his grunt with a cough and turned to look back at Fletcher.

“Isn’t that the town vet?”

Gunner asked.

Ghost looked up and recognized the man he’d met before with Brick. The same man who caught him and Ray kissing in the barn the other day. Thoughts of Ray had been a constant issue for him since the man left for Vegas. Ghost couldn’t seem to get the guy out of his head.

“Yep, that’s Mr. Cross,”

Fletcher answered.

As Gunner and Fletcher headed toward the lumber, Ghost decided to have a look around and practice going unnoticed by the townspeople.

He wandered toward the cash register, where a middle-aged woman and the cashier were conversing.

“You know, since those men moved into town, I gotta say the eye candy around this place has definitely improved,”

the customer said.

The younger cashier blushed. “Too bad none of them is looking for a woman. There’d be lots of takers.”

“Why are all the hot men gay?”

Ghost had difficulty stopping himself from laughing at these two and was soon on his way to the next person. A gentleman Ghost hadn’t seen before stood facing a wall of tile, appearing to be looking for something he liked. It wasn’t long before the old vet came over and stood a couple feet away from the first guy.

Ghost felt pretty proud of himself at that moment, considering that would make four people who hadn’t been able to spot him as he ghosted around the store. He was about to move on when the vet stopped him in his tracks.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

Ghost froze. Shit.

“What do you mean by that?”

the stranger asked.

Ghost could breathe again; the vet wasn’t talking to him.

“You know exactly what I mean, Jackson. You weren’t supposed to take potshots at them.”

Oh shit, this was getting interesting.

“They were snooping around in places they shouldn’t be.”

“I didn’t call you to let you know they were investigating Miles so you’d go out and kill them,”

Mr. Cross said.

“I wasn’t trying to kill them, just scare them off.”

“You don’t know who you’re dealing with. These folks don’t scare off. They hunt harder, you idiot. Now they know someone’s on their radar, and they won’t let it go until they find out who it was.”

“Then maybe I should take them all out. That would solve the problem.”

“How have I ever not noticed how stupid you are?”

Mr. Cross said, shaking his head. “These men are trained military, special ops shit. You might get one or two before youre dead.”

“Fine. What do you suggest we do?”

“Sit tight. Let this blow over and wait to see what shakes out. Don’t go doing anything stupid again. Your parents and grandparents haven’t made it this far for the entire plan to go up in smoke as we stand before the finish line.”

Mr. Cross stormed off, and Ghost managed to get out of his way at the last second. The other man huffed and headed for the front of the store. Ghost followed him. When he stepped out into the hot Texas afternoon, the guy jumped into a shiny new truck parked beside Gunner’s. Ghost was quick to memorize the license plate before he tore off down the street.

Ghost was nearly vibrating with nervous energy, and he knew he had to get out of the store and breathe, or he might begin reappearing. The older lady from earlier walked to the front door and opened it, and Ghost took the opportunity to sneak out behind her as the door slowly closed. He’d wait for Gunner and Fletcher by the truck.

Roughly fifteen minutes later, the guys came out from the side alley of the hardware store carrying the two-by-fours.

“You better be here, you little shit, or I swear I’m going to use you for target practice,”

Gunner growled under his breath.

“I am,”

Ghost whispered.

Fletcher threw the lumber into the back of the truck and opened the passenger door.

“Get in.”

Ghost did as he was told, and soon, the three pulled away from the store.

“Mind telling me why you took off?”

Fletcher asked, sounding as angry as Gunner.

“I wanted to test my ability in public, but that’s unimportant.”

“Not important? You took off on us when you know how dangerous it is out here for you.”

“That’s it, I now know those bullets weren’t for me or Ray,”

Ghost explained.

Gunner looked over. “Explain.”

“I overheard the vet and some guy named Jackson discussing the shooting at the graveyard.”

“What?”

Fletcher asked.

“Yeah. The vet was pissed at the other guy for shooting at us. Said he didn’t call him to kill us and that this other guy was going to ruin everything, among other things, like killing the entire team and shit. Apparently, the vet called Jackson and told him that we were snooping around that day. He caught me and Ray at the barn.”

“Shit. Get Brick on the line. We’ve got a problem,”

Gunner ordered. “Good job, kid.”

Ghost was bouncing in his seat with happiness. He’d used his ability to get a crack in the case.

“Stop bouncing your naked ass on my seat cushions,”

Gunner growled.

Nice to know things never changed.