Page 26

M addox

The Navy SEAL Team had been overkill.

There’d been no attempts made to stop Charmaine from leaving the country, no soldiers firing off rounds to try to keep the SEALs from extracting us. We’d simply boarded the plane and had taken off with zero fanfare.

A relief? Absolutely, but it also set off red flags.

A man like Alfaro didn’t stop until he got what he wanted.

The fact the assassins sent to hunt her down hadn’t continued searching remained unnerving. Perhaps Alfaro had made a change in plans, including heading to the United States. Whatever the case, there were too many loose ends.

Now we were in the back of an SUV on the way to an undisclosed location for debriefing.

Gray was supposed to meet us there.

I had a bad feeling that wouldn’t go away.

Somehow, I’d been swept up in some government action to capture Alfaro and that pissed me off. It was as if the DEA, the FBI, or pick a law enforcement agency had found the perfect lure.

With no third attempt made on her life, it was possible the bomb placed in the box she’d been carrying had given the impression she’d been eliminated.

However, I doubted karma would be so kind at this point, which was why I’d been ready to get us out of harm’s way.

We’d left the apartment hours later, finding short term refuge in a small restaurant until we received notification the plane had arrived.

She’d remained quiet the entire afternoon, lost in her thoughts, and that had suited me just fine. Even so, I’d still felt her presence. I’d still felt the hunger. All my attempts to shut it down had failed.

When the call from Gray had come in that the SEALs were almost on the ground, we’d left the restaurant within minutes.

“How far?” she asked and glanced over my shoulder out the back window.

“I wish I knew,” I told her.

She looked into my eyes and I felt her anxiety, the heightened sense of uncertainty creating the smell of fear. She needed me to tell her that everything was going to be alright and that wasn’t something I was prepared to do.

At this point, too many things could go wrong. In my mind, there was no number of law enforcement officers capable of stopping Alfaro if he decided to make a run into the country.

Few understood the man’s capabilities.

Or how many soldiers he controlled.

Kage had called, informing me he’d been blocked when attempting to gather information.

I’d told him to back off. He’d reminded me about Damon once again.

At this point, getting Kage involved any further could potentially destroy his new life.

Whatever would occur I’d handle. I wasn’t certain about Charmaine.

As strong as she’d been through the ordeal, she was crumbling around the edges because of her guilt.

I shifted in the seat, looking behind us. There were two SUVs behind and one in front. Maybe I should feel safe. Instead, I felt like a caged animal. As if we were on trial for the information she’d obtained.

Which I had stored in my pocket. No one was getting access without probable cause or a good goddamn reason.

I’d even kept the discovery from Gray. The man was completely trustworthy, but I knew when not to lay all my cards on the table, not until I knew what we were dealing with.

And when to look out for myself. That’s how I’d survived during the worst nightmares.

That’s not how I’d reacted when I’d been a member of the SEALs. We’d worked together as a team, ridding the world of enemies that could destroy cities and place countries in economic chaos.

All for the greater good.

Was I bitter I’d felt like the Navy had abandoned me? Maybe, but I’d tempered my anger over the years.

Sadly, I felt it returning.

Now my worry was concentrated on the woman sitting beside me. She didn’t deserve to have her life shattered because she’d been trying to do the right thing. If anyone wanted to fuck with her, they’d need to go through me.

She smoothed her hands down the skirt she was wearing. At least we’d been provided with a change of clothes, something more appropriate to wear in front of a bunch of attorneys.

All the while during the trip, the members of the SEAL team had studied me as someone would an animal at a zoo.

It would seem my unsavory reputation had preceded me.

As we entered the heart of the District of Columbia, my chest tightened. I was surprised when she reached over, placing her hand on mine. She wasn’t looking in my direction, merely staring off at the front, but I could tell she wasn’t focused on anything.

I squeezed her fingers. I owed her that much. She hadn’t signed up for this any more than I’d done. She was intelligent enough to keep from saying but so much on the plane and during the ride. Maybe because it had become apparent that we were being watched.

Where the hell did the bastards think we were going to go?

In contrast, the two men dressed in suits up front chatted about whatever basketball game had been on the night before.

As their voices grew louder, I became more annoyed. Perhaps Charmaine sensed I was in a pissy mood, trying to calm me by rubbing her thumb back and forth across my skin. She had a way of drawing me in, creating a fog that I didn’t like.

Just like she’d done the night before.

Being out of focus was also dangerous; it led to making stupid decisions.

With her, I could lose a part of myself and while the thought was ridiculous, it was the truth.

“Thank you,” she said in a revered tone.

“For what?”

“For bringing me home.”

“Do you live here?”

She laughed. “No. You know that. I’ve never wanted to live in DC.”

“Then I didn’t bring you home. But I don’t blame you. Chicago is a nice town.”

“It’s full of too many people and insane traffic jams. It’s expensive and controlled by the mob. Don’t tell anyone I said that.”

“Your secret is safe with me. Why live there?”

Her hesitation forced me to turn my head, studying her face.

“I honestly don’t know. I like to say it’s because Chicago is a vibrant place with amazing people.

Which is true. I have a great boss that I adore and I love my job, but I always wanted to live in a quiet little town where everyone knew everyone else.

A small town with heart. Maybe they don’t exist any longer except for in romance novels. ”

“They exist.”

She caught my stare and blushed, glancing at the two men before shifting her gaze toward me. “Is your ranch in a small town?”

“Yeah, too small. Try five thousand people.”

“That sounds amazing. I grew up in a small town in Illinois. My adoptive parents preferred being close to their neighbors.”

I hadn’t realized she’d been adopted. Another reason she’d been drawn to the cover story. So many things about her were starting to make sense. “It’s okay. Maybe not what I expected.”

“If you hate it so much, why did you buy the place?”

“I don’t hate where I live. I love the area. There’s green as far as the eye can see, blue sky and you can see the stars almost every night. Mountains. Lakes. Rivers.”

“You just don’t like the people.”

“Nah, they’re cool. They just tend to get into your business. They wave at everyone even if they don’t know who you are. They bring you casseroles when you move in. Why do people do that?”

“Maybe to be nice, Mr. Guarded.”

“I have reasons to be guarded. And I think they just want a chance to see what you’re made of.”

This time, she covered her mouth when she laughed. Her hand was still in mine and I had to admit, it felt damn good. “You’re incorrigible. Maybe you’re right. You reminded me I need to call my parents.”

“As soon as this shit is over, you can use my phone. I’m sure they’re worried about you.”

“What about your family? Won’t they be worried about you?”

A slight snort left my lips. “You don’t know my dad. He’d tell me all the things he would have done differently. I’m alone and that’s fine with me.”

“That’s very sad, Maddox. Everyone deserves a family. For holidays and nights in front of the television cozying up watching a movie. Dinners out even if it’s at a pizza joint. What about attending baseball games? Much better with family. I’m lucky I have one.”

From the lilt in her voice to the sparkle in her eyes as she talked about her family, I could envision her with several kids, maybe a dog or two.

That just wasn’t for me.

“I do just fine,” I told her.

“So hardheaded.”

I glanced out the window, noticing a turn had been made onto New York Avenue. The area was full of high-profile attorneys sitting in their all-glass office buildings. The tightness in my chest continued.

“Where are we going?” I leaned forward and asked the two stoic men sitting up front. They’d immediately rubbed me the wrong way.

The man in the passenger seat glanced at the driver before twisting his head so he could almost look me in the eye. Funny how not one of the SEALs had been able to.

There was a lot about how the extraction had been handled I didn’t like or appreciate, including the fact they’d taken our bags, tossing them in another vehicle.

I had my weapon and had thought ahead to slide a second magazine of ammunition into my pants, but that didn’t mean I’d be able to keep it.

No. I was beginning to get a very uneasy feeling.

“We’ll be there in a few minutes, sir. Just take it easy.”

“That’s not what I asked.” When the driver pulled to a light, I thought about what I was doing and tugged on her hand as I opened the door with the other. “Then we’re leaving.”

“Sir. You can’t do that!” the man barked.

At least she trusted me, allowing me to drag her from the vehicle. I didn’t look back, taking long strides toward the sidewalk.

“What is going on?” she hissed.

“I don’t like this. It feels like a setup.” As soon as we were on the sidewalk, the suits from every other vehicle suddenly surrounded us.

While not one of them had pulled out a weapon, their jackets were unbuttoned and I was able to see shadows of their holsters.

“I’m afraid I can’t allow you to do that, sir.”