Stone
S erenity pulled the car into the parking lot of the Tiki Tabu Bar and we hurried out. “Keola said to come in the back way.”
Serenity froze. “Wait. Do you think it could be a trap?”
“No. I trust Keola. But you can test the door if you want.”
She nodded. “I will.” She placed her hand on the knob and closed her eyes. “I’m not getting anything. It must be okay.”
“Good.” I pulled it open and we headed inside, following the hall to the back offices where Keola did his bookkeeping.
He sat at his desk and raised his hand in greeting. “Hey, bro. You made it. Come on in.”
“I brought Serenity.”
He sent her a wave. “Nice. I was hoping to see you again.”
She smiled. “Thanks.”
Glancing at me, Keola’s brows dipped. “You okay, bro? You’re moving a little slow.”
I sighed before sitting in the chair in front of Keola’s desk. “I had a run-in with a grenade earlier, but I made it out with just a few stitches, so I can’t complain.”
“Shit, bro. What happened?”
“It’s why I’m trying to find Johnny. He almost killed me last night. So what have you got?”
Keola shook his head. “I didn’t realize it was that bad. Hopefully this will help. After you came in the other day, it got me thinking about our days in the service. Remember Johnny-Two-Legs?”
My brows dipped. “Johnny-Two-Legs? What the hell kind of name is that?”
Keola’s lips turned down. “You don’t remember Johnny-Two-Legs? Huh. Maybe he got that nickname after you left? But I could have sworn he was there when you were.”
“I think I’d remember a name like that.”
Keola rubbed his chin and stared off into the distance. “Huh… now that I think of it, I think he earned his nickname because his legs were badly burned from an explosion that he walked away from. Everyone started calling him Johnny-Two-Legs, since he walked away with both legs. You know how it can be.”
A face popped into my mind, and my stomach tightened. “Shit. It’s JB. John Bowles.” I could hardly believe it. I’d spent the last ten years trying to forget what had happened that day.
Keola snapped his fingers. “That’s right! We all called him JB. That must be why the name Johnny didn’t ring a bell. You won’t believe this, but he was here. He came in last week.”
“What did he want? ”
“I thought it was just a coincidence that he came in, but now I’m not so sure. He didn’t ask about you, so I didn’t put it together until today.”
Serenity placed her hand on my arm. “You think it’s him?”
I closed my eyes. “Yeah.” Taking a breath, I met her gaze. “And he has good reason to want me dead. The blast that nearly killed him was my last mission. It was a nightmare. We had bad intel, and he and I were the only ones who made it back alive. But it’s worse than that. I carried another soldier out and left JB behind, but only because I thought he was dead.”
Her brows drew together. “I can see why that might upset him, but hardly enough to kill you for it.”
“There’s more.” I shook my head. “That was my mission. I knew the intel might be bad, but I decided to chance it anyway. I risked all our lives, thinking it was worth it.” My jaw tightened. “I was wrong, and my men paid the price.” I stared down at my hands. “After the explosion, I found Cooper gasping for breath. He begged me to help him. I didn’t even think about anyone else; there wasn’t time, and they were all down, so I just grabbed him and ran.”
I shook my head. That day would haunt me for the rest of my life. “Cooper still died. I should have checked everyone, but we were under fire and I had to get out of there. I’m sure JB blames me for everything that happened to him, and for the friends we both lost.”
“So you never saw him again?”
“No. I got transferred and left the service a couple of months later.” I glanced at Keola. “But why come after me now? After all this time? What did he say to you?”
Keola shook his head. “It was easy to see he had a big chip on his shoulder. He was complaining about all the time he’d spent in rehab because of his addiction to pain killers. Probably from his injuries. He told me he’d just lost his job and was looking for work.”
“Damn.” I shook my head. “No wonder he wants me dead. He probably thinks I ruined his life.”
“But you didn’t.” Serenity’s earnest gaze met mine. “He just wants to blame someone for what happened to him.”
Keola nodded. “I told him he could work here for a while until something else came up, but he said he had other plans.”
I closed my eyes and nodded. Serenity may not agree, but I knew I shared some of the blame for what happened to him. Still, there was nothing I could do about it now. But how had he met up with Aubree? “Was he with anyone when you saw him?”
“No.”
“Did he say where he was staying?”
Keola shrugged. “He said he had a friend he was staying with. But he didn’t say who it was.”
“Did he say anything about a trailer court?”
Keola’s brows drew together. “You know what? Yeah, he said he was living in his friend’s ‘mobile manor’.”
I nodded. “Makes sense. It all fits. His friend was probably Cash, and JB used him to get close to me. When Cash told JB I was asking questions about someone named Johnny, he killed Cash. I don’t really get it, though. He hates me enough to kill a friend? And the other thing I just can’t figure out is how he got together with Aubree.”
“Aubree?” Keola’s brows rose. “Didn’t you end things with her a few months ago?”
“Yeah, but she’s been hanging on. Now we think she may have been helping JB… Johnny.”
“Bro. This whole thing is messed up.”
I huffed. “Yeah… tell me about it. ”
Serenity sighed. “We’re hoping Aubree will lead us to Johnny if we can talk to her. I say we track her down and try again.”
“I don’t think that’s gonna fly now.” I shook my head. “I really wish she hadn’t…”
“Hadn’t what? What happened?” Keola asked.
“We were supposed to meet her for lunch today, but she got a little upset over something she saw.”
Serenity’s eyes widened, and she shook her head.
Keola noticed and leaned forward. He glanced between us, his eyes lighting up. “Sounds juicy… what was it?”
Serenity licked her lips, and I could hardly take my eyes off them. Memories of her in my arms last night flooded my senses, and all I wanted to do was take her out of here and run off to a private island somewhere. Just the two of us.
“Wait. Are you two together?” When neither of us answered, he slapped his desktop. “I knew it. I saw sparks flying when you came in a few days ago. It’s like… off the charts. So what did you do? Did she catch you kissing or something?”
“Yes,” I said. “We were sitting in Serenity’s car in the parking lot. She wasn’t even supposed to be there yet.”
Keola shook his head. “Oh man… if she didn’t want you dead before, she will now.” He glanced between us. “Both of you.”
“She’ll have to get in line.” I stood. “We need to take off, but thanks for your help. At least we know who we’re dealing with now.”
Keola stood as well. “Wish I could do more, but I’ll let you know if he comes in again. And if you need me, let me know. In the meantime, have you got your lucky stone on you?”
“No. ”
“Maybe you’d better get it, cause a little more luck might come in handy about now.”
“You have a point.”
Keola met my gaze. “I remember how dangerous he is. Watch your six.”
“I will.”
We said our goodbyes and left. As we walked out, Serenity bumped her shoulder against me. “Don’t worry. I’m here to watch your six, and we’ll figure this out.”
I took her hand, more grateful than ever to have her at my side. “Thanks Babe… just… I don’t want you to get hurt either.”
She squeezed my hand. “I won’t. You’ve got my back, too. We can do this because we’ll do it together.”
My heart swelled. I’d been alone for so long, I’d forgotten what it was like to have someone who really cared about me. Dropping her hand, I took her face in my hands and planted a kiss on her lips, wanting to burn this moment into my heart, so it would be there forever.
She kissed me back like her life depended on it, and it was hard to pull away. Breathless, I rested my forehead against hers. “That’s right, and I’ll always have your back, Sen. Always.” I almost added, even if that means leaving you behind , but I kept my mouth shut.
A car pulled into the lot, and I grabbed her hand to walk back to the car. “Now that we’ve got a name, let’s check the database for information. It might tell us more about John Bowles. It also wouldn’t hurt to talk to Dino and see what he can find out.”
She raised a brow. “You think the detective will help?”
“That’s what he gets paid for… off the record, of course.”
“Of course.”
While Serenity drove back to her house, I scanned the roads to make sure no one followed us. I’d been taken by surprise too many times now, and it wasn’t going to happen again.
I hadn’t told Serenity that JB was one of the best sharpshooters around, or that he was an expert on bombs, since it was pretty obvious. But that wasn’t the only thing that worried me. The JB I knew wouldn’t stop or give up until he’d accomplished his goal. If that meant killing me, it meant one of us would die.
After all of his attempts on my life, I could see why he’d gone to such extreme measures last night. He was getting frustrated and reckless which meant things were bound to escalate. But it also meant he could make a mistake that I could capitalize on.
Still, at this point, he’d be coming for me, and he probably wouldn’t care who was in his way. That meant Serenity’s life was in more danger than she knew. Maybe it was time to leave her behind. She’d hate me, but if it saved her life, I had to consider it. Thoughts of her dying because of me sent cold chills down my spine.