Levi
Earlier that day
It was sad how long I stood staring at the phone after disconnecting with Drew. I’d known that the words she’d spoken had been for Hunter, but it hadn’t changed how my heart had skipped a beat when they’d been spoken to me instead.
Those three little words had sent me running for my life when I was a young man, but hearing them from Drew had been oddly heartwarming. I’d pretty much given up on the hopes of finding someone to share my life with, and I’d been content in that. And yet, since my dreams had been filled with my angel, a longing had crept in that was unexpected.
Hunter was curled up on the couch, Piper sitting at the other end. They were watching some cartoon on the TV, but both of them looked ready to pass out at any moment. I checked the time on my watch, noting I needed to get outside to meet the guys.
“Hey, Hunter. Look, I need to go do something and may be gone a few hours. Piper is here, and if you need anything at all, you just tell her, okay? She’s a lot of fun.”
Hunter looked at his feet then back up to me. “You’ll be back, though? For real?”
The kid was killing me. “Yes, of course I’ll be back. And so will your mom. I promise.”
Hunter seemed to consider this for a moment, glancing over his shoulder at Piper and then back to me. Finally, he gave a quick nod of his head.
“Okay. She has good taste in cartoons, so even though she’s a girl, she can’t be that bad—right?”
Piper snorted, covering her mouth when Hunter darted another look in her direction, and I bit the inside of my mouth to keep from laughing. Little did Hunter know, Piper could kick a grown man’s ass with one hand tied behind her back. But I didn’t think that it was the time to enlighten him about that fact.
“Nope, she’s not bad at all. She’s pretty cool.”
Hunter curled back up on the sofa, and I had a feeling his eyes wouldn’t be open for much longer.
“Thanks.” Piper was smiling like the cat who caught the canary. I wasn’t sure what that was all about, but she shrugged and waved me off. “My pleasure. Go keep my husband safe.”
“You got it.”
When I reached the guys, they were already suited up and ready to go. “You coming, Mr. Mom?” Oscar tossed out, obviously thinking he was hilarious.
“Shut up, Cortada.”
“Yes, sir.” The respectful nature of his words were ruined by the huge grin on his face.
“Just get in the damn van, will you?”
The team laughed as I ran over to the garage to grab some gear. We wouldn’t need much, so I grabbed two of my guns and slipped them into my shoulder holster. Kevlar vests were usually a must for an op like this, in case Rubio decided to get handsy with his gun, but since vests would attract attention to us, we’d opted to take a chance.
I hopped into the passenger side of the van, while Cruz sat in the driver’s seat. Ryder and Jolie sat on the bench seat, while Oscar and Cade sat on the floor in the back of the van.
We were about twenty minutes from the nail salon and market, and we took the time to go over the plan once more. Jolie was dressed in athletic gear that was stylish as well as functional. Ryder had the bugs ready to go, and Cade, Oscar, and Cruz would wait in the van until Rubio pulled up. We were all set, and hopefully, by the end of the day we’d have some answers to what the Cabs were up to.
It was three in the afternoon when we arrived at the nail salon. The black van with tinted windows was a little conspicuous, so we parked in the alley next to the strip mall.
“Good luck.” Ryder leaned over and planted a slightly obscene kiss on Jolie’s lips as she hopped out of the van.
We waited until Jolie was inside the nail salon before Ryder and I made our way to the market.
“You guys stay here until we get back. If you see Rubio, let us know, and we’ll run out to try to intercept him. Hopefully he’ll stick to the schedule.”
“Roger that,” Cade said, nodding.
The market was lined with boxed goods from China, Japan, and Korea. The back of the store was lined with open-air freezers boasting all sorts of fish, squid, and other sea creatures. The market smelled like fish and saltwater—not a very welcoming aroma when you were on edge.
I took a basket from the front door and browsed the aisles while Ryder moved to the back of the store. Two white men in an international market looked pretty suspicious, so I picked up some Pocky sticks and a few other snack foods, while Ryder browsed the fish.
He looked up and gave an imperceptible nod of his head, and I moved to the counter for a distraction.
“Excuse me, sir. Can you tell me the difference between these two?”
I held up a couple of snack varieties, and the man gave me a dour look.
“This one is chocolate and this one is matcha.”
I glanced over my shoulder and saw Ryder moving towards the shared wall between the nail salon and the market. That was where he’d attach the listening devices.
“Yes, but what is matcha?”
The man practically rolled his eyes. “It is green tea.”
“Does it taste good? Or should I stick with the chocolate?”
It was obvious the man’s patience was growing thin with the stupid American, but I knew Ryder needed a few more moments. I glanced discreetly over my shoulder and saw him disappear behind the curtain that separated the market from what I figured was a storeroom or office area. Once he had disappeared, I gave my full attention to the man behind the counter.
“I don’t know. Perhaps you could try them both.”
“Yes, that’s a good idea. I’ll just go take a look and see if there are any other flavors I might like.”
The man went back to reading a newspaper, and I forayed the aisles once again, pretending to make a decision on which snack foods I’d buy. After several moments, I saw the man look up as if remembering that Ryder had been in there and no longer was. I grabbed two more bags and rushed back to the counter.
“Okay, I think I’ve made a decision. How about these? Are they any good?”
I threw a multi-colored bag onto the counter that read “Haw Flakes” and raised an eyebrow. The man sighed heavily and crossed his arms over his chest.
“They are like cereal.”
“But are they good?”
“My granddaughter loves them.”
“Good enough for me! I’ll take them and the chocolate Pockys.”
The man didn’t say another word, just rang up my items and put them in a bag for me.
Ryder strolled up next to me. “I didn’t see anything I was interested in. You ready to go?”
“Yep. Thanks so much.” The man at the counter just grunted, and Ryder and I left the market.
“Did you get it set up?”
“Of course I did.”
“Excellent. Now, we wait.”
I glanced at my watch and saw that it was a few minutes till four. I put the bag of snacks in the van just as a black sedan pulled up in front of the nail salon, and Jolie was leaving the building. Rubio was early.
It all happened so fast. Too fast.
Jolie didn’t see him coming since he was slightly behind her, and there was no time for us to warn her. It was like slow motion as she turned and made eye contact with him. The shock was clear on her face, and she took off running. Only because he was behind her, she took off in the opposite direction to where we were, so we were forced to chase after them.
“Let’s go!”
Ryder took off after Rubio, and Cade and I brought up the rear.
“Bring the van around!” I shouted to Cruz and Oscar as we ran after Jolie and Rubio. Jolie was trained and could hold her own, but it wasn’t a guarantee of her safety. I knew Ryder would move heaven and earth to come to her aid, and we’d be right there with him.
We rounded the corner of the alley on the other side and were brought up short. Ryder stood with his hands outstretched, his gun hanging loosely from his fingers.
“Just let her go, Rubio.”
The Angel smirked, holding the knife closer to Jolie’s throat. She gasped, and a tiny trickle of blood emerged from the small wound he made, rolling down her neck and under the collar of her shirt.
One wrong move and he’d slice her throat and not even blink an eye doing it. We crept closer, and Rubio shifted his gaze to us.
“Don’t come any closer. How did you know I would be here?”
“I have my sources,” Ryder answered, keeping his hands out by his side.
“You give me a name so I can take care of the traitor. Or perhaps I’ll take out my anger on your pretty wife.”
He sliced a thin line across her neck, not deep enough to do any real damage, but the hiss of breath Jolie released confirmed that it wasn’t a pleasant experience. The red line stood out against her pale skin, a garish reminder of how easily Rubio could kill her.
I caught Cade’s eye and gave a slight nod. We moved slightly away from each other, hoping to close in the distance, when something at the end of the alley caught my eye. Cruz and Oscar kept to the shadows as they neared Rubio, while Ryder kept him talking about how he’d discovered his whereabouts.
“We just want to talk,” Ryder said.
Ortiz and Cortada were just a few feet from Rubio, and Cade and I moved slightly closer to the man, trying to keep his attention on us.
As if sensing them, Rubio started to turn around, and Cade and I rushed him from one side while Cruz and Oscar rushed from the other.
Cruz grabbed Rubio’s arm, turning his wrist at an unnatural angle, the knife falling from his grip. Ryder was there to catch Jolie as she stumbled forward, and the rest of us tackled Rubio to the ground. Within seconds, he was in our custody and in the back of our van.
We got our man.
We drove back to HQ, and Cruz stopped the van in the back of the gym, near the rear doors. I pushed Rubio inside, heading to the room we used for interrogations. It was nearly impenetrable, with reinforced locks and bolts on the floors for chains. That’s where we’d keep him until we figured out our next move.
I wasn’t holding my breath that Rubio would talk. These guys seldom did, knowing the punishment for leaking information about their organization would be far worse than whatever we had in store for them. Since torture wasn’t our style, we’d be forced to use threats and other means to get him to open up. Although we weren’t above using a little persuasion with our fists, we shied away from any of the heavy stuff like waterboarding or electric-shock treatments. It just wasn’t for us, and we’d yet to need that type of method to get at least some information from our targets.
We stopped in the hallway, my hand on Rubio’s cuffed arms, when the door to the office area opened. Drew and Lydia stood in the doorway, and I wasn’t quick enough to push Rubio through the open door.
Drew’s eyes landed on him, and it was pure rage and fire. She was a hellcat, bound and determined to beat the living hell out of the man. She slapped him hard across the face, his head whipping back with the force of her blow. Fists rained down on Rubio’s body while words that I was sure she rarely said poured from her mouth.
I let go of Rubio long enough to grab Drew and draw her closer to me.
“Shh—it’s okay, angel. I’ve got you.”
Her temper wouldn’t be deterred, though, and she bucked and kicked against my restraint.
“Let me go! You bastard! I’ll kill you for what you did to me and my little boy! Do you hear me? I’ll kill you!”
I turned her around to face me, keeping her at arm’s length to protect my face and family jewels. When she finally came to her senses, the betrayal I saw on her face made me want to shrivel up and die.
“How could you?” Tears pooled in her eyes, and it wasn’t weakness that I saw there. No—it was hurt, anger, fear, distrust. I didn’t like any of them.
“Cruz, take him in and get him settled.” I pulled Drew into my office and shut the door.
“We got a tip earlier today about where he would be. He held a knife on Jolie, and we jumped him and brought him in for questioning.”
“He deserves to die.”
“You’re right. He does. But right now, we need information on The Vicar and what his plans are.”
“And you think he’ll talk?”
I shrugged. “It’s doubtful, but we’ll give it our best shot. Still, he might come in handy for something.”
Calm had fallen over her, replacing the anger and temper with fatigue. I knew she was tired, sore, weary. I wanted to scoop her in my arms and take her to my bed and hold her until she fell asleep. But since that wasn’t likely, I settled for pulling her into my arms.
“Are you okay?” I inhaled the scent of her hair, just barely keeping myself from placing a kiss on top of her head.
“I guess. The antidote works.”
A bit of excitement leaked into her voice as she shared the news, and I pulled back to see her face. She was pleased with herself, and there was something more. Absolution, or peace. Something I hadn’t seen in her before.
“That’s wonderful news.”
She nodded, crossing her arms across her body. She winced slightly, and I knew the wound in her arm was most likely bothering her.
“Maybe Lydia should check that.” I motioned to her arm.
“It’s fine. Just sore. I missed my last dose of ibuprofen.”
I moved to my desk and pulled out the drawer, getting two pills from the container and handing them and a water bottle to her. “Here. Take these.”
Drew didn’t argue, just took the pills from my hand and swallowed them down with the water. “Thanks. Where’s Hunter?”
“Piper’s with him in the dorms. Why don’t you go and see him? I’ll be over there soon.”
“After you interrogate Rubio?”
I smiled but it wasn’t a kind smile. “Exactly.”
I opened the door, and Jolie stood just outside, her neck already bandaged up.
“Jolie, how are you feeling?”
“It’s just a scratch. I’ll be fine.”
“Still, I know you have to be shaken up.”
“I’m fine, Levi. Really.”
She looked pointedly at Drew. “Are you going to introduce us?”
“Drew, this is Jolie.”
Jolie shot her a beaming smile and threw her arms around her neck. Drew’s face revealed the shock she felt before settling somewhere in the neighborhood of resigned acceptance of Jolie’s exuberance.
Jolie pulled away slightly. “Thank you for keeping my friends safe! I don’t know what we would have done if we’d lost Oscar or Ivy. They’re family.”
Drew seemed to be a little at a loss for words as she mumbled her “You’re welcome,” and looked to me with pleading eyes.
“Also I heard you just beat the hell out of Rubio! Way to go!” She high-fived Drew, whose eyes were wide with shock.
“Okay, Jolie. Don’t scare her off.”
Jolie pouted and put her hand on her hip. “I’m not scaring her. She’s not a fainting flower, Levi. Geez.”
No, she definitely wasn’t that.
“I’ll walk you over to find Hunter and Piper.”
Drew nodded and followed me down the hallway and out of the offices. I let her into the dorm rooms just as a short blur of energy shot off the couch and wrapped itself around Drew’s legs.
“Mommy!”
Her entire face lit up as she sank to her knees, embracing her son. I knew that being separated from him all day had to have been hard. Not only was she exhausted from the ordeal of the last few months, but she was injured and emotionally spent. And yet, she’d been a trooper, giving her all to save those seven patients.
“Hey, buddy! I told you I’d be back.”
“I know, but sometimes adults say stuff they don’t mean. I was scared you wouldn’t make it back to me.”
“I’ll always come back to you.”
Hunter looked unsure of her answer but must have decided not to argue and just to enjoy having his mother with him.
“Ms. Piper let me have ice cream. Two whole scoops!”
“She did?”
Drew stood to her feet as Piper waddled over, her pregnant belly leading the way.
“I hope you don’t mind. He was getting nervous the later it got, and I thought it would be a great distraction.”
Drew smiled warmly as she answered. “Of course not. Thank you for watching him today. I really appreciate it.”
“Well, we are all appreciative of the work you’re doing. It’s important, and I’m happy to help out where I can. Since the pregnancy, I’ve felt a little left out as I’m not able to play the role I usually do for the team. It was nice to be needed.”
I hadn’t known that Piper felt left out, and as her boss, and her friend, it hit me square in the gut. How had I not figured it out? She was an operator. A trained FBI agent. Of course she’d feel out of the loop. I made a mental note to do better and keep her informed as we moved forward. She was an asset I didn’t want to lose.
“Thank you, Piper. If you want to head over to the office, Cade is there. We also got Rubio, so he can fill you in on where we are at the moment.”
Piper’s eyes lit up with excitement, and I kicked myself again for not seeing it more. She’d been super-sick at the beginning of the pregnancy, and I guess after a while, I got used to not having her around. It had never occurred to me that she might not feel needed or welcome.
“Sure thing!” She turned her attention to Hunter. “Bye, Hunter. I enjoyed hanging out with you today.”
Hunter didn’t hesitate but ran over and wrapped his chubby arms around her legs. Piper’s eyes shimmered a bit as she hugged him back.
“Thanks for the ice cream!” Hunter released her and bounded over to the couch, obviously still buzzing from his sugar high.
Piper laughed. “Sorry about that.”
“No worries at all. He’ll crash soon enough.” Drew shook her head as she watched Hunter bouncing up and down on his bottom on the couch.
Piper left, leaving the three of us alone. I glanced at Drew who was still watching Hunter. She was so beautiful, even clearly weary and worn out. Absolutely stunning.
As if she felt my gaze on her, she turned and met my stare.
“What?” She swiped at her hair as if trying to make sure it was all in place.
“You look tired.”
Drew snorted. “Of course I’m tired—but good to know I look it.”
“No, I didn’t mean that you look bad. Quite the contrary; you look beautiful, even tired.”
What the hell was I saying? She didn’t need to know that I thought she was beautiful. Not right then. Geez, I was an idiot. It was like my mouth just wouldn’t stop opening to gobble up my foot.
Drew blushed, the color quite becoming on her, and moved her gaze to the floor, finding something very interesting.
“Thanks.”
I cleared my throat, a habit I’d developed since Drew came into my life. “Right, um, well, I guess I should get over there.”
“Yes, I guess so. Thanks again for helping out with Hunter today. I’m going to fix some dinner and head to bed.”
“Of course. It was my pleasure. He’s a good kid. Funny. Entertains himself very well, too.”
“Yeah—the curse of being an only child.”
And suddenly, I wanted to know everything I possibly could about this woman. Did she want more children? Had she been seeing someone when she was taken six months ago? What were her hopes and dreams?
My internal thoughts were starting to resemble a women’s fiction novel and not my usual eat, sleep, work mode. But I couldn’t seem to help myself around Drew. It was as if my heart, mind, and body took on a different personality, a whole new perspective. I barely recognized myself.
And yet, for the first time in my entire life, I didn’t want to go do my job. I wanted to stand right there with the literal woman of my dreams and find out every detail about her.