Levi
“We can do this the easy way or the hard way. The choice is up to you.”
It was a line right out of a bad action movie, but it worked for the moment. I leaned back in the seat across from Angel Rubio. We’d stripped him of his shoes, watch, phone, and jewelry before we’d entered the building, to search for any tracking devices.
The Cabs knew where to find us—but no sense in letting them know we had their man. At least not until we wanted them to know.
“Tell us what The Vicar is up to, and I’ll see if we can cut a deal with the FBI. Perhaps you can avoid the death penalty, at least.”
“Do you think if I told you anything, I’d live long enough to stand trial?” Rubio lifted an eyebrow. “You are completely deluded. You have no idea who you are dealing with.”
“Then why don’t you tell me?”
Rubio laughed without humor, leaning back in his seat and adjusting his hands that were chained to the floor.
“I have nothing to say to you. You’re wasting your time.”
“What do you think is going to happen when I hand you over to the FBI? You want to die for him?”
“If it is my time, it is my time. None of us can add a single moment to our life by worrying about it.”
The words sounded faintly familiar, as if they’d come from scripture—something about the birds and flowers being provided for by God—but I was certain this man and his boss were not messengers of goodness and light, but instead of evil and darkness. The kind of evil that most people can’t wrap their minds around.
“So, you’re willing to lay down your life for this messiah of death?”
Rubio shrugged the chains, jingling as he moved. “If that’s what God has in store for me, then so be it.”
I stood, leaving the man alone with his thoughts, and ambled back to the conference room where the entire team was working.
“Any luck?” Cade asked, looking up from his laptop.
“Nope. Not a word.”
“Want me to rough him up a bit?” Oscar asked, grinning as if he were talking about a hobby and not beating a man’s face in.
“No… I think I have a better idea.”
The team stopped what they were doing and gave me their undivided attention. I launched into the plan I’d hatched in my head while talking to Rubio. It had started after I’d left Drew, since I’d known that getting Rubio to talk was most likely a lost cause.
“Ryder, did you scan his personal items for bugs?”
“Yeah. They were clean—well, except his phone. But I took the battery out of it before we left the strip mall.”
“Perfect. Do you have any trackers that are virtually undetectable?”
Ryder grinned. “You bet.”
“I was counting on that. We’re going to give him a way to escape, and follow him back to The Vicar. If he won’t talk, perhaps he can lead us to the compound. Once we have an idea of the place, we can take them out.”
“How does the tracker work?” Cruz asked.
“I’ll slip it inside his shoe. He won’t feel it, and if they wave a wand over him, they won’t find it. It’s also got a lifespan of about four hours once it’s turned on.”
“So, we’ll need to make sure we follow him immediately in case the tracker runs out of time,” Jolie said.
“That shouldn’t be a problem,” Ryder answered, grinning. “We’ll be ready long before he escapes.”
“With Drew in place as a witness, we have enough evidence to take The Vicar out for domestic terrorism. He’ll never see the light of day,” I commented, glad the plan seemed to be taking shape.
“I think it will work. Ryder, how long will it take you to put the tracker in place?”
“Already on it. Should be done in thirty minutes. How do we figure he’ll escape?”
“Anyone up for a little street fighting?”
Oscar grinned. “I’ve been spoiling for a fight for weeks. I’ll do it.”
“Awesome. Once Ryder gets the tracker in place, we’ll have you move him to the storage closet in the back building. I’d bet my last dollar he’ll jump you.”
“Bring it on.”
Jolie rolled her eyes. “You men are so empty-headed sometimes.”
“Babe, it’s the testosterone flowing through our veins. We can’t help it.” Ryder grinned and fist-bumped Oscar.
“Okay—we’ll meet back here in a couple of hours. I’m going to head back and clean up a bit.”
“You mean you’re going to head back and check on the hot chick and her son,” Oscar teased.
Well, yes, but I wasn’t about to admit that.
The room was filled with catcalls, woots, and whistles. “Shut up and get back to work.”
I rushed out, hoping I’d catch Drew before she went to bed. It was still early, but I knew she was tired. When I reached the dorms, she and Hunter were cuddled up on the couch. Her eyes were closed, but she was absently stroking his blond hair with her fingers, humming quietly.
If I’d thought she looked like an angel before, she was downright heavenly now. Her dark hair tumbled over her shoulders, loose and free. She looked at peace, as if all was right in the world. And even though I knew it wasn’t, it was hard to remember that while watching her.
Drew’s eyes popped open, and she caught me watching. She sat up a little straighter, running her fingers through her hair.
“Levi—sorry. I didn’t hear you come in.”
“I was quiet. Didn’t want to disturb you.”
She smiled and adjusted Hunter who was fast asleep against her. “He kept hoping you’d come back before he had to go to bed.” She shrugged as if it was no big deal, but I knew it was. Not only for her but for Hunter. He’d formed an attachment to me during the day, and I was surprisingly okay with it. I felt the grin widening on my face.
“He’s a great kid. I’m sorry I didn’t get back in time before he conked out.”
“It’s fine. Just know he’ll be up with the sun ready for some more of that sugary cereal you fed him this morning.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
I stood there as we stared at each other, neither of us saying anything to break up the slightly awkward silence that had fallen over the room.
I motioned to the boy. “Want me to take him to bed?”
“Would you mind? He’s heavy, and my arm is still pretty bummed.”
“I don’t mind at all.”
Moving closer, I scooped Hunter into my arms. His little eyes popped open for a just a moment. “Levi, I knew you’d come.” Then he curled into me and went back to sleep. My heart melted into a mushy, squishy thing I had no idea it could be. Drew opened the door to her room, and I walked around the bed and laid Hunter down in it. Pulling the covers over him, I paused to watch as he turned over and snuggled into his pillow.
“He’s resilient.”
“Yeah, he is.” Drew sighed and nodded towards the door. I followed her back into the living room.
“How’d it go with Rubio?”
I shook my head, sitting down on the couch hoping Drew would sit beside me. When she did, I tried to ignore the happiness I felt at her nearness.
“Not good. He didn’t talk, but it’s fine. We have a plan.”
“A plan, huh?”
“Yeah, a plan. It’s not foolproof, but we’re hoping it will lead us to The Vicar. I’m assuming you’d be willing to testify against him in court?”
Drew nodded and laid her head back against the back of the couch.
“I will. I’m not sure what that means in terms of what kind of protection I’d need. I imagine Vicario will go after anyone testifying against him.”
“You won’t have to worry about protection. We’ll take care of you and Hunter. I give you my word.”
She smiled, her eyes closed, and rested her hand on my arm. Electricity sparked my skin at her touch. It was unlike anything I’d ever felt before. Sure, I’d been attracted to women in the past, but none had scrambled my brain and turned my stomach inside out the way Drew did.
“So what’s the plan?”
“Make Rubio think he’s escaped, put a tracker on him, and follow him to The Vicar.”
“That could work. I wish I knew where the other locations were. As it was, I didn’t even know that Hunter was so close to me all that time.”
Drew glanced down at the floor, and I couldn’t help myself any longer. I moved closer to her, wrapping her in my arms, holding her like I’d wanted to do since she ran into me in the forest after blowing the place to hell and back.
She curled in as if it were something she’d been wanting—needing—too.
“You had no way of knowing.”
She kept her face buried in my chest as she responded. “I know that up here.” Drew pointed to her head, then pressed her palm to my heart. “It’s here that’s the problem.”
Pulling back to meet her eyes, I was suddenly lost in their unique depths. The blue eye was just so blue, almost violet in its intensity. And the brown one so deep, with tiny flecks of gold and amber. She was stunningly beautiful.
Her mouth parted open in a soft oh, and my attention was riveted to her lips. Her very lush, very plump, very kissable lips. Lips I’d been dreaming about since before I’d even met her.
I leaned forward, dipping my head slowly, and watched in fascination as her eyes closed and her head tilted towards me. Drew smelled like heaven, soft and citrusy with a hint of spice. It was the spice that got to me, and I had a feeling she’d be just as spicy to taste.
My lips brushed hers, a barely-there meeting of lips—
The door to the dorms flew open, banging loudly against the wall. Drew and I jumped back as if we had just done something we weren’t supposed to. Oscar stood there, blood pouring from his nose, his eye already swelling shut, looking from me to Drew. A grin started on his face before he shook his head and made his announcement.
“He’s gone!”
Well, that was like a cold bucket of water being tossed on me. I let go of Drew’s arms, which I’d yet to release, and jumped up off the couch before I pulled her in for a real kiss and said to hell with everything and everyone else in the world.
“Did we get the tracker on him?”
Oscar’s face split into a wider grin.
“Hell, yeah, we did!”
I squeezed Drew’s hand and placed a chaste kiss on her forehead. “Get some rest. I’ll be back to check on you later.”
“Be careful, Levi.” Her voice sounded choked, as if the thought of something bad happening to me didn’t sit well with her. Good. I liked that I was getting under skin, since she sure as hell was getting under mine.
“Always.”
Oscar’s face was full-on maniacal when I reached him. He clapped me on the back, chuckling under his breath.
“Shut the hell up, would you?”
“Yes, sir!” He gave me a sarcastic salute.
When I reached the van, the other guys had already loaded up, Jolie in the driver’s seat. Cade held out a Kevlar vest for me, and I strapped it on. Ryder held out my weapons, and I holstered them into my shoulder strap.
“Ready?” Cruz asked, revving the engine.
“Let’s roll.” I hopped into the van, sliding in beside Ryder, who was holding his phone and watching a dot on the screen.
“Where’s he headed?”
“He was on foot for a little while, but it appears he must have either stolen a car or caught a ride with someone. They’re headed north, out of the city.”
We followed the blinking dot for several minutes, closing in the distance until we were just about a half mile away, when the dot stopped moving.
“It’s stopped,” Ryder announced, his fingers flying over the keys of his laptop.
“Where?” I leaned over his shoulder, watching maps pop up and be swiped away in record-breaking time.
“Working on it. Hang on.” It was an awesome thing to see him at his best. Truly something amazing to behold. “Come on, come on, come on,” he chanted, while he waited on the computer to bring up the satellite image he’d clicked on.
“There! It looks like an old train depot. An odd place to stop, isn’t it?”
“It is. It could be a trap.”
“You think he’s onto us?” Oscar asked, turning around in his seat to face me.
“It’s possible. It was a risk setting up his escape, but let’s just hope it pays off.”
We pulled closer, slowing as we neared the depot. It had all the marks of an antique building—clapboard-style siding weathered to a dark gray, a rusted metal roof that had clearly seen better days, and two front doors hanging loose on their hinges. It was a building filled with all kinds of potential for rehabilitation and yet remained in shambles.
A red 1980s Datsun sat with the driver’s side door open, the lights still on and the engine running. My guess was stolen vehicle, its older model making it easier to hotwire.
Rubio was nowhere in sight.
We got out of the van, our weapons raised and ready in case of any funny business. Cruz and Jolie stood near the van, keeping watch over it and protecting our backs as Ryder, Cade, Oscar, and I made our way to the abandoned car.
The air tingled with expectation, the hairs on the back of my neck standing to attention. The world was quiet, too quiet, just like that night more than two years ago when all hell broke loose.
I opened my mouth to tell the team to fall back, but before I could get the words out, the world exploded into gunfire, dirt flying up at my feet, bits of debris and rocks stinging my skin even through my pants.
“Go, go, go! Fall back!”
The cacophony of gunshots exploded around us as we moved back behind the car.
“Where are they?” I shouted, ducking down behind the Datsun and trying to make head or tail of the situation.
Ryder peeked around the corner of the car, only to pull his head back quickly when a round bit into the bumper of the vehicle.
“I think they’re on that old train car directly across from us. Maybe a couple behind it as well.”
“Roger that. Oscar, let’s head for that gravel pile just over there.” I pointed to a mound of rocks that was our best chance of cover so we could get closer to the guys raining bullets down on us. “Cade—you, Cruz, and Ryder cover us. Got it?”
“Yes, sir.”
I took a deep breath and gave a quick jerk of my head to Oscar. We moved out from behind the car, zigzagging towards the mound, ducking down and firing as we went.
Cade shouted my name, and I whirled around, only to see him standing outside the car’s cover, his gun aimed at something to my left.
“Get down!” I waved at Cade, but not before a bullet hit him just below his collarbone, a red stain already spreading across his chest. He stumbled backwards before falling onto his knees. I whirled around to my left and fired, dropping the guy to the ground who’d shot Cade.
“Go!” Oscar nodded and kept moving as I ran back to Cade.
I was almost to the car when the scuffing of shoes sounded behind me. Spinning around, I raised my gun, ready to fire.
It was Rubio.
“What do you want?”
A gun was in his hand, his face lined with determination.
“You won’t win this one, amigo. You can’t.”
“We don’t have another choice. Help us. We’ll keep you safe.”
Rubio paused for a moment before shaking his head. “I’m sorry.”
His intent was clear; he was going to kill me. Or at least he planned to try. It would be a crapshoot as to whose bullet would kill who first, but the likelihood that both of us would live to tell the story was slim to none.
A shot rang out, but it didn’t come from Rubio. I waited to feel the bullet rip through my chest, hoping it hit the Kevlar protection I had on, but nothing happened. I met Rubio’s eyes, which stared back at me in confusion, his hand outstretched, the gun in his fingers dangling loosely, a bright-red spot on his upper arm.
He took a step forward when another shot sounded, tearing through his chest. He stumbled forward before falling to his knees, his hand over the hole the bullet had left.
Rubio’s mouth opened and shut as if he had something he wanted to say.
“What is it?”
“The Vicar won’t stop. Not until he pays.” The words came out broken and stuttered, spittle mixed with foam and blood pooled in his mouth.
“Not until who pays?”
Rubio shook his head gently, his lips like a guppy’s, moving without sound. “What is he planning, Rubio? If you have a soul, you need to tell us what the hell he’s up to.”
The words caught his breath as he uttered, “Can’t stop him. Already in place. Thousands will die.” He took a deep breath, the blood rattling in his chest, spittle gathering in the corners of his mouth.
“Please, Angel. Tell me something I can use.”
With a final breath, Angel’s eyes went wide. “The president… He’s—”
Gunfire spat gravel up at my feet, and Cruz yelled my name.
I turned around to find him, Oscar, and Ryder carrying Cade back to the van, Cruz waving me on. I glanced at Rubio, lying prostrate on the ground. Bullets pinged the gravel near my feet, and I ducked, making a split decision to get to my guys and get them out of there. Rubio was a goner.
When I reached Cruz, he shouted, “Is he dead?”
I nodded. “Yeah.”
We reached the van, jumping in as Jolie punched the gas.
Ryder turned around in his seat.
“What did Rubio say?”
“I’m not really sure.” My head was spinning as my mind went back to the call I’d had from Washington. The president and The Vicar had a connection. A bad one. One that could put his presidency in jeopardy if the word got out. He wasn’t necessarily a criminal, but what he’d done all those years ago had drummed up some serious consequences. Back then, no one would have batted an eye, but these days, war crimes were looked on with much more reproach.
Still, it wasn’t my place yet to inform the team, so I kept what I knew to myself.
“How’s Cade?” This question was directed to Cruz.
“He’ll make it. We’re meeting Lydia at the clinic. The bullet missed anything vital, but it’s still in there.”
“He’s lucky then?”
“Damn lucky.”
“He’s lying right here, you know?” Cade ground out between clenched teeth.
“I know, man. I know.”
I patted him lightly on the shoulder and moved forward in the van to the middle seat. Cruz had things under control, and I didn’t want to get in the way.
“That SOB got off way too easily,” Oscar said.
“Yeah, he did,” Jolie chimed in.
“Rubio must have figured out we were following him. Must have gotten a call to the Cabs somehow. I have no idea how he did it, but either way they were ready for us when we got there.” I looked between the members of my team, thankful no one else had been injured or worse during the ambush.
Oscar shook his head. “There was a car on the other side of the depot. I saw it as we drove away.”
“Did any of you fire the shots that killed Rubio?”
Ryder scoffed, shaking his head. “Not a chance. It was one of his own. The shot came from behind him.”
“I’m guessing they didn’t want any loose ends,” Cruz said, still working on Cade in the back of the van.
“The Vicar is a class act.” The disgust I felt for the man rivaled anything I’d experienced toward another human being my entire life. The man who’d been responsible for my team’s death had been a true coward, and the man he’d worked for even worse. But to take the lives of humans in mass quantities in order to target someone you had a grudge against from a long time ago, well, that was a level of evil I’d yet to encounter closely. I knew it existed. You didn’t work in our line of work without that knowledge. But to come face-to-face with it was another story.
Jolie snorted. “Tell me about it.”
“How you doin’, man?” I called over to Cade, whose face was white, perspiration on his brow. He looked like he was having a rough time. I glanced at Cruz, and he gave a nod, assuring me he was truly going to be okay.
“I’ve been better.” His voice was strained with the pain. “Just do me a favor—don’t tell my wife, okay? She’s going to kill me.”
I couldn’t help but laugh because it was true. Piper was indeed going to kill him.
“You don’t think she’ll be all sympathetic, waiting on you hand and foot?”
Cade scoffed. “Hell, no! She’s going to be pissed that I stole her thunder. This was supposed to be her time.”
We all laughed at the good-natured ribbing. If Piper had been there, she’d have been all spit and fire, raging about how she’s the one growing a baby human inside her and how dare he go and get himself hurt. I reached down to take Cade’s hand, clasping my fingers around his.
“You hang in there. I’ll take care of Piper until you’re well.”
“Thanks, man.” Cade sighed as Cruz pushed a syringe into his veins.
“Just something for the pain.”
I nodded and clasped my other hand on top of our joined ones.
“Love you, brother.”
“Yeah, yeah. Just nail the bastard, would ya?”
“You got it.”