It was several hundred yards before they came to the first straggly trees that signaled the start of the foothills. Galen pulled her to her feet. “Where did you get that rifle?”
“I took it from Judd’s truck. I thought he’d have one. I wasn’t sure I could get close enough to use my thirty-eight.”
“You were planning this ever since you knew we were staying here tonight.”
“Evidently you were too. I was wondering why you didn’t want to leave the minute you found out Chavez was really here.”
“And I knew you’d jump at any chance to get to Chavez. I wanted to beat you to it.” His lips twisted. “We think too much alike. Like Forbes said, the private club.”
“Privacy isn’t a bad thing,” Judd said as he stepped out of the trees. He held out his hand to Elena. “My property, please.”
She handed him the rifle. “Sorry. I needed it.”
“You could have asked.”
“Would you have loaned it to me?”
“No.” His hand moved caressingly over the barrel. “I have a very special relationship with this rifle.”
“It’s a Heckler and Koch PSG1, right? Specially modified?”
“Yes.”
“I didn’t think you would lend it to me. That’s why I didn’t ask you.”
“Makes sense. But don’t do it again or you’ll regret it. I don’t give second warnings.” He turned and strode ahead of them in the direction of their camp.
“He meant it,” Galen said. “That rifle has been part of him for a long time.”
“I needed a rifle. And I’d do it again. But it didn’t do me any good anyway. I was hoping …” She shrugged. “It didn’t happen. So we might as well pull up stakes and head out. I want to get Barry somewhere safe.”
“He won’t be safe anywhere now, Elena.”
She knew that was true. Now that Chavez was here in the United States, it would be only a matter of time until he found them. “Safer. Do you have any suggestions?”
“He’s probably been tipped off about my place in New Orleans. I have an idea of a place that might work for us, but I don’t want to involve any of my friends directly, because it’s going to get nasty.”
“Where are we going?”
“You’re going to leave it up to me? Amazing.” His tone was faintly sarcastic.
“I’m a stranger in this country.”
“You seem to want to do everything else on your own.”
She whirled on him. “What do you want me to say? I did what I had to do.”
“And you did it alone,” he said through his teeth. “You couldn’t ask for help. You couldn’t ask me to go with you.”
“I’m not used to asking for help.”
“That’s pretty clear. What have I got to do to get through to you?” He grasped her shoulders and shook her. “You are not alone. Do you hear me? Let me help. You’re not alone.”
He didn’t understand. There had been moments since they left the ranch when she’d been too terrified to think. She had been alone too long, and she was afraid to act except in the way experience had taught her.
“Trust me, Elena.”
“I trust you.”
“Not enough. Not enough to break through that glacier you’ve had around you since Chavez appeared on the scene.”
She stared at him helplessly.
He shook his head and his hands loosened. “Lost cause.”
“I’m … sorry.”
“Me too. It’s going to make everything a hell of a lot harder.” He checked his watch. “I have to make a few phone calls and see what I can do about finding a safe haven. I’ve already set tentative plans in motion in case this happened. There’s a small airport near here where we can get a hop to Portland and then a jet from there.” His lips twisted. “After all, I have to live up to my reputation as the great provider.”
She had hurt him. He was being flip, but the pain was there. She wanted to reach out and comfort him as she did Barry, but she couldn’t seem to move. “Thank you. I know it’s difficult for—”
“For God’s sake, shut up.” He drew a deep breath and tried to temper his tone. “We’ll let everyone sleep for another hour or two while I make sure we have a place to go.”
“You didn’t tell me where we’re going.”
He turned away. “Atlanta.”
10
Atlanta
The cottage on the lake was rustic but spacious, and the surroundings were absolutely beautiful, Elena thought. The hills and woods and the lake itself were spectacular.
“Hey, come back here.”
She turned to see Judd running after Barry as he streaked toward the lake. “Barry!”
“I’ve got him.” Judd scooped Barry up and tucked the giggling child under his arm. “Come on, brat. If you’re so set on jumping in the lake, I’ll see if I can find something you can wear for a swimsuit. Does he swim, Elena?”
“Like a fish,” Dominic said. “I taught him in the creek a short distance from our house.”
“Then you’d better come along and keep him in line,” Judd said as he set Barry down and started unloading the car.
Judd seemed to be doing a good job, Elena thought. He’d kept Barry cheerful and busy on the long cross-country flight that brought them here. In fact, it surprised her that such a solitary man as Judd had made so much effort to care for Barry.
He looked up and caught her gaze. “I like kids,” he said quietly, as if he had read her mind. He took a duffel and grabbed Barry’s hand. “Come on, let’s get you unpacked.”
She turned to Galen. “Whose house is this?”
“Joe Quinn. He and Eve Duncan took their kid to Hawaii for a couple months. They said I could use the house while they were gone. It’s secluded, and I thought Barry would like the lake.” He picked up the other two suitcases and closed the trunk. “I’m sure you can’t wait to scout around and make sure it’s safe, but be back by dinner.” He turned toward the house. “I’ve already contacted David Hughes, who provided the security people I’ve used before in Atlanta; they’ll show up tomorrow morning for you to vet. I wouldn’t want you to take one of them down by mistake. Hughes would be most upset. I figure Judd and I can handle the security of the cottage, but we need some good men to patrol the woods and lake. They won’t be obtrusive.”
“You seem to have thought of everything. Do you have a key to the house?”
“No, but I have a talent.” He carried the cases up the steps to the porch, where Barry and Judd were waiting. He tried the door and then knelt before the lock. A few seconds later the door swung open. “Piece of cake. Remind me to tell Quinn that his security sucks.” He waved Judd and Barry into the house and then went inside himself.
“Judd is getting along very well with Barry,” Dominic said from behind her. “It makes me feel a little useless.”
“Don’t be silly.” She turned to face him. “Judd and Galen are new and different to him. He’ll come back to us when the first shine wears off.”
“I wasn’t complaining. I know it’s natural, maybe even healthy. I was just stating a fact. You may not need me any longer. Perhaps I should go home for a while.”
“I’ll always need you, Dominic.” She reached out and grasped his arm. “And there’s no home to go back to.”
“I could build again. I’m needed there, Elena.”
A surge of fear went through her as she realized he was serious. “It’s not safe. What if Chavez has a watch on the area?”
“That’s not likely.”
“I don’t want to take the chance. Not with you, Dominic.” She stepped closer and laid her head on his chest. She whispered, “I don’t know what I’d do without you. You and Barry are my family.”
“I’m not going to run out on you yet, and I’m not talking about leaving you permanently. You and Barry mean too much to me.” He gently patted her shoulder. “But I had to tell you what I’m thinking. I can’t stay where I don’t have a purpose, Elena.�
� He pushed her away. “Now, I’m going to go swimming with Judd and Barry. Why don’t you come with us?”
“I’m going to scout the area. I want to be familiar with every cove and tree.”
He smiled. “That’s what Galen said you’d do. He knows you better than I do.”
“No, he doesn’t.”
He shook his head. “Maybe not in experience, but his instincts are very good. He knows you’re obsessed.”
“So do you, Dominic. We’ve been together for so long.” She grimaced. “And why are we talking about Galen? You told me we didn’t really know him.”
“Things are changing.” He turned and started for the house. “Chavez is on the other side of the country. It will take him a little while to regroup and send out his search dogs. We probably have some breathing space. Why don’t you take a little time off and relax?”
It had taken them only five hours to get to this lovely, peaceful spot. If Chavez found out where they were, he’d be on them like a vulture. “I can’t.”
He glanced at her over his shoulder. “No, I can see you can’t,” he said sadly. “It’s too bad.”
“They’re not in the hills,” Gomez said. “But the man I sent to scout out the area reports that there’s a small airport about eighty miles from here. He’s questioning the personnel there now.”
“If Galen reached an airport, then we’ve lost him. He’s not going to let himself be traced.” Chavez glanced with frustration at the pile of papers on the desk. No leads. Nothing.
“We’ll continue to try,” Gomez said.
“You’re damn right you will,” Chavez said. “There’s no way I’m giving up. I still have a few cards to play.” He took out his phone and started to dial.
“Mama, look at me, I’m going to dive into the water!”
“I’m watching.”
Barry jumped onto the tire Judd had tied to a branch of the oak tree close to the lake. Then Judd pulled the tire back several yards and let it go. The tire swung out over the water, and a whooping Barry jumped from the tire into the lake.
He surfaced, sputtering. “Did you see me?”
“I would have had to be blind not to see you,” Elena shouted. “And deaf too.”
“I’m going to do it again.”
He swam to the edge of the lake and Dominic helped him onto the bank. “Watch me.”
“Only a couple more times. It will be dark soon.”
But it wasn’t dark yet, and the setting sun gilded the water with beauty. Jesus, it was peaceful here. In spite of her tension, she had not been able to ignore the sheer blessed tranquillity of the surroundings during the last three days.
“Pretty.” Galen dropped down beside her in the porch swing. “I like porch swings.”
“You have a hammock on your porch at the ranch.”
“Hammocks are for dozing. Porch swings are for socializing. I can imagine the two of us sitting here listening to the birds and the creak of the swing for the next fifty years or so.”
“I can’t.”
“Because you’re too tied up in knots to imagine anything.” He reached out and took her hand. “Don’t stiffen up. I just want to hold your hand. I’m not trying to lure you back into my bed.” His thumb rubbed the pulse point at her inner wrist. “I’m not sure you wouldn’t break into pieces if I made love to you.”
“I’m not that weak.”
“Heaven forbid I accuse you of that.” He started to play idly with her fingers. “No weakness. You won’t permit it.”
“I can’t permit it. I can’t concentrate on anything but Chavez now.” Her gaze shifted back to Barry in the water. “I was weak all those years ago. I was so afraid after he finished with me every day. I was tied up and helpless and I knew he’d be back the next day and it would start again. I wouldn’t let myself cry, but I couldn’t stop shaking. The only time I didn’t feel weak was when we were fighting. But I knew if I let the fear come to the surface then, I’d die.”
“We’re all afraid sometimes.”
“I can’t afford to be now. I have Barry.”
“And me.” He lifted her wrist to his lips. “Don’t forget me.”
There was no danger of her doing that. He was always there, talking, moving, disturbing her. He was disturbing her now.
“Your heart’s beating faster.” He brushed his lips back and forth on her wrist. “I have to point out that sex is known to be a great relaxer.”
“But I might break apart on you.”
“I’d risk it.”
“I can’t risk it.”
He looked at her. “If I kept on, you’d change your mind.”
“Possibly. But I’d resent it.”
“I know.” He kissed her wrist and then placed it back on her lap. “What a dilemma for a sex-starved man. I suppose we’ll just have to sit and swing and think about the next fifty years. Shh,” he said as she started to speak. “I said think, not talk. Don’t worry. You can’t commit if you don’t talk.”
The creak of the swing was very soothing, and Galen’s presence was restful too. He had turned off the sexual charge as if he’d flicked a switch. What an incredibly complicated man he was, she thought. Complicated and perceptive and with a seemingly limitless range of talents and potential. It was an amazing—
Galen’s phone rang.
She tensed.
“Easy.” He punched the answer button. “Galen.”
Elena could feel his muscles tauten. “No way. Talk to me.”
“Who is it?” she asked.
“Chavez.”
She went cold. “He wants to talk to me?”
He nodded. “But we’re not going to give him what he wants. You don’t have to talk to him.”
“Yes, I do. Give me the phone.”
“I can deal with him.”
“Give me the phone.”
He hesitated and then handed it to her. “Two minutes and then you hang up.”
She scarcely heard him. “I’m here, Chavez.”
“I need to know where here is, Elena. You’ve been leading me on a chase.”
He sounded so close, as if he was only yards, not hundreds of miles, away. He’s not close, she told herself. He can’t hurt me. He can’t hurt Barry or Galen. “Go home, Chavez. You’re not going to find us.”
“Your voice is shaking, Elena. You’re afraid, aren’t you?”
“I’m not afraid of you.”
“You’re lying. I always knew when you were afraid. It always made the contests more interesting. Because you were fighting yourself as well as me. But the fear won out, didn’t it? In the end I beat you.”
“You didn’t beat me.”
“Of course I did.”
“I pretended, you son of a bitch. And you were so conceited you were fooled.”
A silence. “That’s not the truth.”
“Yes, it is. Can’t you tell the truth when you hear it?”
“You puta.”
“No, you wanted to break me and make me your whore, but I didn’t let you. You lost, Chavez.”
She could feel his anger vibrating through the phone. “If you’re telling the truth, that only makes me want to find you all the more. We have unfinished business. I’m almost as eager to get my hands on you as I am to find my son. You remember what it felt like to have my hands on you?”
The ropes cutting into her wrists, his hands running over her body. Don’t think about it. “I’ve forgotten. And you’ll never get Barry.”
“I’m going to change his name. I’ll give him mine. Little Rico.”
“No.”
“Yes. After all, he’s my child. I’ll be the one who tells him what to do or not do.”
Smother the fear and the anger. “Why did you want to talk to me? You don’t actually think I’m going to tell you anything.”
“I wanted to hear your voice. It brings back such pleasant memories.” He paused. “And I have someone here who wants to hear your voice too. I’m giving the phone to him now.”
“Elena?”
Oh, my God. She closed her eyes. “Luis.”
“You’ve got to do what he says.” Her brother’s voice was broken. “I can’t stand any more pain. He says he’ll kill me.”
“Why should I care? You betrayed me, Luis. You told Chavez about Barry.”
“I couldn’t help it. I was hurting. I needed a hit. Dominic shouldn’t have told me. He kept it from me all these years. He shouldn’t have told me. I didn’t want to do it.”
“But you did it. You didn’t care about me or Dominic or Barry. All you cared about were those damn drugs.” She blinked back tears. “Well, I can’t care what happens to you now. I have to worry about the people you served up to Chavez.”
“You do care.” His voice was desperate. “Remember when we were children? All the good times … Help me, Elena.”
“By giving up my son? You’ve got to be crazy.”
“I couldn’t help what I did. You were always the strong one. You never understood. I can’t stand pain, Elena. They’ll hurt me.”
“I’m sorry, Luis,” she whispered. “I can’t help you.”
“You have to—”
He broke off as Chavez took the phone.
“What a hard woman you are, Elena,” Chavez said. “He really sounds pitiful. Doesn’t he touch your heart?”
“You might as well let him go.” She tried to steady her voice. “What made you think I’d give up Barry for a man who betrayed me? Do you think I have any feeling left for him?”
“I thought it was possible. You’re an unusual woman, but surely you have a certain softness for the brother you grew up with. You shared danger and good times. Yes, you probably feel something for him.”
“I feel nothing for him.”
“Then you won’t mind if I toy with him, will you? He’s a weakling, but maybe he has a little of you in him. This may take longer than you think. I’ll have him call you back after I see just how weak he is.” He hung up.
Luis …
She thrust the phone at Galen. “He … had my brother talk to me.”
“So I heard.”
“He’s going to hurt him.” She tried to keep her lips from trembling. “I don’t care. I don’t care anything about him. He deserves it.”
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