"I won't work for you." They would find another way to take Kingston down.
"I was afraid you'd say that." Kingston sighed, as if he were disappointed about the fight to come. But Sully knew better. Kingston had known that there was no way Sully would sell his soul to the devil. He was up to something, and Sully knew that he'd bring the fight to them.
"Well, if it's war you want, then it's war you'll get. And no one is safe," Kingston said, confirming Sully's thoughts.
The line went dead. Sully stood looking at the phone in his hand.
"Sully?" Maggie asked softly from the bed. "What did he say?"
Sully shook his head. He'd forgotten that she was in the room.
"He declared war. "
Maggie's quick inhalation of breath confirmed the direness of their situation. If The General was declaring war, then that meant that he was bringing the fight to them.
Sully dialed Zach on his phone.
"Zach? Just got off the phone with The General. Check the cameras."
"The feeds are all clear right now. What's going on?"
"I'm not sure, but I've got a bad feeling about this. Conference room in ten. I'll wake the other guys."
Sully opened the door and then turned around. "Rest here. I'll be back later."
"You expect me to rest after hearing your end of the conversation? Who the hell do you think I am, Sully?" Maggie said, sitting up on her knees, her hands planted on her round hips.
A grin tugged at Sully's mouth despite their circumstances. Damn, he loved this woman.
"Fine. Conference room. Ten minutes."
Maggie jumped off his bed. His bed. He never wanted her to leave it. She looked right in his space. He'd make sure that he made her his once this was all over. For good. He might not deserve her. She certainly didn't deserve a screwed-up head case like him. But if she would have him, he was never going to leave her side.
Maggie rushed to his adjoining bathroom and closed the door.
Sully left his room and banged on the doors to the rooms of his brothers. Maybe not by blood, but these men were his family nonetheless. He needed to give them an out. They had families now. Wives, and children on the way. He wouldn't make the decision for them.
Sully was the first to the conference room, pacing back and forth as the men and their wives arrived hand in hand. They had all been asleep, even though they were all typically early risers. None of them had had enough sleep last night. But it seemed that they weren't going to get much more today.
Maggie was the last to file in, her eyes heavy with fatigue, her cheek bruised from that thug's punch to her face, and her arm bandaged where he'd cut her. Sully wanted to kill the guy all over again.
"I'm sorry to get you all up from the sleep you so desperately deserve. If it wasn't important, I wouldn't have."
They all stared back at him expectantly. There was no judgment in any of their faces, no anger or irritation. They all knew that he wouldn't have called the meeting unless there’d been no other choice.
"I just got off the phone with Kingston. He's planning something. A war."
"Did he give you any indication as to what or when?" Lucas asked.
"No. But my gut tells me that if he's calling it war, then he means fighting. And if he's declaring it on us, then that means he'll bring the fight to us. Here."
"At the warehouse?" Scarlett asked, her hand dropping to her belly protectively.
Sully nodded.
"Then we need to be ready," Ethan said.
"You don't have to. You can all take your wives and go to the safe house. I don't expect—"
"Shut the hell up, Sully. We aren't going anywhere," Gabriel said, his hand grasping Cate's on the table.
"We're all in this together," Isabel agreed, her chin lifting defiantly.
The rest of the team all stared at him with resoluteness in their eyes. They were a family. And they'd fight together as one.
"So be it." Sully pushed away the emotion clogging his voice and cleared his throat. "Zach, I'll need you to schedule round-the-clock monitoring. We can all take turns manning the cameras. We can't afford to get tired and miss something."
"Already on it. I've got the computer feed here," he said, turning the laptop around to show him the view of the camera feeds already running on his computer.
"Good. Speaking of tired, we're all exhausted, but we need to start putting together the preparations for the fight. It could come as early as nightfall," Sully said. "As a matter of fact, I'd expect it."
Sully heard the quiet inhalations of breath that sounded around the room, mostly soft, feminine intakes of breath.
"We need to be ready, but we also need to be rested. Ladies, when we finish here, you all need to go back to bed and get some rest. A couple of hours at the very least. Guys, we will all take turns getting some shut-eye. A couple of hours each should keep us on our toes."
"That means you, too, Sully," Isabel chimed in. "You can't be the only one unrested. If I know you like I think I do, you have yet to shut your eyes tonight."
Sully didn't react to her words, just stared at her, expressionless.
"That's what I thought."
"If you're going to lead us, you can't be the weak link," Ethan said. "I'll get the preparations started. You go get some shut-eye."
"Fine," Sully agreed reluctantly. "I'll head upstairs after the meeting for a couple of hours. Until then—the bunker downstairs. It's still stocked?" Sully directed the question to Zach.
"Yes. Fully outfitted. The ladies will be safe there, and the van is fueled up and ready to go. The monitors for the cameras are all up and running down there as well."
"What can we do to help?" Maggie asked. Sully met her eyes for the first time since the meeting had begun. She looked tired but also determined. He loved her spunk, her fight, and her fearlessness.
"Rest. Then pack a duffel bag. If we get into trouble, I will need you to drive the rest of the women to the safe house."
"Safe house?" Maggie asked.
"We have a safe house in case of an attack here at the compound," Isabel explained. "The bunker has a tunnel that leads out to the street. We can escape that way."
Maggie's eyes widened, and Sully knew that she was either impressed or horrified. But if he knew Maggie the way he thought he did, she was impressed.
"You think he'll attack tonight?" Gabriel asked.
"I do. I'm not sure why. Just my gut," Sully said. "Something about the urgency in his voice. I think he fully expected to take out at least a couple of us last night. He won't want to give us very much time to prepare."
"I agree," Ethan said, as the rest of the team nodded around them.
"Any chatter we should know about, Zach?" Sully asked.
"It's quiet. Eerily so, now that I think about it. I'd say your assumption that something big is about to go down is correct."
Gabriel cursed under his breath, and Sully caught his eye. They were all worried about an attack on the compound, and especially about the women's safety. Including the safety of two pregnant women, at that.
"But we have everything we need," Zach continued. "I beefed up our firepower at the same time as our security measures. There are cameras at every angle. We'll see them coming before they know we've spotted them. That gives us the upper hand. I'll also put out some feelers and see if I can find anything further."
"Good. Let's get to it, then. Gabriel, call a couple of our contractors and have them stake out the safe house. I don't think anyone knows about it, but I'm not taking a chance with our safety should we need it."
"You got it," Gabriel answered, already taking out his phone to contact the guys.
"Ethan, a couple of hours before nightfall—"
"Roof patrol. Got it," Ethan finished for him. They knew each other well.
"Right. Lucas, we have first aid bags? And what about a helo? In case we have to make a quick exit from the safe house later on."
"First aid bags are in the bunker. I'l
l double-check them for supplies. And I'll make a call about the helo—have one on standby should we need it."
"FBI called. They're coming to get Christy this afternoon. They'll keep her safe until we have what we need on Kingston. President's orders," Zach said.
Sully nodded. "Probably best that she's not in the line of fire tonight. You verified it, I assume?"
"I did. It was the president's contact that called. I also got the message to the president about Haney's involvement in the murder of the marshals and the attempted murder of Christy. I would expect action soon."
"Excellent. Also, Zach—"
"Ammunition and firepower. Boss?"
"Yeah?"
"Go get some sleep. You look like hell," Zach said with a smirk on his face.
Sully nodded. "I'll touch base in a couple of hours."
"No less than three," Ethan said.
"Last time I checked, I was the boss around here," Sully protested, but not too much. As much as he hated to admit it, they were right. He needed the sleep. And they cared. It meant a lot.
"Yeah, well, it's our asses on the line if you fall asleep while we're shooting bad guys tonight," Ethan joked.
Sully just chuckled. They all knew, sleep or no sleep, that there was no way that that would happen. They'd all functioned on far less rest than he'd had over the past couple of days and had still done their jobs with excellence.
"See you in three hours," Sully said, standing to leave.
Since Maggie had come in last, she was closer to the door and ducked out before he could get to her. He swore it was as if the rest of the guys knew he was trying to reach her and stepped in his way on purpose.
After finagling his way out of a conversation with Zach and Lucas about something that had nothing to do with anything pressing, he finally freed himself to go upstairs and find Maggie.
Stupidly, he checked his room first, hoping she'd gone back to his bed. He peeked inside, finding it empty. Damn it. He strode down the hall with determination, rapping lightly on the door to her room before opening it and letting himself inside.
Maggie whirled around, her hands cupping her small breasts, her shirt hanging from her fingers.
"Sully! Geez, you scared me."
"Sorry—I went to my room, and you weren't there, so I came looking for you," he said lamely.
"Why would I be in your room?" she asked, confusion on her face, with her hands still covering her naked chest.
When his eyes wandered down to where she was holding her shirt, a blush rose to her chest and cheeks. She motioned with her chin for him to turn around.
Reluctantly, he obeyed, and heard the rustling of her t-shirt as she pulled it over her head.
"Ok," she said softly, and he turned around to face her.
"I, um—I didn't want to be alone. And I'd hoped to find you there. I don't know. It was stupid, I guess. I'll see you, um…later."
Feeling dumb, he turned to leave.
"Wait," she said, just as his hand started to turn the knob.
"I'll come with you," she said softly.
He didn't trust his words. But it was as if she knew—as if she understood. He needed her. Needed to hold her. Just in case.
Just in case it all went bad.
* * * *
Maggie curled up against Sully's chest, feeling it rise and fall with his deep breaths. She'd briefly wondered at his intentions when he'd led her back to his bed. Desire had warred with fatigue. But when they’d reached his room, he'd spooned her, pulling her up against his chest. Shortly after, his breaths had become even and full, and she'd known he was asleep. When he'd turned onto his back after several moments, she'd tried to turn away, but even in sleep, he wouldn't let her go. He'd pulled her close to his side, and she'd closed her eyes to try to sleep.
Only she couldn't.
There was going to be fighting tonight. With guns and knives and fists, if it came down to it. They would all be in danger. Some of them might not make it out alive.
She wondered if the other women were as worried as she was. Probably more so. They loved their men. Scarlett and Isabel were carrying their children.
Maggie lifted a silent prayer to God. Please let them all be ok. Please.
Her thoughts went to Brady. What was he doing right now? Was he ok? Was Anthony treating him kindly? And what if something happened to her? Would Will and Jenna be able to find him and raise him?
She decided she'd send a text to Will if things took a turn for the worse. Maggie had already had the forethought to have papers drawn up granting Will and Jenna full custodial rights in case something ever happened to her. She'd also documented the abuse at Anthony Garmoni's hands in order to firm up a case if they ever needed to take it to court.
But Anthony hadn't needed the courts to help him take her son. He'd done that all by himself.
Sleep evaded her. She knew she needed it. There was so much they'd need to do, and they would probably be up the entire night. But there were so many thoughts in her head. So much on the line.
And Sully.
He had crawled under her skin, broken down her walls, and climbed right into her heart. The thought of something happening to him, of not spending the rest of her life sparring with him and challenging each other—she couldn't fathom the thought.
And that's when she knew.
She loved him.
Maggie loved Sully with all her heart, mind, body, and soul. And she wanted to marry him. Raise Brady with him. She wanted her belly to grow round and full with his children. She wanted to grow old with him and sit on a porch swing and reminisce about the amazing life they'd lived.
Could she have that? Did Sully feel the same way?
As if he could hear her thoughts even while he slept, he pulled her more tightly against him, resting his head against hers. His breath tickled the hairs around her face. He exhaled, almost in a sigh, and murmured, "Mine."
Tears welled up in her eyes. He was talking about her. She was his.
Sleep tugged at her, tempting her with rest. And finally, nestled in the safety of the arms of the man she loved—the man she thought maybe loved her, too—she slept.
Chapter 21
Fifteen hours later
The bunker was bright with fluorescent lighting. It made Maggie think of those post-apocalyptic movies where people hid underground, and their only source of light was the bright white lights hanging overhead. She would hate it if she had to spend any significant amount of time underground. Maggie lived for the sunlight.
Zach sat in a small room off to the side, where all the walls were covered with computer screens. Each screen showed a different section inside the warehouse or along the outside perimeter of the building. He was hard at work, his fingers flying over the keys of his laptop.
At one end of the massive room, there were two white vans sitting at a garage-like door. Maggie figured that that was the way out to the underground tunnel. When she'd asked Zach about the door, he'd said it was bulletproof and virtually impossible for someone to break into.
And wasn't that just the thing? Who in the world would even know about this place down here and want to get in?
In order for the team to even get to the bunker, they'd had to unlock a large safe—big enough for two people to stand upright in—and then unlatch a hatch door that had been hidden by a fake floor and had led down to a spiral staircase. From there, they'd had to pass through two security-code-locked doors in order to finally arrive at the open room.
Another safe door sat on the other side of the room. Sully had explained to her that that was where the backup servers and equipment were usually stored, but that they'd already moved everything out sometime during the day. Its hidden location was the reason that the FBI had been unable to recover the files that The General had been searching for. And they hadn't known about the bunker, since the fake floor in the safe that they'd searched had been covering the hatch door.
Brilliant. Zach was freaking brilliant to have c
ome up with such a clever disguise and hiding place. If only the guys would all stay down there with them. They would be safe.
The team was rushing around, putting supplies in the backs of the white vans in case they needed to head to a safe house.
"So how do we know if we need to leave?" Maggie asked, as Sully threw in another duffel bag.
"There's a button we'll be carrying that sounds the alarm down here. If for some reason we think we're in trouble and need for you to leave, one of us will sound the alarm."
"Should we call someone for help?"
Sully stopped and faced her, and no trace of humor or lightheartedness remained there.
"No. We're on our own in this, Pixie. If we sound the alarm, it means we're not certain that we're going to make it out." He grabbed her upper arms and peered into her face. "And we need to know that you all are safe. Do you understand?"
Maggie nodded, choking back the emotions that threatened to spill down her cheeks.
"Good," he said and pulled her face to his chest, rubbing his hand over her hair.
"Sully!" Ethan called. Sully let Maggie go and pulled back.
"Yeah?"
"You suited up?"
"Not yet." He found her gaze again. "I've got to go get my gear on. You ok down here?"
"Of course," she said, and waved him off, faking a bravado she didn't feel. "Go on."
He leaned over and kissed her forehead, then jogged over to one of the locked doors and disappeared.
Maggie sighed as the door closed, and Isabel sidled up next to her.
"You love him, don’t you?"
Maggie didn't even try to deny it.
"Yep."
Isabel wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close. "Good. He needs you."
"Yeah, well—I need him, too. All this talk of wars and fighting isn't helping me."
"I'd say you get used to it, but you don't. Fortunately, our guys aren't in nearly the same kind of danger that they were in while they were in the military. They always leave for a mission prepared, but usually never have to engage in any real fighting."
The team hadn't had a rescue mission since Maggie had been working with them, so she hadn't seen them in action. Zach had certainly helped them fight their way out of her burning house a few months ago, but that had been different. They hadn't been walking into a war zone that time.
Castle Investigations Box Set Page 115
