by Debra Kayn
"If that's the case and she's only getting information for him, what can she give to him?" Mark adjusted the holster at his side.
"Nothing that he doesn't already know." Quint turned to him. "I need to get back inside. Katelynn's worried, and it's almost time to close up the office for the evening."
He nodded. "Keep in contact and for fuck's sake, keep an eye on Carly."
"Watch your back."
"Always do," said Mark.
Quint walked inside the building.
Mark got on his ATV and took the private trail from the back of Quint's cabin back up the mountain. Over the years, he'd wished for a way to get Jaster face to face. The man remained elusive, only showing himself on his terms or sending other men to try and kill him.
Believing he and the others had done the only thing possible to escape a situation they wanted no part in, it was Jaster who had turned them into murderers. If Jaster had just let them all go, none of what they'd done would've happened.
And, Two-crow and Will would still be alive.
Chapter 7
Three days of preparing herself to see Mark DeLane again left Carly more nervous than if she would've gone straight back to Discover the Bitterroot. She gazed at the garage where Mark leaned against the building with his arms crossed watching her. It was as if he'd known she would be coming and waited for her.
He was a mystery.
Unlike Quint and Anders, who kept their distance from her, Mark got in her face, and she couldn't understand why he was such an ass to her. The only reason she could come up with was he'd found the file in her luggage.
He'd have questions and want her to leave.
But there was nothing in the evidence in her possession telling him who she was or what she was doing in the Bitterroot Mountains.
She opened the car door, determined to find out if he read the file.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," said Mark.
She raised her hand, shielding the sun from her eyes. Okay, so he wasn't even going to let her on his property.
"Are you going to keep me from renting an ATV?" She raised her purse. "You're going to turn down good money?"
"I don't need your money." He lifted his chin. "Either does the bear over there under the pine tree."
"A bear?" she mouthed, dropping her arm to her side, and peered around. "I don't see...shit."
A black mass of fur, fifty feet away from her, paced underneath a pine tree at the edge of the parking lot. She pressed her back against the car, reaching blindly for the door handle. Aware there were bears on the mountain, she had yet to see one when riding the trails and believed they'd be hiding away from people.
"Don't open the door again. The noise irritates her." Mark remained leaning against the garage.
Her heart beat wildly. Even if she wasn't sore from sleeping on the ground, she couldn't outrun a wild animal.
"Isn't your talking going to piss it off?" she whispered.
Every second he stayed there without helping her made her angry. He needed to do something. He couldn't have a wild animal attacking his customers.
"The same bear travels through my property at least once a week. It knows my voice." He straightened. "Go ahead and make a run for the garage. I'll cover you."
"I don't believe you," she blurted, changing to a whisper. "You hate me. You'll let the bear eat me."
"Suit yourself." He turned around to go back inside the garage.
"Wait." She sucked in a big breath, afraid to be left out here alone. "Just turn around and watch the bear. If it runs toward me, yell. Please."
Mark faced the black bear. Seeing both man and animal in her vision, she noticed similarities. They were both big, scary, and wanted to attack her for no reason.
Slowly, she looped her purse over her neck so her hands would be free. Counting to three, she sprinted the twenty or so feet to the open garage door. Straight past Mark. Away from the bear.
If the animal followed, it would attack him first.
She stopped, staying behind him, and breathed heavily trying to catch her breath. He glanced in her direction and motioned for her to follow him deeper into the large garage.
"You want to rent an ATV?" he said.
She hurried after him. "Yes, for the day."
"Follow me." He opened a back door and let her pass through first.
Looking all around for the bear, she stayed close enough to Mark to grab him if needed as he escorted her behind the house and through the back door.
He let her go inside first. "Keep walking down the hallway, and you'll come to the office."
There were two rooms off to the side. A kitchen and a bathroom. Without an upstairs and no bedroom in sight, she wondered where he slept at night.
Walking into the front, she sat down in the chair by the desk, knowing she'd need to sign the release form and pay for the rental.
Mark went right into the role of owner and handed her the contract before plopping down in the chair. She scribbled her name and took the cash out of her purse.
"Do I wait until the bear leaves?" she asked.
"I'll go out and start the quad. That should be enough to scare her off." He refused to look at her. "Do you want the same ATV or a different one?"
"The same." She leaned forward. "Thank you."
If he wanted to pretend that he hadn't traveled to Bitterroot Campground and harassed her a few days ago, she would gladly forget about their last altercation. It was obvious he hadn't found the file she had on him and the others.
"You can wait in here until I make sure the bear is gone." He left her alone in the office.
She wandered over to the window. Unable to see the animal from her position, she watched Mark. He seemed to be working by himself today.
He also seemed down. Not depressed. Just quiet and less grumpy.
She fiddled with the handle on her purse. If six fifteen-year-old boys were stolen out of state care what happened afterward? Were all the reports in the file true?
Fear had her pulling out her phone. She called her mom, hoping she'd answer. During her so-called vacation, she'd kept herself from calling home, needing to stay in the right head-space where she thought about Mark, Anders, Quint, and not about anyone else.
When she thought of them suffering a lifetime of abuse and the risky ramifications of what she planned to do, she became overwhelmed.
"Hello?"
Carly closed her eyes in relief. "Hi, Mom."
"I didn't think I'd hear from you." Her mom paused. "Are you okay, darling?"
"I'm good." She blinked, finding her vision blurred. "I'm in Montana right now."
"Be careful." Her mom paused and whispered, "Have you found them?"
"Yes." She couldn't tell her mom about the bear outside or how the men had, so far, refuted her attempt to get to know them. "Anyway, I had a few minutes and thought I'd check in and let you know I'm okay."
"I'm so glad you did."
"Me, too," she whispered. "I've missed you."
Her mother cleared her throat. "I miss you, too."
She stared outside at nothing. It would mean everything to her mom and her if she came home with answers. Her trip here had been a long time coming.
Mark came into view, walking toward the office. She swallowed and said goodbye to her mom, promising to call again, and slid her phone into her purse. There wasn't any length she wouldn't go to protect her mother.
He popped his head inside. "ATV is ready. The bear is gone so whenever you want to leave, you can."
"It isn't going to come back?" She walked outside and peered around.
"Nah." He glanced at her. "You do know there are bears on the mountain."
"Of course."
"Do you carry?"
"Carry what?"
"A pistol for protection," he said.
Her shoulders sagged forward, and she opened the door to her car, grabbing a small backpack. "I've got bear spray with me."
She walked toward the rent
al ATV and glanced at him, waiting for a snappy comeback, but he refrained from speaking. Something seemed to bother him, and she wondered what was on his mind. He'd had no problems getting in her face before.
Using the elastic strap on the back of the off-road vehicle, she secured her bag. When Mark walked off leaving her to go on her ride, she jogged over to her car and got the bundle of flowers she'd bought in Federal earlier that morning.
She couldn't go back up to Bear Peak without paying her respects. While she never met Joney, Two-crow, or Will, reading the files on them, she felt like she knew the horror of what they'd lived through.
And, a small part of her felt responsible.
Chapter 8
Quint passed the cell phone across the table at the Lair. Mark looked down at the screen and studied the picture. He hated not being in control of what could hurt him and the others.
While Mark had set Carly up with a rental, Quint was the one who'd gone up to the top of the mountain ahead of her and waited. Unaware of him hidden in the trees, Carly had placed flowers at the base of the crosses.
The proof was in front of him. Her hair covered her face, and she kneeled on the ground. Placing the flowers in front of the crosses, she'd bowed her head.
"This doesn't make sense." He scratched his jaw through his beard. "She doesn't know any of them. Why would she keep going back up to Bear Peak, and flowers...that's something someone who cared about them would do."
"Far as we know, Will and Two-crow were given to the state as newborns. Their birth families were never in the picture. Whether those records were sealed or not, I don't even think they knew. I doubt if she's related to either one of them." Anders lifted his drink to his lips.
"Anyone remember Joney's story?" Quint poured more whiskey into his glass. "Her last name...the name he went by. There's a red flag there."
Mark shrugged. "He was like us. No family."
"Is it even possible that someone from Joney's past would come to the mountains, seeking to visit the cross...what? Thirty-two years after he was killed in Mexico?" whispered Anders. "Besides, Carly's too young. She wouldn't have even been born at the time of Joney's death."
Mark looked around the bar. Their conversation needed to remain private. Thankfully, Iliana singing on stage entertained the customers. Nobody paid attention to the three of them sitting at the table.
"Younger sister?" Quint watched the side of the stage where Katelynn stood with the other customers, swaying to the music. "Maybe she found out her mom gave up a baby and went looking. Carly could be a half-sister to Joney with a big age gap."
"Way too big of an age gap. Think about it," said Anders. "If Joney was still alive, he's old enough to be her father."
"Even if it was possible, it doesn't explain why she's here, hanging around us." Mark leaned back in the chair. "Nobody knew we were kidnapped with Joney. There are no records of us ever being in the same group homes or even from the same state."
It hurt that Carly came to dredge up the past. Protective of what he and the others had together, her arrival felt like a threat—regardless if Jaster sent her or not. The people at the table were the closest thing he had to a family.
They weren't blood.
They weren't chosen.
They were thrown together and learned to trust and depend on each other for survival.
"She hasn't hurt any of us," said Anders.
He'd disagree. He hadn't slept a full night since her arrival. Each of them had taken turns keeping an eye on Carly, making sure she wasn't meeting Jaster on the sly. Every time he was around her, he fought with his feelings.
He wanted her to be innocent, and he couldn't understand why he found himself angry at her.
"While I would never suggest speaking of what we've lived through, I think we need to approach her and ask her outright why she's here." Anders paused as Iliana finished the song. "We need to put this to bed for the night. Iliana will be coming to the table in a moment. I don't want to worry her."
"Yeah, Katelynn's heading this way, too," said Quint, standing up.
"I'll talk to Carly." Mark made the decision, knowing he needed to be the one to question her.
Anders heaved a sigh. "Don't tell—"
"I never will." He drained the last of his drink. "I'm going to head home."
"Ride safe." Quint looked at him a second longer. "Let us know when the conversation will happen."
Anders straightened, his gaze focused across the room. "It looks like you're not going to have to wait to have that talk."
Mark caught the slight chin lift. He looked at the entrance of the bar. His heart skipped a beat.
Carly gazed around the bar. He took in the tight jeans and tank top. The atmosphere changed. The air pressed in on him. The noise dulled. He could feel other men looking at her.
He stood, aware of Quint and Anders removing Iliana and Katelynn from the room. Ready to put his troubles to bed, he walked across the room. Carly spotted him a second before he stopped in front of her.
Catching her awareness of him, he took the stiffness of her body as proof that she'd come here hoping to run into him. Or at least be around Anders or Quint.
She failed to smile or acknowledge him. Guilt stained her cheeks pink, and she simply stared as if she needed to come up with a lie and couldn't think of a way to cover the reason she'd shown up at the Lair while they were all here.
"It's after one o'clock in the morning," he said.
"I'm aware of the time." Her slim shoulders went back. "Anders' Lair is open twenty-four hours, and I couldn't sleep. I got hungry, and since I'm leaving in two days, I'm trying to make do with the food that's left in the cooler, so I don't have a bunch to throw away."
"Headquarters opens at eight o'clock, they have all kinds of snack food."
She shook her head and stepped around him, taking the closest stool at the counter. He sat beside her and listened to her order a Bailey's on ice, then change her mind, and ask for Bailey's caramel on ice as if she was livin' it up.
"Middle of the night, you're drinking, and plan to drive back to the campground. Not smart," he said.
"One drink, and then I'm going to eat something." She deeply inhaled, expanding her chest. "What is your problem with me?"
Where was he supposed to start? She encroached on everything he held close to his heart. She was prettier than any woman ought to be. She had answers for everything. She unsettled him.
She wanted a piece of the mountain, a part of those he'd lost, and he wasn't willing to share. He wanted to hurt her as much as he was hurting.
"Come back to my place." He took out his wallet and paid for her drink before she'd even received it. "I'll bring you back to your car in a couple of hours."
She laughed harshly, surprising him. "Not on your life."
"You have no problem swinging by my place and renting an ATV from me."
She narrowed her eyes. "I'm not an idiot. Like you said, it's the middle of the night. You've been drinking—"
"One glass."
"Whatever." She turned her attention to the bartender in front of her and smiled before sipping from the glass put in front of her. "I know you don't like me."
"I want to talk to you." He could wait until daylight, invite her over, and they could talk outside, or in the office where she felt safe but now that she was in front of him and he had more questions after talking to the others, he couldn't wait. So, he threw in the only thing that would tempt her to throw her safety to the side. "It's about Quint, Anders, and me."
She jolted, looking at him harder. Her gaze worked over him, looking for any sign that he was bullshitting her.
"I know you came to the mountain because of us." He leaned closer and lowered his voice. "I want to talk, but I can't do it here."
Even in the dim light of the bar, her face flushed. She reached for her drink, sipping less than he imagined she needed to see herself through the confrontation.
She'd come here for a reason, and
he handed her the opportunity to take him out if that was her prerogative. But he wasn't going down without stopping her from hurting the others.
"I'll drive my car and meet you at Discover the Bitterroot." She pushed the glass away from the edge of the counter, swiveled on the stool, and stood.
He followed a step behind. It'd take him a half hour to get home. That was thirty minutes for Carly to change her mind and bail on him.
Chapter 9
Mark lived in a bunker.
A freaking bunker under the ground.
Below the house that served as an office for Discover the Bitterroot.
Carly sat on the edge of the couch. No wonder she couldn't find out where he slept. He'd hidden away from the world. And, knowing what she knew, she suspected he was the smartest man in the world.
His smarts had kept him alive. Those same brains made him dangerous.
Mark stood at the short counter waiting for the coffee maker to finish. Carly gazed around at the clutter and supplies stacked everywhere. Boxes, five-gallon buckets, cases of toilet paper, jugs of soap. He had enough stocked up to hide away for a year.
Looking at the end of the one-room bunker, the designated sleeping area and bed was the only place that looked normal. He had a king-size mattress, which made sense. He was a big man.
Mark moved. She focused on him, not wanting to get caught snooping.
"I put sugar in your cup. Do you need milk?" He sat down on the couch and held a mug out to her.
"No, this is fine." She balanced the hot drink on her thigh. "Thank you."
Several seconds ticked by and the only thing happening in the bunker was silence. The entire trip here, she went through the things she'd prepared ahead of time in case she had a 'friendlier' conversation with him.
But he'd thrown a kink in her plan when he admitted to knowing she was here because of them. She would've preferred they know nothing about her. Aware that telling them who she was could put her in danger before she got back home, she now doubted her decision to talk with him.
