Entangling: Book One of the Kirin Lane Series

by Kelley Griffin

  Kirin stared at him as if he was insane. She stood, shaking, then paced the floor raising her voice.

  “So, you’re telling me he’d kill an innocent woman and children over a book? He had my mother killed! And he enslaved you and my father pretty much your whole lives. And I’m supposed to sit by while he tears my family apart? That’s insane! I’ve got enough guns and ammo downstairs to defend myself. I’ve been trained how to use a gun since I was six! He’d be wise not to underestimate me.”

  Angry didn’t even describe it. Hell no. This man would not run her out or harm one hair on her boys’ heads. Kirin spun around and faced Sam.

  “You’re welcome to go, but I’m not going anywhere.”

  She turned and stomped to the kitchen. She needed a drink and a damn plan.

  Kirin snagged a beer out of the fridge. Without closing the fridge door, she popped it open and chugged some of it. When she pulled the bottle away and slammed it down on the counter, Sam stood on the other side of the fridge door, leaning and grinning at her.

  “What?” she said, harsh.

  “You truly believe I’m gonna leave you, Kirin Lane? I’ve saved your scrawny butt too many times to let them get you now.”

  He reached around, tugging at her shirttail and pushed the fridge door closed. He pulled her in for a kiss. It startled her how a small kiss and the pressure of his body could stir up a lightning flash of longing.

  His hands fisted into her hair as his tongue desperately searched for understanding. Sam pushed her up against the fridge. Her limbs wrapped instinctively around him.

  The crunching of gravel from Uncle Dean’s truck echoed through the house as he pulled in and two doors creaked open. Kirin pushed away from Sam, stopping them both. She had to catch her breath before the boys walked in. Although she suspected Uncle Dean would’ve found it hilarious to find her in a compromising position.

  The chatter and laughing of Little Jack and Will echoed from the garage into the kitchen. She looked over at Sam. His mischievous grin had turned grim, and he looked pale.

  Never mind surviving Saul and his imminent arrival, this was even more terrifying for the bachelor. The real test. Meeting her boys and Uncle Dean. The door swung open and in ran Little Jack and Will.

  “Mommy!” They said together. Kirin bent down and grabbed them both. Will opened his eyes first, noticing Sam. He let go of his mom, walked over to Sam, stuck out his hand like he was twenty-five and said, “Hi, I’m Will.”

  Sam’s eyebrows lifted. Impressed, he extended his hand and shook Will’s saying, “My name is Sam, Will, and it’s nice to finally meet you.”

  Will smiled up at Kirin. She couldn’t have been prouder. Little Jack followed suit, stuck his hand out like his big brother and said, “I Jack.” Sam shook his small hand and said, “Why hello, Jack, it’s nice to meet you as well.” Jack giggled and ran upstairs after Will.

  Kirin spun around to introduce her Aunt Kathy and Uncle Dean but stopped in her tracks. Her aunt’s face was splotched as tears ran down one cheek. “What’s wrong?” She reached out and touched her aunt’s arm.

  “I don’t know!” Kathy swiped at her eyes, laughing.

  Kathy walked over to Sam and before Kirin could get the introductions out, she grabbed Sam and hugged him. He looked so shocked at first, but then tough Sam melted into her, embracing her tightly. Kathy approved. Dang, that was easy.

  Uncle Dean stepped forward with a friendly grin and stuck out his hand. “I’m Dean and the basket case there is my wife, Kathy. We raised Kirin after her mom passed away. And if you hurt her, I’ll kill you.”

  Sam swallowed hard with wide eyes and a half smile on his lips as the larger man shook his hand vigorously. Uncle Dean’s massive bellowing chuckle rumbled out of him, laughing at himself. Sam visibly relaxed.

  Jeez, talk about awkward first meetings. Aunt Kathy and Uncle Dean stayed for dinner and after they played a few rounds of cards: guys against girls. The women, of course, stomped the men. Sam had never been so talkative or laughed so much around her. Uncle Dean was downright giddy to have another man around. They seemed to have bonded instantly.

  Kirin pulled the pie out of the oven while Aunt Kathy gathered plates, forks, and napkins to set the table. Kirin hesitated as she walked toward the open dining room with the pie. Uncle Dean and Sam were engrossed in a deep conversation in the front room. She sucked at eavesdropping but pretended to clean up spilled crumbs off the table straining to hear. As she cleaned up the last ghost crumb, the two men stood and hugged. Kathy walked into the dining room with a coffee pot and cups.

  “What’s up with the love in?” she asked loud enough for everyone to hear.

  “Nothing,” Uncle Dean said, slapping Sam on the back, “we just speak the same language.” Kirin narrowed her eyebrows at Sam, who shrugged as if he was completely innocent.

  They laughed over pie and coffee until Uncle Dean’s yawns drowned out their giggles. Kirin thanked them for keeping Will and Little Jack and walked them out to their truck while Sam went upstairs to check on the boys. Uncle Dean spoke before they reached the driveway.

  “I like him, Kirin. A lot.”

  “Good.” She said, smiling, “That makes two of us.”

  “He’s handsome, and he’s got a great personality, K. Your mama would’ve loved him.” Aunt Kathy smiled and touched Kirin’s face. As they backed down the driveway Kirin bounded back into the house.

  Laughter, along with what sounded like a large bookshelf crashing to the ground, set Kirin on a dead run upstairs. As she got closer to the door, Sam’s cries for help sounded muffled.

  Great. The boys were snuffing him out.

  Kirin opened the door. Sam called out again for help. He was buried under two little boys tickling and karate chopping him. He looked at her, fake fear lacing his voice. “Please?!”

  The boys laughed with delight when she answered, “Nope. You got yourself into it, you can get yourself out.” Sam lips turned up as he narrowed his eyes at her. She grinned back as she closed the door.

  She headed downstairs to clean up. She knew Sam made an impression on them when their evening prayers took longer than normal because both asked God to bless Sam twice. She couldn’t be sure, but it looked as if Sam wiped his eyes in the dark.

  After the boys were fast asleep, Kirin and Sam trudged into the den and melted into the couch together. Dog tired, they curled up on the couch talking until both fell asleep. When she woke in the morning, Sam was gone. He probably didn’t want the boys to know he’d stayed. A note in the kitchen said he’d stop by late in the afternoon after they got home from church.

  She dreamed at least part of her plan to stop Saul, that night in his arms.

  Somehow, in her dream, she’d lured Saul into a long, dark room. He was gagged and bound to a chair. She stalked around him, spinning a gun on her finger like an old gunslinger in the Westerns her dad used to watch. She flashed the USB drive at him, bragging it had all the evidence the FBI needed to put him away for life. Off in the distance stood Stacy’s brother. Saul was led away, kicking and yelling. And he never bothered them again.

  A ridiculous fairy tale, yes, but it showed her something. What if she could pull a confession out of him and record it? From what she’d gathered, he was power-hungry and cocky. What if he was the type that didn’t think he needed to hide or apologize for what he’d done? She knew it was a long shot, but it was the only plan she had so far.

  After church, they drove to an electronics store. She needed a gadget to record sound and video and a device that would hang invisibly in her house. Kirin found everything from tiny little button cameras to crystal-clear recorders that worked from inside a pocket. They were expensive and had to be shipped overnight if she was to receive it by the weekend. She ordered two: one recorded every sound and the other was a camera, but it looked like a pen.

  Pulling into the driveway after church, Kirin’s hackles rose. Rosa’s car and Sam’s truck were both parked in the driveway,
way too early.

  Kirin and the boys walked up the steps to the front door. Rosa had been so jumpy lately, she hoped her nanny hadn’t clobbered Sam when he knocked at the door. The boys ran into the kitchen, hugging Rosa, then Sam.

  Two sets of thunderous feet ran upstairs as Kirin stopped in the kitchen doorway. Her mouth gaped open. Sam was in pressed khakis and a baby blue button-down with a blue striped tie. His normally sexy tousled hair had been meticulously combed. He’d shaved the stubble and in its place were the smoothest looking cheeks set atop his strong jaw. God, he was beautiful. His eyes locked on her, fiercely. His half smile and the way he shifted his weight from one foot to the other, told her he was nervous.

  Kirin glanced at Rosa, thinking she’d forced on him the Rosa Inquisition. One look and she knew that wasn’t it. Rosa’s eyes showed signs she’d been crying, but now she smiled like the cat that ate the canary.

  Creeping closer as if she snuck up on a dragon, Kirin placed her purse down on the bar and waited expectantly, “So … you two have met?” She hoped she could draw out whatever was going on, but neither gave her any clues.

  Rosa spoke first, “Sam and I have been talking about the future.”

  Kirin looked from Sam to Rosa. She knew. Sam must have told Rosa they should leave and make a run for it to survive. Anger crawled up her spine.

  “What future?”

  Sam pulled his hands out of his pockets and swiped them on his pants, strolled over and slowly knelt in front of Kirin. He had a ring box in his hand.

  “The future where you marry me?” He smiled and opened the box revealing a giant, gleaming, diamond ring. “I asked permission from Kathy and Dean, then from Rosa,” he glanced back at her smiling, “but I also need Jack and Will’s permission.”

  Her world moved in slow motion as Sam yelled to the boys. They bounded back down the stairs. Little Jack walked over and stood next to Sam, with his hand on Sam’s bent knee, peering into his face. Will stopped at the doorway, probably as stunned as Kirin was.

  “Boys, I know it seems sudden, but I’d like to marry your mom.”

  Little Jack nodded and flung both arms around Sam knocking him back. Will eyed Sam, then turned to his mom. Sam’s huge grin faded when he caught sight of Kirin’s face.

  Lost in her own thoughts, she wasn’t smiling. He couldn’t be serious. Yes, she loved him she was sure of it, but Lord, they hadn’t known each other a full month yet. Well. He’d known her for years.

  Was she getting swept away by hormones or was this the man for her? He was perfect for her and her gut told her so. She loved him and had since that first night at the store. He’d taken her heart then.

  Or was he asking her to marry him merely because he thought they would die by the end of the week? Then it hit her. He was rushing into marriage because he couldn’t see a way out. As he looked into her eyes, she knew. Knew she loved him. Kirin bent down and placed her hands around both sides of his face. She whispered so only he could hear.

  “I love you. Yes, I’ll marry you someday, but we’re not going to rush this because you think we’re gonna die. We’re not.”

  Sam looked down, but she pulled his face back to hers. “We’re gonna be fine.” Kirin smiled at him and slowly he grinned.

  Kirin glanced up and caught eyes with Will. Slowly she nodded yes and smiled. Will bit back a smile and nodded when Sam glanced back at him.

  Kirin announced to the kitchen a loud, “Yes!”

  Sam rose and kissed her as her family cheered.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Sam and Kirin ran to the store for their normal Sunday grocery run. There were no tomato avalanches or crackheads to contend with. After Sam helped her put her groceries away, while Rosa couldn’t stop grinning at him. Kirin was amazed Rosa could keep her sarcastic side at bay for this length of time.

  She already couldn’t remember her life before Sam.

  He left to run errands at four. Perfect. She needed to get working on her plan. Rosa went home, and the boys played outside on the backyard swings. Kirin sat on the back porch and scribbled down her to-do list.

  ~Plan food for Stacy’s dinner.

  ~Take the family picture to Aunt Kathy to identify.

  ~Call Stacy again about Steve.

  ~Bring down Saul and save her family.

  As she finished her list, the sun caught the glistening diamond on her left hand, blinding her. How the hell was she gonna explain this whirlwind romance to everyone at work, without telling them he’d followed her for two years? It sounded insane even to her.

  Her cell buzzed on the table. She turned it over and read the text from a blocked number.

  “Hearing rumors. He’s headed your way. If you’ve not found anything substantial in your artifact yet, you and the boys need to leave. Now. ~Your favorite Philly’s fan.”

  She texted back, “Staying to fight. What does he look like?”

  “Your dad would’ve wanted you to run.”

  “Not running,” she typed, tearing up. “Need details.”

  She waited. No return texts. She wrote again. “I need to know.”

  The buzz came back. “I’m old—I type slow. Bastard is short, tan, always travels with at least two bodyguards. Wears a yellow power tie everywhere. Likes to play with his food before he eats it. Doesn’t like to lose. Ever. He will track you.”

  Kirin bit off a hangnail.

  Another text.

  “He likes to watch, if you didn’t get that foody reference.” She had to smile. Kidd wrote again. “Still with Pat?”

  “Yes.” She typed. “Why?”

  She waited and waited with no response. Her boys ran the length of her property playing tag. She looked out over her land and her small garden, and especially the forest where she watched the does in the morning. This was her land, her house. She wouldn’t be torn from it and she wouldn’t spend the rest of her life running each time Saul got close. She’d have to take a stand. For her dad and her mom, but especially for her boys and … Sam.

  “Hello?” She texted after a minute.

  “He carries guilt over what he was forced to do. Don’t let him. We all did things we’re not proud of, but he was never a killer, know that. Gotta go. Consider your escape route. ~Kidd”

  She wrote back a weak, “Thank you.” But her phone indicated the text didn’t go through.

  She stared at her phone. What job had Sam had in the organization? She’d never asked. Kidd said he wasn’t a killer, but should she fear him? Everything in her arsenal of intuition told her no. Kidd was right though, he carried guilt.

  The crackhead in the parking lot sure feared him and left when Sam ordered him to. Was she engaged to someone capable of killing?

  Anxious after Kidd’s text, Kirin ran inside and brought out her laptop. What if she couldn’t get Saul talking first? Or she was tied up and couldn’t engage the pocket sound device? She needed something to record him that wasn’t on her body. Something she could engage remotely. Why hadn’t she thought of this before? Kirin found cameras online that she could mount inside her house and at the front door. Best Buy had small, invisible ones that would interface with her phone and computer to record audio and video.

  She ordered two high definition video surveillance cameras. Both recorded for at least an hour and up to thirty feet away with the top of the line clarity and sound. She’d ordered them for rush delivery. They could be wired into her cell and home computer, but she’d have to call an electrician to install them. Kirin added to her list:

  ~Call electrician to wire the house on Tuesday, Laura’s hubby?

  She struggled with telling Sam any of it. Not that she didn’t trust him. But she knew he wouldn’t approve. He already had some plan brewing, which she was sure wasn’t as crazy as confronting Saul in her living room with cameras.

  Kirin glanced up. One boy swung upside down on the playground while the other pretended to sword fight with a stick.

  Her first call was to Laura. Her husband,
Adam, was an electrician. She spoke to him for all of three minutes. As they spoke he googled the tiny cameras for the installation specs. They set it up for Adam to add wire in the walls for the cameras on Tuesday, then come back Wednesday night to install them.

  Laura being her normal unassuming self, never questioned why Kirin would need the tiny cameras, but the excitement in her voice was evident. She loved mystery novels, and anything spy related. But Laura was a steel trap. She wouldn’t tell a soul.

  Next, she called Stacy again. Surely, her brother had returned her call by now. Stacy reported she’d left him a message on his cell, but Mr. Perfect hadn’t returned it yet. According to her parents, he could be anywhere. He sometimes had to travel on a moment’s notice because of his job. He was always showing up at her parent’s house unannounced, but only for a few hours then he’d be off again.

  Stacy promised to keep trying and Kirin promised to go through her cookbooks and find a southern recipe to wow her dinner guests Saturday night.

  Sam called after she put the boys to bed. They talked for two hours while she cleaned the house until she couldn’t hold her eyes open any longer. Sam spent most of the time asking her questions about Jack of all people. Like, what sort of husband had he been? It was odd and made her uncomfortable, but she knew he was taking notes to be the perfect husband.

  He’d taken the news of not getting married immediately, well. She was relieved he’d understood and wasn’t hurt by her less than enthusiastic answer. For a guy with a mysterious past and a “desirable skill set” who admittedly had never been in love, she didn’t want him to rush into marriage. Especially for any other reason except he was completely in love.

  He might change his mind about her if he discovered her plans. And the sacrifice she would go through to save her family and put an end to the monster who’d stolen her parents.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Monday morning. The day she’d been dreading. Accidentally forgot. That’s what she wanted to do with the giant diamond on her left hand. Explaining her whirlwind engagement to the girls at work made her stomach churn. At the last moment, she decided she’d wear it. Maybe they wouldn’t notice.