Gray Horse (Heartbreakers & Heroes Book 7)

by Ciana Stone

  “These are my brothers, Nash and Mace.” Delaney leaned over and gestured to each in turn.

  “A pleasure,” Nash spoke first.

  “Thank you, and likewise.” She shook his hand and then smiled at his brother.

  “Mace, the handsome one,” he said and took her hand. “Nice to meet you.”

  “Same here, Mace. Your brother must feel good to have his family here to cheer him on. We’re not taking seats from your parents, are we?”

  “Nah,” Mace answered and pointed up. “Dad’s in the box, and Cici is—well, she’s out and about I guess. So is Riggs.” He looked at Mathias. “Did Riggs tell you about the stallions dad bought from some guy in Oklahoma?”

  “No, I haven’t spoken with him in a few weeks.”

  “Meanest animals you’ve ever seen. Not a man on the whole of Heritage that can ride one of them. Dad got rid of two but hung onto one. He’s determined to find someone who can break that animal so he can use it for breeding. Riggs mentioned something about asking you. He said you have a way with animals.”

  “I’ve worked with a few, but that one sounds like you need a specialist. I know a guy in Cotton Creek. Kyle Stadler. I do farrier work for him. He’s a Whisperer for sure. Want me to give you his number?”

  “Yeah, just text me tomorrow.”

  “Will do.”

  He turned his attention to Reese, who was listening to Delaney. “So, thanks to the Pursel family several years prior and then our father among others, this stadium is a 30,000-seat horseshoe with temporary seating for another 5,000. It has a track surrounding the field, a press box and sponsor box. There are six concession areas, three per level along with six restrooms per gender, per level.”

  She pointed to a building that was positioned as a stand-alone on the open end of the horseshoe, beneath the giant video board. “Right there is the Walker Football Complex. It has a players lounge that overlooks the field, dressing rooms, one of the largest training and rehab facilities in the state and a state-of-the-art academic center.”

  “That’s impressive. You must be very proud.”

  Delaney smiled. “I guess I am. I spent three years fundraising. Our family matched everything we received in donations, so we’re pretty invested.”

  “I can see why. It’s amazing.”

  “And we’re about to start.”

  Reese looked at Mathias and smiled when he leaned over to speak into her ear. “She’s pretty proud of what her family did and her brother as the head coach.”

  “She should be.” Reese meant it. It must be great to be part of a family that is so supportive of one another.

  There were quite a few people giving speeches, starting with the Governor and working down. By the time they reached the Principal of the High School, Reese had lost interest and occupied herself by looking around at the people and the stadium.

  “Here,” Delaney got her attention and offered her a pair of small binoculars. “Stadium glasses.”

  “You don’t mind?”

  “Not at all.”

  “Thanks.” Reese put the glasses to her eyes and looked around. A spark of light from the football complex caught her eye, and she scanned back.

  What she saw had alarms going off in her head. She nudged Mathias, and when he leaned in, she handed him the glasses and spoke softly. “Third window from the right end on the football complex.”

  “What am I looking for?”

  “A sniper."

  Two seconds later he lowered the glasses. “Here’s what we’re going to do. Ask Delaney to go with you to the restroom and once you’re out of the stands, call Cotton Creek Police. There’s a sniper in the complex with what looks like an M-24.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  “Try and get there before the police.”

  “Okay.” She turned to Delaney. “Would you mind helping me find the restroom?”

  They stood and a split second later, Mathias rammed into her. Almost simultaneously, the shoulder of a man sitting behind them exploded in blood and bone.

  Reese whirled, grabbed Mathias and basically shoved him to the concrete and covered his body with hers. “Where are you hit?”

  “Right arm. Just grazed.”

  “Get down Delaney!” Reese reached for Delaney’s hand and jerked on it then looked back at Delaney’s brothers. “Get down!”

  They all complied but by that time the people in the row with the wounded man and the row behind were starting to yell and scream and when someone shouted ''sniper" there was an actual ripple that spread out like the drop of a pebble into a pond.

  The sound amplified as people started to panic. Reese stayed on top of Delaney to shield her as she pulled out her phone and dialed 911. She could barely hear but could discern a voice, so she yelled into the phone.

  “There’s been a shooting at the football stadium. Fifty-yard line, five rows up on the home side. A sniper is in the third window from the right, if you’re looking at it from the position I just gave. He appears to have an M-24. The victim is a middle-aged man, gunshot to the upper left shoulder. The stadium is in panic. We need police and EMTs now.”

  She put her phone back in her pocket."Stay down and don't move, okay?" she asked of Delaney before she scooted around so she could check Mathias’ arm. It was bleeding, but like he said, it was a graze, and so there was not a danger of severe blood loss or anything to endanger his life.

  What Reese couldn’t help doing was calculating the shooter's target, based on the angle, distance and what he’d hit. It took only seconds, but she knew. That bullet was meant for her.

  People in the stadium were in full blown panic trying to get out. "Don't move," Mathias told the Walker brothers. "Just stay down and wait for the stadium to thin out. Police are on the way."

  Fifteen minutes later the stadium still wasn't cleared, and, in that time, two more people were shot, all of whom either ran by or in front of Reese. When the second person was hit, she told Mathias. “I think the shooter is after me.”

  “Why would –never mind. There’s nothing we can do but stay down. You’d never make it through the crowd.”

  “But people are getting shot!”

  “Fine, then we make a run for it, but stay low, if you can get below the height of the crowd. Rather than go up, try and make it to the field. There’s a player’s field entrance not far.”

  “Don’t move,” Reese told Delaney as Mathias explained to Delaney’s brothers that they were going to try and draw the shooter's attention. Then they started making their way to the stairs.

  Two more people went down around them, and at the last one, Reese lost it. She bounded up and vaulted the railing to land on the edge of the field where she waved and shouted. “Hey! Over here asshole! Over—”

  Mathias knocked the wind out of her when he wrapped an arm around her from behind and propelled her forward toward the players' entrance. Bullets blew chunks from the ground around them. They were both breathing hard by the time they reached the safety of the gate.

  “That was a bonehead move,” he yelled at her.

  “People were getting shot, I had to do something!”

  “Like get yourself killed? And why the hell would someone be shooting at you?”

  That silenced her. “Well?” he asked.

  “I don’t know for a fact it was me they were aiming for. You were hit. Is anyone gunning for you?”

  To her surprise and relief, that shut him up. “Come on.” He took her hand and together they found their way to the parking lot where police were struggling to keep the people moving in an orderly fashion to their vehicles and out of the parking lot.

  “Let’s go to my truck,” Mathias suggested.

  “No, let’s go to that ambulance,” she said and pointed.

  “It’s just a graze.”

  “We’re going to the ambulance.” She yanked on his hand until he started moving.

  The moment the EMT heard that Mathias had been shot, he radioed for
a police officer. Reese considered it a stroke of luck that Charli Judd was the officer who responded. She and Mathias told what they saw and what happened, without speculating on who the shooter might be or who the intended target was.

  She took their statements and released them to leave. They made the drive in silence but once they reached Reese’s house, she looked at him. “Do you want to come in?”

  “Do you want me to?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then let’s go in.”

  She’d just opened the truck door when his phone rang. “It’s Riggs Walker.”

  “Answer.”

  “Thanks.” He lifted the phone to his ear. “Riggs?”

  His gaze moved to Reese as he listened, and she saw something hard and cold steal any softness from his face.

  "I'm on the way."

  With that, he pocketed his phone. "I have to go."

  "Can I ask where and why?"

  "He needs my help."

  "Don't you have to ask permission or something?"

  "Deacon will agree."

  "Oh, it's that kind of help."

  "What do you know about that?"

  She shrugged and looked down. "How long will you be gone?"

  "Hopefully, not long." He reached over and took her hand. "Any chance I can get a raincheck on our missed date when I get home? We still haven’t had that dinner or dance."

  "Oh, I think there's a better than average chance of that happening."

  "Yeah?"

  "Yeah." She gave him a quick kiss. "Is this dangerous?"

  "I don't know. Maybe."

  "Is he worth it? Risking your life, if it is?"

  "Yeah."

  She nodded and scooted closer to give him another kiss, one that lingered a bit longer. "Then do your best to stay alive."

  "I always do."

  "Good."

  Mathias pulled her in close for a kiss that had a fresh flood of lust rocketing through her. "That's a hell of a way to leave a girl," she teased.

  "You're good for my ego, Reese. Take care, okay?"

  "I will. And seriously, I know you're going to help a friend, but as a favor to me, make sure someone has your six?"

  She realized her little blunder at the expression on his face. "I will. See you soon."

  "Promise?"

  "I do."

  "Then go so you can get back."

  She got out, watched him leave and then headed for the house. Her phone rang just as she reached the porch. It was Wiley.

  “What’s up, Wiley?”

  “Are you okay?”

  “I am.”

  “You want to tell me what that was about?”

  “What what was about?”

  “Don’t play that with me.”

  “Fine. I don’t know anything except there was a sniper and he wasn’t aiming for Mathias.”

  “Where is Mathias?”

  "He got a call from his friend Riggs."

  "Riggs Walker?"

  "I guess. You know him?"

  "I do. And his father, Russ. Good men. They have a big spread here in Texas. What'd Riggs want?"

  "Help."

  "Interesting. Well, if help is what he needs, he made the right call."

  "Yeah?"

  "Yep."

  "You want to elaborate?"

  "Maybe, sometime. For now, let's just leave it as Mathias is a man you can count on."

  "If you say it, it must be so."

  “You want to come stay here tonight?”

  “No, I’m fine.”

  “Are you?”

  “I’m not green, Wiley. I remember how to take care of myself.”

  “I know. How about dinner with the family tomorrow.”

  “Sure.”

  “Linc is coming."

  "Oh, in that case—”

  “You can’t avoid him forever.”

  “Nor do I want to but... I have to ask you something. How much do Mercy and Molly know about me?"

  "Only that I've known and worked with you from time to time for a while. And that we're friends."

  "You should be honest with them, Wiley. Deacon as well. They all deserve that, and I'm trusting they will keep the information confidential."

  "As am I. Thank you for that."

  "You don't ever have to thank me. You saved me when you could easily have just walked away. I owe everything to you."

  "No, you don't, but I'm grateful to you. I don't like secrets. Especially with Molly."

  "She's pretty amazing. I really like her, and it will be easier for us once she understands my relationship with you and Linc. And then she won't find it odd that I don't want to jump Linc. Apparently, he's quite the lady magnet around here now that you're not available."

  Wiley laughed. "Let's just say Linc is still Linc."

  "Indeed he is." Reese laughed as well. It was nice that some things remained constant. It would also be nice to have two fewer people to keep secrets from. If only she felt she could be as honest with Mathias.

  *****

  "Are you sure you want to do this?" Wiley asked a week later as he and Reese watched the military helicopter land.

  "I'm sure it's the expedient way." She turned her head to look at him. "Venture is still months away from operational, and I've reached the point where I need to get into a lab."

  What she didn’t say was that she feared if she didn’t get a prototype built, the next attack might keep her from doing anything at all. Thus far, there were no leads on the shooter at the football stadium and the police had no clues on the motives behind it. Reese kept her mouth closed about the entire thing because nothing she could say would make it better.

  "I didn't realize you'd gotten that far." Wiley said. "You're ready to create the prototype?"

  "Yes. I realized that I can use what I've already done and modify. If I can perfect the programming, then we're halfway there, and for that, I need equipment we can only get our hands on in two places. Since we want to keep this quiet, the safest route is the military."

  "I wouldn't call it safe. They'll want their pound of flesh."

  "I think I've prepaid that many times over, but I'll give them a drone that will do the job they want, and in turn, I'll develop our prototype."

  "Are you sure you can live with that? What they'll want it to do, I mean?"

  "I didn't say I'd create the programming for the delivery system of the poison. Just the flying apparatus. If they want to turn it into something that kills, they can damn well figure out the programming."

  "They're not going to be happy with that. And who are you going to convince to build it?"

  "Maybe, but it'll put them miles ahead of where they are now, so they won't turn it down and I'll have our prototype by the time the lab at Venture is ready. And I've convinced Naomie to do it."

  "You sure you want to reopen that door?"

  "It was never closed, Wiley. Naomie and I didn't part on bad terms. I still love her, and she loves me, but as friends. But back to this lab. You know it's going to cost a fortune. Are you sure we can afford it?"

  "I have some irons in the fire."

  "That sounds decidedly unsure."

  "Don't worry about the financing, just focus on development."

  "Okay, you're the boss." She gave him a hug and held on for a minute, taking comfort in his embrace. "If you hear from Mathias, will you let me know?"

  "I will. Don't worry. He can take care of himself."

  "Yeah, I know. Still..."

  "I'll call if I hear anything."

  "Thanks. I'll talk to you soon."

  Reese hurried to the helicopter. What she hadn't told Wiley was that her decision was based more on concerns for his safety than expediency in development. Like a fool, she'd discussed her research on the development of AI bees with a couple of colleagues six months ago, and within weeks, she'd received offers from three private companies and two countries. One, in particular was quite eager. China.

  That wasn't at all appealing to Rees
e and she'd blocked calls from Li Cheong, the man who'd brought her the offer. Once upon a time she'd thought of him as a friend. Now she wondered if he had anything to do with the scare tactics being used against her.

  According to Naomie, Li and others were still trying to find Reese and were now trying to make offers through Naomie who was telling them all to go to hell.

  Reese appreciated Naomie having her back. Since she had no interest in sharing or selling her research, she turned down every offer. A month before she took Wiley's offer her car was blown up and her apartment vandalized. A strong suggestion, she supposed from the last offer she received and turned down.

  Now with the shooting at the stadium, she knew she couldn’t delay. Reese wasn't fool enough to think they would give up, but she also was stubborn enough not to give in to threats. Now, however, there was more at stake. Namely, people she cared about, and she'd not put Wiley, his family, or Linc in harm's way.

  *****

  Wiley headed back toward Deacon's office, first to thank him for allowing the helicopter to land on the training center property and second to speak with Deacon about Reese. He hadn't had a chance yet, and if Deacon were free, it would be a good time.

  Lucky for him, he met Deacon as he turned and headed up the sidewalk. "Reese get off okay?" Deacon asked.

  "She did. Thank you again."

  "Glad to help. Although I don't have a clue what I'm helping with."

  "That's why I'm here. Can we talk?"

  "Sure. Want to walk or go to my office?"

  "Let's walk."

  It took the better part of an hour for Wiley to tell the entire story and when he finished, they were standing at the edge of the lake, looking out over the water. "I had no idea,” Deacon said and then surprised Wiley. "I'm proud of you."

  "Thank you. That means a lot. I do need to ask you to keep this confidential for obvious reasons."

  "I wouldn't betray your trust."

  "I know, but I know you've probably been as bombarded by Trina's worry as the rest of us. I don't get it. She's normally pretty level-headed. Do you think this pregnancy has somehow sparked something? Resurrected some buried personality?"

  "I asked Etta that last week and she assures me that what's bothering Trina is hormones. Pregnancy works on women. Even Mica. Remember how she'd cry at the drop of a hat?"