Ruthless (Crescent Cove: Viper Force Book 2)

by Marlie May

  “Top secret, then.”

  “Ah, yeah. Anyway. Just trust me. They’re on our side and they’re lethal.”

  “Good. We need lethal. Never thought I’d say this, me being a doctor and all, but he’s bringing this to me, not the other way around. I have the right to defend myself even if it means the police have no one living left to haul back into court.”

  Eli chipped out a nod. “My thoughts exactly. I’m not going vigilante, but I won’t hesitate to remove him from your life permanently if he comes ready to fight to the death.”

  “So, your locust friends are part of the team. I like that we have a back-up plan.”

  “I hate seeing you stressed, but I won’t lie to you. This was going to be a tight situation. But short of dropping in via chopper, I’ll be ready for him.”

  “His friend gave him a car. Doubt they own a chopper.” I couldn’t help glancing up at the inky sky. Pitch dark, speckled with a billion stars. The moon hung high and heavy, nearly full. Only a few clouds broke up the sky. The moonlight would be to our benefit—and work against us. Russell would see us as easily as we’d see him.

  Eli finished mounting the camera and stepped back to make sure it was well-hidden.

  “I can’t see it,” I said, hands on my hips. “And I doubt he’ll examine every tree along the way. That would take him days.”

  “My thought exactly. I’ll build a mesh network that’ll tie them together. They’ll work as a second team, coordinating with the locusts.”

  “Your locusts don’t fire laser beams, either, I assume, but do they come armed?”

  “Unfortunately, not yet.” He pulled a handgun from the back of his waist. “I’ve got this plus a few shotguns. We’ll be prepared for him if he makes it past the fortress I intend to surround you with.”

  I liked that. Staring down the road, I hoped I wouldn’t see lights from a vehicle coming our way. Eli said it would take time to get ready, and I wanted us securely hidden before Russell arrived.

  I only hoped we’d make it out of this alive.

  26

  Eli

  We got back into the Jeep and continued, stopping periodically for me to mount more cameras. Eventually, we reached the end of the road and I turned onto an overgrown track. Five hundred yards in, I parked and shut off the engine. “We’re here.”

  “Custer’s last stand?”

  “We’re savvier than Custer.”

  “Sure hope so.” Mia squinted through the window. Wildly wooded land surrounded us, filled with old tree growth. This area hadn’t seen a chainsaw since before I was born.

  We were miles in from the main road. Nice and isolated. Exactly the way I liked it.

  It was time for a showdown and this time, it would be on my terms. My territory.

  “Where to next?” Mia unbuckled and opened her door. “I assume we walk from here.”

  “Yep.” I joined her at the back of my Jeep, where I handed her my small bag to carry. I hefted the larger box I’d packed back at the shop. I’d come back for everything else after I got Mia settled in the cabin. I nudged my head toward a barely discernible trail leading into the woods. “Follow me.” I trooped through a thin strip of deep grass growing along the road and took the trail weaving through tall tree growth, following faint steps created by deer or maybe even a bear.

  “No one has been here for some time,” Mia said.

  “Nope. Not with gran dead and my grandfather in the nursing home. Other than the kid I hire to bring out a mower, no one’s been here for years.”

  “I assume we’ll have to de-tick ourselves when we arrive.”

  “Yep.”

  She shivered. “Never did like bugs.”

  We arrived at a small, open field. Over the years, I’d paid the kid to drive down here and mow the grass each summer. I hadn’t wanted it overgrowing with scruff. The forest would take the land back within a few years if I didn’t keep it groomed. Mom had spent her summers here, too, and she loved the place. Hoped to come up here a lot more once she’d retired.

  The two-room cabin sat on the far side of the field ringed with long overgrown flower beds Gran had kept filled with hollyhocks and day lilies when I was a kid. It pleased me to see a few straggling flowers blooming even after she was no longer around to tend them.

  Hard to believe such an idyllic location might soon become my own personal battle zone.

  A DEA agent, huh? He’d be a formidable opponent.

  The rustic cabin, built from hand-hewn logs by my grandfather, held the last of my good memories. I’d practically grown up here. My grandparents would sleep in the tiny bedroom on the back while I’d take the couch in the main room. I hadn’t cared where I’d slept. Camp meant getting away from life. Fun.

  Grandpa would get up early and make pancakes, saying we could let Gran sleep in as long as she pleased. But she never did. She’d emerge as soon as the sweet, maple smell hit the air. Standing in the doorway dressed in her long cotton nightie, her bare feet planted on the hardwood floor, she’d smile. “My boys,” she’d always say before joining us at the small kitchen table and digging in with gusto. “You sure know how to please an old woman’s heart.”

  Maybe, when all this was settled, I’d bring Mia back here for a long weekend. I’d let her sleep in. And in the morning, I’d make her pancakes.

  We crossed the field, our feet crunching on the dry, stubbly grass.

  A few feet away, Mia stopped and stared at the cabin. “You said we’re not going to barricade ourselves inside.”

  “Remember? Decoy.”

  “Where will we hide?”

  “Where he’ll never find us. We’re going wild.” I unlocked and held the front door open for her.

  “You mean we’re going to run through the woods with sticks? Live off the land?”

  Not a bad idea as long as I was with Mia, but… “Something even better than all that.”

  She turned in the small living room, standing on the oval braided rug Gran had made, facing me. “Any hints?”

  “I’ll show you soon enough. I’m going to set up a few surprises for Russell, first.” I lowered the box onto the kitchen table and started pulling things out.

  “Booby traps,” she said with a gusty sigh. “I like this.”

  When her eyes gleamed, my heart did, too.

  Sliding off the empty pack I’d carried on my back, I started filling it.

  Mia ticked off the items as I dropped them inside. “Hatchet. Check. And…is that fishing line?”

  I held up the small spool. “It’s clear.”

  “Of course, it is. The fish would see it if it was pink.” She chuckled nervously.

  “As you wisely pointed out, clear’s nearly impossible to see.”

  She frowned. “Okay.” Poking inside the box, she held up a machete. “Can I keep this here with me?”

  I took it from her and slid it into the sheath hanging from my belt. “Once I’m done with it, it’s yours.” I added a set of sheathed steak knives to my pack.

  “So much for the barbeque.”

  “Definitely in our future.”

  She paused and blinked fast. “We do have a future.”

  “Never doubt it.” I’d make sure it happened.

  Mia pulled three long blue strips of rubber from the box. “Exercise bands. I know you love working out, but isn’t this taking it a little far?”

  Taking them from her, I flexed my arms, stretching the bands until they thinned. Showing off a little, but hell, I did love the gleam that came to her eyes whenever she looked at me. “These will come in handy.”

  She rolled her eyes and dug back inside the box, while I coiled up the bands and tucked them into my bag.

  “A nail file,” she said, handing it over without question. “Everyone needs one of those.” Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out a pen. “I feel as if I should contribute. How about this?”

  I took it from her and dropped it into the bag. “Great idea.”

  “I w
as just kidding.”

  “I’m not.”

  After zipping up the bag, I hefted it onto my back. “I’m going to step outside for a bit. Slide the bar down over the door after I leave.”

  Arms crossing on her chest, she nodded. “I’ll, um…” She glanced around. “Take care of the cobwebs.” Shuddering, she grabbed the broom from where it leaned beside the door. “And de-tick myself.” Another shudder.

  I stepped outside and waited until the bar thudded into place behind me.

  It was time to create a few surprises.

  A few hours later, when dawn was cresting the horizon, I finished. I tossed the empty backpack inside the Jeep and went around to the back bumper.

  “Okay, creep,” I growled. “It’s time for you to come get what you’ve been seeking.”

  It sure as hell wasn’t Mia.

  Reaching down underneath my bumper, I removed the magnet.

  27

  Mia

  Hours passed, and I knew I ought to be worried. Anyone would be if they had a relentless, vengeance-seeking ex-boyfriend hunting them down.

  But, for the first time in a long time, I felt in control. While I’d been scared to come this far from home to a place where I knew we’d force a stand-off, as I’d waited for Eli, I’d changed. Yes, the isolated location was scary, but inside me, I had the strength to deal with it. While I hadn’t realized it was there, it had grown inside me over the past few months.

  I’d found myself again.

  Maybe it helped that I didn’t face this alone. I had someone I loved to stand beside me when I faced my demons. And, while Eli had picked the location and timing, when we faced Russell, I’d have my back to Eli’s. Nothing and no one would do us harm. We were a team.

  Eli’s quick knock, followed by him calling out, told me he’d returned. I slid the deadbolt and opened the door. When he stepped inside, he brought with him a burst of fresh air and early-morning sunshine. Happy smells for a frightening time, but I drank them in and smiled.

  “All set,” he said.

  “Almost.” I extended my hand, and with a grin, he handed me the machete and the sheath I could wrap around my waist. After dropping them on the table, I strode back up to him and rose onto my toes. Pressed myself against him. I stroked his hair, his neck, his back. I kissed him. I’d never be able to kiss him enough. I wasn’t afraid to admit that I clung to his shoulders. He was warmth and kindness and everything I needed.

  Leaning back, he stared down at me, his eyes rich deep brown. He slid his knuckles along my face and fingered my hair. His grin heated me straight through. “You ready to check out my treehouse?”

  My heart glowed. “Is that like taking me back to your place to view your etchings?”

  “Even better.”

  I took his hand and linked our fingers. “You lead. I’ll follow.”

  “We’ll lead together.”

  My eyes stung, but I brushed away my tears.

  “Grab your things.” He hefted his bag onto his shoulder. “We’re not returning to the cabin.”

  We went outside and he locked the door.

  I checked my phone. Five a.m.

  “He’ll be here soon,” Eli said. “I expect him within the hour.”

  Stilling, I squinted into the woods that surrounded us but saw no movement. How would he come for us? Would he rush across the field with bullets blazing? Or would he be stealthy, creeping low to the ground, a knife in his hand? I fingered the hilt of my machete. No matter how he attacked, I was prepared.

  Sometimes, the prey won, too. It was past time to take down the hunter.

  We crossed the field, the dried grass crunching beneath my sneakers. Eli opened the back hatch of his Jeep. He pulled out a long, black rifle.

  “I wish we’d brought a cannon,” I said.

  Eli paused, and his lips curled up on one side. “Thought the same thing but it wouldn’t fit in my Jeep.”

  Bags in hand, we crossed the field again, passing the cabin on our left. After a few steps more, Eli stopped and gazed at the ground.

  “We lost?” I asked.

  He scowled, but it held no kick. “Not in the slightest.” While listening each time he placed his feet, he stomped in widening arcs.

  “We’re making crop circles, then.” I didn’t know where my stand-up comedy routine had come from, but I welcomed it. A little humor made the tense situation bearable.

  “Trying to find the opening to my treehouse.”

  I flicked my hand toward the woods. “Maybe we should start with a tree.”

  “Platforms in trees are for sissies.”

  Sissies, huh? I twisted my lips. “Flint had one.”

  He smirked and stomped his feet again. “My point exactly.”

  Like an old-fashioned school teacher, I shook a finger at him. “I’m going to tell Flint you called him a sissy.”

  Eli’s fingers darted for my waist, but I giggled and stepped back, evading his touch.

  “Tell your brother,” he said. “And I’ll give you a tickling you’ll never forget.”

  “Throw in playing doctor, and I’ll keep my mouth shut.”

  “Not if I’m a good doctor.”

  While I sputtered and tried to regain the use of my tongue—and ignore the heat spiking through me because this was so not the time—Eli smacked his feet on the ground some more.

  “Ah-ha.” Stooping down onto his heels, he brushed at the grass. He grunted and lifted something solid, and bits of long grass ripped as it tore.

  A hatch. To a hole in the ground. A black hole in the ground.

  “That’s no treehouse,” I said, my heart thudding dully. My humor had fled, replaced by rising fear. Moments ago, I’d felt in control. One challenge, and it slipped through my fingers like ground pepper.

  “I told you I was a wild kid,” he said. “After I built a bomb in my parent’s basement, Mom kicked me out. Not completely. She said that if I was going to do things like that on a regular basis, I needed to take my activities out of the house.”

  “You built a bomb in your mom’s basement.”

  “Exploded it, too. Made a mess.”

  I could only imagine. “The house is still standing.”

  “It was a small bomb.” Lowering the hatch onto its back, he stared down into the hole. “I spent a bunch of summers digging a pit here, turning it into my version of a treehouse. Fixed it up slick. Spent more time out there than inside. Hence, my grandmother calling me wild.”

  Who was this man? Wild, for sure. Despite my dread, his enthusiasm called to a wildness inside me. If I could just find the courage to grab onto it and make it my own.

  Creeping forward, I joined him, staring down. Echoes of the interrogation room in Mexico crowded into my mind, shoving aside my baby burst of self-confidence.

  Eli bowed and swept his hand toward the opening. “Your accommodations await you, my lady.”

  Shivers racked my frame. I crossed my arms and pinched my elbows. “I can’t go down there.”

  He tilted his head, his brow narrowing. “Oh. You worried about spiders? Let me check first.” Stomping down the rickety wooden stairs, he disappeared inside. “Looks okay to me,” he called up. “Not much water damage, which is surprising, considering how much time has passed.” He poked his head into the early sunlight slanting through the trees. A cobweb draped across his hair, and, with a laugh, he brushed it aside. “Come on. You’re going to love this.”

  I wished his excitement could damp down my nervousness, but my quakes grew stronger. “It’s a big hole in the ground.” We’d be trapped inside there. Russell would trap me and I wouldn’t be able to escape.

  “It’s cool. I reinforced it with pressure-treated beams. Put in a subfloor. Gran said all I needed was a cook stove and a sleeping bag and I’d be set for life. Have to admit, I slept out here a lot.”

  Didn’t he understand? “I can’t. I…I’m sorry.” I hung my head, knowing I was disappointing him. Disappointing myself.

 
He climbed back up to ground level. Unlinking my arms, he slid his hands down to take mine, linking us together. He squeezed gently. “Mia? Tell me what’s wrong.”

  “The hole. It’s…What if he finds us? We’ll have no way to run.” My words stuttered out, and my ribs ached as if they’d been punched all over again. “He’ll kill me this time.”

  “I won’t make you do anything you’re not comfortable with.” Releasing my hands, he gathered me into his arms and rested his chin on the top of my head. The vibration of his words hummed through me. Like always, he gave everything he had inside himself to me. “We’ll hide somewhere else.”

  This was wrong, and I hated that I’d driven us to it. He’d set into motion a foolproof plan and, if it failed now, I’d be the reason. How could I let him down?

  No, how could I let myself down?

  Pulling out of his arms, I tipped my head back. Eyes closing, I let the warmth of the rising sun sink into me, bathing me from my head to my toes. I listened to the wind in the trees. It lifted my hair as it passed, and I released my fear along with the wind. Because, really, I’d never truly lost control of the situation with Russell. I just had to retake the reins.

  “Everything okay?” Eli asked. He studied my face then nodded as if he saw something I’d only just realized.

  I took his hand and though my smile wavered, it grew stronger until it blazed on my face. “Why don’t you show me your treehouse?”

  28

  Eli

  I led Mia down into my underground treehouse.

  “Oh, my. That’s a lot of stairs,” she said, her voice tight.

  “Twelve.”

  “You wanted it deep.”

  I snorted. Shouldn’t be thinking about sex at a time like this. I strove for a normal tone. “Wanted to get below the frost line. Makes it cooler in the summer. Nature’s air conditioning.”

  “Lovely.” Her voice suggested anything but.

  I snapped two glow sticks and laid them in the back corners. “These’ll keep us from stumbling into each other but won’t be visible from above.” A long silence followed. I wished I could see her face, read her mood. “You’re okay with this?”