Noah Wolf Box Set 2

by David Archer

  “We’re good,” Noah said. “I just want to do my job, that’s all.”

  “And on that note,” Forney said, standing behind Noah, “I’ve got a few people waiting in the hall for you to meet. Ready?”

  “Jimmy?” Noah looked to Morgan for permission, and Morgan nodded. He turned and followed Forney out into the hall, where four large men were waiting.

  “Guys,” Forney said, “this is Rex Madison. Like I told you, Jimmy just put him in charge of Ralphie’s security, and he’s looking for a few good men.” A couple of the men snickered at the Marine Corps reference. “Rex, this is Jake, David, Brendan, and Shawn. I’ve been knowing them pretty much all my life, and they’re not only pretty stout, every single one of them has a brain in his head. I thought they might be useful to you because you could put one of these guys in charge of a crew and then relax.”

  Noah looked them over and nodded. “That would give me one for each shift, and two guys to cover days off. Good thinking, but don’t expect to get yourself out of this.”

  Forney laughed. “Thought never crossed my mind, boss,” he said. “I’ll do whatever you tell me to do; I just thought these guys would be beneficial.”

  Noah smiled at him. “Okay. For today, I want two of these men—Jake and Shawn—with me on the day shift. David, we’ll find a couple of guys to put with you for the evening, and Brendan can run the graveyard shift.” He gave each of the men his cell number and make sure they all had one another’s. “David, you call me at four, and I’ll let you know where to meet up and take over. Brendan can call you at midnight, and I’ll find him in the morning.”

  “Sounds good, boss,” David said.

  Brendan extended a hand, and Noah accepted it. “Thanks for this, Rex,” he said. “Scott’s been trying to get me moved up out of the grunt department.”

  “Well, I’m giving you the chance because of his endorsement. The job description is very simple: we don’t let anybody hurt the kid. If that means you have to take the bullet, you do it. I suspect that would be better than trying to face Jimmy if anything happened to Ralph, anyway.”

  Brendan chuckled. “I can personally guarantee it,” he said.

  The two men left to go and prepare themselves for their shifts, and Noah beckoned Jake and Shawn into the hospital room. Just before he followed them, he turned to Forney.

  “Think you can find a couple of reliable guys to put under each of them? And we’ll need people for off days. The last thing I need is for security guys to get exhausted, so I don’t want anybody working more than five days straight.”

  Forney grinned. “Other than yourself, you mean?”

  Noah shot the grin back at him. “Comes with the job, man.”

  “I know a few guys,” Forney said. “I’ll have to steal them from other crews, but Jimmy won’t mind. I’ll get them all gathered up, and you can meet them this afternoon, okay?”

  “Sounds good,” Noah said. “Let me know where and when.” He turned and walked into the room, while Forney started down the hall.

  Jimmy was joking with the two new men when Noah got inside. “Rex, you’re already stealing some of my best guys,” he said gruffly when he saw Noah, but then he cracked a smile. “Relax, I’m yanking your chain. I told you to pick whoever you wanted, I meant it. These are good boys, here.”

  He turned around and looked at his son, then slapped him gently on the cheek. “I’m gonna go,” he said. “I’ll see you at home tonight?”

  “Sometime,” Ralph said. “I want to see Darlene tonight, too. She was going to come up and see me yesterday, but I told her to wait. Didn’t want her to see me looking weak, you know?”

  “Damn right,” Jimmy said. “Never let them see you in a moment of weakness. You just behave yourself, and make sure you don’t give your security any problems.” He patted Noah on the shoulder and walked out of the room.

  It turned out that Ralph already knew both Jake and Shawn and grudgingly admitted that he could stand having them to hang out with. “At least they’re not assholes,” he said. “I just don’t want anybody hitting on my girl or making nasty comments when we—do the horizontal hula.” He threw a grin at Noah.

  Noah nodded and grinned back, then turned to the other men. “I’ll make that an order,” he said. “When Ralph and his girl are together, I want you paying more attention to what’s going on around you than to what they’re doing. Okay?”

  Both men were stifling grins of their own, but they solemnly promised not to try to watch.

  “Good,” Noah said. “What you carry for hardware?”

  Jake swung his jacket out so Noah could see the nickel-plated Glock 40 on his belt, and Shawn did likewise, displaying a pair of compact revolvers.

  “Thirty eights,” he said. “I just do better with revolvers, but they don’t hold as many rounds, so I carry a spare.”

  “Fine by me,” Noah said. “Just as long as you know how to use them.” He turned to Ralph. “I’m planning to keep three men on you at all times. Two will be your shadows, and the third will be in charge but somewhere out of sight most of the time. During the daytime, I’ll be with you most of the time, as well.”

  Ralph shrugged. “Ain’t like I get a say in it, right?” He tried to sound cheerful, but Noah detected a hint of resentment in the comment.

  “Probably no more than I do,” he said. “Look, Ralph, this is just a job to me, but I’d really prefer if we get along. It’ll make both our lives easier, don’t you think?”

  Ralph rolled his eyes but managed another grin. “Yeah, that makes sense. It ain’t like I got nothing against you, not really, I just never thought I’d be having to have babysitters again. Know what I mean?”

  “We’ll do our bests to be unobtrusive. Now, you’re supposed to be getting out of here today?”

  “So they told me yesterday,” Ralph said. “Doc usually comes through here around nine, so it shouldn’t be much longer.”

  “Cool,” Noah said. “Meanwhile, I need a cup of coffee.” He turned to Shawn and handed him a ten-dollar bill. “They’ve got some kind of a cafeteria downstairs; I saw the sign when I came in. Go fetch us each a cup. Ralph, you want one?”

  The boy shook his head. “No, but I can sure stand a Mountain Dew.”

  “And a Mountain Dew,” Noah said. Shawn nodded, took the money, and left the room.

  The next ninety minutes were spent just waiting for the doctor, and he finally showed up at just a little past nine. He talked to Ralph for a couple of minutes, then told him he could start getting dressed and ready to leave. “I’ll sign the release, and the nurse will be in in a few minutes. I’m giving you something for the headaches you’re bound to have, but other than that you’re good to go.”

  “About time,” Ralph said. He threw off the sheet and climbed out of the bed, digging in the little nightstand for his clothes, then carried them into the bathroom to get dressed. He was out a few minutes later, just as the nurse entered the room.

  “Doctor says you’re supposed to take it easy for couple of days,” she said, “and he gave you a prescription for a mild painkiller. Sign here, and here, and then you can leave.”

  Ralph signed where he was told, and Noah sent Jake out ahead of them. He made a mental note to purchase some radios, the type used by other security teams, and train the men in their operation. For the moment, he just had to count on hearing any gunshots if Jake ran into a problem.

  Shawn had driven his own car to the hospital, so Noah told Jake to ride with him while escorting Ralph to the Charger. The boy’s eyes grew wide when they approached the car, and he just about fainted when Noah started it up.

  “Man, this is awesome,” he said. “You want to sell it?”

  Noah grinned at him. “You don’t have enough money,” he said. “This is my baby.”

  “You sure about that?” Ralph asked with a laugh. “Money isn’t exactly a problem for me.”

  “Just trust me on this.” Noah cruised through town at normal speeds, th
en looked over at Ralph when they got to the town square. “Anywhere in particular you want to go right now?”

  “Yeah, home,” the boy said. “I need to get changed. This shirt still has blood on it.”

  “Cool. Where is home?”

  “Go out to the Outpost and hang a right. I’ll show you from there.”

  The Outpost was a service station and convenience store almost a mile out of town toward Eureka Springs. Noah opened the car up a little bit when they got outside the city limits, and Ralph laughed with delight. He slowed again to make the turn, but the two-lane county road was almost perfectly straight for quite a way, so he punched the accelerator and the car leaped forward, rear tires screaming.

  The acceleration slammed them both back into their seats, and Ralph gripped his armrest. “Holy shit,” he yelled. “This is incredible. What’s under the hood?”

  “Hemi,” Noah said. “Five hundred and forty cubic inches and over nine hundred horsepower.” He shrugged. “It does all right.”

  “All right? Dude, you gotta take this out to the drag strip. You will mop the floor with everybody else!”

  Noah laughed. “Maybe someday,” he said. “Might be fun.”

  “Yeah, okay, but slow down. That’s my turn up there. Hang a right.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  Noah turned where the boy had indicated and saw the house they were headed to off in the distance. The driveway was almost a mile long and looked like a nicely paved road. He pulled up in front and got out, with Shawn’s late-model Camaro parking right behind him.

  “You guys can wait out here,” Noah said. “He’s just going to change, so we shouldn’t be long.”

  “Yes, sir,” Shawn replied, and Jake echoed him.

  Noah followed Ralph into the house, and they were instantly greeted by a small, gray-haired woman. “Hey, Marlene,” Ralph said. “Just running in to change clothes.”

  Marlene caught him before he could get to the stairs and grabbed him by his shoulders. “You just hold on a minute, young man,” she said. “What you mean, giving an old woman a scare like that? That isn’t good for me, you know.”

  Ralph smiled and gave her a hug. “I’m fine, Marlene.” He turned her so she was facing Noah. “This is Rex—he’s the guy who saved my life. Pa hired him to run my security from now on, so you might as well get used to seeing him around.”

  She let go of Ralph and instantly threw her arms around Noah. “I heard about you, I heard what you did,” she said. “Thank you, thank you so much. I’ve been taking care of this boy since he was a baby; I don’t know what I would do if something happened to him.”

  Noah smiled and returned the hug. “I was just in the right place at the right time, ma’am,” he said. “But now it’s my job, so I’ll make a point of taking care of him for you.”

  The short little woman squeezed him tighter for a second, then patted him on the shoulder as she let go. “Thank you,” she said. “Thank you so much.”

  She turned and headed into another part of the house, and Ralph started up the stairs. Noah followed, looking around at the grandeur of the mansion. It appeared to be relatively new, but the architecture was impressive. The house was built almost entirely of stone, and there was a small waterfall flowing down the wall opposite the stairway.

  “Nice place,” he said.

  “Yeah, Pa built it back when I was little. It’s pretty nice, I guess.”

  They reached the top of the staircase, and Ralph entered the first door on the left. Noah followed him inside, and the boy turned and looked at him.

  “You really gotta stand here while I change?”

  “Your dad said I’m not supposed let you out of my sight,” Noah said, “but you can step into the bathroom if you want. Just don’t try going out the window. I’m pretty easygoing, but I can get awfully pissed if I feel like I’m being played.”

  Ralph grinned ruefully and shook his head. “Okay, okay,” he said. “Be right back.” He grabbed some clothes out of his dresser and stepped into the bathroom that was attached to his room. Noah could hear him moving around inside for a moment, and then he was back. He pulled his belt out of the pants he had taken off and threaded it through the loops, then looked up at Noah again.

  “So, I’m supposed to be taking over from Ronnie Sneed,” he said. “I figure we might as well go on out and talk to him today, start the whole transition thing, right?”

  Noah nodded. “If that’s the plan,” he said. “Tell me about Sneed.”

  Ralph led the way out the door and started down the stairs. “Ronnie’s been with the old man probably longer than anybody else,” he said. “Back in the day, he was part of how everything got started. That was with him and some others boosting cars and bringing them into the yard to cut up. Him and Pa got to be good friends, and Pa put him in charge of running the drug operation when he took it over. That was before my time, of course, but I’ve heard the stories over and over.”

  Marlene was nowhere in sight when they got to the ground floor, so Noah followed Ralph out the door. Jake and Shawn had been leaning against Shawn’s car, but they snapped to attention as Noah came out the door.

  Noah looked at Shawn. “Ralph needs to go see Ronnie Sneed. I want you to lead the way, and we’ll follow.”

  “Yes, sir,” Shawn said, and he and Jake got back into his car as Noah and Ralph climbed into the Charger. Shawn pulled out and swung around, and Noah fell in behind.

  * * * * *

  “Is that everything?” Sarah asked.

  Wally looked at the two men who were loading the trailer, and they nodded. “Looks like that’s all of it,” he said. “Just be sure to drive carefully. Have you ever pulled a trailer before?”

  Sarah chuckled at him. “I’ve driven a Freightliner with a fifty-seven-foot trailer,” I said. “My dad taught me when I was fifteen. I’m pretty sure I can handle a sixteen-footer.”

  Wally grinned back. “Yes, I’m sure you can. I’m also sure you’re ready to get on the road, so don’t let me keep you. I just want you to drive safe and be careful.”

  “I will,” she said. She looked around at Neil, who was already climbing into the passenger seat, and slid in behind the wheel. She powered down the window and smiled up at Wally one more time. “I guess we’ll see you when we see you,” she said.

  Wally waved as she drove away. He was sure she wasn’t terribly happy with the car they had provided, but his understanding of the character of Angie Madison was that she was a simple type of girl. Sarah was leaving her Camaro behind and driving off to Arkansas in a ten-year-old Ford Explorer.

  Of course, Wally’s automotive crew didn’t leave anything to chance. While the SUV looked like a typical one, it had been built to crank out well over six hundred horsepower. If it came down to it, the little SUV could probably outrun most late-model Corvettes.

  Sarah looked over at Neil. “You got everything? We need to make any other stops before we leave?”

  “I’m good,” the skinny kid said. “Jenny left this morning on a mission of her own, so I’m ready to hit the road.”

  Sarah smiled and tapped the horn twice as they passed at the security gate, waving at the guard on duty. Most of the guards at R&D were familiar with her by now, and this one smiled and waved as they drove past.

  The R&D center was on the north end of Kirtland, but there was a bypass road that took them around the city and straight to the interstate. It added about ten miles, but the lack of traffic lights made it popular. Sarah chose it and watched the trailer in her rearview mirror as she pressed down on the accelerator.

  “It tracks pretty well,” she said. “Doesn’t wiggle around; that’s a plus.”

  Neil had been looking down at the computer on his lap, and he looked up into her face with an expression of confusion. “Wiggle?”

  “The trailer,” Sarah said. “A lot of smaller ones like this tend to wiggle around a bit. Sometimes it’s because of the way they get loaded; sometimes it’s just because the
re’s something not balanced right in the load. I think we’ve got everything loaded properly, though.”

  Neil looked over his shoulder into the back window. The covered trailer was just a normal rental unit, the kind you see at dealerships all over the country. Sarah had gone and picked it up that morning, using her new ID and credit cards to pay for it.

  “Looks fine to me,” Neil said.

  “That’s what I said, it’s fine. It shouldn’t slow us down at all.”

  Neil grinned at her. “Aww,” he said, “are you missing your hubby?”

  Sarah grinned, but there was a slight pinkish tint to her face all of a sudden. “You bet your ass,” she said. “Noah—I mean, Rex—isn’t going to know what hit him when I get there.”

  “Good grief, he hasn’t even been gone a whole week yet.”

  “Yeah, well, after the last few months even a day is too long. Now that he’s mine, I want to take advantage of it every minute I can.”

  “Speaking of which,” Neil said, “aren’t you going to call and tell him we’re on the road? As you just sort of pointed out with the name slip, we’re supposed to be in character now. Wouldn’t it be normal to call and say, ‘Hey, lover boy, we just got on the road?’ I’m pretty sure that would be normal, don’t you think?”

  Sarah stuck her tongue out at him. “Yes, and you’re definitely in character. You’re already being the annoying kid brother.” She picked up her phone off the console between the front seats and hit the icon that would call Noah directly.

  The answer on the second ring. “Hey, Angie,” he said. “How’s it going?”

  “About sixty-five at the moment,” Sarah said. “Just wanted let you know that we are on the way. It took a little longer to get the trailer and loaded than I thought, so my GPS says we wouldn’t get there before about two o’clock in the morning. I’m thinking about driving straight through, what you think, babe?”

  “That sounds like an awfully long drive,” Noah replied. “Don’t you think you ought to stop and get a room somewhere on the way? Maybe Kansas City—you could be there by ten o’clock, probably. Get some sleep and come on down tomorrow?”