Wheels of Justice (Fortress Security Book 4)

by Rebecca Deel

  “Gunshot?” Lily sat up. “What happened?”

  “Long story. I’ll fill you in at the house.”

  Once they were back in the van, Rio led them down a couple of streets before parking in front of a ranch-style house, leaving Remy a place to park in the driveway. The medic climbed from his SUV and scanned the area before signaling the all-clear.

  Inside the house, Rio grabbed the coffee table. “I’ll be right back.” When he returned without the table, he said, “Let me get Mason.” A minute later, a tall, broad-shouldered man hobbled into the living room, crutches under his arms. “This is Mason, my cousin. Mase, Remy and Lily Doucet, Zane Murphy, and Claire Walker.”

  Zane could see the family resemblance to Rio. Knowing his background helped explain Mason’s wariness in facing the four of them. He probably expected censure.

  Mason’s eyes widened as Rio introduced Zane. “You’re the Navy SEAL who saved Darcy.” He eased down to the couch, set aside his crutches, and shook hands with Zane. “Thank you for your help in December. Your information saved her life and mine.”

  He shifted his weight in the chair, ill at ease with the conversation. “I’m glad I could help. Rio’s a good friend and Darcy is becoming one.”

  “Zane manning the communication center at Fortress has saved a lot of operatives’ lives over the last year,” Lily said.

  “Thanks for letting us stay in your home,” Claire said. “I’m sorry we’re inconveniencing you.”

  “It’s no problem.” Mason turned to Rio. “Nate said if you show up early, he’ll put you to work in the kitchen.”

  The medic winced. “Oh, man. Maybe there’s an emergency somewhere. He knows I’m not worth much in the kitchen and I don’t want Darcy on her feet more than necessary tonight.”

  His cousin chuckled. “He said you’d say something like that. I think Nate has plans for you to chop and peel stuff.”

  “That I can do. Let me text Darcy and tell her we’ll be there a little sooner to pick her up.”

  Mason shook his head. “Not me, Rio. I’ll hang out at her house and keep my leg elevated.”

  “You sure? You know you’re always welcome to join us, Mason. The staff and trainees at PSI think of you as one of us.”

  “I know. I don’t mind meals with your teammates and their wives. Dealing with all of PSI is another story. I’m getting there, but tonight wouldn’t be a good setup for me. Next time, okay?”

  After a nod, Rio said, “Z, come with me. I’ll show you around and you can decide room assignments.”

  Zane’s lips twitched. A diplomatic way of letting him choose which room accommodated his needs better though he hated that it was a necessity these days. So much for giving Claire the first choice of rooms. He followed Rio down the hall to the back bedroom. Zane stopped just over the threshold. “This is your room.”

  “Yeah, it is. When I found out you were coming, I had Elliott Construction come in and widen the doorway to the bathroom.”

  “Fast work,” he murmured. He crossed the room to the bathroom and peered inside. Satisfaction zipped through him. This would definitely work for him.

  “Brian pulled a team of workers from the PSI dorm construction to do this.”

  He sighed. “I’m sorry to put you out this way.”

  “Don’t be. Remember, I’m the guy who takes care of injured teammates. Sometimes those teammates end up in wheelchairs for a time. This gives me a place to take care of them and accommodate wheelchairs until they’ve healed.”

  “Thanks, Rio.”

  “Where do you want Claire?”

  “Right across the hall from me.” He didn’t want her too far from his side in case trouble arose.

  “That’s the guest bedroom, which leaves Mason’s room for Remy and Lily, and surrounds Claire with her security team.” He withdrew a key from his pocket. “House key. Security code is 7452. Get settled while I show the Doucets and Claire where they will sleep.”

  Zane surveyed the room, pleased with the openness and lack of obstructions in his path. The bed also looked like the right height for him to handle without much difficulty. It would feel good to stretch out tonight. He had no intention of telling Claire he hadn’t slept much the night before, worried about her and uncomfortable on the sofa in the suite’s living room.

  His thoughts turned to the cookout. He wondered once again if he was making a major mistake taking his girlfriend to PSI. Adam’s teammates might be innocent in their leader’s disappearance. Then again, one or more of them could be involved up to their eyebrows. If they were, Zane would be placing Claire in the enemy’s sights. He’d just found her and he had no intention of losing her, no matter what obstacles or people stood in his way.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  Claire climbed from the van and looked around. So this was Personal Security International, the bodyguard training center for Fortress. She’d heard her brother talk about the good work Rio and his friends were doing. The place was impressive and massive. Acres of land set against rolling hills. New construction going on. Her eyebrows rose. A fake town? More training, she suspected.

  She bet the grounds would be beautiful when the weather warmed in a few weeks. Maybe she and Zane could return when the flowers were in bloom so she could take pictures. Did PSI have a website? Or maybe brochures that explained their training? If so, perhaps she might contribute a few pictures for them to use, allowing her to share her gift in photography and please Adam that she supported an arm of his company. If he stayed with them when he returned home. When, not if. She had to believe he was alive. Why else would two teams of kidnappers have been sent to grab her?

  “We need to go inside, sweetheart. I don’t want you this exposed.” Zane placed a warm hand against her lower back and nudged her forward gently. “Is everything okay?”

  She moved toward the facility’s entrance, Zane keeping pace with her. Lily walked to Claire’s right while her husband brought up the rear. “Do you know if PSI advertises, Zane?”

  “No advertising since they are an arm of Fortress. We operate on word of mouth. PSI does have a website. Why do you ask?”

  “Pictures. I’d love to take photos of the facility, maybe the trainees if I can get good shots without showing their faces.”

  “I’m sure they would appreciate any help they can get. Quinn developed the website.” Zane grinned. “It’s elementary, to say the least.”

  “Why didn’t you develop it for them?” Knowing what she did about Zane, Claire figured developing a website would be easy with his computer skills, unlike hers. She’d had to learn the hard way how to put together a website from books, Internet searches, and pestering patient friends who possessed more knowledge than she did, which was just about everybody.

  “About the time they needed the website, I was digging through the computer files of the human trafficking ring that abducted Dana and Brenna. The women and kids caught in that ring took priority.”

  “If you will introduce me to Quinn, I’ll talk to him about contributing a few pictures to their website. Maybe I can give him a hand tweaking that as well. I built my own.”

  “No kidding.” He sounded impressed.

  She smiled. “You checked my website, didn’t you?”

  “I did. It’s very classy. Your photographs are breathtaking, Claire.”

  High praise, indeed, from this skilled computer guru. She leaned down and brushed his mouth with hers before passing Remy to cross the threshold. Inside the building doorway, Claire scanned the interior. A slight smile curved her lips. For the PSI staff, minimal was evidently the decorating scheme of choice. Then again, their important work was done on the training field and maybe a classroom or two along with a gym.

  When she would have followed Lily down the hallway, Zane detained her with a touch.

  “Hold up a minute, baby.”

  She turned. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing right now. That might change in about a minute.”

  Claire m
oved closer and dropped her voice. “Why?”

  “The training staff and many of the students are Fortress employees. Gossip spreads like wildfire in every company, especially Fortress where lives hang in the balance and misplaced trust might cost your life or that of your teammates. I’ll be viewed with suspicion, even hostility.”

  “I expected as much, Zane.”

  “I’ll understand if you want to keep our relationship under wraps for a while so the hostility doesn’t spill onto you.”

  Temper sparked, chasing the chill from her body. “No. I’m not taking the easy way out.” She framed his handsome face with her hands. “We’re together and I’m not ashamed to claim you. In fact, I’m proud for my name to be linked with yours, Zane Murphy.”

  He tugged her head down the scant inch to bring her lips to his. “If that’s what you want, baby.”

  “Oh, yes. I want them all to know you’re mine.” And just wait until the first one tried to point out the foolishness of her choice. That person was in for a rant they wouldn’t soon forget. A polite clearing of the throat had Claire spinning to meet the first possible threat.

  A tall, heavily muscled man leaned against the wall, hazel eyes twinkling. “And here I was worried when I didn’t see you zipping into the gym, Z. I should have known you’d have a beautiful lady distracting you.”

  Zane’s hands curved around Claire’s waist and he eased her to his left side. He wrapped his arm around her. “Hello, Josh. Still keeping the streets of Otter Creek safe?”

  “Doing my best.” The man straightened from the wall and approached. He held out his hand to Claire. “You must be Claire Walker. I’m Josh Cahill, Del’s husband.”

  Relief flooded through her. A friend, then. “Adam has mentioned you and your team several times.” Her heart wrenched in her chest. Where was he?

  “We’ll find your brother,” Josh said, his voice soft. “Once we find the traitor, I promise you he will pay.”

  Claire blinked away the mist clouding her vision. “Thanks.”

  A nod, then he turned to Zane. “Everything is set. No one knows you’re here, Z. It could be ugly, buddy.” A warning glittered in Josh’s eyes.

  “She knows. Claire can handle it.”

  Warmth blossomed in her chest. In his world filled with macho men and strong, capable women, Zane’s declaration made Claire feel good. Although she might not be able to take a guy out in close quarters like Lily, she could make him hurt and wish he’d chosen an easier target. She sure wouldn’t wilt because of opposition or strong emotions from the Fortress employees who didn’t know better. They should have. Maybe Maddox needed to prune the roster at his company when Adam was home and Zane reinstated fully.

  “All right, then. How do you want to play your entrance?”

  “Together,” Claire said, daring Zane to dictate otherwise. “We do this together. I don’t want there to be a question in anyone’s mind that we’re a team.”

  He smiled at her, heat flickering in the depths of his brown eyes. “Agreed. Josh, you go first. We’ll be right behind you.”

  “The rest of Durango is stationed around the room. There are cameras set up in the gym to record for training purposes. We’ve already activated them.”

  “Excellent. Let’s do this. Claire, I need you to stay on my left side. If I tell you to drop, you hit the floor without hesitation.”

  She breathed away the panic wanting to swamp her. Showing up at this cookout had sounded like a great idea when she wasn’t face to face with the possibility that someone might be out to hurt Zane right in front of her. She didn’t doubt he would place himself in danger to protect her no matter the cost to himself. “Who will be looking out for you while I’m pretending to be a rug?”

  “We all will,” Josh assured her. “Zane is a good friend. All of us are armed and ready to protect you and him. He’s also more than capable of protecting himself.”

  Her heart sank. She closed her eyes a second, then said, “Could you give us a minute, please, Josh?”

  His eyebrows rose. “Sure.”

  Durango’s leader moved closer to the gym entrance, giving her and Zane privacy. As soon as Josh was far enough away, she turned and wrapped her arms around Zane’s neck, her mouth near his ear. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.

  His arm tightened around her waist. “Sorry for what, baby?”

  “My words sounded as if I don’t believe your skills are good enough to get the job done and that wasn’t my intention at all. You have a target on your back because of me. I care about you and I don’t want you hurt because you’re protecting me. That possibility didn’t hit me until just now. I don’t want anything to happen to you, Zane.”

  “Claire, look at me.”

  She lifted enough to stare into his eyes. The tenderness in them stirred up a gazillion butterflies in her stomach. Zane Murphy was special, all right.

  “My priority is you. Durango’s priority is me. Nothing will happen to either one of us tonight.” He gave her a gentle kiss. “You ready?”

  She drew in a deep breath and straightened. “Let’s get this done.” Claire dropped her hand to his left shoulder. They crossed the lobby and stopped when they reached Josh.

  “Go,” Zane said, voice soft, an air of confidence surrounding him.

  Claire took comfort in that. Determination filled her. Someone in that room might be responsible for her brother’s disappearance. Let the hunt begin.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  Zane followed Josh, giving his friend room to maneuver if necessary. Hopefully not. Talk about a suicide mission. Durango could target anyone in this gym without any collateral damage. Even the other PSI instructors didn’t know what this Delta team was capable of.

  Josh entered the gym and stepped to the right, allowing Zane to see the crowd. Conversations around the cavernous room faded away. More than one person turned to see the cause of the silence. As he expected, glares and scowls came his way. Thankfully, no bullets. At least not yet. His lip curled. The night was still young.

  Claire’s hand squeezed his shoulder. She lifted her chin in defiance as she scanned the room, making eye contact with each person. His girl was a fierce little thing. Of course, he already knew that since Claire took on the first kidnappers with nothing more than her brain and a cell phone.

  He made a mental note of every person’s position in the gym, especially his friends, who surveyed the crowd’s reactions, body language conveying their anger at the hostility directed his way.

  “Got a problem?” Josh asked, voice cool, his gaze touching every person in the room.

  Leave it to a cop to face a situation head on. Then again, he was the leader of Durango, the team tasked with training bodyguards for Fortress. That made him the head of PSI. No one said anything.

  “Didn’t think so. You have a problem with Z being here, you’re free to leave.” A cold smile crossed Josh’s face. “Then you will report to me first thing tomorrow morning so we can process the paperwork for your separation from PSI and Fortress.”

  Whoa. Definitely hadn’t expected that declaration. Several people turned away and whispered conversations swirled around the gym. The only lingering hostile glances were from Adam’s team.

  “What a way to kill a party,” Zane murmured to Josh.

  “I don’t have time for stupidity and I don’t want them at my back on a mission.” Josh inclined his head toward the tables laden with food. “Nate’s waiting for you and Claire. Does she have any dietary restrictions?”

  Zane froze, glanced at her. So much had been going on, he hadn’t even asked if she was allergic to anything or hated something. She winked and shook her head. He breathed easier. “She and Lily have twin appetites.”

  The other man chuckled. “Anything in front of them is fair game? Makes Nate’s job easier. He had to create a couple extra dishes for Darcy.” He led the way to the food table, introduced Claire, and left them in Nate’s capable hands.

  “We put two tables t
ogether so you and Claire can eat with us,” Nate murmured. “Stella’s anxious to catch up with you and meet your lady.”

  “How’s my favorite detective?”

  He grinned. “Fantastic. Don’t tell on me, but I’m falling more in love with her every day.” Durango’s EOD man sobered. “Thanks for what you did in December, Z. I still wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat, remembering how close I came to losing her.”

  Nate’s declaration stunned him. He was known company-wide and in the spec ops community for being steady handed and cool under fire. Zane shrugged one shoulder. “You would do the same for me.” His gaze shifted to Claire. He hoped he didn’t need to utilize his friend’s talents to save Claire.

  Nate handed Zane, Claire, Remy, and Lily plates. “Choose whatever you want. There’s plenty. Sorry, Remy, but there are no Cajun dishes.”

  “Too bad. You and Stella should come home with me. My mother would love to have you in her kitchen. She enjoys teaching people how to fix Cajun dishes.”

  “Boy, do I know that,” Lily muttered.

  Nate chuckled. “We might do that. I’d love to learn a few dishes from her.” He motioned to the far corner of the gym. “We set up our tables with our backs to the wall, just in case the fur started to fly when Zane made an appearance.”

  “Smart.” Lily covered her hamburger with the top of the bun. “What are the chances we’ll throw punches before the night’s out?”

  “Better than fifty percent,” Nate said, disgust evident in his tone. “We don’t need operatives that stupid in the field, Lily. It’s better to learn the truth now and weed them out.”

  “Roger that,” Remy murmured. “Soft drinks, water?”

  “In the coolers at the end of the line.”

  On the way to their table, the whispers rose in volume enough for Zane to hear more than one person call him a traitor. Claire stopped, scowling. “No, baby, keep going,” he murmured.

  “They’re idiots,” she said.

  “No argument on my part.” They finished the journey across the gym to find Durango had arranged the tables so he could maneuver his chair easily and keep his back to the wall, allowing him to monitor anyone who approached Claire. Those men understood the stakes. Zane could handle whatever the Fortress people dished out. His concern was his girlfriend’s safety. He didn’t want her in the line of fire. If Adam’s life wasn’t hanging in the balance, Zane wouldn’t risk her this way. Every second counted and if they didn’t find Adam soon, they would lose him forever.