Deadly Game

by Rebecca Deel

  Huh. Not what she’d expected him to say. Maybe this situation was connected to Fortress instead of Alexa’s kidnapping.

  Remy glanced at Brent before returning his attention to the front window. “Carstairs?”

  “That’s my guess, but we’ll find out for sure once Zane checks the security feed at the perimeter of the property.”

  “There are security cameras here?” Rowan hadn’t noticed any when they parked at the back of the house. Then again, each time she and Brent drove to the house, it was dark outside.

  “I wouldn’t bring you to a safe house without the best security in place, sweetheart.”

  And yet they were still under attack. That told her whoever was out there must not have driven up where they could be seen. Rowan scanned the room. “Where’s Lily?” Surely the other woman wasn’t sleeping through all the ruckus. Rowan was glad the neighbors weren’t close by. Less chance of a stray bullet hitting an innocent person’s home, possibly injuring or killing someone.

  “Keeping an eye on our six.”

  Brent’s cell signaled an incoming call. “Zane.” He tapped the screen. “You’re on speaker.”

  “Five men confirmed. Three in the front, two in the back. They parked a quarter mile away and walked in.”

  “Can you identify them?”

  “Carstairs and his cronies. Guess our boys didn’t learn their lesson at PSI.”

  “How much time do we have before the cops arrive?”

  “Ten minutes. The Brentwood PD is dealing with a hostage situation so the responding officers are coming from the other side of town.”

  “Keep monitoring their progress. Text me updates.”

  “Copy that. I sent you the link for the satellite images.”

  “Thanks.” Brent ended the call and tapped on his screen. Green images popped up.

  Rowan frowned. Green blobs? How would that help Brent and the others figure out a strategy to lure the men away from the house? “What are the green things?”

  “Carstairs and his buddies.”

  “What will we do?”

  “Capture them or take them out.” Brent’s face hardened. “No one touches you.”

  She tilted her head. “Why would they want to hurt me? I don’t know them.”

  “Because you’re with Brent,” Remy said. “You’re leverage to hold over him.”

  And if they got their hands on her, Brent would do anything to save her, even sacrifice himself. That couldn’t happen, no matter what she had to do to prevent it. Like Brent, Rowan wanted a chance to see where this relationship with him went. She had a feeling this was something special, a rare kind of relationship. “Do you have pictures of Carstairs and his friends?”

  Brent’s head whipped around. “Why?”

  “Curious how these guys know you and I are dating. We’ve been official for a few hours. How do they know about us?”

  “One of them must have scoped out the shop. Nice job, babe.” A minute later, Brent handed her his phone. A picture of a fierce looking man was on the screen. “This guy and the next four pictures are the men who are moving closer to the house.”

  Rowan scrolled through the pictures. She didn’t recognize the first four photos. The fifth man, however, she recognized. Her blood ran cold. This man been coming into the shop for the past month. And here she’d thought he was interested in her. Looked like that wasn’t the case. She tapped the screen. “This guy I recognize. He’s a new customer.”

  Brent’s eyes narrowed. “Carstairs. When did he come to the coffee shop?”

  “He wandered in a month ago and has been coming in at a different time each day since then. I couldn’t figure out what kind of job had such a weird schedule. I understand now why he avoided answering questions about himself or his work. I’m the pawn to reach you.”

  “Did he say anything to you other than placing his order?”

  Rowan hesitated. She hated to tell Brent that Carstairs had been hitting on her for two weeks. She’d planned to tell the man to find another coffee shop. He made her uncomfortable with his intense stares and smarmy personality. Even if she hadn’t been sweet on Brent, she wouldn’t have gone on a date with Carstairs.

  “Sweetheart?” Brent reached out and cupped her cheek with his palm. “Tell me.”

  “The first two weeks, Carstairs just ordered coffee and sat at the coffee bar to drink it. He’d ask a question occasionally, nothing major.”

  “And after two weeks?” Brent murmured.

  “He started asking me out and became more and more agitated when I kept refusing. I planned to tell him to find another coffee shop.” Soft laughter bubbled up from her throat. “Guess he was more interested in you than me.”

  “I’m sorry, baby.” He leaned close and brushed a soft kiss on her lips. “Carstairs was probably aggravated he couldn’t steal you away from me.” Brent froze. “Did you tell him you were interested in someone else?”

  Rowan’s cheeks burned. “I did. I didn’t tell him your name, though.”

  Remy chuckled. “You ticked him off and pricked at his male pride. Carstairs thinks he’s irresistible to women. I’m glad a beautiful woman shut him down. Good job, sugar.”

  “Hey,” Lily called out. “The clowns back here are getting restless.”

  “What do you want to do, boss?” Remy asked.

  “We’re going hunting.” He raised his voice. “Lily, come to the living room.”

  A moment later, she rushed into the room. “What’s the plan?”

  “Stay with Rowan. Remy and I are taking these guys down, beginning with the ones in the back.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “If we don’t take them down fast enough or if they figure out we’re picking them off, you’ll have company.”

  “I’ll handle it.”

  He and Remy headed for the hallway. Brent stopped, glanced over his shoulder. “Lily.” He didn’t say anything else.

  “No one will hurt her, Brent. You have my word.”

  He shifted his gaze to Rowan, his stare intense. Strong emotions roiled in his eyes, probably the same ones welling up in a tidal wave inside her at the thought of him and Remy going into battle.

  “I’ll be fine,” she said, making sure her voice was firm. “Come back to me unharmed. I have plans for you.”

  Brent grinned and walked to the back of the house with Remy.

  Rowan frowned. “How will they leave the house without the men in back seeing them?”

  “The bedroom where Brent was sleeping has a window that faces the side of the house and it’s dark over there. Fortress deliberately left it that way in case we needed another escape from the house.”

  “Turns out that was a good thing to do. I’m glad Brent and Remy have some safety in the darkness.”

  Lily stationed herself by the front window, her gaze scanning the outside. “You’re good for him,” she murmured.

  Those simple words warmed Rowan’s heart. “I hope so. He’s amazing. I don’t know what I’d have done without him these last few days.”

  The operative grinned. “Tell me how you really feel, Rowan.”

  That made her laugh. It felt good to laugh despite the circumstances. “Can’t help it, you know. He captured my heart a long time ago,” she admitted, not that she’d tell Brent Maddox. It was too soon to bare her heart to him, especially since she didn’t know the depth of his feelings. She definitely didn’t want to scare off the man of her dreams.

  “Are you serious?”

  “You can’t tell?” Rowan grinned. “I must have done a great acting job.”

  Lily lifted one shoulder. “I’m not the best at reading other people’s emotions. Interpersonal relationships? Forget it. Remy had to convince me we’d make it as a couple because I was afraid to believe in us. I didn’t think we had a chance. With my lousy background, why would anyone take a risk loving me?”

  “I’m more than half in love with Brent. I hope he doesn’t break my heart.”

  “I d
on’t think you have anything to worry about, Rowan. He’s just as crazy about you.” She stopped talking abruptly, one hand clenching into a fist.

  Rowan scrambled to her knees. “What is it?”

  “The clowns in the front yard are moving in.” Lily blew out a frustrated breath. “I can’t let Remy or Brent know because we don’t have our comm systems in place. There wasn’t enough time.”

  That didn’t sound good. She could ask Lily for a weapon, positive the operative had a backup piece. Unfortunately, the guys closing in on the house were experts in handling weapons while Rowan was not. Besides, Lily might need the second gun. Rowan needed some kind of equalizer in case Lily needed help. “Is there a baseball bat in the house?”

  Lily tossed her a grin before returning her attention to activity outside the window. “Sorry. No bat. I like the way you think, though. Know how to use a gun?”

  “Not enough to deal with these guys.” She glanced around the room for something she could use. Looked like her choices were a lamp or a skillet from the kitchen. “Lamp or skillet, Lily?” Those Rowan could wield without a license to carry or training.

  Her friend was silent a moment. “Lamp. I don’t want you out of my sight long enough to grab a skillet. The lamp will also give you a slightly longer reach. Be fast and ruthless if you have to use the lamp, Rowan. Don’t second guess yourself. These boys play for keeps and they don’t have a conscience if they’re coming after you for revenge against Brent.”

  “Fast and mean. Got it.”

  Rowan crawled to the end table and grabbed the ceramic lamp. After taking off the shade and unscrewing the lightbulb, she moved beside Lily. “Are they still moving in?”

  “Yep. Ah, man. Here they come. Get in the hallway and stay there.”

  “But you might need help.”

  “If I need it, you’ll know. Whatever happens, don’t put yourself at risk, Rowan. You’re the grand prize. The only thing these guys have to do to take down Brent is grab you. Don’t let them hurt him.”

  “Never.”

  “Go,” Lily murmured. Once Rowan ran to the shadowed hall entrance with the lamp, the operative sprinted across the room and dived over the back of the couch. The second she landed on her feet, one of the men kicked the front door open. It slammed against the wall with such force the doorknob sank into the drywall. A man dressed in black ran into the room, rapid-firing his gun.

  Lily dropped him with two shots of her own.

  At the same time, more gunfire from outside the house shattered the front window. A second man in black dove through the opening and rolled up on this feet, firing at the place where Lily had been standing.

  Rowan’s friend was already shifting to a new position when the second man targeted her. She scrambled to the far edge of the couch and returned fire.

  The man shot at her, firing continuously. When Lily took cover, he continued to shoot while he raced toward her.

  Heart in her throat, Rowan gripped the lamp tighter, preparing to rush from the hall to help if Lily needed her. Pounding footsteps at the door drew her attention to the front of the living room.

  Rowan’s breath caught. Carstairs. And he was aiming his gun in Lily’s direction. At least he wasn’t firing. Yet. Just a matter of time, though. At the moment, he couldn’t fire without hitting his friend because the guy had just scaled the top of the couch and landed on Lily.

  Her friend blocked a punch, then landed one of her own, followed by another punch to the man’s groin. He roared with pain and anger, and threw short, vicious punches that slammed into Lily’s face and ribcage.

  Horror stricken, Rowan longed to go to Lily’s aid, but couldn’t without putting herself right into Carstairs’ hands and bringing about the very thing Lily had warned her against.

  Carstairs growled, evidently frustrated because he still didn’t have a shot at Lily because of his own man. He must have concluded that he needed to reposition himself because the Fortress reject began moving toward the back of the couch. In changing positions, he was also bringing himself closer to Rowan’s hiding place.

  Oh, yeah. Perfect. Come on, Carstairs. Keep on coming, Rowan silently urged. One glance over his shoulder and Carstairs would see her. Not like there was any place to hide in the hall. No alcoves to duck into. If she retreated to a dark doorway to protect herself, Rowan wouldn’t be able to aid Lily. As good as the other woman was, the guy whaling on her was a good foot taller than her and outweighed her by at least eighty pounds.

  Carstairs shifted still closer to the hallway, his gaze locked on the fierce battle raging on the floor between Lily and his buddy. The two fighting bodies shifted enough that Carstairs finally had a shot. He moved slightly, adjusting his aim.

  It was now or never, Rowan realized. If she didn’t do something, Lily would die or be seriously injured. Rowan raised the lamp, rushed from the hall, and slammed the lamp on the back of Carstairs’ head. He dropped to the ground and didn’t move. Pieces of the ceramic base lay scattered on the ground.

  A gunshot exploded in the room.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  Brent slipped out the window into the inky darkness at the side of the house, weapon out and quartering the area for the location of their attackers while Remy joined him. Once he and Remy took out the two men in the back, they would have to hurry to the front to deal with the other three. He had a feeling time was not on their side. These clowns weren’t going to wait long.

  Brent’s jaw clenched. He wanted to have a discussion with the man who had targeted him and Rowan before Brent turned him over to the Williamson County law enforcement officials. They could ship him along to the Rutherford County cops who had the open case file on Carstairs. Brent looked forward to at least one of their problems being resolved. And with this latest escapade, Carstairs was looking at time behind bars for either attempted kidnapping or attempted murder. Either set of charges suited Brent fine because it meant he and Rowan no longer had to worry about the failed operative mucking up their attempts to rescue Alexa.

  He studied the area surrounding the back of the house until he spotted the men. Both the former Fortress employees were hiding in two stands of trees on opposite sides of the yard, their attention focused on the back of the house. They weren’t paying attention to the rest of the area. If they had, they might have seen him and Remy standing in the shadows of the house.

  Brent nudged Remy and indicated their location with an inclination of his head, then via hand signals indicated for Remy to take the operative on the left while Brent circled around to the guy on the right. With a nod, the Cajun disappeared into the trees to work his way to his target. Wouldn’t take long, though Remy would hold until Brent was in place. Neither man watching the house paid attention to anything but the back door, which indicated they still hadn’t furthered their training or at least the training was substandard.

  Seconds later, Brent was in the cover of the trees and moving from shadow to shadow as he closed in on his target. Since rainfall had been scarce for months, he moved carefully to keep from alerting Carstairs’ cronies they were being hunted. The leaves and branches on the ground were brittle and made maneuvering with stealth difficult.

  A mission clock ticked in his head, counting down the minutes he’d been away from Rowan’s side. Brent had never worked so hard to focus on his job. Gunfire still peppered the safe house, though the assailants weren’t making an effort to do more than irritate. Made him wonder if Carstairs had told these guys not to kill anybody.

  What Brent couldn’t figure out was why the men were exercising such restraint. Maybe Carstairs wanted to pull the trigger himself on Brent or he recognized the lack of control on the part of his cohorts and worried he’d lose the chance to use Rowan for leverage.

  Any minute, Brent feared the restraint might stop if the other men managed to breach the premises. Carstairs and his buddies had been kicked out of PSI and Fortress after only a few weeks’ training. Their control and tactical skills weren’t goo
d. Of course, they might have gone to work for another, less reputable outfit. Brent had made sure they couldn’t work for the top-tier security firms. He knew none of his main competitors were willing to hire Carstairs and his band of buddies. Carstairs wanted revenge.

  Brent scowled. Too bad if Carstairs didn’t like what he’d done. Brent had friends in those businesses and didn’t want them injured or killed because these five men couldn’t be trusted and had zero discipline. A bad combination in this business, one guaranteed to get someone killed.

  Adrenaline rushed through his veins as he stalked closer to his target. Something inside Brent warned him to get back to Rowan, that she needed his protection. As he skirted a large fallen limb, he reminded himself that Lily was one of the best he’d ever worked with. Beyond that, the woman was as fierce as they came. She would fight like a tiger to protect the woman Brent loved.

  Ah, man. His breath stalled in his lungs. Fine time to realize the truth, that he was all the way, head-over-heels in love with Rowan Scott. And the possibility that Carstairs might capture her made a cold sweat dot Brent’s skin. No telling what the former operative might do to Rowan. Brent didn’t doubt that Carstairs would go through whoever or whatever stood in his way to obtain his objective.

  He longed to race to the house and defend Rowan against an all-out assault. Couldn’t without leaving Remy vulnerable.

  A grim smile curled his lip. He and Remy would have to take down the targets fast. He wanted to know Rowan’s plans for him. Sounded intriguing.

  A rustling sound to his right tipped him off to his target’s exact location. Another frown. How could this guy not realize he was making enough racket to alert anyone in the vicinity to his location and making himself a target even a child would spot?

  From the shadows, Brent watched as his target fidgeted and shifted his weight from one foot to the other, occasionally spitting on the ground or firing off a round. His brows knitted. He wasn’t aiming at anything except the back of the house. What was this guy’s problem? Was he using drugs again? From the way he acted, he’d never stopped. That meant all of them were still using steroids. He wouldn’t be surprised if they’d added some other illegal substance to their habits.