Jax

by Cristin Harber

  CHAPTER FORTY-THREE

  What was that reaction that had crossed Jax's face? Sugar wanted to assume that the guy was playing her for a fool. But her gut instincts didn't lead her astray often, and rarely did they screech to a halt with a loud what the fuck like they had just done.

  If he hadn't known Deacon was dead, she would've expected shock. And yeah, there had been some shock. But after Jared had pulled Jax off the job, Sugar wouldn't have expected that doe-eyed, dreamy happiness. It was as though Jax were less angry and more… happy.

  Jax and happy were opposite ends of the spectrum, like stilettos and flats or gloss and matte. Jax and happy… It had only lasted for a blink.

  Her phone buzzed in the back pocket of her leather pants, and Sugar pulled it out to see a text message from her husband.

  JARED: Keep an eye on him. Stay out of sight.

  Oh, for God's sake. She'd just left Jax with a bit of fanfare. It wasn't as if she could go back in now. She moved to the elevators, rounding the corner with the intention of explaining to Jared in person that she had already left, when she saw Jax stepping out of the hotel room.

  "Well, this worked out for me," she mumbled, but he was headed her way. Quickly, she pressed the phone to her ear, and when she saw him, she said, "Okay. Talk to you later. Bye."

  Jax held the three pieces of paper in his hand, and Sugar wanted to say something about how he shouldn't have taken any evidence from Seven's room and that Jared was likely talking to Parker about how best to process the notes, but she decided to keep her trap shut. Not the easiest of actions for her, but she was also supposed to stay out of sight. Nothing was working totally as planned. "Where are you headed?"

  "You actually care?"

  "No, not really." She turned toward the elevator, and they remained in silence.

  Jax laughed quietly then walked forward and pressed the button to call the elevator.

  "Guess that would help."

  He hummed his agreement but then turned. "I get that I'm a dick. Why don't you trust me?"

  "I don't trust anybody."

  "No, that's bullshit. You're my boss's wife, and you don't trust me. That fucking sucks for me. Particularly today." He turned to face the elevators but then added, "Also, fuck you for that."

  Even though Jax wasn't facing her, she tried to keep a straight face. God, she loved his reaction. The elevator arrived and opened, and they filed in, finding themselves alone. He punched the button for the lobby, and she was along for the ride.

  "Do you remember when Victoria was abducted—the second time? And Mayhem had her?"

  He grunted and lifted his chin but didn't give any indication that he planned to converse.

  "Mayhem knew where the players were when Titan was on a live op. Someone communicated to them."

  Jax stepped forward and pressed the Stop Elevator button. "You thought that was me?" He stepped closer to her. "You thought that I was leaking information to a freaking gang?"

  "Yeah, the thought crossed my mind."

  "In what world would I do something like that?" His disgust at her accusation outlined the veins on his temples. He didn't raise his voice. He simply became a hurricane within himself. "Give me one reason. Now."

  Sugar didn't scare. It'd been trained out of her, and any remaining reactions had been numbed away by real-life experiences. But Jax's fury was real and raw. She hesitated, wondering if she should have brought this up after what happened earlier. "Deacon told me. Not in so many words. But he planted the seed that there was a former CIA operative working with Mayhem. That you were closely entangled with the CIA. It wasn't in your file. I didn't know anything about how you two knew each other. I just knew I was caught off guard and that Titan—my family and friends—they were walking into a death trap."

  Jax dropped his head back as though he were staring toward heaven through the ceiling of the elevator. "He's like a stain. Even when I didn't see it, he was there." Jax shook his head and stepped away, walking over to the row of buttons and starting the elevator again.

  That was all he was going to say? For the guy that had nearly ripped Deacon's windpipe out in front of everyone and then sort of smiled when he found out the agent was dead, his reaction was again unexpected. "That's all you're going to give me?"

  Jax leaned against the wall and looked her way. "Right now, that's all you deserve."

  Asshole. Though maybe he was right. She had believed Deacon because, once upon a time, he'd defended her in a situation in which she was uncomfortable. She had been in a power struggle, and Deacon had taken her side. Had Deacon played her?

  Damn CIA agents, always playing the long game, and Deacon's had been going on for years, but why? Maybe Jax wasn't as in the wrong as he appeared, and maybe she should've trusted him years before. She'd no reason not to other than what Deacon had said. And the only reason she had trusted him was because he'd defended her in a vulnerable spot. Damn it. If she'd been played, had her opinion led Jared astray? Damn it, again.

  The elevator doors opened to the lobby, and Jax left her wondering what else she'd gotten wrong.

  She stayed a few dozen yards behind and watched as Jax moved to the hotel restaurant. Sugar requested a seat where she could see him, but he was not facing her. Jax ordered a water and soup.

  They shared a waitress, and the waitress had deep circles under her eyes, clearly having a bad day, with bloodshot eyes and tear-stained cheeks that were powdered poorly.

  "Can I take your order?" the waitress asked with a voice that promised Vegas had chewed her up and spit her out.

  Sugar tore her attention away from Jax and felt for the girl. Nothing worse than feeling awful and having to work. They'd all been there. "Sorry about whatever sucks for you today."

  The woman gave a weak smile. "Thanks. Just trying to keep my head above water."

  Sugar ordered her lunch as she watched Jax get his food, but he barely touched it, sipping his water as he mostly stared at the notes. What did he see there? Or maybe it was wishful thinking.

  People came and went, and as Sugar's lunch dragged on, she ordered dessert and coffee and watched Jax study the papers.

  Suddenly, he jumped up, grabbing his wallet and throwing down some bills. He borrowed a pen from the table across from him, wrote a note on a napkin, then took his pieces of paper and split.

  What had just happened? Sugar knew she had to keep an eye on him but needed to pay her bill, so she likely did the same thing he had. She fished a pen out of her purse and wrote "room charge" along with her name and room number. Then she stood, preparing to chase him down, when she heard a sob and turned to see the waitress dropping into the chair that Jax had just vacated.

  Sugar faltered and didn't know which way to go. Follow Jax or see what he had said that made the woman cry?

  Honestly, she wondered if he had written something awful to the poor girl. Sugar would kill him herself. Deciding she could track him down in a minute, she stomped over to the waitress. "What happened?"

  The waitress sniffed. "That guy. He left this and…" She didn't finish her thoughts. "There really are good people out there, aren't there?"

  Sugar took the napkin and read it.

  I didn't mean to overhear you talking with your coworker. Keep the change. It'll be okay one day.

  – From the guy that has to believe that and is maybe starting to figure that out today

  Sugar didn't ask what Jax had given the waitress, but between the woman's tears and the wads of hundreds sticking out between her clenched fingers, she realized he had helped the waitress when he thought nobody was looking.

  Sugar headed toward the hotel lobby, pulling her cell phone out to text Jared.

  Sugar: I think you've made a mistake.

  CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR

  Jared tossed his cell phone on the table and rubbed his sternum. If Sugar thought he was headed in the wrong direction, she wasn't going to like the conversation he'd just had with Parker. But flying blind wasn't an option. Intellige
nce was what they lived and died by. It was a working assumption that he knew Titan's every move, anyway.

  Jared hadn't shared with any of Mayhem that Deacon was dead. How the CIA had found out, he had no idea, and the only reason he'd been tipped off was because Beth, who worked for both Titan and CIA, made fast work of getting on the phone.

  Tex knocked with his Mayhem-ring-covered knuckles. "Deep in thought, brother."

  Jared leaned back in his chair and popped his knuckles, shifting his scrutiny from Tex to Hawke then down the line of remaining Mayhem members until he ended on Ethan, who was the easiest barometer of the truth. "Waiting for intel."

  Parker's name popped up on his cell, and he answered as he stepped away from the table. "Hang on a minute."

  "No problem," Parker said.

  Once Jared moved back to the small conference area where he'd installed a device to jam signal interception, he gave Parker the go-ahead to continue on their secure connection.

  "I've tapped the feed to Jax's phone and hotel room and Seven's. Any incoming or outgoing call will register on your phone. He won't hear if you pick up. Disconnect whenever you feel like it."

  "Got it. How's Victoria doing?"

  "To put it in the most mild of terms," Parker said, "she's pissed. I'll keep an eye out if Ryder loses sight of her, because the woman is on a warpath."

  "I bet. What about her injuries?"

  "Mostly superficial. They thought her wrists were broken, but they were dislocated after she forced her hands out of the handcuffs. There'll be some scarring."

  Jared cocked his eyebrows. "That bad?"

  "Yeah, Ryder said she's a mangled mess. The cuffs were on secure before she got loose."

  What strength and pain that must have taken. But hell hath no fury like a woman whose best friend's babies had been stolen out of her back seat.

  "Anything else I need to know?" Jared asked. Parker paused, and his lack of immediate response made Jared uncomfortable. "Spit it out. I don't have all goddamn day."

  "I don't know the details of what's going on. And I wouldn't have said this was conversation-worthy except for the fact that we're tapping Jax's phone."

  Jared pinched the bridge of his nose. "Whatever it is, if it has to do with Jax, I'm interested."

  "I'm getting the few details that Gennita Johnson, the kids' glamma, has shared with the Phoenix authorities. She hasn't discussed Mayhem, barely touched on where Seven was, and not mentioned what she's doing. But she's talked about Jax like the kids thought he was a superhero."

  How much didn't Jared know about Jax? He hadn't known about the Deacon-Jax connection, never expected Jax to marry Seven, and now they were getting information from a third party about kids who thought his man was their savior. "All right, good to know. I'll figure out what to do with that." Jared hung up, more confused than before the phone call.

  An unfamiliar beep came from his phone, and Jared realized that must be Jax making a phone call. He pressed the green button on the screen and put his cell back against his ear to listen.

  "Hey, Ryder. It's Jax."

  "Oh, hey, Jax, hey."

  "Yeah, last person you'd expect to be calling. I know. Victoria is doing better?"

  Ryder chuckled quietly. "Relatively speaking. She's not bleeding all over the place anymore. Not threatening doctors to patch her up and let her loose. So, yeah, mate. Better."

  Jared laughed along with Jax as he listened to their call.

  "I've got a question for you," Jax continued. "Does Leyva mean anything to you?"

  "No, not off the top of my head. I could ask Victoria, but I finally talked her into pain meds, and everything she's talking about sounds like unicorns and making video game gun noises."

  "Leyva," Jax repeated.

  "Why? What is that?"

  "I don't know. You know Seven better than me—"

  "But I guess that's changing. I heard congratulations are in order. Might even make us brothers from another mother, my friend."

  Sounding uncomfortable, Jax changed the subject back to what he needed. "But real quick. Have you ever seen her crumble up a piece of paper?"

  Ryder cackled. "Seven? That'd be a hell no."

  "What if she did?"

  "Trust me." Ryder snorted. "If you haven't realized this yet, you soon will. Things have to be folded. A certain way. But not crumbled up. Never."

  "Ryder, man. What if I told you she left two pieces of paper crumbled up?" His voice was gravely serious, and Ryder's chuckling stopped.

  "Jax, she wouldn't. Why did you ask me about Leyva?"

  Jax paused for a long time. For so long, Jared pulled the phone away to see if the line was still live. It was.

  "She's missing. The security footage looks like she left for a walk after leaving a note that said she was too stressed to sit in the room and wait. That she had to go think. But in the trash can, there were two balled-up notes where she started on the same thing but threw it out."

  "No. No way. Seven wouldn't do that."

  "She would have folded them up, right?"

  "Yeah," Ryder agreed. "Or leave it flat. I'll ask Victoria about Leyva. She wrote it on the note?"

  Jax let out a long breath into the phone. "Last week after breakfast, Bianca showed me a way to leave secret messages." He laughed sadly. "You draw a picture. Decide you don't like it. Cross it out. But when crossing out, you write your code word then scribble lightly over it."

  Ryder asked what Jared was thinking. "Bianca can write codes?"

  "No, it was letters and numbers and gibberish. You're missing the point. Seven knows how to spell, asshole. It says Leyva, but I have no idea what that means."

  Ryder hummed in thought. "You need to talk to Boss Man."

  Jax paused. "Yeah, good idea. I should've thought of that."

  Jared dropped his head back, feeling like shit that one of his guys had actionable information and he'd driven him away with it. Jax had literally yelled at Jared to trust him, and Jared hadn't.

  Jared called Parker, who answered on the first ring. "What do you know about Leyva?"

  "Off the top of my head? Nothing. It's a vacation place in Colombia. Give me a couple seconds. Cross-referencing." Parker whistled. "Check that. Leyva is a known cartel vacation locale…" Parker's keyboard clacked. "There's a military stronghold…"

  "I need more, Parker. Give me a reason Seven is leaving breadcrumbs."

  "I know, I heard. Okay… This is what you're looking for. Leyva was the name given by locals to a compound and estate owned by Hernán and Esmeralda. It's also a military instillation and a proving ground for his militia trainees."

  "Jesus fucking Christ." Jared cracked his knuckles. "The cartel has a training ground? What else you have on them? An armory? Commissary?"

  "Actually, according to the notes that I'm reading here—yeah, almost, they do."

  "Of course, they do," he grumbled.

  "It's like the home base of a third-world army. A well-financed, highly-armed, well-trained militia. Two levels, with an inner guard and recruited ground forces."

  "How big of a ground force are we talking?"

  "Big, Boss Man," Parker muttered. "Like the kind of job we do when partnered with a government unit. We're going to need bodies."

  "Fucking hell." Jared pinched the bridge of his nose. "Route in all the assholes."

  "Titan and Delta are already in route. Their contracts were put on hold. Brock and I have mapped out supplier hookups for what we couldn't bring with us." Parker made a tapping noise. "We're assuming Seven and the kids are headed to Leyva instead of Bogotá?"

  "Yeah."

  "I'll get on the horn for midflight re-routing."

  Jared's mind was going a hundred miles a minute. It had been a long time since he'd pulled something off like this. But it had been just as long since they had been potentially outnumbered like this without working directly with a government. He didn't have time to get that kind of approval, and to be honest, he likely wouldn't get that kin
d of approval, especially now that Deacon had turned up dead.

  "Parker, what I meant by the assholes was we need more reinforcements. Ping ACES. Tell them their team needs to haul ass from Abu Dhabi. Whatever they can get their greedy spec op hands on, I want them on a different continent. Now."

  If the situation hadn't been so serious, Jared would've enjoyed seeing Parker's face. In the last six, eight years, Jared hadn't asked Parker to co-mingle ACES with any other team.

  Parker cleared his throat. "Roger that, Boss Man. Pinging the assholes now."

  CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE

  Seven's hotel suite was empty and dark without her. Jax had used his key card to access her room. On his phone, trying to figure out what to do next, he was nothing more than a pit of unease.

  Internet searches had done no good when he searched Leyva, other than revealing a general tourist spot in Colombia. The more he thought about what it meant, the more he became convinced that it wasn't a generic place but that it held specific meaning, and Seven knew it too.

  Jax had a few contacts spread throughout the world that he could call and ask anything of, and they wouldn't ask any questions. His phone buzzed with a text message

  JARED: Get back to the conference room. Let's talk.

  Had Jax ever met someone who had been fired from Titan before? Was let's talk Jared's code for adios?

  JAX: Sure thing. Give me 20.

  No reason to rush and get canned.

  He dropped his head back, wanting to think more about Seven and the kids than himself, when the blinking light on the room phone caught his attention. Jax leaned over and grabbed the phone off the nightstand and pressed the message button.

  "You have one unheard message." He followed the prompts to play and listened.

  "Ms. Blackburn. This is Ingrid from Wayside East Nursing Home. We've been trying to contact you on your cell phone as well as your emergency backup, Victoria Hall. It's imperative that someone call us back immediately. It's a medical emergency having to do with your mother. I'm sorry that we tracked you down at your hotel. You know how these things are; small towns know things. But it's important. We're not sure who else to call at this point. Thank you. Please call."