Heroes in Uniform: Soldiers, SEALs, Spies, Rangers and Cops: Sexy Hot Contemporary Alpha Heroes From NY Times and USA Today Bestselling Authors

by Sharon Hamilton

  Roman nabbed Gianori, throwing him over his shoulder, and hustled back to Hangar A. Blood marred the light gray floor. Cash pulled the army green bandana from his neck, mopped up the mess with his boot, and kicked the ruined rag behind a mechanic’s station. One more thing ruined by these guys. Screw them.

  Catching up with Roman, Cash watched the Learjet complete its landing on the far airstrip. They pushed into Hangar A, eyeballed Jared, and shoved Gianori into a closet after gagging and immobilizing him just in case the fucker decided to rouse. Roman and Cash spread to their corners to watch outside at the airstrip and maintain a tactical advantage if the jet moved into the hangar.

  The Learjet turned from the end of the airstrip and made its way toward them. Flight plans had them parking in Hangar A, but who knew where the hell they might deplane their passengers? A black Town Car pulled into a waiting area, apparently also unsure where the passengers were disembarking.

  They stopped, and Cash waited, drumming his fingers. The door hatch popped. Stairs unfolded from the opening. No Nic. No David. No one got the hell off the plane. He grabbed his binoculars, needing to see inside the oval windows.

  The sun glared high overhead. The Town Car moved into place as Cash heard the pilot cut the engines. A creepy quiet returned. Too quiet. Too much was in play that he didn’t understand, and Nicola was in the thick of it.

  A bomb targeting her parents floated out there, unaccounted for. Nicola had no idea and was stuck with Benedict Arnold. The Town Car waited for its passengers. Finally, the good CIA agent and the bad one made their way down the stairs. Nic flashed Cash a subtle sign, a quick flick of her wrist, knowing that he had eyes on her. It wasn’t much reassurance for him, considering he was only back-up, but a mobster in the closet was a good consolation prize.

  Jared whispered into his mic, “Roman, circle up, grab help, and find that bomb.”

  Roman was in the Hummer without throwing back a visual confirmation. Shit, if it were Cash’s parents, he’d be rolling out the second he could. Surely, one of the guys would go with him. Rocco or Brock or Winters could defuse a bomb. Brock would do it the quickest. Winters might opt to let it blow somewhere with the least damage. Who knew how Roc would handle it?

  Blinking into the glare, Cash refocused his binoculars. This was the second time he’d seen Nicola through a high-def, military spec optical piece. The Antilla Smooth snipefest felt like years ago, but it was so vivid and intense, seared into his frontal lobe.

  The driver opened the door of the Town Car and loaded their baggage into the trunk. Nic and David took to the backseat. Damn, how Cash wanted to kill that man.

  Moments later, the driver had them moving down the airstrip. Wait, no. They stopped. A second later, the Town Car zoomed toward Hangar B. Guess what, you fucking turncoat? Your mobster isn’t there.

  At the front of Hangar B, David exited the car alone. Cash’s earpiece provided audio, but gave him nothing more than footsteps. What he would do to see David standing there, stood up like a blind date. Ten minutes later, clear and crisp in Cash’s binoculars, a pissed off, red faced David the Butler exited the hangar door with a slam and made a phone call, out of the range of any listening devices inside the hangar.

  Cash’s cell phone buzzed.

  “Better be important,” Jared growled over his shoulder.

  The screen showed Sugar’s GUNS bison emblem. He hit ignore. Sugar redialed. Twice.

  “What?” Cash answered.

  “Nic told me to call you, dick, if I couldn’t get a hold of her. About this Smooth ammo.”

  “Now’s not the best time.”

  “I’m supposed to meet my point of contact at some dinky airport in some one-horse town. He just made contact. Pissed off about something. I’m five minutes out, but not headed in. Doesn’t feel right.”

  Wait, what? “What’s the guy’s name?”

  “David—”

  “Are you fucking kidding me?” Man, their problems were getting a little incestuous, in an arms-dealing, illegal network kinda way.

  Jared looked over. “What’s going on?”

  “Who’s that?” Sugar asked.

  “Jared.”

  She mumbled something that he could’ve sworn translated to, “tell him I say hi.”

  He rubbed his temples. “We’re at that dinky airport and need a set of wheels. Can you get over here?”

  “Yeah, yeah. I’ll be your taxi.”

  He gave her their coordinates and details, hung up, and holstered his phone.

  “What’d she say?”

  “She’ll be here.” He gave the rundown of the Sugar-Smooth ammo airport connection.

  “Anything else?” Jared asked, not looking at him.

  “Anything else? No.” What was up with those two? He shook his head, keeping his eyes on the Town Car. “What are we doing? Playing telephone?”

  Cash watched until the black Town Car was through the gates and Nic was on her own, as planned. She’d do all right. She’d be fine. They had listening devices everywhere. Parker was listening now, and Roman could tune in on the receiver in the Hummer he’d taken.

  Still, Cash’s stomach twisted. Jared spun in his boots, yanking his attention back to the here and now. They had a mobster to work over. Cash cracked his knuckles and watched Jared rub his hands together, seconds from opening the closet door.

  Garrison’s Creed: Chapter Twenty-Six

  Cash took a deep breath after his turn on the Gianori piece of crap. He watched Jared wrench Emilio’s twisted arms high behind his head. The bastard and his mobbed-up family would pay for taking Nicola away from him a decade ago, for trying to take out Nic and Roman’s parents, and for blowing up his damn truck. Whatever Jared had planned would be too nice, and Jared was a bastard’s bastard, trained in ways that made sadistic fucks cry for their mommies.

  Blood trickled out of Emilio’s nose. The punch hadn’t been enough. Pummeling his face into the asphalt wouldn’t have done it either, but if the piece of shit couldn’t talk, he wouldn’t be much good.

  Sugar rolled into the hangar in a nondescript white van with no rear windows. Maybe the woman knew what they had planned. Either way, Cash’d have to commend her on her choice of rides.

  “Smart choice.” Jared beat him to it, handing out compliments for maybe the first time in his life.

  Tall boots capped Sugar’s knees. Her short skirt barely covered her thighs. The effect made Cash double-take, if only to wonder where she hid her concealed piece.

  She blew a bubble of bright pink gum that matched the color of her lips. “So what’s the dealio?”

  “This is Fuckface Junior.” Jared shook Emilio to make a point. “He and Senior, along with their brothers Dickhead and Cock-for-Brains have done a lot of wrong recently, starting with a little incident with Nicola ten years ago and culminating with a plastics project that we’re still sorting out.”

  “That’s Emilio Gianori.” Sugar looked more bored by the second.

  “You watch the Mobster channel on Direct TV or something?” Jared asked, squinting in mistrust.

  “Yeah, something like that.” She smirked. “Beats the hell out of COPS reruns.

  So this has to do with Nicola’s witness protection history?”

  Jared and Cash paused.

  She continued. “And Nicola would want something to prosecute him on. Do you have something, or is this the Titan version of investigation protocol?”

  Emilio spat toward his boots, and Cash’s hands itched to fight. “What do you know about Nic?”

  Sugar cleared her throat. “Better question, cowboy. Is someone going to arrest this fucker?”

  Jared grumbled to Cash. Arresting Emilio right now wasn’t in their plans. Nor was detaining him in a way any law enforcement agency would approve of.

  Emilio struggled against Jared’s nasty arm hold and shouted, “You want to know our plans for your girl? She’d have to watch her parents—”

  “Wait,” Sugar barked.

&nb
sp; What the fuck?

  Jared shook the mobster. “Ignore her. Keep talking, asshole, and we might not string you up to an electrical ass probe.”

  “Goddamn it, Jared. Hold the fuck on.” Sugar raised her voice, and they raised eyebrows at the vamped up woman with her too-glossy lips and bubble gum habit.

  “Sugar,” Jared growled. “Get out of here. If you can’t handle—”

  Emilio started in again. “David and I—”

  “Do you not see what’s happening?” Sugar butted in again. Jared dragged Emilio closer to Sugar, most likely to put them both in headlocks. “He’s giving up the details. You need a clean arrest. All of this will get thrown out. Someone fucking arrest him already or else some million dollar an hour mob lawyer will have him out in time for baked ziti and a nice bottle of Chianti.”

  “Get out, Sugar. We’re not the arresting type.”

  “You need this to be legit. You’re going to lose it all. Imagine what Nicola will lose.” She looked to each of them, at their weapons, and threw up her hands. “All this testosterone and muscle, and you all got nothing? No badges?”

  Jared shook Emilio, looking frustrated ten times over. The guy winced, his jacked-up arms reaching toward their breaking points. Jared growled, “You want local blue and white here, be my guest. Call nine-one-one. Try explaining this scene to—”

  “Jesus H. Christ. This is why I shouldn’t give a king rat’s ass about the people I meet.” Sugar slapped her hands on her hips, cracked a bubble, and shook her head. “ATF. Emilio Gianori, you are under arrest for whatever the fuck you’ve done wrong and we can prove. You have the right to remain silent.

  “Anything you say, or Jared All-Brass-No-Brains Westin drags out of you, can be used against you in a court of law, where we’re going to prosecute your mobbed-up ass for every single thing we can find.

  “You have the right to your corrupt attorney who’ll buy a private island somewhere with all the money you’re going to spend on appeals. Said money-making attorney can be present, if your pansy ass requests.

  “If you can’t afford one because Papa Mobster cuts you off for being a moron, one will be provided for you. I’ll make sure you get one of my personal favorites. Keep answering questions if you want. Keep providing us details. It’ll all be used against you. I cross my heart.

  “Do you understand these rights, as I have explained them to you, or do you need me to take a breath and repeat myself?”

  Cash choked on a swallow. “Holy fuckin’ shit.”

  Sugar smirked. “Shut it, cowboy. Jared, you have any bungee cords in that bag of yours?”

  Jared looked stunned at Sugar. Cash understood how he felt. “Cash, cords are bottom of the pack.”

  Cash nodded numbly and went to grab them, his mind spinning. The familiar clack of Sugar’s heels pounded behind him. She beat him to the bag, rifled through Jared’s stuff, and snagged the ties.

  Who was this woman?

  Bungee ties in hand, she glared at Jared. “I assume you don’t have cuffs anywhere either.”

  He smiled, almost as if he took her slam as a dare. “Actually, I do.”

  “Yeah, I bet.” She stepped to Emilio and palmed his wrists, pushing them toward the ground. The man cried out. “Whoopsie, did that hurt?”

  A second later, she wrapped the cord tightly around his wrists, knocked him behind the knees, and let him fall over. Sugar grabbed his ankles, repeating the wrap-and-knot procedure, then looped one last bungee cord, tying his hands and ankles together. Emilio lay on the ground fighting his bindings. Sugar put his thrashing movements to a quick halt with a boot stomp into the mobster’s hip.

  Jared stepped toward her. “If I was ever going to fall in love with a woman, it’d be one who could hogtie a grown man.”

  “You couldn’t handle me, big boy. Don’t worry your pretty head over it.”

  Cash choked back a grin. First Mia. Then Nicola. Now Sugar. Jared had a soft spot for kickass women.

  “Don’t smile, cowboy. I’m not thrilled with either of you for pulling me out of deep cover.”

  Garrison’s Creed: Chapter Twenty-Seven

  The hairs on Nicola’s neck prickled, and she pushed as far as possible into the opposite car door. The backseat of this swanky sedan was too small, and she was suffocating in it.

  David snickered to himself, finding humor in something after his near meltdown at the airport hangar he’d demanded to visit. He snickered again. Probably the transmission jammer he’d set up within the last few hours, seeing as her phone had stopped working somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean.

  That also meant the listening bugs were likely not transmitting. Must’ve found one she’d placed in his room or on his clothes. Maybe he’d even found all of them. It had taken him two days to clue in.

  Not a very good spy. David didn’t sweep his hotel room? Who didn’t do that? Especially since he sold intelligence, his care-and-concern factor seemed dangerously low, or maybe his ego-factor was tremendously high.

  “Nicola, we have one stop before we drop you off. Is that acceptable?”

  Is that acceptable? No, it’s not. But refusing wouldn’t do much in the effort of intel gathering. “Fine. No problem.”

  She wondered if the jammer was on him or in the carry-on bag by his feet. For as nice as that bag was, he was sloppy, leaving the thing everywhere. Helpful for her though.

  David gave the driver the new location. She knew the address. Roughly five minutes away. Not a big deal. Maybe something would come out of it.

  Counting mile markers, Nicola passed the time by ignoring David. Nothing he did was noteworthy, but she didn’t trust the backstabbing fool. Minimally armed, Nic didn’t want to show that her trust quotient bordered on the negative, but she took some comfort that she could get to the subcompact at her ankle.

  She picked at her manicure and smoothed the designer pants. The driver pulled off the highway and into a shopping center.

  “Stop in front of the Starbucks, and unlock the doors,” David directed.

  A shiver sliced up her spine. Unlock the doors?

  David pointed for the driver’s benefit. A tall, well-dressed man waited on the sidewalk facing the storefronts. His shoulders were broad, his stance looked… ready. For what?

  The sedan slowed to a crawl, stopping curbside, and the doors unlocked. The man pivoted around slowly, a sinister smile smeared across his face. Not possible. Her stomach lurched, and she jumped toward the door handle.

  David’s hand clamped down on her elbow, reigniting the distant memory of its sprain. Her exit was blocked anyway, the door shadowed by an impenetrable force. The driver ignored her, even as she yelled and shoved for David to let go.

  She pinched her eyes closed, desperately wanting to wake up. When she opened them, there he stood. Antilla Smooth.

  Alive.

  Angry.

  And so close she could smell her own fear.

  Grinning like the grim reaper at a funeral, Antilla opened the door and squeezed into the backseat, sandwiching her between himself and David. The sedan eased forward after Antilla shut the door, then all the doors locked. The noise reverberated in her ears.

  “Hello, my dear. How I have missed you.” He leaned against her, his cologne overpowering the small area. One cold finger traced her cheekbone as he spoke, ignoring her batting hand.

  “Stop it. Get off me.” She pushed away, but David was on the other side. Shit.

  The sick smile hadn’t faded, all bright and white with perfectly lined teeth, ready for display. Her reaction made his grin more vibrant. Made it sparkle.

  “Speaking of getting off, that never happened between us. Did it? I intend to fix that today. But first, let’s get through introductions. I understand Gabriella isn’t your true name. Nicola, is it? Lovely.”

  Cash had to be following. She needed to see a familiar vehicle out the window. Her stomach bottomed as she swept a look every which way. Nothing familiar. Antilla’s fingers feathered over her chee
k, and she lashed out.

  “Get off me, goddamn it.” The words ground out but did zip to make him stop.

  David laughed close to her ear. She turned, kicking at him, his bag, the door. Anything she could connect with.

  “Now to the warehouse,” David said to the driver, then looked back at her. “Antilla and I have things to work out before our transaction is complete.”

  “Yes, we do.” Antilla ignored her for the first time. He sounded disappointed or disapproving. She couldn’t tell which he leaned toward more. “The second bomb hasn’t done its job, so I’m not ready to discuss—”

  “Second bomb?”

  “Not that it’s your business, but yes, Gabri—I mean, Nicola. Second bomb. Addressed to Janet and Rick—”

  Nicola slammed her fist into his face, elbowing David as he tried to pull her back. Blood trickled out of Antilla’s nose, and he took a cloth from his breast pocket to dab at it.

  “You will pay for that, you little bitch.”

  “There isn’t a second bomb,” she challenged him. “Leave my parents alone.”

  “There isn’t a second bomb, just like I’m dead, darling.”

  David spoke up. “We should enlighten her.” He turned to her. “Nicola, I was confused at first also. This is a very interesting story, so listen, and it will all make sense.”

  “Leave my family alone.”

  They drove past a warehouse with boarded up windows and no signs of life except for the hip-high weeds littering the parking lot. Trees lined both sides of what looked like an electrified fence. Parts of it were rusted out. The building looked ready to be condemned.

  “Leave your family alone? Now why would I do that?” Antilla asked. “I won’t walk away from this opportunity. The CIA killed my brother. In return, I’ll kill your family. David was smart enough to out himself as CIA and to try to protect the Smooth family. You remained one of the infidels, part of the organization—”

  Nothing made sense. “You were shot. I saw you.”

  “Wrong again. Welcome to the Smooth family secret. Not even David knew the truth until after the incident, but there were two of us. My identical twin brother was named Fernando. My father, a businessman, raised us as if only one child existed. It was a strategy of sorts. We were to take on his empire, which we did successfully. My name is not Antilla. Antilla is our name, the joint name my late brother and I embodied in the public eye. My name is Javier. He and I were perfect replicas. We spoke the same, fucked the same. No one knew the difference. Not our business partners. Not our whores. You never knew.”