by Rebecca Deel
Lacey didn’t look happy, but she nodded her agreement.
“I won’t be long.”
He left the vehicle, easing the door closed with a quiet snick. He approached the cabin at an angle to stay out of sight from the windows even though the place appeared deserted.
Jake walked to the front window with noiseless steps, his back to the wall. He quartered the surrounding area before he peered through the glass. The living room was empty. Making his way around the sides and back of the structure, he checked for occupants and found none. He retraced his steps to Lacey.
When he opened the passenger door, she climbed down.
“What did you see?”
“Dirt and dust.”
“No bodies?”
He smiled. Smart lady. While he’d been scouting the cabin, she worked out for herself that he was protecting her. “No bodies.”
“If Mom was here recently, maybe she left a clue to tell us where to look next.”
“I thought you might want to look around. In case the police decide to come here and investigate, I have latex gloves in my pocket. We don’t want the cops to find your fingerprints inside the cabin.”
She blinked. “You came prepared for anything.”
“In my line of work, being unprepared is deadly.” He led her to the front door and tugged on a pair of gloves. With one last look around, he tried the doorknob. Locked. “Turn around.”
“Why?”
“You don’t want to know.”
A smile curved her lips. “Let me guess. You plan to use more questionable skills to get us inside.”
He tapped her nose. “Turn around.”
“Will you show me sometime? I’d like to learn the skill. It might come in handy.”
He chuckled. “Sure. Now, turn around. And no peeking.”
When Lacey’s back was to him, Jake reached into the pocket of his cargo pants and pulled out his lock picks. Highly illegal and very effective in the hands of someone trained. He and his fellow operatives were very well trained. He’d learned many things in Special Forces. Fortress had honed all of his skills and taught him more. Maddox didn’t mess around when it came to equipping his operatives for every eventuality. Within seconds, the knob turned under his hand. “You can turn around now.”
Lacey smiled on seeing the open door. “A useful skill if I lock myself out of the apartment.”
“When we’re home, I’ll teach you how to pick locks as long as you promise not to embark on a life of crime.” Jake reached into his pocket and pulled out a second pair of gloves. “Put these on.” When her hands were covered, he followed her inside the cabin. A leather couch, loveseat, and recliner sat in the living room atop an area rug that had seen better days. The leather was split in places. An end table had layers of dust on the surface. Tattered magazines littered the coffee table.
“Jake!”
Sig in hand, he ran toward the master bedroom. After a quick check, he holstered his weapon. “What is it?” When he drew in a deep breath, the smell hit him. Blood and death. Nothing good had happened in this room.
Lacey threw herself into his arms. “The walls. Look at the walls.”
His arms tight around her back, he scanned the room. Oh, man. Not good. Brown spots dotted the surface of the walls. He cupped the back of Lacey’s head with his hand.
“It’s blood, isn’t it?”
“No way to be sure without testing it, but this looks like blood splatter to me.” He examined the walls again and realized something that made ice water run through his veins. “Too much blood to be from one person.”
“How do you know?”
He hesitated. “Lacey…”
“No, don’t try to protect me. Just tell me how you know.”
“When you first cut someone’s throat, blood sprays from the wound. But the pressure eases off with blood loss. This is too much blood to be from one person.”
“Do you think some is Mom’s?” she whispered.
“I don’t know. It’s possible.” He released her and examined one of the walls close up. Although he touched his finger to the surface, his fingertip came away clean. Not too recent at any rate. Didn’t mean much, though. Yvonne had been missing for four days. Too much blood to justify taking samples.
The skin on his nape prickled. Jake needed to get Lacey out of this cabin. They had stumbled on a crime scene. If the killer claimed this place as his own, he would return. Worse, he’d want to protect his little kingdom.
He perused the room again. Nothing out of the ordinary aside from the blood splatter. Jake turned his attention to the mattress covered by a large quilt. That quilt didn’t look ten years old. In fact, the covering seemed fairly new.
Jake strode to the bed, yanked back the quilt, and froze. Through a clear plastic covering, Jake saw a brownish-red stain soiled the bare mattress. “We need to leave.” He tugged her from the room, not giving her a chance to argue. His instinct screamed at him to spirit his girlfriend from this cabin.
In the living room, Lacey yanked her hand from his. “Wait.” She raced to the couch and dropped to her knees.
A flash of red caught Jake’s attention. One glance and bone-deep fear exploded in his gut. He scooped Lacey into his arms as she snagged something pink from under the couch. He sprinted from the cabin.
“Put me down. I can run.”
Without breaking stride, Jake let her feet drop, holding onto her until she was running flat out beside him. The countdown clock ticked down in his head. At the last second, he shoved Lacey to the ground and dived on top of her.
An explosion rocked the ground. Blistering heat rolled over them.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Jake hissed as burning debris from the cabin landed on his arm. He flicked the piece of wood from his bicep and rolled off Lacey. “You okay?” No response. “Lacey.” When she still didn’t move, he ran his hands along her arms and legs, then her torso. No breaks.
Heart racing, he rolled Lacey to her back. Blood dripped from her upper arm, and a goose egg was forming on her forehead. Though reluctant to move her further, he feared more for her safety. Whoever set the bomb would know soon it had detonated. He or she would check to see who was caught in the trap.
Praying he didn’t hurt his girlfriend, he grabbed the pink purse and lifted Lacey. He covered the final thirty feet to his SUV in seconds. Maneuvering her into the passenger seat, he belted her in and hurried around the hood. After cranking the engine, he sped from the cabin. Sirens sounded in the distance. Since the fire department would come from town, Jake turned in the opposite direction at the road.
He forced himself to drive the speed limit. He couldn’t afford to be pulled over. One look at Lacey, and a cop would think the worst of Jake. He didn’t have time to explain himself. He needed a safe place to examine Lacey and treat the cut on her arm.
A soft moan reached his ears a moment later. He stole a glance at her, ripped the rubber gloves from his hands, and trailed the backs of his fingers over her cheek. “Lacey, can you hear me?”
“Jake?”
“Yeah, it’s me. Tell me what hurts.”
“Everything. I feel like a truck hit me.”
Guilt spiraled through him. “That was me. I’m sorry.”
“What happened?”
“The cabin was wired for explosives. We triggered the timer when we went inside. The place is in a million burning pieces now.”
“How did you know it would explode?”
“I spotted the countdown clock when you grabbed that purse from the floor.”
“Thank you.”
He snorted. “For what? Throwing you to the ground and causing a concussion?”
“For saving my life. Wait.” She struggled to sit up. “Are you hurt?”
“Couple of minor burns. I’ve had far worse and survived.”
“I want to see.”
“When we’re safe and after I’ve taken care of your arm.”
“My arm?” Lacey examined
her arm. “Oh, boy. No wonder it hurts.”
“Anything else hurt?”
“My head aches. Considering the alternative, I’m lucky to be alive.”
“Wish I could have executed that rescue without hurting you.”
“Are we going back to the hotel?”
“Yes, but I turned a different direction because the fire engine was coming down the lane. I didn’t want someone remembering a vehicle fleeing from the scene of a fire at an abandoned cabin.”
“When you reach the highway, turn left. That will take us back into town. The hotel will be on our right.”
Jake parked at the back of the hotel fifteen minutes later and opened Lacey’s door. “Easy,” he murmured as he helped her to the asphalt. “I would carry you, but we’d draw attention. I’ll wrap my arm around your waist. I won’t let you fall. If you anyone approaches us, turn your face toward me. Your forehead needs an ice pack.”
“Does it look bad?”
“Bad enough to prompt questions we don’t want to answer.”
Jake scanned their surroundings as he walked to the hotel with Lacey. He used his key card to open the door to the first floor and guided her to the bank of elevators.
As they waited for the silver doors to open, he noticed another hotel patron approaching. “Company,” he whispered to Lacey. She leaned against his chest, her injury hidden from prying eyes. Her black shirt would disguise the blood seeping from her arm.
He palmed the back of her head with his hand and, when they entered the elevator car, nudged her to the back corner away from the businessman paying more attention to his cell phone screen than them. Jake also made sure Lacey’s face was hidden from the security camera. The businessman exited on the second floor without glancing their way.
When Lacey started to move, he held her still. “Camera.”
She relaxed in his arms. “Did that man notice us?”
“I don’t think so.”
The elevator dinged as the car reached the third floor. They walked down the hall to their rooms. “The mike bag is in my room.”
“Mike bag?”
“Medical supplies.”
“Do you always travel with it?”
“Yep. Actually, all Fortress operatives travel with a large medical kit although theirs isn’t as extensive as mine.” He unlocked his room and ushered her inside where he secured the door.
Jake led her to the second double bed and urged her to sit on the edge. “The black shirt comes off. I need to see the damage to your arm.”
“Bad enough I probably need a doctor.” Her head raised. “Unless you take care of it.”
“I treat team injuries in the field. However, if you want a doctor, I’ll have someone brought in from out of town. If we go to the hospital or a doctor here, all of Winston will know about your injuries by the end of the day.”
She gave a light laugh. “You don’t give the gossips enough credit. The whole town will know within an hour. I trust you, Jake. I’d rather you take care of me.”
Jake’s tension eased at her words. At least she trusted him that much. He’d vowed to himself to protect her, but had been the cause of her injuries. He helped her remove the shirt and lay back with her head on the pillow. Grabbing his mike bag, Jake found the supplies he needed to clean her cut. He thrust his hand back in the bag and snatched a chemically-activated ice pack.
After gently cleaning the goose egg, Jake shook the ice pack and laid in on her forehead. “How is your vision?”
“Fine. My biggest problems are the headache and my arm.”
“Once I treat your arm, I’ll give you something mild for pain.”
She smiled. “It’s nice to have my own medic.”
He chuckled and turned his attention to her arm. “I have to clean the cut and it will hurt.” Jake tore open antiseptic pads and cleaned her arm. Looked like she’d fallen on a stick or a sharp rock. Dirt had lodged deep in the wound, a wound needing several stitches to close. She’d probably have a scar to show for the incident at the cabin. At least she’d be alive to show off her war wound.
Reluctant to hurt her more than necessary, Jake held up a vial of lidocaine he used to numb wounds when he had to work in the field. “You have debris in the wound, deep enough that I want to numb your arm before I clean and stitch the cut.”
“Stitches?” Her voice sounded faint.
“You’re not going to pass out on me, are you?”
“Not a chance. I wouldn’t miss watching you work for anything.”
“Yeah, you say that now. You might change your mind when I start stitching.”
“Can you give me serious biceps like Lily Doucet?”
He laughed. His ripped teammate was married to a former NYPD homicide detective. Both of them were good friends. “I’m afraid that’s not going to happen. I can tell Lily you’d like to work out with her.”
“As long as it’s a baby workout routine. She could work me into the ground without breaking a sweat.”
She probably could. Lily was one tough woman. “I’ll tell her to go easy on you.” Jake filled a syringe with the liquid from the vial. “You ready?” When she nodded, he murmured, “A little stick.”
Once he finished, he sat back to wait for the medicine to take effect. “Where do you want to go for our first date?”
“I’ve been thinking about that.”
“What have you come up with?” he asked, pleased she’d been thinking about them as a couple.
“I’ve never been to The Hermitage. I’d love to explore the house and grounds with you.”
Huh. Never would have guessed she’d choose visiting the home of President Andrew Jackson as a first date. Then again, Lacey was not typical of the women he’d dated in recent years. They were nice, but none were interested in anything but entertainment on dates. He’d seen more movies, musicals, operas, symphony and ballet performances than he cared to count. This request was a refreshing change of pace. “You like history?”
“Although I don’t have much time, I like to read biographies and history, especially the presidents and their wives. Their lives fascinate me.”
“Have you ever been to Mt. Vernon?”
Her eyes lit. “George Washington’s house? No, but I’d love to visit.”
“Fortress teams go to Washington, D.C. occasionally. Next time we’re sent, I’ll ask Maddox about taking you. We’ll visit Mt. Vernon.”
“I’d love to as long as I won’t be in the way.”
He smiled. “It’s a date. Another one.”
“Did you mean what you said about dating me?”
“Every word. I wanted to ask you out for months. I held off so you would be comfortable with me before I approached you.”
“Months?”
“From the first moment I saw you behind the counter at Coffee House I wanted to ask you to dinner. Since you had just broken up with Frank, I made myself wait.”
Jake touched her arm. “Feel that?”
“Pressure. No pain.”
“Perfect. If you feel discomfort, tell me and I’ll give you more medicine.”
He worked in silence for a few minutes, cleaning and stitching the wound. He glanced at her face a few times, checking that she was all right. Each time he caught her watching his hands, utter fascination in her gaze. Yeah, definitely future doctor material. He hoped she followed through on her plans. He intended to encourage her when the opportunity arose.
Thirty minutes after he started, he bandaged the now cleaned and closed wound. Jake reached into his mike bag again and pulled out two packets. “The blue pills are a mild pain killer. The numbness will wear off in two hours and you’ll need the relief. The capsules are an antibiotic to prevent infection.”
A knock sounded on his door. Jake signaled Lacey to remain silent as he freed the Sig from his holster. He approached the door with noiseless steps, ready to deal with a probable threat.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Lacey removed the ice pack and swung her fe
et over the side of the bed. The room spun. Oh, man. She felt terrible. Must be the headache. She didn’t know who was at the door, but she wanted to be ready in case Jake needed her.
She wanted to laugh at herself. Jake was a highly trained black ops soldier. He didn’t need her for anything. Just look at the way he’d handled her injuries. Watching him stitch her cut was an amazing experience and reawakened a deep longing to go to college. Lacey wanted to have the skills to treat injuries. The only way to do that was to go to school and obtain the medical training necessary.
Jake peered through the peephole and slid his gun away. He unlocked the door and motioned for the man in the hallway to enter.
“Took you long enough,” Jake said. “I expected you hours ago.”
“Got delayed. Z sent me to another meet-and-greet first.” The stranger’s gaze shifted to Lacey. “I’m Cade Ramsey, with one of the Otter Creek based Fortress team. You must be Lacey Coleman.”
“That’s right. How did you know?”
“Zane told me Jake was with you. I’m sorry to hear about your mother’s disappearance. Anything new, Jake?”
He snorted. “Not unless you count nearly being blown up in a deserted cabin almost an hour ago.”
Cade stiffened. “Remote detonation?”
“We tripped a sensor and started a countdown. We made it out of the cabin with seconds to spare.” He inclined his head to Lacey. “I just finished putting twelve stitches in her arm.”
“That might explain the police presence at the front of the hotel. I hear you’re already on the local cops’ radar.”
“One of them put his hands on Lacey.”
A scowl. “You deck him?”
“Warned him off. I won’t be so nice if he touches her again.”
While the two men talked, Lacey’s mind raced. If the goose egg on her forehead was as noticeable as Jake said, she needed to do something fast to cover it. She was sure the ice pack had helped, but there hadn’t been enough time for her forehead to return to normal. “Jake, do you have scissors in your mike bag?”
