They ran deeper into the ship and found a cargo holding that was more sparsely filled, but the containers were much, much larger.
“What the fuck are they selling, Dace?” Eli stood in awe of the sheer size of the containers before them. “This isn’t a crate of automatic weapons and dope.”
Dace shook his head slowly, chest heaving, as he tried to control his breathing and adrenaline. “I don’t know, and I don’t fucking care. Let’s start opening them.”
The men each took turns calling out Cash’s name and helped each other pry the large cases open. They rounded a container, and Dace noticed one that wasn’t quite like the others. Smaller and made of wood, it had a hinge instead of being nailed shut, with a couple of holes for handles on the sides. Air holes.
“Cash?” he yelled, making his way to the large wooden box. “Cash, you in there?”
He undid the metal bolt lock and tossed the hinged lid back. Looking up at him was a small dark-haired boy with long thick lashes and piercing green eyes, just like Dace. When the boy smiled, Dace reached in and pulled him out, holding him against his chest, and he hugged the boy tight.
“You’re okay. You’re okay, Cash,” Dace said, swaying back and forth with his large hand at the back of the boy’s head. When he closed his eyes, he released the breath he’d been holding for who knew how long. Nothing mattered at that moment. Guns blazing around them, a ship full of illegal drugs and weapons, dead and wounded bodies scattered…none of it mattered. Dace took his moment to meet his son and hold him for the first time.
“I know,” Cash said. “You found me. Just like Grandpa said.”
Dace bent down to one knee and stood Cash in front of him and straightened his clothes, taking a visual inventory searching for injuries. The kid was fine. Perfectly fine.
“Do you know who I am, Cash?”
“Yep. My dad from the picture.” Cash pulled up his sleeve and showed Dace the artwork on his own arm. “It’s just like yours.”
Dace smiled and let out a weak laugh. “It sure is. It’s a nice piece, buddy.”
Dace looked up at Eli, who stood at a fair distance and gave Dace a quick reassuring nod before he sniffed hard, fighting his own emotion of relief.
Cash followed his dad’s view and noticed Eli. “Eli! You know my dad?”
“I sure do, mate. He came to get you.”
“That’s right. We need to get you out of here, though, okay? Your mom’s waiting for us.”
“But I’m playing hide and seek with Grandpa. The lady said he was coming and to be quiet so I could win the game.”
“The lady?” Dace looked at Eli with a knowing look. Cash saw far more than a boy his age should, and that put him in even more danger than they already were. “Well, the lady said Grandpa might have cheated, and we need to hide somewhere better.”
“Okay.” The boy clapped his hands in excitement. “Don’t forget my backpack. I can’t reach in there.”
Dace looked in the bin his son had been stowed in, and it nearly made him ill until he saw the little backpack full of markers and remembered Ivy telling him it was Cash’s favorite thing because he liked to draw tattoos. He quickly grabbed it and tossed it on his own back, earning an odd look from Eli.
“I’ll carry it, but I’m going to need you to do me a favor. I have to run really fast, and I’m going to carry you. I need you to keep your eyes closed the whole time – no matter how loud it gets. It’s a part of the game, okay?”
“Okay.”
Dace put the hood of the boy’s sweatshirt over his head and pulled strings tight so it closed around his face leaving only his nose and mouth exposed.
“You okay like this? It’ll help you keep your eyes closed so you don’t cheat.”
“Yeah. It’s just like Spider-Man.”
Dace shrugged at Eli, not sure what else to say and got a shrug in return. “Yep. Just like Spider-Man. You ready to fly?”
The boy nodded and wrapped his arms around Dace's neck and legs at his waist as he scooped him up.
“We’re coming out,” Dace said through the comms. “I have the package.”
“Hot damn!” Wylie replied with excitement. “It’s the home stretch, Brother. We got you covered and an escort waiting. We’ll get you all the way out. You just hold onto that package.”
“I’ll lead you out,” Eli said, and that he did, watching behind them and looking ahead, eliminating two obstacles as they went.
Dace cringed at each shot, hoping he’d done the right thing to extract Cash as he did and prayed the boy didn’t see the bodies that lay in their path. He’d been through enough. When they breached the deck and headed down the ramp, his brothers stood, weapons ready to lead them through the fire.
An odd family reunion, but grateful one, they all smiled and took pride as their missing piece came through the ramp opening in his father’s arms.
“They have them held up on the knoll, so we should be clear,” Wylie said. “You’re going in the second rig. We’ll take the lead and rear and get you to the chopper.”
When the door to the SUV opened and Dace jumped in, he breathed a sigh of relief. They were in the home stretch. He sat the boy on the seat next to him and pulled a too big seat belt over him.
He loosened the hood and slid it off his head. “We’re almost to your mom, buddy. I need you to keep your head down, though, okay?”
“Are we going to surprise her?”
“We sure are.” Dace smiled, a lone tear breaking free. “You okay? Were you scared?”
Cash furrowed his brow, and his face quirked up as he thought about the question. “Were you scared?”
“Not anymore.” Dace looked down at his hand as the little boy grabbed it. “Not anymore.”
“Me, either.” The little boy shrugged.
34
“Mendoza is already in the air with Kimble, headed to Portland – critical,” Luke said through the comms from one of the other vehicles.
Dace dropped his head. The man was a real bastard, but in the end, he came through and did the right thing. And in the end, he’d probably turn on whoever he needed to in order to cut a deal, which is probably why he was shot. Whoever this club was, they knew he was a loose string that needed tying up, so they attempted to neutralize the threat. Dace was hopeful he’d pull through despite their efforts and help bring down whatever the hell that was.
“Port’s secure,” Carter said through the comms. “Couple of runaways, but we’re tracking them down. This is going to mean a lot of fucking paperwork. I hate paperwork.”
Dace laughed. “Good job, man.”
“Who are you talking to?” Cash asked with a wrinkled face.
“All your uncles and friends. I can hear them in my ear. Ya wanna listen?”
Dace pulled out his earpiece and held it to Cash’s ear. “Hey, everyone, say hi to my son.”
The little boy's face lit up with all the greetings and introductions from his uncles, including Uncle Carter and Uncle Charlie Tango, which made him laugh.
“Hi, er’body. I’m Cash O’Reilly.”
Dace rolled his eyes up and tilted his head back. Breathing heavy, he was fighting the overwhelming feeling of pride that flooded him at the sound of his son saying his name.
When he righted his view, he saw Eli turned around, smiling from the front passenger seat. “It’s all uphill from here, friend.”
Dace agreed.
“You ever been on a helicopter?” Dace asked, undoing his seat belt and pulling him up onto his lap so Cash could see what he was referring to. He was new at the dad thing and didn’t know what Cash knew, but he was happy to learn every single thing.
“I get to go on that?” Seeing the excitement in his son’s eyes was nearly his undoing. They had so much catching up to do and things to learn about each other, though Cash seemed to know much more about Dace than he’d expected. He’d thank Ivy for that.
A gold SUV pulled up in front of them, and Ivy rushed out of the passenger
side door, running to their car.
“There’s your mom, Cash. Let’s go get her.”
They exited the car and ran to her, meeting in the middle where they all embraced in an emotional reunion.
They boarded the helicopter and flew home…together.
Epilogue
“They really are two peas in a pod,” Colleen said, serving Sunday dinner at the Pub.
In the days and weeks that followed his rescue, Cash rarely left his dad's side. Seemingly unscathed by all he’d endured, he fit right in and captured the hearts of the O’Reilly clan.
“It’s like they’ve always been together,” Eli said as he leaned back and placed his arm over the back of Cally’s chair.
Eli had rarely left Cally’s side, and it was like they’d always been together too.
The brothers asked Eli to stay and join The Keepers. His experience and skills were the kind their team was made of, so he’d happily accepted. Portland seemed like a nice place to lay roots for now.
“It’ll be nice having a little more help around Watermark,” Luke said, balancing one of his newborn babies on his large shoulder. “Daisy has this shit down, but man…I’m tired.”
She thwacked his free arm. “You’re tired? Have you had two babies hanging from your boobs at all hours? I haven’t shaved my legs in a week because…tired. I’ve mastered the three-minute prison shower.”
“You never say that.” Liam elbowed his twin while holding his own newborn. “You’re never tired, got it? It pisses them off. Only they get to be tired…you’re just selfish, and they start saying how you couldn’t do what they did and where it came out, and then it turns into stuff about can’t even handle a man cold… It gets ugly.”
“Man cold? What’s a man cold?” Luke asked.
“No fucking clue, man. No fucking clue. They’re just stronger because, you know…where it comes out. And they get to be tired.”
Luke nodded. “I need to start writing this crap down. I feel like I’m going to fail the test.”
“You will, Brother. Many, many times… Welcome to the club.”
Dace sat back and watched his family – what a difference a few months made. Their family had grown not by three, but four with Cash home. Ivy was back, too, for good. They were planning the future they were robbed of while still taking life one day at a time and enjoying every minute of it. Their days were filled with family trips to the zoo, parks, and anything else that had them together. Their nights were spent alone wrapped up in each other, rediscovering what they’d lost and making up for lost time.
Their family was complete for now, and Dace couldn’t get enough. That nudge to run, to get on the road to hunt, seek, and get into trouble was gone. The only nudge he had now was to build a relationship with his son and get alone time with his fiancée. Life was so right that he couldn’t imagine it going wrong again – he’d paid his dues.
“What are you thinking about?” Ivy asked.
“You. Him. Everything.” Dace took a long pull from his beer. “I didn’t know it could be like this. He’s amazing.” He leaned in and kissed her. “You’re amazing.”
“Don’t forget that when he throws up on the floor someday or tells you no when you ask him to clean up his things.”
“Ah shit,” Luke said, pulling up a seat, brothers in tow. “Is this the tired speech? Because I didn’t know that was off-limits. There are so many rules.”
Ivy laughed. “We’re past that phase for now. I’m going to go snuggle one of those babies and let you boys talk.”
“All she wants to do is hold the babies – go visit the babies – pick things up for the babies – take Cash to see the babies.” Dace laughed.
“Oh, man. You’re next,” Liam said. “I know what that is. It’s baby fever. She wants her own baby.”
“Do you realize how that sounds, she wants her own baby, like it’s a puppy,” Carter said.
“You have no idea, man. I’m telling you – that’s how all this works. Babies are dangerous. Cute, but dangerous.” Declan tossed back a drink of his whiskey. “Lydia’s doing it too. I don’t even know what to do about it. Give her one? Wait? Let’s be honest, we’re all getting pretty outnumbered here.”
“So, where we at?” Dace asked. “How are you doing with all those deals you’re making? Any progress?”
“It’s a shitstorm. Some of these guys are stonewalling, and they’ll just stand trial. Either be extradited for other crimes they need to stand trial for elsewhere, or they’ll go to the supermax and serve their time here.”
“But?” Dace laughed.
“But we’re not done,” Carter said.
“We? Whoa, what’s this we stuff? This is all federal crap, and you’re the federal crap guy.”
“We because I need a team I can trust, and after the shit I’m getting out of some of these guys, I can’t trust anyone else. Not right now. Kimble was right in his warning. This thing is big, and it’s dangerous – all the way to the top and abroad.”
“Holy shit. I wish the old man would wake up and help us a bit more,” Eli said of David Kimble, who was currently alive, albeit on life support and in a coma.
“We need to leave him alone for a while and let the world continue to think he’s dead,” Carter said. “The minute they know he’s alive, Portland will have every damn murder for hire in town. We have a lot of people with a lot to lose out there, and Kimble is the one who can take them all down.”
“If he wakes up.”
“Right. Which is why I say we. This shit can’t sit around and wait for him to live or die. This is urgent. This club wasn’t just dealing heroin for small arms. They were…”
Wylie rushed in the Pub and straight to the guys. “We have a problem…Eva’s missing.”
Things are really heating up! Get ready for the EPIC conclusion that will make you question EVERYTHING!
Wylie’s next…
About Stephanie St. Klaire
Stephanie St. Klaire is a Pacific Northwest native currently living in Portland, Oregon with her husband, five children, and two ferocious lap dogs that are used to the finer things in life like sleeping all day. When she isn’t writing, she can usually be found with a plate full of taco’s, a side of bean dip, and probably some gummy bears while being a little bit hippy and a lot bit busy mom’ing and wife’ing.
When she’s not tossing around gritty crime show inspired serial killers and diabolical bad guys, she likes to make people pee their pants a little with a good romcom. Sometimes, her worlds collide, and she writes really funny stuff right before she kills people off on the pages! She loves murder and mayhem as much as a good laugh and HEA! That’s why she’s a die-hard Hallmark junky but loves her gritty crime shows – balance!
Stephanie has always been a storyteller, with the gift of “gab”, and a life-long goal to be a writer. Unfortunate circumstances with her health, finally afforded her the time to do so. Irony at its best, she began writing her first novel at an adverse time, to escape her circumstance and explore the stories in her imagination for relief. She is happy to share those stories with her readers, and bring a little fun, entertainment, and of course smexy characters to the pages.
Follow Stephanie St. Klaire on Social media to learn more about her, how often she really eats taco’s, and to keep up with her work.
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What to Read Next by SSK
McKenzie Ridge Series
Rescued
Hidden
Forgotten
Fearless
Redemption
McKenzie Ridge Novellas
Christmas in July
Brother’s Keeper Series
Declan (pt 1)
Declan (pt 2)
Liam
Luke
Dace
Wylie
Love, Cass (a contemporary romance novella)
The Keeper’s Series
Close Encounter (pt 1)
Close Encounter (pt 2) - Available 2021
DILF Diaries
Oh Baby
Faux-Mance Novels
Liar
Rumor Has It
Sneaking Around
Bed Buddies
COPYRIGHT © 2020
Stephanie St. Klaire
Brother’s Keeper V: Wylie
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, or other status is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever known, not known or hereafter invented, or stored in any storage or retrieval system, is forbidden and punishable by the fullest extent of the law without written permission of the author.
EDITOR: Jenny Simms
COVER ARTIST: Opium House Design
FORMATTING: The SSK Group
Acknowledgments
This one is for all of the O’Reilly fans…
Thank you for loving them as much as I’ve loved writing them.
It may be the end of a series, but we’re not done hearing from these O’Reilly’s…
XOXO - SSK
1
“Someone has her,” Wylie said while pacing the room. Sweat beaded on his furrowed brow as he balled his fists and his jaw clenched. “They took her.”
Brother's Keeper V: Wylie (the complete series BOX SET): NEW RELEASE + Series Box SET included! Page 116
