Gray Wolf Security: Back Home

by Glenna Sinclair

  Carrington’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Are you sleeping with him?”

  I wanted to laugh. “Do you realize how ridiculous that sounds? I told you, we’re just colleagues. That’s all. I don’t know what you want me to say.”

  He tilted his head slightly. “And you want me to believe that?”

  “Believe what you want, Carrington. I’m going to bed.”

  I left him there on the steps, coming to a place where I no longer cared what he believed or didn’t believe. I knew that was a dangerous place to be but I didn’t even have the energy to worry about that. My marriage was…it was what it was. I had to focus on keeping everyone alive.

  I paused outside Aidan’s door, opening it enough to shine a little light on her tiny face. She was sleeping soundly, her little chest moving steadily with each breath. She was so beautiful, my little blonde angel! I peeked in McKelty’s door, too. She threw a shoe at me.

  I kept thinking about sending Carrington to Florida with the girls, thinking it might be safer for them there. But maybe I was the one who needed a break, to separate myself from them, especially if I was the main reason why this was all happening. Maybe a trip to Wyoming wouldn’t be out of the question.

  Maybe a few days with Kirkland would put my life back into perspective. Jules could handle the office for a few days. And it wouldn’t hurt to talk to Clint Barrow. Out of all of us, he’d investigated Mahoney the longest. Maybe he’d have some perspective on the whole situation that would open some door, maybe even a small window.

  I crawled into bed, my stomach still churning. That was just what I needed—some virus that would keep me down for a few days. That would be just my luck, wouldn’t it?

  ERIN

  Prologue

  Erin

  Thirteen years ago…

  I could feel eyes on me. It always felt as if someone was watching me. Maybe that was because my mom was so paranoid that something bad would happen to me after my dad died in a car accident when I was a child. I don’t even remember my dad. She talks about him like he was a saint, but I don’t remember. I’m not even sure what he looked like. He must have had dark hair because my hair is more black than brown, like my mom’s. But I have her blue eyes, her narrow jaw, her thin nose. In fact, she and I could be twins if she wasn’t ancient.

  But she was ancient. So ancient that she couldn’t remember what it was like to be in high school. How could she seriously believe I’d be happy with missing out on the hottest party of the school year? I mean, really, how often was I even invited to these parties?

  Zack Tyler had invited me to Leslie Jackson’s party and I had no intention of missing it. She could ground me for the rest of my life if she wanted to, but I wasn’t missing this!

  I took one last look at myself in the mirror, lifting my thick, curly hair off my shoulders as I tried to decide if it looked better up or down. I decided to leave it down. Zack complimented me on my hair the other day and it’d been down then. Down it is.

  I tugged at my skirt of my dress and smacked my lips, leaning forward to make sure my lipstick wasn’t smeared or all over my teeth. I wasn’t used to wearing this much makeup, but had to admit I looked pretty good. I just followed the guidelines in this magazine I saw some of the cheerleaders reading the other day and it seemed to have worked well.

  With one final glance and another tug at my dress, I decided it was now or never. I slipped to the door and listened for a second. I could hear my mom’s show, The Practice, just beginning. That would keep her busy for the next hour.

  Back across the room, I carefully slid my window open and stepped over the sill, holding tight to the frame as I let myself down into the side yard. I had never been so relieved that my bedroom was on the ground floor as I was tonight. I slid the window closed and took off in a slow jog, moving into a quick walk as I hit the front of the house, more concerned about sweat washing away my makeup than anyone thinking me suspicious for running this late in the evening in an outfit completely inappropriate for a workout.

  The party was supposed to have started an hour ago. I hoped I hadn’t missed much.

  My best friend, Julia, was supposed to meet me down on the corner. I walked slowly, the space between each house dark and daunting. We lived on the outskirts of town in a new housing development that bragged about the acre each house was built on. That acre left nearly a house length between each driveway. Nice to avoid loud neighbors, but a little frightening to a fifteen year old sneaking out of her house and trying to walk over undeveloped land in high heels she was already unfamiliar with.

  I finally made it to the corner, happy to stand under the street lamp for a few minutes. But then, as cars passed at what seemed like an unreasonable speed, I began to worry that one of my mom’s many friends might spot me while driving by and call her. I stepped out of the light and moved to stand behind Mr. Feder’s hedges.

  Seconds turned into minutes and minutes into an indescribably long time. Julia should have been waiting for me when I got here. Had she been caught? Or had she been early and given up on me? I glanced at my watch, wondering what Mr. Feder would say if I asked to use his phone.

  Just as I was about to move on—if I walked down to the A&P I could use the payphone there—I saw a car suddenly do a violent U-turn in the middle of the street. It was a four-door sedan just like the one Julia’s father drove. It must be her.

  Had she forgotten something? Or maybe she’d gone to pick up Melissa. Missy wasn’t sure she was going to be able to sneak out, but maybe she changed her mind at the last minute.

  The car stopped at the curb just a dozen feet in front of me. When the passenger door flew open, I knew it was them.

  But then…

  Chapter 1

  Joss

  I walked into my office, my head a spinning whirlwind of things that needed to be done in less time than I had to do said tasks. It seemed like a very simple thing on paper. Walk away from days and days of work, leave it in the capable hands of my assistant, and fly into the arms of the only guy who’d ever truly understood me, the only guy whose advice I’d take completely to heart and who wouldn’t be afraid to kick my ass if it was completely necessary. But it wasn’t working out quite that simply.

  Gray Wolf, at least the office I was running at the moment, had over a dozen open cases and more coming in every day. Each one required attention in one way or another: paperwork, liaising with law enforcement, checking in with operatives, more paperwork…always paperwork. I hated leaving it all for Jules.

  “It’s okay,” she said as she came through the door as though she could read my mind.

  “It’s not okay. I never intended for you to have to do all of this. I wanted it finished before I left to catch my plane.”

  “It’ll never all be finished and we both know it.” Jules came over and rested her hand on my shoulder, offering what comfort she could. “This paperwork is like rabbits. It multiplies while we’re not looking.”

  I giggled a little, still wishing I had more time.

  “I’ll take the files for the Daugherty case and the Mit—”

  “No, you won’t. You are going to try to relax and you can’t do that if you spend the whole time working! Go see Kirkland and try to have a good time.”

  I sighed. I really did need this. Things had been so insane lately, both in my work and my personal life. I needed my best friend’s advice. I’d somehow found myself neck deep in some game with a mobster Gray Wolf had helped take down over a year ago, taking cases that kept leading back to him even though he’d been locked up all this time. As if that wasn’t enough, my husband had become this guy’s prime target. He’d arranged for one of his former associates to get out of jail illegally for the sole purpose of killing my husband. As if that wasn’t bad enough, the FBI had recently informed me that it wasn’t over. They’d learned that Jack Mahoney hadn’t given up. He was still determined to kill my husband for reasons we couldn’t figure out.

  Yes, Carrington had
worked for Mahoney last year—quite definitely against his will. And yes, he’d agreed to testify against Mahoney. But there were dozens of others waiting to give much more damning testimony against Mahoney. Why pick on my husband rather than some of those other people?

  That FBI—well, actually one FBI agent, Mike Spencer—was convinced that it had something to do with me. I doubted it, though. What could I have done to piss off a man like Mahoney? The biggest thing I’d done in my life was take out the head of the Bavarov Cartel, a Russian who was also going after my husband because Carrington refused to allow him to use his shipping business to move illegal drugs and weapons. But we’d pretty much established that doing that only benefited Mahoney and his interests. Why would he come after me seven years later over that?

  So now Carrington was pissed at me because I’d put him under lock and key along with our children. One of my operatives was with all three of them twenty-four/seven. Like they weren’t annoyed enough with me lately.

  And I was running away, getting some much needed TLC while they dealt with their new shadows. I wasn’t sure Carrington or our fourteen-year-old daughter would ever speak to me again.

  “Who’s on Carrington and the girls today?”

  “Audra is at the school with Aidan. Tony is with McKelty—which I believe is making her quite happy—and Johnny is with Carrington.”

  I nodded. McKelty was only happy with this situation when Tony was her assigned operative. And I totally understood. At six foot three, Tony was one of the best looking operatives we had. Not only that, he was probably the nicest guy I’d ever met. He opened doors and carried purses, never complained and never spoke a rude word. I’d probably be pretty happy in his constant company, too.

  “Good. Make sure someone is outside the house every night and that—”

  “I know what to do, Joss. We have this under control.”

  I knew that, but I hated leaving all of this in someone else’s hands. This was my responsibility. As angry as Carrington was with me for not telling him about the danger immediately and for other things that were just…he was so angry with me right now that I didn’t know what to do. I needed Kirkland’s advice. But leaving now just seemed wrong.

  “Joss, you need to go. You’re going to miss your plane.”

  “I know, but—”

  “Erin is staying the night with the girls. They love her, you know that. Carrington and Johnny are taking that overnight trip to San Francisco, but will be back first thing in the morning so they can attend the football game at McKelty’s school tomorrow. We have this under control, Joss. Please go. Have some fun. God knows you deserve it!”

  I tried to smile, but it just felt like I was leaving a bunch of strangers in charge of my family. While Johnny had been with us for over a year, Erin was new and my girls already saw more of her than they did me. It sucked, this whole working mother thing. But it was the choice I made.

  “Okay. I’m going. But please—”

  Jules pushed me gently toward the door. “Go, Joss. If you forgot something and it truly is important, I’ll be here when your plane lands.”

  I nodded, knowing she was right. But I still hesitated a long moment. I wasn’t sure what was holding me back more: my family and their current situation or this office. Gray Wolf saved my life once upon a time. It was more than a job to me; it was a purpose. I hated to walk away from it, even just for a few days.

  “If you have any major issues here at the office that need dealing with immediately, call Ash. He knows I’m leaving town. He’ll make himself available.”

  “I know. But it won’t come to that.” Jules smiled softly. “You’ve trained us well.”

  I studied my trusted assistant. She was tall, blonde, the kind of woman who belonged in front of a camera, a beauty who could grace magazine covers. But she was here, keeping me on track and on time. She probably knew more about running this office than I did because she did most of the grunt work I just didn’t have time to deal with.

  “Thank you.”

  I took one last look around, grabbed my bags, and headed out. The car service was waiting for me just outside the front door. I glanced up at the building’s façade as I waited for the driver to open my door.

  “Gray Wolf?” he said. “Is this that security firm that solved those robberies last year?”

  I glanced at him, a prideful smile touching my lips. “It is.”

  He nodded. “Then I owe you a bit of gratitude. My uncle was hit by that gang once. He has a little shop on the boardwalk and someone thought it was funny to beat a weak old man even though he told them to take what they wanted. If not for you guys…he never would have survived a second round with those punks.”

  I just nodded, giving the place one more glance before I climbed into the car.

  ***

  The flight was uneventful except for the toddler in the seat in front of me who kept taking peeks at me over the top and through the crack between the two seats. He reminded me of the little boy I once had, the little boy who was the most frustrating, loving, beautiful soul I’d ever known. He made me smile.

  Funny how something that had once been so incredibly painful to recall was now almost a wistful memory. I once couldn’t think of Isaac without feeling as though my heart might stop with the heaviness of the hurt. But now? The pain was still there, but I could actually smile when I remembered his smile.

  The plane landed and I gathered my things slowly, allowing the other passengers to make their way down the aisle before I dragged myself off the plane. I expected a car service to meet me at the curb, but the moment I walked through security, I found myself staring into familiar eyes.

  Tears sprang into my eyes without warning. I hadn’t realized how desperately I needed to see him until that moment. I flew into his arms and he lifted me, holding me so tight he might have broken my ribs, but I held him just as tight. He swung me around before setting me on my feet, laughing as he wiped away my tears.

  “How you doing, kid?” he asked in that playful, but serious tone he’d somehow perfected.

  “Better now.”

  He laughed again, but the laughter didn’t quite touch his eyes. There was concern there, a concern that made more tears flow from my eyes. But he wasn’t about to be serious now. He snatched my bag off the ground where I’d dropped it and took my hand, leading the way toward the exit.

  “And I thought I looked rough! I’d forgotten how much work it was, getting up with a newborn in the middle of the night. And having two newborns on the property! You should see Bodhi. I didn’t think it was possible to make a man like that unattractive, but—”

  “Somehow, I don’t think it’s possible for Bodhi Archer to be unattractive.”

  “You haven’t seen him after an all-nighter with the baby.”

  I laughed, trying to imagine Hollywood’s current hottie with the same dark under-eye circles Kirkland was currently sporting. It didn’t seem possible.

  “How’s Mabel taking all this?”

  “She’s great. She loves motherhood. She’d have a dozen more if she could.”

  Kirkland rolled his eyes, but I could see the clear pride and affection that came when he spoke of his wife.

  “And Matthew?”

  He nodded slowly. “He stopped trying to kill her the third day after we brought her home, but he still slinks off to the corner to pout every time Mabel settles down to nurse the little tyke.”

  “Look at you,” I said, “doing the whole daddy thing. Who would have predicted this seven years ago?”

  He laughed again, a true belly laugh. “I didn’t see myself in this role, that’s for sure. If not for Mabel, I’d probably still be working my way through all the beautiful women in the Santa Monica area.”

  “If not for Mabel, you’d be a totally different person now, my friend.”

  He nodded slowly, completely agreeing with me. “I would.”

  “She’s the best thing that’s ever happened to you.”

&n
bsp; “I can’t argue with that.”

  “What about Sutherland? How are things going with her?”

  Kirkland shrugged. “She’s good. She’s somehow managing to keep up with both the ranch and Gray Wolf while taking care of her new baby and her daughter and her new husband. The woman is something of a superhero.”

  I didn’t know Sutherland Archer well, but knew Kirkland well enough to know that was very high praise on his part.

  “Is her brother still here?”

  “He is. He’s working with us now. You know that.”

  I nodded. That was part of the reason I’d come. Special Agent Clint Butler was with Homeland Security for many years. In fact, he’d worked under James Conway, the associate of Jack Mahoney who’d tried to kill my husband just a few weeks ago. I was hoping he might have some information on Mahoney that might help me figure out why he was after my husband.

  Maybe we could put this whole ordeal to rest once and for all with a little information.

  Chapter 2

  Erin

  I watched Aidan climb into bed, her little body clad in a thin nightgown that looked as though it was better suited for a child three times her size. A hand-me-down from her sister, I assumed. While McKelty had long, coltish legs and a sturdy profile, Aidan was a slight child, likely to be petite like her mother.

  My boss.

  “What book did you want to read?”

  “I want Momma to read to me.”

  “I know, Peanut, but she’s not here tonight.”

  “She does it over Skype,” McKelty said from the doorway.

  I glanced over at her and nodded, wondering if the teen was always this sulky. I’d been working for Gray Wolf a little over six weeks and this was my fourth time spending time with Aidan, and only the second with McKelty. And it was my first time staying overnight with either of them. I was pleased Joss Matthews trusted me enough to allow me to do this, but I was also nervous of saying or doing something wrong that would get back to her. I liked this job. I wanted to keep it.