Bang: B-Squad Book Two

by Avery Flynn

  Tamara looked over at Essie and held her finger to her lips as she stood, holding the staff behind her back. Essie nodded and followed her lead. Her heart slammed against her rib cage as they shuffle-stepped toward the side door as quietly as possible. Chatter from the guard's walkie-talkie filled the silence, helping to cover the sound of their footsteps. A few more and they'd be at the door. She could almost reach the knob. Another step closer. She reached out and—

  "Where do you think you're going?" the guard asked, taking a menacing step toward them.

  Tamara didn't think. There wasn't time. She reacted with the only skill she had.

  As the big man steamed toward them, she twisted her wrist, increasing her speed on each turn. Finally, she raised her arm and threw the staff at him with all the force she'd used in her pageant days when she’d send a baton skyward, execute a double cartwheel, and then catch it. The staff shot through the air, high and true, cracking him right between the eyes. He crashed to the ground.

  Tamara whirled around and reached for the side door, but the front door burst open before she could. Jarrod rushed in, gun drawn.

  "You bitch," he yelled, more than a touch of craziness thundering through his words. "You've ruined everything."

  Tamara threw herself in front of Essie right as the side door flew open.

  * * *

  Isaac

  Isaac rushed through the chapel's side door and time screeched to a halt. The rest of the world fell away until all Isaac could see was Jarrod Fane with his finger on the trigger and the handgun pointed at Tamara's head.

  There was no hesitation. No flashback to Afghanistan. No second thought. Isaac fired.

  The bullet hit Fane in the shoulder, the power of it knocking him back and sending the gun sailing from his grasp. Tamara kicked the gun out of Fane's reach as Isaac ran across the vestibule, hurdling over the guard, who was out cold.

  Relief rushed through Isaac, enough that the adrenaline rush from the rescue seemed puny in comparison. She was safe. His entire body ached with the need to curl around her and confirm it in a way his eyes couldn’t, but he knew Tamara was finally safe. Everything from Wolczyk showing up at the engagement party to Essie being kidnapped had led up to him firing his gun at another human being for the first time since Afghanistan. Part of him should be freaking out. But he wasn’t. The power of seeing the woman he loved without Fane’s threat hanging over her head made it all worth it.

  He gathered Tamara in his arms while Marko secured the prisoners and Elisa led Essie into the chapel. It wasn't until that moment that he truly realized how close he'd come to losing her, and it shook him right down to his toes. He didn't know how he was going to convince her to stay in Fort Worth, but he'd figure it out. Now that he'd found her, he wasn't about to let her go.

  She pulled back far enough to look up at him. "I knew you'd come."

  "Always." He cupped her face and tilted it up. "You can trust me on that."

  He leaned down and brushed his lips across hers, needing to say more but knowing now wasn't the time. ATF agents were already streaming into the chapel behind them. He ended the kiss before he was ready.

  "Come on. Let's go get Essie."

  Tamara nodded, but there was something in her eyes that gave him pause. "One thing first,” she said.

  She stalked over to where Fane was propped up against a wall with one of the agents squatting in front of him applying pressure to the wound.

  "Is he going to be okay?" Tamara asked.

  The agent nodded. "A through-and-through."

  "Good. I'd hate not to be able to get this in." Her leg shot out, connecting with Fane's balls. "That's for my sister."

  Every man in the room winced, but no one said anything as Tamara made her way back over to Isaac. "Let's go get Essie."

  Isaac couldn't keep the grin off his face as he tucked her arm into the crook of his and led her into the chapel. Tamara may not be Texas-born, but the girl definitely delivered some Texas justice when needed.

  * * *

  Tamara

  From her seat in the back of the ambulance, Tamara had a front row seat when the ATF agents led Jarrod out in cuffs. No doubt they had him on gun charges for all of the illegal firepower in the armory, but she'd get the specifics later. Right now, it was enough to know he wouldn't be bothering Essie ever again. The agents led a patched-up and bruised Jarrod to a transport van already half-full of his handcuffed henchmen, among them the asshole guard who'd helped him shoot her full of sedatives.

  "I know the view is good, but I need you to follow the light for me." The paramedic squatting in front of her moved a pen light from left to right, then up and down. "Okay, that looks good. No idea what they injected you with?"

  She shook her head. Her vision didn't get fuzzy at all. "All he said was that it was a sedative."

  "Any allergies?" the paramedic asked, narrowing his eyes under his bushy gray eyebrows.

  "No, and I feel fine." She gave him her best pageant-winning smile.

  He harrumphed. "What you should do is go to the hospital for observation just in case, but I don't think you're gonna follow that advice."

  She didn't say a thing. Sometimes winning meant keeping your big mouth shut.

  The paramedic went on, "Just be careful. If you start feeling dizzy or light-headed at all, come straight to the emergency department." He eyeballed the cut on her cheekbone that had already stopped bleeding.

  "Did you really knock the guy out with a baton-twirling trick?"

  She nodded, still not quite believing she'd managed to make it happen. Wait until she told Albert.

  He laughed as he stood up, clearing her way to leave. "Remind me never to piss off a beauty queen."

  "Yeah, we're real brawlers," she said, chuckling. "Thanks for your help."

  She got out of the ambulance and began searching for Isaac and Essie. She finally spotted them just past a small group of women and children standing near one of the big black SUVs. An invisible weight lifted off her chest at the sight. Just seeing them was like finding treasure she hadn't known she'd been looking for but was damn glad she'd found.

  It took her a minute to get through the swarm of agents, paramedics, and others gathered around the chapel, but she finally made it to their sides. But by the time she got there, they weren't alone anymore. A man with a cold smile and serious eyes in a Kevlar vest with ATF printed across the back in yellow letters was with them.

  "Tamara Post?" the man asked.

  She nodded.

  "You do know there's still a warrant out for your arrest? Transporting a minor across state lines is a federal offense."

  Her gut twisted. Instinctively, she reached out for Isaac's hand. Just the touch of his warm fingers helped steady her.

  "You don't understand," Essie said, squeezing her body between Tamara's and the agent's. "You guys saw what my father is capable of. She was saving me. If it wasn't for her, he would have—"

  The agent held up his hand, stopping Essie mid-rant. "I understand that, but the law is the law."

  Isaac stiffened beside Tamara, no doubt ready to pounce on the smaller man, but she squeezed his hand, stopping him before any real trouble could start. That wasn't going to help anything. She'd broken the law. She'd have to pay the price.

  "It's all right," she said, swallowing the emotion clogging her throat. "I knew what I was doing when I took Essie."

  "And why, exactly, did you do that, ma'am?" the agent asked.

  "Because it was the right thing to do." Hell, if she was going to be in handcuffs next to Jarrod in a few minutes, she might as well let it all out. "You saw what was going on here. He was forcing his own daughter to marry against her will when you guys raided the compound. He didn't care about her or any of his people. He only wanted power and control."

  The agent rubbed his hand against his jaw. "So you hid her away to keep her safe?"

  "Absolutely." And she'd do it again.

  "That's what I'd figured you say,"
he said, his whole body relaxing from his on-duty stance. "I talked to the prosecutor a few minutes ago. We arrested the judge who issued your warrant while he was guarding the illegal armory. That definitely brings into question anything he may have done in a legal capacity to help the Crest Society and Fane. The prosecutor is quashing the warrant against you as we speak, so you don't have to worry about that anymore. And since this girl's daddy is headed off to prison for a very long time, I don't think he'll be in a place to contest your custody of her as willed by your sister."

  A shaky laugh escaped and she leaned against Isaac, needing the support to stay standing on her suddenly weak legs. "I don't know what to say."

  "Just don't ever come after me with a twirling baton and we'll call it even." The agent winked at her and nodded to Isaac before turning and walking back to the mass of ATF agents gathered near the armory.

  Everything swam in her watery vision as Isaac wrapped his arms around her. A second set of arms encircled her. She reached out to curl her own arms around both Isaac and Essie. They'd done it. Everyone was safe. After a minute or an hour or an eternity, they broke apart. Each of them was grinning from ear to ear like idiots. Happy, happy idiots.

  "So I guess that means I'm coming home with you, Aunt T," Essie said.

  She nodded, almost too relieved to form words. "You bet."

  "No more midnight makeovers with Uncle Albert then, huh?" The girl grinned and it had more than just a small spark of trouble to it.

  "Don't worry, I'm sure you'll get to see plenty of him," Tamara said. "He's family."

  "Can I call him? Let him know we're okay?"

  Isaac handed over his phone. "Go for it."

  While Essie was chatting with Albert using lots of hand gestures, she and Isaac hung back, watching the now-full transport van drive off toward the gate. The only thing that would have made it better was if Amelia had lived to see it. As the van pulled farther away, Tamara let go of Isaac's hand and took a couple of steps to watch it go down the main road until it was out of sight.

  Once even the small cloud of dust kicked up by the van's tires was no longer visible, she turned back to Isaac. She expected to find him just as relieved as she was, but judging by his pinched expression he was feeling something completely different.

  "So, you're free now." He made an attempt at keeping his tone light, but didn't quite manage it. "You've got all that cash in your duffle bag in the hotel. You can go wherever you want now."

  She could. The possibilities of it all made her giddy, but not in the way he was thinking. "The only place I want to be is with you."

  His shoulders relaxed as he closed the distance between them. "That's the best news I've heard all day."

  "Bet I can top it." She wound her arms around his neck and raised herself up on her tip toes bringing her lips close enough to his that they almost touched. "I love you, Isaac Camacho."

  "I love you too." And he kissed her like a man who would always lead her true…and she believed it.

  Chapter 25

  Elisa

  Finally finished with the Feds' questions, Elisa walked away from the hubbub outside the Crest Society chapel. The compound was actually kind of nice, with all of the trees and the mountains surrounding the place. Might even be worth a vacation. Not that she ever took one of those. Vacations were not her thing. Life was boring if you weren't running from one firefight to another.

  She didn't mean to walk over to Marko. It just happened. He was off in a quiet corner behind the chapel—exactly the kind of spot she was looking for after answering the same five questions from the Feds over and over for the past hour.

  He had his back to her with his phone pressed up against his ear, giving her the perfect view of his wide shoulders, softball-sized biceps and his nice, round ass. Why did such a know-it-all have to come in that sweet, sweet package?

  "Gillie, this isn't the best time. Let me call you ba—" Marko turned around, the look on his face anything but nice. He looked downright scary. "What do you mean, trouble?"

  Elisa perked up. She couldn't help it. The sort of trouble that gave Marko that kind of face was her favorite.

  "What do you mean you're there with Flynn?" Marko yanked on his beard as his eyes narrowed into mean little slits. "He's the last asshole you should be with." He paused to listen, then huffed out a frustrated breath. "Yeah, I know he's my friend. That doesn't mean I want my little sister hanging out with him."

  Oh yes. Now this was some juicy gossip. Wait until she told the rest of the girls. Vivi was going to have a field day busting his balls about being an overprotective older brother. Not that she'd be alone in doing that. Nope. Elisa planned on taking more than a few shots herself.

  "I have the B-Squad jet," Marko said into the phone. "I'll be there as soon as I can. Try not to blow the place up."

  He hung up and shoved the phone into the left pocket of his jeans—no doubt because he dressed right. So she’d looked. What was he gonna do, sue her for checking him out? By the time her gaze made it back up to Marko’s face, he was grinding his teeth down to nubs.

  She just smiled. "Explosives, like literally?"

  "With my sister?" He pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head. "Anything is possible. I gotta go."

  She fell into step beside him. "Not without me."

  He picked up his pace, which was a real asshole thing to do because his legs were about twice the length of hers.

  She didn't let it get to her, she just did a little walk-jog step to keep up. "Last time I checked, I was the only one of the two of us who had a pilot's license."

  Marko's step faltered, but he kept moving forward. "I can catch a ride with the Feds."

  "Not likely. All those thorny rules and regulations. You know you wouldn't be allowed to take your favorite toys if you did that. You know, the ones you definitely don't want the ATF to know about?"

  He stopped so fast that she almost slammed into him. Reaching out, she wrapped her fingers around as much of his bicep as she could just to keep her balance. He glared down at her. If he was trying to intimidate her, he was using the wrong tack. She'd grown up at the feet of the master of surliness.

  Cocking her head to the side, she gave him the extra bright smile she'd used when conning drunk bankers. "If you want to be airborne, looks like you're stuck with me."

  "I don't have time for this," he grumbled.

  "Then we’d better get moving." She hooked her arm through his and tried to tug him forward. He, of course, didn't budge. "I can't wait to meet your sister. I bet she knows all the dirt."

  And Elisa couldn't wait to find out every little detail.

  Marko mumbled something that sounded a lot like “God help me”, but he started walking again. Oh, he could pray all he wanted to, but she was finally going to get something to lord over his head for the next time he went all sexy armchair psychiatrist on her.

  Chapter 26

  Isaac

  Two Months Later

  There was no a pool outside the back door. There was no million-dollar art on the walls. There wasn't a single piece of wicker furniture anywhere in sight. And Isaac couldn't be happier.

  "Please God, tell me that's the last one."

  He looked over the top of the box labeled “clothes” that he was carrying from his truck to Tamara's house—scratch that—their house. She stood on the wide front porch of the 1920's-era Craftsman with a glass of wine in one hand and a beer in the other. Essie was visiting her uncle Albert in Hamilton for the four-day weekend, which made the timing perfect for the official move—not that anyone was shocked it was finally happening.

  Vivi won the five-hundred dollar betting pool about when he and Tamara would finally move in together. Keir offered to help her spend it, but she’d told him she didn't play with pretty boys. Those two were neck and neck with Marko and Elisa in the new office pool about who would be next to follow Taz and Bianca—and now him and Tamara—into coupledom.

  "This is it." He strolled
up the sidewalk and set the box on the iron bistro table next to the front door so he could accept the beer.

  Tamara cocked her head and stared at the box. "Why is there a picture of a baby drawn on the side?"

  He almost choked on the beer in his mouth.

  She did not…

  He circled around the table.

  Yes. Yes, she did.

  He let out a sigh. Really, it was best Tamara learned about his family up front. "That's my mom's idea of being subtle."

  "Wow," she said, not bothering to hold back her laugh.

  "Just wait until we're married." Shit. He hadn’t meant to say that. Not yet anyway.

  Her eyes went wide, but she recovered half a second later. It took more than a mention of marriage to throw his girl.

  She arched an eyebrow and took a sip of her wine. "What makes you think I'd say yes?"

  He took a step closer to her, reaching out and tilting her chin up. It put her sweet mouth at just the right angle for what he wanted. "I know for a fact you get all hot and bothered for cocky Texans with big trucks."

  "Is that what I like to be big?"

  "You know it, darlin'." He dipped his head lower wanting—needing—to touch her.

  "You never know. I might just surprise you." She pulled back before he could land the kiss and spun out of reach toward the door. "In fact, I've got one for you right now."

  "Does it involve getting naked?" Please say yes.

  She gave him that small smile of hers that said she knew exactly what he wanted to hear. "Mostly naked."

  "What are you leaving on?" The answer was almost as important as what she was taking off.