"I can't let you do that. What about Rissa and your parents? If I bring you with me, it will put them in the crosshairs as well."
"You let me handle that." He got out of the truck and pulled the tire out of the bed. Handing it off to one of the workers he explained what he wanted and then turned to find her standing beside him. She had her arms crossed, and her eyes shot fire. Cowboy grinned.
"Tone it down, firecracker." He tugged her against his side. She fit perfectly against him even though her head only came to the bottom of his shoulder.
"What are you doing?" she hissed as she tried to move away.
"Better get used to it, honey. I'm not letting you out of my sight. As your stated boyfriend, I'm going to be stuck on you like water on a frog's ass."
Miley snorted. "Something tells me I've created a monster."
Leaning down, Cowboy inhaled the fresh fragrance of her hair as he pressed a kiss to the top of her head. She smelled like clean linen and sunshine, and it became one of his most favorite scents ever. "Besides, it's best if it looks believable. You know, just in case someone is watching."
She glanced around wildly but pressed a little closer to him. "Do you think anyone is?" she whispered to him.
He grinned as he curled his arm around her shoulders and held her close to him. He enjoyed teasing her. "Nah. But practice makes perfect."
After her tire was ready and before they got back onto the road, Cowboy treated her to lunch at a local greasy spoon. They talked pleasantly about nothing in particular, but he could tell she still carried the weight of her worries on her shoulders. He wanted to do something, but he wasn't sure exactly what. It was time to bring in the reinforcements.
Cowboy navigated through Cody and turned back toward Greybull. Once they passed the city limits, he pulled out his cell. Handing it to her, he told her to find Bruiser in the contacts then call and put it on speaker. She did as he asked.
"Hey Cowboy. How's your dad?"
"Hey, Bruise. He's good. Went home today."
"That's fantastic. I know you're relieved."
"I am." Cowboy glanced over at the confused frown on Miley's face then dove in. "Listen, Bruise; I have a situation here. One that is going to take some special help."
"Alcide, no. I don't want..." she began, but he cut her off with a look.
Bruiser's voice became businesslike. "You got it. Want me to pull in the team?"
"Yeah, get them. We'll hold."
"Alcide," Miley whispered as her hand grasped the phone tightly. "If something happens to one of your friends, I don't know how I could live with myself."
He pulled over to the edge of the road and put the truck in park. Turning toward her, he plucked the telephone from her hands and rubbed his thumb across her palm. "Look, my team is as close to me as my own family. Sometimes, I think they're closer. I'm going to need some help getting this taken care of. And, yes, I'm going to get it taken care of. I'm not about to leave you here in a few days with this shit hanging over your head. Now, let me do what I'm trained to do, okay?"
She sighed but nodded.
"Good girl."
The sound of shuffling erupted from the cell speaker followed by several low voices. After a few seconds, Bruiser came back on the line. "Okay, Cowboy, we're here."
"Turn on your video call program. I have someone I want you to meet." The screen was filled with five faces staring intently. "Hey, guys. This is Miley. Miley this is my SEAL team. Bruiser is the team lead, then Railroad, Hick, Finch and on end is Toad."
"Dayum, Cowboy, you do not deserve a woman as fine as that," Toad piped up. "She's way too hot for a guy that plays with horses and smells like hay."
Miley smiled tightly. "I'm a veterinarian. I like horses and hay is one of my favorite scents."
Beside Toad, Finch slapped him on the back of the head. "Sorry about that, Miley. We don't normally let him out without a muzzle. It's nice to meet you."
Miley nodded. "Nice to meet you too. Wow, I'm guessing those are all nicknames?"
"They are," Hick nodded.
"That's a story I'll want to hear someday."
"You will." Cowboy was glad to see her relax if only for a bit.
With the lull in the conversation, Bruiser turned the screen slightly. "What's going on?"
As quickly as he could, he outlined the situation with Hoxha and the illegal dumping. When he informed them of the threats against Miley and her family, the team's eyes darkened. Cowboy knew their protective instincts were rearing up.
"I don't think she should go there tomorrow," Finch almost growled the words. "It's not safe."
"I don't want to go, but they made it pretty clear if I don't, they will do something drastic to Pop-pop or Jessie. I have to go."
"And I'm going with her," Cowboy added.
Bruiser rubbed his hand over his face. "I don't like this. I know you have your training, Cowboy, but those are some pretty shitty odds. One against a dozen of potentially armed men."
"If she doesn't show up..."
"Yeah, I know." Bruiser cut him off. "But I still don't like it. Are you sure the local police are in their pockets?"
Miley thought about the way the two officers had behaved. Both had watched for signals from Hoxha. "Maybe? I think a couple are, but I don't know who all else."
"So basically we're looking at corruption that could potentially go pretty deep into local, state and federal agencies. Damn, Cowboy, and I thought life on the farm was supposed to be laid back and easy."
"Normally, it is, Finch." He glanced over at Miley and smiled at her.
"Have you talked to Digger?" Railroad asked. "Sounds like this will affect his family as well."
"He means Ryker McMillan," Cowboy told a confused Miley. Turning back to the screen, he shook his head. "Not yet. Miley just told me about this today, and I called you. We haven't even made it back to her truck yet. I waited to call you until we were alone. We don't know who may be following or watching."
"Good thinking. Do you need more time off?"
Cowboy sighed and thrust his fingers into his hair. "I can't. I've taken all I have now, and besides, if the team gets called out, I need to be there. You can't keep borrowing another EOD from other teams."
"We only did that once, and Dude was fine with it. I can talk to Dixon about squeezing a few days more. There's no way to get everything in place before you have to report on Thursday. I don't like leaving Miley there alone to deal with this. There're too many unknown variables."
"I'll go. I have a ton of time I haven't taken," Railroad volunteered. "I can keep watch over them."
"Count me in," Toad added. "I've never been to Montana."
"Wyoming," Cowboy and Miley said in unison.
"Potato, potahto," Toad said with a shrug. "As long as the babes are as fine as Miley, I won't care if it were Possumneck, Mississippi. That's a real place, by the way. I dated a woman who lived there a few years ago. She had the sweetest Southern twang you ever heard. Drew out every syllable until it was like a song." His eyes took on a far-off look, and he smirked. "Her name was Betty Anne or maybe Barbara Anne. It could have been something with Sue in it. Man, the way she could kiss... I may not remember her name, but those lips were unforgettable."
"Jesus," Bruiser muttered and shook his head. "Can it, Toad." He turned to the screen. "What do you think about a couple of the guys coming up there to keep an eye on things? I know it's not optimum, but you know next to you being there with her, she'll be the safest possible."
The thought of Toad even within a mile of Miley made his teeth clench. Yeah, no. He wasn't about to let that horndog anywhere near her. "I don't think that will work. If a couple of new people suddenly show up and hang out on my ranch, it may tip them off that she talked."
"Then we need to get her out of there. In a way that doesn't raise suspicion."
"Yeah, about that." Cowboy glanced over at Miley. He knew she wasn't going to be happy with what he was about to say, so he just plowed throug
h. "I have a couple of ideas, actually. I want to bring Miley with me back to San Diego. She told Hoxha's brother that we were dating. She's been under a lot of stress lately and who's to say she doesn't need a little break."
"Still risky," Railroad chimed in. "The two of you disappearing at the same time right after they threatened her. They may go after your family, Cowboy. Your Pops doesn't need that kind of aggravation while he's still recovering. And don't forget her grandfather as well."
"No." Miley shook her head vigorously. "I'm not going to leave my grandfather and the clinic here. If I leave now they may think I talked to someone. I won't have others harmed because of my actions. I mean, crap, they think you're my boyfriend. Your family will be in danger as well."
Alcide reached over and lightly gripped her chin in his fingers, turning her face toward him. Once he was sure he had her complete attention, he told her, "Then we'll have to get them before they can get us."
Chapter 10
What had she gotten herself into?
Miley felt completely overwhelmed and more than a little helpless. It seemed everything in her life was falling apart, and she was unable to stop the decay. Now, she had included Alcide's family along with his team, albeit not intentionally. If only she had kept her mouth shut instead of unloading her troubles onto his broad shoulders.
She was so lost in her thoughts; she didn't realize they had pulled in front of her pickup until he parked and turned off the engine. Glancing up, she noticed Alcide staring through the window with a strange look on his face. "Huh."
Miley frowned. "What is it?"
Instead of answering, he opened his door and approached her truck. Miley opened her door and joined him. Following his gaze, she wrinkled her brow at what she saw.
The once bare rim contained a brand new tire. Actually, as she walked around her truck, all four tires were obviously new. She frowned and glanced up.
Alcide stood at her door looking through the cab at her.
All the way through the glass at her.
She reached a hand out and touched the new glass that had been installed in her passenger side door. Her puzzlement grew as she tried to figure out if some good Samaritan had come along and fixed her vehicle.
Looking inside, she spied a small box placed on top of the piece of warped cardboard that had recently resided in her passenger side door. Taking out her keys, she unlocked the door and opened it. She started to reach for it when Cowboy grabbed her hand and pulled it back. "Let me look first," he said in a growl. Anger radiated off him like August heat off the sands of a beach.
With a swallow, Miley took a step back and allowed him to replace her in the door. Standing on her tiptoes, she glanced around his shoulder as he leaned in and examined the box. He muttered under his breath too low for her to hear and that sent chills down her spine. What did Alcide think was in the box?
Several minutes went by before he finally nodded and picked up the box. Sliding the top up a fraction of an inch, he bent his head over, examining the minute crack. After a few nerve-wracking seconds, he pulled the top off. Miley winced as if expecting something to happen.
"Well." Alcide turned around and showed her the opened box. Inside was a brand new cell phone the same model that had been destroyed. As they stared at it, it suddenly began to ring. Alcide swore and threw it as far as he could away from the truck. They both watched expectantly as it rang several more times then fell silent.
Miley looked at Alcide. "What is going on here? Where did the tires and window come from? Who left that cell?"
"Isn't it obvious?"
"Hoxha." His name was like a foul swear on her lips. "Why?"
"Maybe he feels like he owes you. More than likely, it is a bid to make you feel uncomfortable. To get under your skin as it were."
Miley wrapped her arms around her torso and rubbed herself. "It's working."
In an instant, Alcide was there, pulling her into his embrace and holding her close. "This is going to be over soon."
She melted in his arms, pressing her cheek against his chest as his warmth enveloped her. It felt good to feel him around her, strong and protective. For a moment, she thought of Jacob. He'd held her like this, close to his body, sheltering her from the world. In the beginning.
Then as time went by, it went from nurturing and protective to overwhelming and pushy. It was little things at first - the way she dressed and questions about where she was and when she would be home. Then it became more until one day she realized he had taken her life from her and replaced it with something that she didn't recognize.
Pushing back, she put space between them. Alcide was here to help. Although she did need that help, she didn't need to be held. She was strong enough to take care of herself. Slamming the walls back down, she glanced over at the truck. "Do you think it's safe to drive?"
"Yes." His answer was short and succinct.
Beside her, about 30 yards out, the cell phone started to ring again. Both of them glared at it.
"I don't care if it's a brand new one or not, I don't want that phone anywhere near me."
He nodded as he stuck his hands into his pocket. "Yeah, I wouldn't either. It's not wired, which is what I was afraid of, but it's better to be safe than sorry. There could be some tracking software on it. Not to mention, the fact they knew where your truck was and had the balls to fix their damage to send a message? Yeah, I don't blame you there."
Miley closed the passenger door and walked around to the driver side. Unlocking the door, she slid in and closed it. Alcide motioned for her to roll the window down. When she did, he leaned in.
"I'll follow you to your place. Don't forget, Rissa wants you to come out to the house for dinner tonight."
"I remember," she answered quietly. Sticking her key in the ignition, she started the motor, backed up and made a U-turn in the middle of the road. Glancing at the mirror, she saw him climb into his truck then follow her.
She chewed her bottom lip and her insides were tied into knots of indecision. She was drawn to Alcide in a way she had never felt before. The logical side of her mind told her to keep a distance while the softer, sentimental piece of her heart whispered for her to give him a chance.
"What if he's like Jacob?" she asked herself.
What if he's not? Her heart replied.
Cowboy followed Miley as they made their way back to Greybull. Although his attention was intent on her truck and their surroundings, his mind mulled over everything he had learned today. He had some answers but not nearly enough. If he was going to get her out of this situation, he needed to know more.
His cell rang, and he punched the hands-free. "Montgomery."
Bruiser's voice filled the cab. "Can you talk?"
"Yeah, I just dropped her off at her truck. Man, you aren't going to believe this. When we got there, her tires were all fixed along with the window they had broken. There was a new cell on the seat too, but she threw it away."
Bruiser swore. "He's trying to get in her head. Passive aggressive bullshit to keep her on her toes. Bastard."
"That's what I thought too. Have you found anything new?"
"Yep, let me conference you in."
There was a shuffle then a click. "Hey, Cowboy." He could hear the slight twangy accent of the information technician known as Tex. "I hear you have a little problem."
"You could say that."
There was a chuckle then a third voice piped in. "Alcide. Man, leave you alone for five minutes, and you get into trouble."
"Digger? Is that you?"
"Yep. Bruiser called and told me about what was going on. They're messing with my family, my home. I'm not about to sit still and let it happen. Whatever you need, Demma and I are here to help."
Bruiser cut in. "I've got the rest of the team here."
Cowboy let out a long breath of relief. At least he wasn't in this alone.
"All right. Digger, tell us what you found," Bruiser was all business.
"Tariq Hoxha is a
third generation mobster and was the number three in the Bushati family in Miami. He and his younger brother, Loran, broke with the rest of the family last year and branched out on their own taking nine lesser soldiers with them. It's also rumored he made off with ten million dollars in his boss's drug money. The split left the remainder of the family vulnerable to a territory war with two rival gangs, Los Ojos Muertos and the Red Devils. Because of this war, they aren't able to seek retaliation for the betrayal, although if Hoxha showed in Florida, I doubt he would survive the trip. Rumor has it Kreshnik Bushati had put a bounty on Hoxha's head but retracted it due to the cost of the turf war. The good news is, Hoxha is high and dry with no ties to the Albanian mob. He's all alone. There won't be any reprisal from Bushati. The bad news is, the war is winding down. According to the gang task force in Dade County, they expect peace to be declared by Christmas. That will free up resources to come looking for Hoxha. We don't need that kind of warfare in Greybull. It'll tear the town apart. My family, yours, and everyone we know will be affected by it."
"Shit," Toad swore softly. "So we need to get him out of there sooner rather than later. Otherwise, your hometown will be ground zero for a bloody gang war."
"What are we looking at logistics-wise?" Hick asked.
"I pulled up satellite images of the area," Tex began. "The Double H Ranch looks to be a normal working ranch. I compared photos from three months ago. There's evidence of new trails being made, a new barn and several new cabins. It is an elaborate setup that looks totally legitimate."
"Except he's using it as a cover." Cowboy growled and gripped the wheel tighter. "Do we have any idea what his operation is doing?"
"Tariq Hoxha was a genius when it came to making the big dollar. He was well trusted by Bushati and given a lot of room. That's one reason why he was able to take off with so much money," Digger answered. "However, I did find something interesting. In 2003, there was an investigation launched by the Environmental Protection Agency over some heavy metal toxic waste being dumped in the Everglades. They had a witness that had evidence implicating the Bushati family. According to sealed documents, Bushati was being charged with a hundred and twenty-eight counts of illegal dumping and Hoxha had seventy-four counts as well. With the testimony of the witness and other evidence, they were almost guaranteed a conviction."
Safeguarding Miley Page 8
