He heard a noise but didn’t have to turn around to check it out. He’d known Shane long enough to know he’d follow.
Shane took up the position next to Holt and stared out over the lawn. “So...”
That was just about as much as Holt wanted to hear. “Stop talking.”
“Not going to happen.” Shane turned and leaned against the post. The move put him face-to-face with Holt. “You still saying she’s just a job?”
Holt wanted to say yes, but he couldn’t force the word out. “No.”
“That’s progress.”
He didn’t even know how to explain it. He’d known her for a short time, but he’d been watching her for longer. Her looks knocked him flat, but there was something about her strength that reeled him in. Now that he had a window into her past and all the chances she’d taken, he couldn’t help being in awe of her.
This was not a woman who ran or withered. She’d meet him head-on, not take his grumpiness personally. Question was whether she’d welcome him into her bed again. “She’s...special.”
“Agreed.” Shane held up a hand as soon as he said the word. “Don’t look at me like that. I mean for you. I like you two together.”
The anger welling up inside Holt died back down. Shane wasn’t blind and Holt understood that, but Shane didn’t quite get this point. “We’re not.”
“You gave up the couch last night. I know because I woke up and took it.”
Yeah, there was no way to dodge that fact, so Holt didn’t try. “She was upset.”
Shane leaned his head back against the railing. “You are not really going to use that excuse for wanting her, are you?”
“I don’t deny it.” Holt had to give in. Blaming Lindsey amounted to being a coward on this score.
Truth was he’d walked into that room, knocked on that door, because he’d heard the faint tap of footsteps. He only picked up on that because he was attuned to everything about her and looking for any excuse to get her to open that door.
“You can’t deny.” Shane pointed at Holt’s head. “It’s obvious in the way you look at her and watch her move around the room.”
That sounded kind of pathetic. Holt had seen Cam fall under Julia’s spell. Had heard all about the others treading water as they met these certain women. Like her or not, want to sleep with her or not, Holt still didn’t want to get sucked into that kind of mess.
“It’s an attraction.” That wasn’t a lie, so he went with it.
“No, man. It’s more than that.”
Holt refused to bend on this. “I am not Cam or the other guys. I’m not looking to get all tripped up by a woman.”
But the more he said it, the less he believed it. He tried to work up his usual horror at the idea of being trapped and tied to one woman. Not that he slept around or liked to lead women on. He absolutely didn’t. He lived by one simple creed when it came to women—treat them how he would want his sister treated. That meant with respect and honesty.
He always started off by making the parameters clear. Fun and nothing more. He tried to remember if he’d delivered that speech to Lindsey. They’d been racing on fast forward since they met. There had barely been room for any sort of understanding...and he couldn’t bring himself to suggest whatever he had with her would be fleeting at best.
The woman was tying him up in knots and he couldn’t get free. Now he had to figure out if he even wanted to.
“One thing?” Shane’s tone suggested this could be a kick-to-the-gut type of thing.
Holt knew he should say no. Should walk away. Maybe get in the truck and go for a drive to clear his head. “What?”
“Tonight when you go into her room—and you will, so don’t deny it—maybe test and see how deep that attraction goes.”
Holt’s mind zipped to the night and Lindsey in those near-see-through pajamas and his brain shut down. “You’re giving me love-life advice?”
“I’m trying to save you from running around in circles like Cam just did.”
Holt feared it might be too late. “That’s not something I would do.”
“Right.” Shane pushed off from the railing. “You keep thinking that.”
Chapter Ten
Late that afternoon Holt’s truck pulled into the driveway in front of what looked like an old barn. The inside had been converted. A brother and sister lived in there, watching over the camp from afar and feeding information to Lindsey whenever possible.
She’d helped them get out, but truth was they were about to run away from the place on their own. From time to time, she’d stumbled onto Kurt Noonan buying maps and stealing tips from the café she worked in. It had taken Lindsey forever to build up enough trust to move in and make contact. But she had and now Kurt and Kelly were out.
That’s why Lindsey liked the café. Her aunt had left her with enough to be comfortable with her conservative money-spending lifestyle, but Lindsey needed to fit in and be able to gather intel, and working part-time at the café proved to be the perfect place for that.
She shut the truck door and came around to the front to stand next to Holt. Together they stared at the peeling red paint and what deceptively looked like a door half off its hinges. Grass grew wild and the tree branches inched closer to the house.
No one would ever guess about the technology setup in there. That would teach Simon Falls to educate kids on computer warfare.
“Where’s Shane?” she asked, thinking a third hand with a gun would not be a terrible idea.
Kurt and Kelly feared for their safety. Knowing two bodyguards stood watch might put them at ease.
“Doing a full-scale search of Roger’s cabin with Cam. They have some equipment to detect explosives and are going to plot out the safe places to move around on the property.”
The words fell flat inside her. “You mean they’re over there searching for his body.”
One of Holt’s eyebrows lifted. “Did I say that?”
He could skip the defensiveness, because she got it. From the first time she saw that blood pool, she’d known. This was not a case of Roger faking his death. This time he was gone. She could feel it to her bones. “Didn’t have to.”
With Grant dead and her the lead suspect for some reason, Holt claimed reporting Roger missing would only shine the spotlight brighter on her. The decision not to run to Frank Jr. with this, too, eased some of the anxiety pinging around inside her.
She followed Holt’s gaze. Watched him do his usual scan of the area. He stood always ready to protect and defend. It was one of the many things she liked about him.
He frowned at her. “I thought you told them we were coming.”
As much as he seemed to enjoy the frowning thing, it annoyed her. She filed that away for later because she would tell him. “I did.”
Holt leaned against the front of the truck. “Looks like no one’s home.”
“Always does.” Lindsey was prepared to be worried about a lot right now but not this one thing. “That’s part of the subterfuge.”
“They’re certain that someone from New Foundations is going to track them down and, what, drag them back?” The tone made the idea sound far-fetched. As if Simon Falls had better things to do with his time.
Lindsey knew better. “Kill them. The stockpile of weapons have some people up there twitchy, and that was before the newest round that you say is so dangerous was delivered.”
“It’s hard-core lethal.”
That was the part Lindsey couldn’t understand. Never did. They had the weapons and the ability to fire them. What then? Unless the guy planned to do battle with the next town over, the arsenal didn’t make sense.
She joined him in leaning. Felt the heat of the engine seep through her clothes. “Is Simon Falls planning on blowing up the town of Justice?”
“I wish I knew. If someone is in on it, they’re keeping it quiet.”
That wasn’t even a little hard to believe. “People up there thrive on secrets.”
“Tr
ue.” He stood up and held out a warning hand to her. “Stay here.”
As far as exits went, that was a good one. But it would not get him anywhere. They stood twenty feet away from the front door, and Lindsey doubted the Noonans would let them get more than a few inches closer without unleashing something. “They won’t let you in.”
“I get that, but I need to know it’s safe for you to come with me.” Holt kept walking, watching her but throwing glances in the direction of the building’s front door.
When he breached what she knew Kurt considered to be the final perimeter and nothing happened, something twisted inside her. She jumped away from the car. “Holt, wait.”
He immediately stopped. Didn’t question her warning, just obeyed. “What is it?”
“Something.”
He gestured toward the truck with a flick of his chin as he hit a button on his watch. “Get back in.”
“Too late.” She didn’t know, but she sensed that to be true. It was as if a huge ticking clock swung over her head and she could hear the ripping sound as it tore away, ready to crush her.
“Do not move.” He held a hand out to her as if that would stop her.
She might listen, but he still didn’t understand the people he was dealing with here. Kurt and Kelly were people with nothing left to lose because they’d lost everything, including the parents still inside whom they hadn’t seen in two years. “I could be wrong and if I am they won’t let you in.”
He frowned at her. “Yes, they will.”
She was all for confidence and a healthy shot of ego, but this was about safety. The idea of seeing him go down and watching the blood run out of his body nearly dropped her to her knees.
She had the sudden need to heave but bit it back. “They are trained, Holt. They will shoot you without question and not care how much I scream for them to stop. They might only be in their early twenties, but they spent most of their teen years being indoctrinated into a certain way of dealing with outsiders.”
Something got through, because his demeanor changed and resignation set in. “Fine.”
She was at his side a few steps later. Today she held one of Shane’s backup guns. It fit her hand and she’d practiced with it a few times, but she missed her own. The idea of it showing up somewhere connected to a crime scene sent a chill through her.
She still remembered racing into the house after Shane’s dire warning that it would be gone. The safe in her nightstand had been broken into. The gun gone.
But that was days ago. Now she ignored the fear and the frustration and focused on the adrenaline. It pumped through her, sending her heart racing in a wild beat.
The closer they got to the door, the more the dread settled in. She instinctively knew something had happened. If they walked into another crime scene, complete with blood, she might just lose it for the first time in her life.
Holt turned before getting to the front door. He took them around the right side of the building. He looked up and around the walls, his gaze never stopping as they closed in.
She wanted to ask about the plan, but she wasn’t sure there was one. But he had a destination in mind. Maybe he hoped to peek in a window, but that was not going to happen. The windows consisted of long slits, smaller than the size of a person and set up high. The Noonans had thought about everything when they converted this place.
As they slid along the side, Lindsey heard something. Faint and almost undecipherable. A noise, possibly the whistle of the breeze through the trees surrounding the building. Whatever it was. Holt must have picked it up, too, because he stopped. Froze and signaled for her to hold up.
Then she heard it again. An animal’s cry maybe? So soft. So odd.
Holt watched each step as he started moving again. The pebbles crunched under their feet, but he somehow limited the noise.
By the time they got to the back corner of the building, her nerves buzzed. The quiet had her jumping and glancing around. She couldn’t shake the sensation she was being watched. Stalked.
With his back to the wall, Holt looked around the corner. He shifted and then shifted back without making a sound. He stared at her and widened his eyes. She knew it was some sort of signal, but she didn’t know for what. That was enough to keep her quiet and standing there at the ready.
Holt looked again. This time longer. He must have seen something, and curiosity had her turning to try to look over his shoulder. No sooner had her front touched his back than she heard the noise. This one clear.
The crunch of stones had her turning back to where they just came from. The man appeared out of thin air. One second she heard the footsteps and the next a guy was almost on top of her. Not Kurt or Kelly or anyone else she knew. A stranger with a feral grin and a shiny gun.
He slammed into her side, sending them both sprawling to the ground. Her gun bounced out of her hand as she made a grab for Holt. She felt only air as her body flew. She landed with a hard thud on the ground. She expected the attacker to fall on top of her, pin her down, but nothing happened.
When she opened her eyes again, she saw Holt grab the guy. The men grunted and thuds rang out as they each landed punches. In form and fighting style they appeared evenly matched.
The attacker smashed Holt’s body into the wall, and the wood cracked beneath him. Then Holt landed a knee to the stomach.
They fell and rolled. The world whipped around her as a blur of men and dark clothes passed in slow motion in front of her. She patted the ground and scanned the grass for her gun. If she could grab the weapon and separate one man from the other, at least in her mind, she might be able to get off a shot.
As she watched, the attacker gained the advantage. After a series of punches to Holt’s side, the attacker threw him on the ground and straddled him. Slipped a knife out of a holder by his ankle and held it up over Holt.
Lindsey scrambled to find the weapon—any weapon. She needed to punch and kick. She’d made it to her knees, ready to jump on the guy and at least buy Holt time, when she saw a flash. Holt, looking defeated a second ago, lifted an arm. Got the gun between him and the attacker and fired.
The shot rang out. The attacker froze. The knife dropped as his hand went to his stomach. Red slipped through his fingers, and his eyes rolled back. Holt didn’t wait for him to fall. He shoved the man to the side and rolled away.
Lindsey unfroze from her spot and took off on her knees. She crawled over to Holt’s sprawled body. He had to be in pain and possibly on the verge of unconsciousness.
“Holt?” He said something in response, but she didn’t hear it. She leaned in closer. “What are you saying?”
His eyes popped open, clear and filled with anger. “We need to find the Noonans.”
He jackknifed into a sitting position. The move, so quick and sudden, scared her. She waited for him to fall over. Instead, he jumped to his feet.
Then it hit her. The defensive position and all those groans as the attacker landed punches...all fake. “Are you hurt at all?”
“No, but the guy could hit.”
Holt acted as though getting pummeled was no big deal. The other man had rammed his fist in Holt’s side over and over. Any other man would have fallen down in defeat. Not Holt. He created a ruse and lured the guy in. Lindsey looked over at the attacker’s still form and decided the right way to say it was that Holt lured him in and then killed him.
Without missing a beat, Holt checked the attacker for a pulse, then pocketed his weapon. Next he scooped up her gun and handed it to her. She stumbled around in a stupor. She hadn’t even been able to get off her knees.
He held a hand down to her. “Let’s go.”
She took it and got up. Rounding the corner, she saw what he’d been staring at. The tall grass around the back of the house had been trampled down for a long stretch. The path led away from the building and toward a second, much smaller one, half a football field’s length away.
Ducking down, Holt took off. He followed the path, walking be
side it. She followed, keeping low. Her footing faltered when she glanced down at the crushed grass and saw blood. Not a tiny trickle. This was enough to leave a long smear.
Panic whirred to life inside her. Her emotions had been bouncing from relief to fear, teetering one minute to the next. Now they stayed locked on blinding fear.
Her fingers tapped against Holt’s back to let him know she was there. He treated her to a short nod and kept going, which was exactly what she wanted. The danger hadn’t lapsed for the Noonans, people she considered both rescues and friends of a sort. Kindred spirits at least.
The storage shed sat away from the house. They kept everything in there from tissues to food. The shed housed their end-of-the-world supplies. They’d been so indoctrinated by Simon Falls that they couldn’t shake the hoarding tendency loose.
Holt looked around with an expression filled with scorn. She thought he might circle the shed looking for windows and thought to warn him. She didn’t have time. He lifted his leg and kicked the door in.
The wood shattered and the lock broke open with a crack. The door bounced, but Holt caught it with his shoulder. Going in first, he moved and hustled...then stopped.
Dread and sadness crashed over her in waves. “What is it?”
Holt didn’t stop to answer. He flew across the room to where Kelly was tied to a chair. He felt for a pulse and cut her free. With gentle hands, he laid her down against the floor.
Lindsey almost missed it all because she was busy hovering over Kurt’s lifeless form. He lay doubled over, almost in the fetal position. She checked for a pulse and couldn’t find one. Convinced her emergency skills were on the fritz, she looked to Holt.
He was already moving. He slid in beside her and felt for a pulse. Then tried again. He turned Kurt over and blood drained from the injury in his shoulder, washing over Holt’s hands to the floor.
He glanced up at her. “We need an ambulance, and fast. I don’t know what directions to give, so you’ll have to.”
Sheltered Page 10
