by Elle James
Reggie opened her hand and stared down at the simple gold band.
Sam took the ring from her and grasped her left hand. “Sadie’s right. Folks will automatically assume we’re married as long as they see you and me together with a wedding band on your ring finger.” He slipped the ring on her finger and smiled. “I do so solemnly swear to be the best pretend husband you could ever have and to protect you from harm to the best of my ability.”
Her pulse quickened, and her body flushed with heat at Sam’s softly spoken words. “And I promise to be your best pretend wife…oh, and not to forget your name.”
He grinned and brought her hand up to press a kiss to the backs of her knuckles. “There. Married, and it was pretty painless, if you ask me.” He winked.
Reggie smiled, though her smile faded at the thought of what they’d have to overcome to really be married. Or rather, what she’d have to overcome. Having been raped several times by the Master, she wasn’t sure she could ever enjoy sex again. She never wanted to be in the position of being trapped beneath a man, forcing himself on her. A shiver rippled down her spine at the images seared into her memory.
Sam brushed a strand of her hair back behind her ear. “It’s okay. I won’t let anyone hurt you,” he whispered.
How did he know what she’d been thinking? She looked up into Sam’s eyes. In her gut, she knew he would never be the kind of man to force himself on a woman. He’d been a gentleman the entire time he’d been taking care of her. He’d handled her with care and concern. Sam was the kind of man who, if they weren’t in such dire circumstances, could make her want to date him and eventually let him touch her intimately. “Thank you,” she responded, turned and led the way out of the basement and through the massive living room to the front door. Grunt lay on the porch in the sun. When they came out, he sat up, stretched and trotted over to stand beside Sam.
Once outside, Reggie drew in a deep breath and let it out along with some of the tension she hadn’t known was tightening her shoulders while they’d been in the Brotherhood Protectors war room basement.
She drew in another deep breath as if she couldn’t get enough.
Sam touched a hand to the small of her back. “Are you okay?”
She nodded. “I don’t think I’ll ever like being in a basement again, no matter how nice it is, or how well-lit. It’s still in the ground.”
“And makes you feel trapped.” Sam nodded. “I’ll try to remember that and avoid taking you down there in the future.”
She shook her head. “Don’t worry about me. We needed to see what Swede had found. And what he showed us gives us a starting point, which is more than we had before arriving here.”
Sam opened the passenger door of his truck and held it for Reggie. “Hopefully, Kujo and Molly will have some luck exploring the river with the drone.”
“Meanwhile, I’d like to do some of my own exploring on foot,” Reggie said as she climbed into the seat.
“Not too far,” Sam said with a frown. “Remember, you fought a fever last night. You don’t want to end up having a relapse.”
“I’m feeling better every minute.” She patted the cookies in her pocket. “And I have extra sugar to fuel me for a while.”
Sam rounded the hood of the pickup and held open the back door open for Grunt. The German Shepherd leaped up into the back seat.
After closing the door, Sam settled behind the steering wheel.
As they drove toward town, Reggie viewed the countryside. “I’ve lived in Bozeman most of my life, and I’ve been to Yellowstone, the Tetons and Glacier National Park, but I can’t recall ever driving out near Eagle Rock.”
Sam tilted his head toward the hills basking in the midday sun, the peaks still coated in patches of snow. “Hank tells me those are the Crazy Mountains. He grew up near here.”
“But you didn’t?” Reggie asked.
“No. I grew up in California close to San Diego.”
“How does a San Diego boy come to live in the cold north?” She gave him a crooked grin. “You do realize it gets down well below zero during the winter, don’t you?”
“I’ve heard,” he said, a smile quirking at the corner of his lip. He slowed to take a tight curve. “I’ve been in cold climates before.”
Reggie snorted. “Cold, yes. But have you been in minus 45 degrees with a windchill factor of minus 65?”
“Not quite. But I’m sure I can handle it.”
“Not many people who’ve always lived in the warm southern climates last long up here,” Reggie warned.
He chuckled. “Don’t worry. I’m not easily scared away by a little weather.”
She crossed her arms over her chest and stared forward, nodding her head, a smirk pulling at her lip. “Yeah. We’ll see.”
“I came here because of the job. But more because of the Brotherhood.”
Reggie turned to stare at him. “You and Hank mentioned the Brotherhood Protectors. What is that?”
“Hank was medically retired from the Navy SEALs and came back to his home in Montana because his father needed help on his ranch. He reunited with his high-school sweetheart.”
“Sadie McClean is his high school sweetheart?” Reggie shook her head. “Wow. That’s an interesting fact.”
“Hank said Sadie was being stalked and terrorized. Someone was trying to kill her. Hank stuck to her like glue and soon figured out Sadie’s sister-in-law was jealous of Sadie and was trying to kill her.”
“Wow. I didn’t know that. How come I didn’t see that in the news?”
“Hank and Sadie wanted to spare her brother. He wasn’t involved. The ex-spouse is now in jail.” Sam continued, “Anyway, Hank realized Montana had become a mecca escape for rich folks. And rich folks come with their own baggage and the need for protection. He started the Brotherhood Protectors to provide a security service for people who need help and don’t know who to turn to.”
“Like me.”
He nodded. “Like you.”
“Where does he get people he can trust to do the job and not be corrupted?” Reggie asked.
“He mans it with men who’ve been highly trained in weapons and combat skills. Men who are good at thinking on their feet and would do anything to protect those they are responsible for. He hires former special operations men from the Navy SEALs, Delta Force, Marines and Rangers.”
“Men with some serious skills in combat and self-defense,” Reggie said. “Wow. I’m impressed.”
“Not only does he have skilled men, he gives these skilled men a place to work, using the skills they’ve trained so hard to acquire. Some leave the military like Hank having been medically retired. Others, like me, are looking to start living outside a war zone.”
As they neared Eagle Rock, Reggie pulled the visor down and checked her disguise in the mirror. She adjusted the dark wig and settled the sunglasses over her eyes.
“Don’t worry,” Sam said. “You don’t look anything like the woman I found on the riverbank.”
“Good.” She studied the houses and streets as they passed several buildings. One had a sign hanging in front of it proclaiming it the Blue Moose Tavern. Further along was a building marked Sheriff’s Department. As they left town, they passed an elementary school with cars parked out front.
“It’s a cute little town,” Reggie remarked. “Hard to think a serial rapist lives here or nearby. And none of the women he’s holding captive came from here.”
“Sounds like he doesn’t want to target women too close to where he lives,” Sam said.
They headed out on a highway leading west of town and soon turned off onto a narrower paved road. A few miles farther, Sam turned left onto a dirt road that became increasingly bumpy as they went.
“I don’t remember anything about you bringing me out of here,” Reggie said.
“That’s because you were out cold in the backseat.” He shot a glance her way. “When I found you, I wasn’t sure you were alive. If I’d been a few minutes later and Grun
t hadn’t been there…” He faced forward, his jaw set in a grim line. “The outcome would have been significantly different.”
Reggie nodded. She would have been dead. Beth, Marly, Terri and Kayla would have had no one out here trying to find and free them from that monster.
Sam finally pulled to a halt in a grassy area that sloped downward to the river.
For a moment, Reggie sat staring at the water, mesmerized by how smooth and peaceful it seemed. The last time she’d been in that river, she had been fighting to stay alive, first by escaping a madman, and then his dogs. Then she’d struggled to keep her head above water in the frigid snow melt that came from the mountains.
“We don’t have to do this,” Sam said quietly beside her.
For a moment, she debated telling him to turn around and go back to the little cabin where he’d taken her to recuperate. But she couldn’t hide. Lives depended on her.
Reggie squared her shoulders. “No. I’m okay.”
Sam dropped down from the truck and hurried around to open her door and the back door to the pickup. Grunt leaped out and ran off.
Reggie frowned as she accepted Sam’s hand and let him help her down onto the uneven ground. “Will he get lost?”
“So far, he’s come back every time.”
“How long have you had Grunt?”
Sam snorted. “A week. I adopted him after he’d been retired from military service. His handler was killed on our last mission. Grunt was injured, he lost an eye, and he spooks too easily over loud sounds since he was caught in an explosion. Because he’d become too skittish for a war zone, they put him up for adoption. Fortunately, I’d already let them know I wanted him. He deserves a forever home with someone he knows and who knows him.”
“Were you and his handler close?” Reggie asked.
“As close as you get when you’re deployed together. Sgt. Bledsoe and Grunt saved our asses on more than one occasion, locating explosives before we walked over them. Unfortunately, a Taliban rebel tossed a shrapnel grenade in front of them in a narrow alley. They didn’t have a chance to dodge it or get away.”
The tightness in Sam’s voice made Reggie’s chest constrict. She’d been through a hell of one kind, but Sam had been through the hell of war. She reached out and touched his arm. She couldn’t think of any words that could take away the pain of losing someone you cared about, so she stood for a moment in silence.
Grunt broke the silence by loping into view and coming to a skidding halt in front of them, his tongue lolling, the damaged eye appearing like more of a wink than a battle scar.
Reggie laughed. “I believe Grunt has the hang of being a civilian already.”
“I’d never seen an animal happier to see me than Grunt when I picked him up at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas. He’s even a good traveler.”
“You drove all the way from Texas to Montana?”
Sam nodded. “We did.” He scratched behind Grunt’s ear. “He’s relaxed a lot, but he’s still a highly trained animal. We just don’t have a lot of need for his skills sniffing bombs. But he does come in handy for finding and protecting damsels in distress.”
Reggie reached out and patted the dog’s head. “He is an amazing animal.”
Sam took Reggie’s hand. “The bank is a little steep and can be slippery if it’s wet.”
She didn’t pull her hand free, preferring the help when her knees were still a little weak. She’d never admit it to Sam, though.
He led her to the bank where a fishing pole lay in the grass. Sam bent to retrieve the pole, shaking his head. “I’m surprised this is still here.”
“I’m sorry I ruined your fishing trip,” Reggie said. “That gear has to be expensive.”
“You didn’t ruin my fishing trip. You made it…” he smiled, “more interesting.”
Reggie snorted. “Interesting is the word you use when you don’t want to insult the person you’re talking about by saying it sucked.”
“No, really,” Sam said. “I’ve never been fly fishing. A lot of my buddies told me how great it was, and that I should do it since I was going to Montana.” He shrugged. “I had a week to kill before I officially started work. So, I bought the gear and did what people do when they come to Montana. I tried my hand at fly fishing.” He raised his eyebrows. “I think I like the old cane pole and worm kind of fishing better.”
“You had a week to kill before starting to work for the Brotherhood Protectors?” Reggie frowned. “So, you didn’t get your week of vacation. I’m so sorry. You were active duty and a Navy SEAL. I’m sure you needed it.”
Sam shoved a hand through his hair. “Actually, I wasn’t sure what to do with it. I’ve spent most of the past eleven years surrounded by people. It kind of scared the shit out of me going on a vacation by myself.” He smiled. “So, you see, you saved me from a fate worse than death…being alone on my vacation.”
Her heart swelled at his kindness. He was a balm to her ravaged soul. Just what she’d needed after what she’d endured. “You had Grunt,” she pointed out.
“You might not have noticed,” Sam nodded toward the dog, sniffing at a frog, “but he’s not much of a conversationalist.”
The frog leaped. Grunt jumped back.
Reggie laughed. “He might not talk much, but he’s good entertainment. And I’m sure he’s happy you saved him from life in a kennel.”
Sam’s smile faded as he looked at Grunt chasing after the frog. “There were so many more awaiting adoption. I’m thinking Grunt needs a friend.”
Reggie watched Sam, glad he was the one to find her and sad at the same time. If only they’d met under different circumstances. She still felt dirty and violated and wasn’t sure when that feeling would fade or ever go away.
She squared her shoulders. “Okay, Grunt, time to go to work. Where did you find me?”
Grunt looked up at his name and tilted his head to one side, his bad eye winking at her. He took off downstream.
“Is that the way he found me?”
Sam chuckled. “He’s not much of a conversationalist, and he can’t understand all human words. No. He’s headed downstream. We found you upstream.” He cupped her elbow gently.
Reggie didn’t even flinch when he did. Because she was still a little on the weak side, she appreciated his assistance moving along the uneven ground, working their way upstream.
When they came to a grassy area and a small sandbar jutting out into the river, Sam stopped.
Reggie gulped, swallowing a lump forming in her throat. “Here?” She looked up to Sam.
He nodded. “You were lying face-down in the sand. I thought you were dead.”
Reggie’s gaze followed the footsteps to an imprint in the sand where her body must have been. She knelt and touched the cool sand, her eyes filling. “Thank you,” she said.
Grunt loped up to stand beside her, his gaze on the brush on the other side of the sandbar.
“What’s wrong, Grunt?” Reggie stared in the same direction as the dog but didn’t see anything in the shadows of the bushes. “What’s he growling about?” She turned toward Sam.
Sam had his hand in his jacket, reaching for his gun. He pulled it out, his mouth set in a grim line. “He had a stand-off with a wolf the last time we were here.”
As quickly as he’d started growling, the dog stopped and bumped her playfully with his wet nose. He ran over to the brush and sniffed around before he hiked a leg and peed on the lower branches.
Reggie laughed. “I guess he’s marking his territory in case the wolf comes back.”
Sam nodded, his shoulders relaxing as Grunt ran back to where they stood. The dog appeared relaxed, as if no danger existed in the immediate vicinity.
Reggie straightened and walked along the river’s edge, heading further upstream. The more she walked, the more her gut tightened.
“Kujo and Molly have to be quite a way up the river by now.” Sam looked into the distance where the river curved to the north. “We’d be be
tter off going back to Hank’s and reviewing the video from the drone.”
“I know it’s crazy to think we could walk all the way back to the cliff where I jumped. It could be miles away,” Reggie said, continuing to walk along the bank, not ready to turn back and admit defeat. “The river was moving much faster there. Not like it is here. I’d call this meandering, barely flowing. Where I jumped in, it was deep, and the water swept me away.”
Grunt ran ahead, plowing into the water as if he saw something moving beneath the surface and running back out to shake away the water from his coat.
As Sam kept pace with Reggie, he slipped his hand from her elbow to capture her fingers with his. She liked the way his big hand held hers firmly so that she wouldn’t fall. Yet, she knew if she wanted to let go, he wouldn’t hold on. He’d release her. Knowing she had the choice made her want to keep holding his hand.
The terrain grew steeper and rockier. Reggie climbed up a hill that overlooked the river below. The hill sloped back down on the other side and rose again to an even higher hill covered in Lodgepole pines and other evergreens. She didn’t see any actual cliffs in the distance, but then the river curved back behind the next hill, and there weren’t any houses close to the river. At least, none that she could see.
She sighed. “I don’t know what I expected to find, but it’s not here where I can see it.” She turned to face Sam. “I guess we’d better head back before it starts getting dark.”
Gunfire ricocheted off the hills.
“Get down!” Sam jerked Reggie’s arm, hauling her down to the ground.
Something crashed through the trees and underbrush, running in their direction.
Grunt shot off in the direction of the noise, his usual barking silent.
“Grunt!” Sam called out.
The dog didn’t slow or stop, disappearing into the underbrush.
Another shot rang out, and the crashing ceased.
Reggie froze close to the ground, her heart pounding.
